Chapter 10: The Great Migration
Three months had passed since my confrontation with the corporate spy and my partnership deal with North Star Trading.
The business had expanded exponentially. Kurta Materials Trading Company now operated from three separate warehouses in York New City, with distribution networks spanning five major cities across the region. Monthly profit had reached sixty million Jenny.
But profit wasn't the true measure of success. The real success was measured in the volunteers.
Over the past three months, forty-seven Kurta had made the journey from the village to York New City. Most were youngâ€"between eighteen and thirtyâ€"and they came seeking both opportunity and adventure. They represented roughly fifteen percent of the village's population.
Now I was planning for something far more ambitious: moving a much larger portion of the clan.
I sat in my office with Father, who'd come to the city for the first time to assess the situation for himself.
"It's impressive," Father admitted, looking at the ledgers showing business operations and the documents I'd prepared for Kurta integration. "But moving a significant portion of the clan... that's a major decision. Many people won't want to leave."
"I'm not asking them to abandon the village," I explained. "We'll maintain our traditional territory. But we need critical mass in the city. We need enough Kurta that we have real power in the outside world. We need to shift from being a tribe living in isolation to being a people with presence in multiple locations."
Father studied me carefully. "How many are you thinking?"
"Three hundred," I said. "Half the clan. We'd split our population: three hundred maintaining the village and our traditional lands, three hundred building our presence in the city and beyond."
Father was quiet for a long moment. "That would require massive coordination. Housing, jobs, training, integration..."
"I've prepared for it," I said, showing him detailed plans. "Housing is already arrangedâ€"I've negotiated bulk rental contracts with property management companies. Jobs are availableâ€"I've expanded the business to accommodate them. Training will happen through apprenticeships in the business."
"You've thought about this carefully," Father observed.
"I've had nothing but time to think," I replied.
Father looked at me intently. "You still haven't told me why you know it's so necessary. But I trust you. I've seen your commitment, your strategic thinking, your ability to execute complex plans. If you believe this is what the clan needs, I'll support it."
Father called an emergency council meeting with all the village elders, to be held in the central meeting hall.
I presented my plan comprehensively. I showed them:
- Financial projections showing the business's growth trajectory
- Housing arrangements for the migrants
- Employment opportunities in the city
- Legal documentation establishing Kurta as a recognized ethnic group
- Business ownership proposals allowing Kurta families to own shares in the trading company
The presentation lasted three hours. When I finished, there was a long silence.
"Sheila, the eldest, finally said. "You're asking us to split our people. To fundamentally change what the Kurta clan has been for generations."
"I'm asking you to evolve," I said. "To take what we areâ€"a strong, capable peopleâ€"and let that strength flourish in the wider world instead of being constrained by isolation."
"And those who don't want to go?" another elder asked. "Those who want to maintain the old ways?"
"They stay," I said simply. "This is entirely voluntary. No one is forced. But I believe that once people see the opportunities available, many will choose to migrate."
The council debated for hours. Some elders were enthusiastic. Others were skeptical. A few were outright opposed, arguing that I was destroying Kurta culture.
Finally, Sheila called for a vote.
"The proposal is this: Kurta Materials Trading Company will be formally recognized as a legitimate arm of the Kurta clan. Ben will lead the company in establishing business operations in York New City and other major cities. Kurta volunteers will be free to migrate to the city to work for the company and establish permanent residences. The village will maintain its traditional territory and those who wish to preserve the old ways. The council authorizes Ben to conduct the Great Migration to begin in one month."
The vote was 6-1 in favor.
The one dissenting vote came from an elder named Marcus who believed that leaving the village would weaken the clan spiritually.
I didn't argue with him. Time would prove one of us right, and if I was correctâ€"if danger came as I expectedâ€"then all the debate about cultural purity would become irrelevant.
One month later, the first wave of migrants arrived in York New City.
Two hundred and seventeen Kurtaâ€"families, young adults, elders willing to make the journey. They came with whatever possessions they could carry, nervous and excited about what awaited them in the outside world.
Housing had been arranged in a recently renovated residential complex in the Harbor district. I'd purchased the entire building and converted it into communal housing where Kurta families could live together while gradually transitioning to individual apartments.
Jobs had been created within the business structure. Some worked in the warehouses managing materials. Others worked in administrative roles. Still others trained to become sales representatives and business managers.
The second wave came two weeks later: another hundred and eighty-three Kurta.
The third wave, three weeks after that: seventy-two more Kurta.
By the end of two months, approximately five hundred Kurta were living in York New Cityâ€"exceeding even my initial three-hundred target because the enthusiasm was higher than I'd anticipated.
The village population had decreased to roughly three hundred, split between those who wished to maintain the traditional territory and those too old or unwilling to migrate.
The sudden influx of Kurta into the city required careful management. They needed to learn how the outside world worked, how to interact with city dwellers, how to build careers within the business framework.
I established a formal training program.
Newcomers learned about currency, transportation, city safety, and basic commercial transactions. They learned to navigate the bureaucratic systems for documentation, housing, and employment.
All adult Kurta were enrolled in formal Nen training .
Many Kurta showed natural aptitude. Some were already competent Nen users from training in the village. Others discovered capabilities they'd never fully developed. Within months, dozens of Kurta had registered officially as Hunters.
Kurta employees learned specific business skills: material sourcing, quality assessment, client relations, inventory management, and business strategy.
My sister Kara arrived in the second wave of migrants and took to the business immediately. She had a natural talent for client relations and quality assessment. Within a month, she was managing one of the warehouses.
Rai, who'd been with me since the beginning, became my operational managerâ€"overseeing day-to-day business operations while I focused on strategic expansion.
As more Kurta arrived and became integrated into the business, I began structuring a formal power hierarchy.
**Tier One: Executive Leadership**
I remained as CEO and founder, making strategic decisions. Rai became Chief Operations Officer. Kara became Head of Materials Acquisition.
**Tier Two: Department Heads**
Experienced Kurta migrants who'd demonstrated leadership potential became department heads managing specific business functions.
**Tier Three: Team Leaders**
Regular employees who showed initiative and competence were elevated to team leader positions, managing small groups of workers.
The structure was deliberately designed to distribute power. No single person besides me had absolute authority. This prevented any individual from becoming too powerful and potentially dangerous to the organization.
It also meant that even if something happened to me, the business would continue functioning smoothly.
With five hundred Kurta now living in the city and integrated into the business structure, I accelerated expansion plans.
**New Branch Offices**: Established operations in three additional major citiesâ€"Zaban City, Padukya, and Denora. Each branch was managed by senior Kurta leaders and operated autonomously while following company-wide policies.
**Product Line Expansion**: Moved beyond just rare materials into related areas: medicinal compounds, specialized equipment, and consultant services.
**Partnership Expansion**: Negotiated partnerships not just with North Star Trading but with a dozen other major trading companies and retail outlets.
**Financial Growth**: Monthly profit increased to two hundred million Jenny across all operations.
What most people didn't realize was that this business structure served multiple purposes beyond simple profit generation.
**Legal Protection**: Each Kurta employed by the company became documented citizens with formal employment records. This created a paper trail of legitimacy that made it much harder for anyone to simply attack or exploit them.
**Wealth Distribution**: I ensured that profits were distributed to employees as bonuses and profit-sharing. Kurta families in the city were becoming wealthy, creating genuine buy-in to the system.
**Power Network**: The business created a network of Kurta Nen users spread across multiple cities. In an emergency, this network could be activated for mutual defense.
**Information Gathering**: The business operations gave me legitimate reasons to travel frequently, gather intelligence on political movements, and maintain awareness of potential threats.
**Cultural Evolution**: Young Kurta were learning to navigate the outside world confidently while maintaining their identity. They weren't losing their cultureâ€"they were adapting it to new circumstances.
Standing on a building overlooking the Harbor district, where thousands of Kurta now lived and worked, I allowed myself to reflect on what had been accomplished.
Six months ago, I'd been training alone in a forest, desperately trying to prepare for an inevitable catastrophe.
Now, I'd transformed the Kurta clan from an isolated tribe into an emerging economic and social power in York New City and beyond. We had:
- Five hundred Kurta living in the city
- Business operations in four major cities
- Over three hundred million Jenny in monthly revenue
- Seventy-three registered Hunter Guild members
- Legal protection under the Hunter Association
- Formal recognition as a legitimate ethnic group with rights and protections
- Distribution networks spanning multiple regions
- Partnerships with major trading companies
More importantly, the remaining three hundred Kurta in the village were no longer completely isolated. Regular communication with migrants meant news and knowledge flowing back to the village. The village was becoming less isolated simply by osmosis, as village members visited the city and city members visited the village.
The Kurta were no longer a tribe facing inevitable erasure. We were becoming a people with presence, power, and protection.
That evening, I met with Rai and Kara in my private office.
"In two weeks," I said. "I need to ensure that business operations can run without me for at least one month while I recover from the breakthrough and integrate the new power."
"I can handle that," Rai said confidently. "The operations are running smoothly. We have enough middle management now that I don't need you for daily decisions."
"I know," I said. "That's why I'm confident doing this now."