Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: The Treacherous Subject Also Has a Use
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After sending an urgent message to the religious order, the Emperor waited for the high nobles to gather. Thanks to them all being within the capital, everyone was able to enter the imperial palace and assemble in the grand conference hall within an hour.
Confirming that all twenty of the Empire's most prominent high nobles were present, the Emperor immediately explained the reason for the summons.
"You have all likely guessed, but I have gathered you so urgently because this is no ordinary situation. There is much to say and explain regarding this matter, so please listen carefully."
He began by explaining how he had secretly proceeded with the marriage alliance between the Baroniro Earldom and the Imperial Princess, how a young man named Beonald had ruined the plan, and how, through the crack of the broken alliance, the leader of the neighboring eastern heteromorphic nation, the Garukan Republic—the iron-blooded elf Prime Minister Neumel—had schemed to proceed with the marriage alliance with Baroniro.
"Thus, we are in danger of losing the southern region, which has a major impact on grain production. Especially with autumn approaching soon; if the food that should circulate domestically is only exported abroad, it will have a significant impact on food prices."
"...That is a serious matter."
"This is a grave situation..."
"If food prices rise... Hmm..."
At the Emperor's explanation, the high nobles began to murmur among themselves.
While they all engaged in agriculture in their territories as a basic practice, in this era where agricultural technology was underdeveloped, food was always in short supply.
Fundamentally, taxes were high, and farms were mostly monopolized by the lords, so it was common for the people to either purchase food or practice self-sufficiency.
Self-sufficiency wasn't easy either, as there were hardly any safe mountains or forests for hunting or gathering, and dangerous monster species could appear, making it an extremely limited situation. As the Emperor said, if there was a problem with food prices, both the people and the territory's funds would inevitably suffer.
"The biggest issue is that it's already too late to stop it."
"I knew that slippery Baroniro Count would cause trouble when he rose to power..."
"In any case, the most urgent matter is to win over as many nobles under the Baroniro Earldom as possible. While the Baroniro Earldom, which did something foolish, is one thing, I don't think the nobles under them would join in such foolishness..."
"We must also prepare for the worst-case scenario: war. No, the other side is likely already prepared."
First, the influential high nobles among them, such as Duke Kmel, Count Valderian, Marquis Börne, Duke Owen, and others, voiced their opinions.
Although each of the high nobles present had differing stances, they were all in favor of the continued existence of the Calleum Empire.
To survive these troubled times, politics based on solitary strongmen was impossible, and compared to the situations of surrounding nations, the Calleum Empire was the most livable place, so the high nobles were all in a mood to agree on pressuring Baroniro.
"The problem is that iron-blooded elf... It's hard to know how far that hybrid half-elf born from a forbidden family is scheming."
"In any case, let's move quickly to resolve this before the harvest season of autumn arrives. We must resolve it within three... no, two months at the latest."
"Our territories are close to the Baroniro Earldom, so we will attempt to win them over through bribes and contacts with their retainers. We have a few relatives married into that side, so it should be possible."
"We will send down all troops except the minimum necessary to guard the borders. There's no other way if we want to resolve the situation quickly. If it becomes a long-term war, it will be a disaster."
In a meeting where interests aligned, there were no objections or hesitation. After discussion, the high nobles devised several plans and moved swiftly.
After the short meeting concluded, Count Valderian also decided on mobilizing troops, discussing the current situation, and determining the treatment for Beonald, who had found the family's precious legacy, and sent a messenger to him.
***
Some time later, at the Valderian family territory mansion.
The Valderian family was giving Beonald, who had unsealed the legacy and found the family's heirloom, the best treatment they could.
Not only Beonald but also those attending to him—Sein, Heidi, Selina, and Vessia—were all assigned guest rooms, and arrangements were made to treat them equally to members of the Valderian family, so they had no difficulties in their daily lives.
"Oooh... My goodness, you were hiding such skill?"
"Young Master, you didn't know?"
"How could I know if I didn't!"
However, Beonald had a reason why he absolutely had to obtain the Valderian family's artifact, so under the pretext of understanding its emotions and usage and to show that he was the most suitable person for this 'magical tool of his own,' he had no choice but to reveal his 'spellcrafting' ability and alchemical skills.
"Hahaha, you flatter me. This was all thanks to the help of Selina, a 4th-circle mage of the Magic Tower."
"...Hmm, I see."
'What is this shameless man saying... But I also, because I was swayed by the promise of ancient records... *Sigh*'
And he resolved the lacking plausibility through Selina.
For Selina, she had no choice but to go along with his story due to the bait of Beonald revealing the contents of the ancient tome from about 500 years ago.
What Beonald skillfully created was an 'automatic pump magical tool.' With just a switch, water would gush out, which was far better than drawing water from a well manually or operating it by hand.
"In this way... various things can be made. However, one must be careful as water can freeze in winter. The interior is gold-plated, so you can worry less about rusting or such. If rusty water comes out later during use, tell me immediately so I can service it."
"Ooh... Understood."
"...Where on earth did you acquire such skill? It's truly astonishing."
By demonstrating his ability through creating and showing a few simple yet convenient magical tools, Beonald asked them to entrust it to him, raising expectations for new magical tools, and thus was able to obtain his own tool.
"But... it's strange, isn't it? No matter that he unsealed the artifact for the Valderian family, they wouldn't permit it this easily, would they?"
"Normally, that would be the case, but considering the problems the Valderian family currently faces, it's sufficiently possible."
"Problems?"
"Which country does the Valderian family territory border? Precisely the 'Daina Kingdom.' Moreover, they have a history of having their territory plundered by those bastards once."
'Oooh! You know well! Yes! Those magic-obsessed bastards! How dare they! In our territory, the legacy of the Unified Empire! Grrrrr!'
He recalled the conversation they had when they came down to decipher the artifact.
Originally, the Valderian family grew its power while receiving Beonald's favor, and Beonald handed over numerous magical tools and legacies, which were all stolen by the Daina Kingdom.
Of course, even before the legacy, having their base stolen once as a 'knight' and noble family was a great disgrace and a lifelong grudge.
"Thus, as they are mortal enemies with the Daina Kingdom... to counter them, they naturally need talented individuals well-versed in magic arts... With a country practicing magic supremacy right next door, it's only natural that the seeds of mages and alchemists have dried up."
"True, even at the Magic Tower, everyone was contemplating how to live in the Daina Kingdom... That aside, they're holding up well here, right at the border?"
"No, it's not holding up... It's more accurate to say they can't afford to pay attention. Firstly, as a nation that bases everything on magic, all the nation's talents are solely focused on magic, so other fields of study haven't developed, and also, with a large territory, administrative power requires talent distribution accordingly."
"Ahh..."
The Daina Kingdom is ruled by prestigious magic families and is inherently a magic-supremacist nation. Its military power is in line with magic research, so there's no problem there, but areas like administrative power, commerce, and agricultural research have no one doing them, and anyone with a brain studied magic, so they were either half-neglected or handled by those among the mages with no talent.
"In other words, that country is already in a completed state in its own way, so if there's no particular reason, they can be left alone quietly. The Valderian family's feelings are separate, of course."
"But there is... a reason now, isn't there? Since those mages stole the Valderian family's artifact, if they learn that the artifact has now been released again?"
"Ah, they'll probably come to target it."
"Can they handle it?"
"The Valderian family seems to have taken that into account, as they've strictly enforced a gag order. Of course, I have no intention of letting my guard down regarding such things. However... what about you? The Daina Kingdom is undeniably a world of mages and is deeply connected to the Magic Tower. For you, a mage, opposing them would be difficult, wouldn't it?"
He spoke indirectly, but it was a silent pressure to clearly define her position.
The meaning was to decide whether she was on the side of the Magic Tower or his side. The intention was that it would be troublesome if she didn't.
Selina hadn't yet properly seen Beonald's dark side, but instinctively, she feared how thoroughly this man would retaliate if he became an enemy, and she thought that if she tried to clumsily walk a tightrope, she would surely pay a harsh price.
"Then of course I should side with Lord Beonald!"
"Hoh... Unexpected. It might be good to side with the Magic Tower, why is that?"
"Lord Beonald is at least clean in his calculations, right? On the contrary, how much do they over there try not to share knowledge? Moreover, there are many who steal others' discoveries too. It's really tiresome."
"Ah~ That's true."
While it was true that mages were obsessed with pure knowledge, the pursuit of truth, and magic, interpreting it in a bad way, they could be seen as a race that could ignore all other rules for the sake of 'magic.'
Thus, even among fellow mages, if their 'schools' differed, they couldn't help but have bad relations; there were masters who stole their disciples' achievements, those who didn't teach proper knowledge and only sucked the sweet juice, and those who tried to steal each other's research as part of daily life.
However, Beonald, while being fussy, was someone who gave what needed to be given cleanly and took what needed to be taken.
"Moreover... there are more merits to siding with this side."
"A very wise choice. For such a wise you, I'll give one piece of advice. I truly hate traitors. For those who oppose me, there may be room to spare or negotiate depending on the circumstances, but for traitors, I have no such mercy. I will make them regret being alive."
"Ah, understood! I'll keep that in mind!"
"Good. Then look at this. I need your help."
Upon hearing her answer, Beonald immediately presented something before her.
It was like a blueprint, with numerous formulas, equations, and required materials written on it.
The finished product was something like armor, and she looked at Beonald with curious eyes and asked.
"What is this...? It seems like you're trying to make a magical tool... Is it armor-type magical equipment?"
"Correct. Simply put, it's engraving magic formulas onto armor to enhance performance and supplement the user's abilities. It's a design concept from the Haldeon ruins... Originally, it was an item that started from searching for a way to give knight-level combat power to ordinary people. Look, here on the back... There's a space that uses carved magic stones as fuel, right?"
"Oh my, it really is. But... even if you give knight-level physical abilities through armor, training would still be necessary, and combat sense doesn't come overnight..."
"That's probably why it failed. But what if we change the idea and give this to a 'knight'? Each one is a hard-to-obtain military asset, and losing them incurs a huge loss, but what if through this, we can raise a low knight to the mid-tier realm, and a mid-tier knight to the high-tier realm?"
"Ooh..."
"...Now, that's enough design explanation! You explain this exactly the same to the other three and prepare them according to my instructions. Tell Heidi to go to the Adventurer's Guild and take monster subjugation quests to gather as many magic stones as possible, and tell Vessia to prepare the mold for the blast furnace we made before. Meanwhile, I will prepare the formulas with Sein's assistance and go talk to the Valderian family."
"...You're just planning to use me as labor in the end, aren't you? *Sigh*"
Selina sighed and pretended to complain slightly, but she was actually pleased.
Firstly, the fact that he was sharing such important information with her and even telling her the blueprint meant he seemed to truly consider her an ally.
Also, if she researched the magic formulas in this blueprint, she was sure to achieve magical results, so she immediately moved to carry out the tasks Beonald had assigned.