The Viscount Is Staging a Play (1)
"You're saying we should put on a play?"
"Yep."
Lucia had her silver hair tied back neatly and possessed a graceful, refined beauty.
But the way she glared at me made it feel like a speech bubble reading 'How can someone this pathetic even exist?' was hovering right over her head.
"We need the money, don't we?"
"I know."
"So if we weave in some special effects using magic, it'll deliver incredible emotion and that perfect rush of excitement..."
"Haah..."
Maybe it was the memories from my previous life.
The low, heavy sigh that escaped her made my body flinch before I could stop it.
And then came the merciless barrage of nagging.
"It's only because I can't bring myself to lay a hand on my senior who just woke up from a month-long coma that I've been holding back..."
"Haha..."
"No matter how ruined things are!"
"The official successor of the Illusion Magic Tower!"
"Suggesting we waste magic on some theatrical nonsense just to scrape together a few coins!"
"How exactly!"
"Am I supposed to understand this!"
"Huh?"
That's right.
The official successor of the Illusion Magic Tower.
The owner of this body was a 7th Circle Archmage.
On top of that, a viscount who had inherited his territory at a young age.
A noble, no less.
'At first I really thought I'd hit the jackpot... Ha...'
Up to this point, it sounded like the perfect start to a sweet isekai story that anyone would envy.
But my life had never gone according to plan in my previous world.
There was no way it would suddenly flow smoothly just because I'd entered a new one.
The moment I woke up in an unfamiliar bed, a flood of strange memories poured in.
Through those memories I caught a glimpse of this body's life.
Illusion magic, treated as nothing more than a curiosity or the eccentric study of weirdos.
The Magic Tower that collapsed with my master's death.
The sudden news of my parents' passing.
The territory that went completely bankrupt after getting tangled up in the kingdom's road construction project.
And the final memory of collapsing from overwork while desperately trying to do something about it.
Anyway, if I had to summarize my current situation, it was exactly this.
'The lord of a completely bankrupt territory.'
'The ultimate failed character who put his skill points in all the wrong places.'
Lucia, my junior from the Magic Tower, had still followed me despite how broke I was, simply because I was a noble.
At first she had refused to accept reality, but after carefully examining every ledger in the territory she transformed into an entirely different person from the one I'd known at the tower.
"...Hey! Russell, are you even listening properly?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm listening."
"Then maybe you could give me an actual answer?"
"Well..."
"Do you seriously not have any plan at all?"
"I already told you. I said let's put on a play."
"..."
Her expression froze as if words had failed her completely.
Of course I understood why.
In this world, theater was nothing more than cheap entertainment performed by wandering troupes on street corners.
"It can't be helped."
"..."
But it really couldn't be helped.
"You know better than anyone that there's no other way for our territory to make money, right?"
"Even so... those aren't words that should come from the lord!"
Rotten land where farming barely yielded anything.
A barren, shallow hill behind the territory that didn't even produce cheap minerals.
A tiny domain that had barely survived by relying on travelers heading to the royal capital.
And then the new roads created by the kingdom's road maintenance project that bypassed us entirely.
My territory had naturally fallen behind and was slowly dying.
So why the sudden talk of putting on a play?
Because in my previous life I'd been a nameless actor bouncing between theater companies. It was the only thing I knew how to do.
But I hadn't suggested it without thinking.
"I seriously think this is worth trying."
While many new roads that avoided the territory had appeared, the advantage of being extremely close to the royal capital hadn't disappeared.
The kingdom was full of noble children studying abroad, wealthy merchants, countless travelers, and mercenaries.
There were plenty of customers nearby who would gladly spend money on cultural experiences.
And then there was illusion magic.
In this world it was dismissed as nothing more than useless decoration, but in my opinion it was the perfect technology for supporting performances.
"Look. Like this, summoning the illusion of a monster..."
Scuff—.
"Whoa, didn't I look like a really cool knight just now?"
An orc collapsed slowly with a pained expression amid hazy white smoke.
Lucia stared down at the illusion in silence, her face clearly saying she found it pathetic.
And at that moment.
Knock, knock—.
"My lord, the head of the Huck Merchant Coalition has come to visit."
The man was so massive that the reception room chairs looked tiny beneath him.
At first glance the person before me looked like a bandit, but he was the leader of the largest merchant group in our territory.
"What brings you here?"
"..."
"If you've come all this way, you should speak. Why are you just sitting there?"
"Huu..."
The man sitting across from me kept staring at the floor with a heavy expression, letting out one deep sigh after another.
After some time passed.
"My lord, our Huck Merchant Coalition..."
"Yes?"
The giant man began speaking as if he had come to a decision.
"Huu..."
"We plan to relocate our main facilities and logistics hubs inside the royal capital."
The merchant group was leaving.
It was a blow more than enough to cut off the last breath of our dying territory.
Lucia's face turned deathly pale.
"Hmm... It really does look like our territory has gone completely bankrupt."
"Hey, Russell!!"
The shocking declaration from the merchant leader who accounted for the largest portion of the territory's tax revenue.
He no longer hesitated and laid out the prepared explanation.
"Our coalition has used this place as its foundation since my grandfather's time... but we have judged that it is no longer viable. We would be grateful if you could understand our position."
"I see you've already made up your mind before coming."
"...I'm sorry."
"When are you leaving?"
"There are still some remaining transactions and matters to settle, so we'll probably stay in the territory about one more week."
"I see."
"..."
"Understood. In that case, I have one last request. Could you possibly grant it?"
"A... a request, my lord?"
He looked flustered by my unexpected words.
But he wasn't the only one surprised.
'Hey, what are you thinking?!'
Lucia whispered urgently as she scooted closer.
'Don't worry. I have a plan.'
'Suddenly?'
I ignored her heavily furrowed expression that practically screamed suspicion.
Turning back to Huck, I spoke again.
"Ahem. It's not a difficult request."
"Please speak freely. If it's something I can do..."
"It's nothing special. Just watch one play next week before you go."
Tap. Tap. Tap.
"My lord, is this setup acceptable?"
"Yes, it's perfect. The stage is slightly higher than the audience seats. Absolutely ideal!"
"Hup—!"
"Whoa there, Brandt! Do you think an orc would fall to a sword swung that half-heartedly?"
"I-I'm sorry, my lord."
"Haaaaap!"
"Now, Torman. What you're holding isn't a sword. You're not a knight right now. You're a farmer who grabbed his scythe and ran out to protect the village. Got it?"
"Y-yes!"
"Okay, Milo. You're a young villager who ran out with nothing but a stick to protect the village. Put more spirit and energy into it! Understand?"
"I-I'm sorry. I'll try again."
It was then.
"This is seriously the worst."
The clear voice coming from somewhere drew everyone's attention.
"Come on, it's not that bad."
The woman pressing her forehead in the corner of the warehouse.
It was Lucia.
"Hey, that kind of pathetic stare isn't very nice."
"Should I cheer you on instead, then?"
"Ugh, that would be wonderful!"
"Haah..."
"These actors are working hard for the future of our territory. Could you please leave without draining their energy?"
"..."
The atmosphere grew slightly tense.
The knights who had been deep in rehearsal quietly lowered their hands and started reading the room.
"The Huck Merchant Coalition leaving is a really serious problem, you know?"
"I know."
"The territory could collapse in the blink of an eye."
"You've said that exact thing dozens of times. I remember."
"..."
"I'll take care of everything, so stop worrying."
"Haah..."
Lucia let out a deep sigh at my bold claim and silently scanned the warehouse.
The creaky chairs and the makeshift stage slapped together with rough carpentry.
The knights swinging sticks instead of swords through the air, and the servants cleaning up.
"Do you really believe you can change the Huck Merchant leader's mind with this?"
"Of course."
The Huck Merchant Coalition had grown for three generations with our territory at its center.
And during the time of Huck's grandfather when the coalition was founded, many things had happened in the territory.
"Did you know that fifty years ago our territory was crawling with monsters?"
It was exactly as I'd said.
A territory granted as a reward for monster subjugation after starting as a royal knight.
And the countless people who had given their lives to build a new home here.
This territory had quite a dramatic story behind it.
The perfect material for a sentimental drama.
"And I've heard the head of the Huck Merchant Coalition is an incredibly sentimental person."
"Where is this coming from all of a sudden..."
Her expression showed she couldn't understand at all.
It might be a development that was hard for the emotionally dry Lucia to grasp.
But what could I do?
There was no sharp solution to revive the territory.
And the lord himself wanted to do a play.
"Just trust me. I have it all planned out."
"..."
"When it comes to moving people's hearts, nothing beats a good sentimental story. Wahahaha!"