BGFV 128

Chapter 128

“Lady Frost, what do you mean by that? At first, we restricted going outside for safety reasons because public opinion wasn’t good. But now, isn’t it time to lift those restrictions?”

Until now, Kenneth and Hestia always agreed on the refugee issue.
But today was the first time their opinions clashed.
And since Hestia was being so firm, Kenneth looked a little flustered.

“It’s too early. I think we should wait at least until next spring to allow them outside. Besides, isn’t the civil war likely to end within a year?”

“Wouldn’t it be frustrating for them to stay in the camp that whole time?”

“That’s why we made sure the camp wouldn’t feel like a prison—we built it on a large piece of land. We even let them borrow land to farm.”

“That’s true, but still…”

“If they can go back to Noveli next year, then there’s no need to let them go out now. If something were to happen while the refugees are roaming freely, it could become a huge problem.”

The expressions of Sophia and the other refugees hardened.

“Are you saying… we might cause trouble?”

“We’re not foolish enough to cause problems in the Empire.”

“We haven’t said much before, but some of our people are upset that we can’t go outside freely.”

“If you’re that worried, then at least make the process to get an exit permit easier. Right now, it takes half a day just to get permission to leave once.”

“No.”

When Hestia firmly refused again, the refugees’ faces grew even darker.
No one else could understand why she was being so stubborn.

“Tia, don’t just say no. Why don’t you try to negotiate a compromise?”

“Yeah, they’ve already spent two years here. Wouldn’t it be nice to let them explore nearby a little?”

“Even the people who were against the refugees at first are starting to change their minds.”

Kenneth, Derrick, and others tried to persuade her, but Hestia stood silent, her face stiff with thought.

Luciard, noticing something strange, gently placed a hand on her shoulder and asked,
“Is something wrong?”

Unlike the others, Luciard looked genuinely worried about her. Hestia felt her heart stir a little.

The truth was, she didn’t want to restrict them.
She was doing it to prevent bad things from happening in the future.
But if she explained that honestly, no one would believe her.

She closed her eyes tightly and spoke.

“First, let me clear up a misunderstanding. I don’t see you all as dangerous people.”

What she said earlier could’ve been taken in many ways.

“In fact, I might be the person in the Empire who’s spent the most time with you. I know better than anyone how kind and hardworking you all are.”

The refugees, who had been upset with her, looked a little relieved.

“It’s not you I’m worried about. I’m worried about how other citizens will treat you. Have you heard about the recent attack on refugees in the east?”

Not long ago, refugees were attacked in the east by Empire citizens—
not for any real reason, just because they were refugees.
They were told to stop leeching off another country and go back home.

“Only two places in the Empire are currently accepting Noveli refugees: the south and the north.”

Large camps were built in those two places, and all incoming refugees were guided there.
The attacked refugees probably wandered into the east by mistake.

“Even though people’s opinions on refugees have gotten better, there are still places with deep prejudice, like the east. Also, the citizens you’ve met so far are all people who were friendly to refugees from the start.”

People who visit this area and interact with refugees wouldn’t be here if they disliked them.

“It’s the end of October now. Spring isn’t that far away. Can you wait just a bit longer?”

Only then did Sophia notice the concern and care in Hestia’s eyes.

Earlier, Hestia had looked cold and stern—but that was because of her worries.
Sophia remembered all the times Hestia had helped and cared for them.

“You’ve only ever treated us kindly. It seems something’s worrying you.”

“…Yes.”

Sophia smiled gently.

“Then we’ll trust you again this time. I’ll explain it well to our people.”

“Thank you, Sophia.”

“No, thank you for always looking out for us.”

With the matter mostly settled, Hestia and her group stood up to tour Noveli Town.
The children were thrilled at the idea of exploring and started getting excited.

“Wait a second! Everyone focus for a moment.”

The kids stopped before running off.

“Do you all remember what I told you when we left Byron?”

“Yes!”

“Even though we’re from different countries, we’re all people.”

“So don’t be rude, don’t bother people who are working, and don’t wander away from the adults.”

“Okay! We’ll remember!”

Two kids nodded eagerly at Leonhard’s reminder, their eyes sparkling.
Hestia felt a bit uneasy watching them.

“…I’m still a little nervous.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be with them.”

At that moment, Elvin stepped forward to join the kids.

“Huh? You said you were tired of babysitting them.”

During the Milky Way Festival, he had even gone on strike, saying he was done looking after kids.

So Hestia was surprised when he volunteered.

“I-I can change my mind! Should I not watch them?”

“No, no, thank you. If you watch them, I’m grateful. I’ll give you an allowance.”

“It’s fine! I have money. Just get them some snacks later.”

Seeing Elvin turn his head with a pout, Hestia felt oddly touched—he had grown up.

“We’ll be back soon. We have something to take care of.”

“Tia, we’re going our own way for a bit. There’s somewhere we want to visit.”

“We’re going to talk a bit more with Sophia’s group. We’ll stay here, so go explore.”

Everyone started to split into smaller groups.

The kids had already disappeared with a few knights watching over them.
Now, only Hestia, Luciard, and their two guards—Morgan and Cobill—were left.

“You two should look around and enjoy yourselves too.”

Hestia turned to the knights.

“No, our job is to protect the two of you.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Morgan and Cobill had very different reactions. Cobill smiled, while Morgan looked shocked.

“What are you saying, Deputy Captain! What if something happens while we’re gone?”

“No one would dare touch Lady Hestia with the young master around. By the way, didn’t you say your sister wanted a Noveli blanket? Let’s go check it out.”

“W-When did I say I’d go!”

Cobill casually put his arm around Morgan and dragged him away.

As he left, he winked at Hestia, leaving her confused.

“Why is he like that? Is he just happy to have free time… Huh? Why is your fist clenched?”

Hestia noticed Luciard beside her, clenching his fist tightly.

“Ahem, it’s nothing. Morgan is hardworking, which is good… but sometimes, it’s a bit much.”

“But I like how he always listens to what I say.”

Hestia giggled, and Luciard’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

“You know Morgan is getting married soon, right?”

“Of course I do. I met his fiancée last time—she’s pretty and polite. Morgan looked totally smitten.”

Hestia mentioned that she was going to help Morgan get his wedding suit made.

Watching her chat so casually, Luciard felt a bit embarrassed, thinking maybe he misunderstood something earlier.

Then suddenly, he remembered something.

“Just now…”

“Yeah?”

“You said that you’re limiting the refugees’ movements to protect them from people who discriminate against them.”

Hestia’s face darkened slightly.

“But to me… it looked like there might be another reason. Is something else going on?”

“Sigh… I can’t hide anything from you anymore. Even my parents didn’t notice, so how did you?”

“How? It was written all over your face.”

“Well, we’ve been stuck together for two and a half years. We’ve seen every side of each other.”

Hestia joked and smiled as she sat down on a bench nearby.

Luciard sat beside her and looked out at the peaceful Noveli Town with her.

“You know how hard we worked to change how people think about the refugees, right?”

“Yeah.”

“And people really have changed compared to when we first accepted refugees. Now they even come here to visit and buy things the refugees make.”

“But… in other areas, bad rumors about refugees are starting to spread again.”

“I’ve heard them too. But those are just baseless gossip.”

“Exactly. There’s no proof, no real evidence. But the problem is… every big issue starts from a small rumor like that.”

There’s a reason why there are only two refugee camps and why all refugees are required to live in them.

If they were spread out all over the empire, it would be harder to control them—and even harder to disprove rumors.

“For example, let’s say a rumor spreads that refugees brought a plague into the empire. How could we respond?”

“We’d say it’s not true. Refugees are always sent to the camps, and before they enter, they’re kept in quarantine for one or two weeks to check their health.”

“Right. But if they were free to go anywhere and if the camps weren’t managed well, we couldn’t prove anything. We wouldn’t even know if they were actually sick.”

“But that’s not the case now. This is all just a ‘what if’.”

“What I’m saying is—if the refugees go beyond our control, we don’t know what might happen. That’s why we can’t allow them to leave freely.”

Even if the refugees mean no harm to the empire, as long as there are people who hate them, Hestia can’t risk letting them go freely.

“Before I came back in time, the empire once shook because of a refugee crisis…”

The example Luciard mentioned earlier—Hestia remembered that it actually happened in the past.

In the coming winter, a sudden plague had spread across the empire.

It was a new kind of illness, and many people died before anyone could figure out a treatment.

Then one day, a rumor began saying the refugees from Noveli were the ones who brought the disease.

The whole empire erupted in hatred against the refugees.

“There were even places where refugees were rounded up and killed…”

Tens of thousands of people died back then—

Half from the plague, the other half were refugees killed by angry citizens.

After that, there were even more tragic events—like the murder of Noveli’s second prince and a rebellion from the Duke of Florence.

“And Countess Oklin died from the illness too.”

Maybe the refugees really did bring the disease…

But Hestia kept feeling that the problem back then wasn’t so simple.

Maybe the politicians had used the refugees as scapegoats to redirect people’s anger—because they couldn’t stop the plague.

“Either way, it’s clear the refugees became the spark that lit that fire.”

That’s exactly why Hestia was the first to step up and accept refugees this time.

In the past, the empire didn’t accept them, so they snuck in secretly.

Because of that, no one knew how many refugees were in the empire, or whether they were sick or not.