In a Different World with a Smartphone (LN) - Volume 9 - Chapter 4

Chapter IV: The Magic Kingdom, Felsen 

“Sorry if this sounds unreasonable.” 
“No, you needn’t worry.” The King of Lestia smiled as he waved dismissively. He was the same as ever. I was glad to have a nice guy like this as my brother-in-law. Well, I wasn’t married to Hilde quite yet, but still... 
We were riding a carriage from Lestia to Felsen’s royal palace. King Reinhard had graciously arranged a meeting with Felsen’s King for me. 
I didn’t want to just suddenly appear out of the blue in Felsen with [Gate], so I decided that the best course of action would be to take a formal convoy with Reinhard. I did kind of cheat a little bit, though. I shortened our journey by transporting all of us just a short distance from the capital city. 
I showed my findings related to the Frame Gear theft to Reinhard, but he looked it over with a frown. I asked him why he seemed so puzzled. 
“Not that I doubt you, Touya... But I’m not sure I believe the King of Felsen would do such a thing.” Felsen was one of only two nations that bordered Lestia. The other was the Ryle Kingdom. Due to this proximity, they had a rich and intertwined history. 
From what I understood, the nations of Lestia and Felsen used to be at war, but in recent years they had enjoyed peaceful contact and trade. 
Reinhard informed me that the leader of Felsen was level-headed, open-minded, didn’t mind minor problems, and wasn’t very fussy at all. He didn’t have the personality one might expect of a mage. He was also a physical fitness fanatic and liked to lift weights. 
The previous leader of Felsen was an obsessive researcher, and he even died due to a magical research accident. The current king was his younger brother, and succeeded him right away. 
His name is Boulanger Frost Felsen, and even from a young age his pursuits were different to his elder brother’s. He always prioritized physical fitness and martial arts over spiritual research and magical technique. That didn’t change much after he ascended to the throne, either. 
The official reason for the visit to Felsen was concerning Enlush Island. It was a place between Roadmare, Felsen, Ryle, and Lestia. Smack dab in the middle of the Rondo Sea, a small body of water that fed into the Great Gau River. 
The island was technically Lestia’s property, but there were many powerful magical beasts living there. Because of this, they couldn’t really take advantage of the resources there. Apparently the soil wasn’t very fertile there to boot. And aquatic magical beasts attacked any fishing or sailing boats that passed by. It was an island that nobody could make good use of. 
I looked at this island and brought a certain proposal to the King of Lestia. 
My proposal was simple. We could build bridges to connect all four nations using that island as a central nexus. 
The bridges would be long, of course. However, constructing them wasn’t at all impossible. If we built them, trade between the four nations would grow considerably easier. Plus, with the island as the center, it could even become a thriving commercial hub. 
Each country would be able to establish their own trade rules, naturally. And exports along with imports would be strictly monitored. 
I’d build the bridges to each nation, in exchange for a toll fee. On top of that, I’d also wipe out all the dangerous creatures native to the central territory. 
The governments of Roadmare and Ryle both agreed to the project. Now all we needed was to see if Felsen wanted in on the plan too. If Felsen didn’t agree, I’d just make a trade route between the other three nations, but I didn’t exactly see any reason for them to decline. 
“I hear that Felsen’s on the forefront of developing magic tech, is that right?” 
“That’s correct, yes. They research all kinds of things including artifacts, ancient technologies, enchantments, talismans, Eashen’s ninjutsu, and naturalism.” Magic had seven broad elemental attributes in this world, but there were also unusual offshoots that made use of magical power as well. These were known as “arts.” The ninjutsu that Tsubaki employed was an example of one such style. 
They weren’t determined by elemental affinities like conventional spells, so anyone with magic in them could make use of them. Still, a crazy amount of training was necessary to even begin. Even if it took five or so years to figure out the fundamentals, you wouldn’t be able to use the most basic of abilities until at least another five years on top of that. So really, the path of the arts was one that took far more time and dedication than wielding magic. 
Certain arts were kept secret and limited to specific families, as well, so one could never truly master every one available. The Daoshi in Yulong, for example, were masters of talisman arts. 
“About sixty percent of all the enchanted items in the world were produced by Felsen’s magicraftsmen. Their success rate is nowhere near your [Enchant] spell, which always seems to work, though... so they have no means of mass production.” 
“They fail that much? What’s their success rate?” 
“Around every one in ten attempts work, I believe... On a good day.” 
Less than ten percent...? No wonder enchanted goods are so pricey. 
The Library of Babylon had some books detailing how to improve your chances at enchanting and other techniques... but I didn’t have any books on other arts that had developed since Doctor Babylon’s time. Ninjutsu, for example, had developed in Eashen, but nobody lived in that area of the world five-thousand years ago, so there were no books detailing it. 
I realized that I could very easily use my own [Enchant] spell to mass produce all kinds of goods and make a fortune, but that would have affected Felsen’s income big-time... so the idea was a no-go. 
As I pondered various magic arts, our carriage passed through the castle town and made it to the royal abode. 
Felsen castle didn’t look like the French fortress I’d initially imagined. Instead, it more readily resembled a classic British castle. It felt very dignified and rustic. It let off such a traditional aura that it was easy to imagine this being a mage’s stronghold. 
We reached the steps up to the main entrance. Knight King Reinhard went on ahead and I followed behind him. Then, I looked up and saw a man waiting for us by the entrance. 
He looked to be in his forties, at least. He was extremely tall and beefy, and he wore a gleaming suit of armor. He reminded me of a pro wrestler, or an American football player. 
His beard covered the bottom half of his face, and his gray-black hair was shoddily swept back. He wore a beautiful white cape with golden stitching, and in his right hand was a magnificent silver scepter. 
What caught my eye the most, though, was the scarring on his face. 
What the hell, did he fight a tiger or something? 
“Knight King of Lestia, Grand Duke of Brunhild... Welcome to Felsen, lads.” The giant of a man, King Boulanger Frost Felsen, grinned at us both. 
“Ohoho... Bridges to Enlush island? Aye, I could see profits soaring if we all established trade that way. But....” I’d told the plan to the King, but he stroked his beard and seemed apprehensive. 
“Something wrong?” 
“Aye, see... Even if we build this bridge, Enlush Island is Lestian territory, ain’t it? What if Lestia decides to halt passage through the island based on their own whims, eh?” 
“That’s not a problem. When the bridges are completed, the island will be divided into four territories. Each country will own that segment of the island, and ten percent of the trade toll will go to Brunhild. The Grand Duke’s nation will be building the bridges and clearing out the monsters, after all.” Reinhard quickly calmed the concerns of Felsen’s King. 
I’d have been happy to build the bridges for free and leave them to it, but Doge Audrey of Roadmare told me I should take responsibility for the bridges in case issues came up in the future, so I went along with it. 
The costs wouldn’t be all that much, but they did add up since the bridges would end up being quite long. The countries would all pay me back for the expenses by giving me ten percent of the bridge tolls. I also said I wouldn’t take any further money from them after they paid me the full amount. It would take about ten years at most if the bridges saw frequent use. Though I wouldn’t have minded them paying me in bigger chunks if they could afford it. 
Initially, I just planned on installing instant transfer portals for all of the countries, but if they broke down I’d be the only one around to fix them. Bridges were the wisest choice, if I wanted to think about the future at least. 
“Well then, Grand Duke... I’ll ask if you think you can really build four bridges of such a size.” A man I wasn’t fully familiar with spoke up. He was sitting at the same table as us. His eyes were a deep blue, and they gazed at me with hawk-like intensity. This man was Felsen’s prime minister. If I recalled correctly, his name was Amond. 
“I can do it in about three days once I have the materials. I’m not making anything extremely flashy, just bridges.” 
“I’m doubtful you could do such a thing in a mere three days... Even if you used those giant Frame Gear things, four bridges in such a short amount of time is absurd, no?” Amond directed a gaze laced with doubt in my direction. I didn’t exactly blame him for being wrong, but I wasn’t going to use my Frame Gears at all. 
I’d simply use the Workshop to make the bridges in the same way I did for Brunhild Castle. It was more work than usual, but the Workshop was being powered by the Tower’s reactor, so it was definitely up to the task. 
“My Frame Gears won’t be involved. I have something that can take the materials and move them to the right spot. To put it simply, it’s something that can take a bunch of stones and place them down in the shape of a bridge.” 
“...Is this an artifact?” 
“Er, something like that. Only I can use it, though.” The man who just butted in was a gaunt, creepy looking guy. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. His eyes were dead and glazed over until just a moment ago, but they came to life the moment I mentioned my capabilities. He was Felsen’s court magician. Ludo, I believe he was called. 
“Why is it only you can use it, Grand Duke?” 
“The only thing I can tell you is that’s just how the artifact works. Even within my own country, the details are confidential... Sorry.” 
“I... see... How unfortunate.” Ludo sighed slightly, and his eyes went back to that dead glaze. Seemed like he didn’t care much about things that weren’t exciting. 
The King of Felsen gave me a small smile. 
“Forgive his lack of manners. He’s been researchin’ a lot lately, gets him real tired.” 
“Oh, don’t worry. I’m not offended.” I was used to people acting like him, anyway. I had Belfast’s court magician Charlotte, and Leen back home. They both lit up whenever I mentioned unusual stuff, but weren’t that enthused otherwise. 
The people seated at the table, other than myself, were the Knight King of Lestia, Felsen’s King, Prime Minister Amond, Court Magician Ludo, and one other who finally decided to speak up. 
“Grand Duke... You possess many fascinating artifacts, and those giant warriors as well. Did you perhaps come across them in a certain set of ruins?” 
“...Some of them, but not all. Some of them are of my own making.” 
“I see, I see... Indeed, you can use the [Enchant] spell... Not to mention the fact that you have mastery over all elements. Quite the enviable position.” The man both commenting and chuckling softly was Easeus, Chief Officer of Felsen’s Magical Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was in charge of all the mages, craftsmen, and merchants in the country. He had wavy gray hair, and wore a pair of sunglasses. I had no idea sunglasses even existed in this world... They also definitely had some kind of magical effect on them, though I couldn’t tell what. At any rate, I knew for a fact they were enchanted sunglasses. 
I found it suspicious, to be honest. Still, I couldn’t exactly accuse a guy of being suspicious just for the crime of wearing some smooth shades. 
After meeting the King of Felsen, I definitely didn’t think he was the one behind the stolen Frame Gear. Reinhard had been right to consider him a good man. There was always the chance he was hiding his true self, but I highly doubted that. 
As for Prime Minister Amond, Court Magician Ludo, or Chief Officer Easeus... 
Any one of them could’ve been the mastermind I sought. It was possible the culprit was operating without the King’s knowledge, after all. All three of them had considerable power within the country, so it wasn’t an unreasonable assumption. 
I had to push such thoughts out of my head, though. It wouldn’t have been right of me to baselessly judge the people around me. 
“Well, a bridge sounds mighty fine to me. Just like the others, we’ll pay a portion to Brunhild to cover the costs.” 
“Your Highness... Is that the decision we’ve come to?” Prime Minister Amond turned to the King, as if to confirm the choice. 
“The country that misses out on this deal will lose a lot of money, I’d wager. Plus, I sure as hell don’t think the other three would conspire to attack us or anything. Hell, the grand duke of Brunhild is handling the intricacies of the stuff, so he’d help us out if trouble came up, right?” 
“I would, yes.” The four countries shared friendly relations, but I wasn’t entirely sure if that peace would last forever. It was entirely possible that the bridges could be used as routes for invasion. That was why I planned on putting defensive fortifications along each bridge to try and prevent that. 
“Alright, now we got that outta the way... Hey, Grand Duke. Would you mind coming with me? I wanna show you something.” The King of Felsen grinned broadly in my direction as he spoke. Something in his eyes seemed terribly bold. Huh... What could he want? 
 
“Whoa...” 
“Well? Pretty sweet, huh?” The King of Felsen had brought me to his treasury. There were weapons on fancy pedestals, and even more lining the walls. 
Swords, spears, bows, axes, greatswords, daggers, katanas, scythes, chains, and many more... I looked around and noticed each weapon on display was forged of some kind of rare metal, and the vast majority had enchantments, too. 
There were way too many... Both I and the Knight King were left utterly speechless. Typically, you’d find this kind of array in the armory, not the King’s personal stash. 
“This axe here is about five-hundred years old. It was wielded by a legendary Dragon Slayer named Buckram. It’s even enchanted with a fire spell! Buckram was unable to use magic, you see, so this axe was a mighty boon for the hero.” The axe in his hand was a gleaming red. The King proudly held it up. It certainly looked well-weathered. 
“You like weapons a lot, huh?” 
“Aw shucks... Don’t misunderstand or nothing, it’s just that, uh... rather than hoarding weapons... I like the stories behind weapons. Great heroes and heroines, their lives, their mastery of their craft. It’s those stories that truly make me gasp in awe.” That was certainly understandable. It seemed that the King of Felsen had amassed quite a collection of stories. 
“I know it ain’t exactly becoming of a man my age, but I’m filled with such excitement when I think of the people that once held these in their hands. I adore their stories, and each one of them had a unique resolve. As a child, I’d read about the great heroes of yore for hours.” This man was definitely not a good fit for a magic country. Honestly, I wondered if they’d be okay under his leadership. 
“When I was a little brat, I thought I’d be a hero too. I went into the forests and tussled with monsters aplenty. Even had a particularly nasty encounter with a Tiger Bear, once. That’s how I got this.” He pointed to the scarring on his face with an amused grin. 
Tiger Bears... Those are regular bears with tiger stripes, right? Pretty sure Yae had a guild quest to kill those a long time ago. But man, fighting one of those as a kid...? This guy is something else. 
“Honestly, Grand Duke? I’m pretty darned jealous of ya. Dragon slaying, Golem busting, Demon killing? You adventure all the time, you know? If my big bro hadn’t have died, I’d have liked to have lived a life like you.” Well, my situation was a little different... I was an adventurer before I was royalty, after all. 
“Oh right, you use an unusual weapon, don’tcha? Can I take a look at it?” The King timidly pointed toward my waist. Brunhild was hardly a secret, so I unholstered it and showed him. 
“This is Brunhild. It bears the same name as my nation. I can use this weapon up close or at range. Designed the whole thing myself, too.” I shifted the weapon into a blade. He almost jumped back in surprise for a moment when he saw it extend, but his eyes were full of curiosity. 
“You really made this yourself...? I can’t believe it... It’s incredible.” 
“The grand duke of Brunhild is a tremendous craftsman. The sword I carry today is actually a gift from him.” Knight King Reinhard drew the sword at his waist and gently placed it on a nearby table. It was the crystal blade I’d made for him, the one that resembled Lestia’s Holy Sword. 
“Oh! Incredible... What a masterwork...” Both weapons were forged of phrasium, and no other in the world except me could smith them into weapons. 
“You received it as a gift, you said...?” 
“I did, yes. It was a coronation gift. I’ve carried it by my side ever since. It is a tremendously sharp blade, and it’s also remarkably light. The only weakness is just how certain of victory it makes you feel, ahaha...” I highly doubted he’d used the sword much in actual combat. It was strong enough to kill anything up to the strength of an Upper Construct, so he probably really could beat anything around with it. 
The King of Felsen gazed at the blade with envious eyes, and then he turned to me. 
“Hey, Grand Duke... Could you perhaps make me something, as well? As a gift between peers.” 
Hmm... Well, I guess that’d be fine. It’s not like phrasium is super secret these days or anything. And even if I make one more, I doubt they’ll be able to make anything from it. The worst it’ll do is add one more cool weapon to his collection. 
“Sure, I don’t see why not. What did you have in mind?” 
“Wh— Really?! Th-Thank you! Let me think... A sword, for sure, yes... And can you enchant it?” 
“Uh, sure. But don’t ask for too much, that’d be a problem.” I didn’t want to make him too strong of a weapon. If I enchanted it with some of that ancient stuff I’d been studying, it’d be monstrous. That would likely be counteracted by his own low mana reserves, though... He’d just collapse after one swing. Still, it was possible to design weapons that tapped into the magic of multiple people, allowing more usage than usual. 
“Perhaps... something that could protect against poison or paralysis...? Y’got something that can cure ails like that?” 
Poison... Paralysis? Sounds pretty dangerous... I decided that a blade with [Recovery] would likely do the job. 
“I can do that, but are you sure that’s what you want?” 
“Yup. That’s what I want. As for the width of the blade... It should be, uh... See here? It should be about the width of this blade. Oh, by the way, this one was wielded by the wandering spellsword Gandal. He used to conjure sandstorms with this mighty—” He was about to start a full-on lecture about the history of the sword, so I quickly went to make the weapon for him. 
I pulled out some phrasium fragments from [Storage] and used [Modeling] to give them a similar shape to Gandal’s sword. I copied the design for the blade perfectly, but I changed the hilt, deciding to adorn it with the Felsen royal emblem, too. It looked good from where I was standing. 
After that, I enchanted it with [Gravity] for reduced weight, and the [Recovery] effect he wanted. 
The King of Felsen took it into his hands and waved it around a little. He said it was a tad too light. I thought light was fine, but he said he liked a little weight on his blades or he couldn’t feel it too well. I didn’t quite understand, but I obliged. 
“Heheh... This is wonderful... What a powerful blade!” 
“If you pour your magic through the hilt of the blade, the recovery spell should trigger. It’ll take a lot of magical power, though, so the drawback is it can’t be used by just anyone, and even then it can’t be used a lot in one go.” 
“Gotcha. I’ll give it a go.” 
Huh? How? The King of Felsen answered that question by picking up a golden dagger and slicing his left arm with it. His face immediately turned a sickly white, and he began to sweat profusely. He looked like he was in agonizing pain. 
“Th... This dh...gh.... dagger w-was wielded bh... by Alejandro th... the valiant... th-thief...! Ah... A-A-As you, ngh... can s-see... it’s e-enchanted with a... with... a poison! Al-Alejandro used... khh.... th-this blade, to... th...” 
“Now’s not the time for a history lesson!” 
Is this guy an idiot?! The old man poured his magical power into the hilt of the sword, and [Recovery] finally triggered. His body immediately lost all signs of strain. 
Both myself and the Knight King let out relieved sighs. If he had died like that, we’d have been in huge trouble. There were Felsen and Lestia knights alike in the room with us, though... I was surprised neither stepped in and stopped him. 
“Wow... I sure am healed, huh...? That was incredible!” 
“...Now hold on a minute. What would you have done if you didn’t have enough magic?” 
“I’m a member of the royal family, lad. A strong, deep pool of magic runs through my veins. Plus, even if I didn’t have enough, you’d have healed me, right?” 
Of course I would’ve, but did it not cross your mind that I might have had malicious intentions?! I could’ve lied about the sword or just not healed you! The Knight King looked at me with a small, knowing smile. This guy was the epitome of show, don’t tell. I couldn’t possibly finger him as the Frame Gear thief. 
“Still... the fact that you asked for a sword to cure ailments... Are you worried about being poisoned or something?” 
“Hm? No, nah... It’s just that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” The King of Felsen seemed cheery, but it felt like misdirection to me. Part of me just felt that the man’s life was in danger, but I wasn’t sure how... I wondered if everything was okay in Felsen. 
“On another note! There was another matter I wished to discuss with you, Grand Duke, if you have the time.” 
“Sure, what’s up?” 
Is this the part where he tells me about the stolen Frame Gear? Do you know where the mastermind is, old man?! Or is this about your paranoia about being poisoned? What’s the plot here? 
“Aha... W-Well... Err... I’m turning forty-two just this year, but... I am yet unmarried.” 
“...R-Right.” 
“My big bro was the one to succeed the throne, so I didn’t get married off or nothing when I was young, and I didn’t really care all that much for romance. Plus, I couldn’t really find anyone who clicked with me, so I ended up putting it off... But I’ve found myself blessed by fate, I believe. A chance encounter that must have been ordained.” It was a little gross seeing a brawny old guy looking so bashful. I just wanted to know what he was getting at. 
“Could it be you’re getting married?” 
“Y-Yes, Knight King Reinhard, I am.” The Knight King threw the flailing man a bone. 
Oh, so that’s what he meant. This guy isn’t good at being direct when it comes to romance, huh? Still, a guy who can grin like that being all flustered? A little creepy... 
“Ah, well... Congratulations, then. So what did you want to talk over with me?” 
“Aye, well... It’s just that, er... Can you wait, actually? It might be best if you meet...” The King of Felsen said something to a guard, and the guard in question bolted out of the room at once. I wondered what that was all about. 
After a short while, there was a knock at the door. The King said “Come in!” and a woman clad in a pastel blue dress appeared. 
Huh...? She looks around my age. Maybe older? Gotta be seventeen or eighteen... She had beautiful, short, silver hair. I also felt a strength of character in her eyes. 
Wait... haven’t I met this girl before? 
“It is a great pleasure to meet you both for the first time, Grand Duke of Brunhild, Knight King of Lestia... Thank you for honoring me with your presence.” 
“Hehe... Oh, uhm. This is my fiancee, Ellicia.” 
Wait, wait... This is the fiancee...? Isn’t that a twenty-five year difference? You two look like parent and child when you’re next to each other! Don’t tell me the King of Felsen is into little... 
“I am in your debt, Grand Duke, for the wonderful care you have granted to my little sister. I’m happy to finally get a chance to meet you.” 
“Huh?” My thoughts were cut off by Ellicia’s dazzling smile. Uh... Sister? 
“Do forgive me for my late self-introduction. My name is Ellicia Leah Regulus. How is Lucia doing?” 
“Oh. Ohhh!” I was wondering where I knew you from! You look like a slightly older version of Lu! She had told me that her sister was studying in Felsen, but this was a surprise indeed. I was completely blindsided by the encounter. 
But wait... the princess of Regulus and the King of Felsen...? They’re a good match socially, but... i-isn’t this a little criminal? 
I quietly redacted that train of thought once I reminded myself that I was, in fact, engaged to the girl’s thirteen-year-old sister. 
Though, our age gap is only four years... That’s totally fine... It’s fine... I kept telling myself it was fine. Wait, hold on a second... If Ellicia’s my sister-in-law through my marriage to Lu... then won’t her marriage to the old king make him my brother-in-law?! Whaaat! 
“Is something the matter?” The Knight King, one of my other brothers-in-law to be, asked me if I was alright. 

“I-I’m fine... I’m just happy to have Jutaro and Reinhard around as brothers-in-law...” 
“Hm?” I quietly muttered my thanks in a voice nobody else could hear. 
Wait, I totally forgot about the crown prince of Regulus. 
That’s not my fault, though... He’s so forgettable! His name was uh... Lux, right.... Right? 
Holy crap. I’ve actually forgotten his face. He’s a nice guy, but he has left absolutely zero impression. 
I mentally apologized to Lux, then moved on from that train of thought. 
“So, you had something to discuss?” 
“Right, yes... Uhm, ahaha... It’s about my marriage to Ellicia, y-you see... We haven’t actually told Regulus about it.” 
“Wait what? Wouldn’t that typically be the first thing you do?” 
What, did you propose just yesterday or something? I guess I can take you over there if you want. 
“I came to this country in order to study the mechanics of magic. The King of Felsen gladly decided to mentor me, and... over time, as I came to him for advice, well...” My sister-in-law to be looked down with a red face. I still didn’t exactly understand what had happened. Did she seriously just fall in love with this old weapon fanatic just because he kept teaching her? I know the phrase “whatever floats your boat,” but this girl’s boat sure floated in an unusual direction. 
Still, a princess studying magical mechanics in a foreign land was unusual to begin with. 
The King of Felsen turned to me and, with a surprisingly meek expression, spoke up. 
“Look, lad... His Majesty the Emperor of Regulus entrusted me with his daughter. She was sent here for true and legitimate academic reasons, aye? I don’t regret taking her as my fiancee, but... I can’t help but feel I’ve undermined his trust somehow. That’s why I thought perhaps you could help me smooth things over, understand?” 
I understood well enough. There was always the chance that the Emperor said something like “How dare you corrupt my little girl! It’s war! It’s war, damn it!” I didn’t expect that kind of response from the calm and collected person I knew, though. 
But still, he’d have two minds about it. He’d have to think about it as an emperor, and as a dad. Things were settled simply enough when I got engaged to Lu, but this situation was a little different. 
“Well, ultimately, you can’t not tell him, right? There’s no real choice here. You just need to get it together and tell him the full story. I can send you to Regulus right now.” 
“J-Just out of the blue like that?! M-My heart... My heart isn’t prepared!” 
“If you continue to stand in one place, you’re never gonna take any steps forward. Have you never heard the saying that there’s no time like the present?” 
“N-No, I haven’t...” 
Oh... Does that proverb not exist here? Oh well. I sent a letter through a Gate Mirror to arrange a visit to Regulus. 
The Knight King looked at me with mild concern in his eyes. 
“Are you sure this is fine? Can you really take away the King of Felsen like this?” 
“It’d be a pain if Felsen’s administration made out like I kidnapped him, yeah... Maybe I should have Regulus come here?” 
“But then, what about the safety of the Emperor?” 
“Hey now, nothing like that’ll happen while I’m around.” Naturally, I planned on bringing their guards over, too. 
I asked the King of Felsen if they had any rooms suitable for hosting a small audience, and he had his men prepare one immediately. 
We’d finally let him say “Please entrust me with your daughter!” His partner wasn’t all that much older than me, though... Felt a little weird, to be frank. 
The King of Felsen ran off in a panic, desperate to change into something fancier. But, for some reason, he got stuck at the door. 
“Th-The door! The door! Something’s wrong with the door!” 
“Y-Your Majesty... P-Push the door, don’t pull!” 
“Wh-What?! Oh, right!” He wrenched open the door with a furious force and started barreling down the hallway. He looked absolutely frantic. 
“Is he gonna be okay...?” 
“Hehe... Don’t worry, that side of him is adorable.” I forced a smile in Ellicia’s direction. She was open about her love, which was nice, but... 
I think you and I have different standards for adorable, miss... 
After I thought about it a little more, I realized those two weirdos were probably perfect for each other. 
 
“I see... So that’s the story?” The King of Felsen and the second princess of Regulus, who was red in the face and glaring at the floor, sat before the Emperor of Regulus. 
“If you had asked to take my daughter as a mistress or concubine, I certainly would have felt differently... But a legal, binding marriage that ties the fates of our nations together? I understand.” 
“Father?” 
“Th-Then you mean...” 
“I have no reason to refuse this, no. But... Touya?” 
“Yeah?” The Emperor turned his gaze towards me. I was seated at another table with the Knight King. 
“Could you please use your magic to prevent noise escaping this room?” 
“Huh? Sure...?” I cast [Silence] to completely soundproof the area. I couldn’t help but wonder what the Emperor wanted to say, though. 
“It’s done. Not a word will get out.” 
“Very well. Then, Touya... Have you discussed that matter with the King of Felsen, yet?” That... matter? Oh, the stolen Frame Gear? 
“No. I haven’t brought it up yet. I didn’t really think it was appropriate, given the circumstances.” I personally didn’t think the King of Felsen was the one behind the robbery, but I figured there was still a tiny chance. I hadn’t reached my decision, but it seemed like the Emperor was keen to have us discuss it. 
“Well, I must say that I cannot allow Ellicia to be engaged to this man until the matter is resolved. You understand, yes?” 
“Well... I mean, I understand, but still...” 
“Er... Wh-What matter, exactly? Y-You won’t allow us to marry? If I’ve done something wrong, please tell me! I’ll set it right immediately!” The King of Felsen stood up and immediately began panicking. I told him to sit down and began explaining the situation. 
I told him about the battle in Roadmare, about how Frame Gear pieces were stolen, and about how the trade route pointed toward Felsen as the perpetrators. 
“What...? I assure you, my nation would never do such a thing! We’d never take advantage of a battle like that... Please, believe me!” 
“We do believe you. I don’t think you were personally responsible for it, not at all. But we do believe that the ones who are live in this nation. Do you have any idea who could be behind it?” This time, Reinhard stood up to reassure the man. It seemed to work. What was important was that the King didn’t think we were suspecting him in particular. 
In response, the King of Felsen began stroking his beard and thinking to himself. 
“If I were to think about people that wanted to make use of ancient technologies... My mind would immediately go to Gordian, the Golden Order... Perhaps...?” 
“What’s this Gordian?” I suddenly butted in, since that word stood out to me. I’d heard of the Gordian Knot in my own world, after all. 
“Felsen is the magic kingdom because we research all manner of magical techniques, yes...? There also exists magic that society would brand as taboo, however...” 
“Taboo magic...?” 
“Indeed. Taboo magic includes unbreakable curses and sacrificial magic that may cause wide-spread disaster. It’s a form of magic that can lead only to ruin. Hence the name, taboo. Forbidden.” 
Curses and cataclysms, h-huh...? 
“Felsen explicitly forbids the research of taboo magic, but there are still those that indulge. These people attempt to revive ancient techniques and make use of them, out of sight. This is the purpose of Gordian, the Golden Order.” 
“I think I understand... So you’re saying these fellows are the most likely ones to have taken Touya’s Frame Gear?” 
“Perhaps, but all I can do is guess. Their purpose is not just to revive taboo techniques, but also how to recreate powerful and dangerous artifacts from the old world. I’ve been told that their members include mages, craftsmen, engineers, merchants, and more scholarly types.” The Emperor of Regulus and the King of Felsen nodded to one another as each spoke. Meanwhile, I was getting a little uneasy. 
The reason for that was simple... I... can use taboo magic, I have a lot of it... 
Babylon’s Library held a lot of those ancient tomes, after all. 
I didn’t realize just how dangerous those books were... I’ve even used some of those spells... P-Plus, I cursed some guys, as well... 
I decided not to say anything. I knew it would be best to keep my trap shut and have an eye out for anything unusual in my own magic research. A big part of me felt it was a little too late to be careful at this point, though. 
Still, the cataclysmic spells I knew didn’t need sacrifices or anything. They took a monstrous amount of magical power, that was for sure, so they couldn’t ordinarily be used unless thousands of people channeled them at once. In a crowd like that, it wouldn’t be surprising to have a few people collapse from magic exhaustion. It felt to me like people probably exaggerated those stories over the years, giving the spells the modern reputation they had now. Still, they were definitely strong enough to sink small islands. 
“Touya, can you use your tracking magic to find members of this Gordian organization?” 
“Only if I know their faces... Otherwise, it’d have to be features I could recognize at a glance.” I quickly responded to the Emperor’s question. The main issue was how many magical barriers they had in Felsen. Even regular homes had rudimentary ones in place. It wasn’t like I could go door-to-door either, and I had no idea if the culprit was actually in the area. 
“It’ll be hard to find them, I think. They don’t move in the open because they were watched with scrutiny at one point. Or rather it’d be more appropriate to say that Gordian... the Golden Order... was already destroyed in the past.” 
“What do you mean by that?” 
“Twenty years ago, Gordian made a bold attempt to resurrect ancient taboo rituals. But my big brother, Leold Frost Felsen, gave his life to prevent them from gaining too much power. It was formally reported as a magical accident to the other nations, but... the truth is my brother died in the battle with Gordian. They blew themselves up and took his life with theirs.” 
“The late king went there by himself?” Reinhard spoke up in a curious manner. I could understand why he was questioning it. I couldn’t think of a reason why the leader of a country would go directly to such a dangerous place. That would typically be something left to one’s guardsmen. 
“Well, to tell you the truth... the one in charge of Gordian was a close friend of my big brother. He never expected that a man he considered family would be at the forefront of such a wicked order... My brother was a man with a strong and righteous sense of justice. He likely wanted to right the mistakes he felt responsible for.” I could feel the sadness in his voice. Ellicia looked at him with mournful eyes. I could definitely feel the love and concern she had for him... but I still felt as though they were more like parent and child. 
“But wait... if you believe that Gordian has revived, then who could be at their helm?” 
“That, well... Only one person comes to mind. I don’t know where he is right now, or what he’s been doing with his life...” 
“Who?” 
“Galzeld Goldie. He’s the son of the former Gordian leader, Garland Goldie.” 
“The son, huh...? It definitely wouldn’t be unusual for him to succeed his father.” The whole idea of a society dedicated to resurrecting taboo artifacts and spells... It was a little weird to me, honestly. 
The previous Golden Order might have had that kind of objective, but... There was a niggling feeling in the back of my mind that told me this Neo-Gordian wasn’t working toward the same ends. That was just a feeling I had, though. 
I was muttering to myself, so the Emperor of Regulus spoke up. 
“Nothing can come of this discussion if we know nothing about the enemy. However, I believe it’s in your best interests to be mindful of such individuals in your nation.” 
“You’re right, yes... Felsen will keep a dutiful eye, I promise. If I hear anything at all, I’ll let you know.” I gave three Gate Mirrors to the King of Felsen just in case he needed to urgently contact us. Through them he’d be able to send messages to Brunhild, Regulus, or Lestia. I gave the Emperor and the Knight King corresponding Gate Mirrors, too. 
The items I handed out caught the attention of Princess Ellicia. She kept passing papers through them and marveling every time they came back out. 
...What are you doing? I didn’t have any right to be too surprised, since she came over to Felsen in pursuit of magical knowledge and all. 
“Alrighty... Now I have everyone’s permission, shall I start on the bridges?” I let the others know my intentions. 
“A-Aye, but... I know it’s bold of me to ask, but... it’ll truly only take three days?” Heh... Guess he really did find it hard to believe. 
Enlush Island was smack dab in the middle of the Rondo Sea, and it was positively teeming with monsters. Thankfully, the water current wasn’t too harsh, though. My plan was to raise up the bottom of the sea in key strategic areas and have those pillars serve as the foundations. Then, I’d use Babylon to bring over the bridge pieces and build it like that. 
The bridges would be really long, so I figured I’d need to place a few rest stops along them as well, so I’d add broader areas where the bridge would be a bit wider. That way they’d be able to install stations with food and the like. If the countries put guards there, they’d be able to keep the peace along the trade routes. Installing toilets would probably be a good idea, too. 
Frankly, I wanted trains to be able to run along them, but I was planning too far ahead for that. I was definitely going to make the bridges broad enough to allow for tracks in the future, though. 
Alright, let’s get the foundations out of the way for now. I also had to do something about the number of monsters and magical beasts, so I decided to work on that while the Workshop prepared the bridge pieces. 
It wasn’t like when I founded Brunhild, so I couldn’t just kill them all. There were a ton of them, too. 
I figured the best thing to do would be to move several of them to my dungeons, and put the rest on Dragoness Island. The Dragons would probably be grateful for the food supply, and it would stop them from moving out toward other territories. Then again, half of them had been killed by members of my knight order, so they probably weren’t hurting too badly for resources. 
Okay, let’s get to work! 
 
“I-Incredible...” 
“No way...” The leaders of Lestia, Roadmare, Ryle, and Felsen were all gathered at the edge of the bridge. They were staring across the seemingly endless horizon with mouths agape. 
It had been three days since I began. The bridges were all completed to schedule. Everyone had gathered in Lestia for the grand opening. 
“I enhanced the raw materials you all provided and put them to use on the bridges. They’re extremely robust, so they should be able to handle weather and time just fine.” 
“How many years do you imagine they’ll last?” 
“I’m not sure precisely, but I think they should hold for about a thousand years or so.” 
“A thousand...?!” Doge Audrey stared in disbelief. 
The stone bridge in front of us was plenty sturdy, and it was constructed in a simple arch design. I was absolutely confident that even several mages firing a barrage of [Explosion] magic at it wouldn’t cause it to crumble. I’d taken great care in strengthening it, after all. 
I teleported everyone over to the rest stop, which was a large area that spread out in all directions. There were various structures there, including benches, washrooms, and small houses. 
“There are rest stops like this every few kilometers. You can easily set up food and drink vendors in them. If you post guards here, then travelers should be able to relax and rest, too.” 
“Indeed. Travelers and traders are gonna be paying to cross it, after all. It’s not likely we’d get any thieves or bandits, but guards should patrol to prevent disputes.” The King of Felsen nodded slightly. Everyone took their personal guards with them and freely walked around the rest area. There were little plots of shrubbery and flowers here and there, as well. I wanted to go for a comforting, natural look. 
After everyone was done, I took us to Enlush Island. 
“See this down here? I haven’t just put stone markers in the ground for no reason. These stone posts mark territorial boundaries. This place used to belong to Lestia, but now everyone gets a piece. I’ve placed these markers here to designate the individual territories, so don’t forget.” I projected a map into the air and showed an image of the whole island. They were free to build settlements on their own territories, of course. It was their land. I didn’t really feel like interfering too much in those matters at all. If they made settlements, or combined all four into one big settlement, then that had nothing to do with me. I thought it’d be nice if they could make a trading hub, though. 
“W-Weren’t there many ferocious magical beasts on Enlush Island...?” The King of Ryle nervously glanced around as he spoke. He was a small, fat man with a long white beard. I remembered being informed he was partially dwarven. When I pictured a dwarven man in my mind, it conjured up the image of a hardy, stubborn man who worked well with his hands and could drink you under the table. The King of Ryle, however, was completely different. He was gentle, mild, couldn’t handle his booze, and quite clumsy. 
I’d never actually met any dwarves in this world, but I heard a lot of them lived in Ryle. Those ones, so I’d been told, matched up more closely to the traditional image in my mind. I definitely wanted to meet them sometime. 
“I’ve wiped out pretty much every magical beast on Enlush Island. The ones that are left aren’t very threatening.” 
“Wiped... out?” 
“I warped most of them to an island full of Dragons. They’re probably being eaten right about now.” The King of Ryle shook his head in disbelief. 
The lack of magical beasts on the island might have negatively impacted the ecosystem, but it was better than having people’s lives threatened. I also summoned a Kraken and let it loose in the Rondo Sea, so the surrounding waters would be safe. 
“Hm... Well then, as all four leaders are here... Shall we discuss basic trade agreements and toll amounts? I’m sure it won’t take us that long.” 
“Oh, if you guys are gonna do that... I’ll fetch you guys a table and chairs, and then excuse myself.” 
“Thank you. Sorry for the exclusion.” Doge Audrey made an apologetic smile, but I told her not to worry about it. I brought a set of chairs and a table out of [Storage]. The four of them sat down and set to work on their plans for trade and building on the island. I finally had some free time to myself, but it wasn’t like I could just go home, since they had to be brought back to their respective nations, too. 
I had an idea. I’d been keeping Dragon meat in my [Storage], along with some other stuff. I decided I’d prepare lunch for everyone. 
I took out the ingredients, a small cooking stand, and the utensils. I figured I’d just make some Dragon skewers. 
I sliced up the Dragon meat and put the chunks on a few skewers along with some veggies. Then, I applied salt and pepper seasoning, and spread out the plates. After that, I took out a BBQ set and lit the charcoal inside. All I needed to do after that was fit on the wire mesh. 
I decided to take out another dish right after. Mismede’s specialty, curry. They called it cully, but... Well, it was about the same. I had Crea cook it for me earlier. It was actually about a month earlier, but time didn’t pass within my [Storage] space, so it was still fresh. 
Either way, I continued preparing until I created my magnum opus... The joined Mismede-Eashen deluxe meal, Curry Rice. I prepared two types. Spicy, and sweet. Mismede’s cully was super spicy by default, after all. 
Finally, I prepared a few pitchers of fruity water... I’d have liked some pickles, but there were none around. 
“Er... Touya?” I turned around when Reinhard called out to me, only to find all of them staring at me. 
“You’re making something...? It looks really good, what is it?” 
“I figured I’d make lunch for everyone. It’s grilled Dragon meat with curry rice. Did you guys finish talking already?” 
“Well... it’s less that we finished and more we wrapped things up after we saw you. We have the vague terms down, at least... But, um, what is that ‘curry rice’ you have there?” 
“Oh, it’s Eashen fusion. I combined Eashen rice with Mismede’s cully. It’s much more mild, so people who have low tolerance for spice can enjoy it too.” I served up a portion of the sweet curry rice and put it on a plate. Then, I handed it over to Doge Audrey’s personal guard, Knight Commander Limit. 
I didn’t give it to Audrey herself, naturally. This food was something made by a foreign king, so it needed to be taste-tested. 
She scooped it up with a spoon and smiled broadly. 
“This is incredible... I’ve eaten cully in Mismede before, but this isn’t nearly as spicy... I like this a lot more.” 
“Don’t worry, guys. There’s enough for all. Your guards, too.” I brought out a ton of tables and chairs from my [Storage]. I kept on grilling more Dragon skewers on the BBQ, and everyone sat down to tuck into their new meal. 
“Mm! Great grub!” 
“Amazing... It’s only a little spicy, I like it.” 
“Mmh... I wouldn’t mind having this at home...” 
“Touya, do you have the recipe...?” 
“It’s not hard to make, but you can only get the rice from Eashen at the moment. I’m planning on growing some myself in Brunhild soon.” It seemed like the curry rice was a big hit. Ieyahsu had given me a ton of rice as thanks for helping him, but I definitely wanted to start growing my own. 
Everyone finished their portions, then even went to get some more! There was more than enough, luckily. 
Plus, they all seemed to love the skewers, too. Still, all I did was cook up the meat and add some seasoning... It wasn’t even like I was the one who made the curry to begin with... 
I gave everyone there the recipe and a few bags of rice and spices so they could make it for their families. They seemed satisfied with the food, so I was satisfied too. It’d probably end up increasing demands for rice and spices on the global market. Truly, curry was a magnificent thing.