“The training hall is complete! Come take a look, brother!”
“The layout turned out well. Thank you for your hard work.”
The construction of the training hall in the Ariente territory has been completed.
One hall is for Charlotte to use privately for training with the Super Super Strong Sword.
The other is for use as the main base of Vermont Security.
These are the two buildings.
“The foundation is solid. Unless a dragon crashes into it, it won’t collapse.”
“Kahahaha!”
Maybe it’s because I’ve spent a fair amount of time at the construction site and learned from Count Ariente, but I seem to have picked up some basic knowledge about construction.
Of course, it’s not enough to tell a construction company what to do, but at least I won’t get ripped off.
“Hahaha. So, brother, how do you plan to pay for the construction costs?”
“I’ll waive the interest on this month’s investment, and I’ll deposit the remaining 700 million in cash by tomorrow.”
“R-Really! By tomorrow? I can finally afford a meat dish again! Kahahaha!”
Count Ariente bursts into tears of joy.
Watching him, I can’t help but feel a bit sorry.
He may be a count, but living a life burdened with debt isn’t easy.
‘I guess I’ll have to place more orders in the future.’
It would be troublesome if he faced the reality of never being able to repay his debt and decided to do something drastic.
I need to make him turn his eyes away from that reality and make him focus on the illusion of repaying the debt entirely.
That way, I can continue to suck out 50% interest each year from the mere 10 billion investment.
‘The training hall is complete, so next is the equipment.’
The training hall and staff are ready.
Now, all that’s left is the organizational structure and equipment.
Sylvia has taken care of the organization, so now it’s time to check on the equipment.
“Ah, Master! You’ve arrived! The inside is very noisy and hot, so let’s talk outside!”
Jacob, sweating profusely, comes out of the smithy.
Glancing inside, the furnace is spewing heat without rest, and the workers are soaking wet as they hammer away at the metal.
The blades shine with an unusual brilliance—probably the result of the mana-powered flames I saw last time.
It seems Jacob has successfully trained the workers.
“Have the workers learned how to handle the mana forge?”
“Ah. They can manage the initial steps, but I’ll have to handle the rest. There’s still no apprentice who can match me.”
“…”
Watching Jacob speak so nonchalantly, I realize just how extraordinary he is.
All of Jacob’s apprentices are veteran blacksmiths, well into middle age, with at least 20 years of experience.
Yet, they find themselves learning from Jacob, who has been hammering metal for only two months.
“Do they follow your instructions well? If anyone disobeys or tries to challenge you, let me know.”
“Fortunately, no one has challenged my authority. However, the problem is that they keep trying to learn more even after working hours. I’m in the situation where I have to provide personal lessons one by one, without any sleep.”
Faced with overwhelming talent and skill, it seems they’ve completely set aside their pride and are showing an immense desire to learn.
“But they’re making progress, so within three months, they should be able to reach my level!”
“No. Don’t do that.”
“Yes?”
“Start teaching half-heartedly and focus more on improving your own skills.”
“May I ask why?”
“For now, they might be crawling to learn more, but the moment they surpass you, they’ll become arrogant. What if they master mana forge and then leave to start their own smithy? One of the easiest ways to win in competition is to prevent competitors from emerging in the first place.”
“Oh! I understand!”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ passionately takes notes on what you just said.]
The term “eliminating competition” might be too harsh.
Let’s call it “preventing competition.” Yes, that sounds better.
In other words, it’s like kicking the ladder away.
If I’m going to monopolize, I need to do it right.
If all the workers were completely mine, that’d be one thing, but right now, they’re still untrustworthy.
So, for now, I’ll make sure Jacob is the only one who can fully handle the mana-powered flames.
“How’s the progress on the equipment I ordered?”
“More than half is complete.”
“How long will the rest take?”
“Now that we’ve picked up speed, the remaining portion should be completed within two weeks.”
This was an excellent pace.
Even though these are items that can’t be mass-produced and require the use of mana forge, the speed is impressive.
Should I place even more orders then?
Maybe I should expand the smithy and hire more workers?
Perhaps I should run it 24/7 with a four-shift, three-team system?
As I seriously pondered, Jacob’s face gradually turned pale.
“What’s wrong?”
“N-Nothing. It just suddenly feels like the air got colder…”
“Never mind that. Just load the completed equipment onto the carriage. It will be moved to the Ariente training hall immediately.”
“Yes, sir… I’ll do that…”
I purposely ordered a large quantity, considering spares.
Even half is enough to equip all the staff with some left over.
Now that the equipment is ready, Vermont Security is fully prepared to start operations.
Should we begin tomorrow?
If I do, Sylvia will definitely complain.
She’s already overwhelmed with the work she has, and adding staff training will make her so busy she won’t have a moment’s rest.
‘I should give her some motivation.’
I’ll bring some good news to cheer her up.
After all, I promised her something before.
“And I’d like to place a new order.”
“A-Another one? How many hundreds of swords this time…?”
“Just one.”
“Oh, I see. Phew. Hm…?”
Sighing with relief, Jacob suddenly realized something was off, and his eyes began to tremble.
Yes, just one.
A very tricky one.
“If it’s a double-edged sword for both hands, the rest of the specifications are up to you. But it must be a special sword.”
“What do you mean by ‘special’…?”
“Use your creativity. Make the most unique and extraordinary sword you’ve ever seen.”
“The most impressive sword I’ve ever seen was the Holy Sword my grandfather crafted…”
“But you finished it, didn’t you? I’m sure you can create something even better.”
“The finishing touches were nothing! The foundation, the base is what’s important. How could I create a sword that rivals a Holy Sword…!”
“You’re misunderstanding something. I’m not asking for a sword that rivals the Super Super Strong Sword. I’m asking for one that surpasses it.”
“…!”
Jacob’s eyes widened, and he seemed to be on the verge of losing his mind.
Just from his expression, it was clear that he was about to freak out.
‘You can handle it. Your talent is not meant to end with just coating pre-made products with mana-powered flames.’
The first order proved that Jacob could handle large quantities.
Now, it’s time to test quality, not quantity.
We can’t keep producing mass-manufactured items forever, right?
He needs to surpass the Master Craftsman Jain.
“I… I can’t possibly create such a sword…”
“You weren’t going to say that you can’t do it, were you?”
“…!”
I gently draped an arm around Jacob’s shoulder and, lowering my voice, gave him some serious encouragement.
Saying, “I can’t do it, it’s impossible”—is that how a man should act?
Whether it works out or not, you should at least give it a try.
“Do your best. If you put your heart into it, I won’t be disappointed by the results.”
How can anyone expect immediate success?
Failing multiple times is natural, but what’s important is having the courage to challenge and not fear failure.
It might seem impossible to surpass Master Jain now, but only by trying will you find a way forward.
That’s what I meant by my words, but…
“I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed with the final result!!!”
“…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ is in awe of your persuasive skills.]
It seems my words have put a lot of pressure on Jacob.
Well, that’s fine. It seems that Jacob works best when pushed hard.
“Let’s do our best, okay?”
“I’ll do my best!!!”
I watched Jacob shout in determination.
I noticed the workers inside glancing over at us with pale faces.
Maybe I was a bit too harsh.
Pretending to shake hands with Jacob, I discreetly handed him something.
“It’s the down payment. Since this is a personal commission, keep it all for yourself. Don’t share it with the other workers. You’ll get the remaining half once it’s complete.”
“Understood…”
With a slight wave, I turned and climbed into the carriage.
As I rounded the corner onto the road, I caught sight of Jacob standing on his hands, feet pointed to the sky, bowing toward the carriage.
‘What is he doing?’
Last time, he asked what a “grand gesture” was, so I showed him.
Now, he’s doing that.
It looks pretty embarrassing when I see it like this.
Maybe I shouldn’t have taught him.
‘Why is he overreacting over just 300 million?’
What I handed Jacob was a blank check with 300 million Lark written on it.
It’s not a huge amount. I have more money than I know what to do with, so Jacob needs to get used to it.
Sure, I could have exploited him more, but if Jacob ever realizes his true worth, he’d feel extremely betrayed.
The most important thing in relationships is trust.
When someone treats you fairly from the start, not only trust but also loyalty grows over time.
Anyway, with this, I’ve placed an order for something that will motivate Sylvia.
Now, all that’s left is to push forward with the opening of Vermont Security.
‘It has to go well.’
Though it might not seem like it, this world is full of dangers.
With magic, evil gods, and black magic around, there’s no way it could be safe.
That’s why I judged that there would be a decent demand for security services.
The investment is significant too.
I’ve already hired plenty of staff and made lots of equipment. If it fails, the loss will be substantial… but I can probably recover in a year from just the road toll fees.
“Sylvia. Where is Sylvia?”
“Master…!”
The moment I returned to the estate and stepped down from the carriage, Sylvia rushed out barefoot.
She wasn’t in her usual tight uniform or pants she wears while working but in a light, airy dress.
Her hair was messy, so she must have run out in a hurry.
“Did something urgent happen?”
“There’s a strange rumor spreading!”
“A strange rumor?”
“People are saying that you’re raising commoner sl*ves to take them as wives!”
“…!”
Damn it.
Who started spreading such nonsense?
That’s just my wishful thinking!
