How to Use the Lord's Future Diary

Chapter 169

About two weeks after the Rabbit Tribe completely fell in love with the Fire Bomb...The Northern Fortress had already repelled two major monster invasions.

Though calling them "major" was a bit of an exaggeration.

There had never actually been any real danger.

The territory's forces stationed at the fortress were incredibly dependable.

On top of that, the Cow Tribe, who happened to be nearby, rushed over as reinforcements, leaving us with more military strength than we actually needed.

Honestly...

Stopping the Rabbit Tribe from using Fire Bombs in actual combat was far harder than defeating the monsters themselves.

Those lunatics packed every single Fire Bomb they could carry.

It looked like they intended to turn the entire Monster Mountain Range into a sea of flames.

Only after gathering every Rabbit Tribe member together—and even bringing out Black Earth to persuade them—did we barely manage to suppress their ambitions.

‘Hey... Rabbit Tribe. Is this really okay? Seriously, how did things end up like this...?’

-The Rabbit Tribe merely "adapted" to this region. Is there a problem with that?

‘Come on...’

Johnson Territory.

A place where people were more accustomed to smashing monsters with flails than plowing fields.

A territory where practically every resident belonged to the reserve militia.

Then there was the Black Lion.

Not merely fiercer than the Lion Tribe...

But an actual wild beast.

At least the Squirrel Tribe was still relatively normal.

But they'd only joined the territory recently, and most of them lived outside the castle anyway.

Besides...

Whenever an important battle broke out, we'd always relied on the Rabbit Tribe to wage guerrilla warfare.

‘...Could it actually be true?’

“We're ready to deploy at any time, Guide!”

“Bomb loaded!”

“A sea of fire! Let the whole world burn!”

No.

That couldn't possibly be it.

The Rabbit Tribe was simply violent by nature.

-The Rabbit Tribe is your creation. Endure it with grit.

The only thing I could do...

Was avert my eyes from this tragic reality.

It was deeply regrettable.

“My Lord, it's time to resume your official duties.”

I spent only a brief moment being dumbfounded by the Rabbit Tribe's ever-growing aggression.

Regardless...

We had easily repelled the monster attacks, and I returned to the territory.

Honestly...

I wanted to remain at the Northern Fortress for a few more days.

But Herald the Butler actually sent people to drag me back.

Along with a message.

There was apparently a problem within the Beastman Alliance that required my immediate attention.

“A problem with the Beastman Alliance? What happened?”

“You remember the marketplace outside Rotsi? Apparently fights are breaking out there quite frequently.”

“Outside Rotsi... Ah, right. But fights? Why are they fighting?”

The Horn Rabbit Ranch we had practically donated to Rotsi.

And west of that ranch...

We had deliberately cleared out a massive open space.

Unlike the Horn Rabbit Ranch in Johnson Territory, which sat inside a basin...

The ranch at Rotsi had open terrain on three sides.

The northern side, where Rotsi stood, and the southern side, where the tunnel connected, were relatively manageable.

But the completely open western side...

Was extremely difficult to defend.

So our plan had been simple.

As exchanges between Beastman tribes increased, we'd use that open area as a permanent marketplace.

The crowds themselves would naturally discourage enemy invasions.

‘And it actually worked to some extent.’

Recently...

Beastmen had begun gathering there in significant numbers.

The Cow Tribe actively repaired the roads.

With monster attacks temporarily decreasing, every tribe started moving to replenish their dwindling supplies.

No matter how thoroughly they'd prepared...

Winter remained merciless.

Everyone understood that supplies had to be replenished whenever the opportunity arose.

Yet somehow...

Those gathered Beastmen seemed to end up fighting every other day.

I couldn't understand why.

“The reason's obvious.”

“Obvious?”

“If neither side wants what the other is offering, the trade falls through. Then they get angry and start throwing punches.”

“Oh... right. Barter.”

It was Yuria who explained everything.

The problem was simply that trade between Beastmen wasn't proceeding smoothly.

Thinking about it...

It made perfect sense.

Barter had always worked that way.

If neither party wanted the other's goods, nothing happened.

Since it was winter...

Travel was difficult.

Only representatives from each tribe visited the marketplace.

Finding the perfect trading partner wasn't easy.

If we stepped in and coordinated the exchanges...

Trades would probably succeed.

‘But that's only a temporary fix. We can't manage every single trade forever.’

This was a problem created by increased interaction between tribes.

It might seem trivial.

But if we were thinking long-term...

It absolutely had to be addressed.

“If there were a currency, trading would become much easier.”

“And it'd be easier to manage. Efficiency-wise, currency is overwhelmingly better.”

“But Johnson Territory doesn't use money, does it?”

“That's right. Our territory basically operates on a rationing system.”

Each of the Three Great Lords issued their own currency.

Within Haken's domain, for example, people used silver coins minted by Haken.

Inside one's own territory...

Regional currency was used.

When trading abroad...

Mana Crystals served as the universal currency.

You'd enter another territory carrying merchandise.

Sell it in exchange for that territory's local currency.

Then, before leaving...

You'd visit the Lord's Castle and exchange those coins for Mana Crystals.

That was simply how the world worked.

Our territory, however...

Operated entirely on a ration system.

There was no currency at all.

“Maybe it's time we considered introducing one ourselves. The population's growing. We can't depend on rationing forever.”

“Ooh~ You're thinking of issuing currency?”

“Wouldn't that be the better choice?”

If we created a currency...

And every Beastman began using it...

The Beastman Alliance would become even more tightly united.

Johnson Territory's position would become even stronger as well.

With our growing population...

Managing the territory was becoming increasingly difficult.

The timing wasn't bad at all.

After all...

Why did I keep getting trapped inside the Lord's Castle?

Because there was simply too much work.

Even distributing supplies to every resident had become an enormous burden.

-The latter part sounded far more sincere.

‘Not necessarily... though it really is becoming troublesome. The human population alone has more than doubled. It's about time things became overwhelming.’

Everyone knew that currency made commerce easier.

The problem...

Was that "everyone" didn't include Beastmen.

They had almost no experience with trade.

Naturally...

They'd never used money before.

“It won't be easy. Those idiots could never properly understand the value of currency.”

“They've never used money before, have they?”

“They only recently started interacting with one another in the first place. Trade itself was extremely rare.”

“This is troublesome.”

The Beastmen of today were...

Economically speaking...

Practically primitives.

Aside from barter...

They'd never experienced any other form of commerce.

Making people like that understand the meaning and value of money wouldn't be simple.

“The real question is what we use as currency. Unless it's something every Beastman recognizes as valuable, they won't accept it.”

“Probably.”

Humanity's universal currency was Mana Crystals.

Every territory traded using Mana Crystals because their value was unquestionable.

Every single Living Magic spell required Mana Crystals.

Without them...

Normal life simply wasn't possible.

Their value would never disappear.

‘Not to mention they're perfectly standardized. There's no room for counterfeiting.’

Mana Crystals still followed exactly the same standards established before the Great Cataclysm.

Every spell had been designed around those specifications.

There was no reason to create different sizes.

Small was small.

Medium was medium.

Large was large.

No matter which territory produced them...

Their dimensions were identical.

Which was why everyone trusted them.

‘But Beastmen could never understand the value of Mana Crystals.’

To humans...

Mana Crystals were priceless.

To Beastmen...

They were simply slightly prettier stones.

If I suddenly told them to exchange goods for shiny rocks...

The first response would probably be, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

“It'd be different if Beastmen understood the value of Mana Crystals...”

“It wouldn't be impossible if you put enough effort into it. But wouldn't it take far too long?”

“It would.”

When spring arrived...

I planned to introduce Living Magic to the Beastmen.

Just as the Dog Tribe could never return to primitive living after experiencing it...

The other Beastmen would eventually fall in love with the convenience of Living Magic as well.

Once that happened...

They'd naturally understand the value of Mana Crystals.

The problem...

Was time.

It would take quite a while to spread Living Magic throughout every Beastman settlement.

The inconvenience of trade, however...

Was happening right now.

“It really isn't easy. The only thing every Beastman universally values is meat.”

“But you can't exactly tell them to buy things using meat... wait.”

“Hm?”

“No, that was actually a brilliant suggestion. As expected of Lady Irene.”

“Eh? Did I do something, Lord Iron?”

Maybe...

I'd been overthinking the problem.

In the end...

They only had to accept the currency.

And I already possessed the perfect way to make them trust its value.

“Let's stamp a rabbit on Mana Crystals. Then announce that anyone who brings one to us can exchange it for a Horn Rabbit.”

“Ah... I see.”

“If we do that...”

Currency was ultimately built upon trust.

Whatever backed it...

As long as people believed it had value...

It worked.

The gold standard.

The silver standard.

Weren't they fundamentally the same idea?

‘Then this would be... the Meat Standard. Honestly, it's perfectly suited to the Beastmen.’

The method itself was simple.

A Beastman would bring goods to us.

We'd hand them Mana Crystals engraved with a rabbit.

Then they'd use those coins to buy other goods.

Initially...

They'd only trade with us.

After all...

We were the only ones stocking such a wide variety of products.

Honestly...

At first, this wasn't much different from us acting as a middleman in a three-way barter exchange.

‘But once enough Beastmen start gathering here, things will change.’

Eventually...

Some Beastmen would begin selling goods to us...

Receiving Rabbit Coins...

Then using those coins to buy directly from other Beastmen.

It was simply much more convenient than routing every transaction through us.

All we'd have to do...

Was exchange Rabbit Coins for Horn Rabbits whenever someone brought them in.

Repeat that process enough times...

And trust would naturally form.

“Good. Let's implement it immediately.”

And so...

The Beastman Alliance's official currency...

Rabbit Coin...

Made its very first appearance.

Rabbit Coin had been introduced.

But no dramatic changes occurred immediately.

Since we acted as middlemen...

The Beastmen's dissatisfaction decreased considerably.

But that was all.

Trade itself wasn't much different from ordinary barter.

Simply because...

There still weren't that many Beastmen visiting the marketplace.

Still...

It wasn't without results.

Merely spreading the word that Rabbit Coins could always be exchanged for Horn Rabbits was already a tremendous achievement.

Trust wasn't built overnight.

“So... our wages will be paid in these now?”

“Apparently we'll receive coins and buy whatever we want.”

“Honestly, exchanging leftover supplies for other goods was always a hassle.”

Ironically...

The territory's residents were the ones who reacted most enthusiastically.

Our ration system distributed fixed quantities.

Everyone received supplies according to household size.

Different jobs received slightly different amounts...

But the differences weren't especially large.

Still...

People were people.

Depending on personal preferences, personality, and lifestyle...

Some goods were desperately needed.

Others barely mattered.

Until now...

Residents constantly exchanged their rations with one another to obtain what they actually wanted.

Now...

That tedious process could finally be skipped.

And...

Anything residents gathered themselves outside the ration system belonged entirely to them.

Those privately acquired goods were frequently traded among residents as well.

With currency...

That entire process became vastly simpler.

Many of our newer residents had already used money before joining the territory.

So currency spread remarkably quickly.

Of course...

That was only possible because the residents' trust in Rabbit Coin—

Or more accurately...

Their trust in their Lord—

Was already exceptionally strong.