Ch.22Sleeve Insertion

“You’re giving me this?”

I alternately looked at the fragment of the Earth Core in my hand and the basket that had contained it.

Beneath the Earth Core fragment was a small vial and a syringe. The vial contained an alchemical potion, and the syringe was large enough to hold the swollen solution.

“Not only giving me an Earth Core fragment but also providing the means to absorb it into my body. As expected of a great power. This is why flattery pays off.”

Fahrenheit, a powerful nation with a population of 10 million. Considering that Joseon during King Sejong’s era had about 5 million people, it wasn’t difficult to imagine the national power of Fahrenheit with twice that population.

Amurtat had just surpassed 30,000 in population, making Fahrenheit’s national power roughly 300 times greater by simple calculation.

For the Grand Monarch of such a country to send such a precious gift, my strategy must have been effective.

“Let’s see… How kind of them to include instructions as well.”

The luxurious parchment even had illustrations drawn on it. Drawing on parchment was a level of dedication usually reserved for high-end items, and Grand Monarch Marcus’s desperate(?) effort to not fall behind other monarchs was beginning to look quite touching.

“Other monarchs sent quite valuable items too… but nothing compares to an Earth Core fragment…”

The monarchs who received my gifts mostly sent flashy ornaments with high value-to-volume ratios.

Some sent weapons or armor as gifts, which I planned to keep and eventually give to my knights.

“That Ignatz fellow. I can already picture how happy he’ll be.”

Even as I muttered this, I didn’t let go of the Earth Core fragment. While it wasn’t fragile enough to break from impact, considering its value, dropping it would be grounds for cutting off my own hand.

However, I couldn’t absorb the Earth Core fragment right away.

Absorbing an Earth Core fragment would certainly cause me to faint, and this forced unconsciousness would last at least a month. Fainting during such a busy period would cause many complications.

So, with trembling hands, I placed the Earth Core fragment and its accessories in storage.

Trembling…

“To think my hands would shake just from putting it away… The weight of reality is truly different.”

I said this while massaging my trembling hands, then sat down and began reducing the pile of parchments.

Before absorbing the Earth Core fragment, I wanted to bring in steel production facilities if possible. With the ability to produce steel, there would be no obstacles to growth at least until the mid-game.

Unless we were talking about the late-game of bringing in magic towers, alchemist guilds, or adventurer guilds to the city, being able to produce steel meant we could make almost anything.

“I wonder what the limit of the Earth Core will be.”

The minimum was 4 locations excluding this city with the Earth Core, and the maximum was 12. Including the Earth Core’s direct territory, that meant protection for a minimum of five regions and a maximum of 13.

However, due to my excellent starting position, even with the minimum I could claim the Western Forest, Northern Mountains, Southern Swamps, and Eastern Coast, so I wouldn’t lose either way.

*

The new year had begun.

Despite the tremendous progress over the past three years, I still had paperwork to handle today, unlike my subordinates who were enjoying the holiday rest, as I needed to work tirelessly for the full-scale growth ahead.

Why are there so many parchments when we don’t even have paper-making technology? Don’t they feel sorry for the sheep?

“Your Majesty. Here are additional documents.”

“Urgh… Just leave them there.”

For the new year, I was handling even more work than usual.

Most of it was related to bringing in steel production facilities. Since other city-states obviously wouldn’t sell the facilities themselves, we had to source the components from various places and assemble them here in Amurtat.

The problem was that these materials were numerous and bulky, making transportation costs high, and the need for escorts along the long journey exponentially increased expenses. The money we had accumulated was disappearing rapidly.

Besides this approach, we could build production facilities from scratch, but that would take too much time, and I couldn’t predict what might happen in the market meanwhile. I had no choice but to use this method to produce steel as quickly as possible.

“Michaela?”

“Yes, master?”

“Bring me more ink.”

“Of course. Just a moment.”

After continuously processing documents, the ink bottle that had been overflowing was now dry.

Though I should probably switch to a larger ink bottle, with Michaela bringing ink whenever it ran out, there might be no need to increase expenses.

“Call the advisor. I have urgent matters to discuss.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Even a monarch can’t handle everything alone when processing work. Fortunately, most monarchs employed capable advisors for this reason, and mine was quite competent.

Michaela soon returned with the advisor, and I handed him the document.

“It seems there’s a customs issue making passage difficult… what do you think?”

“Hmm… The customs were imposed by Elisia. Elisian laws are known for being flexible, so suddenly raising customs issues…”

“There seems to be more to it, but I can’t figure it out. What do you think?”

Elisia was another city-state located south of Fahrenheit, southwest from Amurtat’s perspective. They were famous for their lenient laws, even nicknamed the “City of Mercy” for valuing human life to a suspicious degree in this world.

“In cases like this, it’s obvious. Either the gate manager has suddenly changed causing confusion, or someone is simply being greedy…”

However, mercy doesn’t always inspire voluntary obedience.

There were reasons why the laws of this world treated human lives as disposable.

“So it’s a money issue. Send a messenger with some valuable gifts and it should be resolved.”

“Sadly, that’s correct. When laws are lenient, these things happen.”

I gave the messenger a few of the shiny ornaments I had received as gifts, and a few days later, the cart carrying the parts arrived in Amurtat without issue.

Money is the best! Always thrilling!

*

Clop-clop! Clop-clop!

Splash! Splash!

“Ack! Be more careful with that cart! You splashed mud all over me!”

“Why blame me? The rain made the road muddy—what am I supposed to do about it?”

The condition of Amurtat’s roads could not be described as good even as a white lie.

Except for inside the castle, there were no paved roads, and when it rained, the muddy paths dirtied people’s shoes and clothes. Beyond the discomfort, the filth and unsanitary conditions needed to be addressed.

However, with all of Amurtat’s resources currently focused on “steel production,” even I couldn’t easily overhaul the roads.

But contrary to what people might think, the way the world works is quite simple.

If I can’t do it with my own hands, why not borrow someone else’s?

“Post an announcement! If there are those who will pave Amurtat’s roads, I will personally give them special treatment!”

If money is lacking, just borrow it.

After posting the announcement, it wasn’t long before sizable merchant groups approached me with bows, and they all proclaimed in unison:

“In exchange for paving the roads, allow us to purchase more Amurtat-produced iron.”

“That much I can certainly provide. Those who make my land stronger deserve such privileges. Let’s see… specifically, how much do you want?”

“No more, no less—just increase it tenfold. Then we’ll take care of everything.”

“Good. Then I’ll issue special permits, and you shall use that money to contribute to Amurtat.”

“How could we refuse! Your grace is immense!”

Some fools might complain about why I’m granting privileges before the roads are even paved, but that’s because they don’t understand how merchant funding works.

Established merchant groups mostly receive payment in bills of exchange or promissory notes—credit instruments that can’t be immediately converted to cash. Converting these to usable funds was extremely difficult, making it hard for most merchant groups to manage their capital flexibly.

That’s why I gave them the privilege to purchase 50 tons of iron. They could use the proceeds from selling it to pave the roads.

“Good. Now I can rest for a while…”

“Your Majesty! Additional documents!”

“…Damn it.”

I pressed my brow for a moment, then dipped my pen in ink again and began sifting through the paperwork.