Chapter 300
Marcus did not spend all his newfound free time merely resting and mingling with his family.
There were certain things he could only do when he had this kind of leisure.
He wondered how the people of the Italian Peninsula—whose lives he had only pictured conceptually until now—were actually living.
He wanted to check if the residents outside Capital Rome and other major cities were truly leading satisfying lives.
If time permitted, he would have loved to personally visit Gaul and Hispania as well, but he simply had not had the chance.
Touring the streets of Rome or Brundisium was the most he could manage.
He had already witnessed the development of such metropolitan areas firsthand numerous times.
Of course, he was not completely ignorant of the trends in the outer villages.
He could review all the detailed data through reports: roughly how much agricultural output had increased, or how high the proportion of independent farmers had risen.
However, Marcus wanted to observe the people's lives with his own eyes at least once.
He had already been planning to set aside some time for it, but a recent conversation with Danae had solidified his resolve.
Translating intent into immediate action was Marcus's defining trait and greatest strength.
He promptly adjusted his schedule and set out on a grand tour across the Italian Peninsula, taking Octavian and Sophia with him.
Because Rome's current supreme leader was on the move, a considerable procession trailed behind him.
He had originally intended to bring only a small escort, but his station made that impossible.
In the end, a somewhat larger armed force accompanied him than initially planned, though it caused no major issues.
Marcus first visited Campania, a region renowned for its wealthy rural estates.
It was home to famous cities like Pompeii, but he scheduled only a one-day stopover in such places.
Instead, he decided to focus his inspections on the newly established villages and the independent farmers who leased and cultivated state-owned land.
"You could receive detailed reports back in Rome. Is there really a need to come all this way yourself?"
Octavian asked with a questioning look as he guided his horse over the unpaved road.
He was not particularly fond of outdoor activities and looked as though he wanted nothing more than to rest in a cozy Pompeii mansion right now.
He had tagged along because Marcus asked him to, but the thought of traveling beyond Campania to circle the southern reaches of the Italian Peninsula made his head throb.
Marcus chuckled softly and glanced at Sophia, who was riding alongside Octavian.
"Do you feel the same way?"
"I just came along thinking of it as a trip with my father, so I have no complaints."
"No, Lady Sophia. I was not saying I had complaints either. I merely raised a minor question about whether we could learn all this indirectly without needing to see it for ourselves..."
"So you're basically saying we went out of our way to come somewhere we didn't need to visit, aren't you?"
When Sophia teased him with a bright smile, Octavian let out a heavy sigh and shut his mouth.
Marcus watched them warmly before speaking again a moment later.
"Octavian has a point. In truth, I could grasp how the people live without coming to see it in person. If I wanted to know the detailed situation in Campania, I could have just listened to the local accounts in Pompeii."
"Then why did you insist on coming all the way out here?"
"Because knowing and seeing are similar, yet distinct. There are some things you simply cannot feel unless you witness them yourself."
Marcus pulled a map of Campania's villages from his robes and pointed to a corner.
"Look. The village marked here was built about twenty years ago. You could say it sprang up when we started leasing state-owned land to the farmers. The soil was so fertile that people kept migrating there. I am told the population has easily surpassed several hundred now. And this is the detailed data regarding that village."
Sophia and Octavian carefully examined the paper Marcus handed them.
It was a detailed report listing not only the gender ratio of the residents but also their approximate age distribution.
"They even recorded the village's agricultural output in four-year intervals? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this document contains everything about this place."
"Indeed. But even so, a map can never show you the faces of the people."
"...?"
Sophia tilted her head slightly.
Marcus continued with an affectionate smile.
"It will be far in the future, but the two of you will govern this empire after me. Don't you think it's important to maintain a balanced perspective?"
The two bright youths immediately understood what he was trying to say.
"You mean we shouldn't get overly buried in data and figures."
"Exactly. Of course, a leader who leans too heavily into emotion easily becomes a foolish king. But a complete lack of humanity is just as dangerous. Finding the balance between the two is crucial."
"I will keep that in mind. Witnessing the lives of the citizens rooted in this land firsthand will surely help us draft more realistic policies."
"Yes. And though I sounded a bit preachy, this is a reminder for myself as well. Burying oneself under mountains of paperwork tends to blur one's original intentions. I have long thought it would be good to have a chance to reflect on myself like this."
The longer politicians remained in power, the more they tended to view things solely from a grand, sweeping perspective.
Over time, they began to look only at maps and metrics, sometimes overlooking the obvious truth that real, living people existed behind those numbers.
And when that happened, they could make terrifyingly cruel decisions with chilling composure.
If a ruler could at least realize that their choices affected the actual lives of the people on the ground rather than just shifting national statistics, they could handle state affairs with a greater sense of responsibility.
As Marcus arrived at the village entrance, a modestly sized pasture came into view.
The locals tending to the livestock widened their eyes upon seeing his face.
Most simply assumed a high-ranking noble had come to visit, but a few seemed to actually recognize Marcus.
A burly middle-aged man rushed over and pressed his forehead to the dirt.
"A-are you, by any chance, Lord Marcus Mesopotamicus?"
"I go by Marcus Augustus now. But you have a good eye to recognize my face."
"How could I not? I was able to settle here thanks to the Agrarian Law that you and Lord Caesar enacted. Before that, I was a pauper wandering the slums of Rome, relying on free grain doles just to survive day by day."
"Ah, is that so?"
Watching the man bow repeatedly, Marcus felt a strange surge of emotion.
It had been nearly twenty years since he passed the Agrarian Law.
The seeds he had sown in the past had grown magnificently and borne abundant fruit.
The middle-aged man was not the only one expressing his gratitude.
He brought over a woman of similar age and several young children, introducing them as his family.
His wife lowered her head as if to kiss Marcus's feet, pouring out endless words of thanks.
"We always wanted to go to Rome one day just to tell you how deeply grateful we are for this life."
"There is no need for all this. I merely did what someone had to do."
"Yet it was something no one else had accomplished until then. If it weren't for you, Lord Marcus, I would still be living a hopeless existence in the slums of Rome. My wife wouldn't be in this world, and my children would never have been born."
"I only provided the opportunity. Building a family like this is entirely the result of your own hard work."
As they spoke, it became clear that the middle-aged man was a representative of the village, having been there since its founding.
His attitude carried a deeper, more genuine respect for Marcus than anyone he had met in Rome or the East.
He eventually insisted on giving them a personal tour of the village, eagerly explaining every little detail even without being asked.
"Most of the people here used to be part of Rome's urban poor. They were just like me—barely scraping by day to day with no dreams or hope. Decimus over there was one, and so was Numerius's family living across the way."
"The law was passed to save people like you in the first place. None of you started out destitute, did you?"
"Yes. Up until my grandfather's generation, we were farmers with our own land. But as life grew harder, we started selling off anything of value, and eventually, we lost our land entirely. Now, though, we live happily without those worries. It is no exaggeration to say that you gave us our lives, Lord Marcus."
Marcus listened to the man's story with a gratified smile as he surveyed the village.
The expressions of Sophia and Octavian, who trailed behind, visibly brightened as well.
After leaving the village behind amidst a massive farewell from the locals, Marcus looked back at the two youths.
"What did you see and feel back there?"
"It was amazing! I realized that witnessing the people's raw, heartfelt gratitude is a precious experience you can never get just sitting in a mansion in Rome. I felt so proud of you for giving them a chance at a new life, and it naturally made me think that I should work with that same sense of duty and responsibility."
"If that's all, I'd give you fifty points..."
"Pardon?"
Slowly mounting his horse, Marcus shared his honest feelings with Sophia as she followed him.
"Of course, receiving their thanks made me happy. It was fulfilling, and it reinforced my sense of responsibility to keep improving the lives of the people. But at the same time, I felt a deep thrill knowing that my choices were correct."
"A thrill?"
"A law passed after endless agonizing and countless calculations actually produced these results. On top of that, I verified it with my own eyes. Just imagine how entertaining it will be to keep seeing things like this unfold in the future."
"Um... didn't you just say a moment ago that we should look at the faces of living people to foster a stronger sense of responsibility?"
Sophia did not seem entirely thrilled with his use of the word 'entertaining.'
Octavian, on the other hand, nodded as if in full agreement with Marcus.
"Those two things are not contradictory in the slightest. Strictly speaking, it is my personal belief that a truly great ruler must possess both. You must work with a sense of duty to improve the lives of the people on this land, but finding irresistible amusement in that process is also the fate of a sovereign."
"Hmm... I think I understand what you mean..."
"Indeed. If one could succeed solely on the desire to help the people, who in this world wouldn't become a sage king? But such idealists are bound to hit a wall eventually. Human patience is not infinite, and our abilities are limited. You need to possess the right values, the competence to back them up, and the audacity to enjoy bending the nation to your will. The two of you have more than enough potential for that."
Sophia and Octavian mulled over Marcus's advice and nodded earnestly.
It was the mindset of an emperor, something they needed to engrave in their hearts for the distant future, even if that day never came.
Marcus smiled at the two dependable youths and picked up his pace slightly.
"We have many more regions to inspect, so keep up and don't fall behind."
Sophia and Octavian's eyes gleamed as they answered in unison.
"Yes! We will follow you anywhere."