Game Opportunity Becomes Reality Episode 135
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Game Opportunity Becomes Reality Episode 135
33. Ambition (5)
While Arcia sat in the lounge munching on popcorn while watching a soap opera.
Pesius approached me with an awkward smile as I sat alone in the office reading online articles.
"Are you reviewing online articles?"
I always leave the office door open so my subordinates can enter easily.
Still, everyone knocks before coming in, but I must have been reading the articles so intently that I didn't hear Pesius's knock.
I should fix this habit is it because I've been constantly around Arcia, who notices anyone's approach without fail?
Without her, gaps like this appear.
"Ah, Viscount Pesius, you've arrived?"
"I've organized the materials Your Highness requested and brought them. Here they are."
Viscount Pesius, a former knight of the Lawrence viscount family, now serving as my secretary and errand runner.
The intelligence network formed through him after acquiring Blue Moon seemed like it wouldn't be all that useful, but in reality, that wasn't the case.
Blue Moon couldn't be put at the forefront, but he could always operate on the surface.
That's why he's my secretary and errand runner.
On Earth, don't conglomerates have departments like secretarial offices and strategic planning offices to clean up their messes?
Think of it roughly as that kind of role.
Moreover, after forming alliances with organizations under Blue Moon, his power grew even greater, and now he's called the hunting dog of House Lawrence that all nobles are reluctant to deal with.
"Did Baron Grent organize this as well?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"As expected of Baron Grent. The materials are clean and easy to read."
For reference, the reason Pesius and his son Grent can be called Viscount and Baron is because they received their titles from me.
It's not for nothing that a silver crown is set upon the ducal house's crest.
Unlike other high-ranking nobles, a Duke can grant titles independently.
Of course, any Lord can bestow the titles of Knight and honorary Baron, but those are half-titles that only hold sway within that domain a true noble title refers to the five ranks recorded in the royal registry.
'Five viscountcies, twenty baronies.'
A Duke can formally grant a total of twenty-five titles.
Since the title of Lord is an authority only the King can grant, what I can give is a mere baron title, but still, a noble is a noble.
It was a status that wouldn't be looked down upon anywhere.
The materials he handed over contained data on eight companies.
[Karinse Mage Tower: Market cap 12 trillion]
[Tarnil Mage Tower: Market cap 3.2 trillion]
[Laniere Mage Tower: Market cap 1.5 trillion]
[Tiel Artifacts: Market cap 900 billion]
...….
[Delfine Steelworks: Market cap 1.1 trillion]
It was a list of companies matching the five that I had acquired a year ago and which had now become the Lawrence Mage Tower.
"Looks like there's no problem. Let's acquire them all."
I nodded and shared with Viscount Pesius an account containing deposits of over 20 trillion.
"Yes, I'll handle it accordingly."
I decided to acquire additional companies to expand the Lawrence Mage Tower's production capacity.
With the Crown Prince abolishing the limit on Lords' troop holdings, orders flooded into the Lawrence Mage Tower like crazy and our tower's production reservations were already fully booked for over a year from overseas orders.
So since we had surplus funds, we went on a company hunt to expand production facilities.
With this, eight companies of various sizes were added under the Lawrence Mage Tower name.
"But..."
"Is something the matter?"
"Even at this scale, our tower's production capacity would improve greatly, but I'm not quite satisfied."
"After all, the scale of related industries that can be acquired domestically is limited. It's only because the Second Prince's faction fell this time that this many properties came on the market."
But I couldn't show satisfaction.
This was only at the level of putting out an urgent fire.
Lost in thought, I recalled one possibility and asked him.
"How is the Anahaim Mage Tower doing?"
"Anahaim?"
"As far as I know, when the Ducal House of Anahaim fell, the Mage Tower was also confiscated by the royal family. Is that correct?"
"The Anahaim Mage Tower is currently under court receivership. I hear it's soon to be split into five parts and absorbed into royal-centered enterprises like the Royal Mage Tower and Metal Fortress."
The Anahaim Mage Tower was originally one of the three great mage towers of the Kingdom of Rhinehearts.
It's since lost that position to our Lawrence Mage Tower, but in its heyday, its market cap once exceeded 100 trillion it was that massive an institution.
Pesius continued.
"The Anahaim Mage Tower already has Vanguard production facilities, and its scale is larger than Lawrence Mage Tower, but acquiring it looks difficult."
"Why?"
"Because of antitrust law within the same conglomerate, mergers between companies ranked in the top five are prohibited."
There was such a law?
But if one were determined to circumvent it, it didn't seem all that hard.
Just buy it and give it to Arcia or Father.
Unfortunately, he said even that wouldn't work.
"It's not as simple as you think. People would all recognize it as a circumvention merger."
"Hmm..."
The method I'd just thought of was blocked.
But my deliberation didn't last long.
"If there's no way, make one. I'll go see the royal family."
As I sprang from my seat and said that, Viscount Pesius tilted his head, and I answered simply.
"Do you have a method?"
"If the law is the problem, we just get rid of the law, don't we?"
"What?"
A response so simple it was baffling.
Leaving the stunned Pesius behind, I barged in on Arcia, who was absorbed in some melodrama.
"I'm going to the royal family. Want to come?"
"Huh? Oh... all right."
It must have been an important scene, since she hesitated for a moment, but soon said okay and rose from her seat with a regretful look.
'It works out, since I had something to discuss with the Crown Prince anyway.'
* * *
Holy Land Everhill.
A certain underground laboratory, guarded without a single gap by high-ranking clergy and Holy Knights.
There, the Saintess, Sharon Sylvester, and her successor-in-training, Ibril Barnet, were conversing with a glass cylinder large enough for a person between them.
"That's absurd. Impossible."
"What's the matter?"
"This Black Mage's corpse that Duke Lawrence brought."
"Yes."
"I can't discern the mastermind behind him at all."
"Mastermind?"
"The demon that corrupted him. A demon powerful enough to grant strength like this should be one I'd know, but the energy is far too unfamiliar."
Ibril, who still had much to learn, couldn't understand Saintess Sylvester's words, but the Saintess's expression was too grave to just brush off.
"Demons are spiritual beings. They don't have lifespans like humans. Moreover, demons always carry fixed attributes, like the elements of water, fire, and wind but with this one, none of the existing attributes can be felt at all."
"So the demon behind this Black Mage is a new species?"
"For now, that's the only conclusion. But what's puzzling is that not even the energy of the demon world, Everland, can be felt."
Ibril scratched her cheek, saying it was all too difficult.
Saintess Sylvester likewise let out a small sigh, looking just as confounded.
"Duke Lawrence has brought us something beyond imagination. How on earth did he discover this, and capture it...?"
At the Saintess's reaction, Ibril felt the words 'Because Duke Lawrence is amazing' rise to her throat, but she swallowed them tactfully.
"In any case, it's clear that something unusual is happening, isn't it?"
"Yes."
"Perhaps this is what the goddess spoke of."
Saintess Sylvester nodded in agreement with Ibril's assessment.
"I may end up stepping down while handing you a world in chaos, Lady Ibril. At this rate, I'll have to intensify your training."
"Huh? W-why is the conversation going in that direction?"
"Because if something major happens while you, the new Saintess, are the one in charge, and you handle it poorly, I your mentor will be the one blamed."
"Ugh..."
The unease and doubt Saintess Sylvester felt transformed into fervor for Ibril's education.
* * *
"You're asking for the Anahaim Mage Tower?"
"Yes."
There are two mountains I must cross to get my hands on the Anahaim Mage Tower.
One is the law.
The other is the royal family's concession.
The law is one thing, but as for the concession the reason is that our Lawrence Mage Tower wasn't the only one running Vanguard equipment production at full capacity.
Due to the lifting of restrictions on Lords' military force holdings, demand for Vanguard equipment exploded, and the Royal Magic Tower likewise found itself short on production capacity.
"Hmm..."
But their popularity was merely a temporary boon from deregulation the one who could put the Anahaim Mage Tower to better use was our Lawrence Mage Tower.
Lost in thought, he finally spoke after a long deliberation.
"Will you try to persuade me?"
Meaning that if I succeeded in persuading him, he would hand it over.
I answered with a bright expression.
"Because the Vanguards of the Royal Magic Tower and the existing Anahaim Mage Tower have less market appeal than ours. Our Mage Tower is the only one that can sustain this popularity."
The phrase "a kind face with anything but a kind attitude" must have been coined for moments like this.
The answer was so arrogant and unpleasant, utterly at odds with my refreshing expression.
But I know the Crown Prince's character well.
He wasn't the type to take offense at something like this.
As expected, he curled the corners of his mouth and instead showed curiosity.
"And the reason?"
"Because the level of cost-effectiveness is on a different scale."
"Come to think of it, Lawrence Mage Tower has been landing overseas orders one after another at near-dumping prices lately this must be related, yes?"
As expected, quick on the uptake good.
I nodded and mixed a lie into the truth.
"At our Lawrence Mage Tower, we've succeeded in lowering the production cost of Force Engines to about 80% of the previous level."
At that, the Crown Prince's eyes went wide as lanterns.
He looked startled, asking if it was true.
"Surely not tourmaline?"
"Yes."
The Crown Prince couldn't possibly be unaware that I'd been pushing hard to secure tourmaline.
At my simple answer and explanation, he kept marveling.
"Impressive. Truly out of the ordinary. Now I finally understand Lawrence Mage Tower's recent moves."
The lie stung my conscience a little, but there was no helping it for now.
He kept marveling at my words, but he didn't demand detailed explanations of the technology.
That's one of his good qualities.
He knows where to draw the line.
"And as for the Anahaim Mage Tower..."
"Ah, no further explanation needed. The Force Engine cost-reduction technology alone is enough for me to grasp the situation."
And, as always, he gave me the answer I wanted with a hearty laugh.
"Very well. It won't come cheap, but I'll hand over the Anahaim Mage Tower. I was planning to revise the corporate monopoly laws anyway, so let's just tear it all up while we're at it."
But I clearly understand that he wouldn't concede without a reason.
"What comes must also go, as they say. Is there anything else you'd like?"
I waited for the request that would follow.
"From now on, use Lawrence Mage Tower Force Engines for Metal Fortress. So sell us the Force Engines at cost."
In other words, supply Force Engines at the 80% level I'd mentioned compared to the previous price.
Normally, anyone forced into a profitless deal would be furious, but he smiled as if he hadn't even considered the possibility of refusal.
This man had figured out that the cost reduction was bigger than 20%.
His reaction carried the implication that pros shouldn't haggle with each other.
"Haha, understood."
It was a deal where no one lost.
Even selling Force Engines at around 80% price still left plenty of margin, so from my side, I'd gained a major customer providing steady revenue.
From his side, he could now lower the production cost of the Heaven-Piercing Fortress.
As we exchanged smiles and were about to shake hands to seal the deal, an unexpected Strike came flying in.
"Ah, by the way, I plan to reject Lawrence Mage Tower's joining Metal Fortress this time."
Metal Fortress is the Heaven-Piercing Fortress production brand of the Kingdom of Rhinehearts, a joint venture of five families including the royal family.
"May I ask why?"
"Because going forward, I intend to allow free production and research of both Vanguard equipment and Heaven-Piercing Fortresses."
Not only lifting military force holding restrictions, but also lifting restrictions on strategic equipment production?
There's a limit to how bold one can be...
"Have the Duke personally create the Kingdom of Rhinehearts' second Heaven-Piercing Fortress brand. With the Lawrence Mage Tower and the Duke, it seems more than feasible."