Flowers on the Cliff
The road that catches the eye is the only thing that looks extravagant. Aside from the central district, the city hasn't changed much from its previous state. But then again, it's not like the people here have anywhere else to go. Might as well show off what we've worked so hard to create.
"It's amazing! Is that a magic stone... no, wait, is it a magic ore?"
Irina's awestruck gaze through the carriage window was fixed on the streetlights. Stones, ores, and objects infused with mana that couldn't become proper magic stones. We called them magic ores. While we did use magic ores, that wasn't the whole story. This was one of the results from the research we'd been conducting nonstop since leaving Franz.
The key was distance. Just like how weapon development kept extending its range, things like communication and the internet existed to shrink the world's distances. Irina probably hadn't noticed, but beneath the streetlights ran connecting lines. The mana lines I'd personally created with my own power ran deep underground, linking the streetlights together. Their starting point connected to a hidden room in my office within the inner citadel of Muller.
It wasn't built with any specific purpose in mind. This was just part of an experiment. To avoid detection, I'd increased its secrecy, and the actual mana flowing through the lines was extremely minimal, but...
Another reason for installing the streetlights was energy accumulation using solar power. I'd put in considerable effort—well, the engineers had—to alter the properties of the magic ores that stored my mana. I'd given them plenty of bonuses, so they shouldn't complain.
Thanks to this, I could now cover about half the city with my own mana. Honestly, if I really wanted to...
"Oh my."
Seeing Irina's look of wonder, I turned my gaze as well. The newly built grand fountain had been created specifically for fountain shows. Since machines couldn't handle such intricate displays in this era, someone had to manually operate it from a management office a short distance away. Of course, they couldn't do it every hour, so they performed the shows periodically—when outside guests arrived, or at noon and six in the evening.
There wasn't a city this splendid anywhere in this age. I was building the city with the same feeling as playing a city-building simulation game, aiming to create something extraordinary.
"The City of Light. A city more brilliant than anything in this world, in any era. That is my new city. Of course, it's still far from complete."
In truth, half the revenue generated by the city was being sent to Franz and Boreng, while most of the remaining half was reinvested back into the city. As a result, most of the estate's funds had been drained dry. For the money being sent to Franz and Boreng, I'd begged and pleaded to reduce the amount in exchange for extending the repayment period. The interest had increased accordingly, but...
Interest really was the worst. Debt was a terrible thing. Since this was my first time directly dealing with finances as a noble, I was once again stunned by just how much money the nobility handled.
"It's incredible...!"
Irina's eyes sparkled as she gazed at the streets. As night fell, the streets of light only grew more dazzling. The streetlights illuminated the city brightly, while the fountain put on a spectacular show using water and light. Occasionally, fireworks made of mana and brilliant bursts of light exploded in the sky—a repeat of the coming-of-age ceremony. The city was so extravagant it reminded me of an amusement park somewhere.
The cost, naturally, was no joke. After all, those were all magic stones. But once I'd decided to do it, I was going to see it through. Zeke screamed every day about the money flowing out, but it would all come back eventually. Still, thinking about the daily outflow...
Maybe I should just pick a day, head to the Great Mountain Range, and go hunting? It would be a life-risking endeavor for me too, though.
"Mm, we've arrived."
We'd passed the central fountain, and the inner citadel was now close. I gently pried Irina's arm away from where it had been clinging to mine.
"Ah, I don't want to!"
"Don't want to? Hurry up and fix your clothes. People will get the wrong idea if they see you like this."
"Mmm. I'd be fine with them getting the wrong idea. Actually, I'd welcome it?"
"You want to get hit?"
"Tch."
Even as she grumbled, Irina began straightening her clothes. Wait, we really didn't have sex, right? We truly didn't. But she'd been clinging to my chest, rubbing her body against me... so of course her clothes had gotten disheveled. It couldn't be helped. She hadn't stayed still, and even though it was spacious for a carriage, it was still a confined space where she'd been moving around wildly.
"There we go."
While I watched Irina fix her clothes, she slipped her hand into the exposed neckline of her dress to adjust her slightly disheveled breasts. She reached inside the dress, kneading and shaping them to find the right fit. I found myself staring at Irina's breasts as she worked.
Her milk-white skin and appropriately voluptuous breasts, which seemed to have grown even larger than when I'd last seen them, jiggled and changed shape freely under her touch.
"Hmm."
They really were a sight to behold. They weren't quite at the level of massive breasts, but they were more than enough to be called big. Even when she'd pressed against me earlier, though she'd clearly emphasized the contact on purpose, the sensation against my arm and chest made it clear they were quite substantial. Their shape, softness, and elasticity were all perfect. The way they changed form with her every gesture was perfect too.
The dress wasn't particularly revealing at the chest, but it seemed the current fashion trend was all about how much you could accentuate the upper breasts. Or so I assumed. I wasn't entirely sure.
As Irina continued adjusting them, her breasts seemed to swell even more with each movement. Huh? Were they always this exposed? Well, I'm certainly not complaining as the one looking. But if they rose any higher above the dress's neckline, things that shouldn't be seen would start to show...
"Hey."
"Ah, I've been caught."
When I called out, Irina stuck her tongue out and scrunched her eyes in a playful pout. Acting cute, huh. The problem was that it actually was cute, which made me want to forgive her.
"But you looked first, Leo-oppa! I was only trying to show them a little better. Doesn't that mean I should be praised instead?"
"You want to get hit?"
"Hehe."
Seeing her stick her tongue out slightly while acting coquettish, I let out a sigh. I mean, I was the one who looked, so I was at fault, but still.
"Fix your dress properly. It's not good if rumors like that spread too much."
"I don't care about other people's opinions at all."
"...Fine. Then think of it as doing it for me."
Since it seemed like she really would disregard everything, I changed my approach. Only then did Irina click her tongue and properly adjust her dress. Watching her, I pulled a handkerchief from my pocket.
"Use this to wipe your lips."
"Yes~"
"What about your makeup?"
"It's in the other carriage."
"Then... well, it should be fine. It's nighttime anyway."
Irina's lips were a bit of a mess from all the kissing. It would be better to fix it, but... her natural lip color was already quite pretty, and this slightly flushed look didn't stand out too much.
"Mmm. Is this okay?"
"Yeah. Not bad at all."
Irina pulled out a hand mirror from somewhere and rubbed her lips with her finger for one last check before looking at me and puckering her lips.
......
-Chu!
"Kyaa!"
Yeah. She was pretty. So I kissed her. Her face flushed with surprise as she glared at me.
"R-really! If you want to do it, say so beforehand! H-here, one more kiss!"
When Irina spread her arms wide, trying to throw herself at me, I lightly flicked her forehead.
"We've actually arrived now, so get ready to get off."
"Ah! Seriously! You did that on purpose! You're messing with me on purpose, aren't you? That's too mean!"
It wasn't really on purpose. I just wanted to kiss her, and now we really did need to get off. But this was pretty fun. Her offense and defense were both decent, but the way she got flustered when caught off guard was so cute that it made me want to do it more.
-Clatter!
Now we'd truly arrived.
"Alright, let's get off."
"Hmph. You have to do it for real next time, okay?"
"Yeah, I will. I can do it often now, right?"
"...Hehe. We're going to live together now, aren't we?"
At my words, Irina's face melted into a wide grin. She really liked that idea, huh.
"Well then, my lady. Shall we disembark?"
"Yes, thank you, kind sir."
I couldn't hold back my laughter at the sight of her blooming like a flower with that bright smile. Smiling as well, I took her hand and began escorting her.
"This can't be real. This is supposed to be that rural territory?"
According to the young man who had visited Muller before, it was a city with absolutely nothing to see. He wasn't trying to disparage it—it was simply a clean, unadorned, perfectly ordinary city. But now, it had completely transformed. In fact...
"It's more splendid than the capital?"
"Ahem."
At those words, Enoch frowned and looked around. It wasn't entirely wrong, but it wasn't quite that extreme. Even looking at it objectively, unless the buildings themselves had been completely rebuilt, traces of age were still visible. It was just that the overall strong illumination, especially along the roads, made it appear more extravagant. Considering he hadn't been the lord of this land for very long, the city would likely continue to change.
Thinking coldly, Enoch gritted his teeth even harder. He really was capable... that much, he had to acknowledge. But...
That couldn't be the reason he gave up on her.
Until the coming-of-age ceremony ended, Enoch wanted to persuade her by any means necessary. With that resolve, he finally arrived at the inner citadel and watched her step down from the carriage.
"Ugh!"
While everyone else acted nonchalant as if they hadn't noticed, Enoch clenched his fist tightly.
"Hehe. What a refined castle."
"Thank you for the compliment."
The dress she wore as she descended from the carriage, escorted by that man. There were signs it had been hastily straightened, and Enoch's gaze—fixed so intently on her—caught it. The traces of wrinkles. That wasn't all. The Rosewin Trading Company's No. 27 lipstick on her lips seemed even more faded. And the perfume she'd worn today was definitely the Blue Jewelry Strong Trigger from the Testun Company. He could smell that very scent wafting from the man's body.
"Ugh."
What that meant was...
"Haa, haa...!"
"Enoch? Enoch? Are you alright?"
"Hm? Ah, I-I'm fine. The long journey must have tired me out."
While trembling uncontrollably, Enoch forced a smile at Arwin's words. After all, with the invited guests and the hosts busy unpacking, there would be no banquet that day.
Yes... surely nothing would happen.
Taking one last look at Irina and Leoric, Enoch deliberately turned his gaze away. No one noticed how his crotch had risen slightly.