After Lobotomy Corporation officially became a Wing of the World, the very first thing it did was negotiate with Victoria, Ursus, and Laterano.
Even before the war in Kazdel had ended, Lobotomy Corporation had already signed contracts with the three nations. They would provide land and manpower for Lobotomy to build branches. In return, Lobotomy would sell them vast amounts of clean energy.
How much, exactly?
That depended on how much each country consumed. At the very least, for Kazdel, whose industries were only just beginning and whose energy use was modest, once they received Lobotomy's support, they simply abandoned traditional [Originium] power generation—and even [Soulstones].
If you already had a wheelchair, why would you still cling to your broken crutch?
Did you think there weren't enough cases of Oripathy?
Or maybe you enjoyed the sluggish trickle of [Originium]'s output?
Lobotomy's energy was cheap, abundant, and clean. By comparison, [Originium] generation, though "their own," could no longer compete…
It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to return the other way. Once Kazdel tasted the [Enkephalin] energy system, there was no going back. Now, aside from keeping one [Originium] power system in reserve as a safeguard, Kazdel had completely switched over to [Enkephalin].
Naturally, Lobotomy's branches were built on Kazdel's soil as well. No one but Lobotomy's own employees could enter them. The same was true of the other three nations' branches.
The arrival of Lobotomy triggered a wave of upheaval in the market. Countless former energy-sector workers were dismissed, while enormous numbers of people poured into Lobotomy instead. This time, however, the company's demand for personnel was far larger than before.
Infected, priority. The rest of you, wait in line.
Those with psychological disorders—priority as well.
And if you were both Infected and mentally ill… congratulations! You were precisely the kind of talent Lobotomy wanted. Report for duty tomorrow!
Many failed to understand why Lobotomy recruited this way, but the company gave no explanations. They simply kept bringing out more energy to trade.
Next to this mysterious Lobotomy, K Corp looked almost ordinary. Their main quirk was an endless appetite for combat footage—enough to make people wonder if K Corp had turned itself into some sort of arms dealer.
But like Lobotomy, K Corp too built branches in all four nations. Each contained vast stocks of ampoules, staff specialized in removals, and most crucially, a sub-unit of something that must be sorrow.
As a result, ampoule production skyrocketed—nearly tripled. Exports boomed alongside Lobotomy's energy. Beyond the original ampoule products, heavily diluted regenerative ampoules were now hitting the markets as well, cheap enough for any household with a bit of money to afford.
Because of this shift, the three nations were nearly giddy with joy.
Healthcare and energy had both been practically solved single-handedly by these two companies. Huge swathes of manpower were freed up, redirected to other industries. Meanwhile, through cooperation with the Wings, Lobotomy's own goods—such as workshop weapons and equipment—began slowly filtering into the markets of the three nations.
In short: prosperity, everywhere.
And under such conditions, it was inevitable that other countries would turn their eyes toward The City.
After all, once everyone's efficiency had been about the same, but suddenly a neighbor's productivity was shooting sky-high—though they might try to veil it, it was impossible not to notice.
Thus, scarcely had Lobotomy's branches been established, when other places too began paying close attention to The City…
In Lungmen, Wei Yenwu looked out over the cityscape. He ignored the stacks of dossiers piled on his desk, smoking quietly from his pipe, seemingly lost in thought.
He had already been keeping an eye on The City. But with the war in Kazdel, and with Victoria and the others suddenly surging ahead, Wei Yenwu had no choice but to reconsider the matter.
Before, when The City had not yet grown, his view had been simple: someday it would rise to a scale where Terra's nations could not ignore it. But he had not imagined that someday would arrive so soon.
Which meant he too would need to act.
He felt it keenly: The City would become a kind of "opportunity." And if Lungmen did not climb aboard now, then in the future, they would lag behind those who had.
He already had some plans in mind.
Beyond the basics—establishing relations, currying favor with the two Wings—Wei Yenwu wanted more.
If it was only about maintaining relations, that would be the blandest diplomacy. A mere trade of resources. That way, the benefits would always be the smallest.
Instead, he intended to try something further.
He wanted an exchange of personnel.
He would negotiate with The City's great companies or organizations, sending one person there for a time, while bringing one person from there to Lungmen. Through such exchange, he hoped to at least gain a clearer picture of The City's hidden cards, to understand the real source of its power, and to consider how much could be harnessed to raise Lungmen itself.
Since it was an opportunity, then every chance must be seized.
Wei Yenwu thought so.
He turned this over in his mind. Yes. Send Hui-chieh. It will be a trial for her as well…
With that thought, he sat back down at his desk, already beginning to arrange the preparations for that future meeting.
While Lungmen was brewing its plans, for Kazimierz it was as if a great wave was about to descend upon them without warning.
And that wasn't exaggeration. A wave really was coming.
At that very moment, what was Kazimierz doing?
They were holding the latest Knight Tournament.
And it was precisely into this setting, under this backdrop, that Don Quixote and his companion Nearl arrived—into the land called Kazimierz.