Chapter 37: The Next Big Thing 

“I truly lament having to send you off like this.”

Princess Eustia gazed at me with sorrowful eyes.

But what could I do?

By direct order of Prince Peilly III, she was now forbidden from leaving the country.

Traveling with an unrelated man would only fuel even worse rumors.

Oh, Prince Peilly III! Thank you for saving me!

It had to be a gift in return for the cordyceps pills’ miraculous effects.

Her skill “One Followed by Heavenly Fortune” was certainly a waste.

Thanks to her, the cordyceps experiment had succeeded spectacularly.

But if I thought about it for even a second, the answer was obvious.

Imagine a woman casually slinging a warhammer over her shoulder and looking down with a pout.

Didn’t she get kidnapped on purpose, hoping a prince would come rescue her like in a fairy tale?

If things had gone south, she probably would’ve broken out on her own.

Of course, rationally speaking, she wouldn’t have done that… probably.

“The Prince’s command cannot be disobeyed. Then please stay healthy.”

And please marry that Izkaya guy or whoever he was.

Naturally, I swallowed the second half.

Soon I set off with a long caravan.

The Crawford Principality and the Western Nations Alliance were relatively prosperous.

Exporting this much goods wouldn’t even make them flinch.

Besides, they were buying it with the money earned here.

Markets were booming, so the rulers of each nation welcomed the situation.

I received so many marriage proposals it was ridiculous.

Just how much higher is this popularity going to climb?

I sank deep into my chair, smugly praising myself.

Time flowed endlessly, and finally we arrived.

“Ugh! I was bored to death.”

The trip from the Empire to Delriat had at least a few incidents.

With a small group, we ran into monsters or bandits.

But now? Not even a tiny event.

We were moving in a scale that could practically be called an army.

Only a lunatic would attack us.

Thanks to that, even the hired mercenaries were lounging around.

Playing dagger-throwing games and such.

Whirr—tak!

“Dang, lost again.”

“Kekeke! Pay up. One silon each.”

The game looked dead simple.

Just nail a plank to a tree and see who hits it more.

It seemed childish, yet everyone was oddly lively.

Put money on the line and people get excited—that’s just how it works.

That’s why gambling is fun.

But I’m not interested.

Would winning a few coins from that really make me happy?

Me, with assets well over millions of goldens?

Obviously not.

This is why nobles throw themselves into polo or hunting.

Because they feel the same crushing boredom I do right now.

“If only there were board games or something, the boredom would be less… huh?”

A single muttered word sparked a massive realization.

I’m not the only one bored in this world, right?

Men, women, young, old—everyone feels the same.

(Wait, “old” might be pushing it?)

Nonsense—even animals love to play.

The next business venture is decided.

***

The money earned from cordyceps pills was reinvested into the governor-general’s office.

Not all of it—masters’ shares and workers’ wages had to be paid first.

Even after all expenses, the profit was astronomical.

Enough to repay the Crawford loan in one lump sum.

Cordyceps pills were the very definition of a high-value business.

The margin was simply insane.

“This should be more than enough for a while, right?”

“More than enough! We’ve never handled this much money recently.”

Hozein’s eyes widened at the mountain of gold coins.

Delriat was roughly the size of Crawford.

Territory, population, economy—everything matched except the natural environment.

The only real difference was their attitude toward the Empire.

Acting tough and getting annihilated for it…

Well, that’s not important right now.

Anyway, it was a mid-sized nation a little bigger than the western minor countries.

Normally, a few hundred thousand goldens would be plenty to manage.

But during Hozein’s rule, the country had always been broke.

So even as administrator, he couldn’t help being shocked.

“Use this to start large-scale civil engineering projects. All the plans you drew up but couldn’t execute—go ahead. Zero-interest loan.”

“Is that really all right?”

“You wouldn’t be able to pay interest for a while anyway.”

“That’s true, but the terms are so generous…”

“It’s fine. My goals are completely different from the previous governors.”

Creating positive change in the world raises my abilities.

Even if it looks like I’m just giving money away, I’m earning my own benefits.

And the monetary profit will be massive too—the more Delriat develops.

After all, I own the pill factory, and I plan to expand business domains like crazy.

No obstacles, so I can grab interests exactly as I please.

My insides were pitch black, but Hozein was already shedding tears.

“Kuhuk! You’re the first person to care for us this much. Thank you, truly, Your Excellency!”

He was already on his knees.

I helped him up, a little flustered.

Whoa, calm down with the dramatics.

It’s really not that big a deal.

“Hey, hey! People are watching. Stop crying and stand up.”

“I will use every coin frugally and precisely where it’s needed. Not a single one will leak!”

“Good. But there’s one principle you must never break.”

“Speak, and I will obey with all my heart.”

“No matter the project, pay the workers properly. From this day forward, forced labor is forbidden.”

“Of course… huh?”

Hozein blinked in confusion.

He clearly couldn’t comprehend it.

And no wonder—wage theft was everyday life in this world.

Even the supposedly advanced Empire did it; a frontier backwater would be far worse.

Total mess.

Even after I became governor-general, forced labor had continued.

Back then the country was too broke; there was no choice.

Without it, reconstruction wouldn’t move at all.

But now we had sufficient funds.

No need to keep the evil practice.

“You just said you’d obey with all your heart.”

“O-of course!”

“Also, make sure everyone remembers it’s by the governor-general’s order.”

“Will that really be enough?”

“Yes. What I need isn’t money.”

Overwhelming influence.

I skipped the second half.

Then I issued the next order.

“From now on, all ledgers will use double-entry bookkeeping.”

Hozein had no reason to doubt me.

He was genuinely committed to normalizing Delriat.

But people are unpredictable.

There was always a chance some official would get greedy and skim.

I explained double-entry bookkeeping.

It wasn’t difficult—just recording each transaction under two categories.

Think of a scale: write from both sides and you’re done.

“This makes forgery or omission hard. Errors are easy to catch. The only downside is it’s a bit tedious.”

“We’ll adapt as fast as possible.”

“Good. If you need more staff, post recruitment notices. I’ll handle the interviews.”

“You’re so busy—there’s no need for you to do that…”

“Every single official must be hired through me. Oh, and there are site supervisors named Colmer and Dretin, right?”

“Yes, probably.”

“Fire them both. Their reputation is terrible.”

“Ah, yes sir.”

Hozein just nodded blankly.

He probably couldn’t understand why I was doing all this.

Because the journey back was so boring I kept checking the Employee Management Window.

The governor-general’s office was under me too, so I could see every official’s info clearly.

Everyone else was fine, but those two were outright scum.

They took plenty of bribes and quietly siphoned materials.

Honestly, the office didn’t have much room to talk—wages had been delayed over half a year.

So I was letting them off lightly with just dismissal.

“I know it feels like too much interference, but it’s necessary. Bear with it a little.”

“Not at all. I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Request construction engineers from the Empire. Offer good wages and some will come.”

“Yes sir.”

“Then keep up the good work.”

“I take my leave, Your Excellency!”

Hozein answered vigorously and dashed off somewhere.

Probably to investigate what the hell Colmer and Dretin had done to earn such a trash reputation.

“Phew! Guess I should get moving too.”

First sale was a huge success—I had to deliver the good news to the pill factory.

And start making board games to sell.

Something odd was happening in the Carius Duchy, but the pill factory was running perfectly.

You couldn’t find a better workplace anywhere.

Every worker was burning with enthusiasm.

“Ah, Your Excellency the Governor-General! You’ve finally returned.”

As soon as I entered, the masters greeted me.

They had clearly prepared a welcome; word had already spread.

Well, it was obvious.

We had rolled in with a mountain of goods.

“How have you been? How’s production?”

“It’s increasing every day. Everyone’s getting the hang of it.”

“Defect rate?”

“Around 3%.”

That was excellent for mostly manual work.

I inspected the factory to see if anything was lacking.

But as expected, my division-of-labor system was flawless.

As long as the workers stayed healthy.

“Don’t overwork yourselves—you might get injured or exhausted. Strictly follow shift rotations.”

“Of course.”

“We’ll expand the factory on the adjacent plot soon. I’ll send people, so prepare.”

Quaytun and Laglas nodded immediately.

Having built a factory once already, they knew exactly what to do.

Then I called Elector.

“Elector.”

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

“Can you make this?”

I slid over a blueprint.

Much thinner than the pill boxes and covered in illustrations, but Elector didn’t flinch.

“Of course. It’s small, but the shape itself is simple.”

“Then start right away. When it’s done, I’ll promote you to factory manager.”

“Huh?”

He had been unfazed by the blueprint, but the promotion shocked him.

I nodded with a smile.

“I’m simply giving you the treatment your skill deserves. Keep performing well and you’ll be rewarded generously.”

“I-I’ll do my absolute best!”

“Good.”

Just as I turned to leave, Elector spoke again.

This wasn’t like him—what’s up?

“Um… Your Excellency?”

“What is it?”

“Could I… make one extra?”

“What for?”

“I want to give it to my younger siblings. It looks really fun.”

He figured out what it was just from two dice and a board?

Smarter than I thought.

“I’ll give you a finished one.”

“T-thank you!”

I watched Elector’s beaming back for a moment.

I need to pour fuel on this kid so he can run full throttle.

You have to row when the tide comes in.

By the way, once the finished product is ready…

Who am I going to play with?

Well, anyone’s fine.

As long as it’s not the Emperor…

Ugh, don’t even think such unlucky thoughts.