Helping with Adventurer Party Management - Chapter 374:

“Alright. To summarize our discussion so far, we need to establish financial indicators for managing the territory, specifically focusing on income and expenses. While we have tax records, to truly understand the territory’s finances, we must gather various financial documents and recalculate everything. Our goal is to ensure that for every 100 in revenue, the burden on the people does not exceed 50. Has everyone understood this so far?” I summarize the discussion and relay it to the newly appointed officials.

Judging by their expressions, they seem to grasp the concept.

“Once we can accurately measure these figures, we’ll gain a true understanding of the territory’s condition—how much actual revenue it generates and how much burden is placed on the people.”

“For that, we’d need to track the prices of goods like wheat,” Luc points out.

The purchasing price of grain varies by territory, influenced by the lord’s financial situation and the bargaining power of visiting merchants. Simply following ledger entries won’t provide an accurate picture of market prices at any given time.

“If it’s the retail price of wheat at the lowest level, I’ve been tracking that for about the past four years in this city.”

“What?! Why?!” Luc exclaims in shock at my response.

“Oh, right. That was in your notes too,” Sara says in a nonchalant tone.

Unlike Luc, she already knew about the booklet I had kept during my adventurer days, where I recorded market prices for essential goods to avoid being overcharged.

“I’ve never heard of an adventurer doing something like that. If that’s true, you could easily work as a grain merchant, sir.”

“Back then, I didn’t have any trading connections. But when it comes to selling the territory’s harvest, this information will be useful.”

Luc praises my efforts, but the reality is that, as an adventurer, I had no way to handle bulky and politically sensitive goods like grain. Now, however, I can at least ensure that the harvest isn’t sold off at unfairly low prices.

“So, I have historical data. However, if we want to actively manage the territory, we need to take it a step further and understand what’s happening in real time. Counting the grains in a wheat head could help estimate the summer harvest, but is there a faster way? Ideally, I want to know every month, throughout the year, whether the territory is thriving or not.”

“That’s…” The priests, who are familiar with the current state of governance, fall silent.

Under the current system, officials only visit villages during tax collection. For the most part, villages govern themselves. What I’m proposing would upend that approach.

“The villagers might resist this,” Paperino sighs.

Even if the taxes were heavy, the villages had at least been granted autonomy. Introducing a more centralized, modern form of governance would undoubtedly cause confusion.

Because of this, each of the newly appointed officials must develop strong logical reasoning and the ability to clearly explain the necessity of these changes.