"Is there something wrong?" Anna asked, concerned about the serious expression that suggested there was a problem.
"Ah." Noel raised his eyebrows while saying, "There's nothing wrong. In fact, I'm satisfied with the result. You can finish the wall repair soon, so there should be no problem with the defense.
"As for the city reconstruction, I will send more funds, so you can finish it even faster. If you need more workers, you can actually get the people from the migration batch. Since we'll be sending them in batches, you can allow them to contribute so that they will be sent in the next batch.
"I hope that you can finish the city's reconstruction before the marriage ceremony. There will be a lot of people coming, especially nobles. There is a high chance that they will be thinking about investing in this place, so we have to make the city as beautiful as possible."
"Understood." The mayor nodded with a serious expression. "But wouldn't it become a problem if I mess with the order of the migrations? After all, there might be spies that will try to sneak in."
"No. I can catch the spies myself. In fact, some spies will definitely use this opportunity to come directly, so they will be working hard for our sake before dying." Noel just said something dangerous without batting an eye.
Then again, the spies would be eliminated sooner or later, so they didn't think it was too much to make the spies useful for them before disposing of them.
"In that case, I will notify the people about the projects." The mayor agreed with the arrangement. "But we will still give them enough provisions and pay, right?"
"Yes. Nothing should change so that they won't feel suspicious." Noel nodded.
"Understood."
"As for the water storage, you can develop it gradually. It's going to be important for the city. In fact, while we're talking about the water and city reconstruction, I want to tell you that we might have to tear down the wall."
"The wall?" The mayor's expression changed. They had been working on the wall this whole time, so hearing the Lord want to tear it down that easily hurt him a little.
"Yes. If you look at the train, you should realize that it's hard to make a sharp turn with that thing. That's why I'm thinking about creating a building outside the wall to accommodate it. This way, people and items can reach this building called 'Train Station' to enter the city. We basically made a fifth gate for this train."
"Ah!" The mayor felt embarrassed that he was questioning the Lord's decision. He was simply too shortsighted. "I understand. I will arrange it immediately."
"Shouldn't we use it for publicity stunts?" Anna raised her finger.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about our marriage ceremony. There will be a lot of people attending it, so by coming to this town differently, won't it look cool? Besides, a lot of people will realize the use of the train."
"Now that I think about it…" Noel looked down, contemplating. "The train we have right now is still quite majestic, which should be enough to impress the people. And we can store the carriage and other things for the parades inside the cargo type, and the people, including the soldiers, will be in the passenger type. We can actually prepare a huge parade, which will be a fun time for the people as well."
"Something like that." Anna nodded in agreement.
"You gradually become better than me." Noel smiled wryly. Anna recently suggested a lot of things that he didn't think of.
"I've been learning things from you, so of course… you should have heard the saying that the students will surpass the teacher."
"Hoho…" An excited smile appeared on Noel's face as if he were taking on that challenge. Still, the talk shouldn't change. Noel hurriedly turned back to the mayor and said, "I will send you more funds to finish this project within two months. We will use it both for the parade and the opening. Do you think it's possible?"
The mayor thought for a moment. "The time is a bit tight, but I will definitely finish it within two months."
"Since we're planning to extend the highway to other places, you can tell them that by opening this officially, normal people can also use this service to visit other places… Of course, the main city is still off limits. But they can visit other territories for the first time."
"That will definitely motivate the people." The mayor's face brightened.
"Good. And for the marriage ceremony, I'm afraid a new venue has to be built. But just leaving it there will definitely be a waste." Noel scratched the back of his head.
"I don't think so. This venue can become a place where people find hope. Besides, we can rent it if one wants to hold a wedding as well," the mayor explained.
"But that's only for the rich. I want something that all people can enjoy. After all, most of the commoners can't afford to have a marriage ceremony. So, I want to turn this building into something else. Let me see…" Noel paused for a minute before raising a finger. "How about turning it into a museum?"
"A museum?" Both the mayor and Anna were confused. Out of all places, why would Noel want to turn it into a museum? Anna couldn't help but ask, "Are you trying to make people learn history about the Ardagan family?"
"No. I'm talking about the Rune Museum." Noel shook his head with a smile.
"Ah!" Anna suddenly fell silent. "Rune Museum… That might indeed be good. This museum can allow people to understand the runes a bit more. Even common people can actually learn one thing or another from this museum. No! The purpose of this museum is not to teach people, but to let them get familiar with it."
"Exactly." Noel confirmed it with a nod before saying, "If we put some rune technology there, people can study it and understand that they are not dangerous. Of course, we will embed the runes without the special method so that they can't be used since their purpose is just for show."
"That's actually a good idea." The mayor also supported the decision. It would definitely allow not only the people in this city but those from other cities to learn about the rune technology as well.
And with Noel creating more and more new inventions, it wouldn't be hard to fill the venue with all these things.
"Then, what's next? The Moon Temple? I don't really mind them, so they can do whatever they want for now since they can't do much with their saintess in the main city. You can say while they're supportive to us, that's because their saintess is still our 'hostage.' So we'll accept their 'kindness' for now."
"You're a bad guy, you know?" Anna smirked.
"Let's call it an opportunist." Noel chuckled before turning back to the mayor. "Is that all?"
"Do you have any plans for how you wish to lead the people? And is there a potential migration for this city? We have to replenish the people who have lost their lives here after all."
Noel didn't answer it immediately. He considered it carefully before stating his goal for this city. "I wish the people could have a smile on their faces when living in this city. That's our goal. It will portray me as a good lord while becoming publicity for me to sell the rune technology. So, it's like killing two birds with one stone.
"As for the migration, I want to complete the migration to the main city. In the end, it's easier to have people move here because, even if they are spies, we can still work them to the bone. That's why I'm afraid you have to wait for another one or two months. Maybe you can do it after the marriage ceremony is over."
"I'll follow your arrangement." The mayor lowered his head.
"Since we're done here, it's time to take care of other things." Noel stood up while looking out the window. "There are a lot of eager people that want to go to the main city, so I have to pick at least a hundred of them to go with us. After that, I have to inspect the city and the rune technology here to ensure they are not faulty. To think I only have two days to take care of all these."
"Hahaha. I'll be with you." Anna chuckled.
Noel nodded. "In that case, I will leave the rest to you, Mayor."
"Yes, sir."
Noel and Anna left the mansion. To Anna's surprise, Noel didn't even bother to use the automatic carriage or their speed to go to their destination. Instead, he was just walking normally on the street.
It looked like he was using this time to greet the people in the city. However, when they entered a rather more secluded area, Noel halted his steps.
"Noel?" Anna noticed the change in his expression. It was similar to what he had when talking with the mayor.
"I told you it was nothing earlier, but there was something in my mind." Noel suddenly let out a long sigh. "Do you remember what I asked last night?"
"!!!" Anna widened her eyes. She obviously couldn't forget about it since it was unlike Noel to ask that question. When they were lying down on the bed, Noel actually asked her with a rather confused tone. "Anna. In your previous life, you've been dealing with them a lot. So, I want to know the impressions you have about the royal family, the Third Prince, and all the princes and princesses."
