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[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 8: Kingmaker
After returning to the castle, I was examined and treated by the doctor.
It was my first time feeling my body and stamina recover thanks to the doctor’s healing magic—it was a pretty amazing experience.
Once I was healed...
Hart absolutely lost it on me.
“What were you thinking risking your life like that?!”
Hart was angrier than I’d ever seen him in all my memories.
He was yelling like a grandfather scolding a reckless grandchild, and honestly, I, along with the other retainers, were totally intimidated just watching.
“You are the last heir of the Cron family. Please, think about your health. For this old man’s sake, please…”
“I’m sorry for worrying you, Grandpa Hart...”
Feeling guilty, I naturally called Hart ‘grandpa,’ just like I did in my childhood memories of Calyx.
Honestly... I did push myself too hard.
Swimming through a typhoon carrying a child—thinking back, it’s a miracle I made it out alive.
How did I even survive that?
Anyway, after that incident, I underwent a thorough health check and was confined to the castle for a week.
Every day I received healing magic, and the only work I could do was getting simple reports from Hart and the other retainers.
Nova started visiting frequently.
“I’m here, my lord. Are you feeling better now?”
“I’m fine. I’ve rested so much, my back actually hurts. But Nova… you’ve been coming by a lot lately.”
“Of course, I have to. I’m your ‘Treasurer,’ after all.”
Nova recently became an official treasurer of our family.
More precisely, one of the treasurers, thanks to Hart’s strong recommendation.
Hart said firmly—
‘For the future and succession of the Cron family, we must officially appoint Nova as treasurer, my lord.’
Hart’s recommendation was so strong that I couldn’t help but nod like a grandson being scolded by his grandfather.
After becoming the official treasurer, Nova started coming to the castle like it was her own home, working harder every day.
Maybe it’s just me, but she seemed to work harder than she did with the merchant guild’s affairs.
But there’s still one thing I didn’t understand...
…What does he mean by ‘succession’?
＊ ＊ ＊
Nova thought she had a pretty good eye for sizing people up.
But this time, she honestly admitted she had been completely wrong.
She believed Lord Calyx was going to be the one to stir up a new storm in the empire.
She thought of him as a somewhat unusual lord whose goal was to expand his power through policies targeting commoners—something no one else had dared try.
‘How foolish I was... to think Lord Calyx was just another ordinary noble...’
While working for the merchant guild, Nova had met countless lords and imperial nobles.
All of them talked a good game about serving their people and the common folk, but not a single one genuinely acted for their sake.
They were all just scheming to exploit merchants, with not one truly offering benevolent leadership for their people.
So Nova had given up hope.
Ideal rulers, she thought, existed only in fairy tales.
But then, on the day of the storm, she saw it with her own eyes.
A young lord diving into the water for his people.
That image was the ideal ruler Nova had dreamed of.
Not just words, but actions showing he was willing to risk his life for his people—the true face of a sovereign.
It might sound irreverent, but if someone asked Nova who among all the people she had seen was most worthy of being emperor…
Without hesitation, she would say only ‘Lord Calyx.’
That thought sparked a quick decision in Nova.
If Calyx was worthy of being emperor, then she would make him emperor.
The empire’s emperor was chosen by election.
Not only the emperor’s descendants but also the noble lords who governed territories had both the right to run and to vote.
When the emperor passed, all eligible nobles and imperial family members gathered to elect the next emperor.
So, theoretically, Lord Calyx could become emperor.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
The power of the Cron family was still small, and the crown prince, princess, and other great lords had already built massive forces.
But… if Nova gave everything she had to help the Cron family…
She was confident that in about five years, the Cron family would become a force strong enough to compete with them.
So, without telling anyone, Nova decided to become Calyx’s ‘kingmaker.’
＊ ＊ ＊
A week later, when I returned to my duties as lord, Nova greeted me with a warm smile and spoke kindly.
I had no clue what had gone down while I was away, but honestly—since a beautiful girl was smiling at me, I just accepted it without question.
Still... that smile, as lovely as it was, gave me chills.
Something told me trouble was quietly brewing behind the scenes.
Was I just imagining things?
“By the way, was everything okay in the territory while I was gone?”
“Nothing unusual. The storm damage has been fully repaired, and the farms are back to normal. The commoners worked tirelessly on their own.”
“Hm… I see.”
Hart’s words stirred a strange mix of relief and worry in me.
I was glad the people had pulled through without issue, but the thought of all that money piling up again gave me a headache.
Ugh… Where am I even supposed to spend all this money now?
While I was still lost in thought, Hart spoke again.
“And there’s one problem.”
“A problem?”
He said it so calmly, I figured it couldn’t be anything serious. So, I asked him what it was.
Then he dropped the bomb—
“The number of free citizens applying to settle in our territory has more than tripled.”
“Tripled!?”
Nothing unusual? Yeah, right—That’s a huge deal!
I had so much to say, but I couldn’t argue with Grandpa Hart. Instead, I focused on grasping the full picture.
What he told me was way more of a headache than I’d expected.
“Through the pitch-black waves, our lord dove in! ♪ Splitting the dark sea, he ran—a tiny life clutched in his arms—bursting forth from the roaring tide! ♪ And there, upon the shore, he returned that little life to solid ground! Ahh! The noble Silver Dragon of Cron! ♪”
It had been a while since I stepped outside the castle, but this time, I went with Hart and Nova to see things for myself.
Minstrels were performing all across the territory—singing loudly, passionately—and people were singing right along with them.
It wasn't unusual for minstrels to perform in this era.
The problem? The songs were all about me. Praise songs. Heroic tales. And they weren’t just local chatter—they were spreading like wildfire to neighboring lands.
“Recently, songs praising you and our territory have been spreading to neighboring territories through minstrels.”
“They've reached neighboring territories already!?”
“Yes, there's word they've already spread to the Blackrose family's territory in the west.”
Even though I had done something commendable, I didn't expect the songs to spread this quickly.
At that moment, I met Nova's gaze, and she simply smiled.
As always, the smile of a beautiful girl was hazardous to my heart.
“And those songs... are they what’s drawing the free citizens here?”
“Yes. In droves.”
I followed Hart’s gaze toward the castle gates.
What I saw nearly made me choke—the crowd was even bigger than when the merchant caravans had rolled in. A sea of people, shoulder to shoulder, flooding the entrance like it was the last safe haven on earth.
“Please line up! I beg you, form a line!!!”
That gatekeeper was having a tough day again.
I should consider giving him a bonus later.
“But can we accommodate such a large influx of free citizens?”
“Well…”
If free citizens were to migrate here in such numbers, there would be numerous concerns.
They'd need housing, food, and employment.
Hart seemed troubled, unable to answer easily, and Nova, standing beside him, spoke up.
“If we invest all the profits from the recent tariff reforms, it should be possible.”
Nova responded with a bright smile, seemingly pleased with the idea.
I understood why Hart looked so grim.
As a steward, it must have been difficult for him to suggest using the family's private funds due to a lack of resources.
However, for me, it was a fortunate development.
Being able to spend money on the people! Let's do it immediately!!
“Are you sure that's sufficient?”
“Yes! We've calculated it with the other treasurers. There's no mistake.”
I put on a show of reluctant acceptance toward Nova’s proposal.
But as I genuinely prepared to use the family's private funds, Hart practically shouted in panic.
“But if we support the free citizens with the lord's personal funds, we'll reach our limit quickly!”
“It's alright. Once they've come here, they're my people. If I can support them with my own funds, I will.”
“Lord…”
Hart, moved by my words, seemed on the verge of tears, adopting his kind grandfatherly demeanor.
At that moment, Nova interjected between us with a cheerful smile.
“I believe I have a solution to that problem. May I share it?”
“What solution do you have, Treasurer Nova?”
In response, Nova pointed to the abandoned lands near the sea.
“We can involve the migrating free citizens in land reclamation projects.”
“Land reclamation projects?”
At some point, Nova had put on glasses and began explaining to me.
Where did those glasses come from?
“The Cron territory is vast, but due to salinity, much of the land is unusable.”
As Nova mentioned, our territory, located by the coast, didn't have much arable land.
It was similar to the Jiangdong region where the Kingdom of Wu was located before development, and thus, we relied heavily on imports, exchanging salt for food.
“But what if we have the migrants settle there and reclaim the land?”
Nova discussed policies using complex terms, but the main points I gathered were as follows—
First, lease the currently unused but potentially arable land to the migrants for reclamation.
Second, once they reclaim the land, grant them ownership rights for a certain period, allowing them to keep all harvests, excluding taxes.
Third, once the migrants' livelihoods stabilize, the Cron family can recover the invested private funds at a low interest rate.
“This way, the Cron family saves on expensive construction costs, the free citizens gain their own land, and the lord's private funds are preserved.”
After hearing Nova's proposal, Hart nodded in satisfaction and looked at me.
“It seems like a good plan, my lord.”
“Y-Yes! It sounds good to me too.”
Honestly, since economics wasn't my major, I didn't fully grasp everything Nova said.
But from what I heard, it resembled good policies I'd seen in the news or on YouTube in my previous life.
So I nodded along, pretending to fully grasp Nova’s plan, and gave it my seal of approval.
That moment would go down in history as the birth of Nova’s ‘Migrant Land Reclamation Policy’—a turning point that would eventually become one of my proudest achievements, transforming Cron into the south’s greatest granary.
“Alright then, let’s head back.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Hyah!”
I gave the signal to Hart, Nova, and Rikain—who had joined us as my escort—and we turned our horses toward the castle.
But just as we were about to leave—
“Kyah!!!”
“P-Please! Help us!!”
Shrill screams rang out from the far end of the migrants' procession.
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[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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