Are Beast Nobles Supposed to Be This Lewd?

"Our citizens’ health is just as important.Sick Beastmen can’t work. They can’t pay taxes." And they certainly can’t help make the duchy wealthy.

Besides... Disease is often one of the greatest financial burdens a family can face.

So...I’d like to establish a hospital."

"A... hospital?" both women echoed.

"A hospital is a house for the sick. A single place where skilled healers work together, each specializing in different illnesses, injuries, or treatments.

When someone falls ill, they come there for help.

And if necessary... They remain there for several days until they’ve recovered."

Mirabelle pointed toward the western marshlands.

"I’d like to build it here." Her finger rested near the edge of the great marsh. "Because wetlands produce an incredible variety of medicinal herbs.

That gives us another opportunity. We can create an entirely new source of income for the nearby villages.

The local residents could gather herbs after being trained by the hospital staff. The hospital would purchase those herbs directly from them. The healers would then use or sell the herbs as medicine.

She looked at her mother.

"I’d like the hospital itself to be operated by the duchy. The healers would receive salaries from us. We’d also purchase the medicinal herbs.

Of course the hospital wouldn’t be free.

Everyone receiving treatment would pay a modest fee."

She shook her head slightly.

"I doubt those fees alone would make the institution profitable. And that’s perfectly acceptable. The goal isn’t to maximize profit. The goal is for it to sustain itself if possible. But if it requires subsidies from the duchy... I’m willing to provide them.

Because healthy citizens are far more valuable to our future than short-term profit."

She paused.

"And eventually..."

A small smile appeared.

"We might even attract patients from neighboring territories. They would travel here specifically because our healers are the best. They could be charged a higher fee than our own citizens."

Her grandmother’s ears twitched.

"To make that work, I’d also like every citizen to be officially registered. They’d receive a citizen’s badge that identifies them as residents of Luchsenstein.

That way, they can easily prove they’re entitled to the benefits reserved for our own people."

She looked from her mother to her grandmother.

"Designing a fair system for all of that will require some very clever minds. I’d like to gather our brightest people and have them help develop it."

Silence settled over the tower once again.

Neither the Duchess nor the Matriarch interrupted her this time. They simply listened.

Mirabelle glanced down at her fingers, silently counting.

"Trade... roads... schools... hospitals..."

She paused.

Surely there had been something else.

While she searched her memory, the two Matriarchs quietly began fanning themselves with their hands.

"Actually..."

Mirabelle tapped a finger against her chin.

"It would probably also be wise to establish classes for adult Beastwomen."

Her mother tilted her head.

"Adult classes?"

"To teach them reading and writing."

Mirabelle shrugged.

"Once they learn, they can pass those skills on to their mates if they want to.

I think it’ll make managing a household and especially a business much easier. Since females usually oversee their family’s finances and trade, literacy can only benefit them."

She began absentmindedly mumbling to herself again.

"And those schools wouldn’t have to stop at reading and writing... They could also offer practical courses. How to cultivate Thorn-grass. How to process it.

...I’d also like to build mills."

"...Mills?"

For a moment, her mother seemed almost afraid to ask.

"Oh."

Mirabelle smiled sheepishly.

"A mill is a structure built beside a river that uses the force of flowing water to grind grain.

Although windmills would work as well. They use the wind instead."

She nodded thoughtfully.

"I think I’ll leave that idea until after we return from the Royal Hunting Party."

Her mother visibly relaxed.

"Yes! That sounds like a good plan."

It seemed postponing at least a few of Mirabelle’s ideas made them significantly less overwhelming.

"If the hospital proves successful, we should eventually establish several more in strategic locations throughout the duchy.

We’ll begin with a single school here in Steinstein, evaluate how well the concept works, and expand it gradually.

We’ll also need to identify capable teachers. Finding the right people will probably be one of our greatest challenges."

She counted on her fingers once more.

"I think... the last major topic I want to address immediately is our military. And the security of Luchsenstein. The war showed us that we can never assume we’re safe."

She glanced pointedly at her grandmother.

"And thanks to several rather... enlightening thought experiments from my grandmother..."

Her gaze shifted toward the north on the map.

"...and from Luciens uncle, the Queen’s advisor...

I’ve realized that information travels far too slowly across our territory."

She looked back at the model.

"So I’d like to create a fire network."

She paused.

"Or... a fire tower network. I’ll work on the name later."

Her finger began tracing a line from the borders toward Steinstein.

"I want to construct a chain of stone towers stretching from every major border crossing all the way to our capital.

Each tower would have a large beacon at its summit. At that height, a fire can be seen from an incredible distance.

If something happens at one of our borders, the soldiers stationed there light the beacon.

The guards at the next tower see the fire and light theirs. Then the next."

She followed the imaginary chain all the way across Luchsenstein.

"The signal races across the duchy. Much faster than any Beastman could run. Much faster than any flying messenger.

And by the time the final beacon is lit..."

She rested her fingertip on Steinstein.

"...we’ll already know that something has happened at the border. Our soldiers can mobilize immediately. It could save hours."

She looked at both women.

"And in war... A few hours can decide the fate of an entire campaign."

The Matriarch simply stared at her granddaughter.

How?

How had she failed to recognize Mirabelle’s brilliance all these years?

Her gaze slowly shifted toward her own daughter.

Had this been Miranda’s fault?

Had she done something that had developed Mirabelle from —

No.

The thought died almost as quickly as it had formed. Miranda looked just as stunned as she did. The Duchess hadn’t expected any of this either.

The Matriarch slowly looked back at Mirabelle.

Could it truly have something to do with the Beast Goddess’s touch Miranda had told her about?

Or...

Had something else happened?

Something that had transformed her loud, pampered granddaughter into this strategic monster standing before her?

The Duchess recovered more quickly than her mother.

"Very well."

She drew a slow breath, her expression shifting from astonishment to determination.

"If we’re going to accomplish all of this, we’ll need capable people. I’ll assemble a council. People who understand our current infrastructure. Our military. The administration.

Some of the brightest minds in the duchy.

We’ll also need Beastmen with the right affinities."

She gestured toward the map.

"Stone-affinity users. Plant-affinity users. And people with connections, both within Luchsenstein and beyond our borders."

She looked back at Mirabelle.

"I’ll do my best to arrange a meeting before your departure. That way, we can begin laying the groundwork while you’re attending the Royal Hunting Party.

And once you return, we’ll review the progress together. We’ll see what’s working... what isn’t... and where adjustments need to be made."

Mirabelle smiled, genuinely pleased.

"That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Mother."

She was honestly surprised. Not a single one of her proposals had been rejected.

Then again...

Both her mother and grandmother were exceptionally intelligent women. She had expected them to recognize the potential behind her ideas fairly quickly.

What she hadn’t expected...

...was that the discussion had never turned into whether they should implement them.

Instead, both women had simply accepted that they would.

The conversation had shifted immediately to how.

"Alright."

Her grandmother let out a slow breath.

"I think I need a moment to process all of this."

She allowed Miranda to help her rise from the low stool before turning back toward her granddaughter. A warm smile softened her usually stern features.

"You did very well. I’m looking forward to your investiture ceremony."

She gave Mirabelle one final nod before making her way toward the spiral staircase.

Reaching the opening in the floor, she steadied herself against the railing and began her descent.

A few steps later, she paused.

Turning her head, she looked expectantly at Miranda.

"Are you coming?"

The Duchess glanced back at Mirabelle.

All she could offer was a small, helpless shrug. Then she hurried after her mother, disappearing down the staircase.

Silence settled over the tower once more.

Only then did Pebbles finally speak. The tiny tentacled creature had hovered quietly above the map throughout the entire meeting, listening to every single one of Mirabelle’s ideas without interrupting once.

Pebbles spun once in midair before her.

Then the little creature spread its tentacles wide, extending two to each side as though it were proudly presenting something only it could see.

"Would you like your system notifications now?"