NOVPUBThe regular meeting was quickly adjourned. As I left the assembly hall, Raleigh immediately followed me and said:
"Her Majesty the Queen told me that when Englishmen were sailing along the Florida coast, many cities were burning or their ports were paralyzed."
"..."
"That’s not all. The routes our secret society used to free slaves have been cut off one by one."
"From what I hear... this doesn’t sound like good news."
"It might not be. It might not be."
Saying this, Raleigh took out a tobacco pipe from his breast pocket and filled it with leaves. When I lent him a light, he closed his eyes while inhaling the smoke.
Raleigh’s hand trembled slightly.
"But it’s not."
Raleigh opened his eyes again and told me.
"The Spanish military flags that were raised everywhere have been lowered."
The flags were lowered.
This means it’s not just a dimension of violence that flares up and dies down.
It’s a strike against symbols, and a strike against what they represent.
"There are many other circumstances that I’ll tell you about in more detail later. In any case, even thinking as conservatively as possible, this... is not a simple disturbance. All cities in Florida have been paralyzed."
His words were clear.
"This is something more."
"..."
It was astonishing.
Even though people are gathered around several strongholds, the Spanish colonial population is only tens of thousands, so the population density is still sparse. The native population is experiencing a rapid decline due to disease.
Nevertheless, all of Florida has begun to shake. In Raleigh’s words, something "more than a simple disturbance" was happening.
How Florida was currently boiling, how it was being turned over...
We could hardly imagine.
==
Santa Lucia was a pioneer settlement with a coastal fortress and missionary base where about 1,200 people lived.
About one-sixth of the residents were members of the infantry company that pioneered the place, and its governor was also the commander of that company.
The governor of Santa Lucia quickly identified signs of "rebellion" being reported simultaneously from all directions and concentrated about 200 troops to carry out village-level sweeping operations.
However, the Spanish troops dispatched from Santa Lucia soon reached their limits.
The speed at which the rebellion spread was much faster than expected.
There was no organized movement; rather, it spread as one or two escaped slaves headed to another village, quickly igniting anger like fire catching on oil, which made suppression more difficult.
Several villages that didn’t receive protection from soldiers knocked on the doors of the Santa Lucia city council, sending petitions. Residents of various villages banded together to form vigilante groups.
It was a moment when the governor’s police authority was being violated. There were also conflicts with the Indians because they were entering and exiting Indian territories.
The governor was troubled by this. At this rate, there was a high probability of being censured by the Florida governor residing in San Agustin, and it was also difficult to suppress the rebellion of rampaging slaves.
"...Wait."
While racking his brain, the governor soon came up with a decent idea.
"Residents of each village who possess weapons can voluntarily organize and operate vigilante groups if they report to the governor."
Just put the vigilante activities under his jurisdiction.
Although Indians, angered by the rampaging vigilante activities, expressed various complaints, it didn’t matter much.
Once he recognized the vigilante activities and supported them with weapons, the slave rebellions also seemed to gradually subside. The governor, satisfied, submitted a report to the governor-general.
"The governor of San Jose orders: Immediately, residents in the vicinity shall organize vigilante groups to control recent deviant behavior..."
"To the citizens of San Anton and residents of its affiliated areas: In the face of current slave rebellion activities..."
And soon, such groundbreaking measures began to spread to other cities and regions.
Florida had an overwhelming number of troops compared to other colonies. Also, the vigilante groups organized in various places centered around city citizens enabled quick responses to rebellions.
In this trend...
"Vigilante groups, indeed. They seem to be organizing them everywhere."
"Yes. They appear to be effectively suppressing the slaves’ uprising. Currently, at four fortresses..."
"How about organizing them here as well?"
Pedro de Ibarra, the Governor of Florida, who was also wary of the rebellion’s northward movement, followed suit.
The citizens, who were already anxious, immediately organized vigilante groups in San Agustin and its surroundings and reported back.
Thanks to this, Pedro could spend time and resources on defending against attacks from returning English pirates instead of allocating troops to nearby disturbances.
Everything seemed to be running efficiently.
Pedro clicked his tongue and asked his aide:
"I don’t understand. Why do those things start rebellions? Because they have nothing to lose? Isn’t life an asset?"
"Perhaps it’s because they haven’t learned enough to obey authority?"
"...I still don’t understand. What are they doing this for?"
They shook their heads, unable to understand those who rushed toward death.
They soon began a simple meeting.
"Perhaps it’s the machination of those heretics?"
"Hmm... that’s highly probable."
About what caused the slaves’ uprising.
"Then, is the answer to push harder for the eradication of devil worship?"
"That’s probably right."
About how to prevent slave uprisings.
But their conversation never reached the core.
They were ignorant.
==
Scratch. Scratch.
"...Done. Eight slaves, two Indians, one Spaniard. Is this all the members of this household? There are a total of four muskets."
"Exactly, haha!"
In the land of Florida, where literate people were rare, priests and monks were also valuable administrative personnel.
Father Alonso García was requisitioned under the orders of the San Agustin governor, and like other priests, went from house to house counting the number of slaves, firearms, and other items in each household.
"Do you perhaps... need an escort? These days, San Agustin is quite turbulent."
"What do you mean by turbulent...?"
"Besides the slave rebellion, having numerous armed men running around makes people tiresome, doesn’t it? It might be difficult if you encounter vigilante members while walking."
"Ah, I understand."
"I always take your words to heart, Father. Miguel! Come here, escort the Father to the cathedral!"
"Yes, master."
Following his master’s command, a sturdy slave named Miguel followed Alonso as he turned to leave and walked out to the street. Once they were far enough away, he whispered to Alonso:
"It’s true! After treating the master well for a few days, he even let me out of the house like this...!"
Miguel’s voice was excited, and his face was flushed.
"If this continues, escape might not be such a distant possibility..."
"Shh. Quiet."
Alonso silenced the excited man. However, Miguel’s face was still flushed, and there was no way to hide his excitement.
Even though he kept his mouth shut, he didn’t stop sending grateful smiles toward Alonso. Since his close friend had been beaten to death by their master, he had been continually depressed, so Alonso found it awkward to discourage him.
"Don’t... expect too much. Several ’pathways’ have been blocked recently."
"Pathways" referred to routes for freeing slaves.
San Agustin, as the core of the Florida colony, was a dangerous place while also being where the most information leaked and was exchanged. Paradoxically, it was the place where the most slaves could be freed.
