Chapter 176
Chapter 176
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: crow
Chapter Title: The Princess's Gratitude (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Meanwhile, back at the hotel where the crown prince was staying.
An eerie silence hung in the air.
"Buying up all that mithril for five million gold..."
The crown prince, victorious in the bidding war, drew a deep breath.
Even though he had won, his face was as grim as if he had suffered a crushing defeat.
"Your Highness... wasn't this purchase a bit too reckless...?"
His finance secretary mustered the courage to ask.
But his legs were trembling uncontrollably.
"No, even if it was reckless, this was the right move."
Surprisingly, the crown prince quickly regained his composure.
No matter how badly his own experts had misread the opponent's analysis, he neither executed nor banished them.
"There's no metal more effective at deflecting the southern guerrilla forces' arrow barrages than mithril."
The Southern City Alliance's primary tactic was guerrilla warfare.
They acknowledged their numerical inferiority and favored shooting arrows from the cover of the forests.
That made a metal like mithril, which could effectively glance off arrowheads and spear tips, the perfect choice.
"If we achieve total victory in this war without any military losses, we can recoup that five million gold in no time."
Leon assessed the situation in an instant.
"But the smelting costs are the problem. We've used up all our military funds on the purchase..."
The crown prince closed his blue eyes and sank into thought.
'He must be planning to take out a loan for the armor production costs.'
For a massive client like the crown prince, loans were always available.
However, for an imperial prince of the Empire to borrow money from someone?
Just that fact becoming known would damage his credit.
Especially in the eyes of his father, the Conqueror King.
"..."
He knew this well, which was why the crown prince was proceeding with caution.
"Your Highness."
I carefully addressed him in the silence.
"What is it, Baron?"
The crown prince's cold blue eyes flashed.
In response, I answered with the devoted gaze of a loyal retainer.
"There's a way to cover the armor costs."
When I claimed to have an answer even the finance secretary couldn't provide, the crown prince took interest.
"What is it?"
Leon, listening intently even to a mere baron's words.
He waited seriously for my reply.
"Why not sell off the armor you were already using?"
"You mean the steel armor?"
At the crown prince's question, I lifted the corner of my mouth.
"Yes. Even just the byproducts from melting it down could yield considerable profit."
In the past, when forming Irina's guard unit.
I had steadily saved money by selling off our worn-out steel armor.
We made a tidy sum back then.
But for the crown prince's much larger army?
The profits would be far greater.
Just thinking about the projected earnings made my head spin.
"Finance secretary, could you run the numbers? With His Highness's army size, it should more than cover the smelting costs, right?"
I naturally directed the request to the crown prince's secretary.
The middle-aged man, perhaps still cowed, immediately began calculating.
"Y-yes... Steel has so many uses... And the steel our army used was all high-purity, top quality..."
The crown prince looked at his secretary with pity.
He seemed displeased that it took a mere baron like me to point it out before the calculations were done.
However, he didn't press the issue.
"Very well. Do you have a suitable buyer? We need the funds before heading out to conquer the south."
Leon was earnest about earning merits to restore his credit with his father.
"Leave it to the Burke Merchant Group. I'll negotiate to get top dollar for you."
"..."
The crown prince closed his eyes briefly.
He pondered alone for a moment.
"Your Highness, there's no other way to secure the smelting funds right now."
I quietly added to his cautious demeanor.
"If you're considering a loan, I can request that from the Burke Merchant Group as well."
The Burke Merchant Group was a major player famous in the provinces.
Taking a loan would leave records that would surely reach His Majesty.
That was why I confidently recommended it to him.
"..."
The crown prince opened his eyes slowly.
He took a light breath and spoke.
"Finance secretary."
"Yes, Your Highness."
In the dim lighting, Leon's blue eyes gleamed.
"Starting tomorrow, collect all the existing army armor."
Then, he fixed me with a piercing stare.
"Let's see what Baron Veil can accomplish."
I gave the crown prince a faint smile.
"Thank you, Your Highness. I'll do my utmost since you've placed your trust in me."
I replied with a serious gaze.
「――――――」
The next day.
A massive shipment of steel armor arrived at the Burke Merchant Group.
Guildmaster Burke swallowed hard at the sheer volume of equipment.
"As expected from His Highness the crown prince's army—the quantity is impressive."
"This lets us gauge the size of his forces naturally."
I stood beside him, hands clasped behind my back.
I gazed steadily at the iron armor that had arrived that morning.
"His Highness must have been in quite a hurry to send all this in one day..."
I stared intently at the sturdy, high-quality armor.
Then, I said to the guildmaster.
"Let's melt it all down."
"Right now?"
Burke swallowed hard again at the thought of immediately disposing of imperial property.
"What if there's an issue with the smelting and they come asking for it later...? We should store it for now..."
The guildmaster, tense from the weighty deal.
I approached him slowly.
I placed a light hand on Burke's shoulder.
Then, narrowing my eyes like a fox, I said.
"That's exactly why we need to get rid of it."
The plump man stared blankly at my words for a moment.
Then, realizing my intent, he opened his mouth.
"Surely you don't mean...?"
"Didn't you decide to support the Princess Alliance?"
At my words, the guildmaster pressed his lips together briefly.
Then, having made up his mind, he nodded.
"Understood."
The guildmaster waddled down toward the arriving wagons.
In a voice befitting a great merchant, he directed his traders.
"Take all the arrived armor straight to the forge!!"
"Yes-!!"
The iron armor in the wagons clanged noisily.
The heavy equipment began melting away in vats of hot molten metal.
So quickly that it lost all recognizable form.
I watched intently as the steel dripped down like liquid.
"Whew... With this much volume, just melting it will take ages."
Burke wiped his brow with a handkerchief.
Then, he asked me sidelong.
"What do you plan to do with the smelted steel now?"
"Sell it off."
I pulled a small, pre-prepared note from my pocket.
And handed it to the guildmaster.
"Release the smelted steel only into the capital's western, northern, and eastern markets."
The diagram marked the locations of each district.
All those markets were near the princesses' offices.
"You're going to have the princesses buy up all the disposed steel."
"Yes. Once the crown prince's expedition reveals mithril's weakness, steel's value will skyrocket."
Mithril's weakness.
At those words, the guildmaster tilted his head.
"Mithril has a weakness? I heard it was metal bestowed by the gods..."
"Well, the truth about mithril will come out soon enough."
Hands behind my back, I leisurely exited the forge.
And that night, when the crown prince had bought up the mithril.
I thought of Princess Christina, who had secretly headed toward the southern city-states.
"Not a bear, but a fox of a woman."
Her radiant white hair.
And that sly smile that seemed to pierce all things.
"More like a white fox."
From the forge, I gazed at the distant capital gates.
There, tiny figures of soldiers disguised in jade-green mithril armor were visible.
The ornate armor gleamed under the midday sun.
It looked so sturdy and light that no arrow could penetrate it.
The crown prince, Leon, wore a matching jade helmet.
With the dignified expression befitting the great emperor's eldest son, he marched out the gates.
Toward the battlefield where he would earn his merits.
The countless imperial citizens watching his departure.
They seemed to expect his victory without a doubt, waving cheerfully as they saw off the troops.
And a few days later.
Newspapers filled with special reports fluttered through the capital.
「Crown Prince Leon His Highness's army conquers the southern city-states!!」
As everyone had predicted, the crown prince was victorious.
His reputation for mercilessly crushing enemy armies.
Because of it, the southern states had resisted fiercely to the end without surrendering.
However, they could not overcome the crown prince's elite troops.
Every place he passed became ashes.
Now, the crown prince was returning with crowns and royal seals received from the southern leaders.
"His Highness the crown prince has returned!!"
The glorious moment of his triumphal entry into the capital.
"The battle must have been fierce...!"
"With the southerners resisting that hard, no wonder the armor looks like that..."
The mithril armor had shone brilliantly at the send-off.
But upon their return from victory...
It was dented and deformed everywhere, reduced to scrap.
"To fight so hard that the armor ended up like that..."
"His valor truly rivals His Majesty the Emperor!"
The citizens showered praise on the weary crown prince's army.
「Long live Crown Prince His Highness-!!」
Amid the cheers, however, the crown prince kept his lips pressed tight.
He merely waved formally with a perfunctory smile in response to the acclaim.
"..."
Even his armor's shoulder bore dent marks.
As if struck by a club.
The southern states' weapons surely had no heavy blunt instruments like polearms or axes.
Yet, the moment the crown prince's army encountered them.
Heavy infantry armed in steel armor greeted them.
As if they had prior knowledge that Leon's forces were equipped with mithril armor.
Of course, the crown prince had won through overwhelming force.
His tactics and magic were truly fearsome.
But.
The soldier losses were higher than expected.
And this intelligence reached his father, His Majesty the Emperor.
「....」
From the heavenly palace, the emperor coldly looked down at the crown prince entering the capital.
Then, with a deep sigh, he turned away.
「Pathetic. Losing a full 800 soldiers to mere city-states.」
Beside him stood Prime Minister Moshian.
He reported gravely to the emperor.
"They say the mithril armor was the issue. It blocked arrows and swords well, but the southern troops equipped blunt weapons because of it..."
「No excuses matter. The fact is, countless imperial youths lost their lives.」
At the emperor's rebuke, Moshian sealed his lips.
「What's the point of victory when there's nothing to show for it!」
Leonhardt, displeased by the citizens' cheers, turned from the window.
And muttered quietly to himself.
「If I'd sent Lea instead, at least negotiations might have minimized casualties...」
"What about the mithril armor?"
The prime minister asked quietly.
The emperor furrowed his brow deeply.
Like a wrathful statue from myth.
「We have to recover it all...!! What if we're seen as weak against heavy infantry nations!!」
"But, Your Majesty... Crown Prince Leon says he disposed of all the existing steel armor to fund this production.」
The prime minister answered steadily.
Leonhardt could only cradle his forehead.
「Haa... Just buy up the steel on the market and remake it...」
"That's... The finances are strained, and apparently someone has already bought up all the steel on the market."
The emperor paused at the mention of someone hoarding all the steel.
「Someone bought up the steel?」
"Yes. On the day Crown Prince Leon departed for the south, someone snapped up all the steel supplied to the market."
Leonhardt slowly sat on the bed.
He narrowed his seasoned blue eyes.
「They anticipated Leon's struggles in advance. They knew mithril's flaw.」
The emperor fell silent for a moment.
Then, he ordered the prime minister.
「Release the Black Moon at once. Find those hoarding the steel.」
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The prime minister bowed respectfully and accepted the command.
As he slowly opened the office door to withdraw.
"L-Lea, Your Highness...?"
Moshian came face-to-face with the Empire's First Imperial Princess, Lea Andalusia, waiting outside.
"Prime Minister. Might I have a moment with His Majesty?"
The elderly noble glanced briefly at the emperor.
Leonhardt sat on the bed with a troubled expression.
Seeing his eldest daughter from afar, he raised his palm.
「Come in, Lea.」
The clicking of the princess's boots drew closer to the emperor.
Lea, in a form-fitting white uniform, removed her hat and bowed politely.
"Are you well, Your Majesty?"
「Yes. What brings you here?」
Lea cautiously lifted her head.
Drawing on her constitution that could sense Grand Aura, she spoke.
"I'm sorry, but I overheard from outside the office."
「Overheard what?」
The emperor tilted his head.
Lea smiled innocently, like a dutiful daughter.
"That you're searching for whoever bought up all the steel on the market."
The princess drew a ledger from her bosom.
She presented it to her father—the steel worth two million gold they had purchased.
"This is the combined steel gathered by Irina, Lydia, and myself."
「....」
The emperor's eyebrows twitched as he examined the ledger.
「Surely you didn't... know of Leon's failure and stockpile steel in advance?」
"Yes, we received a tip."
Lea answered like a strict soldier, hands behind her back.
"That armor made from high-purity mithril has a fatal flaw. I tried to report it, but Leon left in such haste that I was too late."
「Who was the tipster...?」
The emperor inquired about the informant on mithril's unknown defect—even to him.
Lea pondered briefly before answering flatly.
"Baron Veil, Your Majesty."
Christina the princess had undoubtedly orchestrated the board first.
But reporting that the crown prince had fallen for Bakal princess's scheme would cause a massive uproar.
So Lea credited the man who had greatly aided them.
「Haha... That man again?」
The emperor chuckled in exasperation.
「Ever since waking from that long slumber, he seems tangled in every major incident.」
"..."
Lea offered no reply to her father's mutterings.
She merely hid the corners of her mouth that lifted unconsciously.
「Very well. We'll reward the baron later. So, what do you plan to do with the purchased steel?」
"We'll use it ourselves."
Lea stated calmly.
"While the crown prince's army reorganizes with mixed mithril-steel armor, our troops will contribute to national defense."
The princesses' forces would contribute to the nation in earnest.
Meaning their faction could now directly execute public duties.
「....」
The emperor understood this well.
After some thought, he replied.
「Fine. Your forces have grown strong enough by now. Proceed.」
He granted Lea's request.
This effectively extended to all the unique authority the crown prince had once held alone.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Lea placed her hand over her heart.
And bowed crisply like a soldier.
She moved to quietly leave the emperor's chambers.
But at that moment.
「Lea.」
At the emperor's call, the princess turned.
「Be careful. Leon is a child consumed by jealousy.」
"..."
Lea's cool eyes, inherited from her father, gleamed at his meaningful words.
She fell silent briefly.
「He'll do anything for his ambitions. Stay vigilant.」
No matter how mighty Leonhardt, he couldn't stem every event in this vast empire alone.
Thus, the emperor advised his daughter.
"..."
The princess smiled faintly at her father's pointed words.
「I have vast ambitions myself, Father.」
She replied with a face mirroring his own beauty.
「I'll claim everything I desire with my own hands.」
With that, Lea strode confidently from the office.
The crisp click of her calf-high boots echoed.
「Those who need caution are Leon, Irina, and Lydia—not I.」
――――――.
The Empire's First Imperial Princess walked the corridor alone.
Her gaze drifted to the lawn visible from the arcade.
"..."
There stood a man who had waited outside while the princess met the emperor.
"Oh, finished already?"
I, admiring the flower beds, glanced over.
And approached Lea with a smile.
"Did you have a good talk with His Majesty?"
"Yes. Just as you said, he's granted our princess alliance military authority too."
Lea answered as she walked beside me.
"Perfect. The moment all knight orders stand equal—at last."
Equal.
At that word, Lea paused as if struck by a thought.
"Veil."
At the princess's call, I instinctively turned.
And in that instant.
"...!"
The princess rose on her toes.
In the emperor's corridor, she quietly pressed her lips to mine.
"Mm..."
Her eyes half-closed.
Her golden eyelids trembled faintly.
"Veil, I'm very greedy."
We gazed at each other in a daze.
"My knight order won't settle for equality. It will surpass all others."
Then, the princess swept her radiant hair behind her ear.
"Of course, our relationship as well."
Lea flashed a sly smile.
And strolled ahead leisurely, hands behind her back.
I could only stare blankly at her sensual retreating figure.
"Ha..."