Civilization Is Better Than the Wild
Civilization is better than the wild.
“See? Just like I told you.”
“Yeah… this is incredible. A worthless junk satellite with no value at all, transformed into a paradise-class world in the blink of an eye.”
Artraia stared at the data I had brought, her large eyes blinking in open astonishment.
“You’re right, Arto. With an ability like this, we could hand over the entire northern sector and still come out ahead.”
“Oh?”
She was so delighted that she was casually joking about the northern sector—something that until now had always functioned as a kind of trigger for her.
“I never expected to hear you say something like that.”
“Wouldn’t you? Thanks to Gaia, the Empire’s only real weakness just vanished overnight!”
A blissful smile spread across Artraia’s face, and she began muttering plans under her breath.
“There are more than a few planets inside the Empire that we’ve simply left alone because of poor habitability ratings… If we turn every last one of them into paradises… Heh heh…”
The sheer force of her will to convert every planet into a paradise was almost overwhelming.
Ah. I need to rein this in right now.
If I left her like this, I had the distinct feeling a major disaster was brewing. I decided to drop the next report on her immediately.
“But Artraia, there’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
“What is it? Ah, wait— that expression means it’s something pretty bad, doesn’t it?”
Even so, she still wore a full, confident smile as she faced me.
“But this time I feel like I could take any news with a smile! So go ahead—say whatever it is!”
Our Empress, overflowing with confidence and happiness.
I schooled my face into the most neutral expression I could manage and opened my mouth.
“Artraia, the soonest Gaia can perform another terraforming is ten years from now.”
“……Huh?”
“Free terraforming in ten years, at the earliest.”
“Huh?”
The look on Artraia’s face when I said those words was one I would not forget for the next ten years.
After finishing my private audience with Artraia, I stepped out to find the elderly chamberlain and Riel waiting by the door.
“Mm.”
The chamberlain and I exchanged a brief nod. Then I scooped Riel up and left the imperial palace.
“How did it go, Minister?”
“Well, I made her face reality.”
We headed straight for the Foreign Executive Ministry.
“Nothing major happened while I was gone for a week, right?”
“If you count the travel time, it’s closer to two weeks, you know.”
“……When you put it like that, I start getting nervous for no reason.”
I fretted the whole way there, but thankfully—
Hmm. Looks like nothing serious.
The atmosphere inside the Foreign Executive Ministry carried no particular sense of crisis. Relieved, I started heading past my office toward my private quarters—
“Where do you think you’re going? Afternoon work is still left, you know.”
“Ah.”
Riel’s ghost-operation to drag me down with her—refusing to let me slack off alone. Faced with the sheer willpower visible even in her artificial eyes, I had no choice but to sit down and get to work.
And as if they had been waiting for that exact moment, the reports came flooding in. Nearly two weeks of backlog. I could only heave a deep sigh.
On top of that, the universe seemed determined not to give me any easy days.
—Beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep!
An emergency alarm blared from the terminal I always carried. I dragged a hand down my face.
“Haaaah… What now?”
“You’re always so spectacular, Minister.”
“Quiet, Riel.”
I shut her up for good measure, then manipulated the terminal screen to see what the hell was going on.
The moment I opened it—
—Ding♪
A familiar sound effect rang out, and the status window’s event message helpfully summarized the situation for me.
Event: Prelude to Rebellion
A rebellion has broken out in the Sevan Administration!
However, due to a complete lack of further information, the Sevelian Empire is doing everything possible to ascertain the facts.
……A rebellion? The Sevan Administration?
The sudden information left me nothing but baffled. Confronted with a nation I had never even heard of, I immediately turned to Riel, who was working beside me.
“Riel, where’s the Sevan Administration?”
“Huh? How can you not know that, Minister?”
Of course, that earned me a look of pure pity from her.
I’ll let it slide for now.
I was the one who didn’t understand the situation, after all.
“……”
When I backed down, Riel realized I wasn’t joking and scratched her head.
“Ah… now that I think about it, there’s no way you would know, Minister.”
She hacked the wall screen in the office and brought up a galactic map.
“If you only look at the map like this, the western sector of our Empire just looks like unexplored territory, right?”
“……Mm.”
“But everyone forgets—the galaxy isn’t flat, you know.”
Riel flicked her fingers lightly. The galactic map shifted into 3D and tilted slightly.
“Ohh.”
“See it now?”
Nations above and below our own sector—completely invisible on the flat map—came into view.
……Even if this were reality it would be one thing, but seeing a structure like this inside a game world…
Surprise aside, a single question rose in my mind.
I don’t think I ever saw this during the handover process.
It wasn’t just an excuse—it was true. If my memory was accurate, I had never once heard about this structure in over ten years.
Event: Multilayered Galaxy
You have discovered that the galaxy you inhabit is structured as a three-dimensional multilayer system—completely different from the original game!
Galactic Insight increased.
Even the status window drove the point home. Watching my reaction, Riel nodded.
“Well, that traitor you personally took care of—the previous Foreign Minister—went and sabotaged the records, you know.”
“Ah.”
I hadn’t expected that bastard to show up here.
“Thanks to him, information on Quadrants 1 and 3—everything except this Quadrant 2 where we are—is still under heavy reconstruction.”
“Hmm…”
“And the Sevan Administration that just came up is located right here… in Quadrant 3.”
“Mm.”
“That’s why intel from over there tends to arrive a little later than it does here in Quadrant 2.”
It felt oddly like reading a novel that only bothered to explain the worldbuilding nearly fifty chapters in. A strange mood settled over me.
But there was a more pressing issue to confirm first.
“Hold on—does the secretariat… or anyone else know about this?”
“Of course? At the very least, anyone secretary-level or higher in each ministry should know.”
“……”
The thought that I alone had been the idiot made my face burn.
“Ah, but most people just know it exists and never actually deal with the other quadrants, so they forget about it.”
“Still, someone must have noticed that I know nothing about the layers—no, the quadrants—and just kept quiet, right?”
I was fretting over something that wasn’t quite fear when Riel thumped her flat chest with a fist, as if to say there was nothing to worry about.
“Obviously I already handled that. Everyone thinks you know about the quadrants but just don’t bother talking about them, you know?”
“……Oh.”
How reassuring she looked when she said that.
“That’s my Riel! I believed in you!”
“Eek?!”
Without thinking, I grabbed her and hoisted her up like a victory cheer, pouring out my joy.
“W-Wait a second! Do we really have to do this right now?!”
“Of course. After you spent all that time being cheeky with me, finding out you were actually doing your job properly—how could I not?”
“Uuuugh… W-Well, if you put it that way…”
Of course, the moment didn’t last long.
“Minister, we’ve just received contact from the Sevan Administration—”
“I’ll never forgive this humiliation from Riel!”
“Gyaaah!!”
Startled by the secretary who suddenly opened the door, I dropped Riel straight onto the floor.
“Ah.”
“……What is it, secretary?”
I spoke as if nothing had happened. The secretary, sweating coldly, straightened his posture and delivered the report again.
“Y-Yes, sir! Emergency contact from the Sevan Administration! A rebellion has broken out, and they urgently request aid from their suzerain, the Holy Sevelian Empire—”
“Mm… Understood. I’ll think it over and get back to you on that.”
“Yes, Minister!”
After the secretary left—
“……Sorry.”
“Apologize properly, Minister.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I can’t feel any sincerity, you know.”
“I’m really sorry.”
“……”
Before I could properly begin work, I had to keep offering apologies to the Riel I had just power-bombed.