Chapter 5

"Upon closer inspection, these are really poor quality copper coins, aren't they?"

After the auction ended, the three people who had obtained a large number of copper coins returned to the hidden Kanagawa by diving and were looking at the large amount of copper coins they had earned from the sale.

"The shapes are a bit warped... I wonder how they could be used for so long."

Even the Yongle Tongbao, which is normally treated as good currency, was given a subtle evaluation by Kyouko.

Since they cannot be exchanged for new copper coins at the bank, the only option is to continue using them. A certain number of Yongle Tongbao coins have worn or damaged characters.

"It's also due to differences in casting techniques."

"But worse than that are the Bitachan."

Low copper content, crumbles when touched, only half there, chipped, no characters written, small, irregular shapes.

Some of these were privately cast within the country, and there are even coins from the already extinct Northern Song Dynasty or even the Tang Dynasty.

Although they were good currency at the time, they have become so worn and the characters are hard to read due to overuse.

"I understand why they can't be accepted. So, what are we going to do with these, Mitsu?"

"Secret! Dishonest alchemy!"

"Although I'm the one who will do it."

Seiki shows a piece of paper to the two of them.

On it is a design drawing of the Yongle Tongbao created on a computer.

"From the component analysis, it seems that copper coins are an alloy of copper, tin, and lead. Privately cast copper coins in the country seem to have a higher copper ratio."

"In Japan, it seems that tin is not easily obtained."

Apart from the different historical flow and characters, Japan in this era is not much different from the Japan the three know.

Therefore, the fact that tin is not easily obtained in Japan is the same.

"Since lead is toxic, I'll remove it and mix in a little of other materials to keep the color consistent."

Seiki melts the Bitachan in Kanagawa's shipyard, adjusts the components, and casts the Yongle Tongbao.

"Good job."

Naturally, with the use of ultra-futuristic technology, beautiful Yongle Tongbao coins were completed.

However, to avoid being too perfect, he deliberately lowered the quality to the level that people in this era would consider good currency.

If they were too new, they would raise suspicion, so he also used techniques to make them look a bit old.

"Even with Bitachan, if we have seven, we can make at least five Yongle Tongbao, so this should be a big profit, right?"

The energy source for melting Bitachan is taken from Kanagawa's nuclear fusion reactor, so there is no fuel cost.

"Let's try to collect as many Bitachan as possible. Also, we were told to go and greet the lord."

By converting the Bitachan into Yongle Tongbao and selling the Chinese porcelain and treasures they salvaged from the seabed, Seiki and his companions quickly became wealthy.

"Mitshu, I'll give you a domain."

Three days after the auction ended, Seiki and his companions were suddenly made vassals of the Oda family by Nobunaga.

There doesn't seem to be an option to say 'no.'

Indeed, he is a lord of the feudal era.

Selfish and completely ignoring the will of Seiki and his companions.

"Thank you for your kindness."

If he refused, he might be killed without question, so Seiki gratefully thanked him.

Although he was the CEO of a small company and in charge of sales, Seiki can read the air to that extent.

"The location is here."

The place they were directed to by Nobunaga was in Owase, Aichi Prefecture, a wetland and tidal flat area sandwiched between the Shonai River, the Shin River, and the Nikkō River.

The population is zero... no, now it's three.

"President, do you think that lord dislikes us?"

"You, saying something so harsh so casually."

The android Kiyomaro, who is not counted in the population, criticizes Nobunaga for giving them this land without hesitation.

Since Kiyomaro won't die even if he is cut with a sword, he is indeed different in every way.

"Mitsu, what are we going to do?"

"Let's try to develop it."

There's no point in hesitating.

Since they have money, they decide to develop it.

Probably, Nobunaga had such intentions as well.

"Brother, why are you sneaking around in the middle of the night?"

"We can't have Kanagawa and the heavy machinery seen."

If they did it the usual way, it would take forever, so they used robots at night to fill in the wetlands and carry out river improvement works.

Heavy machinery was mobilized, and concrete and other materials stored on Kanagawa were used for reclamation.

To prevent flooding and waterlogging, strong levees were built along the rivers, and irrigation canals were constructed in a grid pattern to create new farmland on the reclaimed land.

"Mitsu, this area is affected by the tide, so the soil has a high salt content. Will it affect crop growth?"

"We have a plan for that."

They have the latest soil improvers and decided to plant barley, which is a salt-tolerant variety.

"There's a 'desalination' variety in the cargo. It's salty and inedible when harvested, but it's good for reclamation because it accumulates salt in the soil."

If they plant the seeds now, they will grow during the winter and can be harvested before transplanting, and they will accumulate salt in the soil, which is why they are often used for reclamation.

"Did you even have such things on board?"

"Because we were transporting materials needed for planetary development, which is being promoted by the government of the Akitsushima Federation at the request of the military. After harvesting, the salt can be extracted and the barley can be processed into fertilizer."

One month after the start of development.

The reclamation and river improvement works, as well as the construction of new farmland and irrigation canals, were almost complete.

Looking at the materials on Kanagawa, the area they were in was also reclaimed and developed in the world they came from.

Called Fukuda New Land, Nishifukuda, Fukudamae New Land, Chaya New Land, Chayagoe New Land, Nanashima New Land, Ogawa New Land, Fujikoh New Land, and Fujikohmae New Land, it seems that they were developed after considerable effort, as there were no heavy machines at the time.

"Brother, why only new farmland?"

"Agriculture is the foundation of the country!"

However, that alone is not enough, so they also reclaimed the area south of Fujikohmae New Land, poured concrete, and are building a port, warehouses, and a town, as well as a castle with defensive facilities along the coast.

"Even if Kanagawa can't, we need to make it possible for small shuttles to dock."

Kanagawa is a large ship over one kilometer long, so it cannot dock at a regular port.

Therefore, they decided to wait at the bottom of Ise Bay and use a small escape shuttle to travel back and forth.

"Construction and security will be left to Kiyomaro and the others..."

"Greetings to the neighbors? But what about our last names?"

Seiki and his companions' original last name, Ashikaga, cannot be used in this world.

This is pointed out by Kyouko.

"That's it! Let's use Kyouko's maiden name. I'll become a son-in-law."

"If it's Kyouko's maiden name, it's Shinden."

"Since we have developed new land as our domain, Shinden is a good name. I'll work hard as a member of the Shinden family."

From that moment on, the three began using the last name Shinden and renamed their developed domain Shinden.

"So, please take care of us."

Seiki and his companions immediately went to greet the local samurai and powerful families who controlled the villages bordering Shinden.

"I have confirmed the letter from the Shogun. Let's get along as neighbors from now on."

Although they were just wetlands, tidal flats, and sea that no one had used before, they were worried that someone might demand a share once they were reclaimed, but no one said anything.

"Gift effect?"

Seiki thought it might be because they gave salt and Chinese porcelain as housewarming gifts.

Actually, it's because they would be punished by Nobunaga if they caused trouble.

"More importantly, I think the neighbors outside the Oda clan are a problem."

Although they had obtained the domain, they had few people and were concerned about their defense.

Therefore, Seiki used his free time to fly unmanned probes to gather information.

According to the information, it seems that there is an enemy force led by Hattori Tomonari based in Ichikawa, Aichi Prefecture.

He participated in the Battle of Okehazama on the side of the Imagawa clan this year and is still in conflict with Nobunaga.

He is in a cooperative relationship with the Honshō-ji, which oversees the Jōdo Shinshū followers in the Tōkai region, and also serves as the castellan of Ise Nagashima Castle.

As a powerful Jōdo Shinshū temple that does not accept the rule of the daimyo, it is very influential.

"Monks who break their vows exist in any era and world."

Even as humans advanced into space, the collusion between such religions and power and wealth was common.

Although the Jōdo Shinshū is worldly, Seiki and his companions do not find it particularly strange.

Living in the ultra-future, their religious views have become somewhat jaded.

"Let's be cautious and avoid provoking them for now..."

"More importantly, we don't have enough people."

"That's also a problem."

After all, they only have three human beings, which is a tough situation.

For defense, they could arm the robots, but that would interfere with the maintenance of Kanagawa and other tasks.

They needed to hire and train people.

"We need military and administrative officials."

As the CEO, Seiki knew that they needed to increase their workforce as their organization grew.

"Seiki and Kiyomaro, please stay here."

"Brother, where are you going?"

"To ask the lord for personnel."

A few days later, Seiki and Kyouko met with Nobunaga at Chiyoda Castle.

"You need more people?"

"Please recommend some, lord."

"Truly, are you cautious or shameless?"

Nobunaga smiled wryly at Seiki's request.

Despite doing so much as a merchant, he now asks for recommendations for samurai, a completely different field.

"Would ronin be acceptable?"

"Yes, that's fine."

Nobunaga thinks Seiki is still a carefree man.

Despite doing incredible things, he doesn't seem to take himself too seriously.

Perhaps because of this, Nobunaga wanted to make him a samurai and gave him a domain of nothing but wetlands and tidal flats.

He thought Seiki could make something of it.

However, even though they had brought great wealth and treasures to the Oda clan, giving them a proper domain right away would upset the hereditary vassals.

"Those who served the defeated Nobutada last year. If that's acceptable, take them with you."

They are currently being sheltered by relatives and vassals.

If they continue to hide, they won't be of any use, and they won't serve a lord who destroyed their master.

Therefore, it would be good to let them serve an eccentric lord for a while to gain experience.

They can serve the Oda clan later if they choose to.

This is what Nobunaga thought.

"I'll have them bring a letter."

With a connection for personnel, Seiki and Kyouko returned to Shinden with peace of mind.

A week later, a group of about fifty people appeared.

"Excuse me, is this the domain of Shinden-sama..."

All of them were wide-eyed.

Where there were once only wetlands, tidal flats, and sea, vast new farmland had been created, the rivers flowed straight with high levees and water intake points for irrigation canals.

On the new southern coast, a beautiful port made of stone-like materials, a large warehouse, sturdy houses, and a castle that would be difficult to capture had been completed.

"This place was supposed to be nothing until recently..."

"Lord Nobunaga told us to develop this area. By the way, who are you?"

"We have been sent by the Shogun to serve Shinden-sama."

A middle-aged man spoke on behalf of the group.

"My name is Hori Hironari."

Hironari was a senior vassal of Oda Nobutada, the guardian of the upper four districts of Owari, but was defeated in the process of Nobunaga's unification of Owari and has been wandering with his family and followers.

"The Shogun said that if you don't want to serve me directly, who expelled your lord and took his domain, then serve Shinden-sama."

"I see, thank you for your help."

Seiki was relieved and quickly introduced his wife Kyouko and his brother Seiki.

Hironari also introduced the people he brought.

"My younger brother Hironori, my son Yoshiharu, and my son Yoshimasa."

Among them, Hironari's eldest son Yoshiharu looks strong.

Although they were defeated, he achieved the most heads in the battle against Nobunaga.

"These brothers, along with the followers who remained, are the sons of Yamashita Masahiro, who served Nobutada."

The third son Masahiro and the fourth son Masahiro are still in their youth.

"My father and brothers were killed, and Masahiro became the head of the Yamashita family in an emergency. After the defeat, the family was scattered. I would have liked to help, but my own family is in this state..."

"How old is Masahiro?"

"Fifteen years old."

To carry the family at that age, Seiki thinks he couldn't do it.

Moreover, fifteen is a counted age, so he is actually fourteen.

"I don't know what fate has brought us together, but we have a connection. If you serve me, I promise to reward you to the best of my ability."

"Thank you for your kindness."

"I will work hard with all my might!"

Thus, the Hori and Yamashita families became vassals of the Shinden family.