As they continued through the city, Silas encountered similar scenes again and again. A blacksmith who couldn't afford the iron to practice his trade.
A baker whose shop stood empty because grain prices had risen beyond what his customers could pay. A family of six crowded into a single room because they couldn't afford larger quarters.
Each story added another piece to the puzzle of Eldoria's decline.
The kingdom wasn't just suffering from external pressure and administrative incompetence it was caught in a downward spiral where economic hardship led to reduced tax revenue, which led to reduced services, which led to further economic hardship.
"The tax system is broken," Silas said to Captain Roderick as they paused in a small square where a few vendors were trying to sell vegetables to customers who clearly couldn't afford them.
"How so, Your Highness?"
"It's based on the assumption that businesses and individuals have the capacity to pay fixed amounts regardless of their actual income. But when the economy contracts, that assumption becomes false. We're literally taxing people into poverty, then punishing them for being poor."
Captain Roderick frowned. "But if we reduce taxes, how will the kingdom fund its operations?"
"By helping people become prosperous enough to pay reasonable taxes willingly," Silas replied. "A healthy business that pays five silver marks in taxes is better than a destroyed business that pays nothing."
They were interrupted by a young voice calling out, "Your Highness! Your Highness!"
Silas turned to see a boy of perhaps ten years running toward them, his clothes patched but clean, his face bright with excitement. Behind him came a woman who was clearly his mother, her expression a mixture of pride and worry.
"Tommy, come back here!" she called. "You can't just run up to the prince!"
But Silas knelt down to the boy's level, smiling. "It's all right. What did you want to tell me, Tommy?"
"My da... says you're going to make things better," the boy said breathlessly. "He says you're different from the old princes, that you actually care about people like us."
"Your father is very wise," Silas replied. "What does your father do?"
"He's a carpenter, Your Highness. Or he was, before the work dried up. Now he does odd jobs when he can find them."
Silas looked up at the woman, who had caught up to her son. "And you are?"
"Sarah Millwright, Your Highness," she said, dropping into a curtsy. "I apologize for my son's boldness."
"No apology necessary. Tommy, would you like to help me with something?"
The boy's eyes widened. "Really?"
"I'm trying to understand what our people need most. If you could ask your father and your neighbors what would help them the most, would you do that for me?"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
"Good. Have your father write down what people tell you, and bring it to the castle next week. Can you do that?"
Tommy nodded eagerly, and his mother's expression shifted from worry to something approaching hope.
As they continued their tour, Silas found himself thinking about the boy's words. "Different from the old princes." The comment suggested that people were aware of the changes in his behavior, that they were cautiously optimistic about his leadership.
But it also reminded him of the enormous responsibility he carried. These people were placing their hopes in a prince they barely knew, trusting that he could somehow solve problems that had been building for years.
The final stop on their tour was the harbor district, where the decline was most visible. Piers that had once bustled with merchant ships now stood empty except for a few fishing boats. Warehouses that had stored goods from across the continent now stood vacant, their doors barred and their windows broken.
"It wasn't always like this," Captain Roderick said quietly. "I remember when this harbor was one of the busiest on the continent. Ships from every kingdom, goods flowing in and out like a river."
"What changed?"
"The wars, mostly. Trade routes became too dangerous, and merchants found safer ports. Then the taxes on foreign goods became too high, and even the brave ones stopped coming."
Silas walked to the end of one of the piers, looking out over the water that could once again carry prosperity to his kingdom.
The harbor's location was still strategic, and the water was still deep enough for large ships. What was missing was the security, the economic incentives, and the infrastructure to support major trade operations.
But those were all things that could be rebuilt, given time and resources.
As they made their way back to the castle, Silas reflected on what he had learned. The kingdom's problems were worse than he had imagined, but they were also more solvable than he had feared.
The people weren't broken; they were simply trapped in a system that no longer worked for their circumstances.
"Captain," he said as they approached the castle gates, "I want you to organize regular patrols through the common quarters. Not to enforce order, but to listen to people's concerns and report back to me."
"Yes, Your Highness. And the tax collection procedures?"
"Are you going to change, starting immediately. No more seizing goods worth less than the debt owed. No more destroying people's livelihoods in the name of revenue collection. We're going to find better ways to fund the kingdom's operations."
That evening, as Silas sat in his study reviewing the day's experiences, he felt a renewed sense of purpose. The faces he had seen, the stories he had heard, the hope in young Tommy's eyes these were the real reasons for all his plans and innovations.
It wasn't enough to save the kingdom from conquest or collapse. He had to save it in a way that actually improved the lives of the people who called it home.
The engineering projects, the diplomatic negotiations, the administrative reforms all of it had to serve the ultimate goal of creating a realm where people like Goodwife Martha and Tommy's father could prosper.
The challenge was enormous, but for the first time since awakening in this world, Silas felt truly motivated to meet it. He wasn't just rebuilding a kingdom he was building a future for forty-two thousand people who deserved better than the hand they had been dealt.
And he was going to make sure they got it.