Chapter 124:
The following afternoon.
Having trained until sunrise, Otto slept in.
In his heart, he wanted to get up earlier and work on his fitness, but his body wouldnt listen to him, especially when he was already practicing on a subject that was already overwhelming.
Hed even taken another vial of the potion just before he hit the sack, and now he was completely out cold.
Ugh.
Otto stumbled out of bed, half-dazed.
Your Highness, here you go.
A servant brought him a basin filled with warm water.
Im fine. You dont need to bring me warm water in the future.
Yes?
I cant have my first days victories like that.
Um, I dont know what you mean.
Anyway, Ill take care of it.
With that, Otto personally went to the bathroom, opened the faucet, and filled the sink with water.
Then he hummed a tune and washed his face with the water hed gotten.
Do your own thing Do your own thing Do your own thing Do your own thing Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Otto curiously dipped his face into the sink, then screamed in pain.
It was winter.
As soon as he woke up, he plunged his face into the cold water, and was surprised to find it so cold.
.
The servant shook his head in disbelief at Ottos pathetic state.
He hadnt prepared warm water for nothing.
Ugh! Ugh! Ufufufufufu! Uuuuuuu!
Despite the assault of the cold water, Otto managed to finish washing his face, shivering with pride.
Phew, I feel refreshed!
He smiled as he finished, feeling refreshed.
Huh? Wait!
Eh? freeωebnovēl.c૦m
Stop!
Otto snapped at the servants who were preparing to make the bed.
From now on, I will make the bed myself.
Your Highness.
Thats fine, Ill tell you what you need to know.
Yes, Your Majesty.
*Sweeep!* *Plop!* *Plop!*
He smoothed out the quilt and fluffed the pillows.
This is nice.
There was a sense of satisfaction.
Its really no big deal.
Waking up early in the morning, straightening the blankets and making the bed is a triumphant start to the day. So even if it takes a while, do it anyway.
He could see why Elise would say that.
Since I woke up late, Ill go to bed early today.
With that thought in mind, Otto smiled wryly and began his late start of the day.
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Huh? She left? Already?
Otto was surprised to hear that Elise had left without saying goodbye.
She said she couldnt be gone long because of the urgency of the battle beyond the Wall.
I see.
Otto nodded, knowing all too well what was going on beyond the Wall.
The Great Wall.
The 100-meter-high, 1,200-kilometer-long wall that Kairos began building when he claimed a third of the continent.
The Wall was both Kairos greatest achievement and his greatest mistake.
At the time, it was seen as an obvious mistake, as the forced construction of the wall weakened the countrys power and crippled its economy.
Today, however, its social and security functions were immense, as a giant shield protecting the continent from the fierce and rugged barbarian tribes of the north and the Northern Empire.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that Kaiross excessive construction was a blessing in disguise for the entire continent.
Beyond the Wall, things are tense. Theres a battle every day. Espionage is fierce, and the Northern Empire is eager to push south.
As such, Elise is considered the guardian of the continent, operating on the front lines, fighting battles every day.
Thats why it was impossible for her to be away for long.
Oh, and
Camille handed Otto something.
The lady asked me to give this to you.
Its a mirror, isnt it?
Elises gift to Otto was a crude, small, circular hand mirror.
The metal was worn and frayed around the edges, and he couldnt guess how long it had been in use.
It was also scratched, slightly dented, and somewhat chipped.
Maybe it was because Elise was rolling around on the harsh battlefields 365 days a year, but it was even more odd to see the mirror still intact.
What is it? Its not a special item, its just an ordinary hand mirror. I think Elise used to use it.
Its not just an ordinary item.
Huh?
Ive seen female knights use it when I was at the academy. Its enchanted with reinforcement magic, so it wont even leave a small scratch if you hit it.
You mean its a military mirror, for female soldiers or knights?
Thats right.
But a mirror is still a mirror. It doesnt do anything special.
Thats true, too.
Hmm.
Otto had no idea why Elise had given him her old military hand mirror as a gift.
It is special, though.
What?
It belonged to Lady Elise, so its special.
With that thought, Otto tucked the hand mirror into his back pocket.
Theres no way Elise would have left behind such a meaningless gift.
It must have meant something to her, so he decided to keep it.
Maybe I should bring a gift next time. Ive been taking so much, and Im also being trained.
Otto thought long and hard about what he could give to repay his teacher.
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That evening.
Do you mean to say that you intend to advance to the continent next spring?
Yes, Your Majesty.
Otto sat down with Archduke Wazir to discuss future state affairs.
To anyone else, Wazir would be the man in charge of administration.
Though it might not be obvious from the outside, he was actually one of the key players at the heart of the Lota Kingdom.
Even for the most secretive Otto, important matters deserved to be discussed with Wazir.
Going to the continent how do you propose to do that, a blind invasion?
Archduke Wazirs expression turned slightly grim.
If the peripheral Lota Kingdom wanted to advance to the continent, it would have to invade some country.
It was a war without a cause, an ambition for conquest.
Ah.
Otto shrugged, as if hed seen it coming.
What good does it do to invade a country thats living in peace and doing well, anyway? Even if we win that kind of war, its pointless.
Hmm.
And if we did, wed be internationally criticized, wed be singled out by other powers, wed be seen as part of an axis of evil, itd be diplomatic suicide.
If you know that, that means you have a plan.
If you look at the map, theres probably three or four countries we could go after with good reason.
Otto gestured to the map, pointing to the countries closest to the Kingdom of Lota.
For example a country where the king is a tyrant and the people are suffering. Or a famine because they had a bad harvest last year, or a huge natural disaster that suddenly devastated the country.
Oh.
Archduke Wazir smiled, his face relaxing slightly.
I take it you have an idea?
You know what I mean, and dont make a fool of yourself.
Otto frowned.
Im not some kind of warmonger. Dont you realize that unprovoked invasions do more harm than good, and besides, we havent even started a world war yet.
Hahaha!
Anyway, thats why well focus on stockpiling war supplies, provisions, and food for the time being.
Otto held out the papers to Archduke Wazir.
Your Majesty, the Ego of the Merchant Troupe Ego requests to see you.
Eh? Please tell him to wait a moment.
Otto bowed curtly to Archduke Wazir and immediately went to see Ego.
As soon as Ego saw Otto, he spoke with a sullen expression.
Your Highness, the situation is not favorable.
What do you mean?
The Overhauser merchants are running around looking to buy antiques.
Oh.
The reason was obvious.
It was a ploy to track down the antiques in the tomb that had been released on the market and find out who was involved.
Well, yeah. Hes going to be pissed, and hes going to track down whoevers behind it to get revenge.
Otto saw right through the thoughts of Argonne, and turned to Ego.
Is there any way around that?
If were going to turn to maritime trade, its safest to make a deal with the Caliphate.
Hmm. The Caliphate.
The Caliphate was a country in the southern part of the continent, which was actually a separate country from the continent.
Much of the country was desert or mountainous under the scorching sun, so it was more like the Middle East in reality.
Its geography and distance from the center of the continent meant that it had its own culture and ideas.
The Caliphate is a pretty good trade partner.
Yes, Your Majesty.
And maritime trade is hard to track, so whether were selling antiques or buying war supplies and food, itll be hard to track us off by the Oberhauser Merchants, right?
As expected, you are wise.
Ego replied excitedly.
Ego, the goblin merchant, was a tycoon whose activities spanned the entire continent.
Otto is a man who understands Egos every word and knows exactly what he is referring to.
From Egos perspective, there are few people as pleasant to talk to as Otto.
The problem is that its difficult to trade with the Caliphate from here, right?
Thats right.
Lets see.
Otto looked at the map.
The shortest distance between our kingdom and the western sea is 150 kilometers. The problem is that the terrain is mountainous and there are many monsters, making it difficult to develop trade routes.
Thats right.
Even if we were to develop a trade route, the distance is so great that wed need an intermediate base, and theres a good chance wed be robbed by pirates along the way.
Well, we cant afford to dispose of our goods right now.
We still have to do it.
What?
Ego narrowed those big eyes.
Are you sure you want to go into sea trade?
Because eventually, the whole continental logistics will be fucked up anyway.
What do you mean by that?
Something like that.
Otto didnt bother to explain the coming world war.
It would only prolong the conversation and tire them both out, and at this point, there was room for it to be dismissed as a delusion.
Anyway, theres a lot of room for sea trade once weve opened it up, so lets develop the seas south of the continent as our new trade route.
Are you sure you want to do that?
Sure. We need to get something done before spring.
Otto decided to hurry up with the sea route while he could.
With the way things are starting to diverge between his knowledge of history and reality, he doesnt know when, where, or how things will change.
Thats why he decided to make a bold move to prepare for the future.
Mr. Ego, we need to find a boat. We dont have any boat builders. We dont have a shipyard, so well have to buy one.
Yes, Your Majesty, I shall do so.
And so Ottos next move was decided.
Develop trade routes, start a shipping business, build a navy.
And trade with the Caliphate.
It was Ottos last act of state before heading to the continent.
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