Chapter 75. Installing a Mage Tower
There had been many twists and turns.
Still, products made in the Marcel Territory continued to sell.
Payments continued to arrive properly.
That meant we should finally have enough money to start buying back the bonds issued when we desperately needed funds.
“Diego, let’s repurchase the bonds we distributed through Iberia.”
“Um, my lord. That will be difficult.”
“What are you talking about?”
“There is still a long time before maturity. Unless we pay all the promised interest printed on the bonds, the owners will not sell them.”
Wow.
Had Marcel’s reputation really risen this much?
In the past, Marcel bonds had such poor credit that buying them back was easy.
“Hahaha. The territory’s credit rating really improved.”
“Yes, my lord. Rosso Bank now classifies Marcel as Grade Two.”
Grade One was probably reserved for wealthy territories like Veneto.
We had achieved this in less than a year.
“Then leave the bonds alone. Think about how to manage our surplus budget.”
Considering the autumn harvest taxes, wouldn’t nearly an entire year’s budget accumulate at once?
“Surplus budget?”
“We don’t have extra money?”
“My lord! All those children of government-owned slaves that you freed are consuming tax money! And tax money is going into Witch Winnie’s laboratory! And expansion of the Royal Marcel factory! And construction of the canal connection facilities!”
Diego nearly screamed each sentence.
The bastard was genuinely suffering over money.
“Diego, want to take a vacation?”
“...I’m fine. I should work.”
As expected.
A few profitable products were still not enough.
To drastically increase the entire territory’s productive capacity, we would need something close to an Industrial Revolution.
Should I capture slaves and establish cotton plantations?
Unfortunately, my major in my previous life had been Hunter Support Studies.
I knew nothing about metallurgy.
I did not understand the mechanisms of spinning machines or power looms either.
Something like the flying shuttle made sense when I looked at one.
Trying to reproduce it from memory was completely different.
If I could at least find a coal mine, I might be able to make the alchemists develop coke.
Should I send a huge number of private prospectors into the Great Forest?
“I’ll somehow find another method. Don’t look so depressed.”
“Ugh. Forgive me for losing my temper.”
I laughed and patted Diego’s back.
“Then buy me some tea in town.”
“Sure. What kind would you like?”
I want a hot iced Americano. Ah. Coffee doesn’t exist here.
At that moment, I remembered something I had completely forgotten.
When I lived in Westfalen, I once asked people to search the Southern Continent colonies for something resembling coffee.
They never found anything.
At the time, I had not awakened the Hunter System.
I did not even have [Lesser Appraisal].
So I had quickly given up.
But now I have [Convenient Lesser Appraisal]! Maybe I can finally find coffee!
If I remembered correctly, coffee trees originated in tropical Africa on Earth.
In this world, that would probably correspond to regions deep south of the Fatima Kingdom.
If someone sailed down the eastern coastline from Fatima, perhaps they would eventually reach tropical lands.
“Diego, there’s something I need to find. I’m going to write a letter to Fatima.”
“To the King? What are you searching for?”
“A fruit used for making tea. The King is probably too much. I should write to Yasmin.”
Apparently, tolerating Yasmin’s complaints during her visit had been useful.
I never expected to ask her for something like this.
“Hahaha. You thought of another product, didn’t you?”
The moment Diego smelled money, his expression immediately brightened.
* * *
Yasmin Fatima, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stared at Eric’s long letter in confusion.
He wants me to find a tree covered in round red berries? Me?
Yasmin was the King’s eldest niece.
She was also fourth in the line of succession.
She was an extremely high-ranking noble.
She handed the letter to her maid and complained.
“Isn’t Viscount Marcel treating me a little too casually?”
“Hehe. Maybe he likes you.”
“He didn’t seem like that.”
“Boys are mean to girls they like.”
“Really?”
“And judging by the fact there are no girls his age around him, Viscount Marcel is still an innocent little boy.”
“He’s nineteen. That isn’t exactly a little boy.”
“Anyway.”
The maid pointed at a sentence in the letter.
“There must be many kinds of trees with round red fruit. Surely he doesn’t expect us to send every type.”
“Read the next line. Apparently, there are bean-like seeds inside the fruit.”
“I’ve never heard of such a plant. Hmm. He says it is probably in the southern tropical regions and wants us to travel there by ship and search. Honestly, if he knows so much, why doesn’t he come search personally?”
“Exactly.”
Yasmin suddenly stood.
“Where are you going?”
“If I’m going to find those red berries, I need to organize an expedition. To sail into Ogre territory, I’ll probably need to bring a knight order.”
“Your father will oppose it.”
“I’ll say it is necessary to improve relations with Marcel.”
“What about publishing the book?”
“I already handed over the manuscript. They can print it without me.”
Yasmin was far too stubborn to stop.
Her maid sighed and opened the dressing room.
All this trouble over one type of tree fruit.
A niece of the King was preparing to lead knights into a dangerous jungle.
The maid silently blamed that innocent boy Eric Marcel.
* * *
I hurried toward the lighthouse pyramid with my chiefs.
Tower Master Javier of Algeciras had requested a meeting.
Normally, I would simply tell him to come to the lord’s residence.
But the purpose of this meeting was,
‘Inspecting Marcel as a possible site for relocating the Mage Tower.’
“Hahaha. Viscount Marcel. Why did you run here so quickly?”
“Tower Master, what do you mean by suddenly relocating the Mage Tower? Did Algeciras collapse?”
“Of course not. There are internal circumstances, but nothing you need to worry about.”
Internal circumstances.
In other words, something that would make me uncomfortable if I knew about it.
“I was thinking of installing it around this pyramid. Mana gathers around the pyramid, after all.”
Should I tell him?
Should I not?
The mana vortex was not caused by excellent feng shui.
Mana gathered around the lighthouse pyramid because its mana collection magic item was operating.
Gaston had toured the pyramid interior and still failed to realize it.
He did not understand the operating principles of the ancient magic item.
But Javier was much smarter.
How much would he understand?
“Tower Master, why don’t we inspect the inside of the pyramid first?”
Javier noticed my strange expression and agreed.
“Please guide me.”
Thirty minutes later.
A deeply disappointed Javier walked back outside with his shoulders drooping.
Unlike Gaston, Javier was intelligent enough to realize the mana vortex came from the mana collection device.
He still did not understand the exact mechanism.
But he understood enough.
“What you saw inside is a territorial secret.”
“...I will say nothing.”
Was he not taking this disappointment a little too hard?
As long as the lighthouse continued operating, the mana vortex would remain anyway.
