Dictator From Outer Space

It was early April when the news of the failed deal with Baron Vandus reached Denova.

This issue became a hot topic among the traders in the exchange.

It was because it was revealed that the market had intervened to cancel the deal.

If the trading partner was a minor noble like Baron Vandus, they would not be afraid of retaliation, but they would regret it.

It was because the amount of gold brought from the Floating Continent was no joke.

“No matter how I think about it, it’s a pity. Excluding the original light, the gold alone is worth almost 30,000 gold. If we had handled it, how much commission would we have gotten?”

“It would have been nice to just take the commission without issuing securities, but we were too greedy and…”

“Was there no other way? I have nothing to say since Mr. Philip intervened personally, but I think it would have been better to pay some of the price immediately and the rest in bonds.”

“We didn’t have time to check the market price. The trade was until the end of March, but the airship arrived on the last day.”

“It wasn’t planned, right? It was really unlucky.”

“By the way, Baron Vandus won’t just sit still…”

The traders thought that he would sue them right away with his temper, but there was no news.

As time passed, concrete circumstances emerged that he was trying to dispose of the gold bars and original light in his territory.

The amount of gold combined was over 40,000 gold, which caught the attention of not only the neighboring territories, but also Prince Ruad, who was borrowing money around.

The people in Denova drooled, but they couldn’t intervene.

Instead, some traders started to argue that they should form an expedition to the Floating Continent.

“They did it in that small territory, why can’t we?”

“If Mr. Market says a word, we can track down the ether route. If we follow it, we might find a way to land on the Floating Continent.”

“Altemaho came back in a month, didn’t it? It’s certain that there are gold nuggets rolling around on the Floating Continent, we just have to bring them.”

The traders acted as if they saw gold nuggets rolling around in front of their eyes.

Especially, the traders under Zerod who had touched the gold nuggets in Baron Vandus’ territory were very active.

It must have been because they felt pressured to make up for this incident that caused it.

It was a frustrating situation for Philip Market.

“If it wasn’t for that securities deal, we would have had 40,000 gold in our hands by now…”

Of course, he couldn’t eat it all at once, but it would have been a great benefit just to have the right to circulate it.

He blew such a good opportunity and had to make up for it somewhere, but everyone’s money line was dry after the war ended.

Even Zaium Empire was short of funds and issued national bonds. 

Bagran’s prince was personally borrowing money around.

“There’s no choice. I’ll contact my family.”

The Gregor family was one of the twelve families in Elvrande and a member of the Congress.

Elvrande was an empire that ruled over several vassal states, so there was an emperor, but the actual politics and administration were carried out by the Congress.

Naturally, the power and influence of the twelve great families reached the sky, and among them, the Gregor family was outstanding.

With their family’s power alone, they could move about 100 elven knights. 

What more could be said?

That alone was enough to sweep away any small kingdom in a few days.

Anyway, Philip Market asked for information from his home country by using his family name.

But even after a few days passed, no plausible information came.

He was furious and contacted the director of information directly, but he had to hear an absurd story.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Philip. Our staff left for Yggdrasill pilgrimage…”

The world tree Yggdrasill was both an ancestor and a god of all elves.

Every elf born in Elvrande had a duty to visit and worship Yggdrasill’s branches scattered throughout their territory.

The staff must have left with joy, so he couldn’t blame him.

“Then don’t you have another staff to replace him?”

The director of information said regretfully.

“As you know, according to the rule book, there should be only one staff who tracks down the ether route toward the Floating Continent.”

“That rule has been said to be changed for over 20 years! Is it still not changed?”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Philip.”

“Damn it!”

Philip almost threw his communicator with a snort, but barely held back.

The combination of extreme conservatism that rejected change and lazy bureaucracy was truly the worst.

There was a saying in Astera Continent.

If you ask an elf for something, you have to wait at least 10 years.

It was a word that compared their long lifespan, but it also meant that they couldn’t hope for change from their conservatism.

There was an area where they moved quickly and decisively.

If a war broke out with humans, the elves would go wild like animals in heat.

Philip hated that aspect of his race, so he turned his back on his family and Elvrande and moved to Denova.

He didn’t completely cut off the ties, but it was true that the frequency of contact was gradually getting longer.

The society of elves was that suffocating.

“He probably left on foot for the pilgrimage, damn it.”

The Elvrande Empire boasted an enormous area that covered a quarter of Astera.

It would take a lot of time to visit and worship Yggdrasill’s avatars planted all over the place.

He could have used the train, but he had to follow the teachings of the great father elf, Eilidh.

Eilidh himself said that they should learn from the good points of humans and other races.

“It’s the elders who are the problem.”

There were several institutions in the Congress, but the Council of Elders was the most prestigious.

The elders who boasted an age of over 300 years were heavily stationed there, so he could easily guess how rigid the atmosphere was.

“It’s better to talk to a corpse than to talk to them.”

Philip shook his head and uncovered the cloth that covered another communicator.

He had no choice but to send an airship without tracking down the ether route.

Thanks to his efforts, an airship took off from Denova in a few days.

Many traders wished for the success of the expedition.

“You must land on the Floating Continent!”

“Fill your ship with gold and come back!”

It remained to be seen whether their wishes would come true.

***

Around the time Altemaho arrived at Baron Vandus’ territory.

A Prince Ruad and his entourage visited Lantis County, which dominated the eastern part of Bagran.

After hearing all the stories, Count Lantis put down his teacup with a faint smile.

“As you know, 10,000 gold is not a small amount for us, Your Highness.”

“I know. That’s why I came here to ask you. If you help the royal family this time, I will reward you greatly.”

He was so urgent that Prince Ruad even took out a promissory note.

Count Lantis knew very well that he had no choice but to lend him money.

It would be disloyal to just watch the royal family’s plight as a vassal.

‘But I have to get enough compensation.’

He thought that one year’s operation right of the silver mine in the royal territory would be enough.

He could mine a lot of silver bars with the amalgamation method developed by dwarves.

“We can’t just watch the royal family’s plight, but we have to suffer a lot of bleeding to accommodate 10,000 gold…”

“I understand, I understand. Just get to the point.”

“I want the Sagris silver mine in the royal territory. I’ll only dig for one year and then leave.”

“…”

He had never seen such a cold-blooded man.

The Sagris silver mine in the royal territory was closed due to the appearance of demons, and saying he would dig for one year meant he was willing to sacrifice the workers and get out quickly.

He could mine a lot of silver in a short time with the Amalgam method developed by the dwarves.

‘His mind is wicked, but I have no other choice.’

Bagran III was so busy with many tasks that he entrusted Prince Ruad with full authority over this matter.

Money didn’t grow on trees, and he had to borrow it from somewhere, but everyone’s money was tight due to the long war.

What the royal family needed was not a closed silver mine, but immediate gold.

And only the great lords, including Count Lantis, could solve that.

“…Let’s make it 15,000 gold. The deadline is two years. And I want to set the interest rate based on today’s Denova standard.”

He had to be satisfied with that.

When Count Lantis ordered his attendant to bring him a writing tool, it happened.

One of his entourage ran up to him and whispered in his ear.

“What? Altamaha has returned?”

“They say the ship is full of gold. According to people, it’s over 30,000 gold…”

Prince Ruad jumped up in surprise, and Count Lantis frowned.

He had heard that the royal family had lent him an airship, but he didn’t know why he suddenly popped up.

“Your Highness, please calm down and tell me what happened.”

“This is rude of me. Well, this is how it happened…”

The prince’s voice was completely excited as he explained the situation.

When he heard about Altamaha’s whereabouts, Count Lantis’s expression became blank.

Did a mere baron do something unimaginable even in Elvrande?

And he succeeded greatly and came back with a ship full of gold?

He rubbed his eyes hard and asked again.

“Even if he brought gold, it’s raw ore and needs refining. Is it easy to calculate the price?”

“I heard he brought chunks of pure gold. They say gold rolls around in the floating continent.”

Even the largest open-pit gold mine in Elvrande was not like that, but it was impossible to argue otherwise since it was the floating continent.

You had to go there yourself to know.

“…”

Count Lantis’s expression hardened as he thought of digging up the silver mine. 

Prince Ruad smiled on his face.

“It’s pure gold, so it can be processed quickly. 30,000 gold, I wish I had lent him more airships. By the way, let’s pretend this conversation never happened, Count Lantis.”

“…As you wish.”

The prince and his entourage left the domain.

Count Lantis clenched his fist and called his subordinates.

“Bring me all the information on that Vandus bastard. Right now.”

Who would dare to defy his order?

A few minutes later, several documents were presented before him, but he closed his eyes.

He meant for them to read it for him.

A subordinate picked up a document and recited Vandus Baron’s profile one by one.

In the middle of it, Count Lantis opened his eyes wide.

“The Denova market broke the contract?”

“Yes. The transaction amount was at least 20,000 gold and over 50,000 gold with securities included.”

“Is it because the shares of the South Continent Company are owned by elves… Anyway, the market is in trouble. What about the baron? He must have been furious.”

“That’s… I don’t know exactly, but he didn’t seem to be that angry.”

“He lost 30,000 gold and still not angry?”

That meant he had planned for that too.

Count Lantis tried to figure out the situation in his head, but he couldn’t draw a plausible picture.

How did he assure success in landing on the floating continent that no one had ever landed on?

That was impossible even for elves.

“…”

He wanted information more than gold.

Of course, anyone would covet gold, but what he wanted was the information power that accurately predicted Altamaha’s return and found a way to land on the floating continent.

“I don’t know where he heard such a thing.”

“Maybe shadow elves? It’s suspicious that there was no raid at all.”

“Since last winter, when the new lord took office, there hasn’t been a single raid. Something is strange.”

“…”

Count Lantis knew something was strange too, but he didn’t say it out loud.

What mattered to him was the result.

And Baron Vandus sat in the middle of the conflict.

He would soon find out whether he was crazy or confident.

‘I have to put aside petty emotions and make as many connections as possible.’

He thought he should start with refining the raw ore.

***

Prince Ruad and his party headed straight to Baron Vandus’s domain after leaving Count Lantis’s domain.

They made the horned birds run without resting in between, and they were able to meet Baron Vandus a few days later.

Whether the people of the domain were surprised or not, he grabbed both of Leobold’s hands and shook them fervently.

“Baron, please save me.”

“Who is threatening your life? It’s not an assassin, is it? Is it a money problem?”

“I have bonds issued by the royal family. The maturity date is not far away. It’s over 40,000 gold.”

“40,000 gold. That’s a huge amount.”

“I’ll tell you everything. I know that you brought back a huge fortune from the floating continent.”

“To be precise, I haven’t processed it yet. I got hit in the back of the head by Denova in the middle.”

“I regret that too. But gold can be turned into currency as soon as it melts, right? Let’s pay off the bonds first. The royal family will reward you.”

Leobold looked at him with a blank expression and then opened his mouth.

“As a vassal, I feel sorry for the royal family’s plight…”

“Stop that and tell me your condition. What do you want?”

“You seem to be in a hurry, so I’ll be straightforward. I’ll give you 20,000 gold and lend you 20,000 gold. In return, I want two more airships.”

“Two airships are worth less than 10,000 gold at most. Is there another condition?”

“I want the Sagris silver mine. I’ll dig for one year and give it back to you.”

Prince Ruad’s eyes narrowed.

Why was he so obsessed with that silver mine?

It was closed because of the demons that popped up from time to time.

They were different from monsters in dimension, and they couldn’t be dealt with unless it was Goliath, but it was such a narrow place that only a few people could enter.

There were quite a few closed mines like that in Asteraen.

“…Count Lantis also wanted that silver mine. He planned to dig as much as possible and then let go of it, even at the cost of human lives. Do you want that too?”

“I have to clear up the misunderstanding. I do want silver, but I don’t want human casualties. Not a single person will die.”

“Is that possible?”

He couldn’t believe it.

How could he fight the demons in that narrow mine where Goliath couldn’t even enter?

He asked again, but Leobold didn’t seem to want to talk.

“All I need is one year of operating rights for the Sagris silver mine and one other condition. In return, I’ll give you 20,000 gold.”

“What’s the other condition?”

“I’d like to keep Sir Olmus by my side. I have several missions for him in the future, and I don’t want to let him go.”

“That’s up to him, not me.”

“I’ll take that as permission. Then let’s make a contract…”

Prince Ruad was confused by how fast things were going, but he soon nodded.

It was no big deal for him to stay in this domain as long as he wanted.

Soon Carson, the administrator, came with a small chest.

It was a gold bar made by melting chunks of gold overnight at the forge.

The prince was momentarily distracted by its dazzling radiance and shook his head.

“I can’t believe you brought this from the floating continent. You must have a way to land there since you want more airships.”

“It’s difficult, but there is a way. But it won’t be easy for others to use it.”

“Why is that?”

“It’s a secret. If I tell you, won’t my bottom line be exposed?”

“Well, I guess so. I understand.”

Prince Ruad nodded and gave him some advice.

“I helped you out because Sir Olmus helped me. So let me give you some advice too. You should get rid of Altamaha’s identity as soon as possible. It would be better if you change your name too.”

“What happened?”

“You know well that the war with Elvrande is over. They demanded us to stop worshipping Altamaha. They decided to send a judge to monitor that. His name is Tirandel, a half-elf who is very vicious. You should be careful too.”

“Is he an elven knight?”

“One of the best among them. He was so strong that Zium’s supreme command ordered us to abandon the front line where he appeared.”

“A half-elf who is that strong… I’d love to meet him.”

“I wouldn’t if I were you. He treats humans like bugs.”

He was a terrible guy indeed.

While the prince was badmouthing the elves, the airship that left Denova arrived at the south of the floating continent.

To be exact, its wreckage arrived.

A blue dragon that appeared out of nowhere poured lightning breath on the airship.

The slow airship couldn’t dodge the breath and was hit head-on.

A spectacular explosion occurred in the air, and the airship was shattered and scattered debris.

Zigarion looked at the debris with a proud expression.

―I will not tolerate anyone’s approach.

Except for Baron Vandus’s airship.