第１４３２堀：賠償の交渉について (Part1)
Chapter 1432: On Reparations Negotiations
Side: Yuki
I received word from the wives who had safely arrived at the royal capital of Kinauf.
"So, we’re just relaxing in our guest quarters for now."
On the other side of the transmission, Agil was waving at me. It was a relief to see she had some breathing room.
"It’s a surprise, Yuki-sensei! They’ve actually managed their hygiene properly, and the town is quite clean. Oh, and this bedroom is lovely, too!"
Micos chimed in, chattering away. I had heard as much from the advance scouts, but it seemed Litea’s rigorous hygiene standards had truly taken root. It was clear that the methods I’d explained a long time ago had been spread by her with desperate fervor.
"Well, it might look clean, but be careful about diseases."
"Yeah, I know."
Even though it’s a country on the same Rogari continent, there’s no telling what kind of illnesses might be lurking. Since they were using Doppelgangers, the girls themselves might not take any physical damage, but their combat effectiveness on-site could drop, and everyone would worry.
"Anyway, let’s set that aside. Lilishe, what are you planning to do about their demands?"
Right. The reason I’d initiated contact wasn’t just to check on the wives, but to discuss the meeting where only Litea and Suurus had been summoned. It seemed the wives had already been informed, but the final decision hadn't been shared yet.
"Their stance is that while they’ll apologize with the utmost sincerity and pay reparations, they want us to stop putting burdens on the common folk, claiming the root of the problem was those who colluded with the Dark Guild."
"Hearing it from the outside, it sounds like a reasonable request, but..."
"It’s more like, 'Look who’s talking, the person who couldn't even control their own subordinates,' isn't it?"
Their argument was that the hardliners had acted on their own, riding the wave of the Dark Guild. Of course, they promised to pay reparations and cooperate with investigations. In exchange, they wanted a discount on the reparations.
"Exactly. The problem is that they couldn't control their subordinates. They should have stopped them, even if it meant a civil war, but they didn't. There’s no doubt they were hoping for a favorable outcome."
No matter how you look at it, they were definitely backing the movement.
"Right? Still, if we demand reparations from a country like that, it’s the type of situation where the burden will inevitably fall on the people."
"If it comes down to where the funds will come from, that’s the only way they can do it. The idea of collecting money from the nobles' meager savings wouldn't even cross their minds. If they were capable of that kind of cost-benefit analysis, they wouldn't be in this state to begin with."
In the end, if we demand reparations, they will literally have to squeeze the commoners to pay them.
"That said, it is a legitimate way to pay reparations. It’s a state matter, and not something we should interfere with."
"That’s the problem. We want to deal a blow to Kinauf. By doing so, we can save face, and it teaches them—and Litea—how seriously the Alliance views this incident."
"But if the commoners take the hit, it’ll reflect poorly on Litea and the Alliance."
"Well, I don't think it’ll be criticized that heavily, but we’d rather avoid that, right?"
In this instance, they are being treated like a defeated nation. It would be seen as their own fault if the citizens of Kinauf suffered, but naturally, there would be some level of dissatisfaction. It’s standard, but in a situation where the Dark Guild is lurking in the shadows, is it wise to give the opposition more ammunition to criticize us?
"Just to confirm, since you’re talking to me, does that mean you’re looking for a plan?"
"That’s right. If we leave it as is, we have no choice but to demand standard reparations. Don't you have any underhanded tricks? Oh, of course, you should consult with Alstaire and the others over there, too."
"I’ll do that, but if you’re asking me for an idea, why not have them join the Alliance, station our troops there until the reparations are paid in full—not just for surveillance—and create a place that generates profit?"
I tossed out the first idea that came to mind.
"Create a place? You mean... take over their territory?"
"Well, not exactly wrong. But instead of seizing an existing town or village, we could just build a new town right next to the royal capital. A town built under the Alliance’s initiative. We could just borrow their labor for it."
"Hmm, receiving land that has nothing on it... wouldn't that just increase our burden instead of being profitable?"
"True. Normally, if you were to build a town from scratch, you’d never have enough budget. But we have the Dungeon, so we can build it in no time, and we can easily deploy troops there via Gate."
"Ah, I see. So it serves as both surveillance for the Dark Guild and a way to keep Kinauf in check."
"Exactly. And we’ll make it a town that attracts people not just from Kinauf, but from neighboring countries like Suurus. You know, a trade and tourism hub."
"But where would we get the personnel... oh, you said borrow them."
"Precisely. The top brass and administrators would be from Litea or the Alliance, but we’d gather the workforce from Kinauf. If we pay them wages, the reparation issue is solved. Plus, if the Dark Guild tries to pull something at the new Alliance base, it’s a perfect opportunity to expand our influence. And as for the income, it becomes operating funds for the Alliance."
"It does sound interesting. But it’s not as easy as you make it sound, is it?"
"I know, I know. I’ll consult with them for now. We could always just take the land and turn it into farmland. Everything harvested there belongs to the Alliance, after all."
"Even if we make fields... oh, I see. Either way, if we connect the Gates, we can make it work, right?"
"Exactly."
My proposal is to openly and legitimately establish an Alliance base in a country that was hostile to us. They can’t object to the Gates, because it’s land provided to the Alliance. On the surface, it’s just reparations to Litea. They get off by handing over land that was useless to them, so there’s no problem.
"If we’re going to station troops, we’d have to talk about building a place in the royal capital anyway, right? If they say they’ll prepare it themselves..."