The Kingdom Development Plan

I borrowed the kitchen to prepare warm milk and light refreshments for everyone, then returned to Her Majesty Tianis's chambers.

Having done this sort of thing a number of times now, the kitchen staff had come to recognize my face.

It seemed she was done changing, so I was let inside.

"Whether I'm the one summoning you or you come on your own, there's always an important matter whenever you show up, Yohane, so I won't complain, but… sigh, whatever. So what business brings you here this early in the morning?"

I told Her Majesty Tianis, now wearing a dress with a cardigan draped over her shoulders, about the events that had just transpired.

"Oh, this is delicious."

"It's because the ingredients are good. It's a simple dish."

She seemed to like today's snack. It was just grilled meat sandwiched in bread, but the convenience of eating it one-handed was nice.

We continued the discussion while eating.

"I see. So that happened. I had a feeling something like this might come up."

"Yes. For the time being, I've gone ahead and increased the rations on my end. That should buy us some time."

"I don't mind if that's enough to make them back off. But what should we do? The citizen tax had justification behind it, and there was a clear path to recouping the costs, so I managed to convince the Treasury Bureau. The business tax won't be that simple."

"I figured as much…"

Lowering the business tax would directly reduce tax revenue.

There was, of course, a chance it would boost consumer spending, but since it formed the foundation of the state's finances, it wasn't something to be touched lightly.

The Treasury Bureau wouldn't go along with it this time.

"That said, just handing out subsidies wouldn't really accomplish much, either. The assembly would snipe at me, saying it's just vote-buying through handouts."

"Even if you distributed some money, it'd be gone in no time. No sustainability. It's just another way to buy time."

"I wouldn't agree to it, either. I don't think it's good if people get used to receiving money for nothing."

Hmm. No good ideas were coming to mind.

Something that would produce results quickly, be highly effective, and also benefit the capital.

Putting it into words really drove home how difficult it was.

"Maybe we should start by thinking about why they're complaining in the first place?"

Princess Yupe popped the last remaining piece into her mouth and spoke.

Her Majesty Tianis had apparently been eyeing that one too, and shot her a resentful look.

… I asked Alexia to go have the kitchen make more.

"The reason for complaining? Because life is hard, isn't it?"

"Well sure, but if things were really that tough, this would've happened sooner. It looked more like they heard only citizens were getting a good deal and came together over that."

"We've already been implementing proper support measures, after all."

"Of course. It was the first thing I tackled when I took the throne. I absolutely refused to let anyone say that people starved to death because I became queen."

Well, part of those rations that she'd started had ended up lining the pockets of Princess Yupe, who was standing right there.

"Hm? What? Couldn't resist looking at my beautiful face?"

"No. I was just thinking how thick-skinned you are."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She was doing proper work now, so… I supposed it was fine.

"The rations are prioritized for people struggling to eat, so most citizens don't use them. Maybe they dispersed because they heard the rations were being increased."

"So at the root of it, there's still a sense of rivalry. I think both sides are struggling about equally in ways the other can't see."

"If you can't see it, then of course you won't understand. And if you have no interest in understanding, even less so. Well, that's a problem to solve over a long period. Right now we need something more immediate."

Was there really something that would benefit everyone?

"I suppose… a large-scale development project. Expanding the city beyond the walls would increase defense costs, but it would sustain employment for a long time."

"The population has grown well beyond projections, and the capital is getting cramped. The fact that this many people stayed even after the meteor and the monsters appearing overhead is pretty impressive."

"Exactly. We really should have done this sooner… Wait, isn't everything piling up during my reign?"

"You're just now realizing that?"

Her Majesty Tianis looked aghast, and Princess Yupe cackled.

Originally, these burdens should have fallen on Princess Yupe's shoulders, but at this point it was someone else's problem to her.

"I brought extra… What happened here?"

"Apparently she's savoring her own misfortune."

Alexia returned with the food.

She gave the room a quizzical look.

Once I filled her in, she seemed to understand.

"I'm sure it's tough, but at least your house didn't get blown away like mine, so you're still doing okay. And if you ever end up a slave, this soft-hearted guy right here will buy you."

"Don't say things like that. If I became a slave, it would mean the kingdom got conquered by someone."

"Buy me too when that happens. I'll throw in some extra service if you let me live a cushy life."

"If that ever happened, please ask Anatia-sama, not me."

"She'd work me to the bone, so no thanks."

Honestly, the trio of slaves and Finn alone were already more than I could handle. Adding these two on top of that would probably put me in bed from the stress.

Even as a joke, it was in bad taste.

Her Majesty Tianis reached for the plate, took a sandwich, and bit into it like she was stress-eating.

"Then let us proceed with large-scale employment through a public works project in the near future. Recruitment won't be limited to citizens. And with decent wages."

"Please do. The royalist faction has grown, so there shouldn't be many nobles complaining about your involvement, either. If the displaced want work, then just as you wish, let's give them work."

"I'd say they're more likely rubbing their hands together waiting for us to fail."

Dealing with nobles, whether as enemies or allies, was always a headache.

Merchants were so much easier to deal with.

If the capital expanded, the population would grow.

If the population grew, the circulating wealth would increase.

And if wealth increased, so would the taxes that could be collected.

… If this went well, the kingdom would regain its momentum.

But this chain of events felt too convenient. Almost as if someone had engineered things to turn out this way.