Chapter 144

New Comrades
I returned to the royal castle to find the most unfortunate minister in the Kingdom—the Minister of Land Development. However, the Land Development Bureau was filled with employees who looked like walking corpses, and it seemed the minister had disappeared somewhere.

The reason why the supposedly idle Land Development Bureau was on the brink of death from overwork was because they were doing side jobs to generate their own budget. I couldn't help but tear up at the pitiful state of the Kingdom's finances. Domestic development should be a prestigious role.

"Now then, where could the minister be?"

"I believe he might be in the Rose Garden. We occasionally receive sightings of him there."

Now that I think about it, there was a Rose Garden in the royal castle. Aside from my mother, no one ever visits it, but it was arranged so that roses could be seen all year round.

Following Alicia's advice, I headed to the Rose Garden and found Rush Brown, the Minister of Land Development. His magnificent Kaiser mustache drooped lifelessly, and he gazed at the roses with a face that looked as if he could die at any moment.

Would he be okay with the busy days ahead?

As soon as Minister Rush saw me, his eyes widened. Ignoring that, I approached him.

"Umm, Minister Rush, right? I just came up with a great idea. Are you interested?

You’ve been worrying about finances lately, haven’t you? If you help me, you’ll never have to worry about budget shortages again."

With me around, his unfortunate circumstances would come to an end. Starting today, he would finally get to do the work befitting a minister. To that end, I told him about the budget—his most pressing need.

Upon hearing that, Minister Rush happily knelt before me.

"Very well. If I have the budget, I will propel this Kingdom forward. As Your Highness wishes."

It seemed he had already realized my true objective. That meant his evaluation needed to be reconsidered—he had grasped my true intentions from just a few words.

I handed him the plans I had prepared. Documents outlining the expansion of the royal capital and a railway project.

Minister Rush skimmed through the documents, then widened his eyes and began reading each word carefully. After a while, he let out a deep sigh.

"This is a complete overreach of authority. Land development falls under our jurisdiction. However, we never could have devised such an extensive development plan. There are some minor adjustments needed, but this is more than practical."

"Simply expanding the capital is meaningless. If we're using technology, then that falls under my Technology Development Bureau’s jurisdiction, right? Things like railways, sewage systems, and water purification facilities. Not to mention the royal capital's defensive barrier and the city-wide mana supply network. If the Land Development Bureau alone could plan all that, then sure, you could call this an overreach."

"You're right. If this is feasible, I have no objections. In fact, I would be honored to cooperate."

This plan would also help spread the use of magic tools. We would construct towers equipped with magic furnaces around the outskirts of the capital and distribute mana to households via transmission lines, similar to electricity. There were two types of magic tools: those for magic users and those for people with little to no mana. The latter required magic gems or magic crystals, making them expensive because the enchantment process was difficult.

So, we would prioritize the spread of magic tools for magic users. If they were fixed installations, like refrigerators, heating and cooling systems, and lights, they wouldn’t pose a problem. With this, these magic tools would become more widespread, improving the standard of living for the Kingdom's citizens.

Furthermore, we would transition from handcraft-based industries to mechanized industries—essentially, an industrial revolution.

In history, the Industrial Revolution started in Britain and caused massive upheaval. More efficient economic activity led to large-scale unemployment.

Thus, we would counterbalance that with public works projects to absorb the unemployed. By consolidating human resources and capital, we could rapidly accelerate the Kingdom’s economic growth. Of course, this would require a massive amount of money.

"The Kingdom’s development is a wonderful thing. Let’s petition my father immediately."

"But if it’s just the two of us, there’s a risk it will be rejected..."

Hmm, he had a point. We needed more allies… Oh, there's Commander Albert walking by!

Minister Rush and I exchanged glances before heading straight toward Commander Albert.

"Albert, you’re on my side, right?"

"Captain, you’ll be assisting in our plan. Opposition is not an option!"

"What?! Wait, where are you taking me?!"

We dragged Commander Albert into the shadows.

"Be a good sport and hand over the budget for the border fortresses."

"I cannot allow that!"

"If we install the royal capital's defensive barrier first, outer walls won’t be necessary. Plus, we’ll offer the military a discount when purchasing supplies from the Viceroy Company."

"Grgh… If the defensive barrier can be established, then external walls would indeed be unnecessary. But what exactly do you plan to use this budget for?"

"You don’t want the military to be constantly criticized for financial issues, right? By enriching the Kingdom, we can reduce the burden on the army.

Also, if the land and air forces cooperate, they’ll gain more influence when negotiating future budgets. You can say, ‘We endured back then, so now we deserve a larger budget.’"

Commander Albert hummed in thought at this strategic concession. After hearing more details of the plan, he begrudgingly agreed to divert part of the budget our way.

"I love people who are reasonable. As thanks, I’ll provide the army with my guns and tanks. Later, send me a test unit."

"Are you serious?! With those, we can create an invincible force. I’ll go all out!"

Apparently, Commander Albert had always been interested in the weapons I used. Equipping the entire army with them would drastically boost military power. He had also been eyeing the multi-legged tanks I used in Ostland, but since my gun was my personal possession, taking it by force would be disrespectful. As for the tanks, Master had a tight grip on them, leaving Albert at a loss.

For now, he promised to send about a thousand personnel. They would join up with the experimental Air Force unit.

"Is there a good location for this? I don’t want others to see.

As for the Air Force, we’ll be deploying the fighters—the ones my Master and I occasionally use. With those, you’ll have air support for the ground forces.

We also have bombers, so we need a base to solidify the cooperation between the army and Air Force. Preferably somewhere flat."

"In that case, the abandoned supply facility from last year should work. It falls under my jurisdiction, and with some leveling, it could accommodate aircraft. I’ll handle the arrangements on my end."

There was a temporary storage facility for military supplies that was no longer in use. It was apparently slated for repurposing.

I contacted Captain Pash via my portable communication device. He reported that pilot selection for fighters and bombers was already complete, and theoretical training was underway.

I ordered him to proceed with base construction.

With that, Commander Albert became our ally.

"Alright, let’s keep adding to our ranks!"

"”Ohh~~”"

Next, we found the Minister of Finance.

"Hey, don’t you want to increase tax revenue?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then work with me."

"Gladly!"

He was easy. After explaining how employment growth and slum clearance would solve the problem, he joined our cause without hesitation. The fact that it was my money, and not the Kingdom’s, that was funding it was probably the biggest reason.

While we were at it, we ran into the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who, seeing us all walking together, just decided to tag along.

Our ranks were growing.

“Where is Father?”

When I went to the office, only the Prime Minister was there.

"If you're looking for His Majesty, he has fled as usual... But with so many gathered, is something happening?"

"Prime Minister, you're on my side, right? If you cooperate with me, I'll increase your workload."

"Of course. As a servant of the Kingdom, I am naturally on the princess's side."

The Prime Minister gave a huge smile and a thumbs-up. Great, he can handle all the paperwork related to development.

"Are all of you on my side?"

"As Her Highness commands."

When I asked the beastman nobles gathered in the temple-like facility within the castle if they were my allies, they all knelt. Without asking anything, they declared their cooperation. That was kind of scary.

Alright, let's gather even more allies. Next is my Big brother.

"So, I want to conduct public works while also cleaning up some unnecessary assets."

"Unnecessary... Is that all it took to win over this many nobles?"

How rude. It's mutually beneficial. I'm just organizing my excess assets. To be honest, I don't need that much money. Even if I have it, there's no way to use it. As for the nobles, they benefit from the Kingdom's financial stability and development. Plus, there will be more jobs.

"It's a good thing, right? The Kingdom will prosper. Please?"

"As your older brother, it's my duty to grant any request you have. Just promise you won't overdo it. Also, I'll help with the work."

Big brother became an ally. He had an incredibly happy expression—did something good happen?

Next is Master. He's the most important one. I need him to set up railways and produce trains. Making them myself would be too much of a hassle.

"Hey, Master, buy this."

I tugged on my master's sleeve in the workshop. Not only was he unenthusiastic, but he also looked pale.

"......"

"Master~?"

After a while, he finally stood up.

"You... Why the hell do you always try to sell off your golden eggs?! Have some attachment to your creations!"

"Because making them is a hassle. So I thought, 'Let's just sell off the rights!' No regrets, no remorse."

It's too much trouble. Besides, I already succeeded in pushing the paperwork onto the Prime Minister. And I'll be busy from now on—I need to earn even more.

Seriously, winter is meant for lazing in a kotatsu, but now I have to work. How annoying.

"You're unbelievable... Damn it, fine, I'll buy it. But I won't handle it myself. I'll dump it all on my son. I'm going to focus on helping the Air Force instead."

"You're done with tanks?"

"I more or less understand them now. Next, I want to research aircraft, so give me a few to study."

"Then talk to Commander Albert. We're setting up a joint land-air base. Also, Master, you're on my side too, right?"

Master must be my ally as well.

"... So that's why all those nobles are gathered outside. Haah... You want me to help too, right? Fine, I'll go along."

Master became an ally. We held a meeting with the gathered nobles in the conference room—it happened to be unoccupied.

"Alright, first, I'll donate 90% of my assets and ten years' worth of airship revenue to the Kingdom as an initial budget. With this, we'll expand and modernize the royal capital."

"This will suffice for the short term, but even with Your Highness's wealth, it's unsustainable in the long run."

The Prime Minister voiced his concern. Indeed, my assets and airship earnings alone wouldn't be enough.

"Then I'll mobilize the army to exterminate monsters and earn funds. The Empire has been quiet lately, so we have some leeway. By reclaiming monster territory and selling off materials, we can generate profit."

Is it really that easy to mobilize the army?

"If they remain idle, their proficiency declines. It's best to conduct military operations periodically."

But we already fought the Empire this year... Well, if Commander Albert says it's fine, then it should be fine.

"We can also push forward with land reclamation."

"I'll oversee that."

The Prime Minister took charge of the reclamation efforts.

"Then we'll send workers from our territories. Additionally, we'll mobilize the slum dwellers from our lands. Can we use the airships for transport?"

"No problem."

The beastfolk nobles planned to dispatch surplus manpower. Now, slum dwellers across the Kingdom could be given jobs. Using airships for transportation would make it easier.

"I will take command of the capital's expansion."

Minister Rush volunteered to lead the city's construction efforts. Wait, what about me?

"What am I supposed to do?"

"””Your Highness, please rest. Your contribution through funding is more than sufficient.”””

This is strange. I came up with the plan, yet I'm being sidelined. I want to work too.

"You will be busy with the development of the magic reactor. Besides, we already have the project plans. There's no need for Your Highness to personally oversee the operations."

"But I'm co-researching the magic reactor with Eibon, and I'm using my clones to handle it, so it's not a problem. Give me something to do!"

"Princess, you are already handling more than enough responsibilities..."

They're so unenthusiastic. Fine, I'll take matters into my own hands.

"Then I'll go to Ostland and collect land fees from their dungeons. I'll bring back funding."

Everyone stared at me in confusion. Big brother, Alicia, and Master immediately panicked.

"Wait a second, that's way too dangerous!"

"Exactly! Even I barely survived in there!"

""You barely survived?!""

Nobles who are unaware of the situation are often shocked. Charging land fees is a little-known trick, after all.

There are two types of dungeons. The first type consists of ancient facilities or natural caves where monsters have taken up residence. The second type is the living dungeons. Living dungeons are like creatures out of a game, with interiors that defy spatial logic. Magic weapons and tools are mostly obtained from these.

Living dungeons that spawn monsters have a large magic core at their lowest level. If this core is taken, the dungeon will vanish, but there are other ways to profit from them.

These include exterminating the monsters inside, acquiring treasures produced within the dungeon, and charging land fees.

Dungeons copy and produce monsters and items to lure and consume people, so depending on how they are managed, they can bring benefits to a country. However, if left unattended, they grow hungry, causing the monsters to leave the dungeon and causing stampedes.

The monsters from dungeons are unique in that they abduct humans and other creatures from the outside and bring them back to the dungeon. In other words, they are dangerous creatures.

They once existed in Arland as well. However, dungeons that were charged land fees would cease their activities for several years to several decades, and their entrances would be sealed off. Yes, the dungeons in Arland are currently inactive.

Why? Because Father charged land fees indiscriminately, claiming they were a nuisance, and forced the dungeons into inactivity.

There is only one method: to attack the dungeon itself, its core, from within.