Arc II - Agrarian Revolution

Chapter 11 - This World

1 month and 6 days since the summoning

Alan sat on the very same terrace, with Kamelia sitting across from him, preparing parchment and a quill. It had grown just slightly colder outside; instead of the usual scorching sun, the sky was now more often overcast with grey, rainless clouds, though the southern part of the continent remained warm.

"So, Alan..." Kamelia began, her face as calm as ever. "I have written down in detail what you told me about the four-field system... at least, what I could remember. I wish to check if everything is correct." She handed him the parchment, but quickly caught herself. "Ah, you cannot read this language. Just listen, then." She propped the parchment before her and began to read, but Alan only half-listened, resting his head on his hand.

'Looking at her, you'd never guess she just sold herself and her future... Still as calm and collected as ever. Not showing a single sign of it. I almost envy that kind of self-control. And... how the hell did she manage to fill several sheets of parchment based on just a couple of conversations? ...Or is the answer to that pretty obvious...?'

"...in the second year, we plant in Part One..."

'That's important, sure... but right now, my main priority is Tsinker Utew... How the hell do I get in touch with him? How do I find him? He's practically in the neighboring lands... yet so far away. And there's really no one I can even ask... What if I ask Kamelia? Or... why not? It doesn't give away the fact that I already know everything... and it makes perfect sense, considering I've been whining about iron non-stop.'

"...and in the fourth year, in Part Three..." Kamelia continued.

Alan simply raised a hand. "You don't have to go on. It's exactly as I said."

'Shit... what an asshole you are, you didn't even listen to what she spent time memorizing... but telling her I wasn't listening would be even worse.'

Kamelia paused, then set the parchment aside. "Is it truly all correct?"

Alan nodded. "Yeah, but we're still a long way off from that."

She sighed. "Indeed... we must procure new plows and seeds. This is a task that will take... months, surely."

"Two or three," Alan corrected. "We probably won't get anything done in winter. It'll be too cold."

Kamelia raised an eyebrow. "Well... not quite. The winter here is rather warm."

Alan froze. "What do you mean... warm? How warm? Does it ever snow?"

"I know what snow is, but I have never seen it in my life. It does not snow here. As for the warmth... it is not exactly hot, just... cool, perhaps? I do not know how to explain it to you, I have never given it much thought."

He simply nodded.

'Right... so the climate here is pretty warm. To start with, I have no clue where we are on the world map, so it's either warm because of ocean currents, or because of the climate zones... By the way, speaking of the world, does she even have any idea what it looks like? I highly doubt it, but... let's ask.'

"Hey, do you guys even have a world map?"

The girl shook her head. "I do not possess one myself. I have heard that only the King and the powerful dukes have them. It is an incredibly expensive luxury. But I can tell you what I know."

He leaned back in his chair. "Yeah... I'd really like to know."

Kamelia sat up straighter, a spark in her eyes. "Listen then. What I know is limited and perhaps inaccurate, but it is something. To the north, Groliria borders Faarkia, a rather ancient and wealthy nation. I have also heard they elect their kings."

Alan almost choked on his breath. "They elect them?!"

Kamelia sighed and nodded. "Yes, I was surprised myself. To the north, Groliria also borders... I believe... Kanbannia. To the east lie the Dwarven Mountains, which you already know, and slightly to the south... Innopose, I think. These are all neighbors to our kingdom. Beyond that... I do not know much."

Gothwald leaned in closer. "I don't care if it's not much, I'm listening."

Kamelia paused for a second. "Very well. The Arumelia Empire, which you already know of. Not far from it lies Jorhania, a merchant state of independent cities. And in the far north lie the Sacred Svyatolian Lands, or simply Oronda, where the High Priest of the Holy Scripture resides."

Alan sat motionless, digesting the information.

'Oh... this world... it's not as simple as I thought. An elective monarchy, merchant cities, an empire, a theocracy... and she doesn't even know half of it. And here I am, digging around in some miserable county... Yeah. Whatever, screw it.'

Kamelia placed her hands on the table. "There are more countries, but these are all that I know of."

Alan didn't answer. He just stared blankly at the table, blinking as he processed it all. The Countess allowed herself a faint smile, then immediately restored her usual expression.

Alan finally shook his head. "Alright, that's pretty interesting... but with the deep shit we're currently in, it won't do us any help."

The girl immediately nodded. "Yes, I agree. So, do you have any ideas?"

He licked his lips.

"What do you know about Baron Utew's heirs?"

Kamelia's face remained unreadable this time. "And why do you wish to know that?"

Alan squinted slightly. "There's no other way for us to get enough iron. I think we can try to talk to his heirs somehow."

Kamelia remained silent for a few seconds. "Listen, then. The eldest son..." she hesitated slightly. "Zinder... is a rather ordinary nobleman, as you can imagine. The middle son, Linter, strongly dislikes his older brother out of envy for the lands he stands to inherit. The youngest, Tsinker, is..." She scratched her eyebrow. "He is quite strange, yet a decent man nonetheless. Always... calm, to a degree that is almost unsettling. That is how he is."

Alan nodded slowly.

'Just look at her... dodging the topic of marriage so slickly. Whatever. Overall, it's the exact same thing Golna told me.'

"Got it... Could you get me in touch with one of them?"

Kamelia subtly clenched her fists in her lap. "Why would you want that? Their father, the Baron, is very old, and they are clawing at each other's throats for their lands. It is not the... wisest idea."

"Why not? We basically have no other way to get iron and kickstart our agricultural revolution."

'Kamelia, Kamelia... I almost feel sorry for you. Trying to hide the marriage talks while trying to change things in these lands... You're not that different from me. Always finding trouble for yourself.'

Kamelia remained silent for a full minute, her eyes scanning the table while her heart hammered wildly. Fortunately for her, Alan could not hear those heavy, rapid beats. Finally, she let out a barely noticeable breath. "Very well. I shall try... though I strongly advise against contacting Zinder," she said quickly. "He is no better than his father."

Alan nodded. "Alright. I'd... like to see the youngest."

The girl's shoulders relaxed slightly. "I understand. But as you can imagine, this will take time... perhaps three or four days."

1 month and 7 days since the summoning

Early in the morning, when the sun had barely begun to rise, Alan sat by a window in the hallway, looking out into the courtyard. Dark circles hung under his eyes, but sleep still eluded him.

'Damn... why did so much shit have to pile up all at once lately? This marriage thing, the mind games, the fields, barons who'd love nothing more than to hang me by my balls... And Kamelia is probably just as stressed as I am, if not worse. Fuck... how am I supposed to clean up this mess? What am I even gonna say to this Tsinker guy? "Hey, I'm Alan, I need the iron your old man refuses to give"? I barely know anything about him anyway. I'll just have to wing it.'

Suddenly, there was movement in the castle courtyard. Alan leaned in closer, keeping himself out of sight.

Kamelia, without Lorgi but accompanied by five guards, was preparing the horses.

Alan watched closely.

'Looks like she's going to visit the Utew barony in person. But why on horseback? Why not a carriage? Doesn't look like an official visit... unless she just needs to get there as fast as possible.'

No one wasted time in the courtyard. Barely three minutes after they appeared, the six of them quickly mounted their horses and rode out of the castle grounds. Alan stepped back from the windowsill.

'Okay, fine, they're gone. Now what? I'm not just gonna sit on my ass and dick around... for like three or four days... Oh, right! There's gotta be a library around here somewhere!'

He immediately headed downstairs. The castle was completely empty, dark, and chilly since the sun had not yet risen. His footsteps echoed hollowly through the corridors as he turned toward the kitchen and pushed the door open.

Inside sat several servants: an old man, two young maidservants, an older woman, and a young man. They were gathered around the kitchen tables, drinking some kind of herbal infusion and chatting.

"...does not love her, of that I am certain. Horgen merely wishes to seize her father's inheritance," the older woman said.

"That cannot be! I saw them at our feast a few months ago, he was absolutely devoted to her!" the young girl protested.

The old man chuckled. "Trust me, when ten villages and a castle are at stake, you would treat even a pig as your bride. Have you even seen his second wife? Feeding her alone takes a good quarter of our taxes."

The servants all laughed, until the young man turned toward the door, his smile instantly vanishing.

The girl beside him was still smiling, oblivious. "Too true! Why, I would marry a frog myself if such a fortune were offered!"

The young man tapped her shoulder several times, and she turned to him in irritation. "What is it?"

He swallowed hard and silently gestured toward the doorway. Everyone turned, paled, and immediately stood up. "Lord Advisor!"

The girl stood so straight you could have measured her with a level. "Forgive us... forgive us! We were only..."

Alan blinked. "Oh, I just... came to ask where the library is... I think..."

"The third floor, the door near the window," the old man said.

Alan nodded slowly. "Right... thanks." He stepped out and closed the door.

'Heh... what a cozy little gathering. Reminds me of that one time I walked into the department office at university and found the professors gossiping over tea.'

He stopped.

'Wait... second wife? Is polygamy... a thing here? Okay... another piece of info for the pile.'

Alan was already making his way up the dark stairs.

'Not being able to read is... really damn bad. But maybe these books will have pictures. Though, if I remember how they drew in medieval Europe... nobody even tried to make things look realistic, especially with religious themes. It was all about the symbolism.'

He continued up to the third floor.

'And maybe among all this, I'll find something about the Stranger. Wait...'

He stopped.

'Why don't I just ask around carefully...? If there's Svyatol, there's gotta be... some kind of anti-Svyatol? That is a fucking perfect, subtle way to find out if the Stranger is the local Satan!'

Alan slapped his forehead.

'IDIOT! I was so busy cleaning up all this shit that I didn't even think of such a simple thing!'

About seven minutes later, he was standing in the corridor with a sleepy Golna in front of him.

She rubbed her eyes slightly. "How may I help you, Lord Gothwald?"

"I was actually curious about Svyatolism... that's your main religion, right?"

The maid's sleepiness instantly vanished, and she lowered her hand from her eye. "That is correct. Why do you ask?"

Alan folded his arms behind his back. "You see... in my world, we had a god too. He was literally just called God, and his main enemy was Satan. Do you have anything like that here?"

Golna nodded. "Of course we do. It is Guktus."

Alan blinked. "And you just say his name that easily?"

"What of it?"

Alan scratched his cheek. "Well... forbidden word, bad omen, all that jazz, no?"

The girl shrugged. "Whatever made you think that?"

He waved it off. "Never mind... drop it. So, what's this Guktus all about?"

Golna looked around. "If we are to have another long conversation... perhaps you would care to sit down?"

The young man shook his head. "No, I just wanted to ask this one quick question."

The maid nodded. "Very well. Guktus is the embodiment of absolute chaos and negligence. At times, he appears to people in their dreams, enticing them with sweet words, and bestows upon them unprecedented power... so that they may sow discord in our world. And Svyatol left mankind the Sacred Ritual of Hero Summoning, which the priests discovered three hundred years ago, so that we might fight against the Gukteks, those to whom Guktus has given power."

Alan just froze for a second. "Alright... thanks... By the way, why are you sleeping in? Weren't you supposed to be working by now?"

Golna yawned. "My Lady granted me leave while she is away... though I suppose you have already guessed where she has gone."

"Yeah. Well, I won't bother you anymore then." He turned to leave, then glanced back over his shoulder. "And, uh... sorry about... you know... what happened before." And with that, he left.

The maid stood frozen for a second, offering no reply, then slowly turned back to her room.

Alan stood by the window as the sun began to cast its first rays, rising behind the castle.

'Okay... so my guess was spot on. Appearing in dreams, giving powers... that's definitely the Stranger. And it turns out his name is Guktus... then why the hell didn't he tell me his name? Was he afraid I'd realize he's the local Satan and tell him to fuck off? Though... it's not like he was blowing smoke up my ass... well, he was, but there was no real point to it. He didn't want anything, just shoved regeneration onto me without asking for a credit card... Is he really just... bored? No, that's bullshit. I don't believe for a second that it's just out of boredom.'