Chapter 2 - “My Archion, Do Whatever You Want.”
“My Archion, Do Whatever You Want.”
Translator : Elizabeth
Chapter 2
Flash!
Let there be light!
Fittingly for such an expression, the Enersis Lord's study, which had been draped in evening shadows, suddenly brightened up.
“……My word.”
Delford Enersis. Biological father of Archion Enersis. And the very man who had planned to sell him off as a live-in son-in-law to a Duke's family.
In his hands now was the incandescent bulb that Archion had spent three months creating.
At a glance, it was merely a metaphysical work of art made of a glass sphere, platinum, and various metals.
Zzzzt….
However, the moment mana was funneled into it, it emitted a light five times stronger than a mana lamp, accompanied by a slight warmth.
And yet, its consumption efficiency was nine times better than a mana lamp….
“Butler.”
“Yes. Here is a magic stone.”
The Count immediately pressed the magic stone provided by the butler to the bottom of the incandescent bulb.
Whoosh!
“Ha, haha! Hahahaha! Heavens….”
He laughed hollowly as the incandescent bulb continued to shine brilliantly.
This... this was born from the hands of his "incompetent" youngest son?
“Butler. I must ask you to check as well, in case my eyes are failing me.”
“My Lord. I was so surprised I felt the urge to wash my eyes and look again.”
Consuming mana at nine times the efficiency of a mana lamp with five times the brightness. The effect was simply "very bright," yet its high efficiency was comparable to the artifacts said to be crafted by the great mages of old.
The Count’s mind reeled with the words his youngest—Archion—had uttered just moments ago while handing over the bulb and reporting his research results.
“Father. I have no interest in the Earldom.”
Normally, those would have been words of resignation. He was, after all, a "witless" boy who couldn't use magic.
Still, he was his child. No matter how cold a Count might be, he had no intention of pushing his own son off a cliff to his death.
That was why he had intended to send Archion as a live-in son-in-law to the Northern Grand Duchy, where he would at least be valued for his lineage….
“I have no interest in the Earldom.”
“Ugh…!”
He creates an artifact-grade mana lamp out of the blue and then spits out those words?!
How much budget had Archion taken to create this thing called an incandescent bulb? Compared to the cost of developing a new spell, it was a mere pittance. Furthermore, given the immense wealth of the Enersis family, it was practically nothing.
But with that, he made... an artifact-grade mana lamp?! The production cost would be cheaper than a mana lamp, and with this level of brightness, the applications were endless.
“Every place that needs light will have a demand for this. If so, then even in this field...!”
It was a given that it would replace candles and torches in daily life. With this brightness, it could even replace the torches at military base garrisons.
Most importantly, if the production cost was lowered, it could be distributed to commoner households. If that happened, they could work even at night, and production capacity would skyrocket.
How many other uses could he think of!
The moment this went on sale, money would accumulate in an instant.
“Butler….”
“Yes.”
“Bring Archion here.”
And yet, of all people, the one who created this was the youngest son he had deemed the most incompetent! It was a result too vivid to be dismissed as a mere miracle.
This was a talent of Archion’s he had been unaware of. And this was only a glimpse!
“Archion. Why must you test this father of yours….”
The Count felt as though he were being put to the test.
Perhaps Archion had already made up his mind to leave the family. Perhaps he had deliberately shown the finished product to mock the Count for failing to recognize his talent.
“Are you trying to punish me for my neglect…?”
To the Count, the time spent waiting for Archion felt like an eternity.
“What is it that you want from me?”
Why is he so nervous? That was what Archion Enersis felt from his biological father, Delford, the moment he stepped into the Lord's study.
“Father. I—”
“Does saying you have no interest in the Earldom... mean you have no lingering attachment to this territory?”
“Pardon?”
What was his father suddenly talking about?
This was a family that had always pressured him. Naturally, Archion had no attachment to the title of Count, but he hadn't planned on leaving the Enersis territory immediately either.
“I will not beat around the bush. Archion. What is it that you want?”
“Father. I simply want peace.”
A territory with high-quality mines, fertile lands, and even a commercial city. Moreover, there was a Magic Tower within the territory, making it easy to obtain alchemy materials—and by extension, materials for engineering.
And even if he was tired of his blood relatives... the 17-year-old Archion, before regaining his past memories, had liked this place.
Not this mansion with his relatives, of course. But the prosperous and peaceful territory outside the mansion itself.
“I just want to focus on my alchemy research in my workshop without competing with my siblings.”
“Is that truly your heart’s desire? Really?”
Therefore, he had no reason to leave.
“Yes. A life without want is enough for me.”
“Ahem, without want, you say.”
Archion spoke with as much sincerity as possible, and the Count let out a low groan.
Because, unlike his siblings, Archion had lived quite frugally. While the reincarnated Archion felt he was living in plenty, the Count's perspective was different.
To the Count's ears, it sounded like: “I’m very hurt. I’m considering whether I should leave the family.” It meant he felt guilty. Enough to break out in a cold sweat.
“If that is your wish… then so be it.”
Now that he realized the value of the incandescent bulb, the Count was in the weaker position.
What if Archion stormed out of the family, was absorbed by a rival house or faction, and released this bulb?
Beyond it being a massive hit, people both inside and outside the family would question Delford Enersis's leadership. Simultaneously, the family would be pointed at as "scoundrels who threw away a talented child."
“I swear on the name of Delford Enersis. I promise you full, unconditional support.”
“You’ve said those words before—”
“No. I am not being vague. This means….”
In that case, it was better to keep Archion happy so he would stay in Enersis. In that regard, Delford, while lacking as a father, was an excellent negotiator when it came to material things.
“It means Enersis will support you with everything we have.”
“Pardon?”
“Use the family fortune as you wish. Use my name.”
He’s the one who made the incandescent bulb. Could such a boy not make something even more incredible?
He had to be held onto at all costs. It was a proposal that essentially said, “My Archion, do whatever you want!”
Thud!
Archion stepped out of the Lord's study, feeling dazed.
To put what just happened simply: it was as if his cold-hearted father had suddenly become anxious and grabbed him by the hem of his trousers.
Something that should never have happened, had happened to him.
Archion held up the returned incandescent bulb and inspected it.
“Is this… truly that incredible?”
Certainly, the mana consumption efficiency was nine times better than a mana lamp, and the brightness was five times better—with the potential for even more.
Moreover, in a good way, he didn't even know what its lifespan was.
He had expected it to break within three days since it used a bamboo filament, but the experimental model he left in the workshop had been on 24 hours a day for six days now and was still perfectly fine.
It didn't even emit enough heat to make him feel shy about calling it an incandescent bulb, so perhaps….
Slap, slap!
“No getting ahead of yourself.”
He couldn't let his "hope circuit" burn too bright yet. Engineering is a cold discipline. Prioritizing the search for improvements while keeping the possibility of failure in mind was the way to go.
Patting his own cheeks to steel his resolve, Archion began to walk. He opened the door to his workshop and entered, only to—
“Gah! Goldie! What are you doing?!”
“A-ah! Well…!”
He smacked his forehead. He even shielded his eyes because it was so bright.
“I mean, no matter how warm it is….”
“He-hehe. I’m sorry.”
Goldie was currently in the middle of a warm compress session in front of 20 incandescent bulbs she had turned on to maximum output. No wonder the workshop felt sweltering despite it being winter.
“Forget it. It’s better than you catching a cold.”
“Hehe, thank you!”
It was almost the end of winter, so Archion decided to overlook it.
“Come to think of it, the principle of a heater is similar to a filament, right?”
And thanks to Goldie, he had been reminded of the principle behind electric heaters.
Mana acts like electricity, and the reason an incandescent bulb emits heat is because resistance occurs when electricity flows. And this is also the principle of an electric heater.
Thinking that he should release an electric heater when the weather gets chilly again….
“Goldie.”
“Yes, Young Master. But why are you speaking with such a serious face all of a sudden?”
He wanted to give Goldie a piece of good news.
“C-could it be! Did the Lord say he’s kicking you out?! Waaaaah! No! What will happen to our poor Young Master! I’ll be kicked out too, but you’ll definitely take me with you, right?! Right?!!”
“No, you slanderous doggy.”
He first had to correct her misunderstanding.
After spending another ten minutes calming Goldie down, Archion finally informed her of the authority he had received from the Count.
“Sniff, the Lord, sniff, even staked his name, sniff! He said he would support the Young Master?”
“He told me to use the family fortune without restraint.”
“Ooh-waah! Then Goldie won't have to be kicked out either— Waaaah! Don't pinch me!”
“I have to. You’re so annoying I just have to pinch you a bit.”
While stretching out Goldie’s cheeks, Archion mapped out his future plans in his head.
First, he had been given a "blank check" for a budget. This meant he could pour in a massive amount of funds that even a Ducal family in the Empire wouldn't dare to.
Using such a large sum of money just to light up the Enersis mansion felt a bit... wrong. Excessive luxury wasn't to Archion's taste.
“Are you going to distribute it to commoner households like you mentioned?”
“I’d like to, but even if we lower the production cost, platinum is still being used.”
So, he would use this mana incandescent bulb in other places.
“Still, I hope it gets distributed, hehe. It’s so pretty, it would be nice to put it on the streets too.”
“The streets?”
For instance, the streets Goldie mentioned.
“Streetlights.”
Streetlights installed on roads or sidewalks.
It would be difficult to cover every single part of this massive Enersis territory. But couldn't they install streetlights in the city center or on roads with major facilities?
Supply the public facilities first.
The necessary energy? There were plenty of magic stones.
Furthermore, since mana seemed to take on the properties of electricity, they could supply it through wires, and it would be good to create a distribution board to control the streetlights by road.
“You’re going to install these incandescent bulbs at regular intervals along the streets? And you’re going to put really bright ones on poles?”
When he told Goldie this, her eyes went wide….
“The cost for just the poles will be enormous….”
“It’s fine. Father said he’d pay for everything.”
Using her mage's logic, she calculated how expensive Archion’s plan would be.
“But, hmm. It will definitely make things safer.”
“Right?”
And she also realized the benefits that would follow.
No matter how prosperous the Earldom was, there was still a fair amount of crime at midnight. Even on fairly large streets!
Because of this, the guards always patrolled while holding torches. Sometimes they even issued curfews.
But if they illuminated the streets of the Earldom with streetlights? They would be somewhat liberated from security issues.
“And since I’ve received a lot of money anyway….”
Even so, Enersis was a place where money overflowed.
Since he had received a blank check for his budget, Archion thought of something he had always wanted to try.
“Let’s put a sign on Father’s carriage.”
“A sign? One made of wood?”
“No, I’m going to make it by putting an incandescent bulb inside a translucent box.”
For the Great Count of Enersis, the "filial son" Archion intended to attach a massive name tag.
“In the shape of the letters for 'Enersis'.”
He would attach glowing alphabet signs to the carriage. So it would say, in very large letters: ‘An Enersis is on board.’