Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: WOLF'S RAIL
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Trista family office.
True to the family's nature, this room reserved exclusively for the family head was filled more with magical tools than decorations, and more grimoires than works of literature.
Entry was permitted only to the family head, a select few servants for cleaning, and guests personally summoned by the head.
Most visitors were received in the drawing room and ushered to parties in the hall, so being invited here alone signified that one was an important guest of the Trista family.
And in my view, this was indeed a critically important matter.
"Well then, Your Highness. Shall we discuss the compensation?"
"Mm. Let's do that."
"First, the compensation will be..."
"No, I'd like to hear your proposal first."
"Pardon? Ah, yes."
Money talk is the most important thing in the world, right?
Compensation negotiations where I hold the initiative—what could be more delightful?
I had more to demand than I expected, and more I wanted to secure.
Time to activate the skill.
Here goes.
Earl Glass Trista could feel the prince's aura shift right before his eyes.
With just a single phrase—let's begin the compensation discussion—the young man in front of him suddenly felt immense.
It was like the weight of an imperial audience with His Majesty the Emperor.
To possess such overwhelming presence at this young age...
"Wh-what I can offer is..."
"I told you. I'll make the proposal."
"...Ah, my apologies, Your Highness."
I mustn't resist. Probe first.
And it might just be my imagination. Am I getting cold feet because he's imperial blood?
Earl Glass Trista cautiously met Wolfram's gaze, and then...
"My achievements speak for themselves, don't they?"
"Y-yes, they do."
Glass flinched and averted his eyes without realizing it.
Yes.
He had proven it.
This young man, Wolfram von Loengrin, had used some unknown method to deal with the monsters.
News of his method spread like wildfire, allowing the Trista family's mines plagued by slimes to be cleared.
And it wasn't just the mines near the family estate. This mysterious solution would spread to all their mines.
In essence, he had sparked a revolution in the mining industry.
Had he not intervened, the family would have suffered massive losses, burdening his daughters—who bore the future—with immense strain.
Yet this young man, the prospective son-in-law chosen for Aila, had appeared naturally, resolved it nonchalantly, and acted as if oblivious to the gravity of his deed.
Earl Glass Trista decided to test the waters with a small bait.
"First, allow me to express my deepest gratitude. You've done us a tremendous service."
Offering thanks first was the worst blunder for a merchant.
How could a debtor praise the creditor's merits?
If someone had dared thank him like this, Glass would have seized the opening and demanded far more.
But Wolfram merely smiled lightly and brushed it off.
"No big deal. Just some trivial knowledge—easy to handle."
"...I-is that so."
The words caught in his throat.
He realized the slime solution was 【far from extraordinary】 to him.
This alone would let him devour all the surrounding mines.
For instance, deliberately spreading slime in stalled mines, buying them cheap, then resolving with this method—how much profit per year...? It would usher in a true gale of reform in mining.
"I have no interest in petty gains before me."
"Hah...!"
As if rebuking Glass's impure thoughts, Wolfram spoke in a subdued tone.
"Earl Glass Trista. I want to give you an opportunity."
His own heart raced at the words.
Like words infused with magic.
An irresistible offer.
"...An opportunity, you say?"
"I'm not here to haggle over mere goods or this incident's exchange."
"...My vision is too narrow; I don't grasp it fully. May I hear your true intent?"
"I pride myself on turning my visions, however small, into reality with these hands."
"Quite right. From what Aila's told me alone, I've been awestruck countless times."
"My mind convinces me I can achieve it, but alas, some things remain impossible without material backing."
"So you're saying...?"
"Don't you want to stand by my side, supply the materials I desire, and see how far we can reshape the world?"
"Ah..."
His heart nearly stopped.
Then it pounded several times fiercer.
"Your place awaits on the stage that will change the world, Earl."
"O-oh, oooh...!"
Those words alone sufficed.
Not mere profit-sharing, but a ticket aboard the ship sailing toward the future. That's what this young man offered.
Like a creature granted boarding on Noah's Ark.
Glass's eyes trembled endlessly, like a devotee bearing witness to faith.
"The items I'll create henceforth will remake Jefrin, the Empire, and ultimately open a new world."
"...Yes. Indeed."
"Will you follow?"
Glass answered not with words.
A merchant's word was lighter than air.
He simply dropped to one knee, placed his left hand over his heart, and extended his right toward the young man.
A noble gesture pledging his heart.
Nailed it.
Glass's action was the oath of fealty taken by honor-bound nobles!
"...Rise. I'm still far too lacking to receive your loyalty."
"Y-yes, understood, Your Highness."
This outcome stemmed from fully grasping this incident, my future, and the Trista family's traits.
Or rather, the most plausible inference blending canon and reality.
For example, in the original story, Aila Trista torments Kelters until Act 2, but in Act 3, she suddenly recruits talent, poaches others, goes berserk, draws a blade on Eve, commits the grave crime of "hostility toward the Student Council President," and gets purged and expelled by Regina Cielra and Kelters.
Yet the Trista finances were surprisingly solid.
This mine shutdown must have been the trigger for Aila's fall.
The game offered no details, but it was a reasonable guess.
Especially when recruiting Spica as a companion—her default gear was pathetically subpar compared to other first-years.
In simple terms: Trouble struck the Trista family.
Aila saw talent recruitment as the fix, forming her faction, falling afoul of Eve, dragging Regina in during their clash, and getting purged.
The Tristas shattered. Spica scraped into school but in poverty. That sort of inference.
But I didn't want to see that.
Aila, Spica, and even Earl Glass—they're all good folks, right?
So...
"First, what I desire is mutual exchange."
"...Exchange, you say."
"Yes. Not money from the Tristas—I want precious ores and materials."
"Hm. Precious ores—which tiers?"
"From run-of-the-mill 9-tier stones to, if possible, 1-tier Seven-Colored Ore."
"Hah! But Seven-Colored Ore... Isn't it legendary, practically mythical?"
"Just an example. What I truly seek is priority bidding rights on minerals mined by the Tristas."
"...Priority bidding rights?"
"Yes. I'll pay, of course. In exchange, I'll share mine monster countermeasures and prototypes made from your ores."
"...That's an overwhelming boon for us. We agree to collaborate."
I nodded slightly, cheering inwardly.
Done.
Hooked.
Cash now? At best, tens of millions of rin—even maxed out.
But late-game items don't sell for peanuts.
So I wanted materials, and got them. Backup from the West's premier mining family, Trista.
Clear a few thousand slimes and score this? The world's too kind to me.
Probably 'cause I sold the dreams hard.
Aila's rebellion, Spica's revolution, the earl's reform... I basically said, I've got grand visions—invest now or miss out, and it landed perfectly.
Bidding rights mean paying, sure, but it's a massive win.
Money can't buy everything.
As I nodded, satisfied, Earl Trista said something odd.
"But this feels like a fair trade. Hard to call it a ticket to ride your dreams."
"...Is that so."
No more to squeeze, yet offering extra?
Haha, hard to refuse a gift from an elder. Gratefully accepted.
Now, what to take?
My convenience store's biggest lack right now...
Ah, right—that.
"Oh, do you handle metal forming and processing? And I need magecraft specialists with golem crafting skills."
"I'll hire them at once. But what for?"
"For the dream."
"Splendid."
For the next two weeks after that—barring a quick return to Jefrin for supplies—I stayed with the Tristas.
Not slacking, of course. I pondered the store's top need and spent time fabricating it.
'Rather than forging steel plates from scratch, modifying existing items seems better.'
'Hah, such ingenuity... Possible? Well, my soul screams it is.'
'Excellent. We've glimpsed Your Highness's vision. Our mechanists' guild and golem mages seize this chance.'
'Fabrication aside, operation demands a magecraft master with supreme mana control...'
'Ah, aha. Indeed. Such brilliance... Astonishing foresight, Prince Wolfram.'
Thus, united in dream, we created it.
A two-car formation mana-powered auto-carriage, linking two wagons!
Aila gaped wide-eyed at my carriage and asked,
"So this is what you made? Using that precious golem core...?"
"Mm. Yes."
"G-golem cores are impossible to produce now, you know? They auction for tens of millions each... Even the imperial family rotates them for archmage protection..."
"......"
Wait,
seriously?
"Dang it... Ahem. I know."
Imperial Bloodline blocked my curse. Thanks, Imperial Bloodline!
No, steady. Don't flinch at mere hundreds of millions, Wolfram. No regrets.
"A-anyway. It's what the store needs most. Location's the issue. Regular shuttles twice daily will boost customers."
"Still, a golem core..."
"It's fine. This is my goal."
"Ah, Wolfram's dream... Hehe. Right. Gotta have that scale."
Golem core.
Obtained by downing a golem in the 1-4 Eastern Forest ruins, I engraved propulsion magecraft runes into the carriage chassis, using it as the engine.
Driving? Pure mana control—fiendishly tough.
Hence, I hired Patrasche as driver.
"......Am I really piloting this? Master? For real?"
"Four days a week while I run the store—three regular runs daily. Other two off. Contract till my graduation."
"I shall heed and obey, my master."
Patrasche, decked in custom W.R.-logo suit and engineer's cap, nodded.
Good. Driver secured.
"Wolfram. Mind if I ride? Can I be first?"
"Go ahead."
Aila seemed thrilled most by the build—practically bouncing like a kid. I nodded.
Thus, one week.
Regular shuttle results? Jaw-dropping.
Even Patrasche gawked and shot me looks.
"Master."
"......"
"No new customers. But the usual Black Crystal girl, day laborer, assassin, chick—all thrilled it's easier to reach... Oh, and the mana-gifted heirs too."
"......"
"This what you wanted?"
"......"
"Master. Tomorrow's a holiday. Remember?"
"...Yeah."
"Whoa, it's empty? Wolfram, one more shuttle ride then! Okay?!"
"......Go for it."
"Yay! Thanks, Wolfram! Patrasche, let's go!"
"......"
Customers didn't increase.
Aila, Nefti, Rudika, Milmyu, even Eve raved.
Why... the hell not?
"Hm. Master."
"...What."
"Folks won't board a carriage driven by a mystery wolf unless they're half-mad, I reckon."
"......Ah."
"Contract's locked till year's end, mind. Don't break fairy deals."
"I... know."
"Heh... Holiday tomorrow—might joyride. Off to shuttle. Have fun."
Patrasche's chuckle as she passed stabbed my chest.
It was a spring chill to the bone.