Inspecting the Territory

After dealing with Garen's matter, Josh finally breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, after questioning the maid, he confirmed that his guess had been correct.

Today was Waiting Day in Ci Ya Month. By the calendar of Josh's former world, it was May 5th, and it was also First Planting Day. The Muya Continent was still an agricultural serf society. Every year on this day, everyone celebrated, while the serfs symbolically sowed seeds in hopes of an autumn harvest.

This festival represented a new beginning, both for the crops and for the men and women of every region. That was why it had remained vivid in Josh's memory. More importantly, he clearly remembered arriving on the Valoran Continent before Waiting Day and First Planting Day.

"Could this count as a pleasant little surprise?"

Josh thought to himself. He did not know how long he had been unconscious after returning, but when he woke up, it had been around six in the morning. He had experimented with magic and crossed over at nearly seven the previous evening. He clearly remembered spending an entire night in Valoran and wandering through the forest for half a day. No matter how he looked at it, something was wrong with the timing.

"Forget it. Whether time stopped or just flowed differently doesn't matter. Either way, it's good for me, isn't it?"

Josh took it in stride and did not dwell on it. He was even wondering where he would end up the next time he crossed over.

"I hope it'll be a relatively peaceful place. I don't want to be scared half to death the moment I arrive, only to run into an enemy I might not be able to beat even if I risked my life. That kind of life would be far too tragic. Once was enough. If it happened a few more times, I'd be better off not crossing over at all."

All right, Josh truly had little interest in challenges that were too difficult. He was now a prince. He never had to worry about food or drink, and he did not even need to worry about women. Put simply, even if he were utterly useless, Augustus blood still flowed through his veins. His father would still arrange a wedding for him and produce a few children.

"Does this count as having no goal in life? Like a salted fish just drifting through life and waiting to die?"

While Josh was lost in thought, a young man in a proper noble's robe slowly approached and bowed to him. "Good morning, respected son of Augustus IV, Lord Josh."

"Oh, good morning, Sir Frank." Josh quickly came to his senses and returned the greeting.

Frank Anderson was Josh's steward and could also be considered an adviser for Josh's territory. Although Constantinople was not particularly large, quite a few minor nobles had gathered here. However, the highest among them were only baronets, utterly unable to compare to a knight like Frank, much less a prince like Josh.

In truth, this had been deliberately arranged by his father. Although Josh had not yet received a noble title, he had already been granted a fairly decent territory. If his magic improved sufficiently in the future, instead of remaining all show and no substance as it was now, Josh would have a chance to return to the Imperial Capital and take up some relatively important duties.

Of course, if Josh remained as he was, he would probably be given a noble title and told to stay obediently in his territory. Though this place was not wealthy, neither was it poor. Its resources were more than enough to support one person, provided there were no great nobles here.

That was precisely the case in Constantinople. And if Josh proved ambitious in the future, Augustus IV would likely not be stingy with a patent of nobility. Then Josh could grant titles to a group of landless minor nobles to safeguard his interests. Although Josh's father did not see him often, it was clear that he treated his children rather well.

"Lord Josh, today is both Waiting Day and First Planting Day. I believe you should inspect your territory and visit your people." Frank stated the purpose of his visit with respectful elegance, then added, "You have been in Constantinople for nearly a week now, yet you have remained in your castle the entire time. You have neither gone out to inspect your territory nor received visiting nobles. That does not befit a nobleman, my lord."

All right, to hell with noble bearing. Josh shrugged helplessly, thought for a moment, and replied, "All right, I understand. Once I finish breakfast, I'll go with you and take a good look around my territory. Also, hold a banquet tonight. Invite those minor nobles over. No problem, Frank?"

"As you command, my lord." Frank bowed and prepared to leave. He could tell that Josh seemed rather impatient with such matters, but after thinking it over, he still said, "By the way, my lord, if you encounter assassins again, please do not handle the matter alone. You were unharmed and even captured the assassin this time, but next time may be more troublesome."

"I am not questioning your ability. It is simply that, when necessary, you should seek out your guards. That is their duty!"

"All right, all right, I got it. Leave for now. I'll get ready and come find you."

At last, he had sent that fellow away. Josh felt much more comfortable. Although the man was somewhat rigid, he truly was a model nobleman. Otherwise, he would not have been sent to Constantinople with Josh simply because he was loyal enough.

Frank's family had always been an excellent noble family, with its hereditary line stretching back many generations. However, Frank was not the son of the current Anderson family head. It involved certain issues concerning the direct bloodline. Perhaps his ancestors had simply had too many children, which had led to such trouble. Still, Frank had performed well from a young age, so he caught the royal family's attention and gradually became Josh's steward.

To be honest, Josh rather admired him. His cultivation was also fairly good. At the very least, he had already reached Level 3 by the age of twenty-five. Though he could not compare with those geniuses, he had at least exceeded the average level of the entire Muya Continent at the time, had he not? But the moment Josh thought of himself, he immediately swelled with pride.

He was only sixteen and was already close to Level 3. Moreover, Josh believed that as long as he took the time to properly consolidate his cultivation and train those disobedient Void elements that had slipped into his body of their own accord, reaching Level 4 would be a sure thing!

After breakfast, Josh changed into a noble's robe and left his castle with a group of guards. It was rather amusing, really. His castle was called Constantinople, and his entire territory had been named after the castle. Of course, Josh was considering changing the name someday, because it was rather headache-inducing to remember.

As Josh put it, "Am I supposed to remember this as a castle, or as a territory?"

Still lost in thought, Josh began his inspection of the territory under the guidance of his guards and Frank. To be honest, he was rather curious about what his territory was actually like, and also about the living standards of his subjects.

The result—

"This is my fucking territory?" Less than thirty minutes into his inspection, Josh could no longer take it. He dragged Frank and the others into a patch of woods before he dared to gasp loudly for air. It was not that he did not dare to speak; the environment of that so-called city had disgusted him too much!

"The whole street reeks? There's sewage everywhere? What the hell! How is this any different from the slums of the Imperial Capital in my memories?"

"But that is indeed how things are now, my lord." Frank was actually just as disgusted, but his noble upbringing forced him not to show any improper expression. Still, he emphasized, "Everywhere is like this. After all, you used to live in the Imperial Capital. That place is different from here."

"Different my ass!" Josh did not care about all those noble rules. Frankly speaking, even if he acted this way, no one would dare say anything to him. After all, he was a prince.

After thinking carefully, Josh said to Frank, "Frank, I'll give you time. Select enough people to establish a team capable of managing the territory. Then the first thing I want you to do is conduct a census. No problem?"

"Of course, my lord." Although Frank was puzzled by the scope of this census, he still nodded. "But my lord, what do you need a census for? Constantinople has many refugees. Doing this would not mean much."

"Refugees? That's easy to deal with." Josh thought for a moment, then directly laid out his plan. "I want you to count every permanent resident here, then give them something identifiable—forget it, that would be too troublesome. Just keep records instead. It may be tiring, but count every permanent resident here, including beggars who have gone bankrupt and now wander the streets, as well as slaves. Count them all. Understood?"

"As for those refugees, hmph, once we have counted our permanent residents, there will be no need to show the refugees any sympathy. If they find work and put in honest effort, let them stay. If they come here to beg, throw every last one of them out. Understood?"

"Um, would that not be inappropriate, my lord?" Frank swallowed. It was the first time he had heard such an order. In every territory, if the nobility's rule made life impossible for too many freemen, those people would leave. Naturally, slaves sometimes fled as well.

If those driven out were merely slaves, that would be one thing. Once they were caught, the gallows would be their only fate. But freemen were still citizens of the Augustus Empire, after all. Doing this did not seem quite right.