[V11C26] Mutually Beneficial Deal

Isaac had subordinates deployed throughout all of Ridill, so he received regular status reports on each region.

Copies of these reports were sent to twelve locations throughout the kingdom, including the capital, his territory of Erin, Sazandol, etc. The commercial city of Paruva was also included, so Isaac was able to receive reports regardless of his current location.

However, Isaac learned about the dragon disaster in the capital from Chairman Anderson rather than his subordinates.

True to his title of Transport King, Anderson knew what was going on in every city with a branch of the Anderson Company, giving him an information network with greater range and speed than Isaac’s.

(I’m glad to have Chairman Anderson on my side.)

Returning his lodgings, Isaac contemplated the contents of Chairman Anderson’s letter.

The letter described the occurrence of a large-scale dragon disaster in the capital. However, the Sages in the palace had managed to fend off the dragons with minimal damages.

That said, the dragons triggered a malfunction in one of the palace’s magical tools, collapsing a portion of the palace. Mary Harvey the Starseer Witch was injured in the accident.

(…This information seems to have been manipulated.)

There was no concrete explanation on how the dragons could trigger a magical tool malfunction, and it was incredibly vague about the extent of the Starseer Witch’s injuries.

(I highly doubt Monica and Silas-niisan made it back to the capital in time. I’ll assume they were not caught up in the incident.)

More importantly, the Starseer Witch predicted another large-scale dragon disaster before her injury.

In this situation, should Isaac return to the palace? Or simply continue back to Erin as planned?

After careful consideration, Isaac decided to visit the palace, since that was the only way to get more accurate information.

By the time he arrived in the capital, Monica and Silas were back from Lugaroa and holed up in the Magic Corps headquarters with the other Sages.

Isaac wanted to talk to Monica immediately, but the Second Prince was too conspicuous to just walk into the Magic Corps. He could come up with any number of excuses in the palace, but not there.

Thus, he switched focus to gathering information instead. This allowed him to learn what happened while he was gone, as well as the Starseer Witch’s actual prophesy.

Right as Isaac finally grasped the full picture, he learned that the Silent Witch was sentenced to house arrest in Sazandol. He had been so busy gathering information that he missed his chance to meet with Monica.

＊　＊　＊

——Sooner or later, you will lose half of the world before you.

Ever since the Starseer Witch gave him that prophecy, Isaac had been planning for the worst possible scenario.

Since he led a double life as Felix Arc Ridill and Isaac Walker, losing either of his identities would be equivalent to “half of the world.”

First, he eliminated those who threatened to tarnish Felix’s name, and put a stop to the Empire’s spies snooping around him.

Next, he developed underwater reconnaissance magic to eliminate the threat of water dragons from Sazandol.

And finally, he gathered information about any unsettling events involving the Seven Sages. Monica was the symbol of his peaceful life as Isaac Walker, and he intended to protect her.

If anything were to happen to his beloved master, the world of Isaac Walker was as good as lost.

(There are currently two people I need to watch out for. The first is Theodore Maxwell due to the ancient artifact he holds. The second is…)

Isaac walked into a room of the palace, where a certain man was waiting inside.

“Sorry for summoning you when you’re so busy, Dragon Slayer Mage-dono,” Isaac said.

“…No worries.”

He was meeting a large man with off-blonde hair, Silas Page the Dragon Slayer Mage. Silas rose from his seat and gave a short bow with his reply.

The Starseer Witch was currently unconscious and in critical condition, and the Barrier Mage had delayed mana regeneration, making him mostly useless as a mage.

As one of the few Sages proficient in flight magic and skilled in dragon combat, Silas had been extremely busy with patrols around the capital and miscellaneous tasks.

However, there was a good reason why Isaac needed to talk to the busy Silas.

Isaac gestured for Silas to sit, then took a seat in the opposite chair.

“Do you recall our discussion about me wanting to invest in your dragon detector invention?” Isaac asked.

Silas was still not accustomed to dealing with the nobility, so he affirmed with a slightly stiff nod.

“Yeah, I remember.”

“The Anderson Company has also made an official offer of financial support.”

“Anderson Company? Uh, you mean the Transport King… right?”

“Yes, I have personally spoken to Chairman Widsley Anderson.”

Silas’s face displayed more surprise than joy.

The Anderson Company had branches throughout Ridill, so it was famous even in the countryside.

In other words, the Second Prince and one of the most prominent merchants in Ridill were offering to invest in his research. Silas could not help but be surprised at how big things were getting.

“However, there are some conditions,” Isaac continued.

Silas regained his composure and furrowed his brows. His face was already somewhat intimidating to begin with, so this only made him look scarier.

“If the research fails, you’ll take my life as compensation… Is that it?” Silas muttered.

“…”

——That’s way too heavy, Silas-niisan.

Keeping those thoughts to himself, Isaac clarified with a gentle smile.

“I have a researcher working on underwater reconnaissance magic in Sazandol. We want to combine that research with your dragon detector to create a ship capable of detecting water dragons.”

Since they previously discussed the topic of underwater reconnaissance magic when they first met, Silas seemed understanding, albeit a little taken aback.

Isaac placed the contracts and proposals from Chairman Anderson on the desk, then continued.

“You might be thinking that you’re too busy to do this right now, but I assure you, advancing this dragon detection research is our best way of dealing with the prophecy. Expanding the detection range of your device will make it much easier to deal with large-scale dragon disasters.”

Isaac knew that Silas’s dragon detector would be invaluable for countering dragon disasters going forward. It needed to be developed no matter the cost.

“I want you to prioritize expanding the detection range for now. We can worry about the ship stuff once the prophecy business settles down.”

As Isaac stated, they were going to postpone the ships with water dragon detectors. Chairman Anderson had already given his approval, as building new ships would be a fruitless effort if they ended up destroyed in the upcoming dragon disaster.

Moreover, once they mass-produced dragon detectors with expanded range, the Anderson Company would be able to allocate detectors to their transport carriages, avoiding dragon encounters on their land routes as well.

The Anderson Company possessed many branches in the dragon-infested eastern Ridill as well, so Silas’s dragon detector was easily worth the investment.

“How about it? Do you agree with my plan?” Isaac asked.

“…Uh, can I ask one question?”

“What is it?”

Silas glanced at the contracts, then back at Isaac’s face, before voicing his question.

“Why would a prince like you go to such lengths for me?”

As someone who had dedicated his life to slaying dragons, Silas had hardly ever spoken to the nobility, much less royalty.

And now he was suddenly offered a deal by the Second Prince. The situation seemed too good to be true.

As far as Isaac knew, ‘Silas-niisan’ was a boy who always got carried away when he was praised. But it seems the years had grown that boy into a cautious adult.

(…Fair enough. I’m no longer the “good little Ike” either.)

There were three reasons why Isaac approached Silas with the investment deal.

First, because he simply wanted to support his old friend Silas.

Second, because Silas’s research had the potential to save many people in a country suffering from dragon disasters.

And third…

“Because the deal benefits me as well,” Isaac answered.

“…Well, if you say so.”

Silas scratched his head and took the contract. Then, he gave Isaac a deep bow.

“I, uh… graciously accept your offer,” Silas said. “By the way, you mentioned some guy who was researching underwater reconnaissance magic, right?”

“Yes, he lives in Sazandol… Oh right, since you’ll be collaborating from now on, are you okay with showing him the blueprints for your dragon detector?”

“Sure, I’ll bring them over.”

“Thank you, that will be a great help.”

This was Isaac’s third reason for approaching Silas with the investment proposal: obtaining the blueprints for the dragon detector.

(By analyzing the blueprints, I can create a formula to neutralize the detector.)

Isaac had always anticipated the worst, so when he learned about the Dragon Slayer Mage’s invention, his immediate concern was Nero and Thule. The two dragons were concealing their identities and living among humans.

The detector currently had limited range, but that would change in the near future.

And what would happen if the improved device exposes their true identities? Monica and Cyril end up facing condemnation and certain ruin.

Thus, Isaac needed to prepare a counter to Silas’s dragon detector.

(Before Silas-niisan discovers Nero and Thule, I need to make a countermeasure based on his blueprints, then give it to Monica and Cyril.)

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