The method she taught Cesare was simple: to absolutely avoid a direct confrontation.
If you fight the Gallico Heavy Knights one-on-one, you have no chance of winning.
Instead, the plan was simple: evacuate all the surrounding farmers and burn down their fields to dry up food.
The troops will be turned back and food aid from the Gallico homeland will be blocked.
"...That is the correct answer.”
Cesare was not impressed but rather exclaimed in admiration.
Poor comments like, "How did you know that?" or "Why didn't I think of that?" never left his mouth.
This is because he had already mentally verified Ariadne's qualifications.
It wasn't done logically. It was done with emotion.
He looked at Ariadne's profile with an expression of infatuation.
Her high nose, chubby cheeks where the baby fat had not yet disappeared, and her flowing black hair caught his eye.
Now, in Cesare's eyes, even the rabbit teeth that were visible whenever she opened her mouth slightly were all evidence of genius.
“You understand? The goal is to kill them, not defeat them. We just have to somehow survive until winter.”
The cute rabbit's teeth chattered. Despite the cuteness of her words, her content was extremely sinister.
He shook his head to shake off the thoughts and concentrate.
This year, the crops in the south have been ruined by a plague, and in the north, harvesting is impossible because of the Gallico army.
Now that the wheat fields are set on fire, the harvest is awaited. Eventually, the grain she is carrying will be the only food within the Etruscan borders.
“You will become a millionaire, young lady.”
“Well, it’s an inevitable byproduct of the only solution.”
Ariadne shrugged.
Cesare thought. How shameless. She's a perfect match for me.
“This magnate will sell fifteen thousand cantarros of wheat to the Duke of Pisano. The price is fifteen thousand ducats.”
At this point, Cesare could not just look at Ariadne as cute. He opened his eyes wide and asked back.
“Wait a minute. You want to get 1 ducat per 1 cantaro (about 300 kg)?”
The price of grain in normal times was about a tenth of that.
That is, it is a profit of about ten times. Compared to the price that Cesare initially offered, it is more than two and a half times.
But Ariadne answered without even blinking an eye.
“I am the only one in this country who can supply grain on a large scale. Just appreciate it selling to you.”
Even if you try to import from overseas, the north is blocked by the Gallico army. The south is the sea.
Even if we assume that it is imported from the Duchy of Asereto, it takes a whole month to prepare and build a ship.
In addition, the plague was raging from the south. Grain supplies from abroad were blocked from both the north and the south.
But Cesare shook his head at the excessively high price.
“Ah... This price is too much. No matter how much I stamp my seal, I can’t convince the people.”
Ariadne pouts.
While Cesare was regretting whether he had said something unnecessary and made a fool of himself, she pulled out a piece of parchment and scribbled something on it.
“Then, I will correct the contract terms.”
It was a sound that made Cesare's ears perk up as he regretted it. Ariadne wrote down the terms of the contract on a piece of paper. It was a simple mathematical formula.
Instead of looking at the paper, Cesare asked Ariadne directly.
“Are you giving me a discount?”
“No way.”
It's still cold.
If he interprets Ariadne's formula, it means that she will sell it in two installments.
Up to 5,000 Kantaro are sold for 2,500 Ducati. You can buy only 5,000 Kantaro and not buy any more.
However, if you want to purchase the remaining 10,000 Kantaro, she said she would give you the authority to settle all of your outstanding balance and buy them for 12,500 Ducato.
“It’s a kind of reservation ticket. You don’t have to hold the event.”
“That is if the war ends early or grain prices fall...”
“Duke Cesare bought 5,000 cantaros for 2,500 ducats.”
“On the other hand, if the war is prolonged or grain prices rise...”
“You’ll need the remaining 10,000 kantaro, right?”
For Cesare, it was not a bad condition at all.
“Is that okay? If I buy only 5,000 Kantaros, I can get it at half price. Is that okay?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Ariadne examined the tips of her fingernails curiously. She was very pleased with their square shape.
“When Prince Cesare needs the remaining 10,000 cantaros, 12,500 ducats will be a real bargain, but you’ve already fixed the price. I’m really at a loss.”
It was a test.
The second purchase reservation right, which would allow purchases at a much lower price than the market price, would be a safety device to prevent Cesare from manipulating Leo III to forcibly seize Ariadne's grain.
But Cesare failed to notice Ariadne's intentions and focused on other implications, which were of course important enough.
“...The young lady is certain that I will need all 15,000 Kantaro.”
The woman who knew the future answered firmly.
“You’ll buy more than that.”
And she added frugally.
“The third portion will be more expensive than that, so prepare yourself mentally.”
It was a spine-chilling story. But Cesare was thinking sternly.
'Wow, she's smart, pretty, and also sly.'
No matter how he looked at her, she seemed like the future Duchess of Pisano. The future of the estate seemed secure.
After giving Cesare advice on border tactics and successfully converting 2,500 ducats worth of grain into cash, Ariadne hurried her horse back to San Carlo.
That tactic was not devised by Ariadne herself.
It was the tactic that the Etruscan kingdom of the previous life used most successfully to repel the armies of Gallico.
Although it could not be used for long because the Gaeta fief surrendered immediately, if it had been able to hold out until winter when the food situation worsened, history might have been different.
“This time... it has to go well.”
Gaeta in this life will not surrender easily.
The Pisano estate will intercept from the side and provide support fire, and when winter comes, Gallico's army will have no choice but to turn back.
Winter supply is a headache for everyone, and it is even more so for the Galician army, which must cross the snow-covered Prenoyac Mountains.
To do so, she had to prepare 5,000 cantaloupes to be sent to Cesare first. A quick return to the capital was essential.
But Ariadne, who returned to the capital, was met with an unpleasant reaction from Sancha.
“Miss... Since you came up here already, you should have stayed in the north a little longer before coming back.”
Sancha's worries were justified, for while Ariadne had been away for just two days, the number of plague patients in San Carlo had exploded.
“Where did it explode?”
“There is no place to say. Until now, we were only watching the Comunale Nuova and Campo de Spezia districts, but now it is exploding in all directions.”
Comunale Nuova is a densely populated low-income area, while Campo de Spezia is a densely populated foreign area.
“Even in the mansion of Bocca della Giano, there was a mass outbreak of the disease, and even in a monastery on the outskirts. No place was safe.”
Bocca della Giano was a luxury residential area in which the de Mare mansion was located.
If it was a monastery, it might have had contact with Cardinal de Mare. Ariadne frowned.
“The detectives’ hands, feet, and groin area were swollen black, and at this point, even the words ‘The Black Death is a punishment from heaven for the lazy and the pagans’ were forgotten.”
“Just wait a little longer. If you look closely, you’ll find out that the investigators are corrupt.”
The terrified masses never want to compromise their belief system, because it is the only corner that provides them with comfort. It is best to just not go against it.
Ariadne shook her head to clear her thoughts.
“I must visit the Rambouillet Relief Home sometime.”
“Huh? In these times?”
Sancha's face became sad.
“Well, these days, the relief center might be the safest place to be.”
“...Well, that’s true.”
The alleys of San Carlo were a mess.
All commerce stopped. Shops closed all at once and goods that were supposed to come in from outside stopped moving.
There were no jobs in the place where the economy came to a halt. Those without savings were suddenly reduced to beggars.
The alley was filled with beggars and people rummaging through trash cans.
The older men, with their long history of begging, would force out the younger ones who had claimed the best spots and take their places.
But during a plague, there was no way anyone would be walking around the streets.
Corpses began to fill the alleys, their stomachs bloated to the point where it was hard to tell whether they had stomachaches from eating garbage or from contracting a plague.
“These days, people are making a fuss because they want to go to the Rambouillet Relief Home.”
“There is no disease in the relief center, and food is provided at every meal, so it can’t be helped.”
However, the Rambouillet Relief Home had been locked for a long time and was not accepting any new members.
Usually, the guards would go around picking up street urchins and throwing them into the Rambouillet home, but after the Black Death reached the capital, Leo III had strictly forbidden his troops to leave their garrison areas.
“If the King can’t do it, the country must do it. We must use the people in the relief center. Get ready.”
“...Yes, Miss.”
It was the beginning of the full-scale salvation of San Carlo.
“...Are you going to hire people here as nurses?”
The Albany office manager asked back without realizing it.
It was so absurd that he forgot his rule of not questioning nobles.
“Ironically, the only safe place in all of San Carlo right now is the Rambouillet Relief Center. People who have already dealt with the Black Death have gathered there.”
Ariadne answered calmly.
“But... they’re uneducated people... it won’t be easy to make them usable.”
The prevailing perception was that people who entered the relief home were lazy and lethargic.
Under the teachings of the Heavenly God, which values diligence and sincerity as virtues, this is a gathering of people who are failing under the doctrine of Yesak.
It didn't make sense for the Albany office manager to educate these people and make them do high-level work at that.
Ariadne laughed lightly.
“We are not trying to treat all diseases, we are only trying to respond to the Black Death. We are not trying to train doctors in a week.”
“Ha...”
Despite the Albany office manager's skepticism, he was in no position to actively oppose.
How common is it to find a welfare worker who provides food and wages without any legal basis?
He soon gathered people between the ages of fifteen and thirty, as Ariadne had requested.
There were a mix of men and women and a few who could read and write.
“Come on, everyone!”
Sancha actively attracted people's attention.
“You will now learn how to care for plague patients, isolate them, and dispose of their waste and garbage!”
It was Sancha who first learned the method in San Carlo, and she could almost be called a veteran.
“You will have to meet patients with the Black Death. It can be dangerous. If you don’t want to, you can leave.”
The gathered people began to chatter.
It was a story about how dangerous it was, and why anyone would bother going out when they were given food inside.
“However, while you work, you will receive a salary of three florins a week, and you will be allowed to go outside the Rambouillet Home!”
3 florins a week?
A junior maid in a noble mansion, considered very good work for the lower classes of San Carlo, would earn around 15 florins a year.
Twelve to fifteen florins a month, that's the equivalent of a year's salary for a young adult.
The 40 or so people gathered in the room immediately became quiet.
Ariadne, who had been standing behind Sancha, took a step forward and drove the wedge in.
“Once the Black Death situation is over, I plan to actively support those who meet the conditions to resettle outside. I will make a decision based on those who received good performance evaluations during their employment period and the amount of savings they have accumulated.”
Once you entered the Rambouillet Relief Center, there was no hope of leaving. It was common for people to die in the harsh conditions. But she was going to resettle them outside!
“Where should I start learning?!”
“But... can we do it?”
“I don’t know. I’ll learn it and if it doesn’t work out, I can just get paid and kill some time. It’s not a loss, so put your hand up for now!”
“I’ll do it too!”
"I do!"
“I will do it!”
Excluding those who had chronic illnesses or had young children and could not go to the patient's bedside, about thirty people remained.
The Albany office manager, who had been watching from behind with his arms folded, shook his head as if he were worried.
“The momentum is good, but... how long will they last? The people in the relief center are lazy by nature and not very good with their hands. How many of them will learn properly?”
He added, glancing at the prisoners.
“Even if they go outside, it will eventually show.”
Sancha's face turned red as she listened. This was because Sancha was from the Rambouillet Relief Home.
She glared at the Albany office manager but said nothing.
Ariadne winked at Sancha.
'Can I talk?'
Sancha hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Ariadne looked straight at the office manager and stopped him.
“Mr. Albany, Office Manager.”
"Yes?"
“The children here are from the Rambouillet Relief Home.”
“...Yes?”
This time it was the Albany office manager's turn to panic. Ariadne continued speaking, placing both hands on Sancha's shoulders.
“Right now, Sancha is my right-hand man, and she is a more reliable maid than anyone else. She has a broad perspective and responds quickly. She is also meticulous and thorough.”
He swallowed the backlash that said, “You’re better at your job than me, who brought in sick people and mothers with newborns when I asked you to hire someone to nurse the Black Death.”
“It doesn’t matter where you come from.”
“Ah, no, that’s... There are bound to be outstanding people everywhere...”
An apology would have been enough, said the Albany office manager, stammering and rambling. Perhaps because she found the Albany office manager annoying, Sancha took a step forward.
"Everyone!"
Everyone looked at the sound of the young, clear voice.
“I’ll prepare the course in one day and see you tomorrow at this time in the small hallway! And!”
She chose her voice.
“I am also from the Rambouillet Relief Home!”
A slightly different murmur spread among the people.
The maid of the Cardinal de Mare family, who seemed as high as the sky, was of the same birth as them. Some looked down on her, but there was a different atmosphere.
“Life in the relief home may end!”
She looked around at the people with sparkling eyes.
“Tomorrow may be better than today, and there will definitely come a day when you look forward to next year!”
It seemed that Sancha wanted to praise Ariadne, who had helped her and who was to help others, but what was vivid in the minds of the people was the image of Sancha, dressed in nice clothes, with a clean appearance, and speaking clearly and bluntly even in front of the highest person in the relief home, the director of the Albany office.
“Let’s work hard, let’s go together!”
Go out, out of the relief center.
A strange elation, a strange excitement consumed the people.
In the Rambouillet center, where the lowest of the low gathered, in San Carlo, covered with the dark clouds of the plague, a most incongruous word was beginning to bloom.
It was 'hope'.
“This magnate will sell fifteen thousand cantarros of wheat to the Duke of Pisano. The price is fifteen thousand ducats.”
At this point, Cesare could not just look at Ariadne as cute. He opened his eyes wide and asked back.
“Wait a minute. You want to get 1 ducat per 1 cantaro (about 300 kg)?”
The price of grain in normal times was about a tenth of that.
That is, it is a profit of about ten times. Compared to the price that Cesare initially offered, it is more than two and a half times.
But Ariadne answered without even blinking an eye.
“I am the only one in this country who can supply grain on a large scale. Just appreciate it selling to you.”
Even if you try to import from overseas, the north is blocked by the Gallico army. The south is the sea.
Even if we assume that it is imported from the Duchy of Asereto, it takes a whole month to prepare and build a ship.
In addition, the plague was raging from the south. Grain supplies from abroad were blocked from both the north and the south.
But Cesare shook his head at the excessively high price.
“Ah... This price is too much. No matter how much I stamp my seal, I can’t convince the people.”
Ariadne pouts.
While Cesare was regretting whether he had said something unnecessary and made a fool of himself, she pulled out a piece of parchment and scribbled something on it.
“Then, I will correct the contract terms.”
It was a sound that made Cesare's ears perk up as he regretted it. Ariadne wrote down the terms of the contract on a piece of paper. It was a simple mathematical formula.
Instead of looking at the paper, Cesare asked Ariadne directly.
“Are you giving me a discount?”
“No way.”
It's still cold.
If he interprets Ariadne's formula, it means that she will sell it in two installments.
Up to 5,000 Kantaro are sold for 2,500 Ducati. You can buy only 5,000 Kantaro and not buy any more.
However, if you want to purchase the remaining 10,000 Kantaro, she said she would give you the authority to settle all of your outstanding balance and buy them for 12,500 Ducato.
“It’s a kind of reservation ticket. You don’t have to hold the event.”
“That is if the war ends early or grain prices fall...”
“Duke Cesare bought 5,000 cantaros for 2,500 ducats.”
“On the other hand, if the war is prolonged or grain prices rise...”
“You’ll need the remaining 10,000 kantaro, right?”
For Cesare, it was not a bad condition at all.
“Is that okay? If I buy only 5,000 Kantaros, I can get it at half price. Is that okay?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Ariadne examined the tips of her fingernails curiously. She was very pleased with their square shape.
“When Prince Cesare needs the remaining 10,000 cantaros, 12,500 ducats will be a real bargain, but you’ve already fixed the price. I’m really at a loss.”
It was a test.
The second purchase reservation right, which would allow purchases at a much lower price than the market price, would be a safety device to prevent Cesare from manipulating Leo III to forcibly seize Ariadne's grain.
But Cesare failed to notice Ariadne's intentions and focused on other implications, which were of course important enough.
“...The young lady is certain that I will need all 15,000 Kantaro.”
The woman who knew the future answered firmly.
“You’ll buy more than that.”
And she added frugally.
“The third portion will be more expensive than that, so prepare yourself mentally.”
It was a spine-chilling story. But Cesare was thinking sternly.
'Wow, she's smart, pretty, and also sly.'
No matter how he looked at her, she seemed like the future Duchess of Pisano. The future of the estate seemed secure.
***
After giving Cesare advice on border tactics and successfully converting 2,500 ducats worth of grain into cash, Ariadne hurried her horse back to San Carlo.
That tactic was not devised by Ariadne herself.
It was the tactic that the Etruscan kingdom of the previous life used most successfully to repel the armies of Gallico.
Although it could not be used for long because the Gaeta fief surrendered immediately, if it had been able to hold out until winter when the food situation worsened, history might have been different.
“This time... it has to go well.”
Gaeta in this life will not surrender easily.
The Pisano estate will intercept from the side and provide support fire, and when winter comes, Gallico's army will have no choice but to turn back.
Winter supply is a headache for everyone, and it is even more so for the Galician army, which must cross the snow-covered Prenoyac Mountains.
To do so, she had to prepare 5,000 cantaloupes to be sent to Cesare first. A quick return to the capital was essential.
But Ariadne, who returned to the capital, was met with an unpleasant reaction from Sancha.
“Miss... Since you came up here already, you should have stayed in the north a little longer before coming back.”
Sancha's worries were justified, for while Ariadne had been away for just two days, the number of plague patients in San Carlo had exploded.
“Where did it explode?”
“There is no place to say. Until now, we were only watching the Comunale Nuova and Campo de Spezia districts, but now it is exploding in all directions.”
Comunale Nuova is a densely populated low-income area, while Campo de Spezia is a densely populated foreign area.
“Even in the mansion of Bocca della Giano, there was a mass outbreak of the disease, and even in a monastery on the outskirts. No place was safe.”
Bocca della Giano was a luxury residential area in which the de Mare mansion was located.
If it was a monastery, it might have had contact with Cardinal de Mare. Ariadne frowned.
“The detectives’ hands, feet, and groin area were swollen black, and at this point, even the words ‘The Black Death is a punishment from heaven for the lazy and the pagans’ were forgotten.”
“Just wait a little longer. If you look closely, you’ll find out that the investigators are corrupt.”
The terrified masses never want to compromise their belief system, because it is the only corner that provides them with comfort. It is best to just not go against it.
Ariadne shook her head to clear her thoughts.
“I must visit the Rambouillet Relief Home sometime.”
“Huh? In these times?”
Sancha's face became sad.
“Well, these days, the relief center might be the safest place to be.”
“...Well, that’s true.”
The alleys of San Carlo were a mess.
All commerce stopped. Shops closed all at once and goods that were supposed to come in from outside stopped moving.
There were no jobs in the place where the economy came to a halt. Those without savings were suddenly reduced to beggars.
The alley was filled with beggars and people rummaging through trash cans.
The older men, with their long history of begging, would force out the younger ones who had claimed the best spots and take their places.
But during a plague, there was no way anyone would be walking around the streets.
Corpses began to fill the alleys, their stomachs bloated to the point where it was hard to tell whether they had stomachaches from eating garbage or from contracting a plague.
“These days, people are making a fuss because they want to go to the Rambouillet Relief Home.”
“There is no disease in the relief center, and food is provided at every meal, so it can’t be helped.”
However, the Rambouillet Relief Home had been locked for a long time and was not accepting any new members.
Usually, the guards would go around picking up street urchins and throwing them into the Rambouillet home, but after the Black Death reached the capital, Leo III had strictly forbidden his troops to leave their garrison areas.
“If the King can’t do it, the country must do it. We must use the people in the relief center. Get ready.”
“...Yes, Miss.”
It was the beginning of the full-scale salvation of San Carlo.
***
“...Are you going to hire people here as nurses?”
The Albany office manager asked back without realizing it.
It was so absurd that he forgot his rule of not questioning nobles.
“Ironically, the only safe place in all of San Carlo right now is the Rambouillet Relief Center. People who have already dealt with the Black Death have gathered there.”
Ariadne answered calmly.
“But... they’re uneducated people... it won’t be easy to make them usable.”
The prevailing perception was that people who entered the relief home were lazy and lethargic.
Under the teachings of the Heavenly God, which values diligence and sincerity as virtues, this is a gathering of people who are failing under the doctrine of Yesak.
It didn't make sense for the Albany office manager to educate these people and make them do high-level work at that.
Ariadne laughed lightly.
“We are not trying to treat all diseases, we are only trying to respond to the Black Death. We are not trying to train doctors in a week.”
“Ha...”
Despite the Albany office manager's skepticism, he was in no position to actively oppose.
How common is it to find a welfare worker who provides food and wages without any legal basis?
He soon gathered people between the ages of fifteen and thirty, as Ariadne had requested.
There were a mix of men and women and a few who could read and write.
“Come on, everyone!”
Sancha actively attracted people's attention.
“You will now learn how to care for plague patients, isolate them, and dispose of their waste and garbage!”
It was Sancha who first learned the method in San Carlo, and she could almost be called a veteran.
“You will have to meet patients with the Black Death. It can be dangerous. If you don’t want to, you can leave.”
The gathered people began to chatter.
It was a story about how dangerous it was, and why anyone would bother going out when they were given food inside.
“However, while you work, you will receive a salary of three florins a week, and you will be allowed to go outside the Rambouillet Home!”
3 florins a week?
A junior maid in a noble mansion, considered very good work for the lower classes of San Carlo, would earn around 15 florins a year.
Twelve to fifteen florins a month, that's the equivalent of a year's salary for a young adult.
The 40 or so people gathered in the room immediately became quiet.
Ariadne, who had been standing behind Sancha, took a step forward and drove the wedge in.
“Once the Black Death situation is over, I plan to actively support those who meet the conditions to resettle outside. I will make a decision based on those who received good performance evaluations during their employment period and the amount of savings they have accumulated.”
Once you entered the Rambouillet Relief Center, there was no hope of leaving. It was common for people to die in the harsh conditions. But she was going to resettle them outside!
“Where should I start learning?!”
“But... can we do it?”
“I don’t know. I’ll learn it and if it doesn’t work out, I can just get paid and kill some time. It’s not a loss, so put your hand up for now!”
“I’ll do it too!”
"I do!"
“I will do it!”
Excluding those who had chronic illnesses or had young children and could not go to the patient's bedside, about thirty people remained.
The Albany office manager, who had been watching from behind with his arms folded, shook his head as if he were worried.
“The momentum is good, but... how long will they last? The people in the relief center are lazy by nature and not very good with their hands. How many of them will learn properly?”
He added, glancing at the prisoners.
“Even if they go outside, it will eventually show.”
Sancha's face turned red as she listened. This was because Sancha was from the Rambouillet Relief Home.
She glared at the Albany office manager but said nothing.
Ariadne winked at Sancha.
'Can I talk?'
Sancha hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Ariadne looked straight at the office manager and stopped him.
“Mr. Albany, Office Manager.”
"Yes?"
“The children here are from the Rambouillet Relief Home.”
“...Yes?”
This time it was the Albany office manager's turn to panic. Ariadne continued speaking, placing both hands on Sancha's shoulders.
“Right now, Sancha is my right-hand man, and she is a more reliable maid than anyone else. She has a broad perspective and responds quickly. She is also meticulous and thorough.”
He swallowed the backlash that said, “You’re better at your job than me, who brought in sick people and mothers with newborns when I asked you to hire someone to nurse the Black Death.”
“It doesn’t matter where you come from.”
“Ah, no, that’s... There are bound to be outstanding people everywhere...”
An apology would have been enough, said the Albany office manager, stammering and rambling. Perhaps because she found the Albany office manager annoying, Sancha took a step forward.
"Everyone!"
Everyone looked at the sound of the young, clear voice.
“I’ll prepare the course in one day and see you tomorrow at this time in the small hallway! And!”
She chose her voice.
“I am also from the Rambouillet Relief Home!”
A slightly different murmur spread among the people.
The maid of the Cardinal de Mare family, who seemed as high as the sky, was of the same birth as them. Some looked down on her, but there was a different atmosphere.
“Life in the relief home may end!”
She looked around at the people with sparkling eyes.
“Tomorrow may be better than today, and there will definitely come a day when you look forward to next year!”
It seemed that Sancha wanted to praise Ariadne, who had helped her and who was to help others, but what was vivid in the minds of the people was the image of Sancha, dressed in nice clothes, with a clean appearance, and speaking clearly and bluntly even in front of the highest person in the relief home, the director of the Albany office.
“Let’s work hard, let’s go together!”
Go out, out of the relief center.
A strange elation, a strange excitement consumed the people.
In the Rambouillet center, where the lowest of the low gathered, in San Carlo, covered with the dark clouds of the plague, a most incongruous word was beginning to bloom.
It was 'hope'.
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