Chapter 9

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 9

Chapter Title: Arrival of the Black Eagle Unit

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"Hot... It's so damn hot."

"Just hang in there a bit longer. The sun will set soon."

"What's the sun setting gonna do? Tomorrow and the day after, we'll still be hauling dirt till we drop!"

Thwack!

Unable to take it anymore, the man flung the shovel he was holding to the ground.

"H-Hey! What if someone hears you?!"

"Let 'em hear! The harvest is right around the corner, and this is how many months we've been at it already!"

The man's name was Hans.

He was a farmer who had lived in the Brail Duchy for three generations.

Despite his friend's attempts to calm him, he couldn't hold back his anger and vented his frustrations with heavy breaths.

"Even if they say they'll compensate us... All the men in my house are out here. Who's supposed to tend to our fields, our ancestors?!"

"Everyone's in the same boat."

The man glanced warily at those around them and patted Hans's shoulder.

He felt the same frustration with the situation.

The dam construction, which had seemed nearly finished, was dragging on longer than expected, making those awaiting harvest increasingly anxious.

Of course, the Duke of Brail wasn't some tyrannical lord who skimped on fair wages or oppressed his people.

But when it came to matters tied to their livelihoods, the territory's folk couldn't help their unease.

"It needs to get resolved soon."

In the end, even the man agreeing with Hans slumped powerlessly to the ground.

Living within the walls built by nobles promised safety from raids or plunder.

But it also meant being mobilized for labor when the territory needed development.

The Brail Duchy had low tax rates. Until now, the residents had willingly cooperated with every call to action.

However, the endless repetition of labor, with no end in sight and the sweltering midsummer heat, had drained away even their remaining enthusiasm.

"I just want to eat the stew my wife makes... I can't even remember the last time I had something hot."

"You're on meal duty tomorrow, right? Heh, looks like we'll be starving skinny."

"Haaa..."

Hans let out a sigh so deep it seemed to cave the earth and nodded dejectedly.

With even the duchy's soldiers put to work on the construction, there were no extra hands left.

Women and children had to handle household chores on top of farm work while the men were away, so naturally, the men had to manage their own meals at the site.

Ingredients were provided, but with so few skilled cooks, the food quality was inevitably poor.

"Anyone got a moment?"

"We're all dying of exhaustion here—what kind of nonsense is that?"

"Yeah. Sigh, let's just get back to work."

Venting complaints wouldn't change a thing; it would only waste time.

Hans and his friend picked up their shovels and trudged back wearily.

But then.

Thud thud thud thud.

"You hear that sound somewhere?"

"What sound?"

"Like... running footsteps..."

It sounded like an army on the move.

The ground-shaking noise grew clearer in their ears.

"D-Did war break out or something?"

"Who in their right mind starts a war right before harvest? They'd be begging for divine punishment!"

Above all, no one would dare tangle with the Duke of Brail.

Clutching his shovel tightly, Hans peered anxiously toward the sound.

And then he spotted them.

"H-Hey, aren't those people?"

They were definitely people. A whole lot of them.

Kicking up clouds of dust as they ran, they were shirtless up top, wearing identical work clothes below, with armbands on their arms.

And on those armbands was written "Black Eagle Unit."

"Wh-Who...!"

As the soldier in charge of site security hastily donned his armor over his work clothes, the Duke's aide Liam arrived breathlessly at the front.

"Huff... huff...!"

His labored breathing showed just how urgent his rush had been.

"These are the Black Eagle Unit mercenaries from the Ilamena Federation, starting work on the dam today. Hand over the site to them and withdraw... huff... that's the Duke's order!"

"R-Really?"

"You're serious?"

The residents stared back and forth between Liam and the mercenaries in stunned disbelief.

Soon, the mercenary captain at the forefront bellowed.

"Black Eagle Unit! Commence work!"

"Yes, sir!"

As the Black Eagle Unit charged into the dam site with a mighty roar, the residents, shaking off their shock, hurried to hand over their tasks alongside them.

Even as he stamped the seal alongside Count Golbro, the Black Eagle Unit's owner, it still didn't feel real to Liam. And now, everything from morning until this moment felt utterly surreal.

"Hah..."

Muttering to himself as he watched the Black Eagle Unit, Liam turned to the figure who had quietly approached his side.

It was April.

Hmm, good thing everything went smoothly.

I have no idea what I was imagining, but thankfully, 'imagined events' don't actually happen.

Feeling anew the preciousness of my ant-like life now safely preserved for another day, I turned to head back to what others call a prison but feels like paradise to me.

"How did you mobilize them? I know this isn't the sort of thing that gets resolved so easily."

I couldn't help but stop at Liam's question.

"Just... got lucky..."

"No separate negotiation process at all—that can't just be chalked up to luck."

Ugh, he's not letting it go, huh.

I sighed and brushed the dust off a nearby pile of materials before plopping down casually on it.

"I offered very specific terms. The seal from the ducal residence guaranteed credibility, so things moved faster."

"Conditions satisfying enough for them to come immediately must have been quite disadvantageous for us in return."

Liam seemed worried I'd promised some outrageous compensation.

But even if it wasn't my money, I wasn't so lacking in conscience as to splurge while freeloading—kidnapped, in other words—in someone else's home.

"Even standard or similar terms to what they usually accept allow for quick negotiations."

"...?"

"They were originally set to be hired by the Salt Kingdom, but the contract fell through unexpectedly. And I've got experience participating in the contract negotiations between Salt and the Ilamena Federation."

I shielded my eyes from the bright sun with my hand and added,

"...So yeah, I really did get lucky."

I was scared he'd ask more, but luckily, someone needed him.

"Uh, Aide... sir..."

"Hm? What is it?"

A shabbily dressed man eyed him nervously, looking intimidated.

"Who should we hand off the cooking duties to? The mercenaries don't have their own cook, apparently."

"Cook?"

Oh, right.

Liam had only reviewed the negotiation clauses, so he wouldn't know this.

Feeling the need to explain, I answered instead.

"The cooking can be handled by the women in the territory who need economic opportunities."

"So, Princess, you're saying to mobilize the spare residents...?"

"Yes."

Volunteers would be better than forced labor, of course.

I nodded without hesitation.

The dam construction documents included not just details on the mobilized residents but also summaries on those not mobilized.

What particularly caught my eye were the women from certain classes who had virtually no economic activity and thus paid no taxes.

Among them were widows whose husbands had died, unmarried mothers, or women who gave up marriage to support their parents alone.

I'd asked the maid who periodically brought meals, and she said those women scraped by on meager pay from odd jobs in others' homes.

"Right now, with the men mobilized for construction, there's plenty of work, so they're not starving. But once it's over, things go back to normal."

"Then those people..."

"They barely get by, putting food on the table. Worst case, they starve."

Once I grasped the situation, the next step took shape.

The Black Eagle Unit has no head cook.

The Salt Kingdom had sent their own cooks, but there was no time for that now, and pulling staff from the ducal residence had its issues.

Noble household chefs were loyal to their masters and wouldn't want to cook for lowly mercenaries.

So I'd come up with the perfect replacements right away.

Recapping the situation in my mind, I replied with confident conviction once more.

"You saw it in the contract, Liam—the Black Eagle Unit gets breakfast and lunch provided. You know that, right?"

"Y-Yes, but."

"So, to get those women starting work at dawn tomorrow, I'll need you to handle it. I've got the hiring list prepared—use that as reference."

Liam, looking stunned for a moment, soon composed himself and nodded.

"I'll get on it."

"Sure."

I nodded back and turned my gaze to the clear blue sky.

Basking in the sun after so long. Not bad, sure.

But still... I'm...

a total homebody who loves the dark.

I was already missing my cool, shady room with the blackout curtains.