Chapter 65
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‘Research data copies.’
It was a perfectly feasible story.
I had already connected to the game. Merely glancing around inside and leaving would have been too naive.
The Earl of Acker, Otis Young-a’s guardian, stared at her in utter shock, as though the entire tale had never crossed his mind.
All eyes locked onto her, and Otis Young-a broke out in a cold sweat. The sight screamed caught thief.
The commander of the Israeli Revolutionary Army must have believed the prize was already his, curling the corner of his mouth into a satisfied grin. I took a moment to sort my thoughts.
‘What kind of data would actually benefit them?’
In the fake game I had given them, I had hidden several items that looked authentic.
The question of whether they would actually obtain those items was far from simple.
Because even the fake Lucky Encounter holder, Louis Fairmont, had never been able to read those documents.
The reason was straightforward: I had deliberately constructed the game so that he, like me, could only progress step by step.
With every rank he stacked, one more piece of the game would unlock.
Since he had chosen Chester, Lucas the Grand Duke’s memory replica, as his mentor, his growth was rapid—but even now he was only at the second-rank level.
What he had acquired at this stage could be covered by existing technology.
‘If I had to pick something usable… all the weapon blueprints.’
Yet the performance of those weapons was no different from what the major nations were already producing.
“If it does not inconvenience you, would you share some of your research data with us? Of course we are prepared to pay a fair price.”
“The game was designed so that data could only be obtained step by step. Those materials that Louis Fairmont could not read, I myself could not read. I made copies, but most of the data he is able to read now is already commercial technology.”
“No issues.”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean that, in terms of current technology levels, there is no problem.”
Current technology levels? Does that mean no value?
Absolutely not.
If they are the kind of weapons being produced by the major nations, that means frontline-generation weapons.
Nothing revolutionary, but the core technologies that every nation keeps strictly hidden and guarded.
The F-22s of the United States are already commercialized current-generation equipment. Their blueprints are not worthless, are they?
“It would have been ideal if we could obtain designs from the next generation onward, but there is nothing we can do. We do not even have those.”
“Ah……”
“What I desire is the Vanguard Force equipment production data. Even in the game, this is only at the basic level, is it not?”
For those who lacked the ability to produce Vanguards themselves, this was nothing short of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gain genius-level power.
‘I hit the mark exactly.’
If Otis Young-a had properly copied the data, it would have contained blueprints for Sky Fortresses and Vanguards as well.
Her targeting had been precise.
“Um……”
“From your expression, you do possess it.”
The revolutionary army’s atmosphere brightened noticeably.
Yet the opposite was true for Otis Young-a; she looked visibly troubled.
She had hesitated because handing over strategic weapon blueprints to those who professed to be revolutionaries could endanger her own position.
Of course it would.
Her actions could have ignited the spark of war.
“Just as Lord Lawrence revealed his true identity, I am a descendant of the former royal family. You must already be aware of how many lives the nobles shed in their conflicts with the royal family while we tried to establish the republican political system in this country.”
“……”
Otis Young-a’s expression betrayed clear doubt at the irrelevant words.
“The reason we, the royal family, shed so much blood and then willingly gave up power is simple. We believed it was the choice that served the people. The ruler of the nation must be the absolute majority—the people—not a small minority. That was the will of our late king, who created the republic.”
The republican system of the Prius Republic was not something the people had won.
It had been introduced by a young king who loved his people and possessed a sharp mind.
He was, after all, the kind of person who deserved to be called a sage or a saint.
“Yet look at the state of this country now. It is rotten with corruption, the people are starving. Thanks to that, the feudal nations mock the sacrifices of the late king. The future our late king envisioned could never have been like this.”
Democratization was forced upon them without their consent.
Because of the backward political consciousness of the people, the country had become even more tyrannical than the feudal nations.
“So you decided to correct the mistake because you are a descendant of the royal family.”
“Exactly. I will enlighten the people of the Prius Republic, introduce a true democratic republic, and lay the foundation of this broken country once more.”
“There are probably many areas that need institutional reform.”
“I know.”
Indeed, these individuals seemed far more legitimate than the current regime.
The problem was that their ideals would never reach the aristocratic heart of Otis Young-a and Earl Acker.
“You say that?”
My gaze showed that Otis Young-a was still hesitating.
The long speech of the Israeli commander appeared useless.
“Otis Young-a does not seem to intend to make a deal.”
My blunt declaration caused Otis Young-a to nod, her face showing genuine apology.
Even if they were saviors, the decision was simply too large for her to make alone.
“Otis Young-a, please reconsider.”
The Israeli commander’s expression cooled instantly.
After all, for them this data had to be obtained by any means necessary.
“I-I’m sorry. I…”
“How difficult.”
If this continued, the only option would be a coercive, almost robbery-like transaction…
As a citizen of the Republic of Korea in my previous life, I found myself wanting to help them.
“If you do not need Lucas the Grand Duke’s game data, why not make a deal with me?”
An unexpected suggestion.
The entire room was stunned by my words, none of which anyone had anticipated.
“What we desire is the Vanguard Force equipment design. However……”
“That is exactly what I planned to produce and sell.”
“What do you mean?”
“Yes, I possess it. The production design for Vanguard Force equipment.”
In a situation where armed conflict could erupt at any moment, my words were enough to shift the atmosphere.
Earl Acker looked bewildered, while Otis Young-a’s eyes widened in disbelief as she stared at me.
“You really are an outside-the-box person.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“What is the performance level?”
“I can proudly say it is on par with the Vanguard Force equipment produced by our royal family.”
“Oh, if it is equipment from the Lheinhatz Kingdom, it must be quite advanced. Do you happen to have prototypes?”
“Only the force converter, yes.”
An unexpected transaction atmosphere.
I retrieved the prototype force converter I had manufactured through the tower I had previously acquired from the void and handed it to the Israeli commander.
The force converter was, by name alone, the core of the Vanguard that converted aura into force.
“The design is unusual.”
“Performance matters most, but style is also necessary.”
Because the force converter was almost impossible to disassemble, it could not be analyzed by eye alone.
Therefore, to verify its authenticity, one had to simply blow in aura and observe the result.
When the revolutionary army’s aura master infused aura, the force converter emitted a brilliant blue light and released force.
A smile spread across the Israeli commander’s face.
“There can be no doubt. You are truly remarkable.”
Even though the plan had faltered, since they had only to achieve their goal by any means, they had no reason to reject my proposal.
“But this is unexpected. Why would you, who has been hiding secrets, openly help us?”
“Because I like you.”
Was my answer so surprising? The Israeli commander’s face showed momentary bewilderment before he burst into hearty laughter.
“To receive the lord’s favor! What an unexpected gain.”
“So pay up well.”
“Hahaha!”
The Israeli commander laughed repeatedly.
But at that moment, the silent Earl Acker suddenly interjected, his voice filled with concern.
“However, are you certain this is safe? Trading technology is strictly illegal.”
“If everyone in this room washes their mouths, the matter will be settled.”
“Excuse me?”
“Knowing each other’s secrets, let us each handle our own affairs. The identity of the anti-revolutionary figures treated as rebels by the republican government, Otis Young-a who obtained a treasure no different from a declaration of war from the Brigham Empire, and my own illegal transaction—all of it is already deeply entangled.”
In other words, it was blackmail.
A threat that if anyone spoke carelessly, Otis Young-a would be in danger.
Thanks to this, Earl Acker fell silent, his mouth sealed shut.
I appeared to need a separate conversation with this man.
“So we have shared each other’s secrets?”
Yet Otis Young-a, proving once again that she was no ordinary person, directed her interest elsewhere.
“Indeed.”
“Wow, I like it. I will guard the secret with my life.”
In truth, it would not have mattered if it became public knowledge.
After all, it was simply a matter of escape.
“Shall we discuss the payment for the deal?”
“Somehow it feels ominous.”
Ah, by the way, my swift offer to deal was also because I liked them…
More importantly, I felt a pang at the thought of an unrelated person profiting from my game data.
I had poured ten trillion won into the Saint Avril creation operation, leaving a financial void. It was perfectly timed.
* * *
Earl Acker and Otis Young-a, summoned to the Crown Prince’s palace, bowed deeply before Michael Crown Prince’s furious expression.
“Do you both know that your actions could have posed a serious threat to our faction?”
“I-I’m sorry.”
“It is my grave mistake.”
After that, the two endured the Crown Prince’s reprimand for a long time.
The Crown Prince demonstrated what it meant to speak with the tongue, but the demonstration seemed impossible for them to imitate.
“From now on, handle yourselves properly.”
“We will remember.”
After a full thirty minutes of reprimand, Earl Acker finally vented the question he had held back.
“However, Lord Lawrence and Baron Klein are from the second prince’s faction. Why are they here?”
My gaze toward me, calmly sipping tea while sitting in the Crown Prince’s palace, and toward Arsia.
‘This guy really has no sense of smell.’
I shook my head and explained to the Crown Prince.
With a heavy sigh, he replied, “Because they are people of our faction.”
“Eh?”
It seemed Otis Young-a had already figured it out.
She looked at her foolishly kindhearted uncle, Earl Acker, with disdain and said, “You tried to create a smokescreen that made it look like they were from the second prince’s faction. The moment they learned we were saved by the two of you, they would have noticed, right? The second prince must be hoping his uncle dies.”
“Ah, so that’s it?”
After swinging a sword for a lifetime, had his brain simply become naive?
Otis Young-a, thinking the matter had made her intimate with me, winked at me.
At that moment, Arsia, who had been quietly observing the situation, spoke up.
“It would be cleaner to kill them.”
We had earned an unexpected fortune, yet Otis Young-a’s presence remained a burden.
Arsia’s suggestion deserved serious consideration.
Earl Acker, now understanding the situation, clapped his hands with innocent delight, apparently unfazed by the scolding of his young daughter and simply pleased that I was on the same side as him.
“Your Highness the Crown Prince, it seems we should look at the news.”
I wanted to return to my estate, but Earl Acker would not release me, so I had no choice but to endure the tea party. Then a flustered aide entered the office, saying, “News?”
We all tilted our heads in confusion and manipulated the terminal. Soon we realized what he wanted to convey, and our expressions hardened.
[Brigham Empire issues declaration of war against the Prius Republic!]