July, 762
Time moved forward a bit, and the barley harvest arrived.
Although I had kept the tax rate low, I still managed to collect enough barley equivalent to 500 gold coins, just as promised. With this, the debt of 500 gold coins borrowed from the Golden Sheep Trading Company was now settled.
In addition to tax collection, I had also begun introducing the three-field system in some villages.
The three-field system involves dividing farmland into three parts: one for spring crops, one for autumn crops, and one left fallow, which helps prevent nutrient depletion in the soil.
To encourage the villages to adopt this system, we lent them horses as compensation. Horses in this era were crucial military supplies and not widely available on the market. Fortunately, within the duchy’s territory, there was a stable that survived the war. We were able to lend out some of the surplus horses without charge.
The reason for only partially introducing the three-field system was that this world is different from the previous one. There’s no guarantee that knowledge from the previous life will succeed here.
This world has swordmasters who can manipulate aura and even magic. While they may look like ordinary humans on the surface, they could be an entirely different species. There are also beastkin, after all. Implementing changes like the three-field system might face resistance, but the power of a noble can sometimes push through such challenges—one of the perks of the position.
Thus, the situation in the territory is showing signs of gradual recovery.
The problem now lies with security.
We hired a mercenary group, but their duty is solely to protect the gold mines—they don’t deal with lingering rebels or patrol the roads within the territory. It will take time, but we decided to recruit volunteers from within the domain.
While there is some income from the gold mines and poll taxes, hiring a large number of troops right away wasn’t feasible, so we started with about 500 volunteers. Even then, for the vast territory of the duchy, this was clearly insufficient.
And today, volunteers from all over the region had reportedly gathered.
“Why did this happen…”
While there were some adults among the volunteers, most of them were my age or younger.
The majority of the 500 people present were young boys and girls.
Erich, who was responsible for them, approached me.
“Your Grace, I investigated the reason…”
According to Erich, it seemed that the concept of volunteering wasn’t well understood by the people.
Previously, soldiers were conscripted as needed, but the people themselves didn’t actually want to fight.
When we announced that those who wished to fight should volunteer, the people were puzzled. It wasn’t like the previous forced conscription, but soldiers were still being gathered. They feared earning the lord’s displeasure if they didn’t provide troops.
Thus, many chose to send children—mostly those who had lost their parents in the last war and had no other family.
“I think they might be too young to fight…”
Seeing my concern, Erich let out a sigh, sharing my sentiments.
“However, sending them back to their villages isn’t an option. Most of them have been practically driven out of their homes.”
It couldn’t be helped… Perhaps I should think positively—that there’s time for them to grow up, and I can train them in the meantime.
“Lead them to the designated barracks, and I’ll leave their training to you, Erich. Follow through with the plan as discussed.”
“Yes, Your Grace. Leave it to me.”
While the education of the recruits was primarily in Erich’s hands, I had a hand in planning some of their training. Although knights typically focus on honing their martial skills, that wasn’t my expectation for these recruits.
What I prioritized was collective discipline. Things like marching and pivoting. For now, the focus wasn’t on combat prowess but rather on shaping them into a cohesive unit that could be easily directed.
Once that foundation is established, we’ll proceed to combat training—that’s our plan.
One of the maids approached me and bowed her head.
“Your Grace, the Golden Sheep Trading Company is requesting an audience.”
“Understood. I’ll head there now.”
Leaving the 500 new recruits and Erich behind, I departed for my next meeting.
