Part 3 – Chapter 004 (Chapter 341)
Title: Simple Prediction
T/L: IonMan
Editor: Zioming
T/L Notes:
● [Credit given where credit’s due]. Feel free to identify yourselves that contributed to the translations. I’ll gladly acknowledge you:
● User “gd” in Discord (https://discord.com/invite/WSMyGsz) for pointing out the spreadsheets contains awesome amount of info going as far as Part 3, Episode 12 (according to the author’s original numbering scheme) and reduced my workload substantially
● User “SandG” in the same Discord channel for providing clarity on WN. This will refocus our efforts on the beginning of Part 3 to match the author’s novel structural style, and preventing retranslation of existing works
● Translator DarkSilencer (https://www.deviantart.com/darksilencer), I bow to you in humbleness as you’ve taken the bulk of the translation in mass successions, daily no less. The incredible amount of time spent is mind-numbing. Did you decide on a 5-year-long hiatus for the author to expand the novel before tackling it again? Hope to see you in Volumes 4 and 5 if you’re planning on tackling the project again. I’ll gladly back out and allow you to take the glory again. To Light Novels Translations’ crew (https://lightnovelstranslations.com/category/the-man-who-would-be-king/page/8/), thank you for starting the WN out. I hope I can fulfill the tremendous expectations in taking on the project as the next torchbearer from the both of you. Summary:
○ Translation by Light Novel Translations: from Part 1, Episode 1 to 29 as a kickoff
○ Translation chain by DarkSilencer: from Part 1, Episode 29 as recap to Part 3, Episode 1 – Prologue (posted as chapters 29 to 338)
○ DreamPotato: Part 3, Episodes 2 & 3 (posted as chapters 339 & 340)
○ AsianHobbyist: Part 3, Episode 4 as a teaser. man, what a teaser it was
○ Kuhaku Light Novel Translations: the releases got all messed up due to some confusion. Time for a proper reset!! I’ll begin with Part 3, Episode 4 (Chapter 341) to be consistent with the prior releases. This is to give DreamPotato his prior credits, but finishing up AsianHobbyist’s 341’s delectable teaser.
● The remaining Part 2 Side Stories will be released among the Part 3 Episodes, as they are precursory chapters for the Part 3 Episodes:
○ Part 2 Intermission Episode 32: In the case of Kaede Yukawa
○ Part 2 Side Story: New Business
Editor Notes:
● The already established names of characters, nobility ranks, locations, spells, etc. will be kept in accordance with the bulk of the translations to prevent further confusion. New names and name changes (e.g. when the name appeared before, but wasn’t properly translated) will all be listed in the footnotes. A full dictionary for this translation and a load of other info can be found here:
● On that topic, there is one major change in the nobility rank names. There are seven nobility ranks in this novel. They are, from the top: Duke, Marquis, Count, Viscount, Baron, Sub-Baron, and finally what in other novels is usually called a Knight, or a Chevalier. For some inexplicable reason, Dark Silencer decided to translate both the rank of Viscount and Knight as “Viscount”, possibly because they are both written the same in the transcript, though their original spelling is different (Viscount – 子爵 – Shishaku, Knight – 士爵 – Shishaku). As such, there was a lot of confusion introduced (for example Al’s family is of a Knight rank, so is Toris’s). The word “Knight” however is already used in this novel to represent people who have completed a Knight Group training, which grants them the status of a Commoner, so to distinguish from it, we will be changing the name of the lowest nobility rank to “Vested Knight” instead (in short a Vested Knight is a noble, a regular Knight is not). A full list of ranks and a bunch of extra info on the subject can be found here:
Raw Chapter: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n9511bs/394/
– – – * * – – – ** – – –
– – – * * – – – ** – – –
Year 7448, Month 4, Day 29
After explaining things to Rodrick, I summoned Binsu to re-explain the situation to him. Binsu closed his eyes and took a deep breath, before saying.
“… Thank you for having me. Al-san. No, Your Excellency.“
“Ah, Binsu, I hope you’ll be able to handle the nobles in the area. As I’ve said before, I’m pretty sure you’ll cooperate well with Hisu. After all, he’s from a Sub-Baron’s family and he’s pretty reliable in general.“
I decided to place Binsu at the Midora Village[1], the northernmost of the four pioneering villages. Since its establishment by the Kingdom of Rombert nearly 40 years ago, it got occupied by the Kingdom of Devas once, but it’s already been 15 years since they took it back.
Two further pioneering villages got reclaimed since, Beige[2] to the south-east of Midora and Garhe[3] to the south, and have since became a shield, protecting Midora from further attacks.
In other words, Midora was located in the safest location, among the relatively new pioneering villages in the territory, and honestly, they have already been cultivated to the point where they shouldn’t really be called pioneering villages anymore.
Also, about the general area, it seemed like lately there’s been a lot of traffic between the Bari Village[4], located to the north of Midora, towards Weed[5], and Kuldmuna Village[6], to the northwest.
“Honestly, I’m a bit worried about giving it to Toris and Bell. Though they are nobles like you, they seem to have grown while putting all of their enthusiasm into martial arts. They show very little interest in social gatherings, so they’ll probably find it difficult to deal with Vested Knights Mizu[7] of Bari Village and Lahut[8] of Kuldmuna Village …“
ED Note: see the editor notes at the top for an explanation of a “Vested Knight” nobility rank
I spoke calmly without showing a single expression of concern.
“Fu. It’s alright. Don’t worry about it. That’s good enough for me …“
Binsu grabbed a hold of a small bag that’s been hanging from his neck before saying.
“Thank you for giving me a place to bury Yuriel.“
ED Reminder: Yuriel was Binsu’s younger sister. Back when they were still a part of Sun Ray adventurers’ group, the pair fell into a teleportation trap, while exploring the dungeon. Al’s group happened to stumble onto them and rescued Binsu, but Yuriel had already passed away from sustained injuries by then, so they brought her body back to the surface to cremate while Binsu kept her mana stone to bury later
“Hmm … That’s a good thing as well. However, this has nothing to do with your sister. I just thought you are the right person in terms of personality and ability. Besides …“
He sent me a confused look because I stopped in the midst of my sentence.
“Besides?“
“… No, it’s up to you if you want to bury your sister in Midora Village, but, maybe it’s better to wait a little longer before deciding.“
I showed some hesitance before saying what was on my mind.
“What are you trying to say?“
Binsu, who didn’t seem to understand what I am trying to convey, urged me to continue.
“… It’s okay if you end up owning just the Midora Village throughout your lifetime.“
He finally understood the meaning of my words, that there may be better places among the lands which will be added as my new territories in the future.
“Aah, so that’s what you mean. It’s okay. When that time comes, I’ll dig her up, then rebury her again in the new place.“
He replied with a broad smile.
“Eh? Reburying her … that was actually possible?“
My words remained in my mouth and couldn’t be heard by Binsu. By the way, the magic stone tombstone that was once buried couldn’t be easily moved.
After Binsu, I summoned Kamu next.
“Fu un, so this is Beige Village … When I thought it belonged to a Squire, I found out that it was actually under the jurisdiction of a Vested Knight instead … I’ve heard of its origin, and know that it didn’t belong to any of the upper nobles …“
ED Note: The term “Squire” refers to a Knight’s servant, who follows them into battle, maintains their weapons, looks after the horse, helps them put on their armor, etc. In the novel the word is used in two meanings, to describe members of a Knight Group that haven’t received an investiture as proper Knights as of yet (Knights in training), or, like in this case, to describe trained Knights, who, after leaving the Knight Group, settle under a landed noble as their retainers, to help them maintain order in their territory, cull the local monsters and follow their lord into combat when needed (each noble can be called upon to deploy a certain amount of troops and lead them into battle when a war breaks out). Not all retainers are squires.
Kamu’s outbursts were filled with emotions.
From the very beginning, I’ve stated that I was going to save up money to purchase an upper nobility position, along with the land in the south, from the King, Initially the king’s jeering words got embedded pretty deep within me, enough to make even me slightly doubtful of what he said about the only thing that I needed being money, but recently it seemed like less people have been doubting me, especially after it became public knowledge that I have indeed met with the king on a few rare occasions, and that the report of what was discussed during each meeting was recorded.
After all, who haven’t heard the story of Viscount Grimson, a legendary adventurer, who became a viscount of a big city, after obtaining a wand, that anyone could use to cast a fireball spell, from the labyrinth, more than 20 years ago, and handing it over to the king.
Because of that, shortly after we’ve obtained the wyvern scales last summer, since we didn’t expect to suddenly fetch such a ridiculous size reward, there were already rumors spreading among the Slaughters, that, “If the price for the armor is set high enough, Al will become an upper noble like Viscount Grimson.“
I listened back then but did not oppose the idea.
I retorted with a broad grin.
“Are you dissatisfied with me being a Count?“
“No, not at all! But, to be honest, at first I thought the king would have you become his retainer. With that in mind, I’ve already made reservations to purchase five lively and young slaves. Of course, I don’t think it was a waste to do so. It’s definitely not a problem. But … if you want me to become a Lord of some place, five people aren’t nearly enough to oversee the territory. I’d have to purchase a lot more.“
Kamu’s face was wavering in front of my face, but her expression suggested that she was in a pleasant mood.
“By the way, did Kimu bring a slave with her?“
“Yeah, she did. Isn’t Rokko the only one who hasn’t bought a slave yet? Even Kevin came to me saying ‘I’m going to buy a slave, so come with me’. You can go buy your own slaves. Really, that guy. “
Most members of the Slaughterers group believed that they could become Commoners, establish a house and serve the Lord directly, so a considerable number of them had already considered buying slaves for themselves. Since I knew about it, and told them just to “choose a good one“, almost all the members have placed their orders. Some members even had their slaves already educated and delivered to them. Meanwhile, only Rokko hasn’t even made a reservation. He said that “It’s fine to get the serfs after the land. Right now, there are some great newcomers at the Luxo[9].” as he indicated that it was merely a wasteful spending at this moment, but to no surprise, all the other members simply ignored his management style.
I continued to speak with Kamu while watching her pleased expression.
“Kamu. I’ll give you Kimu as your retainer. Will you cooperate with her?“
“Eh? Kimu !? Yeah, if Kimu doesn’t object. Aah, this is a great gain. I don’t need to waste money.“
Kamu was pleasantly happy.
“… This is Beige village. It’s close to the border with Count Ranseru’s territory. There was a dispute there from last year to this year, and it’s north of the Garhe Village, so I don’t think Devas will attack it for a while.“
Hearing my reassuring words, Kamu changed her slightly sullen expression to a serious one.
Since Rodrick had been to the Dirt Plains in the past and even participated in the conflict there, rather than needing explanation, he was the one who described the general situation to us, leaving us with only a few minor details left to ascertain.
“Even so, the kingdom’s knights are currently stationed at the village because it’s a designated strategic point of the frontline, same as the villages of Raddo[10] and Garhe. Now, there are about ten cavalrymen and 300 infantry units. Logistics officers are stationed in the villages of Midora to the north and Kuldmuna to the northwest, so there is no need to worry about their food supply.“
I placed my left hand on the desk and pointed to each location in detail on the map with my right hand. Kamu listened intently to the explanation while nodding.
“All the appointed cavalry units are regular knights of the kingdom. However, the number of knights is small in the first place, and they all have regular patrol duty. It’s better for you to plan with the assumption that, at any given time, less than half of the knights are actually stationed at the village, even during peacetime. Afterall, it only takes a couple people to suppress them, and there will always be someone plotting some evil-doings.“
Kamu listened to my explanation and sighed.
“Well, that sounds about right.”
It would not take much human resources to suppress such a scarce number of knights. Naturally, Kamu had the ability to deal with the issue without any problems, but people tend to judge by the appearance first, and Kamu was a bit short …
“Can you handle it?“
“Maybe I can. After all, I’m not only of noble birth. I’m also a rogue adventurer, and with a rising position at that.”
“It will be difficult to control the soldiers with just that, though.“
Hearing my statements made Kamu bite her lower lip.
“It’s just that … I’m a little worried about you being alone with just Kimu …“
I made a difficult face, like I was thinking about it.
“Maybe I should give you more retainers.“
I said in a caring tone.
“Eh? You’re going to give me another retainer? Would that be okay? Thank you. Who will it be?“
Kamu brightened up a little, feeling relieved when she learned that she would get an extra retained.
“Don’t worry. It’s all according to the plan. I’ll give you Rokko.“
“Eh?“
Kamu seemed surprised and overwhelmed at the same time. She acknowledged Rokko’s ability with a sword. He was a very reliable frontline fighter. But to be honest, I hated his sloppy personality that constantly burned through his income. He lacked income management skills, since he’d often have to repair his armor. He used to belong to Sun Ray, so all things considered, it wasn’t that bad for an average adventurer, who had a bit of saving, but didn’t really have the freedom to use them.
In hindsight, I was convinced that Rokko was the best choice for suppressing the knights and the village’s remaining retainers.
“… Is there something wrong?“
I became worried about Kamu when she suddenly turned quiet. She displayed a facial expression as if she had failed.
“No. Nothing is wrong.“
“… I thought you didn’t like the idea, isn’t that the case? I thought I would be able to convince you with some helpful suggestions.“
I was relieved, so I continued to discuss with her.
“I’m not a child, like Ralfa or Gwine, so you can be at ease. I’m sure I can count on Rokko, but I still have a few big concerns.“
“What are they?“
“Well … What happens to the villagers, including us, in the unlikely event of an attack?“
“The captain of the knights, who is stationed there, will take command, so the first thing you’ve got to do is to report to him, forcing him to take action using the villagers and his original squires, before you consider using your own.“
I folded my arms and consulted Kamu, as she removed her hands off the table.
“… It seems like I will need new general slaves and combat slaves.“
Kamu muttered with a slightly sullen face.
“Well, you don’t have to force yourself into purchasing combat slaves. That’s what we have the Knight Group for. If you get news that Devas is planning an attack, I’ll bring over the local knights to aid you. I think maybe half of them.“
“That sounds reassuring.“
Kamu relaxed a bit after hearing my reply, but her expression remained displeased.
“If you’re still worried, I’ll lend you Mekku and Henry for a five-year period. They were originally knights trained in mounted combat. They both received decent education, so they’ll be able to give you advice on managing your territory.“
“Are you okay with that?“
“It’s neither good nor bad for me, since I want to avoid Beige Village being taken, so I’ll leave it to you Kamu.“
I shrugged while replying. Since I was done with Kamu, I asked her to call for Toris and Bell as she left.
・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・
Toris and Bell came into the room after knocking and sat at the desk where the map was laid out. I remained standing while they both took their seats on the two available chairs.
“Now, you guys are the last of my audiences. You’ve lucked out. There’s only leftovers.“
Toris and Bell, who were studying the map, looked at each other and laughed after hearing what I said.
“What are you trying to say? The leftovers are the most dangerous territory, right? Leave it to us!“
I wanted them to feel a bit more grim about this, but if they understood the situation, the discussion would be quick.
“… This is Midora Village, Beige Village, and Raddo Village. This is the location of Garhe Village, the village I want to leave to you two. As you can see, it protrudes to the south of Rombert Kingdom’s borders and into the Devas Kingdom. Act accordingly to be ready at all times.“
After appointing Toris as the Lord of the village and assigning Misu and Jeru as his supporting retainers, we went over the positions of each village along with the names of people appointed as their lords, and the outline of the knights stationed at each location.
“It seems that Garhe Village was established about ten years ago, but since then, it has changed hands 3 times already. Each time, all the commoners and nobles in the villagers were either killed or captured and enslaved. Moreover, it seems that there was a battle between 5,000 people at this very location before the village was established. The village was originally established by the Devas Kingdom.“
It was hard to tell if the land was even favorable.
“It’s been about seven years since the village came under the control of the Rombert Kingdom. Since it is a front-line pioneering village, tax exemption has been granted for twelve years, so I will start the countdown beginning next spring when the territory is officially assigned to us. There is no tax on agricultural income for four years. Invest in slaves or get the necessary agricultural equipment using the income.“
The two of them nodded together in acknowledgement, so I continued.
“In short, it’s been seven years already since the last battle that took place in Count Riguru’s territory. It is expected for another battle to take place around this year in either Garhe Village, or in one of the developmental towns in Devas Kingdom, about 15 km to the south. Both of you, stop showing that expression.“
They didn’t appear to be concerned with the possibility of their village becoming a battlefield. There seemed to be something going on with these two. I was getting worried about them too.
“There is a chance that the territory will be taken back one day. If that’s the case, when it does happen, I’ll take the lead in claiming it back. However, I only want to discuss with you two up to this point, and I will continue our discussion further from this point next time around. Probably at the end of the year.“
I was more inclined to know the whereabouts of my sister, so I have been asking around among the members of the First Knight Group while coming up with various stories, ever since the time my sister was deployed last summer, right after I killed a wyvern in the dungeon. I overheard some bits and pieces about how “We’re going to strike it the next time”. The so-called “next time” was, of course referring to the next conflict that was already on the horizon, and my elder sister was deployed yet again after her last conflict she took part in.
The conflict she took part in the last time was a defensive battle for Count Lancer’s[11] territory, east of Count Riguru’s territory, so it appears that they’re planning an attack from there, this time around.
In other words, it was unlikely that Garhe Village that I intended to grant to Toris and Bell would become a battlefield just yet. It was completely unpredictable whether the Devas Kingdom’s invasion would succeed or fail, but I suspected that the accumulation of supplies performed by logistic units for the main troops around the pioneering villages at Mount Seki was meant for the invasion against the pioneering villages of Devas.
If Rombert Kingdom succeeded, it could reclaim one more territory which seemed a bit troublesome. If Rombert Kingdom failed, Devas Kingdom’s village will be safe for the time being, unless the Devas Kingdom’s army is large enough to successfully repel and then give chase to the invasion army of Rombert. Rombert Kingdom may be anticipating Devas Kingdom’s repulsion force, so in each village, including the neighboring Beige and Raddo Villages, there are Knight garrisons deployed for possibly defending the border.
In conclusion, it wouldn’t have much impact on Count Riguru’s current territory. Since it wouldn’t become the stage for the conflict just yet, in the meantime we would have more time to focus on cultivation.
Both Toris and Bell seemed convinced after I’ve pointed out and discussed this area in detail.
Bell was the first to ask while staring at the map.
“But, at this one location … Al-san you say that it will not be attacked for the time being, so when do you think it will be attacked?“
You’re so impatient.
“Nn … Hopefully not until the tax revenues of Garhe Village deposited to you two would have stabilized. Even if it were attacked, Garhe Village would become our forward base, since it will be troublesome for me to carry all the supplies there. I can’t be certain about it unless I have a sufficient amount of stockpile in Garhe Village … But for now you two don’t have to worry too much about it. We also have magic horseshoes, and we are one to two times more efficient in transporting supplies and personnel.”
I take a sip of bean tea and continue.
“To be honest with you, if it’s us just taking over one or two of Devas’s villages, we’ll be able to take them right away but we can’t maintain them even if we occupy them. The Knight Group of Count Riguru’s territory have twenty-six knights, no, the captain of the knights is returning to the royal capital shortly, so there will be only twenty-five. There are about 200 squires, so it is necessary to increase the number. For now, the knights of the Kingdom are stationed as garrisons, so it can be assumed that this is the frontline. But the number of knights of the Count of Riguru’s territory is not much different from other territories.“
When I tell them not to complain, they both have displeased faces.
“The knight garrisons of the Kingdom are not free. The costs eat a decent amount of money, but, until I become independent, I will continue to pay the cost for them to be stationed there. I want all of you to gain as much strength as possible in the meantime.”
“With that being said, it’s helpful to us to be tax-free for four years.“
“That’s right.“
I wasn’t granting them any favours in such a location.
It was just a high risk gamble.
“But the number one difficult position to have, coming with the highest risk, is becoming the village Lord. To increase the number of people as much as possible, while there’s no tax, you’ll need to increase the number of retainers. You’ll also need battle slaves. Have you placed your order yet?”
I hear that these two have purchased about 20 slaves from Madam Ronslail’s store, and four of them were combat slaves. Even though anyone says any battle slave is good enough, one should really desire to obtain a slave who was a former knight like Henry and Mekku. For that reason, I took the liberty in discussing with the slave dealer about the order for combat slaves, but I gave up at first, because there weren’t any prospects for potential arrivals. However, between the end of this month to the beginning of the next, the Benish Company[12] will hold a slave market in the royal capital, selling the prisoners of war from the last battle against the Devas Kingdom, that my elder sister also took part it. When these two heard about my request to the company at the end of last month, they too inquired with Madam Ronslail about purchasing a former knight slave. I was having high hopes for my new combat slave now.
The discussion with Toris and Bell took the longest.
Since these two were assigned to the southernmost piece of land, they kept asking me in detail about the invasion areas. It will depend on the situation at that time, plus, even if I worry about the invasion, it’s not like I could tell them exactly when or where it was going to happen. I headed back to my room to relax and have some dinner, but since I ran into Miduchi on the way there, we decide to rush back into our room to deliberate.
To put it simply, I wanted to calculate how much of a reward was a Village equal to, and how much achievements one would need to be granted a town like Weed.
You know what, I still didn’t have a detailed map for Devas Kingdom’s side.
Something was still bugging me, and I knew this feeling.
Maybe I was too fast to assign Zenom as the Baron of Weed.
I was getting a bit anxious …
I hope I didn’t make any mistakes.
Previous <Table of Content> Next
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Footnotes:
[1] Midora Village (ミドーラ – midōra) – a pioneering Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[2] Beige Village (ベージユ – bējiyu) – a pioneering Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[3] Garhe Village (ガルヘ – garuhe) – a pioneering Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[4] Bari Village (バーリ – bāri) – a Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[5] Weed (ウイード – uido) – a Town in Count Riguru’s territory
[6] Kuldmuna Village (クドムナ – kudomuna) – a Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[7] Vested Knight Mizu (ミーズ士爵 – mīzu shishaku)
[8] Vested Knight Lahut (ラヒュート士爵 – rahyūto shishaku)
[9] Luxo (ルクソー – rukusō) – a brothel in the city of Baldukk, previously translated as “Rukuso”
[10] Raddo (ラッド – raddo) – a pioneering Village in Count Riguru’s territory
[11] Count Ransell (ランセル伯爵 – Ranseru Hakushaku), previously translated as Ranseru
[12] Benish Company (ベーニッシュ商会 – Bēnisshu Shōkai) – the largest slave trading company in the capital city of Rombertia, previously translated as “Bennishu Company”