episode_0005

“It’s breached!!!!!!!”

As the soldier of the Ironblood Legion burst through the tent, pushing it aside, everyone inside who was busy with their tasks jumped up from their seats.

“It’s breached? Really?”

“Yes! It’s breached!! Look at this!!!!”

The soldier handed a handful of lush green grass from the western continent to everyone. They all stared at the grass in disbelief, but soon someone shouted without hesitation. Karia embraced me and let out a scream, and I, too, hugged her tightly and laughed for a while.

“What should we do now, Lord Randor?”

“Call Carl Hansen!! Spread the word that the trade route has been breached!!”

“Understood!!!”

The next day, Carl appeared before my eyes faster than a bullet. It was the result of using a teleportation station that cost more than 100 gold per ride. The news that the land trade route connecting the western and eastern continents had been completed was an incredibly attractive line for a merchant like him.

“I-I can’t believe it. Did you really breach it?”

The look that treated me like a madman was nowhere to be found. All he showed was an eager face, wanting to see it for himself. Laughing, I took him on a carriage ride, allowing him to pass through the trade route that we had worked tirelessly for three months. Even as we passed through the valley where the chilly northern wind blew and the monsters’ screams echoed, Carl Hansen never wiped the smile of madness off his face.

And finally, when he saw the green meadow of the verdant western continent, Carl leaped off the carriage, shouting and dancing like a scream. The dance of a middle-aged man with fifty bare heads and flowing sweat of grease was not a pretty sight, but no one blamed Carl Hansen.

“This is insane!! It’s unbelievable!!!! To actually accomplish this!! How is this even possible?!”

It wasn’t possible because we knew in advance where to breach. I simply patted Carl Hansen on the shoulder.

“Does that matter?”

“No!! What matters is that it’s breached!! Hahaha!! A land trade route!!!”

I returned with Lord Elond, who was cheering. “We need interpreters, as well as merchants who are knowledgeable about the affairs of the Western Continent. To obtain trading permits in the Western Continent, we must meet Sultan Saladin, who governs that region.”

“I know many merchants who frequently travel to the Western Continent for maritime trade. I will summon them immediately.”

“Furthermore, we need to connect the roads from the Elond Territory to various parts of the continent. It would be great if they could be connected to prosperous trading cities with good logistics…”

“It would be excellent to connect it with the commercial city of Porto. Our Merchant Guild has a strong presence there. Geographically, most of the empire’s logistics pass through that place. If the Elond Territory is connected to that location by road…”

With an ecstatic expression that seemed to make one tremble just by imagining it, Karl Hansen began to laugh. I entrusted him with the mission.

“I will take care of establishing the road connection between the commercial city of Porto and the Elond Territory, negotiating the trade agreement with the Western Continent, and obtaining the monopoly rights for trade through that route via the Emperor. Even if you can’t match the scale of the Porto Commercial District, expand it tenfold. The floating population traveling to and from that place will increase by about ten times in the future.”

“Hahaha! I’ll do as instructed!! I’ll buy up the surrounding land of the Porto Commercial District and build buildings on it!”

While laughing heartily, I asked him a few questions.

“The Porto Commercial City is located in the middle of a plain, right?”

“Yes. So, transportation should be convenient, shouldn’t it?”

“What about the weather?”

“It’s mild throughout the year. It’s not as cold as other regions of the empire even in winter, and it’s not as hot as them in summer. They say it has a dull weather.”

“I see.”

Upon hearing that, my mind started spinning.

And soon, I came up with an idea.

“How about gathering circus troupes, theater groups, and singers from all over the country?”

“Why? What would we do with those people?”

“Exactly. Gather only the very best of the best and bring them to the Porto Commercial District.”

“Circus troupes, theater groups, and singers… Aren’t they for the commoners?”

In a clearly defined feudal society, they were undoubtedly peasants. However, I didn’t simply see them as just peasants because I was a modern person who knew very well the power of the cultural industry.

“Stop the nonsense and gather up. I’ll make sure you earn some money.”

“Then we should gather up. Yes.”

Perhaps it was because I had already witnessed the transformation of the impossible into the possible. Karl Hansen followed my orders without question.

And just like Karl Hansen, the next day came immediately.

Ten Western continent specialized traders, their faces filled with excitement and enthusiasm, visited the Elond domain.

“The Western continent is currently monopolized by the Karamba Empire. The Eternal Lord, Sultan Saladin, unified and turned most of the fragmented countries into a single empire. Therefore, if you want to engage in trade, you must obtain his permission.”

After hearing those words, the merchants sighed heavily with melancholy.

“But, Lord Lando, let me tell you in advance that obtaining trading rights from the Sultan will be extremely difficult. He is a very greedy and ambitious person.”

“Perhaps… he might recognize the value of the trade route and try to forcibly take it away.”

“I’m aware of that.”

I calmly said to the merchants. I knew it better than anyone else. There have been numerous detailed descriptions of Sultan Saladin’s ambitions and desires in the novel.

To give you an idea, he pierced through the Lacor Mountains, sacrificing an enormous amount of money, three years, and 200,000 lives, all to occupy the Eastern continent. But I’m not particularly worried.

Because I know exactly how to roast him alive.

“We can provide interpretation services or explain unfamiliar aspects of Western continent culture, but that’s all we can do. We won’t offer anything more than that.”

“Do you have any means to persuade the Sultan?”

“Persuade?”

I laughed at those words.

“Do you think there’s anyone who can persuade the Sultan? The Eternal Lord, Sultan Saladin, the Conqueror King?”

Upon hearing my words, the merchants, who were well aware of the situation in the Western continent, fell silent in unison. They knew that what I said was true.

A man who embodied the desire for conquest and ambition. That was Saladin, the eternal ruler.

“Well, how about it?…”

When the merchant cautiously asked, I nodded my head.

“That’s right.”

Suddenly, as the meaning of affirmation sank in, the merchants looked puzzled.

“If I were to say that a trade route has been established in the Raco Mountain Range, the one who made it would not be thinking of trade but rather of waging war. They will probably come to occupy the trade route.”

I calmly affirmed the merchant’s words. The merchants’ eyes widened.

“So, what do you suggest?”

Seeing the terrified merchants, I burst into laughter.

“I suppose this answers your question. You’re wondering if the Iron Blood Legion has the forced power to wage war against Sultan Saladin.”

“Exactly. While the Iron Blood Legion is said to be strong, can they really be strong enough to stop Sultan Saladin’s ambitions?”

“No, of course not. On the contrary, I think they are worth fighting against.”

As I spoke, the merchants fell into fear once again.

“That’s why we need some seasoning.”

“Seasoning?”

“We will bring the Dragon Knights and the guardian dragons of Karia under the command of Lord Elond. By doing so, Sultan Saladin will not easily be able to consider starting a war.”

The merchants’ eyes widened at my words.

“I-Is that possible?!”

The Dragon Knights who protect the capital. In the original work, they were special forces that only protected the emperor and the capital until the end of the despicable war between Randor and the Iron Blood Legion, maintaining neutrality. But in the end, they recognized Adran of Gold as the emperor in their final moments and lent their strength to him.

Showing an epic impact where they incinerate thousands with a single breath, the Dragon Knights carried the team and Karia, who lost all their forces in the end, summoned their guardian dragon from the underground of the capital to protect Randor and fought their final battle.

In this process, all the Dragon Knights and Karia, who rode the guardian dragons, were annihilated, and Adran of Gold successfully captured Randor, tearing it apart in the square…

“Anyway!! Even if they belong to the Iron Blood Corps, Sultan Saladin wouldn’t dare to engage in war. The corps can withstand and even unleash fire from the sky, incinerating thousands of people, and if necessary, they can come flying to their own city and set it ablaze. Who would dare to go to war?”

“Your Majesty… Would you permit that?”

The Dragon Knights and the Guardian Dragons existed to protect the capital and the imperial palace. They were essentially the strongest asymmetric forces that the emperor could command. Handing over those forces meant handing over the power to decide the life or death of the capital.

A normal emperor would never hand over the Dragon Knights.

“You will hand them over.”

But I was certain.

The current emperor was an untrustworthy, treacherous fool who had fallen for me, a spy undermining the empire.

And as expected…

“Oh! Your Excellency! You broke through the trade route! In that case! In that case! It would be troublesome if Sultan Saladin attacked. Hand over the Dragon Knights. And the Guardian Dragons too.”

With just one word from me, the emperor immediately said YES.

“Your Majesty!!! Please reconsider!!!!”

Duke Pellings turned pale and shouted so loudly that it echoed through the entire palace. It was like what Carl Hansen had done when he teleported and rode a carriage to march to the capital within a day, requesting that I hand over the Dragon Knights without even considering it, and seeing the emperor immediately give his approval.

“Reconsider, please!!”

Duke Pellings must have said that because he thought that if the Dragon Knights came flying to his territory, they could also incinerate his territory. But Adran, the protagonist of the original novel armed with justice and wisdom, spoke to the emperor out of concern for the empire.

“The Dragon Knights are the last force protecting the capital!! Handing them over to a specific faction is highly unjust!!”

“Is Lord Landor a specific faction? He is a loyal subject, Adran.”

“He could use the Dragon Knights for unjust purposes! Ha!!!”

“Adran! Landor is not that kind of person!! He wouldn’t do such a thing!!”

The emperor stubbornly shouted loudly, devoid of any intelligence in his face. It was a scene that revealed how deeply the emperor had fallen for Lendor’s flattery.

“Don’t you understand that it is necessary to maintain the trade route connecting the west and east? It is a decision for the entire empire, not some frivolous whim!”

“Father!!!!”

Prince Adran finally used the word “father.”

“How can you not know that Lendor can use the dragons to seize the capital?!”

Despite the wise advice from loyal subjects, the foolish prince, who had fallen into betrayal, did not listen to their counsel.

“Stop!!! I will not tolerate any more insolence! The Dragon Knights will be handed over to the iron-blooded legion according to Count Lendor’s demand!! The Guardian Dragons will be the same! Only the goddess Karia could handle the Guardian Dragons. She will provide Count Lendor with unwavering support. This matter has already been decided!!! Don’t say another word!!”

Upon hearing these words, Prince Adran, the golden one, kneels down as if everything is over.

And he starts laughing and crying.

“It’s over. The end of the empire. The Dragon Knights falling into that traitor’s hands!! Do you know what he will do with the dragons now?! Father!!!!!”

Prince Adran’s cry was desperate.

It was such a desperate cry that I could only swallow my silence.

He had thought of using the dragons for delivery.