Everyone froze. Ministry like Agriculture and Construction made sense, but "Education" was a term few of them had ever heard.
"The Education Ministry," Aven explained patiently, "will oversee all matters related to education across the territory."
"In the coming months, I intend to promote universal education — especially for apprentice trainers. Every one of them must at least learn basic reading and writing."
His tone was solemn. In every civilization, education had always been the most powerful force driving progress.
Now that the Pokémon Domain's finances were stable, it was the perfect moment to launch this expensive but crucial initiative — one that would shape the future.
A modern industrial society could not thrive without a population possessing basic literacy and knowledge. Likewise, apprentice trainers could never become proper trainers without learning about Pokémon in depth.
Although the Pokémon Domain already had many apprentices, most of them were illiterate peasants — and that was unacceptable for the kind of future Aven envisioned.
This would be the next great step in his plan for the trainer system: to instill in every apprentice the qualities worthy of a true Pokémon Trainer.
"Lord Aven," Phyllis said, blinking in astonishment, "you mean… you want to teach everyone in the territory how to read and write?"
If it were under normal circumstances, she would have immediately voiced an objection. However, after having witnessed it so many times, she had long come to realize that Lord Aven never acted without full confidence. The words that had reached her lips were ultimately swallowed back down.
"Exactly. The first thing we must do," Aven said calmly, "is to begin the first phase of literacy education within our territory."
"In this process, we'll need to establish numerous schools and recruit teachers. This will require financial expenditure—Phyllis, you should start preparing the budget."
Phyllis opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, she simply nodded heavily. "Understood, Lord Aven."
"Thomas," Aven turned his gaze to the Minister of Construction, "have the schools I instructed you to build before my departure been completed?"
Master Thomas quickly stood up and replied respectfully, "Yes, Lord Aven. The schools have been built according to your specifications. You may inspect them anytime."
Hearing this, several people in the hall revealed looks of realization. They had previously assumed those new structures were meant for raising Pokémon—who would have thought they were actually schools?
So, Lord Aven planned to gather everyone into schools and implement unified education?
"Lord Aven," someone asked, "although the buildings are ready, where are we supposed to find teachers? The Pokémon Domain now has nearly ten thousand residents. To popularize education on such a scale will require a huge number of instructors."
Phyllis frowned as she spoke. Even in Aspiration City, private tutors for education received extremely high salaries. Now that Aven's ambitious plan had been announced, she had already begun calculating the financial implications in her mind.
Managing the finances of a single noble household was already difficult enough—let alone managing the budget of an entire domain. She couldn't help but press her fingers against her temples.
If they were to hire teachers from Aspiration City, it would be an enormous expenditure, and the recruitment process would take time. It was likely that half the territory's revenue would be consumed by this single initiative.
The others, hearing Phyllis's concerns, also turned to look at Aven. If the majority of the treasury was funneled into education, it would inevitably mean smaller budgets for their respective departments.
"Don't worry," Aven said with a slight smile. "We already have plenty of teachers available—perhaps enough that we won't even need to spend a single coin."
Everyone froze. Teachers who cost nothing? How could that be? They frowned and began to think it through. Suddenly, Matthew's eyes lit up with realization.
"That's right… the captured knights!"
"Precisely," Aven nodded toward him. "Most of those who have become knights have received at least a basic education."
"Under normal circumstances, as their captor, I have the full authority to determine their fate. Therefore, after the formal trials, I plan to select a number of those knights to serve as instructors in our schools—using their labor to pay off their ransom."
"As long as they dedicate a certain period of time to teaching, I will grant them amnesty and recognize them as free citizens of the Pokémon Domain."
Upon hearing this, Phyllis's expression lit up in delight. This approach would save a huge portion of the budget—it was an elegant solution. She felt a surge of admiration toward Aven's foresight.
"Thank you, Lord Aven, for granting these knights a chance at redemption!" Matthew stood up excitedly and bowed deeply.
The knights he had personally pleaded for from the Ironblood Knights Order were only a small number. As for the others who had raised their blades against them, even he could not find the words to defend them.
Under normal circumstances, these captured knights could be ransomed by their former lords. But since the Ironblood Marquis was dead, no one would pay their ransom. Without it, they would have been reduced to serfs.
But now, Lord Aven had given them another chance—to repay their debt through labor instead of gold!
"In that case," Aven continued, "our preparations for widespread education are complete. The next question is—how do we convince the commoners to willingly participate in learning?"
He rested his chin on his hands and looked down at the officials. Without enforcing mandatory attendance, this would indeed be the greatest challenge.
The younger children were not a concern—they lacked the physical ability to work, so if the schools offered free education, most parents would gladly send them.
After all, everyone understood that literacy would benefit their children's future. There would be little resistance there.
The real issue was the adult laborers—those who spent all day toiling just to survive. How could they find time for lessons?
"Maybe…" Sutter hesitated for a moment, then offered, "we could give the commoners some sort of reward like food for attending classes?"
He recalled his own knightly training—how completing drills earned them a hearty meal.
If they rewarded civilians for completing lessons, surely it would boost their motivation. These people struggled to make ends meet; if the program could help ease their livelihoods, wouldn't that naturally attract them?
However, just as Sutter finished speaking, he felt a sharp, icy gaze fall upon him. When he turned, he saw Phyllis glaring daggers at him—a warning loud and clear: Say one more word, and those extra funds will come straight out of your military budget.
"I—I was just joking," Sutter stammered quickly, waving his hand and forcing an awkward smile.
"Hm. But it's actually a valid idea," Aven said suddenly.
Phyllis's expression changed immediately; she nearly shot up from her seat to object. She could already imagine how much money this "valid idea" would cost.
But Aven went on, "Of course, we can't reward everyone. Instead, we can establish a scholarship system. Only those who study diligently and achieve results will be eligible for rewards."
Hearing this, Phyllis slowly sat back down—though not before shooting Sutter another venomous glare, making his expression darken in frustration.
"Furthermore," Aven continued, "more important than direct monetary rewards are the opportunities that education itself can bring. Those benefits will be what truly motivates the people to learn."
Everyone in the room grew thoughtful. He was right—but what tangible benefits could commoners gain from education?
Most of them earned their keep through manual labor. For such work, literacy hardly seemed necessary.
"If there aren't any existing benefits…" Aven smiled faintly, "then we'll simply create them."
He turned his eyes toward Fessen. "Fessen, does the City Hall have enough staff at the moment?"
Caught off guard, Fessen hurriedly replied, "To be honest, Lord Aven, our current manpower is stretched thin. The population is growing quickly, and we're short on officials. But it's nothing to worry about—I can easily recruit new personnel. Many administrators from other territories have expressed interest in joining us."
Aven shook his head slightly. "No need to recruit from elsewhere. I plan to fill the City Hall positions through open examinations."
Everyone froze for a brief moment—but these were no fools. After a short pause, their minds quickly connected the dots, and realization dawned.
Wait… was Lord Aven planning to let commoners serve as City Hall officials?
A stunned silence fell across the room. Yet when they recalled that Aven himself had once been a commoner, and that the current Minister of Agriculture, Mike, as well as Peter and others, were all of humble birth, the idea suddenly didn't seem so far-fetched.
"That's right," Aven affirmed. "I intend to recruit civilians into City Hall—and not just there. Every department will be open to them."
"In particular, the Ministry of Agriculture. When it comes to farming, most nobles can't possibly match the experience of the farmers and orchard keepers who work the soil themselves."
"As long as they gain basic literacy and numeracy, with their practical agricultural knowledge, they'll be more than qualified for administrative work in that department."
"And City Hall will be the same. As I've said before—here in the Pokémon Domain, we do not judge by birth. If one has ability, why shouldn't a commoner serve in government?"
"Moreover, I plan to restructure City Hall and create more departments, providing additional job opportunities. The examination system will serve as the fairest way to select these new officials."
He laid out his entire plan—a system forged through the test of time, designed to unearth true talent from among the people.
The officials sat in silence, deep in thought about the implications of Aven's words—universal education, and now the recruitment of commoners into government…
Phyllis slowly closed her eyes, instinctively beginning to calculate the gains and losses. Moments later, a chill ran down her spine, and she snapped her eyes open in realization.
When these two policies were combined… the picture became clear.
In the future, whenever a department needed new personnel, it could simply draw from the vast pool of educated citizens. Conversely, only those who passed the examinations would be eligible for government posts.
Thus, to secure a stable, well-paying job in the administration, people would voluntarily pursue education. Even if they themselves couldn't, they would at least send their children to school. In this way, the spread of education across the territory would happen naturally, without resistance.
And the benefits were obvious—an abundance of capable, educated individuals would make the territory flourish. No department would ever fear a shortage of staff again.
Furthermore, such a system would hold immense allure for commoners from other territories. Drawn by the promise of opportunity and a better life, they would surely migrate to the Pokémon Domain in droves.
"But…" Phyllis thought grimly, closing her eyes again, "if this system is truly implemented, it will completely erase the boundary between nobles and commoners."
Traditionally, only nobles could hold administrative office. For a commoner to do so, they first had to become a noble—usually by earning enough military merit to be ennobled.
But Aven's proposed system shattered that foundation entirely. It stripped away the privilege that only nobles could be officials—undermining their collective authority.
Her gaze drifted toward Aven once more. Perhaps only someone like him—a lord who had risen from the common people—could conceive such a system. Yet she couldn't help but wonder how the other nobles would view this change, or him.
Then she recalled the "serf promotion" policy Aven had proposed earlier. At the time, she hadn't fully understood its implications—but now she realized it, too, was a challenge to the existing order.
"Still…" she murmured softly, "Lord Aven is no longer the same man he was half a year ago."
If he were still just an ordinary noble, as he had been back then, she would never have stayed silent. But now, as the ruler of a thriving and rapidly growing territory, Aven truly possessed the authority to reshape the world around him.
(End of Chapter)