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Volume 4 Chapter 9-3: The Arrival of the Young Lady

「That tone of yours made me suspect it, but are you a water sprite by any chance?」

「Correct. My ancestors, a rare branch of water sprites, founded Colline on the surface. Water sprites rarely appear in public, and their only distinguishing features are their blue hair and slightly pointed ears, which are common to other races as well. Our most unique feature, the ability to breathe through our skin underwater, is not visible.」

Water sprites were one of the four races that housed magic stones within them, but they were considered mythical. They rarely appeared in public because they lived under the sea.

Because of that, there was very little information about their appearance.

「That’s enviable.」

「Even so, I believe it’s only a matter of time. In the future, the sea will become the main battleground for trade. When that happens, the water sprites, who have remained hidden underwater and are rarely seen, may be eradicated as they start attacking ships passing through their territory, claiming that their habitat has been disturbed. Then their bodies will be exposed, and their appearance will be known, leading to them suffering the same fate as the elves and fire foxes.」

「Attacking the water sprites underwater seems unlikely.」

「For now. This is only my pet theory but, ‘For now’ is a word that can be added to everything people can’t do. The more people want something, the sooner ‘for now’ can be removed. It’s only a matter of time before they are eradicated. I’ve been trying to convince those stubborn ones, but they refuse to listen. For them, the world ends in their narrow territory under the sea. With the water sprites’ power used properly, they could become the dominant power in the age of major trade!」

Becoming the dominant power in the age of major trade… That goal was so ambitious it left me stunned.

「The sea as the center of trade is indeed a fascinating idea. Ignoring the numerous checkpoints on land means lower taxes. The amount of goods that can be transported at once is much greater than by land, and trade partners can extend beyond other countries to other continents. The sea holds many dreams.」

「That’s right! That era will definitely come. Right now, all the wealth, goods, and people are gathering in inland cities at the crossroads of various towns, but when I die, all that will gather in port cities!」

「The performance of ships is still poor, and human navigation skills are lacking. Once both of those improve, it will happen sooner rather than later.」

「That’s where the water sprites can shine! They can manipulate water currents to make ships travel safely and fast, even with inexperienced ship crews and low technology. If I could persuade those thick-headed ones, a trade revolution would be feasible.」

「That’s interesting. In that case, the elves might be able to help. We can predict the weather fairly accurately since we can read the wind, and we can avoid storms and heavy rains. With sails, ships will move much faster with the power of the wind than just manipulating water.」

「That sounds great. I want to get my hands on that as soon as possible.」

The conversation between us had become quite animated.

「Cyril-san, you’re more knowledgeable than the rumors suggest. I’m glad someone like you can follow my conversation. But can you understand the risks in what I just discussed?」

「Well, if numerous countries start thinking about obtaining wind and water magic stones rather than relying on the power of elves and water sprites, it’s certain that we will be targeted even more than we are now.」

As the need for the power to melt iron increases and the demand for Fire Magic Stones has risen, there is indeed a possibility that the value of Wind Magic Stones will soar in the future.

「That’s true. So, I think that all the races capable of housing magic stones, the elves, water sprites, and fire foxes, should cooperate.」

The conversation was starting to take a serious turn.

「So, are you suggesting that Erin will protect Erucy?」

「Yes, even though we have diverged a lot, that is the reason I came here.」

「Please tell me more details.」

「I know Erucy is bringing together refugees in a captured imperial fortress. But I still think it’s not good to have only amateurs. Erin will send three hundred professional soldiers to be stationed there. They will take care of the refugees’ education and maintain security during peacetime.」

「We have enough defensive capacities. We recently repelled an attack from an imperial force of over a thousand soldiers.」

Upon hearing my words, Azul let out a sigh and an expression of admiration.

「Gathering people below amateur level and managing to handle an attack of that caliber is quite impressive.」

「That’s why there’s no need to rely on Erin’s help.」

「If you say so, it must be true. But that’s not the only issue. Food production still hasn’t caught up with the population. Do you not need supplies from Erin?」

That was certainly true. Originally, I had planned to eventually increase the population to five hundred, but it was unexpected that the population would swell to four hundred at this stage.

During the time until the harvest, we’ll manage with the food we have in Bell Erucy, but the calculations show that it’s just enough for the current number of people. If the population increases further, we’ll need to make purchases at some point.

「Are you trying to threaten me with that?」

「I don’t have such intentions, but if you want to see it as a threat, then yes. If you refuse Erin’s protection, we’ll refuse entry to elves in Erin and ban anyone who has dealings with elves from conducting any commercial activities in Erin in the future. How does that sound?」

This woman is capable of doing something like that.

Currently, all the villages in the direction of the Empire are poor. They likely don’t have much in terms of stock to sell. There are several villages in the direction of Erin from here, but all of them have deep ties with Erin.

There are no villages that would cut off ties with Erin just to sell to the elves.

Bell Erucy is like a refugee camp. As long as there’s food, we can maintain basic order, but if it runs out, chaos will ensue.

It might even come to the point where they consider defecting to the Empire. We’ve made the five chiefs a safety measure by manipulating them, but it’s entirely possible for starving people to kill the five chiefs.

「Protecting Erucy alone has no benefit for Erin. What do you intend to demand in return for protection?」

「I’ve heard about Erucy’s iron arrows. I want you to share your iron-making technology. If possible, I’d like you to take care of setting up a workshop as well.」

「… I’m surprised, are you planning for war?」

「War or not, we need military strength for anything we do. The quickest way to get that is to equip ourselves with iron weaponry. Besides, iron has uses beyond just weapons.」

「Is that all?」

「One more thing. I’m thinking of entrusting you with developing a port town. Originally, it was meant as a joke, but after talking with you, I feel comfortable leaving it with someone like you who sees things from the same perspective as me.」

Developing a port town did sound interesting, and I had a genuine interest in it. However, I wasn’t willing to do it at the expense of leaving Erucy.

「I can’t give you an answer here. I’ll give you a response during your stay here. How many days do you plan to stay?」

「I’ll be here for three days, including today.」

「During your stay, I’ll offer you the best hospitality.」

「I’m looking forward to it.」

Azul cleared her throat after saying that.

「Now, let’s put an end to the big talk and settle the small one. Here’s the list of the goods we brought this time. The prices are honestly below cost, but consider it a service to understand Erin’s excellence.」

「After making such unreasonable demands, your ability to switch gears so calmly is impressive.」

「That’s how it goes. This is my role as the mayor of a commercial city. Quick adaptability is a must for a merchant.」

And so, that day was spent adjusting the sales numbers and prices for maple syrup and Erucy wine.

Gathering everyone who could do calculations, we determined a budget and, as much as possible, listened to the individual requests of each person in Erucy to choose what to buy. Before we knew it, the day had come to an end.

It’s time to prepare dinner now.

If we serve something of poor quality here, Erucy itself will be disrespected. I put in even more effort than usual as I started preparing the meal.