Reich Marshal of the Belkan Reich

RM Vol 3: For a World without Boundary – Chapter 56-1: Eastern Developments (Part 1)

This is the life. The salty breezes that come from the sea. A chair on a nice vantage point. A plate of croissants and a pot of coffee by the side. Yeah, this is the life... Or is it?

The wind carries with it the scent of smoky plumes of the Saigon harbor and freshly minted construction materials. The chair is nothing more than a set of white plastic chairs alongside a wooden table. The croissants are dried and the coffee is bland, both lacking the exquisiteness that is trademarked to their names. Yeah, such things are now the day-to-day company of a certain Duke. Even though Joseph has expected the cons of his decision to move half of his family to Cochinchina, he still finds it bothersome to endure. Yet, the man finds it fortunate that at the very least, he can still enjoy such frivolity, bad as they might be.

Other common families in Indochina can't even get proper roofing over their heads, despite the Feschs' best efforts. There's only so much they can do when half of the industries are paralyzed still. Most troubling would not be the material lost, but the lack of qualified workers in the manpower pool. Getting everything back up and running has been an effort and a half when there are not enough workers going around rebuilding. It's ironic to the extreme when official newsletters have it that other areas in the world are lacking in food, Indochina is sitting on an abundance of it when Joseph did an inventory check. While other regions now have a lot of unemployed workers, Indochina is facing immense shortages in manpower due to the nature of it being a resource and farming colony. It's a lucky break for them to see that the emergency storage has been untampered by nature or otherwise. Still, the stored resources will run out sooner or later. They must get the industries back to operational capacity to keep up with the consumption rate, lest they will truly be thrown into the deep end.

Joseph has plans to get around such matters... Well, more like he has earned himself a helping hand. It appears that his standing in the eyes of Princess Rosa Bonaparte, and by extension the Belkan Reich that is backing her, has paid off. It won't be long until aid will come in the form of experienced manpower of three nationalities, Belkan, Ustian, and surprisingly, Chinese. From his transcript with the Princess, the Belkans will be in the minority, yet they're experts in their fields of work. They will be best put in charge of groups of workers to expedite progress of any kind. The bulk of the manpower will come from experienced Ustians and Chinese who remain unemployed or are seeking newer pastures for many reasons. Most notably, many of these Ustians are former POWs that are released by Belka on good behavior. Other than that, the Chinese are being leased to Joseph since they're contracted workers under the Reich. Since they're being leased, Joseph has the responsibility to take care of them, lest they can complain to the Belkan embassy that is recently set up in Saigon. Regardless, things will be looking up for Southern Indochina in the future. The Duke need only hold on until the new workers arrive.

At the very least, Joseph won't need to fear a citizen revolt any time soon. The first thing he committed to when they first landed in Saigon was to get on the citizens' good grace. It was a risk, getting his wife and daughter involved in operating soup kitchens and food distribution centers, but it was a calculated one. Now, even when the people here have been a shadow of their former selves, they still look up to the females of the Ducal house very favorably. Other than that, Joseph has been a highly respected figure in the eyes of the populace. Apparently, the tale of a benevolent yet sickly Duke is a tearjerker for them, whether Joseph likes it or not. That said, he has cut back on his acting a lot when in a public setting. The man knows to utilize every advantage he can get, yet is careful about it blowing up in his face when they figure out that it's really just acting in the end.

So deep in thought like that, Joseph misses his daughter calling out his name for the first couple of times. It's only when Angela starts pulling on the cuff of his shirt that Joseph comes back to reality. Smiling apologetically at his good daughter, Joseph is soon asked a question by Angela.

"Papa, what are the ships doing over there?" Joseph darts his eyes over the yonder.

It turns out that little Angela has been eyeing the naval destroyers a fair distance away from the harbor. Even if they're sitting on the walls of Saigon, it takes a keen eye to spot the destroyers doing their work at such a distance. Turning to pat his daughter's head, Joseph explains.

"That, my daughter, is our sailors doing their anti-Demon patrol. Demons do not just roam the land, they also plague the ocean too, albeit to a lesser extent." His words are punctuated by the explosions of depth charges dropped behind one of the destroyers in the distance. "While not a common occurrence, Demons have attacked shipping convoys before. Now with us expecting to acquire aid from our friends in Europe, we must pave a safe passage for them to dock in Saigon."

Angela is a bright child, hence she immediately nods. "I see, Papa! We must ensure that the aid that is given to us is unharmed. Otherwise, we will be facing serious trouble in acquiring the things we need the most right now. Still, I don't think that is all, right Papa?"

"That's right, my dear." Joseph smiled proudly when he heard the question. "While we must safeguard the incoming supply convoy for the crucial lives aboard, there's also the factor of reputation and political standing we must pay attention to. There must be a diplomatic envoy aboard the incoming convoy, no doubt. As such it will show us in a good light if we take the security of the convoy seriously. Remember, while the aid they're giving us is free, it doesn't mean that we can take it for granted. Otherwise, we will come to turn our friends into strangers, or even worse."

"I understand, Papa! You always say that it's better to make friends and allies whenever possible. As friends and allies, we must treat them well!" Angela said while nodding rapidly.

"Good girl." Joseph complimented her. Is it weird that he's teaching her about such adult stuff already when she's barely a teenager? Well, she's soaking up the lessons and even knows how to cower an adult so it should be fine, right? Right?

Right, there had been a sleazy bastard that tried to cut the line in the soup kitchen, once. Somehow, Angela here managed to subdue the man with words and expression alone, turning the Vietnamese into a soup kitchen bodyguard nowadays. Joseph was there when Angela gave Audrey a high-five later, the two females sharing a knowing grin. Audrey has been tutoring Angela on academic and human relations things while Joseph passes on his experience as a Duke to the little girl. To be honest, he doesn't want to figure out what the lessons Audrey has been giving to Angela contain. Quoting Audrey:

"I am raising Angela to be a fine Duchess that people either respectfully step aside or fearfully fall in line."

Here's hoping the best will come out of their collective teaching program for Angela. Their daughter needs all the help she can get to gain a foothold in this dog-eats-dogs world. Right now, her brothers are already making their moves on the greater whole of Indochina. When the moment arises, Joseph doesn't think that they can see past their ambition to spare Angela.

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