The Dawn of the Great Age of Exploration
The massive investment by the Kara Kingdom and the Central Church in Jores Island had become the talk of the town.
Dubbed the 'Great Age of Exploration Development Plan.'
Some raised objections, calling it too grandiose, but when word spread that a trade fleet carrying thousands of tons of spices and perfumes had departed Magasta on the Agenka Continent and arrived in Ramis City, the doubts vanished, replaced by widespread frenzy.
Spices and perfumes worth nearly their weight in gold—thousands of tons of them.
Of course, with trade volume surging, prices would plummet, but the sheer quantity was astonishing in itself. It created the opportunity for spices and perfumes to become everyday essentials, accessible not just to nobles but to the general populace.
With more trade ships, intercontinental commerce would explode. That meant importing everyday specialties from the Agenka Continent like textiles, dyes, luxury goods, and ores. In turn, the Prosia Continent could export weapons, medicines, and affordable fabrics to other lands.
The time of opportunity had arrived.
Shrewd merchants and lesser nobles scrambled to send agents to the Central Church and Kara to grasp the development plans. Some preemptively staked claims in coastal cities along the new sea trade routes, preparing for the imminent great age of exploration.
In the midst of this, countless continentals visited Jores Island alongside the monster extermination unit dispatched by the Central Church. They were dreamers chasing overnight fortunes, digging for gold and silver. With nothing better to do, they were expected to soon transform into valuable industrial workers providing precious labor.
"Yaaawn."
Another morning dawned in Kara. Rising from bed, I smacked my lips, staring at my empty arms with a sense of loss. No Shura, no Padilla. They'd probably headed out for dawn training again.
Shura's really dedicated.
Lately, Shura had realized she was on the verge of reaching the Master realm and was throwing herself into daily training to ascend as a Master swordsman as quickly as possible.
Padilla was actively joining in too. Her queenly duties limited her to dawn and evening sessions, but she was quite diligent. Her sense of duty as a Great Saintess and the looming threat of humanity's potential extinction spurred her on.
Poor Armida sis was the one suffering for it. Our holy sis already loved sleeping in and playing around, but now she was dragged about morning and night by the two Great Saintesses—it was no small ordeal.
"Padilla, really... it's not that kind of apocalypse."
But whatever. Any apocalypse was a huge motivator for her.
Thanks to that, Padilla was accepting my policy demands without complaint and handling state affairs even more diligently.
After changing clothes, I glanced at the desk. Several reports, apparently Padilla's, lay scattered about.
Curious, I skimmed through them.
A magic telegram from Kasim.
Kasim's report proposed installing a portal tower in Kasim Castle.
The request I'd made to the Magic Tower had been approved amid the great age of exploration boom, greenlighting the portal tower construction plan.
The issue? The Magic Tower wanted to sell the Essence needed for it. With Kara Kingdom currently banning Essence exports, granting this would require an exception.
But it wasn't a plea for central government support. Kasim Castle would procure it themselves—they just needed export permission.
Lately, Kasim had devised a new method for hunting sea monsters, stockpiling massive Chaos Pieces, the raw material for Essence.
Bandit origins make him crafty. Kasim's got a knack for these tricks.
His new sea monster hunting technique? Firing lightning bullets from a Magic Bullet Launcher to fry them. Perfect for coastal sea beasts, and it was raking in Chaos Pieces handily.
Scanning the report, my eyes widened at the final document. A magic telegram from Najir, dispatched to Jores Island—it reported discovering a massive limestone deposit while exterminating monsters.
"Ho. Najir hit the jackpot."
Limestone was the main ingredient for cement. Cement allowed rapid construction, making it an incredibly useful building material.
Grinning smugly, I finished preparing for work and headed to the palace's outdoor training ground.
"Mm..."
Padilla was demonstrating Gauss magic under the watchful eyes of Shura and Armida sis. A simple water orb spell, but she struggled with the motions, failing repeatedly.
Finally, she formed a fist-sized water orb and launched it skyward.
Shura clapped like a seal in celebration.
"Padilla, well done."
Armida sis, far from impressed, pouted.
"How many days did that take? You've got a mountain of spells left to learn."
"I'm sorry."
Approaching Armida sis as Padilla apologized, I chimed in.
"It's because Padilla's swamped with state affairs."
"Then cut back on affairs and focus on magic. A Great Saintess playing games with kids?"
Armida sis was already fretting over next year. Come spring, she'd reunite with Katrinah's group and gauge her disciples' progress—but with Padilla advancing so slowly, she couldn't help but worry.
"Still, thanks to Padilla, the nation can prepare thoroughly for the apocalypse on a state level."
"But..."
"Sis, our mission is finding your runaway friend and stopping humanity's doom—not a pride contest. Even if we lose a magic showdown, we win as long as we complete the mission."
Armida sis rolled her eyes.
"Tch. Is that right?"
"Yeah. And if Shura gets stronger to offset Padilla's slow progress, we win the pride battle too. In competitions, first place is king. Simple math—even it's a tie."
"Right?"
"Obviously."
Armida sis glanced slyly at Shura.
"Shura, work hard."
"Yes."
I turned to Padilla.
"Oh, Padilla?"
"Yes, Grand Prince."
"I happened to read the report from Kasim. Seems like a solid proposal. Approve it."
Padilla looked slightly flustered.
"But we're blocking Essence and Chaos Piece exports by national law?"
I knew. I'd orchestrated that law.
"Make an exception for those from sea monster hunts."
"Why?"
"Overly strict trade blocks are bad, and boosting sea monster hunting has tons of upsides."
Humanity's monster hunts were limited to land and flying beasts. Sea monsters were hard to catch, living in separate realms that posed little threat.
But if we could hunt them, we should. Preparing massive Essence stockpiles for the age of doom was key, and the ocean teemed with the most monsters.
"Understood."
"And that massive limestone deposit Najir found?"
"Yes."
"Survey reserves and set up production facilities—but no exports. Might need it big-time later."
"Got it. What about the iron mine?"
"Iron mine?"
"They found an iron ore deposit recently too."
Iron was the world's most common metal. Jores Island was vast; more would turn up. But no need to produce yet.
Iron was vital for war. Preserve it for the future.
"Trial production only. Better to import resources needed for Jores development from outside."
"Yes, I'll handle it."
"Alright, off to work. Keep it up."
"Take care."
I dragged Shura and Armida sis along to work. No real need to go in, but lounging forever got stale—treating work as life's spark now and then felt right.
Plus, holing up in Kara Palace made me feel awkwardly conspicuous. Padilla didn't mind, but I did. With the church's secret request anyway, I needed to keep the info broker gig going.
* * *
On the way to Kaoyan Info Brokerage, the market street looked deserted. Once bustling with spice and perfume middlemen, now everything funneled to sea trade routes.
Good sign.
Kara was the kingdom's capital. If people kept draining out without replenishing, newcomers from capital perks wouldn't have housing or industrial foundations.
Plus, when doom arrived, everyone in Kara had to evacuate to Jores Island. Maintaining optimal population for transport capacity was smart.
Mana Steam Locomotive.
Evacuation thoughts led straight to it. Only then could we safely ferry the Sika tribespeople to Jores.
Rail system development involved building four prototype locomotives and tracks to Murcella, but it wasn't easy.
Costs were astronomical.
Sure, locomotives guzzled Essence, so high production expenses were expected—but track construction was pricey too.
This great desert was endlessly vast.
Upside: uninhabited wastelands, no land purchase fees. Factoring that in, rail costs were actually reduced.
"Alright, let's head in."
Inside the brokerage, we prepped for business. First up: revising the rate sheet. With Kaoyan Info Brokerage's rising fame, it was time to readjust fees.
I hiked the base fee to 250 gold reeps, plus big bumps to allowances. Meals at 3 reeps a day, daily travel at 6.
"Bro, this much?"
"Obviously. Our skills and rep have leveled up—gotta charge accordingly."
I bluffed boldly.
War spoils from Kara: 50,000 gold reeps. Broker fee for church's Jores involvement: 30,000. Plus existing 14,000—total assets now 94,000 reeps.
No need to sweat pennies.
A knock, then the office door opened. I eyed the hooded woman entering with a mixed expression—neither fully welcome nor unwelcome.
"Evelyn? What's bringing you back to Kara?"
She smirked crookedly.
"Selling something. Need cash."
Now I saw: not a client, a peddler. Hooked after I bought locomotive blueprints for 10,000 gold last time.
"I shelled out 10,000 already—burned through it already?"
"Our crew spends like crazy. Money flows in, they blow it. Boss is the worst."
I subtly eyed Armida sis. Valkyries had zero money sense.
"Fine, upstairs."
I led her to the newly soundproofed reception room on the second floor—client confidentiality assured.
Seating her, I said incredulously,
"So, what're you hawking this time?"
"Something you'll like."
"Spill."
She pulled out blueprint rolls. Magic Bullet Launcher variant—more complex than standard.
"New version Magic Bullet Launcher."
I scanned it.
"Pros?"
"Mana injection added."
Mana injection let mana users refill the Essence's mana. Solid feature. Limited to mana users, but fixed the old three-shot limit.
I propped my chin.
"Time to fully recharge Essence?"
"Depends. Us? Instant. Low-level Mana Knight? About three minutes."
"Not bad. Else?"
"Extended range without extra mana burn. Max efficiency."
"How much?"
"Around 80 meters?"
80m—a third longer than standard.
Priceless blueprints. Not just functions—the mana efficiency magic formula alone was revolutionary. Huge leap for humanity's magitech.
I pointed to a part.
"This?"
"Removable Essence. Swap when mana runs dry for continuous fire. Works from lowest to highest grade."
Great too. Essence pricey now, useless—but in doom era, it'd overflow. Boosted infantry firepower massively.
"Price?"
She held up five fingers.
"Big ones, five sheets."
"Five hundred?"
"Five thousand."
"Hey, simpler than the locomotive. Half that max."
"But with peak mana efficiency formula. Big deal."
I pouted. True.
"Three thousand."
"Four."
"Three-five then. No haggling."
"Deal. Three-five."
I pocketed blueprints, dumped gold coins on the table.
As she scooped them,
"Anything else?"
"Name it. I'll pitch to boss."
"All weapons handy for monster hunts. Jores is in full monster war—need gear support."
"Got it. I'll prep."
"One more question."
"Shoot."
"About your boss."
She eyed me wearily.
"Why?"
"Just... feeling like Chronos pawns lately. Wanna check."
She pondered, then,
"What I can say: boss on third mission. First two, other worlds. Third, here."
"Rotation in heaven's bureaucracy?"
"Nah. Finish mission, go home. New one, dispatch again."
"How's a mission 'finished'?"
"When era's needle points to doom."
Seemed runaway sis-friend knew what that needle meant—two prior experiences.
"Cool. Let's keep cooperating."
I offered a friendly handshake. Better stay tight with them. Come doom era, allies.