Chapter 167: O Men with Bowed Heads, Arise! (4)
Chapter 167: O Men with Bowed Heads, Arise! (4)
No matter how much I used my modern knowledge to cheat, I was still a man who had lived in a democracy.
Because of that, I instinctively kept the thoughts that made me go, "This is a bit much," inside my head.
But this was a medieval fantasy world.
In a world governed by a rigid class system, seeing the perspective of someone at the very top of the upper caste—or someone aspiring to be—was truly something else.
"Put these on the necks of every citizen in the Empire?"
"Yes. Have you never thought of it? Putting these on everyone living in Fermaton and controlling them."
"......I've thought about it. Just thought."
But only as a thought.
Anyone is free to think. In one's thoughts or dreams, one can commit all sorts of atrocities without anyone saying a word.
However, the moment it becomes reality, the story changes.
"I think I spoke a bit too passionately. I apologize. Why don't we both take a moment to calm down?"
"I am perfectly calm, Young Lord."
"That's what's scary."
I was terrified of what else this woman with the sparkling eyes might say.
And I was even more terrified that I might find myself thinking, 'Wait, is that actually a good idea?'
Just now.
The idea of putting bomb collars on everyone actually seemed somewhat reasonable for a split second.
‘Fantasy worlds are terrifying.’
It was dragging me, a former modern man, beyond a rape dictatorship and straight into a sex dictatorship in an instant.
"What do you think? Will you rape me, or will you choose a future where Fermaton's influence reaches the Empire?"
"Calm down. I think you've gone too far."
Of course, it was my own words about raping her that started this, but I was starting to get genuinely spooked.
"This is like worrying about where the grandkids will live when we're just talking about the wedding. Okay? Just relax."
"Oh my. Where did the man who was going to rape me just a moment ago go?"
"...Hey."
I approached Charlotte and met her gaze.
"Shut that mouth before I actually go through with it."
"...Hoo, that's more like it. You should be bold, Ruji Fermaton."
Charlotte nodded at me with defiant eyes.
"Fine. I will listen to the value of this item. Even if this thing is meant to destroy the world, I will stand with you, Young Lord. On one condition."
"That I help you with everything I have to usurp the Emperor's throne?"
"Exactly. Phew, I think that's almost everything I wanted to say."
Charlotte laughed refreshingly and leaned back on the sofa.
"Ah, the tension is finally leaving me. You're the first person I've ever revealed my inner thoughts to like this, Young Lord."
"There was no one else?"
"No. There was no one trustworthy around me."
"And me?"
"I can trust you. Paradoxically."
"...Paradoxically?"
"Yes. Well, there are many reasons, but the biggest one is..."
Charlotte pointed to herself.
"The fact that I am a virgin, and that I am the one who can make you erect."
"And the additional reasons?"
"Since this is a win-win relationship, as long as you benefit through me and I benefit through you, this relationship can only get better, not worse. Isn't this very thing proof of that?"
Charlotte pointed to my Bitch Collar.
"If you hand those over to me in bulk, I will give you this."
"...Hoo. If you're going to put it that way, I have no choice but to ask more seriously."
"About the limitations of the collar?"
"No. About how to create value with that item."
I handed the Bitch Collar back to Charlotte.
"Listen carefully. What I'm about to tell you must never be leaked to the outside. If it is, it won't end with just rape."
"Finally, the main point. I'll keep that in mind."
"This... is a Mana Replicator."
"......Pardon?"
As expected.
"It's a money-printing machine."
"No, I mean... printing money...?"
"It's the device that supplies the massive amount of mana required for me to sell items made of mana. I already have one of these."
"...Crazy."
Even Charlotte couldn't help but be shocked by the true value of this Mythstone.
"Young Lord, may I swear just once?"
"Go ahead. If you're prepared for the consequences."
"...And you're using something like this to make Breast Magic Stones and Bitch Collars?"
"......."
My heart ached. That felt like a direct hit to the ribs.
"No, there's a very good reason for—"
"Instead of making collars that make libido explode, couldn't you make bomb collars and put them on everyone to control all of humanity?"
"I thought about that too, but I don't want to go that far."
"Ha. I suppose you're a man of the Kingdom after all, Young Lord."
I felt a bit indignant, but I understood her point.
"Your dictatorship is a fake dictatorship. A real dictatorship should be able to monitor every single move of every person in the territory—no, the world."
"I told you, it's not that I haven't thought about it!"
"You only think about it; you don't actually act on it or create the physical means to do so."
"This is a bit unfair. Then what are you suggesting? What can we do with something that can replicate mana and create magic stones at will?"
"First of all..."
Charlotte fell into deep thought with an incredibly serious expression.
"...Making weapons?"
"That's the problem. If Fermaton starts making weapons in earnest, producing countless weapons based on magic stones, what do you think the Kingdom and the Empire will do?"
"They'd obviously see it as a threat. Hmm. Is that how it is?"
This time, Charlotte wore a triumphant smile.
"You're acting like a sex-crazed lunatic while building your foundation. By the time others notice, the foundation will be so deep they won't be able to do anything about it."
"Exactly. That is my true intention."
I wasn't just a lord obsessed with sex. I was merely using that act to reap benefits behind the scenes.
"Someday that future might come, but for now, I believe it's time to lay low."
"No. If that's your intention, I think now is the perfect time."
"The perfect time?"
"Yes. Now, when neither the Kingdom nor the Empire can afford to mess with Fermaton, is the opportune moment."
"Why? Is there something I don't know?"
"Probably."
She smirked.
"This is news I've gathered through a friend in the Empire, but it seems a major battle is about to break out between the Empire and the Kingdom."
"Huh. Where?"
"In a third zone, away from Fermaton—the Western Coast."
War.
Something I feared was happening in a place I hadn't expected.
While Fermaton sat right in the center of the continent between the Kingdom and the Empire, the Western Coast was where the two powers clashed over the sea and territorial disputes.
"Both navies are concentrating their forces there. If things go wrong, it could escalate into a full-scale world war."
"Why is this happening now?"
"The usual. The Empire provokes, the Kingdom retaliates, and both sides end up at each other's throats."
"And we move quickly in the meantime?"
"Yes."
If the Kingdom and the Empire really couldn't afford to pay attention to us, then as Charlotte said, this was our chance.
"...Fine. Then how would you move? If you were me."
"First, we must make Fermaton's power absolute."
"I'm doing that. I'm gathering capital. Capital in the form of magic stones."
"If you're just using magic stones to make more magic stones, it might be too late."
"What about Penisilin?"
"......."
Charlotte fell silent for a moment.
To give her space to think, I poured some wine into a Dark Jeanne glass and handed it to her.
"Young Lord."
"Yeah."
"Perhaps that Penisilin you created... it might be able to stop the war."
"Wait, where did that come from all of a sudden?"
"The maritime sovereignty dispute. It's a battle of pride between the Queen and the Emperor over the resources of the sea."
"What resources? ...No, I want to know about outside affairs, but the only information I can get is what most commoners know."
As someone who couldn't leave Fermaton, there was a limit to the information I could obtain. Just as others didn't know the Infinite Labyrinth as well as I did, I didn't know the workings of the world as well as they did.
"Young Lord."
Charlotte spoke, looking disgusted as if she didn't even want to mention it.
"Are you familiar with the sea creatures known as abalone and oysters?"
* * *
At that same time.
Bernhard, the leader of the Adventurer's Guild, was alone in his office, quietly savoring wine from a Dark Jeanne glass.
"It's time."
With a leisurely hand, he pulled a crystal orb from his robe and placed it on the table.
Whirrr.
As the crystal orb began to glow, mana flowed out of it like fog. The fog formed a mirror-like surface, and on the other side sat an old man with a thick white beard.
[It's been a long time since you've contacted me like this.]
"It's been two years, Your Majesty."
[Forget 'Your Majesty.' If there's no one around, just treat me like you used to. I'm alone here as well.]
"...Then."
Bernhard's expression shifted as he pulled an item from his robe.
"I sent a courier to the Empire. Once you receive it, try it immediately. Just one at a time."
[What is it?]
"An erection enhancer."
Thump.
The old man stood up abruptly, his eyes wide.
[What? How could such a thing...?]
"Our Young Lord created it. Impressive, isn't it?"
Bernhard let out a hearty laugh, like a grandfather bragging about his grandson's invention.
"I just got back after putting my three wives to sleep for the first time in ages. I guarantee the effects."
[How much? How much to buy them all?]
"......."
Bernhard held up one finger.
[100,000 gold? 100,000 gold for one?]
"100 gold."
[.......]
"But even in Fermaton, supply is short. I had to bow my head to the Young Lord just to get ten of them. I'm sending nine of them to you, so use them well. Don't take more than two a day."
[......You rascal.]
A wide smile spread across the Emperor's face.
[I certainly picked the right friend.]
"What are friends for, eh? So, I'm counting on you. Don't go..."
Bernhard's eyes turned cold and serious.
"Don't go starting a war over some abalone."