第９４９堀：問題を片づけたらまた問題が出てくる (Part2)
"If we don't change the ruler, it will lead to distrust toward the Zurable Empire. I understand that much. But we simply don't have the personnel to station there. It’s incredibly painful that we can't just adopt the existing local officials and continue as things were."
As Seraria pointed out, we couldn't use our usual methods. We had to scrape together someone from our own hand, but...
"Someone who is well-versed in governance and can also converse normally with people from other countries..."
"That's asking for the impossible. If such an excellent person existed, they would have been governing somewhere long ago."
Everyone nodded in agreement with Deryu's words. Indeed, if such a capable individual existed, no country would let them go.
"Well, in the worst-case scenario, we could just borrow personnel from the Zurable Empire..."
"If we do that, Aurelia Port effectively becomes Zurable territory. My, they really have thought this through. That Emperor."
"It seems he doesn't lead a Great Empire for nothing."
Right. Borrowing personnel from the Zurable Empire was off the table. I personally wouldn't mind leaving it to them, but my wives clearly wouldn't stand for it. I was actually looking forward to seeing what kind of person they’d send to keep an eye on us, though.
Should I try to persuade them? No, if we can provide the personnel ourselves, that’s fine too, right? As I was pondering this, Stasia pointed out a fundamental misunderstanding among everyone.
"I believe Seraria-sama and Shera-sama's points are valid, but I think you are all forgetting something fundamental."
"Fundamental?"
"Yes. We are thinking about this in various ways because we know how to send personnel and supplies instantly, but the Zurable Empire doesn't even know that such a thing is possible."
"..."
Stasia was right. For us, the Gate is a matter of course, and we don't consider the time it takes to travel between bases, even over long distances. But in this world, where travel usually takes time, it’s obvious that maintaining an exclave would be a massive undertaking.
In a sense, this proposal is equivalent to the Zurable Empire offering to lend a hand in governing Aurelia Port from the start.
"I see. So Emperor Eupia considers Aurelia Port to be effectively Zurable territory. And perhaps he wants to earn our favor at the same time?"
"That’s right. He’s saying he wants to place monitors there. Indeed, as Stasia said, maintaining an exclave is not an easy task for any nation."
"But doesn't that contradict the promise to hand Aurelia Port over to Weed? Oh, I see. You mentioned that it would be difficult for the Zurable Empire to govern it directly."
"Indeed. Now that Shera mentions it, I recall. They don't want to incite hostility from the people of Aurelia Port, who are still attached to the former Gusdo Kingdom, by having the Zurable Empire govern it directly. Though, I suppose there will be dissatisfaction regardless of whether it's occupied by Weed or Seasypho."
"They asked us to handle that part of the problem from the beginning, after all. For now, let's hear what they have to say tomorrow. We’ll be finalizing the details of the alliance, so we’ll see how many conditions they try to attach to the handover of Aurelia Port."
It’s a chance for Emperor Eupia to show his worth, though I imagine they are currently in their own meetings trying to figure out how to frame the discussion. Since the Imperial Capital of the Zurable Empire has already been turned into a dungeon, all their actions are being monitored. Well, I’ll hear the finer details from Kirika later.
"For now, I don't intend to tell the Zurable Empire about the Gates. So, I’m thinking we should proceed with maintaining Aurelia Port with the support of the Zurable Empire for the time being. Is that alright?"
"We have no other choice. So, we’ll confirm what kind of person they send and how they intend to govern Aurelia Port, is that it?"
"Exactly. In the meantime, we’ll gather more information. And it would be great if we could find someone from Weed or our allied nations who could be entrusted with Aurelia Port."
"It’s troublesome that finding personnel seems much harder than gathering information."
Truly. Personnel, huh? Well, it’s not that I don't have any ideas, but that would take time to persuade them.
"Now, setting aside the governance of Aurelia Port, the next issue is persuading Princess Palfil. Let’s decide where to grant her asylum."
"..."
As I declared that, everyone wore difficult expressions again. *Sigh*, problems just keep piling up, don't they? The governance of Aurelia Port can't be resolved without persuading Princess Palfil, either.
My head hurts. With this shortage of personnel, how will we govern Aurelia Port? We’ll likely get assistants from Zurable, but it’s still going to be a struggle. And then there is the fate of Princess Palfil.
What will she do from here on out? The problems are piling up.