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1031: Growing Population

Trismegistus claimed that slaughtering so many people was a goal in itself.

『You bastard……!』

Even if I understood the futility, I couldn’t hold back my rage. However, someone else responded in his place.

『Your misplaced anger is all the fault of your own ignorance! I suppose I shall have to explain who is really in the wrong!』

Fannabelta shouted back at us in a shrill voice.

『Back when Trismegistus-sama was first imprisoned in the castle, my liege and the dragonkin were the only ones left in Gordicia. There was very little change in population for ages, since few willingly visited the continent punished by the gods. In the first place, the gods themselves stated that only those capable of fighting should enter.』

『Only those capable of fighting? But that’s……』

Nocta’s population seemingly included many ordinary citizens. What’s up with this inconsistency?

『Indeed! You can see it now! The current Gordicia is infested with useless, feeble maggots who only serve as food for the antidemons! Can you even imagine how great of a burden this is to Trismegistus-sama?』

More people falling prey to the antidemons only fuels the Abyss Eater’s power. I don’t know how much damage Trismegistus can deal to the Abyss Eater each day, but this would clearly reduce the efficiency of his efforts.

Back when the continent only had Trismegistus, the dragonkin, and a handful of adventurers, things still went smoothly. However, the current situation was completely different.

Apparently, Trismegistus even ordered them to leave the continent several times, on the basis that they were interfering with his mission.

That said, many of those living on the continent no longer have a place in the outside world.

The inhabitants of Gordicia consist mainly of those who fled from other continents, or their descendants. Dealing with the circumstances that caused them to flee in the first place is no simple matter.

Criminals are one example. They are often reduced to slaves when caught, since keeping them in jail is just a waste of money and space.

Therefore, it’s obviously more productive to put them to work as misdemeanor slaves. Besides, there are advantages to the criminal side too.

Misdemeanor slaves have legally defined rights. Their treatment is completely different from the slaves in Earth’s history.

In Earth terms, I would call it more like penal labor. The chance of abusive or excessively cruel work conditions is pretty low. The conditions for debt slaves are better, like getting put into a slightly harsher than average job.

I’ve been Fran’s partner the whole time, so of course I’m no fan of slavery. However, I can understand the necessity of a rehabilitation system for effective utilization of misdemeanor offenders.

On the flip side, felony slaves are treated extremely poorly. They might be sacrificed as meatwalls on the battlefield, or as guinea pigs for dangerous new drugs. Sometimes even forced to battle each other to the death and entertain spectators. They pretty much have no human rights.

I guess the reasoning is that executing them would be a waste, so might as well use them for something.

And one of the punishments on the same level as felony slavery was “Gordician Exile”. As the name suggests, the criminal gets exiled to Gordicia, where they get to join the war against antidemons.

In other words, the ordinary person viewed getting shipped to this continent as a hardship equivalent to the death penalty.

So what kind of people would actually come to this continent of their own volition? One group is the felons who’d rather flee to Gordicia than get caught and shipped in as slaves. Naturally, they were designated as wanted criminals on the other continents, so they couldn’t leave anymore.

Another major group is the political criminals, such as the royalty and nobles of defeated countries. Whoever took over their country would never allow them to go free. Once captured, it’s either life in prison or execution.

If those are your only options, fleeing to Gordicia sounds much better. I’ve also heard of some nations who ship foreign enemies to Gordicia rather than executing them. Because it’s cleaner than the death penalty, or something like that. Of course, these guys can’t leave either.

Moreover, all of their descendants have been building towns and multiplying. Nowadays, there were many who couldn’t fight in the slightest. In addition, no one born in Gordicia has any foreign citizenship or currency.

There’s not much they can do if suddenly ordered to leave. The various nations also showed little interest in accepting masses of refugees, so very few actually supported the cause.

Meanwhile, Trismegistus also refused to back down. The only thing on his mind was the completion of the mission placed on him by the gods.

Thus the current massacre as a result. It was two birds with one stone. Trismegistus’ plan to create the giant antidemon also weeded out the crowds of people getting in his way.

『Ahahahaha! Everything went just as Trismegistus-sama and I had planned! Those filthy maggots ended up serving my liege a tiny bit in a end!』

「By my calculations, your existing forces would be able to defeat the enhanced antidemon with my cooperation. However, I did not expect you to eliminate it before I could participate.」

After hearing those words, I suddenly remembered my earlier doubt.

『……Why are you outside the castle?』

「If an antidemon born under the castle manages to escape the barrier, my shackles are temporarily released to allow pursuit. Though only until reaching the secondary barrier.」

『The secondary barrier? You mean that purple dome?』

「Indeed. It is a system implemented by the gods to ensure no antidemon may go free.」

So that’s an existing system rather than something that Meltritte prepared. By abusing it, she intended to trap all the dragonkin inside.

「Fran and Master. You must be given a reward.」

「Reward?」

Was he waiting for Fran to reach us? Trismegistus spoke the words as soon as Fran put her hand on my hilt.

But why only us?

『My liege, these two deserve no reward!』

「The divine sword wielders are obligated to combat fragments of the Evil God, so they have performed no feat worthy of praise. Yet among the non-wielders, Fran and Master’s achievements are outstanding. They have done plenty to warrant a reward.」

I still hate the guy, but I also know that he’s not the type to lie. What he said must be the objective truth.

Sure, we managed to contribute as much as the divine sword wielders…… But there’s no way his so-called reward is gonna be anything decent.

『Okay, so what do we get?』

「I shall grant you power.」

With these words, Trismegistus drew Fannabelta for some reason.