Chapter 411 - 400: The Deal
Old King Alexander practically folded in half, his hoarse and resolute plea echoing through the vast hall. Every word seemed to have been written in blood.
"Please... teach us!"
Allen didn’t respond immediately, nor did he even move to help the elderly monarch up.
His fingers tapped against the armrest, making a rhythmic TAP... TAP... sound.
Allen had already anticipated what the old King was going to say halfway through his plea.
He needed to consider this request carefully.
’This kingdom’s mineral resources are abundant. It occupies an entire continent, after all, making it far larger than my old war zone in the Molten Iron Mountain Range. If these resources could be exploited, they would generate at least tens of millions of Magic Stones in revenue each year.’
’However, these natives are... special. There’s a high probability that dealing with them could trigger unknown risks, including, but not limited to, direct intervention from the mission-issuer.’
’Maurice’s death was full of suspicious circumstances.’
’Perhaps he was ’cleaned up’ for crossing a line he shouldn’t have.’
’So what makes these natives so special?’
’It must be the Spirit Cores and their system of Spirit Art. What if I only take the ore and avoid that particular red line...?’
"Your Majesty,"
Allen finally spoke, his voice as calm as a deep pool. "You’ve oversimplified things."
Alexander jerked his head up, a flash of shock and unease in his cloudy eyes.
"My system is also that of a Wizard, and the path of a Wizard is one of individual evolution."
Allen turned to face the old King directly. "It relies on talent, resources, knowledge, and a hopelessly long amount of time. Even if I gave you the most crucial Meditation Method, it would be a miracle if even one person in ten thousand managed to touch the threshold of a First-level Wizard within a century."
He paused, his tone carrying an air of finality.
’To be on the safe side, I can’t teach them the Wizard training system.’
"This path cannot save your kingdom. It will only give rise to a few powerful individuals, and your entire civilization will pay the price for their growth. In the end, you will find it is just another form of slow death."
The color drained from Alexander’s face in an instant.
Allen’s words were like a basin of ice water, extinguishing the flame of hope that had just ignited in his heart.
He thought he had found the cure for a terminal disease, only to be told it was just another, more insidious poison.
"Then... we..." The old King’s voice was hoarse and trembling. His lips quivered, but he couldn’t form a complete sentence.
"But," Allen’s tone shifted, as if pulling the King back from a cliff’s edge, "while individuals cannot save a civilization, knowledge and productivity can."
"Though I cannot make you Wizards, I can give you a different way to live."
Alexander’s body jolted, and a glimmer of light refocused in his cloudy eyes.
Allen walked over to the massive sand table and looked at the blood-soaked coastline, his tone cold and sharp.
"Your method of warfare is too primitive."
"You have twenty million Spirit Mages capable of commanding the elements, yet you have them dress in scraps of iron and fight monsters in close combat with longswords. This is the greatest waste."
"Beneath your feet lie rich veins of ore that would drive any Alchemist mad with desire, yet you are unable to exploit them."
"It takes seven days for your decrees to travel from the Royal Capital to the furthest border. By the time a battle report from the front lines reaches the palace, the bodies are already cold."
Every one of Allen’s sentences struck Alexander’s heart like a heavy hammer. He didn’t refute them, because it was all true.
Allen turned, his gaze like a torch.
He raised his hand. Light and shadow flowed in the empty air, and a holographic map—far more detailed and complex than the sand table—materialized out of thin air.
It was the blueprint for a city. Countless energy conduits spread out like veins, and strangely shaped factories rose up, forming a vast and intricate system of steel.
"Your Majesty, you were right about one thing. To save your kingdom, you don’t need a stronger warrior; you need a brand-new ’system’."
"And I can give you that system."
"I can help you establish a complete industrial system based on Alchemy. From basic ore smelting and standardized component manufacturing to even the preliminary creation of Engineering Golems. I can provide a full set of blueprints and technical guidance."
"I can even help you build an Earth Vein Magic Furnace, converting the dormant Magic Power deep underground into a ceaseless stream of energy to power your cities and factories."
"I can help you establish a corresponding educational system. I will select one hundred thousand talented apprentices from among your people and, over the course of thirty years, cultivate the first generation of Alchemy Engineers and industrial workers for Aiselan. They will be the lifeblood of this new system."
Alexander’s breathing began to quicken.
Allen’s voice seemed to carry a certain magic as it echoed in the empty hall.
"I can also plan and oversee the construction of a nationwide transportation network and new forms of urban defense. This will allow your legions to reach any corner of the kingdom within a single day, and your so-called ’seven-hundred-kilometer defensive line’ will no longer be a joke."
The old King was now leaning on the edge of the sand table, his body trembling violently with excitement.
Allen looked at him and threw out his final, and most deadly, temptation.
"Finally, and most importantly."
"I can build a Magic Energy communication network for the Aiselan Kingdom that covers the entire realm."
"Once it is built, any word you speak in the royal palace can reach the ears of a soldier at any border outpost within a second."
"Footage of any Heart Eater making landfall on the front lines will appear before your very eyes in real-time, with zero delay."
"The transmission of military intelligence will no longer be measured in days, but in seconds."
BOOM!
It was as if a clap of thunder had exploded in Alexander’s mind.
No delay!
Real-time intelligence!
As a king, a commander who had struggled on the defensive line for decades, he almost instantly understood the terrifying meaning behind those words!
What did this mean?
It meant perfect command! It meant absolute informational superiority!
It meant the kingdom’s army of half a million would no longer be blind men fighting their own separate battles, but true limbs directed by a single, all-knowing eye!
With every sentence Allen spoke, the blueprint became more complex and magnificent.
What Allen was painting for him was not a single victory, but an entirely new era.
A golden age for Aiselan, one of roaring steel, flowing information, and perfect order!
"Perhaps thirty years from now, the Aiselan Kingdom will have at least twenty fully automated mining factories. Your soldiers will no longer need to plug the defensive lines with their flesh and blood. They will become Commanders sitting in rear command centers, or Knights piloting suits of steel armor."
"By then, the Heart Eaters will no longer be a threat, but ’raw materials’ for your industrial system and the best sparring partners for your new generation of Spirit Mages."
Alexander stared dumbfounded at the vision of the future before him, a vision that surpassed the limits of his imagination. His breathing grew incredibly heavy.
Magic Energy communications, Earth Vein Magic Furnaces, automated factories, a Steel Legion...
This was no longer simple "help." This was a complete blood transfusion and rebirth for a dying civilization!
He understood.
He completely understood the terrifying power this all represented!
This was the true power of an entire civilization!
The old King trembled with excitement. He staggered forward a step and nearly fell to his knees again, but this time, he forced himself to remain steady.
He used all his strength to suppress the wild joy and excitement in his heart, fixing his eyes, which burned with the last embers of his life, on Allen.
"The price."
Alexander forced the two words from between his teeth.
He knew better than anyone that there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. The greater the gift, the more staggering the price demanded.
The corner of Allen’s mouth finally curved into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
He enjoyed talking to smart people.
"Very simple." Allen held up two fingers.
"First, during my station here, half of all mineral resources extracted within the borders of the Aiselan Kingdom belong to me."
This condition struck Alexander’s heart like a heavy hammer.
Half of the mineral resources!
That was the very foundation of the kingdom’s survival! It was the lifeblood used to forge weapons, build cities, and support Spirit Mages!
"This..." Alexander instinctively wanted to refuse.
"Your Majesty," Allen cut him off. "Your lands hold many yet undiscovered mineral deposits. Without my help, they are nothing but useless stones buried in the ground. Even with only half the ore, it is more than enough to forge a new future for yourselves. In this deal, you can’t possibly lose."
Alexander fell silent. He knew Allen was telling the truth.
Without the technology of this otherworldly visitor, those mineral veins could lie underground for a hundred million years and remain nothing but stone.
His fists were clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white, his nails digging deep into his palms. He asked with difficulty, "...And the second condition?"
Allen’s gaze was calm and profound. "The nationwide ’Magic Energy communication network’ I just mentioned... I require supreme administrative rights and... operational control over it."
Compared to the brutal simplicity of the first condition, the second sounded much milder.
’Just the administrative rights to a network?’
However, Alexander was, after all, a monarch who had ruled a kingdom for decades. He instantly smelled something in this seemingly harmless condition that sent a chill down his spine.
A nationwide communication network... supreme administrative rights...
This meant that in the future, all of the kingdom’s information transmissions, military deployments, and government decrees would be carried out over this "network." And Allen, holding supreme authority, would be like an omniscient god, looking down upon everything in the kingdom.
No secret would be safe from him.
This was even more terrifying than ceding half their territory!
The hall once again fell into a suffocating silence.
The old King stood in place, his aged body like a weathered stone statue.
His chest heaved violently, his eyes flashing with pain, struggle, calculation, and a hint of the madness that comes from being pushed to the brink.
If he accepted, the Aiselan Kingdom would lose half its wealth and all its secrets. For the next thirty years, the kingdom’s very lifeline would be in the hands of this unfathomable Wizard, making them little more than a vassal state.
If he refused, the kingdom would inevitably perish, its people wiped out from bleeding to death within a century.
It was a choice with no real choice at all.
"I agree!"
[Plan ’Civilization Reformation Project’ initiated.]
[Risk Assessment: Technology transfer is concentrated in industrial fields and basic Alchemy Technology, does not involve Core Witchcraft theory. Probability of intervention from mission-issuer is low.]
[Projected Gains: Estimated acquisition of at least 1 billion Low-Level Magic Stones and seventeen types of rare minerals within thirty years. The communication network will enable deep informational control over the civilization’s societal structure, providing data support for subsequent plans. Overall Evaluation: Low-to-medium risk, extremely high reward.]
PS: Sorry, it seems my author’s note in yesterday’s Chapter scared you all. Don’t worry, I won’t go on hiatus so easily. I just finished editing today’s Chapter, so I’m posting it early.