Chapter 5: Weighing Nostalgia Against the Future (part 9)

Jirukoma carried the fates of all the refugees here on his shoulders. This intensity

was something lent to him by the weight of his burden. However, I bore a heavy

burden of my own, too.

"...Owen."

"Yes, sir."

"Fetch me the thing we discussed."

"Understood."

I had Owen go and get a long tube for me. It was about twice as thick as the sort

of tube you would put a diploma in, and more than five times as long. Inside was a

large piece of paper rolled into a cylinder. I unfurled that paper in front of everyone.

When they saw what was drawn on that paper, Jirukoma and Komain's eyes went

wide.

"Is that... a city?" Jirukoma asked.

"Yeah," I said. "The new city being built on the coast. Its name is Venetinova."

I showed them a map of the new city, Venetinova, that I'd had constructed as a

strategic point for transportation and commerce in order to speed up distribution.

"This is a city that I built at the same time as I rolled out a transportation network

when I first came to this kingdom, but it only just recently became ready for people

to live in," I said. "We've still only created the residential district, the commercial

district, and the port of commerce so far. From here on, there will be more

institutions being added, and I plan to develop it as a city at the leading edge of

culture. Also, we're going to be putting out a call for residents soon."

I looked at Jirukoma and Komain and said, "I am thinking of including the

refugees in that group of residents."

My words made Jirukoma and Komain gulp.

"If you will give up on returning to your homeland and become people of this

country, I will prepare residences for you," I said. "This being a new city, there will

be lots of work available. Everything from physical labor like the transportation

industry to employees in the stores. For a while, I'll continue to provide financial

support, too. If you become members of this country and work honestly like the

mystic wolves, I am prepared to give you a place where you won't starve and you

won't freeze."

"That's..."

Jirukoma and Komain's expressions trembled.

It's weird for me to say this myself, but I wonder how I look through Jirukoma and

Komain's eyes right now. Am I a savior reaching out to them in their time of need... or a

devil, tricking them with sweet words?

Jirukoma and Komain opened their mouths at practically the same time.

"Can you really offer us something so wonderful?!" Jirukoma burst out.

"What you're offering us is horrible!" Komain screamed.

Jirukoma and Komain turned to look at one another. The two of them seemed

more surprised than anyone that, although they had spoken at the same time, their

opinions were total opposites.

"Wh-What are you saying, Brother?! It's the same as if he were saying, 'Here's

some tasty bait, now wag your tails for me'!"

"Komain," said Jirukoma. "His Majesty is offering us a foundation to support our

lifestyles. Without the need to cultivate the land ourselves like in the Gran Chaos

Empire."

"Even so, how can he demand we give up on going home?! Doesn't it frustrate

you?!"

"If we can set aside that frustration, he's saying he'll keep us from starving or

freezing. Don't you understand how important that is for refugees?"

The siblings had two completely opposite views of my offer. ...That was probably

just the way it was.

"It's little surprise that the two of you don't agree," I said. "I myself think that this

proposal could be considered very sweet or very cruel. There's no guarantee that

two people looking at the same thing will necessarily come to the same opinion.

Whether someone will think it is kind or unkind will depend on how that person

looks at and feels about things."

They were both silent.

I took a deep breath, then put my hand down on the map. "This is the best that I

can do for you now. Now, all I can do is hope you'll take the hand I've extended you.

From here, it's up to you to decide."

When I said that, Jirukoma groaned in distress. "There are those in this village

who will remain intent on returning home."

"You mean... like your little sister?" I asked.

"No! Komain is flexible! She only objected earlier to represent the people living in

this village who cannot give up on their feeling for their homelands!"

"B-Brother..."

"I am sure that is true," said Jirukoma. "The reason you said it was horrible was

out of consideration for the ones who you know feel that way. Because you... are a

girl who understands the pain of others."

"Urgh..." Komain fell silent. Had he hit the nail on the head?

Jirukoma sat up straight and bowed his head low. "We are deeply grateful for

your kindness, sire. This is not something I can decide on my own, so I would like to

gather others from the village to discuss it."

"I believe I told you I came here to push you to make a decision, did I not?" I

asked.

"I know. However, I want to persuade as many as possible to take the hand

you've kindly extended, sire. Even if... that should mean splitting up the refugees."

I was silent.

Splitting up the refugees. In other words, any of those who couldn't accept it

would have to be chased out.

Was this the best I could do for now? If I rushed them too much, no good would

come of it.

"But there isn't much time," I said. "Even if I can push back the search for

residents, I can't push back the changing of the season, you know. Winter has

already started."

A season with a lack of preparation would mean freezing to death. Children and

the elderly, the ones with the least ability to resist, would be the first to die. If

possible, I wanted them to make their decision at a point where they could be fully

moved in before it got too deep into winter.

Jirukoma bowed his head deeply once again. "Yes, sir! I am well aware."

"Well, that's fine, then."

The rest was up to them. No matter what their decision, I would have to take the

appropriate response to it.

If possible, I didn't want to have to show my cold-hearted side...

It happened just when it was starting to feel like talks were done for today.

That was when a man in a white coat rudely barged into the tent.

He was a human male with sharp eyes who looked to be in his mid-to-latetwenties. What was distinctive about him was his unkempt hair that, despite his

seemingly young age, was stark white all the way to the root.

"I heard Hilde was here," the man said sharply.

Carla and Owen warily reached for their sword hilts.

The man paid them no heed. When he spotted Hilde, he brusquely walked over to

her.

Hilde rose, glaring straight into the man's face. "Brad! How dare you push off

teaching lectures onto me!"

This white haired man's name was Brad Joker. Together with Hilde, he was the

other doctor who was supporting this country's medical revolution.

Brad paid no mind to Hilde's complaints, suddenly grabbing her by the arm.

"Wait, what are you doing?!" Hilde shouted. "That's not how you treat a woman

properly."

"If you want to complain, I'll hear it later," he snapped. "Sorry... But I need you to

lend me a hand."

Maybe she sensed something from the earnestness in Brad's eyes, because Hilde

now had a serious look on her face. "Did something happen?"

Brad released the arm he was holding, then nodded quietly. "Yeah. We have an

emergency case."

Brad Joker was the Traitor Doctor.

On a continent where almost everyone in the medical profession was a

practitioner of light magic (recovery magic which worked by activating the systems

of the body), he was this country's sole surgeon. He attempted to treat serious

illnesses without relying on magic, using only medical examinations and surgery.

"Even without clinging to the gods, people can heal one another with their own

power." That was Brad's personal view.

On this continent, people had a tendency to see light magic as "the blessing of the

gods," especially in Lunarian Orthodoxy, where it was seen as sacred. That made it a

pretty dangerous opinion to hold.

Brad had wandered across many battlefields in many different countries. He

would take custody of the remains of unknown soldiers who died in combat,

dissecting their bodies to study the structures of the different races' bodies. He

developed his own independent field of surgical treatment which used anesthesia

and operations.

He had also approached the knowledge of the three-eyed race without prejudice

and absorbed it. He knew a lot about the existence of microorganisms and the effects

of antibiotics, and he applied those techniques to his work.

His skills were such that it would be fair to call them godly. (Though, for the godhating Brad, it would come across as sarcastic.) The biggest factor in this was that he

had been able to cure malignant tumors, which had been untreatable using light

magic, by removing them with surgery.

"Light is not the only thing that can cure people. The dark can comfort, too."

It sounded like he had a case of middle school syndrome when he said it like that,

but I could sympathize. I'd requested his assistance, but it hadn't been easy to

convince him.

By which I mean...

"I sought this power (surgery) so that I could save the poor who couldn't afford

treatment and the people in remote areas where there are no light mages. I have no

interest in money, power, or the like."

...was what he had said to me.

Now, as for how I got him to cooperate, I hooked... erm, negotiated with him...

using not money, or power, but things.

To be precise, in order to make it so everyone in the kingdom had easy access to

medical care, I created a national system of health insurance like the one in my

world and promised to have the finest blacksmith in the country forge a scalpel,

suturing needles, and a full set of medical equipment for him. Then, by arranging a

system where he would be a collaborator, not a vassal, he finally agreed to

cooperate.

Up until now, I'd had him working with Hilde to guide this country's system of

medicine forward.

His corpse collecting and dissections had offended a lot of people, so he was seen

as a total heretic in the medical world. The hardest part of hiring him had been

getting rid of that prejudice against him. The way he acted, I couldn't count on him to

defend himself, after all.

Having no other choice, I'd had him examine an important executive who was

well connected in this country and was suffering from illness. By having him treat a

sickness that was believed to be untreatable, I had made that executive recognize his

skills.

Once people know something is effective, their views change quickly. The

number of medical practitioners seeking to learn surgery had begun to increase, too.

That being the case, by putting the important executive he had helped to make a full

recovery in charge, we were now training new surgeons in this country.

As for me, I was currently rushing to rework the laws and issue surgical licenses

so that fake surgeons who lacked the necessary skills wouldn't appear. At first, I

would only require licenses for surgery. Eventually, I intended to make treatment

with light magic and everything related to pharmacology require licenses, too.