“Hello! I’m Mitchell, the new governor for the North. A pleasure to meet you~”
The new governor came to the village to pay his respects, at least that was what he said.
He was quite friendly, though it might be better to say he was kind of a light-hearted person.
Meanwhile, Dant-san—the former governor—was beside me with a raised eyebrow.
“Ahm, well, I’m Luke, the chief of this village. Thank you for coming all this way.”
“Oh, please sir, I don’t know what I’ll do if you humble yourself so. I am but a servant of House Albert.”
He should have knowledge that I was expelled out of our noble house, yet he still showed me respect as though I wasn’t. That wasn’t enough of a reason to let my guard down though.
According to Dant-san, the new governor was from a rather poor family. He wasn’t in the army either. No, he rose up through the ranks because of his own work and management skills. In other words, he was a self-made man.
Until recently, he served as the governor of a western county, but Dant-san’s removal from office prompted a transfer.
“Rather than being chosen by Raul-sama, I think he was chosen by the group of retainers who remained in the capital to support Raul-sama. I don’t know much about him, but rumors about him all point to him being a capable person. My point is, he is capable enough to be entrusted the North in such a dire time, so don’t let his demeanor fool you.”
Dant-san whispered so to me.
However, my villager appraisal skill told me he didn’t have any vile ulterior motives.
“But, my, what a wonderful city you have here. It’s pretty, lively, devoid of trash as well as vagabonds. Plus, I hear there’s lots of delicious food, and public bathhouses that can be used at any time. Of course, there are those dwellings that your citizens can comfortably live in. It makes so much sense why people are immigrating here one after another. In all honestly, I too want to live in a city like this.”
Mitchell-san openly praised the village like that.
“Well then, let’s get down to business, shall we? I have a proposal for you, Luke-sama.”
Mitchell-san suddenly started talking with a serious tone, and the air quickly became tense.
This proposal, in all likelihood, was the real reason for his visit.
While Dant-san gave me a look as though to say “if he starts making stupid demands, leave the rest to me”, Mitchell-san continued talking.
“I’d like to ask you to make the North a part of this city.”
“As expected, we can’t accep–––huh?”
Dant-san reflexively refused, but then let out a baffled voice.
“Make the North a part of this city…? Not make this city a part of the North?”
“Hahaha. You are aware, of course, that this city’s population, industry, and military might at this moment far exceeds that of Riesen, the largest city in all of the north, yes? You might even say it’s superior to all of the North combined. Given that, I don’t think we’re in a position to demand anything from city like this. And just so we’re all on the same page, I’ve actually been told by my superiors to leave this city alone, meaning this proposal’s my own.”
Mitchell-san said so and then smiled mischievously.
As for the former governor, his face twitched wildly.
“A large number of the North’s people have already immigrated here anyway, and there’s no sign that that trend will subside anytime soon. If left unattended, there’ll be no one left in the North. If that’s the case, I’d rather we join your ranks sooner rather than later.”
“B-but can you really make that decision on your own…?”
“So long as they don’t find out, it’s fine, right?”
“Wha…”
Ignoring Dant-san who was at a loss for words, Mitchell-san smiled and proceeded to make requests.
“Is it possible to make the dwellings in your city back in Riesen? And those fields where incredible crops can grow? And while I’m at it, we’d very much appreciate those public bathhouses.”
“S-stop spouting nonsense. Even with Luke-sama’s Gift, Riesen’s too far––”
“…yeah, it’s possible.”
“Eh?”
The size of the village—that is, the area where my village skills could be used in and not only the area where people lived—was now larger than the whole North and I didn’t seem to have any problem using my skills anywhere within it.
Based on that, distance didn’t seem to matter as long as it was within a part of the village.
Of course, this move would also mean that I would be making all the citizens of the North my villagers.
…so, are you sure?
TL notes: I guess by the way I translated “the North”, one can say that Mitchell had served as governor of the West. I think it’s better to leave it as western county until further context reveal otherwise.
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