7 – lay the foundation

The Altei family is definitely a family of counts in the Empire, but they have a slightly special county title.

Unlike the other counts who enter as vassals of dukes, they do not belong to either side.

Although there is also the fact that no one tried to make the Altane family, which caused social controversy, as their vassals.

Because of this, all the income from ‘Mene’, the jurisdictional territory, comes to the Altane family.

If you listen to this far, you feel that the Altane family has advanced in managing the territory.

But not really.

The reason why Altane abandons the territory in the beginning of the game and wanders all over the empire,

One of them was in Imene.

As soon as I returned from the Aistin family, I went to visit Mene.

It was because the income from Mene was inconsistent in the recent report from Risha.

“… this is a bit.”

Arriving at Mene, I was astonished.

Crumbling shacks and sloppily built houses out of rotting wood that didn’t fit the times.

Despite being a fairly technologically advanced world, I rubbed my eyes one after another while looking at the views of the outdated town.

Mene looked more like a refugee camp than a village.

Parents carrying their children on their toes in the middle, those lying on the sidewalk, and those gathered around a bonfire in the corner were all thin and without proper clothes.

I didn’t even expect an enlisted soldier like a guard.

―There’s no way you know how to exploit the people of the territory in the corner of your room.

Reina’s words from a while ago passed by.

‘Did this mean… .’

Even though I had been here for over a week, I hadn’t left the mansion.

Because I was just struggling with my way to survive.

Since he was a count, he thought, of course, he would have a territory.

The income was good, so I thought there was no need to worry too much.

Altane Lee Menne expects to collapse and she is trying to run away as an academy.

“mom… I’m hungry.”

“Did you eat it for breakfast? Let’s be patient today, okay? Mom will get it early tomorrow.”

The conversation between a mother and a daughter as they passed by pierced the inside.

When I ate three warm meals at the mansion, they couldn’t even eat one properly.

I quietly clenched my fists.

I am disgusted with the person I have become, Lian Altane.

I lowered the robe I was wearing and quietly asked Risha, who was following me.

“Lishya, how long has it been since the income came in?”

“… This week is perfect, one month.”

“Right.”

According to the cycle, you have to collect ‘tax’ from them again this week.

All the employees who collected it left, so I had to do it myself… .

According to Risha, I used to collect taxes with a guard.

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Judging from the fact that he can’t be seen right now, he must have been cut off, or he must have run away because he was tired of seeing Altane like this.

Lisa was looking at me with a worried look.

He probably thinks I’ve come to pick it up myself. Although there are no enlisted soldiers, Altean’s individual strength exceeds that of ordinary people. Overpowering will be easy.

Even after seeing this scene, the only one who feels that way is Altane.

I went into the center where the shacks were gathered to look around the town a bit more.

Unlike the entrance to the village, there were quite a few people gathered here and there in the shantytown.

Among them, I approached a noisy group.

As I got closer, I could hear the men’s voices.

“That’s what I mean! We’ve endured so far, but now Mene doesn’t see any hope, so why the hell do we have to be like this… .”

“Then do you have anywhere to go? I don’t even have the money to go anywhere since all the money is taken away.”

“Have you already forgotten what Mr. Barth said yesterday? It’s only now to go. You have to go when you have enough money. It’s the collection period soon.”

“I will go. I can’t live a life like livestock anymore!”

I expected it, but both the outside and the inside of the town were on the verge of collapsing.

Listening to them, it seemed that Altane had collected all of the property of the territories every month.

It was probably intended to keep his wealth in check and prevent him from leaving Mene.

He’s really smart and disgusting.

Those who could not endure this and left Mene would die while walking on the vast plains without any countermeasures.

I think I now understand why gold was piled up in the mansion’s safe.

“Did you say that all the servants, including Mr. Bars, left the mansion yesterday?”

“yes. He said it himself, so there’s nothing wrong with it.”

“The chief said that when they left, they gave them a few gold coins. If I had that, I would never die of starvation anywhere.”

“So, what are you talking about? Tens of gold will be broken just for the cost of calling the wagon and hiring an escort. Besides, we are the only ones who are physically fit.”

“I have to do something. At this rate, you will lose your gold again. It’s already this week.”

“… Anyone is fine, so I’d like you to slit the head of the damn Countess.”

At this rate, before the entrance ceremony, it was decided that Mene would collapse.

That is, the story is the same as the beginning of the game.

This is why there was no mention of Altane’s territory in the game.

To be honest, the choice to go to the academy with this kind of mene might not be very good.

However, just because I stay here doesn’t mean I can directly help, and it might be more helpful to leave a trustworthy servant here and find an assistant in the capital and manage it through correspondence.

Because there are many people like that in the academy.

In order to do that, ‘that’ must work well.

“Lord, Master… ?”

As I stared at her without saying anything, Risha, who was next to me, began to panic, as if she had misunderstood me as angry.

As if I was okay, I raised my hand to restrain Risha and left quietly.

And after looking around the village, I returned to the entrance.

Looking back at Mene, if there is one thing I felt, first of all, it was that there was no proper living environment.

Food, clothing and shelter as well as the health of the residents were serious.

The only remaining doctor had long since run away, and it was impossible to find a healthy one in the village.

Because of that, even farming, the only source of income in the village, could not be built properly.

I sat on a boulder protruding from the entrance of the village, contemplating a plan to save Mene.

Due to its location quite far from the capital, there was no immediate solution to food, clothing, and shelter.

Even now, it will take several weeks for the capital to recruit promising architects.

‘First of all, catch the target as food.’

First you have to feed it.

Most of the residents are showing symptoms of malnutrition.

‘At this time, someone Altane could contact… .’

I thought of a number that was close to gambling, but worth trying.

“Lisha, from now on remember what I am saying.”

*

The day after deciding to stay at the mansion, Risha’s day was a series of embarrassment and surprise.

After returning from the Eisteens, the owner did not go straight to the mansion, but headed towards Mene.

To an unfamiliar person, it would look like a person who is sincere in managing the estate, but in reality it is not.

After Lisha came here, she only lived in the mansion, but there were times when she stopped by Mene to run errands.

What she faced was a town that had been devastated, as if a disaster had swept through it.

Every time she walked the streets, residents said the same thing.

I’m hungry.

Those who were thinner than the last time they came were few and far between.

Did they all leave, or—

Lian asked Risha to look around the village and figure out the number of people.

Clearly, he was upset about the reduced taxes this month.

That’s probably because the owner’s expression became stern as soon as he received the report.

As she wrote down the number of adults huddled together and conversing with the children who had fallen on the floor, Risha thought about it once again.

Is it really true that the owner has changed?

Maybe it wasn’t his whim until now.

Should I say I’m leaving now?

He has been happily living in a safe place until now, so is it okay to enjoy this happiness?

Risha’s expression grew darker as she watched the children her age slowly die.

In the meantime.

“Oh, really!”

Among the people gathered on the side of the lung, one shouted loudly.

Risha quietly approached the place and overheard the man talking.

“So, Mr. Barth said that?”

“Because it was so! He even gave me money and told me to leave! Money like our blood!”

The man shouting loudly in the middle of the crowd was the one who had made an absurd remark in front of Lian a while ago.

―Anyone is fine, so I’d like you to slit the damn count’s head.

The moment she heard that, Risha looked at her master’s condition first.

Insulting such an aristocrat, especially the owner of the territory, was a serious crime in the imperial society that was punishable by death.

Still, my master took no action.

Rather, it was a calm expression, as if he had heard the obvious.

“Princess Eisteen came to visit the other day. Does that have anything to do with it?”

“I hope so. If such a hot lady is the lord, I’m ready to support her body and mind.”

“hahahaha. That’s right.”

“Come to think of it, I came recently—”

Risha withdrew from her seat, frowning at the man’s vulgar words.

It didn’t seem worth listening to anymore.

I had sympathy for them until now, but somehow it felt like it had disappeared for a moment.

‘… 61 people.’

A very small number for a county’s village.

There was a difference from the population of Mene, which was said to have reached several hundred in the past.

It’s amazing how the county is still maintained. To be honest, it’s an absurdly insufficient level to maintain the county.

Even then, most of the residents were in poor health.

Risha rolled up the paper and put it in her bosom and started going back the way she came.

*

Returning to the mansion, I was handed a census paper by Risha, who had just entered.

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Just like what he felt when he took a rough walk around the town, the current population of Mene was disastrous.

In addition, most of them suffer from malnutrition and are unable to function properly.

It’s downright devastating.

If we go on like this, Mene and the Altane family will get on board with the flow of the game that collapsed.

So, I had to revive Mene as much as possible before the entrance ceremony.

Fortunately, the only thing left for the vicious Altane family was money, so there is a means to solve this problem.

All that remains is where you can use it.

“Lishya. Is the letter ready?”

“… Yes, master.”

It was Risha who made eye contact with me when she told me if she was used to it now.

Even so, I still can’t help but tremble my eyes.

‘Your voice is calmer than usual.’

I grabbed the letter that Lisa gave me and started writing.

Oddly enough, it seemed like I could read everything even if it was written in Korean.

‘The most recent letter… .’

Despite Lian’s notoriety spreading secretly among the nobles, there were nobles who had recently sent letters.

Most of them condemned the Altane family, but among them, there was a name that caught my eye.

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Jed Theseus.

Unlike the Altane family located on the periphery, Theseus is one of the promising families in the capital and a family that appears in the game.

Even within the family, he is a person who enters the academy based on his excellent swordsmanship skills, and is one of the next heroes.

‘I’m sure he was one of those flirting with Raina, right?’

Zed was a nuisance character who entered the main character’s party in order to attack Raina in the game.

However, I remember crying and eating mustard because the performance was so outstanding that it was a waste to not use it.

“Theseus… .”

I feel like I have found the answer to a puzzled problem.

Shall we catch a big fish?