A Famous Traitor and Treacherous Genius

157 – Assassin in the Dark (3)

If you keep special privileges to yourself, it is dictatorship.

However, if you share privileges, it becomes power.

The magic automatic ship is like that.

When the Crown Prince first gave me the Autonomous Magic Ship, Saint Geo Nostrum immediately stole it.

Although it was handed over obediently, it was actually a robbery by hierarchy.

King’s name.

Power.

It was beneficial for me to hand it over to avoid the misunderstanding that ‘an item that the king does not own is being given to the eldest son of a count’, but there are no good things to say about it to the outside world.

To borrow a word from the slums and bars, etc.

-The king enjoys the crazy automatic ship that runs on the ground with wheels!!

A sound like this is sometimes heard.

Of course, these are by no means the kind of insidious words that aristocrats who were not invited to St.

However, there are certainly people who envy the King of Incompetence and his enjoyment of traveling on the Mado cruise ship, and those who were not invited boarded the liner with the sole purpose of experiencing it for themselves.

The road connecting Orosol Academy and Sirene Port.

There are no longer carriages running on that highway.

I can’t do it accurately.

The carriage was driven to the shoulder of the road to avoid the magic automatic line rolling in the middle of the street, and even it had to get out of the way on the dirt ground when the automatic line rolled.

Before people could stand it, horses were startled when they saw a boat running on the ground and ran away to the side.

Even the drivers who pull the carriages say that they are no longer so reluctant to use carriages on Jungang-daero.

-No, I must be very sad to see the view from above.

The Magical Automobile Ship was basically a ship that ran on the sea.

Naturally, whether it is a deck or a guest room, the place where people ride must be relatively higher than the carriage.

A sense of superiority that those who board the magic ship implicitly feel.

Although he only got on the magic automatic ship and not a carriage, he felt a sense of superiority as if he had become a superior without even realizing it while looking at the passing travelers and carriages.

It may be small, but this is also another form of power.

It means that ordinary people can spend huge sums of money on transportation that they would not even be able to afford.

I took a round-trip ride on the Magical Autonomous Ship, something that others have never experienced.

You can spend your time and assets in such places, and it becomes the basis for increasing your assets or consolidating your power.

In other words.

-Magic automatic ship! If you don’t ride this, you’ll be left behind in the social world!

For those who could be said to have vested interests in Nostrum, riding a magic automatic ship was an extremely appropriate element to confirm and show off their power.

Just as many ladies show off trends by buying new clothes, jewelry, etc. From boutiques, or so-called ‘new products’ as the term is commonly used in the Empire, purchased at high prices.

Just as St. Geo Nostrum appeared and robbed like a child just because ‘the ship runs on the land’.

The magic automatic ship was enough to attract the interest and attention of many male nobles.

Justification?

The justification is that if you put it together, it will be created.

What’s important to them is that they can be the first to enjoy the ’empire’s new culture’, and as a justification, they can just say whatever comes to mind on the spot.

An era where access to imperial culture before others became power.

In this situation, the mere notice of the emergence of another culture of the empire, the ‘bike’, was enough to turn the royal capital upside down.

We came down here to the Seirene territory where the bikes were scheduled to be unloaded to see with our own eyes the bikes being introduced.

“Is this the port of Seirene?”

“This is the second port of Sirene. They say that part of the southern strait was completely carved out for trade with the empire.”

Wide plain.

Areas consisting of only straight lines are separated by huge steel boxes, ‘containers’.

“Imperial port. A logistics warehouse that is nowhere to be found in Nostrum. 70% of the imported goods coming from the empire come through this Port of Sirene and then spread throughout the royal capital.”

“Is it 70%? “Is Gibraltar open?”

“Not only is the canyon narrow, but the bloody wasteland of the Marquis of Claydoll has not yet been developed.”

“Aha.”

“It is said that in the beginning, 97% came through this port. It was only natural that the port was developed on such a large scale.”

The blood-red wasteland beyond the canyon where the railway line has just been laid – that is, unlike the area where orc corpses rolled around in the past, Sirene is a place where trade can be carried out without any bombardment from the strait.＜ Br＞

We have now arrived at the second port of Seirene, where unloading work is in full swing.

The imperial-style trading port alone is spectacular, but the biggest attraction is the giant carrying and moving containers from the ship.

“Wow. It’s a bit strange to see it like that. That heavy container is being moved by a golem.”

“Sometimes there are many things in Nostrum that can be easily solved with just the power of magic.”

To be precise, it is a giant doll, or ‘golem’.

Among the wizards in the kingdom, there are those who handle military magic, and the Count of Sirene hired a large number of wizards to quickly move containers.

“It’s fascinating.”

“In the Empire, they tend to put wheels on containers and make them move. The road conditions here are too bad for that.”

“Is that something like that in the Imperial Newspaper?”

“Is it uncivilized to lift and move containers with a magically controlled golem? I saw it posted in an editorial a year ago.”

“Uncivilized…”

Astasia scratched her cheek with a wry smile.

“Should we call it barbarism or magical power…?”

“It’s a difference in perspective.”

Although it is a difference of perspective to put it nicely, it may be correct to see Nostrum as uncivilized in general.

If you have magic, you can do anything.

Because it’s not a very good solution.

“Let’s go see the ship. Don’t you see the biggest ship right there?”

“Yes. It’s really… Big, right?”

“It looks like the academy building is lying down and moving the sea.”

Front.

In the empire, a huge ship called a ‘cargo ship’ is anchored in the port.

The ship, which was as long as three Nostrum naval battleships lined up in a row, was stuck to the dock at the port, unloading containers from its deck her.

“They are carrying a lot. People as well.”

“He’s a human… “

“As expected, do you care?”

“It’s okay. Too much imperial stuff has already come in to worry about that.”

Of course, that ship can change into a ‘landing ship’ in an instant.

However, at least for now, the empire’s merchant ships anchored at Sirene Port are not carrying soldiers with muskets, but all kinds of magical artifacts from the empire.

Even if muskets are spreading, knowingly or unknowingly, as a hunting weapon for nobles or as a self-defense weapon for noble ladies-

“Anyway, the Empire isn’t unloading war materials into the Kingdom right now, is it?”

“That’s right. It’s not a war material, it’s a material purely for trade and exchange.”

At least on the outside, I can confidently say that it is absolutely not the case.

“Miss.”

“Yes.”

“As long as you and I are stuck together like this, the empire’s exports will never be transformed into ‘war materials delivered in advance to the enemy camp.'”

“…Yes.”

As long as I’m with Astasia.

The crown prince is keeping an eye on me, and is deliberately sending imperial culture to Iperia by sending a huge cargo ship like that.

And.

“If you think you are being played by the crown prince, I will think of other methods.”

“No, it’s okay. There’s no need to refuse if I give you a gift.”

The crown prince sent ‘that’ in large quantities in the hope that the relationship between me and Astasia will become stronger.

“How about taking a picture of us riding together and sending it to him? Then the crown prince will be so happy that he will almost dance.”

“When we get back to the academy over there, we’ll take one for camouflage, and before then, let’s both run freely.”

Astasia and I need to live up to the prince’s expectations.

Otherwise, the imperial army’s actual first fleet, the ‘pirates’, may suddenly attack Sirene Port in the name of plunder.

For peace, we must postpone love.

Shiny.

Inside the cargo ship, a very short light began to blink.

“Grey.”

Astasia recognized the light and immediately grabbed my hand.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

Without anyone noticing, we moved quietly toward the direction of the light from the cargo ship window.

* * *

A moment later, inside the extra-large cargo ship ‘Iperia’.

“It’s been a long time since I saw you, Chairman.”

It’s been a really long time since we met her.

“It’s been a while, Chairman! And…Hwang-granddaughter too!”

Erwin Aiferia.

As Astasia grows, she looks so much like the ‘princess’ in my memories –

“What are you doing now!!”

I am being scolded by Astasia.

“Oh, dress properly!”

“Oh my, why is this?”

President Erwin pointed up and down at his clothes

“What are you wearing like a man?!”

“Riding clothes?”

You wouldn’t know it if the front of the jacket was closed, but the inside was an imperial term for a ‘sports bra’ – and even that had an open design that exposed the left and right sides of the chest.

‘I guess she’s someone’s mother.’

Somehow our tastes are similar.

From the first time I saw Chairman Erwin, I couldn’t help but feel that she was very similar to the Astasia in my memories.

“But wouldn’t the West hate it if I covered my eyes like that?”

“Who, who is the West!”

“Of course, it’s the Hwang Granddaughter’s wife.”

Chairman Erwin smiled brightly-

“Isn’t that right?”

She shrugged, lightly touching her own eyes and her ears with her fingers.

“Well, it’s not wrong.”

“Huh…?”

I grabbed Astasia’s waist and pulled her, who was covering her eyes with both hands.

“Once I graduate from the academy, I will formally propose to you.”

“Oh my!”

“And then I can formally greet you again, mother. Or should I say mother-in-law…?”

Erwin and Astasia both stiffened at my words, but I calmly continued speaking while briefly looking ahead at the numerous bikes lined up behind Chairman Erwin.

“Congratulations. You have become the Crown Princess.”

“…It’s not officially known yet.”

“Oh. Has the payment already been made?”

“Was that in the Imperial Newspaper too?”

“Editorials and columns are criticizing Crown Princess Isabella and talking about who would be a suitable woman to be the Crown Princess. It’s impossible not to know.”

Replacement of the Crown Princess.

I can’t say it directly, but if I had to make a prediction.

‘Is it because I stepped forward that I will be replaced in advance? I’m a little sorry.’

Clearly, Crown Princess Isabella is scheduled to be dethroned a little early, ‘officially’.

“No matter how hard the imperial family tries to suppress it, aren’t there some among journalists who think speaking out from one’s own mouth is justice?”

“Ha, haha…”

“Moreover, the people who are giving them influence are those who were talked about as ‘candidates’ after Crown Princess Isabella. If Her Majesty the Habsburgs had invited several Crown Princesses, the Second Crown Princess or someone who would have taken a position like that would be mobilizing those with loud voices to make noise.”

Condemn the Crown Princess Isabella, and who is worthy of the true Crown Princess?

“Are you sure you don’t like it?”

“Rather than saying I don’t like it, um… “

“I think that if you have to have a mother-in-law, it would be better to have Chairman Erwin as your mother-in-law.”

“…”

Chairman Erwin scratched his cheek in embarrassment, and Astasia just quietly held my arm and watched Chairman Erwin.

Officially, the two have no relationship.

Anyone can see that it is more like an older sister than a mother-daughter relationship, but they are strangers who have no relationship in terms of political engineering.

“Granddaughter Astasia?”

“Yes, yes…?”

“If I were to become the Crown Princess, what would you call me?”

“That’s right… “

Unlike Chairman Erwin, who is a bit hesitant about this part.

“Mom!”

“…”

“Oh, is that too much? Mother? Mother…?”

Astasia is straightforward, bold, and active.

“W-was that rude…?”

“…It’s not rude, um, what should I say. Uhm…”

Chairman Erwin glanced behind him and smiled slightly.

“…I don’t think it would be a bad idea to become the Crown Princess. Oh, of course, I hope you know that I don’t like the Crown Prince or anything like that.”

“I understand.”

Before I could say anything useless, I raised my voice.

“Becoming a family politically is common, whether in a kingdom or an empire. Well, then… “

After a brief pause.

“If President Erwin becomes my mother-in-law, I think I will feel somewhat at ease in treating His Highness the Habsburgs as my father-in-law.”

It was conveyed with sincerity.

Because it is more convenient for me to have President Erwin become the Crown Princess than to be the Crown Princess.

‘I’m sure you’re listening.’

Now that we’ve given you a reason to decide on the best option, all that’s left is to put your stamp on it.

“Ah.”

“Why are you doing that?”

When I thought about it.

‘I don’t think I’ve ever called you father-in-law.’

* * *

“…”

“Your Majesty, why are you doing this…?”

“…”

Burrr.