Chapter 15: One Step (3) | Semi-Coercive Imperialist
Tick. Tick.
The second hand echoed quietly through the office.
"...."
The president of "Veritas Trading" was sweating, glancing nervously at me. Beside him sat two other shareholders, a man and a woman who seemed to be his son and daughter. Their faces were stiff with tension.
"Now, all you need to do is stamp it."
The president looked like he might burst into tears at any moment.
They were probably thinking of this as exploitation or outright robbery. They might be half-right.
"The payment is 4 million dollars. It will be transferred immediately upon signing."
"...What?"
All three of them opened their eyes wide at once. Their expressions were a mix of surprise and disbelief.
"Four... four million dollars?"
"Yes. In cash."
"...."
They exchanged glances, and the president wiped his forehead with a trembling hand.
"F-four million dollars is certainly a large sum. Far more than the company's actual value. But this has been our family business, built up over my father's lifetime..."
I let out a small laugh. This made me think maybe those Imperial Guard bastards were right to just take it.
Give them a place to sit, and they'll lie down... No, let's not think like that. I mustn't become the same as them.
"Let go of those fairy tales and just stamp the papers quietly. I'm sure your father would want you to have a comfortable retirement."
I looked at the president, then at his son and daughter in turn. Their faces looked no older than twenty-two or twenty-three.
"You should also consider your children's future. I'll leave you an additional 1% share."
Their stubbornness wouldn't help them, and persuasion was just a waste of my time.
In the end, if the future doesn't change and the world ends, we're all going to die together anyway.
"Ah..."
After groaning for a while as if in pain, the president finally stamped the papers with a trembling hand.
"...Here it is."
"Good."
I received the contract and spoke to the president, whose face was now blank with defeat.
"Then, please hand over all operational information to Mr. Dieter Schmidt. Everything you knew as the owner."
"...Yes."
The president left with his children. Their slow, reluctant backs were a little pitiful, but well.
"Hmm. Not bad."
I sat in the now-empty president's chair. It was shabby, but adequately furnished. Only forty minutes away by car from the Sentinel Knight Order Headquarters, so not too far either.
Viiiiiinng-
An alarm rang from the terminal in my pocket.
"Jun?"
The caller was 'Jun Kandel'.
Just seeing the name made me sick. Old memories surged up like vomit.
I frowned as I answered the call.
"Hello."
─It's been a while, Max. This is Jun Kandel.
Jun Kandel was the direct heir of the Kandel family. Kandel stood as one of the Empire's pillars, rivaling Ebenholtz. In simple terms, he was my rival.
"What is it?"
─I heard something quite interesting. You had a clash with an officer from the Imperial Guard?
As expected, Rodriguez had run straight to Kandel to wag his tail.
"It wasn't a clash, more like some fly got annoying on my way."
A soft laugh came through the receiver.
─I understand. However, it may be difficult for us to let this incident slide as if nothing happened. After all, former official Imperial Guard members were killed. There's been some talk even within the Guard.
"I see."
So what, you bastard. This snake-tongued piece of shit always talks in circles with that slimy voice. Not even man enough to speak straight, this damn insect.
─Max. I heard you're eyeing the "White Porcelain of Egoros" at this auction?
White porcelain.
...White porcelain?
You mean pottery? Why porcelain?
I searched my memory briefly.
─Max. Are you listening?
Throb!
At that moment, the virus inside my body throbbed violently, and my vision suddenly shifted. Like a film rewinding, a scene from the past played vividly before my eyes.
'This is the White Porcelain of Egoros! Starting bid is 3 million credits!'
'Number 131, 4 million!'
'Number 151, 4.1 million!'
'Number 131 again, 4.5 million!'
'Ah~ Number 151 calls 5 million!'
'The bidding war between 131 and 151 is fierce!'
"...Ah."
That happened.
The White Porcelain of Egoros. It was an item rumored to improve virility if you drank water from it.
─Seems like you're interested after all.
I understood Jun Kandel's intention. Once, I had been passionate about collecting such useless artifacts, but now, I had little interest.
"Yes. I am interested. It's a genuine antique that hasn't surfaced in a while. However."
─...However?
You need lines like this if you're going to let the other side feel like they've won.
"Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend the auction this time. I've been quite busy with recent construction and all."
I was essentially saying I'd hand over the porcelain, and Jun Kandel gave a satisfied chuckle.
─Understood. A small gift will be delivered shortly.
The deal was wrapped up in an instant.
I had traded the porcelain for a small gift, and it was obvious what that gift would be.
─Then, I'll be off.
Jun Kandel hung up.
"...His voice is still irritating as hell."
Porcelain or Rodriguez, none of that mattered right now. I was focused on the strange phenomenon that had just occurred.
Even for a regressor, it's difficult to remember every little detail from decades ago.
And yet, the memory of that old auction resurfaced just now as vividly as if it had happened yesterday.
The cause was probably──
"Was it you?"
I placed my hand on my collarbone.
No doubt, this virus fragment had revived my memory.
If so...
"...Let me recall more detailed memories."
I closed my eyes.
Inside my mind, in the dust-covered drawers of memory, things I had seen in passing at some point. Especially, I focused on recalling future knowledge that might be profitable.
'The southern mine, I heard it hasn't been doing well lately. Not even decent iron ore, let alone mana stones.'
Past memories unfolded before my eyes like a panorama.
A decadent yet glamorous noble salon. A space filled with thick cigar smoke and the scent of expensive perfume.
'Starting a mana stone business in times like this is just stupidity. You'd be far better off investing in real estate in the Capital.'
'Indeed, our family also sold off most of our southern mine shares. It's like pouring water into a bottomless jar.'
It was a time when I mingled with noble circles, discussing business.
A period when I was drifting on the outskirts of the Knight Order, wasting my life.
'They'll probably go through full closure procedures in a few years. There's nothing left in that barren land now.'
'...Tsk. Some people fall backward and still break their nose, while those damn Republic bastards just dig and mana stones pour out, right?'
These nobles once declared that the South, once the cradle of mana stones, was finished. Because of that, I had sold off a mine I had bought in advance.
But one day, out of nowhere, an article exploded into the news.
The headline of that paper came back to me vividly.
[Unidentified mana wave detected in the Lomilton Mountain Range, Beston County, Hermes Province, Southern region... Academic circles suggest "Possibility of discovering a large-scale mana stone vein."]
"Found it."
I opened my eyes.
Hermes, Beston, Lomilton mountain range area. The mana stone mining industry involves massive upfront costs and high risk of failure, but when it hits, the profits are enormous. A classic case of high-risk, high-return. Anyway, the mining expenses would all be covered by Ebenholtz.
I quickly left the president's office and approached Dieter in the corner of the office.
"Mr. Dieter. Did you hear? I've acquired this company."
"Yes."
"You're not one of those people who only serve the former president, are you-"
"No. I'm an employee of this company."
"...Good."
As expected, Dieter was a hard man to read.
"From now on, you'll be given full authority over this company. At the same time, you'll also need to serve as my personal secretary."
I almost thought Dieter's face brightened slightly.
Maybe he's the kind who enjoys overwork.
"Here's your first assignment. We're going to purchase all the land around Beston County, Hermes, in the South. Quietly, without letting rumors spread."
Dieter looked up at me and nodded.
"Yes. I'll get it done."
Then he buried himself again in a mountain of paperwork. This man didn't even have a computer. That meant he was handling everything by hand.
"I'll get you a computer. Do you know how to use one?"
At that, he looked up again and replied,
"I'll learn."
He pushed his rimless glasses up the bridge of his nose.
"...Alright. Good work."
The more I looked at him, the more it became clear, he was far stranger than the rumors suggested. The kind of eccentric who couldn't be judged by conventional standards, but perhaps that made him all the more trustworthy.
Dieter Schmidt.
You are my first secretary.
***
Meanwhile, Rodriguez had just received good news.
He stepped into the back garden of the Imperial Guard headquarters, brimming with confidence. There, Lieutenant General Strassen was waiting.
"Loyalty!"
Rodriguez saluted first. Strassen, dressed in civilian clothes, smiled.
"Have you heard?"
"Yes, sir. I heard you came to a good agreement with Duke Kandel."
"...Yes. We reached an agreement."
Strassen nodded. Rodriguez's cheeks flushed red.
"That's a relief. I believe this incident will serve as another turning point for the Imperial Guard. We'll eliminate those archaic nobles who cling to power under the guise of tradition, and our Guard will-"
"-We've decided to discard you."
"Take the lead in...?"
Rodriguez's long-winded words were cut short, and his face froze.
He tilted his head slightly, as if he'd misheard. Strassen let out a deep sigh.
"Rodriguez. I suppose you're too much of a bumpkin from the East to understand how things work."
The lieutenant general stepped closer and tugged at Rodriguez's tie as he whispered.
"Ebenholtz is a name you don't mess with, not even if it's just a newborn puppy bearing it."
In an instant, men in uniform emerged from the shadows. They grabbed Rodriguez by both arms roughly.
"Y-Your Excellency? What is this-"
"Shh. Handle it quietly."
"My Excellency! Lord Strassen! What is this, what are you doing! My Excellency!"
Rodriguez screamed as he was dragged away. At some point, his mouth was gagged, and Strassen clicked his tongue and muttered.
"Idiot."
No matter how reckless he may be, Maximilian is the only son of Sebestian. He's a noble of such rank that a country bumpkin like Rodriguez shouldn't have even dared to look up at him.
"This is why bumpkins don't know their place."
Strassen pulled a silver dental floss from his inner pocket and began to clean between his teeth.
Skrk. Skrk. Skrk.
Like scraping out food scraps, someone's neck was cut.
***
The last day at the main residence.
Enzi delivered the Kandel family's small gift. It was a beanbag. When the zipper was opened, Rodriguez's face was inside.
"Yeah. Confirmed."
"Yes."
Jun Kandel had recently acquired the porcelain at a relatively low price at the auction, and Rodriguez had been decapitated. Meaning his life was traded for a single piece of pottery.
He was a pathetic man to begin with, but high-ranking nobles of the Empire evaluate human worth with far colder judgment.
"Enzi. Did Father say anything?"
"I haven't reported it, but-"
Enzi's eyes narrowed into crescent moons.
"I'm sure he knows. He'd probably be proud. But, young master, if this is for my father's sake, there's no need to go this far."
Enzi seemed concerned about my sudden change. Before the regression, around this time, I had simply been going around exploring fine dining spots.
"No. I did this because I wanted to. It has nothing to do with father."
I looked quietly at Rodriguez's closed eyes.
"A man who didn't know his place tried to stand as my equal."
I handed the beanbag back to Enzi.
"Burn it. What about the moving preparations?"
"All complete."
Everything from the wooden sword I cherished since childhood, handmade by my mother, to the worn books, everything had been packed. My favorite sofa and bed had already been moved to the new mansion.
Enzi had likely handled even the details I didn't mention.
"Enzi. Before we leave, can I look through the Ebenholtz armory?"
I was looking for a sword. I had to hunt down and crush the Brain-Eater, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that standing alone without the family's support was reckless.
I must use everything that's been given to me. Because there's an 'enemy' we have no choice but to defeat.
"Of course. The entire armory belongs to you, young master. This way."
Enzi opened the door. His gestures as he guided me were, as always, gentle.
...To be honest.
I was more devastated when Enzi died than when my father's head was hung in the streets.
I was a truly unfilial son.