“The northern nations seem to have finally settled down somehow.”
The one who opened the conversation while skimming through the materials was Alban Breias, Grand Admiral of the Kingdom of Lepuitari.
“For a time, I wondered what would become of them... The report says the Prava Divine Kingdom has reached its offensive limit.”
“Hard to say. In the end, we still don’t know what’s going on inside the Prava Divine Kingdom.”
The one who answered was Duke Amajio Silverhead.
Gathered here were the heads of the factions currently steering the Kingdom of Lepuitari in all but name.
Grand Admiral Alban Breias, commander of the Kingdom of Lepuitari’s navy, the kingdom’s greatest force.
Duke Amajio Silverhead, who had returned to the top of the House of Nobles.
Aide-Envoy Ayame Zero, plenipotentiary ambassador of <Paraiso>, an outside power that was steadily taking control of the economy.
And Drei=Ringo, admiral of the <Paraiso> fleet, which had been demonstrating its power in the surrounding seas.
“The blockade line there is stable as well. We are now entering the phase of infiltrating scouts.”
“Phase... a stage, was it? Indeed. Thanks to your assistance, we can send abundant supplies to the front. We also have room to spare in personnel.”
“Could you... show a little more sense of crisis...?”
Amajio sighed at Alban, who had readily nodded along with Aide-Envoy’s words.
That said, this exchange had already become a regular event.
Alban had already placed personal trust in Aide-Envoy, and by extension, in <Paraiso> behind her.
To begin with, Amajio Silverhead, the father of the nation, had taken the lead in holding tea parties and inviting one domestic power broker after another.
It was fair to say they were already deeply entangled.
Alban had spent his youth following Amajio Silverhead and building up the navy.
For that reason, it was only natural that he would feel favorably toward <Paraiso>, with whom Duke Amajio was making every effort to interact.
“Is this another of your usual lectures? Still, at least at present, I believe we have been able to trade with the people of <Paraiso> with the utmost sincerity. Trade volume between us is rising sharply, and there is no need to treat them as enemies for no reason.”
“We always feel Lord Alban’s sincerity. We wish to answer that spirit.”
“...Lady Sera, you have certainly been well fed, I must say.”
At Amajio’s teasing, Aide-Envoy Ayame Zero gave a small snort as her answer. Then she stabbed a piece of the baked sweet she had cut apart at hand with her fork and carried it to her mouth with elegant motions.
“Today’s result is excellent as well. The tart crust is baked perfectly. The custard cream is also well balanced in sweetness, without any off-flavors. Please convey my gratitude to the artisan.”
“Oh, I’m glad it suits your tastes. Ever since Aide-Envoy expressed her thanks in person before, the artisan seems to have been putting in quite a bit of enthusiasm. We may even have a new creation ready next time.”
“That is good. Lord Amajio, I ask that you arrange the next one as well.”
“...Yes, yes.”
She had already pressed him for the next tea party, even though today’s had only just begun. Amajio sighed and sent his awareness running.
A projected display built into the table reacted to that thought-control signal and showed an image.
“...Now, to today’s main topic. Aid to the northern nations in question. We’ll need to transport massive quantities for some time, so the military transport ships will have to work hard.”
“Construction materials and metal fittings were the main items, yes? Well, it is the inland sea. Even fully loaded, they should not capsize.”
Incidentally, this projected display was also made by <Paraiso>. At present, only Amajio could use it.
“Construction materials are fine that way. Food and the like will have to be sent overland for the time being, and by horse-drawn wagon at that. I want to get the railway through already...”
Amajio seemed deeply dissatisfied with the inefficiency of horse-drawn transport.
Well, the cargo that could be carried was only about one ton at most. Even using steel vehicles supplied by <Paraiso>, the road conditions meant five tons was the limit in the end.
And that was only on the major roads. At the very ends, in the worst case, they had to hire laborers and transfer the cargo onto small handcarts.
“I heard road maintenance is actually disliked.”
When Drei interjected with that, Amajio pressed a hand to his forehead and agreed.
“It is. Something about defense issues... Damn it, this is why compact little cities are so troublesome.”
“One could also say that is precisely why we were able to gain this much strength. Our nation struggled a great deal to organize its transportation network.”
Roads were the arteries of a nation. When that flow was good, the nation grew active; when it stagnated, the nation lost its vitality.
The Kingdom of Lepuitari had practiced that principle thoroughly and rapidly increased its national power. Everyone present likely shared that understanding.
“We can provide transport trucks as well, but is it too soon?”
“Ah... Those things, right? The ones with Stirling engines, was it? We can’t maintain precision machines like that. We can’t exactly abandon them if they break down, can we?”
“It is only a problem of machining accuracy. With your level of technology, you can reproduce both the theory and the design.”
“Thanks to your technical guidance, yes. Haven’t we advanced a hundred years ahead? ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Hm?”
And this, too, was part of the Kingdom of Lepuitari’s rapidly progressing technological reform. With <Paraiso>’s construction of factories, many engineers had touched that wisdom and increased their own underlying strength.
“Is that not a good thing?”
“From our perspective, we worry that you are giving up too much. A transaction is fundamentally based on equality. Otherwise, it will eventually collapse somewhere.”
“Hmm...”
After Alban said that, Drei turned her gaze toward Aide-Envoy.
The one in charge of this land was <Ayame Zero>, who controlled Aide-Envoy.
<Ringo> did not interfere and remained in silent observation.
“There are differences in values between both sides. What you consider precious and what is truly precious to us do not always align. And I understand that trading those things that do not align, then profiting from the difference, is the basis of commerce.”
“The greater the gap between the two parties conducting the transaction, the greater the discrepancy in their perception of value becomes. At present, a large gap exists between us of <Paraiso> and all of you.”
“There is indeed a divide, and if left as it is, even dialogue will become difficult. That was my judgment. Therefore, we are first attempting to build a bridge... And this is not a one-sided expenditure. Take this baked sweet, for example. If we attempted to make something similar, we would need to devote great effort to it. And I take pride in understanding fully the weight of the history that produced these.”
Aide-Envoy spoke, and Drei supplied the supporting comment. Alban nodded in understanding after hearing that answer.
But then—
“Hey, little Lady Sera. So what, then? The sweets are good, so let’s build a factory? Choose your words a little better. That just makes you sound greedy.”
Alban looked somewhat surprised at Amajio’s casual words.
It seemed he had not realized Aide-Envoy and Amajio were this close.
“How rude, Lord Amajio. What I mean is that this is precisely because you generously disclose your history to us. And it is not limited to sweets. Preserved foods in each region. Unique seasonings. The evolution of cuisine inferred from that region’s climate and vegetation. Or the history of trial and error for increasing food production. The development of long-distance transport methods, and the improvement of preservation techniques. The accompanying decrease in mortality and increase in lifespan. Every record of all these things is worth a fortune to us.”
“That’s about eighty percent food talk, isn’t it?”
“Do not underestimate it. Lifespan extension is heavily connected to decreases in malnutrition and food poisoning, increases in physical strength through improved nutritional status, and improved immunity. It is not eighty percent. It is one hundred percent.”
“Hey, so it’s all food talk!”
“It would be wasteful simply to eat it. It is history, Lord Amajio. I am tasting the history packed into this baked sweet here and now. This delicate flavor is the accumulation of this nation’s history. In other words, I am eating the country. Please do not use such vulgar expressions as greed.”
Having said this with a smug expression, Aide-Envoy carried the baked sweet impaled on her fork to her mouth.
Amajio, too, had probably only been making a half-playful retort in the first place. Muttering something like, “So now it’s the country, is it...” he cut apart his own baked sweet with his fork.
“U-um... I am terribly sorry, but the artisan told me that all the ingredients for this sweet were purchased from <Paraiso>, and that the method was an arrangement of something Aide-Envoy taught us...”
“............”
“............”
An awkward silence descended over the room.
