Chapter 128

Chapter 128

#128. War of Money (2)

“Urgent report! Lenslet! The Great Northern Wall in the far north of Lenslet has been invaded!”

“The north, it seems things up there aren’t calm either!”

Meanwhile, news from the northern region finally reached the empire.

Due to the northern region’s isolation, the news arrived only after the battle had concluded.

“We need to send some troops to the north! It would’ve been difficult before, but with our current military supplies production capability, it’s entirely possible!”

“You’re right! There’s no need to pull forces from the wall or borders! Even sending a portion of the central army will allow us to exert imperial influence in the north.”

The northern region, which had been provoking with its masonry and Rensha currency, was now seen by Emperor Khanbraman and high-ranking ministers as a golden opportunity.

“That won’t work! The place that first invented the steam engine is the north!”

However, someone opposed this plan.

It was Crown Prince Julian.

“I agree with His Highness the Crown Prince. If we’re at this level, they might have even more advanced production capabilities.”

The nobles in the aristocratic council backed Crown Prince Julian’s argument.

“After all, the north lacks population and land. They can’t compare to our empire.”

“But let’s remember that most of the magic stones and coal consumed across the empire come from the north.”

“So what? We should still send troops. As usual, we’ll use the excuse of being support or relief forces.”

“His Majesty speaks wisely. Rumor has it that the legendary white snake also appeared. This time, the north probably won’t reject support forces…”

Inside the imperial palace, two opposing opinions clashed fiercely.

But this conflict didn’t last long and soon fizzled out.

“Urgent report! The orcs and barbarians invading the north, along with the white snake, have been defeated by the northerners.”

“What?!?”

“Hmph… I knew it…”

Plans for a punitive expedition to the north were abandoned, and economic sanctions weren’t even attempted.

Since the north had already triumphed in the war against the barbarians before the empire could mobilize its forces, it was impossible to intervene late.

The empire desperately needed the magic stones, coal, and precision parts sold by the north.

“…Let’s ignore the north for now and focus on our own war.”

“Yes…”

“A wise decision indeed.”

Such fleeting opportunities came and went.

The empire, deeply regretful, took out its frustration on the Mongar orcs.

“Focus all production on military supplies!”

“Seize all the empire’s carriages and horses!”

“No need to worry about weapons and uniforms! We’ll supply you until you’re sick of them!”

And in this process, there were minor(?) sacrifices.

Not as significant as the downfall of imperial artisans and guilds, but notable nonetheless.

“Your Majesty, while the price of weapons has dropped, the sheer quantity means…”

“Can’t you just borrow from the imperial bank and merchants?”

“Well, we still haven’t fully repaid the loans from the bank. Moreover, we also owe the principal borrowed during the reign of the previous emperor…”

“At least you’re paying it off bit by bit, right?”

“Your Majesty, if you only repay the principal, the banks and merchants suffer losses. You must also pay the interest written in the promissory notes. The accumulated interest since the time of the previous emperor…”

“There you go again with that old story. Tell them this: I am so benevolent that I recognize the principal they lent to the royal family.”

Under this implicit threat to erase both debt and interest, once again, the imperial bank and merchants had to lend money to the royal family like they were donating to help the needy.

Compared to the previous emperor who hadn’t repaid the principal, the current emperor was still considered decent.

It was too risky for the banks and merchant guilds to antagonize the royal family over this matter.

Anyway, with these minor(?) sacrifices as a foundation, the imperial army became stronger than ever.

Even the conscript soldiers were equipped with shiny steel armor and weapons, and spare uniforms made of quality cotton fabric were generously supplied.

“I’ve never seen such soft and glossy clothes! Giving out three sets per person… amazing…”

“All this is made of Imperial Steel?! Am I really wearing armor made of Imperial Steel? My goodness… Is this a dream?”

This change in the imperial army also affected the soldiers’ meals.

“Thanks to Lady Mary’s blessings, we’ve had another unprecedented bountiful harvest this year.”

“Good. Send it all as military rations!”

What used to be special occasion food back home now became daily meals for the soldiers, seasoned with spices (Arad salt).

“Woah… What kind of food is this? I’ve never tasted anything so delicious!”

“Incredible… I feel like a noble.”

“His Majesty cares so much about lowly soldiers like us!”

“For the glory of the Thousand-Year Empire, we shall fight to the death!”

This led to increased morale and combat effectiveness among the soldiers.

Their loyalty to the emperor soared endlessly.

On the other hand, this level of production and supply wasn’t limited to the pro-establishment faction’s army.

“Do the establishment faction soldiers look happy?”

“Our territory was like this at the beginning too.”

The pro-establishment faction, which had only recently started suppressing guilds and artisans to build factories, had reached this level. Meanwhile, the aristocratic council and church, which had industrialized much earlier, had already been enjoying this prosperity.

Thanks to this, around five months after the Mongar invasion began…

The tide of war decisively turned in favor of the empire.

“The age of humans has arrived…”

“The Golden Age has returned!”

“Glory to the Thousand-Year Empire!”

“May His Majesty live forever!”

Witnessing this transformation, the citizens of the empire unanimously thought:

The world has completely changed.

And this news of the empire’s progress reached the neighboring kingdom alliance.

“The empire… the empire has gone mad!”

“We need to hurry and create that steam engine thing too!”

Members of the kingdom alliance were astonished by the empire’s incredible industrial development.

“The empire seems likely to easily repel the Mongar invasion.”

“…We’re restarting the localized warfare that was paused.”

They reconvened in Badenheim and hastily resumed their previously halted localized conflicts.

* * *

At the eastern decline zone of the empire.

Ragolte Great Wall.

Imperial Steel had long been famous but was expensive due to limited production.

Most soldiers had to make do with inferior iron equipment.

But not anymore.

“Don’t spare the arrows!”

“Spear, sword, axe – if it’s uncertain, just throw it!”

“Don’t conserve weapons! Those who do will be flogged!”

Iron equipment was now rare as the Great Wall’s army quickly armed itself with Imperial Steel.

Uniform quality, standardized specifications, and overwhelming quantities displayed impressive prowess even in cold weapon battles.

Pew pew pew!

Whoosh!

Magic-aided spears and arrows rained down ceaselessly from the wall like summer rain.

No matter how sturdy the Mongar orcs’ armor and bodies were, or how powerful the large monsters they commanded…

There was no standing against sheer numbers.

“Woo hoo! We’ve won!”

“We’ve crushed the orc bastards!”

“Glory to the Thousand-Year Empire!”

“Long live His Majesty!”

Supplied well, the empire achieved victory after victory at the Great Wall.

Sieges in the decline zone that used to cause massive casualties ended with one-sided victories for the empire.

“Charge! Knights, charge!”

“This time, let’s wipe them out completely!”

But the war wasn’t over yet.

“Open the gates! The Dark Duke leads the charge!”

The imperial army defending the wall counterattacked outside and pursued the retreating orcs and monsters.

A week-long pursuit battle took place on the grasslands near the wall.

Pew! Slash!

“Grrraaagh…”

Boom!

Finally, the massive body of Skar, the chieftain leading the Mongar orcs, fell on the grassland.

Surrounding Skar’s fallen body were thousands, tens of thousands of monster and orc warrior corpses, each pierced with dozens of spears, axes, arrows, and swords – all made of Imperial Steel, penetrating deep into their thick hides, skin, and muscles.

“With this, the eastern part of the empire is liberated.”

Duke Doom, the knight who brought down Skar, the orc chieftain, expressed his thoughts on victory in an indifferent tone.

“The empire and humanity have completely rid themselves of savage traces!”

Woo hoo hoo!

“Glory to the Dark Duke!”

“Long live His Majesty!”

“For the Thousand-Year Empire!”

The Great Wall battle, which in the original history required fierce and brutal efforts to repel, ended too early and too smoothly.

“Hmm…”

Doom closed his eyes and let out a dissatisfied groan.

He found this battle somewhat disappointing.

‘A life-or-death battle was needed.’

He wanted to fight with everything he had when his life was in danger, but this war ended too smoothly for him to experience even the ‘life’ part of ‘life-or-death.’

…

The much-anticipated Mongar orc chieftain Skar was already in poor condition, having been chased by imperial knights and battle mages.

In reality, Doom had only landed the final blow.

‘This shows that abundance can sometimes be a hindrance.’

Doom probably wouldn’t have known in this timeline that the situation between the empire and the orcs was the opposite in the original history.

In the Silver Age 1, the empire couldn’t properly support the wall with troops and supplies while absorbing the north.

The aristocratic council and church restrained such a royal family from sending troops to the Great Wall.

In that situation, Doom fought fiercely and attained enlightenment, becoming the empire’s first Grand Swordmaster.

But in this timeline, that became impossible.

“Send the victory report.”

With the hollow victory and lingering dissatisfaction, he declared victory.

“Understood.”

At this, the waiting battle mage bowed.

This battle mage was a wizard dispatched from the Gold Mage Tower, appropriately equipped with various magical devices.

He took out a crystal ball from his spatial case while speaking to Doom.

“I’ll send a magical communication to the imperial palace.”

The magic communication device showcased by the mage tower not long ago was quickly adopted by the palace and military, replacing carrier pigeons overnight.

“Now! The victory report has been transmitted to the Sun Palace!”

Doom turned away from the battle mage sending the magical communication and raised his sword toward the soldiers.

“The empire! Humanity has won! I’m proud of all of you!”

Woo hoo hoo!!

Once again, victorious cheers echoed loudly in all directions, spreading like waves throughout the entire wall.

Then,

‘Hmm?’

While looking around, Doom felt his disappointment fade.

‘It’s not over yet. The real war is just beginning.’

Knights affiliated with the church and aristocratic council entered his field of vision.

‘They’ve managed to hide their capable warriors well.’

A smile spread across Doom’s pale face.

Looking closely now, both the aristocratic council and the church possessed warriors nearly at the Swordmaster level.

Though they tried to conceal it thoroughly, they couldn’t maintain their composure this time, and were eventually detected by Doom, who had reached the pinnacle of Swordmasters.

There are always ways to tell superhumans of that caliber without needing pulse diagnosis.

‘Their attempts to hide their strength are rather clumsy.’

Most seemed to have reached mastery not long ago.

‘The aristocratic council and the church were more prosperous than ever thanks to Bishop Company’s support.’

He understood why so many masters had suddenly emerged.

‘If those level warriors should be reported to the royal family but weren’t…?’

Another war, possibly even more brutal than the war against the savages, might await him.

‘What if the kingdom alliance and the north join in too?!’

Indeed, wars between humans are the most entertaining.

Thump thump thump…

The heart of the Dark Duke, which had grown lukewarm from the hollow war, started beating faster again.

* * *

When the battle at the Ragolte Great Wall ended in victory,

and the industrial revolution within the empire was just getting on track,

Entaire and Bishop Company, at the center of this movement, were engaged in a different type of war.

“Buy the newspaper! Newspaper! Reading the Bishop Times alone will keep you informed about everything happening in the world!”

Printing and papermaking techniques brought from the north allowed newspapers to be published every three days.

At the printing press producing the newspapers, hundreds of carrier pigeons flew busily every day.

Once magical communication devices become more widespread, newspapers might be published daily instead of every three days.

“Extra! Extra! A new hero has emerged, slaying fifty Mongar orcs single-handedly!”

In any case, the newspaper compiled such news, featuring imaginative illustrations and covering the hottest topics from the wall.

-Noble Sir Solon, second son of the Felis family, slaughtered fifty Mongar orcs alone! To avenge his brother Sir Allen, who died at the wall in the past.

-Archbishop Theresa personally tended to wounded soldiers at the wall!

-The empire’s factory production capacity, which amazed the entire continent, made all this possible thanks to Bishop Company!

The newspaper especially heroized figures from the aristocratic council and church.

While subtly promoting Bishop Company continuously.

-Fierce battle against Mongar! The empire needs more Swordmasters!

-Where is Baroness Havana, another Swordmaster of the empire?

-Finally! Duke Doom has defeated Chief Skar of the Mongar orcs! Since Skar was already battered from fighting imperial knights, Duke Doom easily executed him.

On the contrary, figures aligned with the establishment were subtly belittled or criticized.

Especially the criticism of Baroness Havana was very overt.

“The war is over, completely.”

Entaire sat in a luxurious office reading the Bishop Times with a wry smile.

‘Let’s see… I have an evening appointment with Lord Felis tonight, right? And Sir Solon mentioned in today’s article will be coming too… I should prepare some cash.’

Closing the newspaper, he pulled out his wallet from his robes to count the bills.

‘This amount should be enough to completely bring the Felis family to my side.’

Each bill was intricately designed, beautiful, and crisp – Rensha currency issued exclusively in Lenslet.

“Power comes from the wallet.”

Nobles need money to display their dignity, clerics need money to spread their faith.

Knights need money to eat well and afford good weapons. Mages are no exception.

He completely disagreed with sayings like “power comes from the tip of the sword” or “the pen is mightier than the sword.”

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