Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1245: Preparations for the Games (2)

"Furthermore, we preliminarily estimate that over 100,000 additional visitors will arrive in Thurii to watch the games. This influx will inevitably place a heavy burden on the entire city. I have already consulted with Lord Agasias—who was promoted to Minister of Patrol the year before last—and he has drawn numerous Patrol Unit members from the surrounding areas. He will deploy these extra patrols during the event to maintain order throughout the Thurii Region."

"Considering that nearly half of these visitors will be experiencing Thurii for the first time, our organizing committee looked back to the measures we implemented during the early days of the Rugby championship. We have mobilized youths over the age of sixteen from various local schools and the Theonia Akademia to serve as volunteers and assist these tourists..."

Crotokatax spent over ten minutes clearly and methodically outlining their preparations. When he finished, quiet murmurs broke out among the ministers.

The first to raise a question was the Minister of Finance, Akibides: "Lord Archon, over the past two years, your organizing committee has withdrawn 1,000 talents of silver from the national treasury. Word has it that these funds are nearly depleted, yet once the games commence, you still need to award a substantial sum of silver to the champions of each event, not to mention host a grand celebratory banquet at the conclusion... I simply want to know how much more funding the committee expects from the Ministry of Finance." Considering he was addressing the future king, Akibides reined in his tone as much as possible.

Crotokatax smiled and replied, "Lord Akibides, your information is inaccurate. The prize money for the victorious athletes and the expenses for the final celebratory banquet were already included in the funds previously allocated by the Ministry of Finance. We have already disbursed that money, which is what gave you this false impression. In truth, that funding is not only entirely sufficient, but there should even be a slight surplus remaining when the games conclude."

"Then once the games conclude, please return the remaining funds to the Ministry of Finance as quickly as possible!" Akibides blurted out.

"As a member of the organizing committee, I'd like to add a point of clarification," interjected the Minister of Commerce, Flaccus (the year before last, Marigi had cited his advanced age and failing health when resigning, allowing his recommended successor, Flaccus, to take over). "His Highness Crotokatax was being quite modest just now. By the time the games conclude, the committee won't merely have a little money left over—we will have a great deal.

"First, as of yesterday, we have already leased out more than half the storefronts along the temporary commercial streets set up within the city. That rental income alone has already surpassed 100 talents. Furthermore, countless foreign merchants have flocked to the Commercial Office in Thurii to register for shop rentals during the event, meaning those additional streets are no longer enough. Last night, His Highness convened an emergency meeting with the committee, and we ultimately decided to establish three more temporary markets near the ports of Castron and Amendolara... I believe that by the end of the games, shop rentals alone will bring in roughly 300 talents."

Flaccus grew increasingly smug as he spoke: "Also... the product advertising spaces placed both inside and outside the various arenas have completely sold out, generating an income of over 100 talents." (The practice of erecting and hanging wooden product advertisement boards around the arenas had begun in Thurii ten years ago. Seeing the fervor surrounding the annual Rugby championship and football finals, Davos had casually suggested the idea to Marigi. Marigi treated the suggestion like a rare treasure and immediately put it into action. Initially, merchants were unwilling to pay for arena advertisements and only did so to curry favor with the Minister of Commerce, Marigi. However, every product advertised in the arenas saw a massive surge in sales. From that point on, utilizing athletic competitions for advertisement became immensely popular throughout the kingdom.)

"Lord Akibides, does this not already recoup the 1,000 talents the Ministry of Finance previously paid out? Not to mention, hosting these games will elevate Thurii's appeal to people across the entire Mediterranean Sea. Even after the games conclude, the number of tourists traveling to Thurii should see sustained, long-term growth. That will be of tremendous benefit to our tax revenues."

"Excellent!" Davos lightly patted the armrest of his throne and laughed. "The games haven't even started yet, and you have already earned this much money. It seems our insistence on hosting this event wasn't just a waste of manpower and resources to prove a point; rather, it is vastly beneficial to the national treasury!"

Hearing Davos's words, the ministers who had initially voiced opposition all looked slightly embarrassed.

At this moment, the Minister of Education, Mentoticles, spoke up: "Your Highness, Thurii is densely populated. I recall an essay written years ago by Lysias, the current head of the Theonia Akademia, describing the ceaseless clamor of Thurii, along with the heavy maritime and overland traffic and the countless souls toiling just to secure the food, clothing, and shelter of the Thurians... Now that the games are to be held in Thurii, you just mentioned that over 100,000 people will flood in within a short timeframe! A hundred thousand is a massive figure. Will this not crush Thurii's entire urban supply system and inflict tremendous hardship on the lives of its people?"

"Allow me to answer that question," the Thurii Regional Administrator, Telys, said as he took over the conversation. "First, let us discuss food. The kingdom's merchants are incredibly shrewd. They anticipated that these games would be exceptionally grand, so over the past few months, many restaurants and inns have already begun stockpiling grain, cured meat, livestock, and wine... According to my reports, half the warehouses across all our ports and markets are currently being used to store food. Provisioning five to six hundred thousand people for a month should be no problem. If there is still a shortfall, I have already reached an agreement with Lord Bulcos. In an emergency, we can tap into the granaries in northern Thurii to stabilize any potential rise in local grain prices.

"Next, let us discuss accommodations. In truth, there is no need for great concern here either. Nowadays, most citizens living in the city proper and the outskirts rely on renting out properties for income, so there are ample lodgings available for the surging number of tourists. Furthermore, the market will naturally guide tourists away from cramming solely into the city center. Housing prices in the center will inevitably be expensive, whereas rental prices drop the further one moves outward—to places like Amendolara, Castron, Bisinia, and even Crimisa. I imagine that not all visitors coming to watch the games are wealthy. Given that they will stay in the Thurii Region for over ten days or even a full month, they will certainly choose their lodging areas based on how much gold and silver they brought. Moreover, our trained volunteers will provide targeted guidance to these tourists. Once they are distributed across the entire Thurii Region, I suspect the people of Thurii will not find it overly congested or noisy.

"Of course, to guarantee that tourists scattered across the entire Thurii Region can smoothly and punctually attend the events, we must also have swift and convenient transportation. This, too, is not a major issue. The road conditions in the Thurii Region are the finest in the entire kingdom. Moreover, in preparation for these games, Lord Heracleides has been personally supervising his subordinates in constructing new roads and bridges since last year.

"Additionally, our Thurii Regional Administration will enact several temporary ordinances for the duration of the event. For instance, pack caravans will be barred from entering the city center during daylight hours, and cargo transport will rely on shipping as much as possible... As another example, we will urge the citizens of Thurii to minimize their own travel unless they are going to watch the competitions...

"Furthermore, the administration has held specific talks with the Carriage Association, requiring them to transport travelers at their standard prices throughout the games and to provide attentive service.

"His Highness has already mentioned that Lord Agasias will strengthen security across the Thurii Region during the games, but another critical issue requiring our attention is fire prevention. It is currently summer—the weather is dry and everything is highly flammable. With the massive crowds packing the city during the event, the consequences of a fire would be unthinkable. Therefore, the administration drafted plans to address this months ago and has already implemented them. Throughout the games, fire brigades across the entire region must remain on standby around the clock, ready to dispatch for rescue at a moment's notice. A portion of our volunteers have been drawn to serve as auxiliary firefighters; after receiving specialized training, they will be responsible for fire patrols on every block. The fire brigade has also mandated that the people of the Thurii Region keep full water cisterns equipped in their homes. After several rounds of neighborhood inspections, compliance has essentially met the requirement. The administration has also sequentially organized fire-prevention drills for every district..."

"Excellent! Telys, your Thurii Regional Administration has been remarkably thorough in its considerations and fully prepared. It gives me even more confidence in the victorious execution of these games," Davos praised with a smile.

"Your Majesty, this is entirely the result of the hard work His Highness and the organizing committee have poured in over the past year!" Telys replied modestly. As a Regional Administrator, he was not originally permitted to attend the ministerial summit. However, since the primary topic of this meeting was the preparations for the games, he naturally had to be present. In truth, when Lysias and Hermon retired the year before last, he had also participated in the Senate's election as a reserve candidate for Minister of State, but had ultimately been narrowly defeated by Bagulas and Asistes.

"I hear that the priests of Olympia and Delphi, the Poseidon priests of Corinth, and the Parthenon priests in Athens have all refused to travel to Thurii to participate in referee training. How is the organizing committee handling this?" asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tapirus.

"I would like to defer this question to the esteemed Priest Praxinas," Crotokatax said with a smile, making an inviting gesture toward his side.

By standard regulation, the Scepter Priest Praxinas was usually barred from attending the kingdom's executive ministerial meetings, but as a member of the organizing committee, he had also received an invitation today. Already over seventy years old, he remained ruddy-cheeked and hale. When he smiled faintly, he appeared even more deeply benevolent: "Before I answer Lord Tapirus's question, I must first sincerely thank His Majesty for displaying such tremendous courage to host such a monumental sporting event, granting the Temple of Hades such a wonderful opportunity to show the world the brilliance and glory of the God Hades!"