Honestly those numbers would be quite high in the pre System world Tatiana pointed out
The almost trademark frown of the Commissioner creased his face with lines making him seem decades older than his actual middle age Perhaps But did everyone in the pre System world have the ability to shoot flames from their hands Plus Skills are only limited by the imagination of the user The types of crimes that are now being committed
Perhaps thatÆs where we should focus our attention Naffur cut in As he began to speak more patiently a silently moving server came through and deposited their previously ordered drinks in front of them Setting aside the natural tensions between the various groups in Kharon the bigger problem is the scope of law enforcement hasnÆt been well defined Most other governmental bodies simply added a few addendums to their penal code and applied it to the System world We donÆt have that luxury If we can clarify what constitutes a crime a large amount of the police forces work would disappear
Wolfram has been working on such a prospect but some of the facets of ogre culture have made the initial result less than ideal Tatiana sighed HeÆs currently adjusting per my instructions but more and more questions crop up as we continue refining the definitions Honestly the ogre methods of challenging each other and having the loser obey the winner are at least simple
ThatÆs a horrible way of running things Commissioner Arrietti fluffed up like a disgruntled hen Simply fighting to determine the righteous party What of justice and fairness Is strength really what we want to use to arbitrate these matters
Finally the fourth person at the table set down his martini and spoke in a quiet voice Then Kharon would rely on who has the biggest stick to maintain order For now thatÆs the Order Ducis but how long will that last
Tatiana smiled sweetly at Austin Dvelta the most influential businessman in Kharon A good point Austin The structure that we create right now is the most important thing Keeping it just is paramount Beyond that we will rely on the image that Kharon has cultivated to avoid others abusing the arrangements that we have made But weÆve already dominated the conversation with talk of criminal justice please tell us how business has been
Austin Dvelta pushed some of his short blonde curls out of his eyes and sighed theatrically Honestly it has been almost too good I know now is not a good time to raise other complaints but on the other hand what better time than now I think thereÆs an issue even more important than crime immigration I IÆd hoped to get all your opinions on this
Tatiana smiled at Austin while rolling her eyes inwardly YouÆve just recently expanded your scents and soaps business to rival the metalworking sector of Kharon and you expect us to believe you came to this dinner begging for opinions Well at the very least he is relatively straightforward to deal with Tatiana rapped her knuckles on the table Perhaps before jumping to immigration why donÆt you explain to everyone here the content of the report you gave me That will give them some context
Austin smiled shyly and twisted in his seat to look at Naffur and Commissioner Arrietti Due to his slight stature and short height the smile on AustinÆs face was relatively endearing Then Austin began to speak Over the past six months my company has gone from a shack next to a single field to dominating most of the agricultural sector of Kharon From working alone with my aging mother Dvelta Luor has grown to employ just over nine hundred employees Compared to the overall twenty two thousand population of Kharon that may seem small but
No need to dwell on your growth Tatiana remarked dryly Also those population numbers are very dated With the convoy coming down from the ogre nation we expect to be at about forty five thousand before we leave the Orchard And yet you still want to allow more people into Kharon
For a second Austin blinked It was clear that he hadnÆt expected that the population of Kharon had grown to that extent Honestly neither had Tatiana If she hadnÆt requested that Randidly use his sharp senses yesterday to do a hard count of the lives in Kharon they still wouldnÆt realize that their population had ballooned upward to this point
Finally Austin spoke quietly That impossible If there are so many people
Unfortunately it appears to be true Naffur sighed Then he gestured helplessly The problem is the children We made the decision to allow guardians into the city along with their children and as far as we can tell every individual from bubble cities who had children has taken us up on that offer And these arenÆt generally even their kids those guardians were just the ones with enough decency to try and protect the children after the original parents died Because of that kindness the Order Ducis generally turns a blind eye to it
But that leaves us with almost ten thousand children below the ages of sixteen Tatiana grinned at Austin Relax wait a few years and a whole slew of new employees will be available to you Problem solved yes
Ah well itÆs not just employees that we need Austin continued Since arriving in the Orchard through various channels Dvelta Luor has sold nearly 120 tons of soap The Ghosthound scent in particular has been very popular ThatÆs more than half of our total stock and our depleted warehouses now require that we operate our factories constantly in order to keep up with demand Without additional space we will quickly reach the limits of our capacity And considering Dvelta LuorÆs effect on KharonÆs economy
Commissioner Arrietti harrumphed And where will this space come from Did you know we are basically at our wit’s end when it comes to housing We are expanding many of our apartment complexes upward but even with the benefits of the System it cannot be done overnight
Considering the economic impact of Dvelta Luor Austin insisted
But Commissioner ArriettiÆs expression brightened Oh actually I know what you need to do Stop growing so many flowers plant tobacco Ah what I would do for a good cigarette the Donnyton brand cigars are simply too expensive
Smoking is bad for you Commissioner Tatiana said lightly
Commissioner Arrietti shrugged Heh wonÆt the System take care of it
Chuckling Tatiana pointed out the flaw in his thinking WonÆt the System also take care of the nicotine high YouÆd just be inhaling smoke
Er well the familiar sensation The Commissioner mumbled but Tatiana could tell that he hadnÆt thought about this issue before
Naffur shook his head and looked at Austin to get the conversation back on track We arenÆt idiots Yes your company was a significant driver of growth for the past six months But those initial expansions are the easiest sort of growth to achieve Besides donÆt act like you are unilaterally improving KharonÆs situation We are aware that you attempted to develop fields outside of Kharon and found the result less than satisfactory Do you want to guess as to the reason or should I
Austin sighed although we have no proof we suspect it is due to the moss spirits They provide ambient energy that is very useful to the growth of the plants we use for our scents
Exactly Tatiana steepled her fingers YouÆve grown so quickly because of Kharon You want more space because KharonÆs space is valuable Not just to you but to the entire city ThatÆs what it means to be the Wandering City under Randidly Ghosthound every scrap of land carries significant benefits even if they are easy to miss at first Let me say this Austin So far youÆve been enjoying the benefits of the GhosthoundÆs land But those benefits come with responsibility ThatÆs why you are here tonight So you can see the hard work that goes into making this city a reality
Austin was silent for several seconds He took another sip of his martini Then he slowly nodded I understand
Commissioner Arrietti glanced around and frowned down at his empty cup Where the hell is that waiter The beer here is excellent Ah but does that mean we arenÆt going to talk about immigration There is still some room in the cheap housing having youth is all well and good but if we recruit capable individuals now it will benefit us in the long run