Chapter 441
"Well then, now that the city's name has been decided without issue, let's move on to the next agenda item."
"But the only thing that wasn't decided was Liberta-kun's—"
"Amina, chatter later."
"Okay."
I feel sorry that the name of this former pioneer village, now Academy City Freihait, was delayed in being decided due to various complications on my part.
But now is not the time to dwell on that, as Nell's hand cuts off Amina's words.
"Ahem."
The atmosphere in the meeting room shifts due to that exchange, so I clear my throat a little theatrically and restart the discussion.
"With the temple now completed in Freihait, it's been officially decided that priests, led by an archbishop, will soon be dispatched from the temple. That means we will also be able to use the facilities within the temple."
The topic I'm raising is the difficult issue of securing人才 that has been stalled until now.
Until now, we couldn't easily impose binding contracts, so we were extremely cautious and kept recruitment to a minimum.
"This eliminates the need to go all the way to the royal capital's temple to make contracts. From now on, we can make contracts with new人才 here in Freihait. Therefore, we will begin recruiting the personnel that the Entertainers have been investigating."
But if we can now impose that binding contract easily, it's simply time to act proactively.
"First of all, Shalia. How are things progressing with Gurgle?"
"I'd say they're going well♪ After changing his appearance, manners, way of speaking, and various other things, the way women around him look at him has changed, and marriage proposals have started coming in. I've been reporting these changes to his family, so their impression of us should be good, I think."
"Understood. Shalia, continue to focus on Gurgle. Let me know when there's progress or when you need support."
"Roger♪"
First, the ongoing Gurgle-related matter.
Obtaining the Shine Moss isn't urgent, but many Gurgle-related quests simply require time and patience.
If Shalia says things are going well, it's probably best to leave it to her.
In a way, Gurgle is also a talent that can be repurposed as an agricultural teacher, and if cultivated, he could become proficient in pharmacology as well.
He's the type to work seriously if he just gets motivated.
Deepening the relationship now won't hurt.
"Shalia, I'm counting on you. Judeus, how are things with the personnel you've been investigating?"
"Take a look at the documents I have here regarding the background checks you requested."
Next is a report from Judeus, who acted in place of Shalia while she was occupied with the Gurgle matter.
Paper is precious in this world, but in Freihait, mass production is already in place.
We can't waste it, but we can prepare documents like these for the number of people.
"This is a list of personnel with high importance who seem suitable as educators. Based on the prerequisite of basic skills like reading, writing, and arithmetic, I've categorized them by personality, whether they possess specialized knowledge, and whether their position makes recruitment feasible."
"Indeed, there are many people from the former territory of Bordrinde in the north, aren't there?"
"That land is our home turf. It's easier to investigate, and with many unemployed due to the ongoing reconstruction, they're also easier to recruit."
The documents contain detailed information such as name, origin, age, gender, race, whether commoner or noble, and literacy.
The reason there are many people from the northern territory is due to geographical advantage and ease of recruitment.
"Conversely, securing personnel considered excellent from the royal capital or other territories is difficult. They're basically employed and satisfied with their positions. Those who aren't tend to be overly ambitious—capable but hard to handle, or those whose positions are unfavorable due to noble power dynamics, or those whose businesses aren't going well due to debt. They have no personal issues, but their positional situation is problematic. We have a few like that."
Next to the skill and personality items, circles, crosses, and triangles are marked, making it easy to understand the evaluation given by the Entertainers' investigation.
"First, priority should be given to character."
The people listed on the earlier pages have higher evaluations from Judeus and the Entertainers.
Among those items, I pick out several individuals who received a double circle—a mark above a circle—for character.
"Judeus, what's your on-site impression of these eight people's evaluations?"
"I've seen five of those eight myself. Their personalities aren't overly rigid, but they're serious and seem unlikely to have committed crimes. However, in terms of skills, they can really only teach reading, writing, and arithmetic at most. Is that okay?"
"No problem. The first students of this academy will mainly be orphans. I don't want to mix in people connected to the powerful for the first batch. The content to be taught will focus more on agriculture, industry, construction, and transportation rather than combat. Once they can read, write, and do arithmetic, we can send them to the craftsmen."
For basic literacy, we could recruit teachers from the shopping district folks, the families of the Garden Guards, or craftsmen like Don and Percy, but they already have their own duties.
Even if they were to teach, I'd prefer them to contribute by teaching specialized knowledge rather than spending time on basic education.
Therefore, I want to secure those five as teachers to build the foundation for learning.
"What do you think? Looking at the documents, I think we should secure these five. Is there anything concerning?"
If I were to order Judeus to secure them now, he'd act immediately.
But without rushing, as I solicit opinions, Claudia raises her hand.
"Forcing them wouldn't be good. It should be recruitment—we should thoroughly ensure that we enlist them based on their own will, employing them with their cooperation."
"Indeed. Judeus, is there anyone among the Entertainers who seems skilled at negotiation?"
"That cute-faced one over there."
Claudia's concern might seem obvious, but stating it here establishes a common understanding, and my affirmation ensures it's thoroughly implemented. If a misunderstanding, prioritizing speed, led to something akin to forced abduction, terrible rumors would spread on their own.
"Hmm, that means we're short-handed. Zink-san, please dispatch some people from the shopping district who can handle negotiations, supporting the Entertainers."
"Understood. I'll arrange it immediately."
"Come to me to confirm the recruitment conditions before you go. We have budget leeway, so try to secure them on as good terms as possible. Coordinate with Judeus and Zink-san."
"Got it."
"Having you as backup makes negotiations easier and helps a lot."
"No wasteful spending, okay?"
"Of course, that's where a merchant's skill shines."
Showing the intention to avoid such problems is important.
"Liberta. Increasing personnel is fine, but is it okay to also increase the治安 maintenance forces? Currently, Genjirou-san's Garden Guards, the Entertainers, and the volunteer vigilante group from Don-san's people are just barely managing. If we're going to increase the population, we should address that side too."
"Esmeralda's concern is valid. I have a bit of an idea about that. Amina, how did it go asking the spirits about that matter?"
"Yeah! I asked Dark-san, and he said they'd dispatch spirits for night patrol duty!"
It's not just about increasing numbers.
Naturally, more people means more trouble.
We need to think of ways to address that.
I know Genjirou and his group, as well as Judeus and his group, are excellent, but they can still become overworked and short-handed.
"So, we've requested spirits for patrol duty on a temporary, part-time basis. This will serve as a stopgap until we can secure reliable combat power."
"...If I were to hazard a guess, my lord, I suspect there's a possibility they won't just be a stopgap but might end up staying permanently."
"That possibility is very real! In fact, if they're willing, I'm thinking of formally employing them! Amina, how many spirits are actually coming?"
"Um, a lot? There are too many applicants, so they're currently selecting. Ah! The Lightning Spirit Triplets said they're definitely coming! And Dark-san too, maybe? He said he wants to interact with the craftsmen here!"
"Okay, at the very least, four high-ranking spirits are coming, so I think治安 maintenance will be fine."
I had some ideas for reliable combat power, so when I reached out through those connections, an unexpectedly overwhelming force ended up coming.
Considering that acquaintances like Wind-san might also come, it should be sufficient for治安 maintenance.
Deploying spirits in war would incur the Spirit King's wrath, so this is purely employment as security guards for治安 maintenance.
"Genjirou, cooperate with Amina and teach the spirits the know-how of security work. I think learning how to interact with spirits from Amina should be fine."
"Understood. Lady Amina, I humbly request your guidance and support."
"Ahaha, you don't have to be so formal."
We could pay them in money, but we'll probably need to educate them on that aspect as well.
For that, we'll have Nell assist Amina and provide support.
"I digress. Looking at the documents, the remaining three seem fine, but Judeus, do you have any concerns?"
"No, nothing in particular. I haven't heard anything strange from the others either."
"Just in case, if the negotiators dispatched by Zink-san find anything amiss with any of the eight, put the recruitment on hold."
"Understood."
With治安 maintenance no longer an issue, we return to the remaining recruitment talk.
Huh? Isn't the combat power excessive? Won't it attract trouble?
I tell myself that's nothing new and proceed.
"Anything else?"
"After this, I'd like to bring my family and the families of the Entertainers here. Is that okay?"
"Sure. Are the procedures with the nobility finished?"
"Yeah, I finally finished relinquishing my status. They tried hard to retain me, asking me to lend my strength for regional reconstruction, though."
Now that we've pivoted to increasing the population, bringing Judeus's family to this city is fine.
The reason Judeus's family couldn't come before was because the procedures weren't progressing.
Now that they're finally finished, Judeus shrugs, looking relieved.
"I see. Let me know if they have a desired occupation. Ah, positions of power like nobles are out."
"I don't want that anyway. My father and mother say they've had enough of nobility after that whole incident. They can teach reading, writing, and arithmetic, so being employed as teachers would be more than enough for them."
"Okay. Judeus, you handle that side of things."
I wondered if, as former nobles, they might seek power, but apparently, they're using this opportunity to return to commoner status.
If that's the case, then no problem.
Once the groundwork is laid, things progress rapidly.
Stamp, stamp, stamp with the "Approved" seal, and the recruitment of eight people is decided in one go.
"Well then, let's keep this momentum and proceed with screening other potential recruits!"
There's still plenty of information the Entertainers have gathered.
While listening to everyone's opinions for and against, we continue sorting through potential recruits, deciding who to pursue and who to pass on.
"Hmm, this person, huh."
We come to the person I'd been struggling with even during the prior reading stage.
"Liberta, are you going to recruit this person?"
"Honestly, I'm really torn."
Up to this point, we've recruited over thirty people.
Our target is to recruit more than double that number.
This person is the hundredth candidate.
Looking at the documents for this person I'm struggling over, the name is right there.
'Petra Lone'
As far as I know, that's undoubtedly the name of an excellent Named character.