Chapter 332

Financing for the Administration of Galette County
"Now, onto the next topic. Young lady Conniette, do you have any plans to make Galette County a more livable place?"

Alizée, what are you suddenly bringing up?
But it seems that Young lady Conniette is interested in this topic as well.
What is she planning to do?

"I am very interested. Specifically, what should be done?"

"After conducting an investigation of Galette County, we have confirmed its potential to become a logistics hub for the southern region. Please proceed with the necessary developments for that."

A logistics hub for the southern region?
I don’t quite understand, but it seems Young lady Conniette does.
… Wait, am I losing to an eleven-year-old?

"Could you elaborate further?"

"Certainly. Currently, the transportation of goods to the southern region is handled by Viscount Perfe’s territory, two territories over. However, the Viscount takes advantage of this by imposing high tariffs, causing frequent trade disruptions. If a new logistics hub is established, the clientele will naturally shift to your side."

"I see. However, what about the roads? I apologize, but the roads in Galette County are far from well-maintained."

"In that regard, we can begin improvements as soon as the magic tools being used for the road between Connie Village and the capital, Galette, become available. If necessary, you can also borrow additional magic tools from the Trade Guild and accelerate the development with multiple devices."

This conversation is getting complicated.
I'm just here to drink tea on the sidelines.

"I understand the road improvements. However, if it is to become a logistics hub, warehouses and other facilities will also be necessary, correct? Also, strong and tall city walls will be needed to protect against monster attacks. The walls of Galette are not particularly sturdy."

"Yes, that will need to be developed as well. The town of Galette must be transformed into a city fit for a logistics hub."

"But Galette County doesn’t have that kind of money… Ah, you mean to take out a loan from Miss Lily?"

Hearing my name, I focused my attention on the conversation.
It seems that Alizée is counting on my funds.
Do I really have enough personal wealth to finance such a massive construction project?

"That’s correct. Of course, she won’t be able to lend you the entire cost of the project, but she can provide a loan of several hundred billion Rubies to start with."

Wait a minute!?
Several hundred billion Rubies? Wouldn’t that put me in debt too!?

"… Lady Lily, please review your own finances. Your account at the Trade Guild has been steadily growing."

"Huh? … Over two trillion Rubies!?"

"Indeed. Lady Lily, you originally had several hundred billion Rubies, but your wealth skyrocketed after the dungeon exploration in the spring. As your personal financial advisor, I would prefer that you invest in promising ventures to make use of your cash assets."

Whoa, I had no idea I was this rich…
Even Plum, sitting next to me, was giving me a dumbfounded look.
I should make it a habit to check my finances more regularly from now on.

"What do you think, Lady Lily? Would you consider investing in Galette County?"

"Miss Lily, I ask this of you as well. Please consider providing financial support for the benefit of our territory."

Hmm, if this were only Alizée’s proposal, I would have refused outright, but with Young lady Conniette also making a request, it’s harder to turn down.
For now, I decided to put the decision on hold and ask for a more concrete proposal before reconsidering.
It’s difficult to make a judgment without knowing exactly what form the plan will take.

Additionally, following another of Alizée’s suggestions, we decided to bring some Kiblinki Saltas to investigate the forests and mountains.
Indeed, those creatures might safely discover new crops hidden deep in the wilderness.

Of course, this depends on their willingness, so I’ll only take the ones that actually want to go.
Young lady Conniette seemed very enthusiastic about the possibility of discovering new specialty products.

Considering how thorough those creatures are, they’ll probably find everything undiscovered in the area, but that’s fine.
After all, this way, we can safely acquire new candidate crops.

What do you think about this chapter?