Read I Was Reincarnated as a Poor Farmer in a Different World, so I Decided to Make Bricks to Build a Castle

571 - - proof of one's people

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"[Judgment]. You've created some pretty cool magic, Kyle."

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"Well, it's not that big a deal, Brother Ars. We could have talked to each other from a distance by using [telepathy] in the first place.

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"But even so, [telepathy] is only for people you've actually met, right?　But with [judges], everyone is eligible, even if they've never met each other, so it's amazing. I mean, if that's the case, I'm going to lose the position of the radio station I built."

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"Well, but I think radio is useful because it can be used without magic. You can't use telepathy unless you have magic.

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"...... about that, what are your plans for the future?　Many of the people who live in the newly acquired Reed Estate now have access to magic such as [telepathy] and the like. But there are those who can't, right?　Besides, eventually there will be more of them, and I'm not sure if the trial system with [judges] is sustainable or not."

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　The new Charlotte Castle being built in the city of Richard.

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　It is still under construction, but for the time being, the building is complete enough for the Reed family to do their work.

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　In one of the rooms, Kyle and I were facing each other.

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　It was already the end of the year.

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　Soon I would have to go to the city of Fontana to greet the king, Garod, for the New Year's celebration.

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　So, it was surprisingly hectic inside the castle, trying to finish all the work that had to be done by the end of the year.

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　However, unlike the northern Kingdom of Fontana, it was much warmer here in the south, even in winter.

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　Of course, it was not always cold.

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　But even if snow does fall, it does not seem to be very deep.

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　In Fontana, we used a sled for winter transportation, but we did not need it that much.

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　Well, still, it is not unusual for people to die from the cold.

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　So, statues of ice-absorbing stones have been erected in this town to mitigate the cold.

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　As the seasons change in such a way, people started to arrive in Reed territory one after another before the winter.

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　Apparently, they are called refugees.

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　It was called the land of death, and the surrounding area became poor in harvest, which led to the appearance of many bandit gangs, competing with each other for food.

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　Most of these bandits have already been taken over or destroyed by the Reed family.

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　Still, the devastation of the land and society over the past year seems to have been great.

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　Not all of the thieves were based in the area.

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　They were scattered all over the country, going to the territories controlled by the nobles and raiding them.

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　This has resulted in a widespread impoverishment of the poor who will not survive the winter.

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　Such people are coming in droves, and Reed's domain is accepting them.

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　We cannot refuse to accept them.

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　Because that is the promise made to the blue saint Mirialia.

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　Help the poor.

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　That was the condition for the Reed family to rule this land.

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　Of course, the Reeds do not have the capacity to accept such refugees.

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　So Barka took over.

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　They provide a lot of food and clothing, and are willing to accept those who wish to emigrate not to the Reeds' territory, but to Barka's.

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　Those with some skills will be placed in the Barka line and others in the mines or in the west to become adventurers.

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　I am sure that the refugees will be glad to receive this helping hand, since Barka is full of dream jobs.

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　But that does not mean that we will let everyone out of Reed's territory.

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　In fact, most of them would prefer to stay.

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　And Kyle would listen to them as long as he could.

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　Because there is more land than we have.

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　There is still room to live in the city of Richard, and Reed's territory needs a certain number of people to repel the other surrounding forces.

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　But then there was a problem.

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　That was the court system that Kyle and I had talked about earlier.

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　Kyle was trying to win the hearts and minds of the people living here through the act of trial with the participation of all the residents so that the Reed family could rule the land.

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　But it will collapse if more and more refugees come in from the surrounding areas.

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　The more people who are not connected and cannot use magic in the trial, the less unity there will be among the residents.

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　I wonder what Kyle plans to do about this problem.

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"Well, I'm thinking of giving magic to the new residents as well.

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"And the new guys?　You don't take them up as knights, you don't hire them at Reed House for a certain level of academic achievement in their studies, and you don't hire them as residents?"

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"Yeah. No, Brother Ars?"

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"...... I don't know if it's a bad idea, but it would cost a hell of a lot of money. You know Kyle, just asking the church to name one new knight would be quite a bit of money."

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"Yes, that's right. That's why I'm thinking of getting the residents to pay for it."

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"You mean you're going to make the residents pay for it and give them magic?　These refugees don't even have food, remember?"

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"Well, how should I put it? I'm thinking that eventually the taxpayers will have to pay for it. For example, anyone who turns 15 and is born and lives in Reed's territory will be issued a certificate of residence. And those who are issued the certificate are given the magic of the House of Reed, but they must continue to pay the appropriate taxes to maintain it, how about that?"

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"...... I see. Once it gets off the ground, the tax will cover the expenses of the newly named?　In that case, the first problem is the first. We would have to name a significant number of refugees who don't have money.

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"It's not like we have to name everyone right now, right?　Initially, we name those who can pay. Those who have money can participate in the trial immediately, while those who don't can save their money to get a territorial certificate later."

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　In other words, we need money to live in Reed's territory and obtain our rights?

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　Those who can pay immediately get magic and jurisdiction.

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　But those who cannot pay now do not have to pay.

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　In return, you have no say in the decision.

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　But, who knows how many years it will be before all the inhabitants will be forced by taxation to receive a certificate of fief and pay the appropriate taxes.

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　I wonder how many of them can afford to pay?

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　Depending on the percentage, it might be a good idea to give it a try.

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　Or, if we set a condition such as "a certificate is required to acquire new land in this lead territory", can we make them give us money without any reluctance?

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　This is an issue that needs to be discussed and worked out in detail.

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　Kyle and I, and the Reeds, discussed the idea of giving magic to the residents.

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