Chapter 145

“As you commanded, Your Excellency, I have organized the household registers based on the parishioner register stored in the Architel local church. Please verify it.

Unlike modern states, medieval European society was able to fairly accurately ascertain population numbers, genders, and age groups based solely on the parish registers held by the village.

This was because, in that era, unlike today, infants received baptism upon birth, marriages were conducted at the church, and funerals were also held at the same church when someone died.

Furthermore, due to the agricultural society’s characteristics, very few individuals moved for reasons such as going to university, enlisting in the military, or wandering…

Thus, the church in the village retained records of all births, marriages, and deaths for everyone born in that village.

Therefore, the margin of error for population census in the medieval era was only around 10%.

Compared to the error rates of population censuses in Joseon and the Ming dynasty during the same period, which some scholars claim were at least double and even up to five times, this is remarkably low.

Next, I opened the first page of the report submitted by the inspector and read it.

“In the Architel region we occupy, there is one Count’s territory, six directly governed Marquis territories, and three Marquis territories under the Count… The population is around 1.7 to 1.8 million. It’s much more extensive than I expected, but the population is concerning… What about the number of remaining lower officials?”

In response, the inspector replied calmly.

“First, let me inform you about the number of lower officials. There are about 400 bailiffs, and the number of village heads is three times that, around 1200.”

“I figured that for a territory of this size, there would be three times the bailiffs and village heads… It’s surprisingly low.”

“Upon investigating the household registers, it was found that when the Architel Duke fought against us, some bailiffs and village heads were selected to serve as lower command officers in the infantry units. Many of them likely died in that process. Simultaneously, some higher-ranked knights were given such duties, far exceeding the number of territory residents.”

Somehow, even in a defensive battle where all forces were deployed, maintaining a number of 6,000 knights would require assigning even the lower administrative tasks that knights prefer to avoid, in order to reduce operational costs.

To assign village heads and bailiffs to command infantry in order to organize even one more knight into the heavy cavalry…

Hearing this made me genuinely feel the mindset with which the Architel Duke embarked on this war.

I also realized that the situation was worse than I had anticipated.

“Do you happen to know which titles the living bailiffs or village heads held when they commanded the infantry?”

In response, the inspector cautiously answered.

“I heard that some bailiffs were appointed as Captain Hundred to command 100 conscripts, and village heads were given command of groups of 30. And this is…”

Typically, a Captain Hundred commanding over 100 soldiers is treated as a lower knight or equivalent status, while the commanders of groups of 30 are usually free citizens of a much higher status than village heads.

However, in the absence of a lord, if surprised, a bailiff sometimes commands a group of 100 conscripts as a Captain Hundred, and a village head may command around 30 soldiers.

Of course, even then, civil servants’ authority only slightly increases in emergencies, with no possibility of a reversal in status.

At most, if they perform a significant act, they might be rewarded with luxury items like gold coins or silk, or given some minor privileges.

To escalate their status, a quasi-baronet level knight commanding at least 1,000 soldiers must be captured for the discussion of title granting to occur.

However, having a Captain Hundred and a commander of thirty in the battle directly led by the Architel Duke is a different matter.

Especially, for bailiffs and village heads, who are constrained by the wall of status, this feels like a chance at advancement.

The fact that His Excellency the Duke has entrusted high-ranking positions, usually given to knights or free citizens, to them…

Represents an opportunity for them to break free from the shackles of status and live a better, more luxurious life.

The gratitude and appreciation towards the lord who may change their status would be deeply ingrained in their bones.

This is also why I expected such effects when I brought people like Balt, Frost, Beerman, Colonel Frost, Lieutenant Balt, and Lieutenant Short to this point.

“You can’t possibly think that replacing bailiffs and village heads will solve everything, do you, inspector?”

While I would like nothing more than to dismiss their positions and drive them into a corner to eradicate all problems, such foolishness would lead the newly appointed lord to be met with dissatisfaction and fear from the serfs regarding the expulsion of the village’s respected bailiffs and heads.

Dissatisfaction naturally arises from ousting the leaders who had governed them well until now, while fear arises from the thought that the newly appointed lord would treat the serfs in the same way.

As a result, the expelled bailiffs and village heads might try to incite a peasant revolt using the dissatisfaction and fear of the serfs.

“No, I proposed buying off a few of them with positions or wealth. Wouldn’t it make it easier to root out traitors?”

As expected from Loren’s son, despite his young age, his response was suitably adequate for an inspector.

As he said, capturing a few who try to instigate a revolt using internal traitors and executing them…

Would naturally cause the bailiffs and village heads to refrain from attempting revolt for their own safety.

However, what he suggested was the task that should have been assigned to those in charge of intelligence operations.

Therefore, I spoke to him, in a nagging tone, wishing for the growth of Loren’s son, Alps.

“That’s the job of the intelligence personnel; your duty involves administrative tasks. As an administrative officer, you should come up with methods to neutralize the incitement of the bailiffs and village heads.”

Then, five minutes later, Inspector Alps spoke earnestly.

“As an administrator, I believe that we should act as if a famine has occurred, providing food and various support to each village, just as the Croilet Count did.”

“And the reason?”

“Those serfs were our enemies until the war, but now they are under the protection of Count Croilet… no, Your Excellency. And… their situation…

A moment later, he handed me a report.

“This report summarizes the food shortages in each village now that the war is over. According to it, villages belonging to the Architel region… are not facing famine, but rather, excessive taxation has caused them to worry about starving to death. Given this situation, the serfs will gradually forget their resentment towards the Architel Duke, and when they are suffering from hunger, they will hate us more for having abandoned them.”

As Alps pointed out, people typically harbor more hatred towards the ruler who allows them to suffer from hunger rather than the one who had caused them to go hungry in the first place.

Because when they are suffering, the visible figure before them is not the leader who took their food but their current ruler.

Hence, to avoid such hatred, throughout history, early dynasties have striven with all their might to feed the serfs.

And by providing sustenance, they would soon forget the past dynasty and become citizens of the new dynasty.

“If I leave them to their own devices as you said, the bailiffs will entice the village heads, and over a million serfs will likely rise in revolt. Thus, as an administrative officer, you were seeking relief to maintain the workforce and increase loyalty, correct? Excellent.”

At that, Alps smiled brightly.

“Thank you, Your Excellency.”

“Then, how do you intend to proceed with the relief?”

“In other territories, relief usually means handing out thin porridge sufficient for one meal a day. However, since we have an abundance of food, even if we cannot provide black bread, we can offer rich wheat porridge three times a day and occasionally salted herring. This is how I plan to proceed.”

Our territory’s serfs generally eat black bread and salted herring on average every day, and the plan is to provide a meal just one level below this…

With this, even if rumors spread about them receiving food for free, the serfs would have no complaints.

Moreover, while the serfs living in the Architel Count’s territory have certainly improved their lives with the four-course crop rotation, eating thin porridge twice a day was likely their standard…

Even when faced with starvation, realizing that if they follow me, they can have a considerably better life like this will help them forget their resentment against families who cannot return.

If that happens, certainly when the village heads or bailiffs propose returning under the Architel Duke…

“If this relief plan is executed properly, village heads or bailiffs will incite the serfs for revolt, but they will never follow through. Good…”

Additionally, I began to think about using food exports to pressure the entire Romanian Empire.

“However, it is forbidden to collect additional food from our serfs outside the Architel region. Instead, that amount should be bought with my funds from the total grain exports to Romania and the surplus food in our territory’s market. And let the nobles with territories in Architel know that I am undertaking such relief efforts.”

“Yes, understood.”

Finishing that, Alps closed the door as he left.

I gazed at the now-closed door of my office and said.

“Recently, the Holy Romanian Empire has been collecting vast sums of money to construct a Great Cathedral as per the orders of the Romanian Papacy… Even so, the fact that they have yet to face a food crisis is at least partly due to some territories adopting the four-course crop rotation… but the contributions from our territory also account for a substantial share… But what if that becomes unavailable?”

Next, I clapped my hands and murmured.

“The prices of food will rise by at least 10–15%, and if that happens, the number of starving serfs and citizens in dire straits in cities will explode. And if this phenomenon continues… the weak-willed electors will seek to oust the mad emperor who impoverishes them, aiming to seize the territories of the opposing lords. Moreover, their justification will be the new faith advocated by Wilke… and as soon as the emperor receives intelligence about their animosity, he will attempt to take their lands.”

I do not currently intend to participate in this war…

In the meantime, I’ll have no choice but to strengthen my power to keep Franche in check as I prepare for what’s next…

Since I’ll likely be here for a while, I should also call Irina, Ela, and Victoria to join me.

And so, I picked up my pen and started writing on the paper.

The content was…

[The scribes of the territory are to order the bailiffs to gather at the Azenkur Castle one month from today, according to this directive.]