Chapter 206
Chapter 206
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 206
>Chapter Title: If You Can't Cook, Do You Starve?
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Baharmut.
After freeing the spirits that had been sealed away for thousands of years, we bid them farewell and returned to the estate.
The way back wasn't much different from before.
The only difference was that this time, we'd emerged not from that nameless lake, but from Gigsen Lake, where the Blandoga Family resided.
After that, things were relatively peaceful.
'Yeah, relatively peaceful.'
Senior Mysern had been hauled off in shackles as the prime suspect in the young patriarch's kidnapping, while Damian, Chenbi, and I were escorted straight to the Blandoga estate by Ransi.
And yet, perhaps because of Senior Mysern's presence?
Not as many people were gunning for me as I'd feared.
Aside from Gamo and Ransi, that is.
In any case, back at the Blandoga main house, we were having a pretty decent time.
Aside from the 24/7 surveillance and having to submit reflection essays three times a day—morning, lunch, and dinner.
"Urgh."
I finished my densely packed ten-page reflection essay and gazed out the window.
The sun had fully set before I knew it.
"All done?"
"......Yeah."
"I won't say it was hard work well done. With that, make sure to think carefully about tomorrow's reflection essay too."
Ransi, who had approached without a sound, collected my ten pages and slipped out of the room as smoothly as he'd entered.
Creak, thud!
I rubbed the first joint of my aching middle finger, worn out from all the writing, and stared at the closed door for a moment.
'......Why am I the only one stuck with ten pages?'
It was an utterly infuriating injustice.
Damian was the one who'd wanted the adventure in the first place, and if anything, I'd been on the opposing side.
If anyone bore responsibility, it should have been the eldest, Damian's mentor, and the ringleader of the whole affair—Senior Mysern.
But reality was brutally cold.
- Ahem, ahem. Truth be told, I've taken Damian on as my disciple.
- I heard you were just guiding him temporarily, but you've actually formed a master-disciple bond...?
- Yes, Damian's talent for spirit arts is so exceptional that... With that in mind, if the Blandoga Family has no objections, I'd like to take him as my direct disciple. What do you say?
It was from the interrogation session with Gamo, me, Damian, Chenbi, and Senior Mysern all gathered.
The guy had slyly wriggled his way out when cornered, even leveraging his own reputation and spirit arts secrets.
So what could Gamo do?
'You can't mistreat your son's master, after all.'
With that one line, Senior Mysern was off the hook.
Now he was lounging in the guest quarters, strolling the gardens in the morning and leisurely teaching Damian spirit arts over lunch.
Of course, all this was possible only because Damian had returned unscathed... no, actually stronger than before.
'He gained enlightenment and a spirit, after all.'
......Truth be told, that was just the surface reason.
I suspected there'd been some backroom deal between Senior Mysern and Gamo. Whatever, that wasn't my business.
Oh, and by the way, the three of us had been ordered not to contact each other during the break.
Anyway, even living like a prisoner(?), it was still a pretty decent time, as I said before.
Gave me things to think about, at least.
"Decullan, Decullan..."
Ever since Baharmut, my biggest concern had been the future Yecheon showed me.
What exactly had happened in that future? And why had Decullan set its sights on the tower?
And furthermore...
'A tower Decullan couldn't touch.'
How would they achieve that kind of power?
The earlier questions weren't ones I could solve just by pondering, so in the end, that last one was the real crux.
But how to put it.
"It's just not clicking."
I quietly took in the darkened view outside the window.
The world beyond was still.
The well-manicured garden flaunted its beauty under the glow of magical lights, with soft moonlight adding a touch of elegance.
As I absorbed the scene, I resumed my train of thought.
Truth be told...
'This is a question I've been putting off.'
It was something I should have considered first when I resolved to build the tower.
And it wasn't just about Decullan.
The famous families' secrets housed in the tower wouldn't be limited to Decullan's.
Once the tower reached its final form—openly displaying those famous families' secrets—it could draw attacks not just from Decullan, but from elsewhere too.
So.
"In the end, it all comes down to having power."
The question was how to build that power.
There were probably various ways.
The most basic would be bolstering the tower's own military strength, or building political influence. Or even amassing vast wealth.
Military might, influence, capital.
Secure even one solidly, and the rest would follow naturally.
But the problem was...
'I suck at all three.'
Military... I'd never led a group before.
The Troubleshooter No. 1 position wasn't leadership—it was just the best disposable tool.
Politics was the same.
And amassing vast wealth...
'......That's a problem too.'
It was a country that owned everything with a broad mind, but that didn't make it truly mine.
"Urgh."
As I wallowed in this nagging, unsolvable dilemma, a bird's shadow crossed the night sky right then.
That damn eagle.
'......Dinner No. 1.'
It slowed as it neared the windowsill, then promptly landed on my head...
[This is my spot.]
Screech!
It startled at the suddenly materialized wyvern and clung to the windowsill instead.
It glared warily at the wyvern, and I couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.
"Scared ya?"
Scree!
It let out an indignant cry.
I considered teasing it a bit more, then remembered it was just a dumb beast and changed the subject.
"So, why'd you come today? Your master summon me?"
Scree!
Dinner No. 1 nodded as if to say yes.
Perfect timing.
'You gotta learn about what you don't know.'
Henji would have the answer to my dilemma.
......Like hell he did.
"How the hell should I know?"
"......"
In Henji's adjutant's office, having followed Dinner No. 1.
Henji crushed my expectations without a 0.1-second hesitation.
* * *
Henji's adjutant's office looked the same as always.
Teetering stacks of documents everywhere. Dusty air swirling around. And that punchable face of Henji's.
Oh, one thing was different.
In the corner, two little beasts were locked in a pride battle.
[You, pathetic beast.]
Scree!
[I, great spirit.]
Screech!
The two flying creatures(?) puffed up their bodies and spread their wings in a pride-off. I watched for a moment before turning to Henji.
"Why...... don't you know?"
"You're under some grand delusion, Aster, but the truth is, most of my political influence comes from my Blandoga backing and my status as a bloodline member, albeit collateral."
"......Go on."
"You probably saw me persuade the Zilloxga patriarch and now want to learn how to wield political influence, but it's not that impressive."
Henji smirked as if my question itself was amusing, moistened his lips with his teacup, and continued.
"You might have guessed, but the way I maintain my position is mostly through coaxing or blackmailing via weaknesses. The Zilloxga patriarch aligned with me due to blood ties and shared interests, but that's the basics. However..."
"However?"
"If some nobody with no backing tried grabbing nobles' weaknesses and blackmailing them, you think that'd work?"
"......"
Thinking about it, yeah.
Grabbing weaknesses only works when you're in the same weight class. Otherwise, it's meaningless.
They'd just crush you.
"Interesting, though. Building the tower's influence... I figured you'd just drift through life like a bum, no plan or anything."
"......"
What the hell had this guy thought of me?
Justice cried out for a moment.
But reflecting, yeah, this life—aside from honing my realm—had been pretty aimless.
The tower was just some distant goal.
In a way, my Baharmut experience had been the trigger.
Anyway, up to that point, I moistened my lips with tea and racked my brain again for answers.
'Sshould I find another teacher?'
But no suitable candidates came to mind.
The people around me? Shine, Parun, the headmaster senior, Rayleigh... what a sorry lineup.
Then, it hit.
"But sometimes, Aster, you seem downright stupid."
"Agreed. But I can physically lower your intelligence."
Making someone smart is near impossible, but dumb? Easy.
All you need is two fists and justice.
But Henji shook his head, not taking the bait.
"No, I mean, why are you worrying about this yourself?"
"If I don't, you gonna do it for me?"
"Why would I?"
"Then why should I keep you alive? Got an answer for that?"
"Haha, plenty of reasons. My Heavenly Origin Art aside, my brilliant intellect is a heritage too precious to lose. But that's not the point... What I'm saying is this: Aster, if you can't cook, do you starve?"
"......?"
Why's cooking coming up here?
"You sew your own clothes? Make your own pens? Build your own house? Do you go naked because you can't sew, or sleep on the streets because you can't build?"
"Well, no? You just buy them."
"Buy them... Close enough. Point is, one person doesn't have to do everything."
"......?"
Henji looked oddly excited, while I tilted my head in confusion.
Why state the obvious?
"So, what's the conclusion?"
I asked patiently.
Henji might irritate, but he didn't spout nonsense.
And sure enough, his next words illuminated something I hadn't realized.
"Your current dilemma's no different. If you can't make clothes, you hire a tailor. Just hire people, right?"
"......!"
"If you need capital, put a merchant whiz under you. Need politics? A politician. Military force? Hand it to commanders who can build it. You don't have to do it all yourself."
It was like a fog lifting from my chest these past few days.
In short, what Henji was saying was this.
Just like I'd commanded ten thousand spirits to build the tower, delegate what I can't do to others.
In other words.
"You're telling me to use slaves."