Among the knights of the Weissen Family, Old Franz was the oldest and most experienced. In his youth, he had followed Frederick's grandfather in campaigns across the land, helping carve out the Weissen Family's territory.
Time spared no one. A warrior could remain at the peak of his strength for a long time, but unless he had reached the level of Richard Nahl, once his body aged past a certain point, his strength would rapidly decline.
Franz had fathered a son in middle age. Young Franz was now in his twenties. He had traveled across the land five years ago and had only returned to Wessen Territory a few days ago.
Old Franz knew he was about to retire. While he still had a say in family affairs, he wanted his son to make an impression in front of Frederick.
Although Young Franz was the strongest of the territory's younger generation, Frederick had never seen him for most of his life. Old Franz felt that, in his lord's eyes, his son was practically a stranger.
When Frederick saw Young Franz walk up to the map, he immediately grinned and said, "If your presentation isn't any good, you can spend the rest of your life digging bird eggs out of nests."
Old Franz felt a weight lift from his heart. So his lord still remembered his son.
Young Franz took the pointer from Richard Nahl, smiled at Frederick and the others, and began explaining the plan to transport the refugees. "The distance from Lohr Town to Weissenburg is about two hundred kilometers. Hausen Town is the first stop after entering Wessen Territory."
"I happened to travel this route on my way back. We can set up a camp every forty to sixty kilometers or so. Apart from Lohr Town and Hausen Town, we'll need three camps along the way."
He tapped three spots on the map, then continued, "The land beside the road here is lying fallow, and there's plenty of clean water nearby. It's suitable for setting up camps."
"It'll take a carriage half a morning or afternoon to travel between camps. We can transport people toward the rear in the morning, then supplies toward the front in the afternoon."
Everyone in the meeting room nodded approvingly. He had thought things through carefully.
Setting up a camp wasn't as simple as finding a flat spot. First, they had to consider the water supply, and then the landowner's wishes.
If they put the camp in fallow fields, the nearby water could supply the camp, and the people's and horses' waste would fertilize the land. The landowners wouldn't complain; they'd be happy to have more manure, since it would mean a bumper harvest next year.
The distance between camps was reasonable too. A horse pulling a carriage needed to rest after half a day, or pushing it too hard would injure it.
"Each camp will be divided into five sections," Young Franz continued. "One for whole families, one for men only, one for women only, one for orphans, and the last for our people and the horses."
"We may also recruit some women to take care of the orphans."
Seeing how carefully he had considered everything, Frederick nodded.
After Young Franz finished, Frederick said, "Good. You two will be in charge of transporting people from outside the territory. Old Franz, you'll be stationed in Lohr. Young Franz, you'll be traveling around more, in charge of the three camps farther along the route."
"Jürgen, Lothar, Andrei." He named three outstanding members of the younger generation. "You'll each be responsible for one camp."
"Does anyone have a problem with my arrangements?"
Old Franz held a knight's title and was part of a noble family, so he would have an easier time dealing with people while stationed in Lohr.
Jürgen and the others were sons of knights. As long as they didn't get themselves into trouble, they would be knighted sooner or later. Their neighbors knew this and wouldn't make things difficult for them.
Naturally, no one had a problem with the arrangement.
Orr, seated at the end of the meeting table, watched with some surprise.
He had been a mercenary leader for many years and had met all kinds of nobles. There had been cases like Frederick's, where a family fell into turmoil and a child under ten had to take charge. But those children always had a trusted loyalist—or a powerful threat—running things behind the scenes. The children themselves were merely figureheads.
At first, he had assumed Frederick's situation was the same. But as the meeting went on, he realized how completely wrong he was. Frederick gave orders just like an adult, and the others seemed to think this was perfectly normal.
Next, the territory's administrator, Flick, went up to the map. He was in charge of work within the territory and would be stationed in Hausen Town.
Using the pointer, Flick indicated the small triangles scattered across Wessen Territory. "These are the sites of the new villages. At present, after resting three to five days at the camp in Hausen Town, the refugees will travel to them on foot."
"The village headmen have finished their training, and the villages have been assigned by lottery. We'll see how they do once the work begins."
"It's the off-season for farming, so we've already called up four thousand people to clear the land and dig wells at the new village sites. Once the new residents arrive, they'll live in tents while they cut timber, build fences and houses, and repair the roads."
"We stopped exporting steel last month. The blacksmiths are making tools now, so they'll be ready in time."
"We've also hired carpenters who know how to build houses from the Carpenters' Guilds elsewhere. The first group arrived yesterday."
"If all goes well, everyone will be in their new homes before winter. They can start clearing land for cultivation next spring."
Resettlement was complicated, so Flick focused his report on food, clothing, housing, and transport.
After hearing him out, Frederick said, "If there aren't enough houses, people can double up. How are the winter clothes coming along?"
Flick nodded and continued, "We've already bought cotton cloth and raw cotton. Sir Basf has supplied us with plenty of shoe soles and Waterproof Cloth. We've gathered many people in Wessen Territory who know how to sew, and they're making clothes, cloth shoes, and tents."
"To help them work more efficiently, we've opened a lot of temporary daycares in the city and towns to look after their children."
Frederick asked, "Are the wages enough?"
Flick replied, "Some wages are paid in grain, and some people asked for Steam Bread. There's no problem with the wage expenses."
"What about the food?" Frederick asked.
Flick replied, "At present, we have a little more food than planned. In the long run, it won't be a problem."
"Nina's steamed-bun workshop is working through the night to make steamed multigrain bread. Students from Weissenburg University are helping make Concentrated Soup. Both are packed in bags supplied by Sir Basf, and Sir Manuel has his students sterilizing the Steam Bread and Concentrated Soup."
"Sir Manuel says that once they've been sterilized, the Steam Bread and Concentrated Soup will keep for at least two months as long as the bags remain unopened. Realistically, they should last until next year."
"Wessen Territory has more than eighteen hundred carriages of all sizes. We've requisitioned five hundred of them and had them modified."
At this point, Frederick said, "Group the carriages by region, and organize them into teams of ten, following the army's model. That'll make them easier to manage."
"Franz, help Flick handle this."
There was an older and a younger Franz in the room. For a moment, father and son weren't sure which one their lord meant, or who should answer.
Frederick gave Young Franz a mischievous grin. "Why aren't you volunteering? Unless you get our administrator's approval, do you think you'll ever get married?"
The meeting room instantly filled with cheerful laughter.
The younger generation laughed the hardest. They had all grown up together, and Young Franz was their leader.
Young Franz blushed as he accepted the assignment.
Frederick turned to Orr, seated farthest from him, and asked, "Does your side have any objections to the terms I proposed?"
Orr put on a deeply troubled expression and said, "Baron Weissen's terms have stirred up a storm of bloodshed where I come from!"
His words startled everyone in the meeting room. They wondered how a business deal could have led to people dying—and in such large numbers, at that.
Richard Nahl knew what kind of man Orr was. Putting on an angry face, he said, "Get to the point. The last time you talked about a bloody storm, your wife was chasing you around the village with an axe."
Orr shrank his neck amid the laughter, then said solemnly, "Baron Weissen asked me to hire two hundred veterans as constables. The terms he offered were so generous that five or six hundred people wanted to sign up on the spot. Quite a few of them were officers."
Frederick smiled. The wages and land he had offered were fairly ordinary. The real draw was that anyone who completed five years of service could recommend a young person to study at Weissenburg's affiliated school, and anyone who passed could go on to Weissenburg University.
He had also revealed that Sword Saint Richard Nahl was the university's vice-chancellor and would teach its students.
That was an irresistible offer for the mercenaries.
Orr continued, "I weeded out the ones who were just after the food. I've brought the remaining five hundred here for you to choose from."
Frederick thought for a moment, then said to Old Franz, "Go pick enough men to serve as constables. The rest can stay if they're willing. They'll keep the same benefit of being able to recommend someone after five years. We'll be expanding the army next year."
The people of Wessen Territory weren't surprised by the expansion. Who knew what kind of trouble the King would stir up again before long?
With that settled, Orr brought up the next matter. "There's no problem with hunting down the monsters in the forest as a business venture. I can take it on. As agreed, all the proceeds will be mine."
Frederick nodded. "Agreed."
Clearing land was a struggle between people and wild beasts for living space. People needed to eat their fill before they had the strength to protect the environment and wildlife.
Wessen Territory's organized forces were extremely weak, so the mercenaries were perfect for this job.
"Gerd, Heinz, Bernd, Matthias, Stefan, Oliver, Michael, Miroslav..." Frederick named a number of people from the younger generation. "Each of you will be responsible for one area. Lead the mercenaries and hunters in clearing out the monsters."
For the young men, this was a rare opportunity to lead troops.
After discussing the major matters, everyone went over a few details.
Before the meeting ended, Frederick made a solemn promise. "Tomorrow, I'll give the Executive Yuan a few more gold items. Sell them if we run short of money."
"In short, everyone taking part in this operation must be paid properly."
"And not just them. This December, everyone on the staff of Wessen Territory will receive two extra months' pay."
"In June next year, if the territory has settled down, I'll give everyone another three months' pay."
Before you continue