Disaster, in its most literal sense, referred to a crisis brought on by unpredictable events.
It could shatter the ordinary life that had been maintained with moderate ease, plunging countless people into a pit of despair.
And right now, at this very moment, the Sacred Empire—
Or to put it more accurately, the entire central-western continent was beginning to groan under the weight of an unexpected ‘disaster.’
*
In the Palatinate Region lived a farmer named Miller.
His life was so monotonous it could be described as starting with plowing and ending with plowing. He was convinced that this would continue until the day he died.
However, regardless of what others might think, Miller was simply satisfied with this life.
Plowing the fields and feeding himself and his family with the crops—that was the only fulfillment and joy he felt in his utterly dull life, and through this, he was searching for what is commonly known as the meaning of life.
But
Miller’s life, which he believed would continue to be ordinary, faced an unexpected change one day.
That year, the weather was anything but normal.
Rain did not fall when it was supposed to, and conversely, at times when it shouldn’t be raining, an excessive downpour ensued.
For Miller, who had lived his life as a farmer, this was an extreme change in weather he had never experienced.
Seeing this, he could predict that this year’s harvest would not be good, but still, there was nothing he could do about it.
He and the other farmers reported the gravity of the situation to their superiors.
However, the current Lord Maximilian, who ruled after the former lord Friedrich’s departure, took this change lightly.
He merely responded with a nonchalant attitude, questioning what sort of fuss they were making over a little unpredictable weather, telling them not to worry and simply return to their duties.
Unlike the farmers who only looked at the land, he added that his mind was already filled with thoughts of war and politics.
Thus, Miller and the other farmers ultimately could not prepare for the disaster that was right in front of their eyes.
And,
This phenomenon was not limited to the Palatinate Region where Miller lived but was happening throughout the Sacred Empire and its neighboring areas.
Farmers recognized the unusual changes in the climate and requested countermeasures from their superiors, but hardly anyone showed any interest.
On the surface, this could suggest that the lords and nobles were negligent, but delving deeper showed it wasn’t so simple.
Most of the nobles, who naturally lived a life devoid of agricultural concerns, failed to understand the subtle adverse effects of slight climatic changes.
In their view, it was merely a small difference of the rain arriving a month late and sunny days lasting a month longer.
Unless a noticeable storm or flood occurred, recognizing such a subtle yet critical difference was not an easy task.
At the same time, they lacked the capacity to predict what consequences it might bring.
Moreover, even if they somewhat understood the implications, the lords had no leisure to care about such things, as they were preoccupied with the current conflict between the Heretic Alliance and the Emperor.
With both political and religious tensions creating a colossal wave, the lords had no bandwidth to pay attention to reports of odd weather.
And,
This negligence—or perhaps overconfidence—of the lords
Ultimately led exactly to the situation that one man had been anticipating.
*
The moment they realized the anomaly was far too late.
Without any means to prepare a countermeasure, they could only witness the aftermath after everything had unraveled.
And this led to countless unexpected outcomes.
“What do you mean? Famine?”
Emperor Sijip, seated on the throne discussing the imminent war, asked with bewilderment at the sudden report.
“Yes, Your Majesty… Reports indicate that this year’s harvest within the Empire has dropped below half.”
“What nonsense is this… What could possibly be the reason? Are the farmers being negligent in their duty?”
“Ah… No, that’s not it… It’s just that the weather…”
“The weather! What is wrong with the weather? I’ve heard that no storms or floods have occurred this year. In this situation, how can we blame the weather!”
Sijip spoke with anger.
In response, the minister tried to explain the difference in harvest yield due to subtle weather changes, but at that moment, Sijip had no interest in such trivial matters nor could he comprehend them at all.
His mind was filled with thoughts of politics and religion, leaving no room to consider anything supplementary.
“This is undoubtedly a conspiracy by the lords to defy my will. They are deliberately underreporting harvest yields to secure their own interests. They are thrashing about to avoid reaching out for aid during these trying times due to war.”
“Is… Is that so?”
“What kind of attitude is that? Do you wish to suggest that I am wrong?”
“Ah… No, that’s not it… It’s just that I cannot comprehend this with my dull mind, Your Majesty.”
Without being able to refute the Emperor’s words, the minister could only minimize his input.
Seeing this, Emperor Sijip slowly shook his head, beginning to mock the fool in his thoughts.
‘Is that all they’ve got? It’s truly regrettable that there isn’t a more competent person around.’
Sijip interpreted the situation from an entirely political perspective, instead of acknowledging the possibility of a famine due to climate.
However, he had his own grounds for suspicion.
Unlike the large-scale famines in other regions,
The harvest in The Distant Region, which he directly oversaw, remained largely unchanged from previous years.
Being located in the innermost part of the Empire, Vienna was the area least affected.
Moreover, the situation within the Empire left the Emperor with little choice but to suspect that something was amiss.
To him, it resembled a rebellion against him, with rebels extending their influence, and the entire Empire was shrouded in a foreboding atmosphere of uncertainty regarding how things would unfold.
Under such circumstances, the lords of the Empire would have no choice but to tighten their belts due to the ongoing and forthcoming wars.
In this way, there were enough credible reasons to draw suspicion, leading the Emperor naturally to the conclusion he deemed correct.
The decline in harvest yields did not actually exist; this was merely a ruse by the lords to line their own pockets.
‘How dare they mock me with such tricks… Moreover? They want assistance because the situation is dire? These bastards could only be doing this if they do not regard the Emperor as a force to be reckoned with.’
In a tempest of anger regarding the current situation, the Emperor maintained a semblance of calm.
‘If I could, I’d sweep these bastards away immediately, but in such times, such a foolish act cannot be conducted… There are better ways to handle this.’
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