'tschk… hello… tschk!' Static sounds blared into my mind, shaking me from my sleep.
'Tschk… go… tschk… church!'
'Annoying,' I thought as I quickly got dressed and headed to the Church.
'Hello! Hello, ahh, finally, the signal strength is good! Hello, Jan. This is Director Archangel Michael. I have received your complaint forwarded by my subordinate and wish to address your concerns. To confirm, could you please repeat your complaints?'
'I am not from this world. This continent should be known as Africa, not Elfrica.'
'Hmm… I see. Well, I have a message for you. No, I will not complain about the lack of prayers conducted after leaving the Church. It is a message left by other gods.'
'This world does not have a monolithic god. Shocker,' I thought.
'Save the Republic.' And the connection was immediately cut off, leaving me in this silent Church.
I did not have a good sleep that night.
In my writings, I distanced myself from the persona Jan Boddewijk for a reason. I am not Jan, nor is he me. If I could use my Old-World name, I would, but I have forgotten what it was. I, for the life of me, cannot remember any details referring to the identity of my Old-World self, but I could place myself being an avid gamer. So, I will embrace the identity of Jan Boddewijk. This is the first step of many in accepting my new identity in this strange world.
The streets were as busy as usual that morning. Carriages were departing out and abounding from the town. There was a wave of emigration towards the newly secured Port Natal, and the flood of new goods into the market has improved the variety of food in the region. Jan could smell the scent of rotten fish as Jan left the hotel, and a carriage sat in front.
It was an ordinary carriage, and nothing was exceptional except for the dark elf at the front. He gave him the stink-eye and nodded in acknowledgement.
"How was the trip, young master?" He curtly asked, looking away from Jan.
"Boring," Jan replied, getting into the carriage. Huffing, he pulled his luggage into the carriage and placed it on the side. He then remembered that such duties were supposed to be carried out by the coachman, but the coachman idly sat by, watching the young master struggle.
"To confirm, you brought everything you need, young master? I do not want your father to hit me if you forgot something," The elf dryly spoke, speaking as if it was nothing more than a Tuesday for him.
"Nnn… I got everything," Jan did a cursory check before nodding. The carriage set off, and Jan kept his eyes outside the window, watching the scenery pass him.
Construction was typical in the Natalia Republic's capital as more and more trekkers fled the Cape colony and entered the region. Men brought their families, but significantly of all, their slaves as they sought to escape their emancipation in the Cape. The British government offered restitution for emancipation, but slaveowners denied it as they felt the amount was little. If you asked me, they probably just wanted the title of being a slaveowner. Still, if you offered a million dollars per slave, I'm sure they'll be able to find common ground.
Construction of improvements like roads could be seen as roadworkers prepared the ground. They were mostly dark elves, but some men joined in the fray. Likely to be some of the penniless that lost everything amidst the trek to their new home.
As the carriage left town, Jan spotted a shooting range just outside the town and slapped himself mentally for not visiting at least once. He touched his rifle and remembered that he was no longer in the old world and that it was the wild west. But it depended on how far away civilization the carriage had to move. Still, he could not ask such a question too quickly, for he could not give away his true identity.
"How long till we get there?"
"Hmm… an hour or so now. I doubt there will be much action, young master, so probably don't need to keep your gun close to you," The coach elf replied without even turning to look at him.
'How can I trust you?' Jan thought to himself. And which lay the inherent problem of slavery, for there can be no trust between slaveowner and slave. How can you expect them to do a good job if there is every incentive for them to end your life and be free?
"I know what books you have been reading, young master. But not all dark elves are the same. Hypothetically, if I were to end your life and run, I can't just run to any other tribe. I would be shot, enslaved, and sold to another tribe or the Republic."
'It seems he's a good mind reader.'
The trip was mostly silent, so Jan scrounged his belongings. There were English books dealing with subjects like Philosophy. He could find many papers probably written by the original Jan. There were many cancelled lines of the parchment, paired with the ineligible handwriting, and he could barely make up a thing. Original Jan must be a scholar of some kind, but is he a self-study kind like Oswald Spengler or someone with formal education?
That question brought zeal to Jan's hands, and he dug and dug before finding a chest at the bottom of his bags. It was very light as he hefted it out of the bag and placed it on his lap. Opening the chest, he found a piece of parchment inside the box.
South African College
Degree of Bachelor of English Literature
It is hereby certified that Jan Boddewijk, having satisfied the requirements prescribed by Statute, was admitted to the Degree of Bachelor of English Literature on 1st October 1833.
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The paper at the bottom of the box explained everything. It now makes sense why everyone was fine with him having such a weak command of Elfricaans. Jan Boddewijk never saw himself as a Voortrekker and was likely forced along due to his family pulling him. For a city boy like him in the Cape Colony, being uprooted into the dangerous rural must be a drastic transition for him. I'm sure he mostly thought that he was English in heart.
Jan nodded, satisfied that some of his curiosities were alleviated. So, he began flipping through some books like Don Quixote.
The trip was uneventful. No high flung adventures, unlike his previous days, where he even participated in a raid. Other than the hailing of other carriages, it was mostly uneventful.
"I'm sorry to disturb your reading, young master. But we are about to reach your estate soon."
With that, he closed the book and stuffed it into his bags before sticking his head out the window. He mentally prepared his eyes for what he was going to see.
A large field of sugarcane spread across the lands. He could see dark dots resembling labourers hacking at the stems of the cane with sharp blades. Some dots were moving to another region, hefting large bundles of cane. The hot sun all shone mercilessly on them, and Jan gulped, sticking his head back into the wagon.
'This is bad. What kind of hypocrite do I have to be when my supposed family is someone who mostly profits off slavery,' Jan bit his lip. Still, considering the others around him, he kept his mouth shut and straightened his posture.
He will have to act his supposed part. How should he go in? Arrogant young master? But from how the coach elf treated him, it does not seem he was, Weak and mild master. It might be more suitable, but does it suit the attitude of a family of slaveowners? Compromise and mix them? Sounds great.
The coach stopped before a wooden gate, and Jan hopped off the carriage.
"I'll bring the bags to your room, young master." The coach elf submissively spoke and brought the coach through another entrance.
Opening the wooden gate, it creaked as he walked in. Closing it, he found a quaint little mansion sitting by the fields. Dark Elves were being ordered about by other dark elves, causing Jan to watch in shock. But he shook himself and got a hold of himself. He climbed the stairs and found an older man sitting on the porch.
He smoked tobacco on a pipe and sneered at the newcomer's entrance.
"Hello, Jan. I hope you have finally calmed down to greet your old man. Stop being so stubborn," The man blew a puff in Jan's direction.
'Frosty relations… Should I continue being hostile or submit and find out more?' Jan took the latter decision.
"I'm sorry, father. Let the past be behind us. I apologize for all the misgivings we had between us."
The older man heaved a sigh of relief, placed the pipe on the tabletop, and grinned. "Thank you, Jan, for being so understanding. I'm stressed about your mother leaving us, so I'm glad you're with me. You're the only one I have left nearby me. Everyone went to England." He snarled as he spat out the words 'England'.
"Have you contacted mother?"
"…"
"Jan, how was Pietermaritzburg? Did Joren treat you well? Let me know if they mistreat you in any way. I won't be buying any more pointy-ears from them."
"Joren was fine. Showed me around the place."
Father nodded as if he understood everything.
"Got any plans for the future, Jan? Your old man won't live forever," The old man swept his hands across the sugarcane fields.
The once black dots became little elves as they scrambled to harvest sugarcane. They were frail and haggard but energetically collected them as more well-fed elves punished them with whips and canes.
Jan frowned, and the older man's lips let a sigh.
"I don't know what you learnt in school, boy. We are helping to civilize these natives. What will they do without us? They will fight among themselves and exterminate one another. Let me remind you that this land we live on once held elves on them, but Queen Shaka's Crushing depopulated much of these lands, allowing us to settle here. We can finally bring peace and end all this tribalistic warfare. But we can't do it for free; we can only cleanse the savageness out of their systems through hard work.
"…"
"But it's not like I revel in such work. Nor do they, for if positions were reversed, I know it would be us who will be working in these fields. And I know that is true, for, in a way, they are not too different from us. Perhaps what we think of civilization is barbarianism to them, and they cleanse our civilization through slavery."
"…"
"Sigh. I should not bother waxing these platitudes with an Anglophile like you. You must be tired, go and rest for the night," The old man waved his hands, picked up his pipe, and began smoking again.
As Jan turned to enter the mansion, he paused and turned.
"I have a request."
"Out with it, boy."
"Do you have any books that can improve my Elfricaans? I could not talk with anyone in the capital."
"Heh. Now you understand why I told you that you should not neglect your Dutch. I have some books on Dutch in the library. You didn't bother with them when I bought them for you," The old men grumbled at the end in an inaudible tone.
Jan turned and rolled his eyes, clambering up the stairs and poked his head in numerous rooms until he found a suitable space for a scholar. A large bookshelf was in the centre of the room, and when he inspected them, he found English titles. He removed all of them and found his bookshelves empty.
Searching around the house, he found a room filled only with bookshelves. He searched around and found books in incomprehensible language. He found one titled 'Learning Dutch' in English and took other interesting books before moving them to his room and slotting them in.
Jan went to a desk in a corner and grabbed some papers as well as a pencil. He scribbled notes on it.
He drew a circle around the phrase 'Save the Republic' and drew some lines branching out from the circle.
First question. In this period, how many are democracies? The boy was pleased with his gaming knowledge from the other world and quickly wrote down 'The United States of America'. But then he remembered the discussions in the Volksraad during his first day. The Geopolitical landscape might be completely different due to all the fantasy elements. So, he added a question mark.
He pondered adding Mexico but remembered his campaign when playing them, where he had to constantly squash rebellions. So, he crossed it out.
Moving on to South America, he quickly added Chile with a question mark on its side. Racking his brains for other nation-states, he did not know what else to add.
Moving on to Europe, he quickly dismissed the proposition. Why did people migrate to the New World? To escape the monarchies of Europe and join the democracies of the New World, where they would be able to express themselves freely. But most importantly, it was due to the economic opportunities; it is understandable as no one wanted to be a serf.
Moving on to Asia, he could not remember any Democracies and finally turned his eye onto Africa, I mean Elfrica. He paused, 'Wait if Africa becomes Elfrica? Then what are the other continents called?'
That scary thought lingered in his mind, but he shook his head to dismiss it. He quickly divided Elfrica into three sections. North Elfrica, out. Central Elfrica, out. South Elfrica, the Boers.
If he remembered clearly from the game, only one Republic was alive in 1836. Zoutpansberg, some tiny Boer state that had a gold mine.
But now it's 1841, and the Republic never lived long in his numerous playthroughs. Since this is a fantasy world, things might be different. Maybe they will become some superpower; that will be pretty scary.
He shook his head before finally putting down the Natalia Republic. For this one, he did not add a question mark.
It was apparent which Republic the Angel was referring to. Where did he transmigrate into? The Natalia Republic. So, it seems he was to somehow change the Republic's fate of its eventual absorption into the British Empire.
But it's not like he wants to save it, either. The British at least promised emancipation of all enslaved people by this period, so the slaves would be freed if the Republic was annexed. But the Boers would trek further inland, so it will not solve the root cause.
The British feared something because they let the Republic be for a few years. Jan drew a somewhat poor map of the political situation. He drew a tiny dot on South Elfrica and various Elfrican tribes surrounding that dot and allocated a large portion of the landmass to the Cape Colony and pondered.
The only threat was the various Elven tribes. But then he remembered a tidbit from General Praetorius about the British occupation of Port Natal. What if the Elven tribes took the port? How long would it be before it can be fixed up? How will they thrash the place?
So, it was apparent. They needed to show the British they had the military might to hold onto the port. So, a show of strength is required.
But the most important thing right now, as Jan glanced over the various Dutch books, was to improve his Elfrikaans.