Concentrated Fire
The family meal had come together with great difficulty.
That was only natural, since all three of them were extremely busy.
But the Karma family always made time to eat together on weekends, no matter what.
"How has your social activity been going?"
"I've been receiving far too many invitations. I'm declining most of them, except for the absolutely essential ones."
"Cecilia is quite popular, I see."
"It's convenient for reading trends. The movements among the noble houses, the flow of capital—it's easy to grasp many things at once. Oh! Father, how did things go for you? The Eleos Group matter, I mean."
Jonathan Karma laughed as he poured sauce over the lamb.
"What company would refuse an offer to provide elixir cheaper than the market price? Ah! Now that you mention it, the Crapton Railway Company signed the papers this morning."
Cecilia stopped cutting her meat and her eyes widened.
Oliviera let out a soft laugh, apparently finding her daughter's reaction endearing.
"Good heavens! Really?"
"Yes. In exchange for providing half-price elixir, which is essential for railway operations, we've arranged to drastically lower the logistics transport costs. We're going to lay new track and use it to ship elixir across the empire. I thought that if we're going to take the elixir clients Tramata has held so tightly, we would need to compete on distribution speed and price."
"An excellent choice! Please take me with you when you break into the southern trade this time."
"It would certainly be convenient if you brought back the off-the-record information flowing through society circles. Steel, automobiles, medicine, heavy industry—we're almost there. Just a little more, and Eleos Group will truly become a reality..."
A sudden, shrill ring erupted from the watch on Jonathan Karma's wrist.
All three family members stopped talking at once.
That communication device was only known to his closest associates, and he had told them never to use it unless it was an emergency.
"This is Jonathan Karma. Miss Erpa?"
As Jonathan answered hastily, a familiar voice came through the device.
[Mr. Karma? It's been a while. My voice—I hope you recognize...]
"Saint? Where are you right now! O Lilia! Good heavens!! Are you safe?"
[Yes. I'm safe. Have you perhaps heard the news?]
"What news do you mean?"
[You haven't heard yet, then. I'm in a rather difficult situation at the moment.]
The Saint slowly and in detail explained what he had experienced.
And by the time the explanation was finished,
Jonathan Karma's eyes were gleaming.
Anger.
And mixed with it was the peculiar ecstasy of a merchant who had caught the scent of money.
[I'm sorry that my first contact since suddenly vanishing is something like this, but... I need your help, Mr. Jonathan.]
"Saint, please don't worry about a single thing. Just focus solely on healing the sick where you are. I will take care of everything else."
[Hearing that puts my mind at ease. I leave it in your hands, Mr. Jonathan. Again, I'm sorry to contact you so suddenly like this.]
"Not at all. How could that be? Rest easy and wait. I'll come at once."
[Thank you.]
The magic communication ended.
The three family members silently exchanged glances.
"I'll take charge of the legislation. I'll start spreading opinions through the social circles. Since the wives hold strong influence in the Lima Ducal House and the Turentz Marquis House, if we target these two families first, we can probably steer the overall atmosphere in the direction we want."
Cecilia rose from her seat.
"I'll go confirm the amount of company reserve funds we can move. Sales this quarter have more than tripled from last year, so we have a lot of available capital."
Oliviera rose from her seat as well.
And Jonathan Karma also got to his feet.
"The Saint has given us a fine opportunity. There are only a few sources of steel and magic metal in the empire, and to think he would let us lay a hand on the largest one. We have good justification, and our ammunition is plentiful. Let's begin."
He smiled.
It was a gentle and soft smile, but to the ones who would have to take his punches, it was undoubtedly a smile more terrifying than a Demon King's.
***
As soon as the magic communication with Jonathan ended, Iomene, Almene, the inquisitors of the Black Fortress, and the people from the Pantheon approached me.
"There's so much I want to say, Saint."
Iomene and Almene carefully said that to me.
"But now doesn't seem like the time to leisurely catch up."
"We will help you, Saint. What should we do?"
The priests of the Silence Order nodded in agreement with the twin princesses.
"We believe the Saint's argument must be carried through, if only to serve as an example so that the resentments of workers throughout the empire do not create another incident like today's. We will lend our strength as well."
The mages of the Magic Tower, including Erpa, also approached.
"We hope the empire's largest magic-metal production site will continue to operate well. Besides, think of all the elixir we have received free of charge from Karma Company. We will help as well."
"The Mars Mage Tower of the capital is on the Saint's side. If necessary, we can move the towers in other regions too."
Religion.
Economics.
Power.
Magic.
It would not be an overstatement to call them the four axes of the empire, and all of them were moving at my single word.
It was a moment in which some might feel pride, or in which some might become drunk on a lust for power.
But I felt none of those emotions at all.
I only confirmed once more why Lilia was trying to throw me into hell.
The thought that their tremendous trust and faith would ultimately nurture the authority within me filled me with even greater dread.
I clenched my fist.
Just until the living standards of the Scrap Yard workers improved.
This was only a temporary act until then.
Once things stabilized, I would have to leave immediately.
"Iomene, Almene. You two go back to the capital. Go back and inform the Pantheon and His Majesty about the current situation, and persuade the Senate so that new legislation can be enacted swiftly."
"Understood, Saint."
"That's something we can do."
Next I turned to the Magic Tower.
"Erpa, and mages of the Magic Tower. I understand that you are the largest buyers of magic metal in the empire. Persuade the magic towers across the country to block the purchase of Scrap Yard magic metal."
The mages nodded at my words.
"We may not be able to block it entirely, but we can persuade towers considering additional purchases to hold off."
"We could also release the surplus magic metals from the Mars Tower branch at a low price."
Next was the Pantheon.
"Focus on maintaining public order in the city. Let the holy knights and priests help prevent violence from erupting between the police and the workers. And I would also be grateful if you could assist in healing the sick."
"We will do so."
I came last.
"I can do nothing alone. I need everyone's help. I ask this of you."
"We will make it as you wish."
With those profoundly reassuring words, the people filed out of the meeting hall and dispersed.
It wasn't long before only I and the Labor Theorists, including Karl Lenaro, remained inside the hall.
"Then what should we do, when we have neither capital nor power, Saint?"
I shrugged at the question.
"Let's each do what we're good at. I'll provide healing. And all of you, please continue the general strike."
At the words "general strike," the Labor Theorists' eyes flashed.
"A narrative in which the great Saint simply used capital and power to save the workers is not enough. We need a narrative in which the workers rose up themselves, asserted their rights, and won them. So continue the strike."
I smiled at the Labor Theorists.
"Rouse the workers' fighting spirit so they can stand against the factory owners. As long as you don't use guns or bombs, you may do anything."
Karl Lenaro burst out laughing at that.
"Don't you worry, Saint. We'll show you exactly what kind of people we are."
It was a terrifying declaration from career troublemakers who had spent their entire lives agitating and protesting.
***
Here, there were two people.
One was the head of the Black Fortress,
Otto Delmark.
"Legally? You call that legal? Legal?! How dare they raise their voices at my Amael!!"
He was standing before a furious princess.
Almene, always gentle and kind, was grinding her teeth and spitting out rage—a rare sight that surprised Otto considerably, though he didn't show it on the outside.
Soon, Almene turned to look at Otto.
"Since you're people who love the law so much, let's hit them with the law. Otto."
"Give your command."
"Weren't those corporations where Mammon's followers had latched on? There's a clear need to look into exactly what's going on behind the scenes. We've secured our justification. Begin a high-intensity tax investigation. I want to find out if they were truly operating their businesses legally and properly."
Otto glanced sideways at the inquisitors under his command upon hearing that.
All of them nodded silently.
It was a direct order from the Emperor's daughter, as high as the heavens.
How could they not obey?
"It will be done as you say."
"And until the tax investigation is complete, hold the factory owners, especially the one called Mayor Bias, so they cannot flee the Scrap Yard. There is a risk of flight."
"Of course. I will carry out your orders."
Internally, Otto quietly expressed his condolences for the factory owners.
And here was the other person.
There was Yohan, the holy knight commander of the Order of Grace.
He was standing before High Priest Yodel, who had become so furious he had once again turned into Mozgus.
"Holy Knight Commander."
"Give your command, High Priest."
"It seems these factory owners in this city have forgotten that one of the empire's largest consumers of steel is in the south, where the headquarters of our Order of Grace is located."
The South.
It was the empire's breadbasket, filled with fertile, vast plains, but not every inch of southern land could grow grain.
A massive stretch of wasteland adjacent to the imperial center was unsuitable for crops and had remained an ambiguous piece of land—until thirty years ago, when the empire's largest factory complex was built there.
And most of the people in that massive factory complex were followers of Lilia.
"Use the disruption in goods delivery caused by the strike as a pretext to delay payments."
"...Understood."
"And let us pull all the workers here in the Scrap Yard out of the city. Take them outside, feed them, and lodge them there. Mobilize the order's funds to bring grains, vegetables, and fruit in large quantities to the Scrap Yard. I do not wish to see the workers here go hungry."
"I will implement that as well."
"Until the factory owners give in, or until Karma Company simply swallows this place whole, let the workers here experience the Saint's grace, where they can get food even by sitting idle. Let's see if their necks stay that stiff when every business partner is cut off and there is not a single person left to run the factories."
High Priest Yodel was not the only one.
Every priest and holy knight of the Order of Grace was enraged by the insult to the Chosen One whom the goddess Lilia had granted to humanity.
Holy Knight Commander Yohan expressed his condolences to the city's factory owners in his heart.
'They picked the wrong fight.'
Those people had picked the wrong fight—terribly, terribly wrong.