THANKS TO ESPARDA, THE NEW WALL WENT UP ​without a hitch. That meant it was ballista time. Just as I started to contemplate the task ahead of me, Rango returned.

The adventurers were astonished. “Yo! Caravan incoming!” said one.

“Bull!” said another. “There’s no way a caravan would come all the way— whoa, what the hell?!”

A third adventurer added, “There are so many escorts! Way too many!”

Still standing atop the newly completed wall, I yelled to Khamsin, “Could you go get Bell for me?”

“Of course!” he replied before running off.

Khamsin was so full of life that day. I watched him until he was a speck in the distance, then turned to Till and Arte. “Should we go greet them? There’s lots to talk about.”

“Let’s!” they replied in tandem.

The two of them followed me along the wall. It was connected to a nearby building, and a passage ran from the top of the wall to a veranda on the building’s third floor. We had to go through the building to get down to the ground, and we ran into some adventurers along the way.

“Hey, it’s Lord Van.”

“I heard the caravan’s arrived?”

“Yup!” I replied flippantly, waving as I descended the stairs. Due to my status as the resident lordling, the adventurers who came to town found me fascinating, so they were always striking up chats. Same old, same old.

At last, we reached the ground floor. When I exited to the street, the caravan was already close—but one look at the people and carriages had me perplexed.

The carriages were fine; in addition to the ones I’d let Rango borrow, there were two large ones that he must have purchased himself. He seemed to have bought some more horses, too, based on the twenty or thirty I was estimating at a glance. A hundred or so young men and women stood around the perimeter, decked out in basic armor and holding spears. From what I could see, they looked unaccustomed to wielding weapons like that. At the center of the caravan was Rango driving a big carriage, surrounded by twenty or so adventurer types.

While I surveyed these newcomers, Bell and Khamsin came running from the village. For some reason, Dee and Esparda were also power-walking my way.

“Rango’s back?” Bell asked excitedly. He raised a hand to greet his brother in the distance.

They hadn’t seen each other in some time. I was certain it would be a heartwarming reunion for all involved.

But when the caravan came to a stop in front of us, the first thing out of Bell’s mouth was “How much did you sell the goods for?!”

Rango responded in kind. “A hundred and eighty platinums! I also bought carriages and horses since I knew we’d need them later, and a hundred fifty slaves—mostly ones with debt!”

“I see! Wait, a hundred and fifty slaves? And they’re all young. If one person costs anywhere from one to two gold, then you spent…somewhere between one and three platinums?!”

Bell reeled at Rango’s heavy spending, but the younger merchant flashed him a proud smile. “One hundred slaves under twenty years of age with no physical issues or illnesses, plus another fifty around the age of ten, all for a total of eight large gold. When the auction wrapped up, I went to the Mary Chamber of Commerce to tell them about our withdrawal and what happened with those three jerks, but they actually apologized! They said it’d be a big problem if they couldn’t do business with Lord Van going forward, so they would sell us anything we wanted at half price.”

“The Mary Chamber of Commerce? For real?” Bell’s brow wrinkled in thought.

“But only the president or vice-president can make a call like that…”

Rango pointed inside his carriage. “I’ve also got spices, crop seedlings, and a gift for Lord Van.”

Bell narrowed his eyes. “A gift? Better be something good.”

I poked my head around the side of the carriage. “Welcome back!”

“Hey, Lord Van! Long time no see!” Rango dipped his head. “Glad to be home!”

“Good work out there,” I said. “You sure brought back a lot of people.”

“Fear not!” Rango held out a leather bag with both hands. “I haven’t touched any of the profits that belong to you. Here, 130 platinums. Please check them.” “Whoa, thanks.” I accepted the bag, then passed it along to Till.

My maid quivered from head to toe. “Aaah…”

I totally get it. Holding that much money is enough to make anyone freak out. I gave Till a reassuring smile as Rango handed me a smaller leather bag. “This is a portion of our profits from this transaction. Two platinums.” “Oh, gosh.” I accepted the bag, not yet understanding.

“From now on, we’ll give you a portion of the profits for every transaction we make.” Rango beamed. “Here’s to doing business with you!”

“Wow, thanks! In that case, you’ll be the first folks I sell monster parts to.” This sounded like a real win-win relationship; I wasn’t about to hide my excitement.

Then Rango pulled out another, even smaller leather bag. “I hope this isn’t too bold, but I’d also like to buy the carriages you made us for five gold. Five large gold for each, that is, for a total of two platinums and five large gold. Is that all right?”

“Absolutely! But I’d be happy to give you the carriage for free, you know.” Bell frantically shook his head.

Rango said, “I appreciate the thought, but you shouldn’t offer these sorts of things for free! People are going to crawl outta the woodwork to take advantage of you, and you’ll have to deal with all sorts of jealousy and prejudice. Please, take the money.” He bowed his head, and I accepted the large sum of cash from him. I was starting to feel like a repeat lottery winner, even as Till trembled beside me. Politely, he added, “Going forward, I’ll present you with any fine goods I happen to find in the capital.”

He lifted a large box from the carriage. Behind him, Bell was all nerves. It was pretty funny to watch, but I was curious about my gift too. I loved surprises!

Rango opened the box to reveal a large crossbow with a square, boxlike attachment. “This right here is the best new model in the capital.” “W-wait, is that what I think it is?!” I cried.

Rango grinned, then pointed the weapon toward the forest. There was a grip on the side of the box; when Rango moved it up and down, the bow was drawn back with an audible creak. He readjusted his grip to the bottom of the crossbow and fired a bolt toward the wall of trees, then repeated the motion and fired another.

There was almost no interval between the first and second shots.

“This magnificent piece of work is called a rapid-fire machine bow. It can fire up to ten bolts in quick succession. And by swapping out the box at the top, you can reload your bolts in no time at all. They had a few available, so I bought three of these and three different types. I also picked up ten boxes of bolts.”

“You’re the best!” I threw my arms up in joy and leapt at Rango, snatching the crossbow out of his hands. Oh, I get it now. The bottom grip was there for support, but it also functioned as a trigger. This was closer to a bowgun than a crossbow. Since Rango had set it already, all I had to do was pull the trigger to fire off a bolt. “Oooh!”

I whirled toward the forest and rapidly fired off shots. This is a total blast! I was so excited I literally jumped for joy. “I’m gonna make ballistae with these!

Thank you so much, Rango! Yahoo!”

“Lord Van, you’re happier about the new weapon than the 130 platinums…”

“I’m so happy for you, my lord!”

“Let me try!”

All these voices were coming at me, but I could only think about the rapid-fire ballista concept unfolding in my head. Even picturing them all lined up next to one another was thrilling. “I bet if I gave these to the whole Seatoh Chivalric Order, they’d be a proper fighting force, huh?” That wild idea got my heart pumping.

Slave City

THE SO-CALLED “SLAVE CITY” WAS JUST OUTSIDE of the capital. Here, newly enslaved people and those who’d failed to attract buyers at storefronts were bought and sold.

New slaves received the bare minimum of an education, but their primary selling point was that they’d been born free. They had never belonged to anyone else, and so they had yet to be ground down to figurative dust. Conversely, the slaves who went unsold in stores were sold in Slave City for their technical skills. In stores, clerks didn’t go out of their way to introduce each and every slave to potential buyers, but in Slave City, their skills were openly advertised.

I was in the latter category. My skill was hunting; I could track and take down small monsters on my own. But that was not a ​talent people looked for in their slaves. As a woman, I was expected to do housekeeping, music, dancing, or even magic. If a female slave had those abilities, she would find a buyer even if she wasn’t physically attractive.

In the slave world, our new “owners” sometimes treated us so badly that we wished we were back with the slave traders—but I didn’t have much time left. I considered myself an average-looking woman, but my muscular build meant I wasn’t perceived as feminine or amiable. Sometimes men would look at me with curiosity despite my lack of traditionally attractive qualities, but I would thoughtlessly return their looks with glares and scare them off before a purchase could be made.

I was surrounded by other people who had been bought at one time or another but wound up back on the market. They invariably looked like they had lost all will to live; no one would even consider purchasing them. It was at that point that they joined me among the leftovers. Regardless of why any of these people found themselves back on the market, they repelled buyers even more than I did, and those poor souls lost themselves in the depths of despair. Even their desire to carry on had left them.

So here I was in the corner of my cage, in the city of slaves. If I was passed

over for another two months or so, I would probably be sold off for a deep discount as a slave with “issues”—the same descriptor given to people who were injured or sickly. If that happened, there was no telling how I would be treated. Knowing this, I was sitting calmly with a smile plastered on my face when a commotion erupted somewhere in the center of the marketplace.

The excited voices of merchants and customers rose up in a clamor, and it wasn’t long before the whirlwind reached me. Curious onlookers flooded the streets, closing in like some sort of giant, pulsating creature. Smack-dab in the middle of the throng was a young man who made his way to the slave store where I sat. “Please show me your healthiest slaves!”

The merchant donned his best customer-service smile and ushered us leftovers into a line out front. Once he confirmed that we were in place, he arranged the fresh faces in front of us. “Th-these are our wonderful slaves! Not only are they in good health, but we also know where each one comes from…”

He went on to introduce each person in turn. A young man, formerly a knight of an enemy nation. The daughter of a fallen noble family. Famous adventurers, talented mages. All sorts of people were present. Even from my perspective, they were such catches that I couldn’t bring myself to feel bitter. It also meant they were expensive, and in all likelihood the young man would only be able to afford one, plus maybe two or three of us cheaper options.

At least, that was what I thought. Without the slightest change in his expression, the young man spun to an older man standing nearby. “This slave with magical aptitude. About their commission fee…”

“We’ll waive the fee,” the merchant said. “It’s fine, but normally the commission would cost anywhere from one to three gold. Make sure you inform the new baron, Lord Van Nei Fertio.”

“Thank you very much. How about two large gold for the whole bunch?” the young man asked, smiling as he turned back around.

The merchant froze, and so did all of us. As someone from a tiny village, I had never seen a large gold in my life. There was no way I would ever sell for a gold; perhaps he offered that much because there was no commission fee or whatever.

Though the merchant was shaken, he quickly switched gears and grinned.

“Oh, r-right. It seems the Chamber of Commerce has taken quite a liking to you. I’m envious! For the five high-tier slaves, two large gold is a fine price, but I would have to request an additional large gold for the ten in the back… Truth be told, they’re quite talented. Some of them are also rather young, so I must ask for fair compensation. Normally you would have to pay the commission fee to the Mary Chamber of Commerce, which would increase the price, so this is still a great deal.”

The young man nodded, still smiling. “Well, you have my apologies. I have no intention of buying out and crushing a slave trader under the Mary Chamber of

Commerce.”

The merchant looked relieved, but it was all an act. The young man didn’t have to worry about commission fees, so he would be able to buy at a much cheaper price than usual. There were no drawbacks to the deal.

I watched carefully as the young man turned on his heel. “How unfortunate. I have already purchased more than a hundred slaves—I’m sure that’s more than enough for now. I wouldn’t want to be in debt to the Mary Chamber of Commerce, after all.” He flashed a troubled smile and dipped his head to the merchant. “Should the opportunity arise in the future, I will gladly peruse your group again. I imagine we’ll have more dragon parts to sell sooner rather than later.”

“Huh?” The merchant’s eyes bugged out, and he flew into a panic. “Er, wait a moment! Let me give you a discount! How about five gold and two large gold?”

The older man cast an exasperated look at him and sighed. “You let your greed get the better of you, fool. Raising your profits isn’t everything. The president will be hearing about this.”

The merchant paled and choked, thwarted in his attempt to turn a large profit. “P-please don’t!”

Glee welled up within me as I eyed the merchant from where I stood; he cradled his head in his hands, near tears amid the comings and goings of the crowd. A small smile formed on my face. That rat bastard routinely starved us

“leftover slaves” and beat us in ways that he knew wouldn’t leave visible marks.

I knew I wasn’t the only one pleased to see him in anguish. Once again, however, I had failed to sell. The bastard would undoubtedly take out his frustrations on us.

Just as this thought settled over me like a dark cloud, the young man spun around again. “Five gold and two large gold, you say? But you see, I’ve already spent four large gold, and my budget for slaves is fairly small. What say you give me however many slaves I can get for two large gold?”

Hearing this offer, the merchant whipped his head back up. “A-actually, since you’ve done so much for the Mary Chamber of Commerce, I would gladly sell all of my slaves for two large gold! And, hell, I’m happy to sell you anything else at a 10 percent discount!”

The young man clasped his hands in front of his chest, his smile bright and innocent. “Really? That’s wonderful! I’ll never forget the bargain you gave me for the Chamber of Commerce today. Thank you so much!” He paid the two large gold and purchased all fifteen of us in one fell swoop. I didn’t know the going price for slaves, but I was certain the young man had landed himself quite a bargain. The uproar around us was intense.

Once the requisite documents were signed, we gathered in front of the young man. The former knight bowed to him and said, “It is a pleasure to serve you, Master.”

The young man bobbed his head pleasantly. “The pleasure is mine, though most of you are going to end up being sold to someone else. Don’t worry, though, you’ll be in good hands and a good environment.”

Concern washed over me—and I wasn’t the only one. Hesitantly, someone asked, “Where will we be sold off to next?”

The young man smiled. “A village out in the boonies. It’s about as far as you can get from the capital while you’re still on this side of the border.”

I despaired, and I felt certain that everyone around me did too. Most likely, every last one of us would spend the rest of our lives in a mine or quarry.

There were still many young children among us. I feared for their ability to

make the trek to the village on foot, but to my surprise, they were permitted to ride in carriages. I also worried about the dangers that would face us on our long road ahead, but our new master had hired skilled adventurers to protect us along the way. Again and again, my concerns were assuaged, but even so we wore dark expressions as we walked. After all, our biggest fear remained unchanged.

I’d quickly learned that the young man had purchased some 150 slaves at once. There were only a few things for which a person might need that many slaves; I figured there was a metal or mithril mine where we were headed. The country hid the locations of such mines from the public, so it wouldn’t be surprising to find one way out in the borderlands. Faced with that prospect, I could do nothing to ease the fears of those around me.

Our group included former bards, blacksmiths, merchants, and daughters of lords from our own land as well as enemy nations. Of course they were concerned. All of us were headed to the same place—even those who would normally be taken on as mistresses. The only ones who weren’t worried were those skilled in combat. People with their talents were needed everywhere, and since they could imagine that they were being brought somewhere to wield their strength, they weren’t nearly as pessimistic about the situation as the rest of us.

The young man who bought us, a merchant named Rango, treated us generously. Perhaps this was why so many clashes occurred on the trip to the village. Despite Rango’s best efforts, the gloomy atmosphere followed the caravan right up until we reached our destination.

When we arrived, the gloom gave way to universal bewilderment. One of the kids peeked out of a carriage and asked, “Um, is that it?”

The man to whom the kid had spoken didn’t know what to say. “Er, I don’t think so…”

I couldn’t blame him. We were staring at a giant wall, the kind that belonged exclusively to fortress cities. It wasn’t quite as big as the one in the capital, but it was beautiful. Buildings were visible beyond the wall.

What a strange town, I thought. Are we taking a break here before we move on?

That was when I saw Rango happily conversing with a young, impeccably dressed child. He gave the boy a gift—a bow of some kind—which made him hop up and down in excitement. The boy took it off toward the woods and tested it out multiple times. The sight of a child having fun brought a smile to my face, frightening implications aside. If my hunch was right and he was a noble, then perhaps Rango was selling him the bow.

Before I could ponder it further, the child made his way over to us and spoke in a calm, cheery tone. “Welcome to Seatoh and Espar Town! You’ve come a long way. I am the lord of the land, Van Nei Fertio. I’ll be interviewing each of you later and hiring those of you who are able, so I’ll be relying on you from here on out! Now then, I’m sure you’re all tired after your long journey, so once you’ve enjoyed a barbecue in the village, feel free to rest in your lodgings and heal your weary hearts. Come on now, we’re almost at the village! Right this way!”

Whispers reached my ears from all sides.

“The lord?”

“You mean that Van Nei Fertio fellow I’ve heard so much about?”

“That new baron who supposedly took out a dragon? No way.”

I frowned at the boy ahead of us in disbelief, but when we passed through the walls and onto what I thought was the village road, I was amazed by the sight before me. The town suddenly seemed like a dollhouse compared to the structure looming in the distance. It must have been somewhere between one and two kilometers away, but its presence was awe-inspiring even from here. It was a gigantic and powerful—yet elegant and fantastic—stronghold, with walls jutting out to the left and right and a front gate every bit as marvelous as the one in the capital. There were also towers on either side.

We found ourselves in something like a trance as we approached the gate, where we learned that the structure was surrounded by a moat which could be crossed via a drawbridge. The child and Rango walked ahead of us with the villagers, passing through the open gate. The rest of us followed soon after.

Shock and awe hit us in equal measure. “What’s going on here?” someone asked, clearly as confused as the rest of us. I understood exactly how they felt.

No sooner had we passed through that magnificent gate than we encountered a vast expanse of land riddled with buildings. Farther back was yet another wall, this one smaller than the last. Nonetheless, this new location looked much larger than the first town we had passed through. Once we arrived, the child said something to the villagers that got them moving in a hurry.

That was when it hit me: this boy really was the lord.

“We’ve arrived!” Rango announced. “Well done!” All the tension drained from my body, and tons of us sat down on the spot.

Before I even had time to think about my situation, an elderly gentleman and a child approached me holding a chair. “Now, now. Please, sit down and rest.

We’ll be having dinner soon.”

I shot to my feet in a panic. “Oh, um, we’re slaves, so…” My tone was polite, but the older man shook his head.

“Don’t you worry about that. We only just arrived here ourselves. We plopped ourselves on the ground just like you folks, and the original villagers brought us chairs,” he explained, setting it down.

I dipped my head in thanks and sat in the chair. The elderly gentle​man laughed, then chatted with me for a bit before taking his leave. I glanced around and found similar conversations happening all around me: hesitant slaves and excited villagers talking away while other villagers prepared for something. If I got to come home to a place like this every day, I might even be okay with working in a mine.

There was real kindness here. For the first time, I thought maybe—just maybe —things would work out.

Just as the sun was beginning to set, the villagers told us that it was time for dinner. As slaves, we weren’t sure whether we were allowed to sit down, but it appeared we were the stars of this welcome party, so we had to be seated. I was grateful but also confused by all the pomp and circumstance.

Once dinner was ready to go, none of us had room for anything in our minds besides the delicious aroma of sizzling meat that filled the air. If the adults hadn’t held the children back, they would have leapt at the food.

“Right over here, folks,” the villagers called out to us amid the popping sounds of hot oil. We lined up in front of a bunch of thick pieces of meat overflowing with juices over roaring flames. At this point, if someone had told us they’d changed their minds and we weren’t allowed to eat, I was certain all of us would have broken down and wept.

While I contemplated our strange fate, the young lord stepped up onto a pedestal, causing the rowdy villagers to go quiet in moments. “Um, good work today, everyone. And truly, to those of you who made the long trek here from the capital with Rango, you have my sincerest gratitude. Today, I want you all to have a great time and drive off those feelings of exhaustion and concern with some delicious meat and drinks. My good villagers, if any of our new friends need the restroom, I trust that you’ll show them the way. Let’s get this barbecue started!”

The villagers cheered, and soon we were offered skewers loaded with meat. “Here ya go. Eat up! It’s delicious,” enthused the elderly man who had brought me a chair earlier.

“Th-thank you,” I replied, bringing the meat up to my mouth. The surface was crispy, with the interior perfectly cooked. The more I chewed, the more I relished the meat’s melt-in-the-mouth texture and strong savory flavor. Since it was straight off the flames, it was still piping hot, but I couldn’t stop myself from eating now that I’d tasted it. I had never eaten meat like this before, but even then, it seemed unnaturally delicious to me.

“It’s amazing!” a joyful child cried out nearby.

The villagers watched us with warm gazes and gentle smiles.

“Ngh!” My eyesight turned blurry, so I used a free hand to wipe away my tears, still chomping on my meat.

“Ungh!”

“Hrk…”

Amid the pops of meat and cheerful voices were the sounds of people furiously fighting back tears. Personally, I had hit my limit, so I openly sobbed while I ate. As I thought back on the long, painful years I’d endured as a slave, the tears wouldn’t stop.

Van

“LORD VAN, YOU’VE BEEN PROMOTED TO BARON.”

“For real?”

“Yes. The documents and official announcement will be delivered by messenger within a month.”

I was a baron. Now, no matter what Father said, he couldn’t take my territory from me or dismiss me from my post. “Heck yeah!” I said, holding up a V for victory.

“Congratulations!” Till said, elation plain on her face.

“Will Lady Panamera ever come back to the village?” Khamsin asked sadly.

Rango nodded. “The viscount said she would report this back to the count, then take care of some things before her return. To put it bluntly, it appears to me that she thinks it will be more interesting to team up with you, Lord Van, and develop the territory, rather than remain affiliated with the count.”

“Wait, so she’s going to live here?” I was the lord, but she outranked me, which could make doing things around here difficult. I liked her a lot, but I wasn’t fond of having a boss.

Seeming to sense my trepidation, Rango shook his head. “No, she plans to obtain the territory neighboring ours. I have no idea how she plans on negotiating this, but she said she’s going to build a town adjacent to our village.”

“Can she really just get territory that easily?” I wasn’t sure if that was okay for me to say, but it tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop it. My gut feeling said that Panamera of all people could get it done.

Khamsin chimed in with his own stamp of approval: “I’m sure Lady Panamera will get that territory sooner than later!”

He wasn’t wrong. She was the sort of person who would end up queen before you even realized it.

“Oh, and about the armored lizard parts,” Rango went on, “I let anyone who mattered know that they were acquired with the help of your brother, Lord Murcia. As far as they’re concerned, you fought off the bandits yourself, then defeated the armored lizards with your brother’s aid, then slew the dragon alongside Lady Panamera. Once the materials are ready, the royal family would like to buy them from you.”

“Right, we did say we’d give Murcia the credit,” I replied. “Hmm, is there anything else? Ah, I know! Let’s give him the credit for hunting the wild boar and wolves. Surely that will nudge him closer to being chosen as Father’s heir.”

Esparda was having none of it. Having listened to the conversation in silence up to that point, he shook his head. “I would advise against that, Lord Van. Had you not been promoted or slain a dragon, it would be of no consequence, but the capital has dispatched an investigation team. Their job is to examine the battlefield, assess the status of the territory, and gather intelligence on the combatants. They will uncover and scrutinize every last detail of what transpired. It would be unwise to bring Lord Murcia into things when he is so far away.”

“You think it’ll raise questions?” I asked.

“Correct.”

“That would be a pain. Okay, we’ll stick to the plan.”

As I enjoyed the barbecue with Rango and the others, I thought, Murcia’s a hard worker. I bet he’ll be the head of the house on his own merits soon.

The day after our welcome party for Rango and the slaves, I summoned the merchant brothers so that I could interview the newcomers. It seemed Rango already planned to do so, and he was happy to run off and call them over.

Bell said, “We’re dealing with 150 people, which means he probably ended up buying more than half the slaves in Slave City.” He grimaced. “Man, he really went all out.”

I grunted. “I’m curious why the Mary Chamber of Commerce axed the commission fees.”

“You don’t think they were trying to get back into your good graces after insulting you?”

“But that was all harmless! The Mary Chamber of Commerce holds absolute power within the country, and I’m just a new baron out in the middle of nowhere. How I feel shouldn’t matter to them at all.”

Bell seemed no clearer on things than I did. “Well, I think they value you quite highly, Lord Van,” he said, much to my confusion.

I would be honored if they thought I’d continue to acquire status and power out here, but that still had little effect on them, given that they were backed by the king himself. Whatever the reason, I was grateful that they were being considerate of us. Next time around, I would make it a point to prioritize doing business with them.

A little while later, Rango returned with the first ten slaves. We had opened up the lake early in the morning so they could wash themselves. The apkallu were initially surprised by their presence, but the children had grown used to humans, so they helped make separate bathing areas for the women and so on. And because we gave them clothes after they bathed, the men and women standing before us looked nothing like slaves.

“These are the slaves who would normally cost anywhere between three and ten gold,” Bell explained. “Please feel free to purchase them, should you require their services.”

He introduced each of them in turn. The daughter of a former baron. A former knight. The daughter of a knight. A man with wind magic. A woman with earth magic. A former B-rank male adventurer. The daughter of the president of a defunct major company. A former enemy soldier. Normally, these would have been wealthy individuals of a higher status than commoners.

“How good are the two mages?” I asked.

“I can take down a wolf or an orc in a single strike,” said the man.

“I can craft earthen walls,” said the woman. She was twenty years old and her earth magic was especially useful; she could be Esparda’s assistant.

“You’re both hired. Now, I have a question for the woman coming from a business family. Have you ever done any finance or trade work yourself?”

“Y-yes. When I was a child, I managed a store…”

“Oooh! Wouldn’t she be great for you guys at the Bell & Rango Company?”

Bell glanced at her. “With your permission, Lord Van, we would love to leave a store in her hands… But are you sure?”

Oh, is it because she’s so beautiful? “Fine with me. She’s super pretty, so I’m sure you’d sell like crazy if you opened a weapons shop at the entrance of Espar

Town or Seatoh.”

“Thank you! In that case, I’d very much like her to run Espar Town’s weapon shop.”

The young woman, who had listened to our back and forth with great confusion, moved over to the spot where Bell was standing.

“Now then,” I said to the slaves, “for you folks who can fight, we’re in the middle of assembling a Chivalric Order, so we’d love to bring you into the fold. That said, don’t get a swelled head just because you’re strong, okay? Around here, even folks who used to be villagers make splendid knights. Make sure to treat each other with respect.”

The former knights and adventurers beamed. Opportunities to go from slave to knight weren’t exactly typical, so I could imagine that they were relieved.

“All that’s left is the former noble girl,” I said, glancing at the daughter of a former baron. She was a beautiful girl of about fifteen, and clearly the most anxious person in the group. The girl gripped her long skirt in both hands, her shoulders trembling. “Let’s see. The proprietress of an inn, the Chivalric Order, or a helper at the manor? Which one of those sounds good to you? If you were to join as a helper, you’d have the honor of being shown the ropes by a kind and adorable maid named Till.”

“O-oh, Lord Van,” Till said from behind me, sounding bashful. I’m not wrong. She is adorable.

The girl raised her head at last. “In that case, I-I’d like to work as a helper.” She sounded relieved; she really was cute.

Actually, maybe I should make her my secretary. Wait, no. Till already fills that role perfectly. Hmm, Esparda’s secretary? No way. He’d put her through some insane training regimen and probably leave her in tears. Well, it might be fun having such a cute maid around, so whatever.

I assigned jobs to the slaves and ultimately purchased all of them aside from those who possessed math and trade skills. It cost me a total of eight large gold.

“Are you sure about this? Isn’t this 10 percent of your profits?” I asked Bell and Rango. “It must’ve cost you a lot to bring them all the way here.” The merchants just smiled at me.

“Your kind words are more than enough for us,” Rango said. “Besides, in addition to the adventurers we hired for security, it was a total of five gold. We made a profit.”

You also had to spend money on food and shelter, no? But if they said it was fine, it was fine. “Thanks a lot. Now they’ve all got jobs to do. You guys are hiring more than ten slaves for your place—do you want me to hurry and make those stores for you?”

“Good point,” Bell replied. “For now, we have two people with business experience, so we’re going to split the carriages into three groups and expand the market. The adventurers we hired are heading back to the capital, so I’m going with them.”

“Gotcha. Then it’s your turn to watch the shop, Rango?”

“I’ll be training the slaves and running business in the village for the time being.”

The Bell & Rango Company is already off to a strong start, I thought as I studied the giddy pair. Capital and manpower really are important for this sort of thing, huh?

“All right,” I said then. “I’m gonna go build up the Seatoh Chivalric Order, okay?” I figured I’d check up on all the slaves I’d purchased while I was at it.

“Yeah, sure thing. Let’s talk about stores and living quarters later.”

“Roger that!” I grabbed Till, Khamsin, and Arte, then left the manor and went out into the village.

I sent the mages off to Esparda and the former knights, mercs, and adventurers to Dee. Others—like bards, dancers, and musicians—were booked as staff for the pub and theater I planned to build near the entrance. That seemed like a fun way to make use of their unique talents. Some of those with farming experience went to help in the fields around the village, and I sent the children under ten to our newest residents from the neighboring village. I wanted them to take care of and educate the kids.

That left us with about fifty people, give or take. Those folks would be trained as Lord Van’s super powerful rapid-fire machine bow squad—or “machine bow squad” for short—a special unit within the Seatoh Chivalric Order.

“Bwa ha ha ha ha!”

I cackled loudly as my squad and I made our way to the entrance of the village where the rest of the slaves were waiting. As soon as they noticed me, they stood ramrod-straight.

“Sorry about the wait!” I said. “As I’m sure you’ve heard, you are all now members of the Seatoh Chivalric Order’s machine bow squad. We’ll start with the basic armaments: how to use the ballistae on the wall. Does anyone have any questions before we begin?” Two people raised their hands. “How about you, miss?”

I selected the wild-looking redheaded woman first. Her face was pulled taut, her strong will evident as she took a step forward. Her exposed arms were slender but toned; she reminded me of a track-and-field girl. Frankly, she was pretty damn cool. “I have experience with a bow, but many here have never even touched one before. Might I ask your reasons for selecting this group of individuals?”

“Um… You’re Paula, the former hunter, right? Great question. As for why, I picked people with experience, then people with good vision, then people with small builds who would find it difficult to fight with a sword or in armor. I want you and our resident hunter, Inka, to be squad captains.”

Paula let out a groan. “Bows require more strength than you might expect. I

see a lot of thin folks here. This might be difficult for them.”

Oooh, she can speak her mind! And she’s right. She’s a helluva find. I nodded at Paula and raised the rapid-fire machine bow I’d brought with me. “You’re exactly right. And that’s why we’ll have the weakest person here—this elevenyear-old village girl, Porte—give it a try first.”

When I called on the petite red-haired girl, she took a hesitant step forward and inexplicably dropped into a kneeling bow. I smiled at her dramatic gesture, then positioned myself next to her and placed my hand over hers. She was extremely nervous.

“Come on now, let your shoulders relax,” I instructed her. “Aim for the woods off to the side of the road. Yes, yes. Hold right here. Oh, you don’t have to grip it so tightly. Okay, now pull that stick next to the box. Good. You set it perfectly.”

Porte turned bright red as everyone present focused their attention on her, but she managed to set the machine bow without making any mistakes. I placed my hands on her shoulders, helping support her as she aimed.

“All right, now try gripping the bit poking out of the stick below. Pull it tight…”

Porte gripped the trigger area of the handle, and the thunk of metal meeting wood rang out as a bolt shot from the weapon. It cut through the air, flying toward the woods.

“Perfect! Great job, Porte!”

“Th-thank you!” she replied bashfully, still cherry red. She handed the machine bow back to me with a certain reverence, after which I returned it to its original spot.

Paula watched all of this in stunned silence, so I turned to her. Quirking a little smile, I said, “I present to you the latest and greatest machine bow. Want to give it a try?”

Paula wobbled toward me and picked up the bow. She took to it immediately. “Ah ha ha ha! Ah ha ha ha ha ha! Amazing! This is tremendous!”

I had only just taught Paula how to wield a machine bow, and already she was

so thrilled that I feared she might be one apple short of a bushel. Before I could even blink, she fired off the remaining nine bolts into the woods and gaped at the weapon’s amazing capabilities.

“Lord Van, I could fight a giant monster with this!” she cried, eyes sparkling as she closed in on me. She did it with such intensity that I took a couple of steps back.

“I’m sure you could…but we have ballistae for the big ones.”

“Right! I forgot about those!”

“Uh, yep. Let’s go take a look at them now. We can head up from over there,” I said, guiding her.

Behind me, Paula’s loud panting rose up over everyone’s footsteps. For the love of all that is holy, someone please stop her! She’s going to attack me! Despite my fears, we climbed the wall without incident and arrived at one of the ballistae.

I turned to face her again. “Now then, this is the double balli—”

Paula was right on top of me, eyes blazing. I froze, at which point Khamsin and Till grabbed her from behind. They had seen enough. I glanced at Paula, who looked like a chained beast, then resumed introducing the ballista to the group.

“…Anyway, this is the double ballista, which we used to take down a forest dragon.”

The group was flabbergasted.

“A-a dragon?!”

“I mean, it’s big, but isn’t it still just a bow?”

“Surely he’s joking…”

I simply smiled and searched for the little girl again. “Ah, there you are. Porte, come right this way, please.”

“O-of course!” she responded, trotting over adorably.

“This is a bit heavier than the bow from before. First, pull this stick here. If

you put your body weight into it, you should be able to pull it. Yeah, just like that. Like you’re clinging to it.”

“Um, okay!” She let out a cute grunt of effort, and then the ballista made a mechanical kachunk, signaling that it was set.

“For the first shot, let’s use this metal bolt. When you load a bolt, make sure nobody else is touching the ballista, okay? Otherwise, you might get sent flying.” She hurried to put the bolt in and return to where she was. “Good, now aim and drop that stick down.”

Porte followed my directions, aiming the ballista toward the woods and pulling the stick. A sharp whistle reached our ears as the bolt tore through the air, leaving gusts in its wake. A moment later, it landed in the woods with such force that we could hear it all the way from where we were.

From what I could see, about three or four trees had toppled over. Heck yeah! I’m really glad I strengthened the ballistae and the bolts.

Those who had never seen the ballistae in action were too stunned to move. Paula was the exception; she was so excited that she let out a long, loud “Whoooooa!”

I left the machine bow squad to Khamsin and took Till and Arte with me to take a closer look at the ones I had received as a gift. Paula was asking endless questions, but I was certain Khamsin would be able to handle her. Good luck, Khamsin!

Little Van, meanwhile, strolled jovially through the village with two beautiful girls at his side. Where was he headed? The storage facility for village materials, of course! Feeling decadent, I picked out some mithril once we were there and got ready.

“Here, Lord Van. Take a seat,” Till said, placing the chair she had readied for me.

“Thanks!” In front of me was a low table, on top of which lay the amazing mechanical bow from the capital. I proclaimed, “Let’s get this party started!” and started dismantling its parts.

The more I scrutinized the device, the more impressed I was. The weapon was made up of various gears and chains, far more sophisticated than anything else I’d seen in this world.

“Hmm, so when this turns, the stick draws the bow while the next bolt drops down,” I said to myself. “Using this same concept, we could equip the stationary ballistae with way more bolts. Maybe a hundred-shot ballista isn’t just a pipe dream? No, wait. It’d be really bad if they got jammed. In that case, I can redesign them to fire five shots, machine-gun style, and make the rounds swappable…”

Eventually, Till interrupted my muttering with tea and cookies. I munched while I analyzed the machine bow’s boxlike structure.

“You look like you’re having so much fun,” Arte commented.

“Hm? Do I now? Well, you’d be right!” I turned to her, grinning. She offered her own gentle smile. As I recreated the bow’s parts with mithril, I said earnestly, “You know, the systems that make up the world are so complicated. Politics, mechanical design, all that stuff. The first person who ever thought this up must’ve been absolutely incredible.”

This goes here, that goes there… Bam! Done.

“Incredible,” Arte said. “You’re…already finished.”

Triumphant, I tested out my new creation—minus the bolts, anyway. But it wouldn’t rotate. Or move. It seemed to be getting jammed somewhere. “What the…? Ah, I see. The bow isn’t the only thing that needs to be elastic. The part connecting the box to the weapon itself has to be made from stretchy materials too. The stick is supposed to rotate 360 degrees, but it won’t even budge…”

Damn. A total failure. I need to look into whether the hard parts can be remade with metal.

“Even Lord Van fails sometimes,” Arte said under her breath, sounding surprised. Her voice was low, but I flinched anyway; she then panicked and hung her head. “Oh, m-my apologies! I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”

She looked like she was on the verge of tears, so I let out a deep sigh and smiled, shrugging. “I fail all the time, you know? Outside of my magic, I’ve got nothing to be proud of.”

Arte shook her head. “That is not true at all! I heard from the others that you have tremendous talent with the sword and that you’re extremely studious… I, on the other hand, have nothing to boast about. I’m actually quite jealous.”

“Talent, huh?” I turned toward Arte in all her bewildered glory. “I can introduce you to a demonic butler and Chivalric Order commander if you’d like. Stick with them for three to five years and you’ll be just like me.” I sighed again, and Arte graced me with another kind smile. Studying her profile, I finally asked a question that had been on my mind for some time: “By the way, what kind of magic do you have?”

I didn’t mean anything by the question, and I certainly didn’t intend to pry, but Arte stiffened from head to toe. Her expression was as sad and pained as if I had handed her a death sentence. She looked down at her feet, preventing me from saying anything else.

The air around us grew so tense that Till couldn’t handle it anymore. In a warm, comforting voice, she said, “Um, Lady Arte? Lord Van isn’t forcing you to say anything if you don’t want to, okay?”

Arte shook her head, opening and closing her fists over her knees. At last, she came to a decision and looked up. “I’ll tell you,” she said, taking a few deep breaths. Her eyes were grave and her voice a whisper, but her words were clear nonetheless. “I have…marionette magic.”

Till covered her mouth with her hand, looking quite sorrowful. Among the nobility, magical aptitudes like Khamsin’s thieving magic, illusion magic, and marionette magic were deemed criminal. Mages who possessed such aptitudes often found themselves the subjects of discrimination. They certainly put up a good fight against my so-called useless production magic.

I, however, was thrilled by the revelation. I grabbed Arte’s hands. “That’s amazing, Arte! I would love to see your magic in action!”

Panic crossed her face. “Huh? Um, y-you want to see my magic?”

“Yes! There are so few marionette mages! I’m sure there are plenty of folks out there hiding their abilities, but even then, you’re the first person I’ve met with such rare magic!” In my excitement, I gripped her hands harder. I mean, this is marionette magic we’re talking about! I’d be crazy not to get excited! “This must be fate, Arte! All right, let me make you something.”

I whipped up a simple humanoid puppet out of wood. It was about as big as me.

“Can you move this?”

Arte tentatively used her magic, and the puppet stood up.

“Whoa! Now try making it move!”

“O-okay.” The doll performed an intricate dance, one so beautiful that it could not have possibly been improvised; it must have been something Arte had practiced herself. The puppet danced for several minutes without interruption, and at the end, it bowed.

I applauded, showering its puppeteer with praise. “Amazing! What incredible magic! I can see unbelievable potential here, Arte!”

Not knowing how to respond, Arte simply nodded. Off the top of my head, I could come up with all kinds of applications for this magic. It could help us reach dangerous areas that humans couldn’t enter, or it could even become a powerful fighting force against dragons. If we put suits of armor up in the manor instead of other types of furnishings, they could eventually serve as troops for Arte, should they be required.

I realized this magic could also be used to commit assassinations, but I chose not to tell Arte about it. This seemed to be a huge sore spot for her, so I only wanted to tell her about the positive applications.

Arte glanced over at us, still baffled by our reactions. Once I caught her gaze, I gently slapped Till on the back; the maid snapped to her senses and clasped her hands in front of her chest.

“W-wonderful! I would expect nothing less from you, Lady Arte! I’ve never seen such amazing magic before. Can you also perform that dance?”

“Ah, yes. I can, um, dance. But I’m better at making puppets larger than me dance,” she responded bashfully.

“Please, that in itself is incredible. Let’s have Lord Van make you a cute puppet! I bet the villagers would love it if you made it dance during one of our festivals.”

“Really?” Arte asked, voice tinged with doubt.

Till stayed on the attack, but I could barely focus on anything. I kept thinking back on what Arte said about being better at moving a large puppet. This is truly amazing.

She could make a subject move exactly as she desired. We could potentially make powerful, weaponized humanoid puppets. “I think it’s time we start saving up mithril ore,” I said.

A mithril puppet over two meters tall would be the ultimate weapon in her hands. Well, making someone as shy as Arte fight isn’t gonna be easy, so all I can really do is prepare for the occasion.