Dream Life

Around 3pm on April 24th.

We came back from Finis Island to Aurelia. We went first to the blacksmith guild we took care of. So we talked about the new distillery liquor, which made it unusually exciting, but we were able to report back to branch manager Zamuel Obitz and others safely.

The next thing I need to go to is the Deoddard Chamber of Commerce, which prepared the ship for me on this trip to Jilsall. When I was asked to use the ship, it was conditioned to find out if distilled liquor could not be made with zilsole.

Distilled liquor made from zilsole potatoes similar to sweet potatoes and gins made from citrus fruits and herbs in pine dungeons (juniper berries) are used as candidates.

After checking into the Commercial District Inn, head to the headquarters of the Deodard Chamber of Commerce.

Aurelia, the largest commercial city in the world, but rumors of war between the Holy King and the Empire had shadowed off. Because it is a port district and has a lot of shipping relations, it feels somewhat idle, and the faces of people walking are dark.

Still, apart from the emerging major general trading company, the Deodard Chamber of Commerce. Originally it also has many branches in the kingdoms of Lax and Sartooth, which are less affected by the imperial side. As a result, many merchants were in and out of the building, and the business space was almost full even when they entered the building.

Looking for an employee with free hands, but hard to find.

"It seems difficult to meet the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce," Sharon says, and Beatrice also hits the gavel, "I can't keep waiting because it's a banquet at the Blacksmith's Guild today," he said.

Still, we seem to stand out, one employee approaching.

"What can I do for you?," the young male employee asked, "You're back soon," he said.

Luckily for you, he was the last employee to respond, and he seemed to remember us.

"I'll show you to the reception room right away," he said, then he caught another employee and said, "Please call the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce. There was Master Zacharias," he entrusted a message.

"I don't mind another day because you seem busy," I tried to shy away.

"I have heard that it is a business meeting of the highest priority over the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce," he refuses softly.

Went through the same finest reception room as last time, waiting about five minutes for a cup of tea, and Verno Deoddard came in. You're in a hurry, your breath is a little rough. Behind him were two late thirties employees and two employees slightly younger than that.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting," he bows his head.

Stand up in a hurry and bow your head.

"We apologize for pressing without any prior contact (appointment). I arrived after noon, so I wanted to thank you and report first."

"First of all, I would like to congratulate you on your safe return. Come on. It must have been tough..."

I haven't let the ship out, but the situation between the Empire and the Holy King seems to hold on tight.

"Thank you for all your cooperation. Thanks to you, Professor Erbain's research is going to work..."

After thanking you, get down to business.

"... about the request, I have two suggestions for you. Look at this plan…"

That's how I give you a hundred or so pages of plans.

"Is this the plan......" Verno is surprised, but he started explaining it regardless.

"We don't have enough time to explain everything, so we'll just give you an overview. Please take a look at the plan and contact us for any questions and we will come to your explanation. I plan to stay in Aurelia for a few days...... so I will start by describing distilled liquor making with Jill-Sole potatoes as raw materials. See page two…"

Explain the distillery's approximate budget, planned construction sites and approximate construction times, how to secure raw materials, how to train human resources, transport and sales precautions for distillery breweries made from zilsole potatoes.

"… this is the first proposal, but if it does not work or we are preparing the second as the next hand in expanding our business. It adds a distinctive aroma (flavor) to regular distilleries, a wine that goes well with citrus fruits…"

That explains the same thing about gin.

"… it will be brief, but we will conclude the description of the distilled liquor production plan requested"

The explanation ended in about thirty minutes, but starting with Verno, the Chamber side remained silent.

"Was it too fractured to understand? If you have any questions, let me make it up to you."

"No, it was too detailed an explanation. I just can't keep up with my understanding."

Verno rushes to deny my words.

"After the fact, you have already briefly explained to the Blacksmith Guild and have said that the Obits Branch Manager will cooperate fully. I was wondering if we might have more to talk about than a blacksmith's guild in the near future."

Verno said, "That helps. Because I don't feel I can explain it to you," he said with a relieved look.

"We're going to review the plan, but we didn't expect you to make this much. It's not enough to set up a boat."

I guess it's a social dictionary because I don't think so much about it as far as I'm concerned. Still, that's what they told me, so I decided to ride.

"Now, if you have any information, I'd like you to let me know."

"If the information I have doesn't bother other customers, I'd be happy to answer it."

"So, Luke, can you tell me if you know anything about the situation of the Holy King, especially the possibility and timing of the war?"

Verno, after a little thought,

"It will be only a matter of time before the Holy King opens his end of the war. According to the information our Chamber of Commerce is grasping, there will be a massive battle in Lark Hill around the summer. The same is true of commercial guilds."

It was the same story I heard at the Guild Branch in Gartbreck.

"So did you know the story of the manifestation of the God of Light?"

"Of course I know. I also know who that sounds like. White warrior, Mr. Arklight of the Mercenary Corps of Markat?

Verno opens his eyes to my words.

"That's Master Zacharias, isn't it? I didn't know you already knew I was in Jill Sole, which is hard to get information into."

"I hear he is a young hero who worked in the battle between Millis Valley and Periclitle. Even if Phototheism cares. I'm sure that's all anyone can come up with."

"I see. Now let me give you some new information," he said and started talking.

"The Demonic Crusaders of the Holy King, who fought with Mr. Archlight in the Periclitle offensive, entered Aurelia in February. At that time, I am talking to a bishop named Maggioni Gastaldi, who was in command. He said that Mr. Archrite was the Lord Archbishop of the Light Divine Church."

"The Bishops of the Light Divinity... but what can I say, they are fanatics, so isn't it weak on the basis of the word" manifestation of Lucidus ”?"

"You're absolutely right. I'm just curious about what the peasant militias of the Demonic Crusaders say and do. They worshipped Mr. Arklight as God did. I heard him say he sympathized with the abusive peasant militia and gave them a warm meal and a soft sleeping area..."

In Lukes, we have adopted a national soldier system, with peasants conscripted from poor rural areas becoming soldiers. They were treated like slaves, and many were said not to be able to return home.

"... that's not all. He continued to cure the peasant militias wounded in the fierce war until their magic ran out, tearing the soldiers who died in the war forward and trying to give them their own personal possessions. I'm also watching you go, but at that time I thought you might be thin and not be able to march satisfied. But the wounded soldiers were given carriages on their way home, and others were given adequate meals and rest. They say it's all on Mr. Arklight's orders."

"I see. You're not like the Holy Knight of Light God. Indeed, as far as we can tell, the rich, the poor and the poor alike, seem to be the ones who deserve to be called" the manifestation of Lucidus ".

"There's also information I got besides rumors. Even so, it's what I got by chance, and it's my personal story..."

"What would that be like? Could you let me know if you don't mind?

"When I say personal, it's not enough to keep it a secret. My father, Loris Deoddard, traveled under the Dark God (Noctis) on his journey last May. It was Mr. Ray Arklight who saw the end of it. I am also surprised to hear about Pericritle......"

His father, his predecessor chamber of commerce president, Loris Deoddard, was on a journey to heal the heartbreak of his wife's death. Along the way, he was sickened and went to the Kingdom of Sartooth to request treatment from an elf doctor.

He was called incurable by a pharmacist and aspired to Aurelia, his hometown, but did his best in the regional city of the Kingdom of Lax. At that time, a mercenary who undertook to escort Loris was Mr. Arklight, who said he had written a will to fund his journey and give slaves to the Beasts for his devotional actions.

"... it was around August of last year that I got that information. I searched to thank him for making my father's final period mild, but I remain out of touch with the coup d 'état in the Kingdom of Lax and the subsequent Periclitle offensive. But the more I gathered information about him, the more straight and righteous he turned out to be."

All I could do was say, "Such a relationship..."

"As far as I'm concerned, I don't want him involved in phototheism. 'Cause you're just going to make your life a mess, just like my father."

"So are they taking any action for it?

I heard it in the course of the story, but it's about the strategy of a commercial guild and I don't expect the answer back.

"... you can tell me if you want to be Master Zacharias," he murmured.

"The Alliance has sent plenty of bribes to officials in the Holy King's Palace, plus contact with the Order's Cardinals. I wish I could change the Archbishop..."

I don't know how much money you're putting in, but replacing the head of the archbishop in chief power is a sign of extraordinary determination.

"… but the current Archbishop Bernardino Rolfo is not only flexible within the Church, but even to the Holy King, with a rocky political foundation. Especially since we buried all our political enemies in previous coups d 'état, it's a situation where we can't find enough people to fight Rolfo."

"Don't you have any other hands you can hit? Like tightening it financially."

"It's hard, too. If Aurelia doesn't provide economic assistance, she'll just ask Periplus for help. Because if Peripulus can hit us too, he'll give us a colorful reply. Most likely they won't give money to the Holy King anyway."

Periples is contending for maritime hegemony with Aurelia, but never a wealthy country. It is trying to sharpen the power of Aurelia by holding down major ports and commercial areas by Aulera, doing business aimed at gaps and augmenting the Navy with its gold.

Besides, Peripulus has shown no interest in the politics of the continent. It would be an empire, but it would be a holy kingdom, but it's an attitude of cooperating with anything that can damage Aurelia.

"Does that mean that it is politically impossible to stop the Archbishop's rampage and that war is inevitable"

"You will. If we could, the Empire would have enough overwhelming power to even the Archbishop hesitate, enough to stop trooping. However, the Holy King will mobilize more than 200,000 soldiers, so if the fanatics are so overwhelmed, the Empire must put in all of its regular legions…"

The Empire's Regular Corps has a capacity of 20,000. There are ten legions in all, so it becomes 200,000. The number is the same, but the Holy Kingdom also knows so much about the strength of the Regular Legion as it does not like it. 200,000 Holy King's Army of peasant militia subjects would give up even mad leaders if that number was available, because even 40,000 of the two legions could fight more than enough each other.

But when it comes to the Ten Regiments, it is all about the Regular Army, especially the First Regiment, which is a Kingsguard of the emperor's direct graduation, and it is unlikely to go out.

Also, because it takes a huge amount of military money just to move one legion, even if the Holy King's Army mobilizes 200,000 to 250,000, many would mobilize 80,000 of the four legions. Because the Prime Minister, Lord Ezzarington, who thinks rationally, is not supposed to allow a futile march.

"... Dear Zacharias, as you can see, this is an unrealistic story. That prime minister should determine the most efficient number."

"Then you have no realistic hands."

You got caught up in my words, Verno leaning his neck.

"It sounded like there was an unrealistic way to put it.

"There are more powerful armies within the Empire than the Regular Corps."

In my words, Verno tilts his neck, "I don't have anything in mind," he says.

"I am a human horse (Centaur) tribe and nomad. There are said to be 50,000 Humans and 200,000 Nomads, the majority of whom are warriors. It is also the strongest cavalry to surpass the cavalry of the Empire. Besides, the Holy King has trauma against the Humans. Because I have been beaten to pieces without skin in previous battles. If those Horse and Humans could march out tens of thousands, the Holy King's Army would have to turn back."

"Sure, but don't the Humans only move at the emperor's request? You won't be asking for a win like this one in the first place... so you're saying it's unrealistic"

As Verno put it, the Humans and Horses come out only at the request of the Emperor, but they have never requested anything other than a critical situation, and this time they do not fall under it either.

A slight silence ruled the place, but Verno's silence was broken by the fact that he began to speak quietly.

"As far as I'm concerned, if the Holy Kingdoms want to perish, they can fight on their own."

"To clear up your parents' carelessness, regardless of your commercial guild?

"Exactly. Of course, many innocent people will die. But I think they're guilty, too. Because we worship worshippers and fanatics who are not worth calling such priests. It's heavenly punishment if you let me tell you. I like to use the word" righteous hammer of Lucidus, "but I wonder if that hammer will just fall on them."

His parents have been betrayed by relying on the miracle of light divinity and have been cut off from the hope of living peacefully for the rest of their lives. He even seems to think that if light divinity and the Holy King's kingdom are to perish, his hometown of Aurelia is to perish.

I thought there was no point in continuing this topic any longer, and I taught him the inn where we were staying and left the Chamber of Commerce behind.

■ ■ ■

Verno sighs loudly after Zacharias and the others leave.

(And what is he up to? I think the Holy Kingdoms should perish and regenerate once...)

I was uncomfortable that Zacharias was trying to avoid a war.

However, a plan marked “Jilsor Distillery Liquor Project” caught my eye and shook off the idea.

And turn your gaze to the employees beside him.

"I have to decipher this plan first. That's just sometimes called the son of a liquor god. I didn't think you'd come up with this many plans."

The oldest employee nodded loudly at it,

"I really do. Earlier explanations were also said to be schematic, but they didn't seem to me."

Verno turns the plan into pieces and opens a page.

"Look at this place. Ten years worth of necessary supplies, funds and human resources are written down on a monthly basis. I still don't know what it would taste like."

"The previous page is also strange. I don't know if it's just a planned construction site and transportation route, but I'm even looking into the names, family structure, and interests of the land's leading players. Did you really go to Jilsol for research?"

"Either way, we have to decipher the plan first. While Master Zacharias is here, all questions will be resolved. I'll decide who's in charge, so keep your eyes open by tomorrow morning."

That's how I untie the plan and distribute it to the employees.

"Can you understand it by morning......" the youngest employee complains in tears.

"If there's anything you don't understand, just write it down. Master Zacharias said a few days, but you cannot extend your stay for us. So we have to make it completely understandable in two days!

If you declare so forcefully, you will rise,

"This is a major project that may shape the fate of our Chamber of Commerce. We treat the existence of this plan as top secret and forbid you to tell your family until the project is launched."

This is how he launched the Deodard Chamber of Commerce's Jill-Sole distillery liquor project.