Chapter 5: First Territory Patrol

It was a tradition handed down from the very first head of the Count of Ophern.

This tradition, born from the belief that one’s own territory must be guarded by a member of the House of Ophern themselves, has by now become a firm custom.

If you’re a direct descendant of the family, you take turns making rounds throughout the territory.

From the lowest part of the land up to the highest, you must seek it out yourself and move about.

The territory patrol, which happens once every half year, naturally becomes an obligation from the moment a direct descendant turns twelve.

As the second son and youngest of the family, I was able to skip out on this duty several times because of health issues.

Father, too, though he never said it aloud, spared me a few times out of consideration.

But now, that’s reached its limit.

No matter how weak of a child I still am, it’s time for me to go.

Besides, it’s pretty well known by now that my health has been improving lately.

It’s only natural, really.

Still, at this point, I’m more worried about what’ll happen if I get asked how I got so healthy before I’ve learned more Mugong.

‘Hmm. I’ll need to think about this. I should come up with a convincing reason.’

That’s why Father had asked me, with concern.

If I was able to go. If I could fulfill the duty of protecting the family and territory.

My answer was a clear yes.

“Master, then I’ll prepare to escort you.”

***

After months spent cooped up in the mansion, I finally set foot toward the territory.

“Hooh……”

In this life, I’ve barely ever left the castle.

Sometimes I’d go outside the castle, but usually with my older brother and sister.

Besides, those trips weren’t patrols—just brief outings.

So, aside from the castle, I know next to nothing about the territory.

Because of that, I’m taking my time looking around.

The first thing that surprised me was the architectural style.

The city surrounding the castle, which is essentially my home, is filled with stone buildings.

Some of them are as tall as six stories, as high as the castle walls.

A second set of walls then surrounds this city of stone buildings.

So, centering on the Main Castle and its walls, a circular city is formed, which is then wrapped by a second set of walls.

And outside those walls, there’s yet another city with both wooden and stone buildings.

‘Ah. Right. That’s the Inner City and the Outer City.’

***

Within the second walls is the Inner City; outside is the Outer City.

And I heard only those with a certain amount of wealth live in the Inner City.

At the very least, only the middle class and above live there, while the Outer City houses a handful of middle class, commoners, and the poor.

‘I really was just a kid. Never even thought about what to do with my life, just holed up at home. I can’t let myself be like that anymore.’

Reflecting on my pre-awakening behavior, I continued walking.

The territory patrol lasts about ten days.

There are just that many places to see.

The first and second days are for inspecting the Inner and Outer Cities.

On the third day, we start traveling to other towns and villages.

Our family has seven Barons and five Viscounts as vassals.

They’ve been granted territory by our family and have sworn allegiance.

However—

About half of the vast Earl’s Territory is split among those seven Barons and five Viscounts, but the rest is governed directly by our house.

This directly governed land is the Direct Dominion.

The territory patrol involves visiting all of the Direct Dominion, so it takes quite a lot of time.

That’s why it takes ten days.

‘But, from what I remember, even ten days is nowhere near enough. Honestly, to really find out what’s going on, you’d have to go undercover and investigate for at least three months.’

If I trace my memories, the number of people living in the Direct Dominion is considerable.

There are over 170,000 people living in the city where the Main Castle stands.

There are also small cities and some autonomous regions, but just breezing through all of that in ten days and catching any problems is impossible.

‘How do I know that?’

Because I saw so much of that back in Korea.

This is what they call armchair administration.

Ah. Still, it’s better than doing nothing.

I’ll need to do something about this when I’m older.

Who knows where in the world the family’s wealth might be leaking away to? The mere thought makes my blood boil.

Anyway, I have to inspect the whole territory, accompanied by three Knights and twenty soldiers.

Since today’s the first day, of course we’re starting with the Inner City.

“That’s the Commercial District?”

One of the three Knights escorting me, Benson, explained.

“Yes. Commerce is concentrated in the north. That’s why there are many stores there. To the east is the Nobles’ Residential Area for those with semi-noble status—mainly the families of our vassals. And to the south is Workshop Street. From blacksmiths and sculptors to jewelry and leather workshops, there are many kinds of buildings.”

“A planned city, then……”

“Pardon?”

“It’s nothing.”

The territory was developing in a rather organized fashion.

North is commerce.

East is the vassals’ residential area.

South is the Craft District.

I heard that when the territory was smaller, Monsters’ Territory spread out to the south, so the layout isn’t bad.

But there was one thing left unsaid.

“What about the west?”

“That’s the residential area for commoners with a certain amount of wealth.”

“Ah.”

Just as I heard.

The Inner City is where the middle-class and above commoners live.

The western district is precisely that. From the start, the Inner City of Ophern leans toward the south, covering the north and east completely.

The west, in comparison, isn’t very wide—almost immediately connecting to the Outer City.

‘And the lower classes live in the Outer City, while labor is recruited from there. That’s probably how it is.’

“What’s the population of the Inner City?”

“I’m not an administrator, so……”

“Haven’t you heard anything?”

“I have a rough idea.”

“Tell me.”

Benson answered with a slightly troubled expression.

“I believe it’s around six thousand. It’s not exact, so you might want to ask the administrator later……”

So, about five thousand for the upper class? Wasn’t the total population of the main city about 180,000? That means about 3% live here.

“All right. Let’s start with the Commercial District.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

It took a full day to patrol the Inner City.

***

After returning home, I immediately asked my father for something.

“You want to have an administrator accompany you?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Sir Benson didn’t know the answers to a lot of my questions.”

“Really?”

Knight Benson looked a bit embarrassed.

“What did you ask?”

“What the population of the Inner City is, how much tax is collected from the Commercial District, things like that.”

“Why are you curious about those?”

“They’re matters of our house, after all. Besides, I’m a mage.”

“Yes, that’s right. My adorable youngest is a mage.”

“Of course. I’m only First-Class Magic, but I’m still a mage!”

“Hahaha.”

Father laughed heartily.

Mages are known for their curiosity—clever and intelligent beings.

That’s what people say.

And for the most part, it’s true.

“All right. From now on, I’ll assign you an administrator.”

“Thank you.”

“You’ve worked hard today. Go get some rest.”

“Yes, Father.”

***

After that conversation with Father, I returned to my room.

“Oof. My legs are so swollen.”

Back in my room, I found my feet and legs had swelled up badly.

“If I hadn’t had any internal energy, I probably wouldn’t have been able to keep moving halfway through.”

Three months of internal energy training.

I’ve practiced some external arts, too.

But this body is still a child’s, and even weaker than an average person’s.

Guess I pushed myself too hard today.

“That was way too much for a kid.”

Thinking so, I sat cross-legged.

I intended to use Shamanic Energy Cultivation to reduce the swelling and keep up my internal energy training until morning.

Actually, with internal energy training, you barely need any sleep.

For the past three months, I’ve only slept about two hours a day, and I’m perfectly fine.

Internal energy is helpful in these cases. Just as I was about to begin training again—

Knock, knock, knock.

“Young Master. May I come in?”

Dean’s voice.

“Oh, come in.”

What’s she doing here this late at night? I saw Dean bring something in, cradled carefully.

“What’s that?”

“The Lord sent a potion for you.”

“Ah.”

A potion! The ultimate emergency treatment in this world! Ah, right. With this, fatigue is no problem at all.

Besides, potions are expensive, but honestly, for a great noble like a Count’s house, it’s not a big deal. Why didn’t I think of that?

“Father, seriously……”

I took the potion Dean handed me.

“Thanks for bringing it at night, Dean. Get some rest.”

“It’s nothing.”

Dean bowed politely and withdrew. Watching her close the door, I stared at the potion in my hand.

A Healing Potion that instantly heals wounds.

Come to think of it, this must have considerable energy, too.

‘Could I absorb it through internal energy training?’

“I’ll have to experiment later.”

I placed the potion in a safe spot, sat cross-legged again, and slowly sank into meditation with Shamanic Energy Cultivation.

The next day.

I left the Inner City for the outside.

“It’s worse than I thought.”

The Outer City.

***

Where the lower classes and commoners live.

Of course, there are some clean neighborhoods, but most are more like Lower-Class Districts.

I was headed north, and, surprised, turned to the person beside me.

“The better-off area is the south, right?”

“Yes, Young Master.”

Myuron, the administrator, answered politely.

A thin, scholarly-looking man, he’s apparently in charge of various statistics.

And statistics are important.

According to him, the Outer City is further divided into different zones, just like the Inner City.

“Since the southern district of the Inner City is Workshop Street, most who work there live in the east district of the Outer City. Since a lot of cash flows there, it’s the wealthiest part of the Outer City. That’s why security is better there and more soldiers are stationed.”

By Myuron’s account:

Outer City south—

That’s the rich part. Most residents work in the Inner City’s Craft District.

No, more like, it’s where those responsible for the Inner City’s labor live.

Outer City north—

That’s the Commercial District.

It connects to the Inner City’s Commercial District, though it’s shabbier.

Still, many Mercenaries come and go there. So there are plenty of weapon and armor shops.

Outer City east—

That’s where the truly poor live. It’s a Lower-Class District, with tangled streets.

Outer City west—

That’s the entertainment district. Mercenaries frequent it as well.

Security aside, the biggest issue is hygiene.

There are no sewers.

People use wells for water, but it doesn’t look clean.

And human waste isn’t properly disposed of.

The streets stink, and most commoners barely wash.

Ugh. This is the worst.

I knew it.

I did know this is what medieval Europe was like.

I learned that while studying history related to medieval Europe back in Korea.

Still, I thought this place was a bit better because of Magic…….

“Ah!”

“What’s wrong, Young Master?”

“It’s nothing.”

Suddenly, I realized why the Main Castle and the Inner City are so clean.