Continental Hero Senki

The information given is enormous.

Specific policies, sizes, budgets, human resources, etc. The cabinet members of the Eastern Continental Empire have only leaked, and the details are really detailed. So the Ostmark Imperial Intelligence Department is finally in full swing?

"Mr. Feene, one good thing?

"What is it, Major Yuzef"

"This information, he said, was circulated by the Imperial Home Secretary...... how credible is it?

"Ninety-nine cents. I think it's true."

Mr. Fine responded instantly. And while he carried a cup of tea into his mouth, he also told me why.

"That means, as I said earlier, the new Chancellor of the Eastern Continental Empire, Sergei Romanov, is carrying out a solemn proclamation of bureaucracy. Fire corrupt bureaucrats and give them something powerful up without hesitation. The defeat of the Spring War has reduced the authority and voice of leading aristocrats. Sergei can unfortunately show off his arms."

"... and that the Home Secretary has a sense of crisis in that Sergei reform?

"Yes, it seems he had fattened his private belly for a long time by the authority of the Home Secretary. He also said that various chambers of commerce are paying him the necessary expenses to enter the country."

From what I hear, the Grill Palzer Chamber of Commerce sounds like its mouth too. He bribes and punches into a huge market called the Eastern Continental Empire, and pays even more to gather information. I guess that's why Mr. Lisel surprisingly quickly grasped the scale and content of the Imperial Army's operations in gathering information prior to the outbreak of the Spring War.

"But Sergei's reform is also revealing the injustice of the Home Secretary," he said.

"You put it in there and demanded information in exchange for asylum, is that the place?

"Name and Answer"

Having said that, Mr. Fine took another copy, perhaps a dossier with the same contents in his hands.

"New Prime Minister Sergei's new policy. Those three pillars are the review of foreign policy, the liberation of serfs, and disarmament. Already, these are big and small within the empire, and they're moving to achieve quite a bit of success."

While I listen to Mr. Feene, I look at the contents of the material I received from His Highness Emilia.

First and foremost, the review of foreign policy.

While inheriting the framework of the anti-Silesian alliance, ceasefire negotiations have begun with the Second Reich of Christ, where the conflict has continued in recent decades. They say the question is whether there will be a transfer of some peripheral territories, but that if a ceasefire is achieved, the burden on the Eastern Continental Imperial Army will be reduced.

And this policy also includes the signing of a ceasefire treaty with the Kingdom of Silesia. For the Eastern Continental Empire, not to mention the future. Now I guess I want to focus on internal affairs.

"We are now friendly towards all nations, but if the Eastern Continental Empire were to aim for the reunification of all continents, this would be a period of preparation, not just peace. In the meantime, we will prepare for reunification."

When I made that prediction, I nodded deeply as to whether His Highness Emilia was also in tune.

"Additionally, if national traffic recovers and trade begins, it will also benefit economically. I'm guessing the tax revenues from that benefit will lead to the next reform of home affairs."

"Your Highness is right. In fact, Chancellor Sergei puts a lot of effort into civil affairs."

"Is' Slave Liberation 'the highlight of that civil affairs reform?"

Mr. Feene nods.

Only the Eastern Empire still possesses the rank of serf. Other countries, the serfs have already become a thing of the past.

Outside the Eastern Continental Empire, free peasants, not serfs, carry out farming. Free peasants are guaranteed freedom of choice of occupation and freedom of movement, and the land is their own.

And instead of putting crops in the aristocracy, farmers sell crops in cities and put in the form of taxes on some of their income. However, there is a restriction on not being a heavy tax, and in the case of Silesia, the tax rate is limited by the decree of the first king, Yezi Silesia.

But in the case of serfs, it will not.

The serfs are the property of the nobles. Let the serfs plow the land that the nobles possess, and most of the crops enter the nobles' pockets. The aristocrats sell it and fatten their private bellies, but the serfs can only be given the least they can live with.

There is naturally no freedom of vocational choice, no freedom of movement and, on the contrary, no freedom of marriage. And nobles can do whatever they want with the serfs they own. Speaking of extremes, you can say "death penalty because you don't care about your face," and there's no law limiting that barbarity.

The less Kili, to give an example, the worse the disparity between the serfs and nobles of the Eastern Continental Empire.

"But radical reform rather only puts the serfs in tragedy. Sergei seems to know that, too, and according to the information, the liberation of the serfs will proceed with caution. In other words, the stability of the lives of the serfs will give them personal freedom and complete emancipation after institutional and substantial establishment".

But in response to this explanation by Mr. Fine, His Highness Emilia looked somewhat skeptical. When I ask why,

"But given the population of the empire, the scale should be outrageous. It won't be enough, no matter how much you have."

"Sure...... Perhaps we will take the method whereby the state buys up aristocratic holdings of farmland and sells them to the serfs free of charge, or at a low price. If you are a nobleman who lost his authority in the Spring War, you can confiscate it, but the imperial nephew nobleman can do it... Ah"

That's all I said and noticed. Unexpectedly, when I looked at His Highness Emilia, His Highness was looking this way, too.

That's what His Highness Emilia said earlier.

Revenue is increased by the review of foreign policy and the revitalisation of economic exchanges with neighbouring countries. You can use that. What's more, take the noble property that fell in the Spring War and budget for it, but you shouldn't mind.

If the Imperial Grand Nephew aristocracy were given the land of the Imperial aristocracy in exchange for liberating the farmland and the serfs, wouldn't there be any complaints for now?

"You're gonna do great..."

I accidentally squealed like that, but apparently His Highness Emilia and Mr. Feene agree. By the way, Sarah doesn't seem to be following the story at all. I'll explain it to you later, so be patient a little longer.

"This liberation of the serfs will silence the peasant bees that are winding up all over the empire once and for all if we succeed. That way, reducing the army currently held by the Empire will have no effect on security at all"

"Is that 'disarmament'?"

"Probably. It also turns out the scale regarding 'disarmament'. Right here."

That said, Mr. Fine pointed to the dossier. The letters there were somewhat suspicious.

"Reduce 105 out of 417 Imperial Army Regular Warfare Divisions……!?"

"Yes, they'll do it in stages, but the Imperial Army will apparently be down to three-quarters of its current size in two years,"

105 divisions, or 1.05 million people. Reduce this all at once. Still, more than 300 divisions remain, but more scared than that are the 1.05 million. Most of these 1.05 million would be conscripted serfs, but they gain personal freedom by means of a serfdom emancipation policy. You can go home and plow farmland, or you can be a worker in a large factory that will probably stand within the Empire in the future.

This could turn the economy around quite a bit.

... Plus, I was reading the material and found something that bothered me.

"This isn't disarmament, is it?"

"... Yes?

In response to my words, His Highness Emilia raised a bit of a bare voice.

"Look here"

"... er, budget changes after disarmament implementation?

"Yes, take a good look"

And, although I said it, His Highness Emilia couldn't find the answer even after thinking for a few dozen seconds. I've looked at Mr. Feene, but she's also leaning her neck without finding an answer.

I have no choice, tell me the answer from myself.

"Compared to before and after disarmament implementation, there's a reduction in military budgets, right?

"Uh, yeah. But naturally...?

"It's certainly natural. But even though we cut the entire army by a quarter, the military budget drops very little."

"What?"

Mr. Fine rushed to turn a few pieces of material and thought deeply again. And now it seems that we have been able to come up with an answer.

"... Sure, that's too little. Calculations are supposed to cut budgets close to double this value."

The most expensive area to put in the military is people, or labor costs. When that labor cost is enormous, the budget doesn't quite come around to other departments. For example, the modernization of equipment and base facilities.

"Perhaps we will use some of the reduced labor costs to try to modernize our troops. I don't know exactly how to modernize it... but it probably won't be what we call disarmament in general - it will be essentially an expansion just for the increased combat power per unit"

With this series of reforms, the Empire will undoubtedly rebuild. If the economic situation improves, the people will sooner or later support Sergei, who will be crowned emperor.

And the morale of an army led by Sergei like that naturally increases. The overall modernization of the army can also be fulfilled by the military expansion that has made it look like disarmament.

Until now, the Eastern Continental Imperial Army had only a few. Crushing in numbers was the basic strategy. So once you turn to losing, the morale breaks down and the front line breaks down. That's a story that happened several times in the Spring War.

But Sergei's reform will dramatically increase the quality of the Imperial Army. Before that, it's not enough to take more than 100 division reductions.

This means that the strongest army on the continent will be resurrected.