Chapter 38

As February entered its latter half, the climate began to shift towards early spring. The air gradually grew warmer, and the traffic on the streets resumed.

As the season transitioned into spring, the Arquvist estate was experiencing significant changes. There was a rush of immigrants.

The rumor that "the Arquvist estate is accepting refugees," which Noein had sown the previous year, began to sprout rapidly as if it had been waiting for the end of winter.

New refugees arrived every few days, and within a few weeks after the end of winter, the population of the capital Noeina had exceeded 70.

"Sorry to keep you busy right after you moved in, Dmytri."

"No problem, rather, I'm grateful to be given so much work right away. And I'm getting paid well, too."

In the study of the manor, Noein was receiving a report on the progress of house construction from the carpenter Dmytri, and they were exchanging words.

Dmytri, who had left the construction guild he belonged to in Letvik and moved to the capital Noeina at the beginning of spring to start a new guild, was already diligently working on the construction of new houses.

Noein had anticipated the increase in immigrants and had already commissioned the construction of many houses, but the number of people wishing to immigrate was so high that it seemed they would eventually run out.

"Still, giving houses and farmland to all the immigrant households is quite generous. I even got a fine house and workshop."

"Thanks to the lapis lazuli vein, our estate has a generous budget despite its size. I judged that it would be more beneficial in the long run to help the immigrants stabilize their lives and start working immediately, which would speed up the development of the estate."

In fact, the refugees who had come to the Arquvist estate began cultivating spring potatoes and other crops on the farmland provided to them a few days after their arrival. The immediate conversion of the refugees into laborers was rapidly expanding Noeina's agricultural productivity.

For now, Noein intended to provide houses and farmland to at least the first 100 immigrant households, and if there were merchants or craftsmen, he would also provide them with shops or workshops. This was also aimed at spreading the rumor that "if you go to the Arquvist estate now, you can start a new life immediately."

"If that's the case, I'll do my best to build houses."

"Sure, thanks."

After finishing his conversation with Dmytri, Noein asked Anna to organize the construction cost records and went outside the manor. Having spent the day in the study doing paperwork, he was now going to inspect the village, which would also serve as a break.

Matilda was also by Noein's side. Since there were still many new immigrants whose backgrounds were not fully known, she accompanied him outside the manor not only as his deputy but also as his bodyguard.

The capital Noeina, which already had several vacant houses for immigrants before winter, had become a more vibrant village with the increase in residents.

"Hello, Edgar, good work."

"Thank you, Lord Noein."

After passing through the center of the village where the houses were clustered and heading towards the farmland, Noein met Edgar, the squire in charge of agriculture in the estate.

"The planting seems to be going well."

"Yes, we have more hands now. We also plan to cultivate the land that Lord Noein had prepared in advance and use it as farmland. We can now use cattle as well."

Edgar reported happily about the increased pace of agricultural work, and Noein smiled and replied, "That's good to hear."

The increase in the population of the Arquvist estate was not limited to humans. Before winter, the only livestock were chickens, but now pigs for meat and cattle for agricultural work were also being raised.

Edgar, who came from a family of village chiefs, knew how to handle cattle, and the raising of pigs was made possible by the presence of a new immigrant who had made pig farming his livelihood.

If the population continued to grow at this rate, the meat supply from monster hunting around the capital Noeina would inevitably be insufficient. Noein was grateful that pig farming had started in the estate in time.

Moreover, the fact that he was freed from the task of having golems pull wheeled plows to cultivate the land thanks to the cattle was a significant relief.

After talking with Edgar, Noein continued to walk around the capital Noeina, inspecting the village. The residents who saw him bowed respectfully and greeted him, and Noein waved back with a smile.

"It's fun, Matilda."

"Yes, Lord Noein. We can feel the development of the capital Noeina day by day."

When referring to the capital Noeina, it had become customary among the squires and residents to add "capital" before the name.

This was not only to prevent confusion and mistakes in referring to Noein and Noeina, but also to express their determination to develop their new land to the scale of a city.

That's why, even at this stage when the village was still small, everyone called it "capital Noeina." This was a sign of the residents' and squires' expectations for the Arquvist estate and their trust in Noein.

...

On another day, Noein received a report that a traveling merchant had come to the square of the capital Noeina. Accompanied by Anna, the financial officer, and Matilda, his bodyguard, he went to the square himself.

"Hello, Philip."

"Lord Arquvist, it's an honor to receive a personal greeting from the lord of the estate."

"No, you've come all the way to this rural estate, so at least I can greet you."

In the square, a young man was leading a small cart pulled by a donkey, selling various items to the residents of Noeina.

This young merchant named Philip had been visiting the capital Noeina occasionally since the end of winter. He dealt with a wide variety of items, including needles, thread, cloth, candles, soap, knives, alcohol, spices, combs, cosmetics, and even some medicine. He was what was known as a peddler.

In small villages where there were no shops, personal consumption was supported by such peddlers. Philip had been coming to the Arquvist estate to make a profit, traveling for half a day since the beginning of spring, ahead of other peddlers.

"Do you need anything today?"

"I don't know the specifics of the household supplies, so I'll leave the actual shopping to Anna."

"I apologize. Let's get started then."

"Sure, I'll read out the items we need."

Anna listed the items and quantities needed, and Philip prepared them.

In a noble estate where the lord was the absolute top, the estate's finances were directly tied to the lord's household budget. Therefore, Anna, the only financial officer in the estate, managed the income and expenses of Noein's household.

In other words, she held the purse strings of the manor. The task of replenishing daily necessities also fell under her jurisdiction.

"In total, that comes to 850 rebores."

"Understood. Here you go."

"......Yes, indeed."

Philip nodded after confirming the eight silver coins and five large copper coins he received from Anna. The transaction was now complete.

"How is business in our estate?"

"Thanks to you, I've been making a lot of profit. The residents of the capital Noeina seem to have some extra income."

"Hehe, well, we do have jobs and farmland."

As the self-sufficiency rate of food in the capital Noeina increased, the rewards for tasks such as lapis lazuri ore mining and land development were often paid in cash. Therefore, the residents of the Arquvist estate had more cash than the typical villagers and had enough to buy some luxury items.

"Recently, the disputes with the neighboring countries to the east and west have been affecting the economy. The prosperity here is truly enviable."

"Indeed, the impact of the disputes is significant, isn't it?"

"Yes, especially in the west, where the Lancer Kingdom has launched another offensive after the winter... I hope it doesn't escalate into a full-scale war."

"Absolutely. Peace is the best."

The recent increase in refugees suggested that the disputes were not subsiding. However, Noein could not miss the opportunity to hear accurate information about the situation outside the estate from someone with a merchant's network of information. He continued to chat with Philip, learning about the information he knew.

Eventually, Noein ended the conversation, and Philip said he would finish his business for the day and return to Letvik.

As Noein watched Philip leave on the road leading to the Konitz viscount's estate, Pense, who was in charge of maintaining the estate's security, approached.

"Lord Noein, that peddler..."

"I know. He's probably a spy for the Konitz viscount."

"Ah!"

Pense, who had been keeping an eye on Philip, a foreigner, said this, and Noein answered before him.

Anna, who had been listening to the two, gasped in surprise. It was understandable that she was surprised to learn that the friendly and approachable Philip was a spy.

Incidentally, Matilda was not surprised because she had already heard this from Noein before.

"I've met Philip several times when I lived in Letvik, and he's just a regular merchant."

"Sure, I didn't mean to say he was a spy. I think he's selling information about us to the Konitz viscount as a peddler."

It was quite normal for a peddler to visit a village. He could enter the village without any suspicion.

So, the Konitz viscount probably gave Philip some money to report on the state of the Arquvist estate and the pace of its development.

This was not necessarily because the Konitz viscount had any hostile intentions, but rather to keep track of the neighboring estate.

It was standard for noble lords to gather such information. In fact, Noein had instructed Bart, the person in charge of shopping, to observe the changes in Letvik, and sometimes he visited Letvik himself.

"But, is it okay to let him enter the estate normally?"

"We're aware of that, so we're careful not to reveal important information. Any peddler would gather information, so we'll let him do some surface-level observations. But I want you to keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't do anything suspicious."

"Understood."

As Noein explained to Anna and turned to Pense, Pense answered while watching Philip's back with a sharp eye as he left on the road.