A Treacherous Courtier Manages the Empire Well

50 – Rendor has a plan for everything

“You want a long-distance teleportation scroll that can transport at least dozens of people, or even up to thousands?”

“Yes. Is it possible?”

Princess Selenne groaned and grabbed her head at my words.

“The teleportation scroll seems like an all-powerful item that activates as soon as it is torn, but it’s not that simple. It requires procedures that are more complex than you can imagine.”

“Please tell me what is needed.”

“Of course, there needs to be a teleportation station that is connected to coordinates. And the portal creation magic circle of that teleportation station should be extremely high-performance. When the scroll is torn, and the signal is sent remotely, the connected teleportation station opens a portal to the designated location to move the person.”

“Then, is it impossible with the existing teleportation stations in Eldon Viscount or the commercial city of Porto?”

“It’s impossible. To travel from Karamba to Eldon Viscount, let alone crossing the Lacosan Mountain Range, more is required. Plus, this is not just a few individuals moving, but hundreds of people moving at once. It becomes much more complicated.”

“Please explain.”

Selenne looked at me calmly.

“I can explain. However, Rendor, no matter what, this will be a costly task. Is it worth spending that much money for the werewolves? As I mentioned before, accepting immigrants could lead to social issues. Do you have confidence that the werewolves are truly worth such an investment?”

Crack, who came along with Selenne, made an anxious expression. Since they were beings who had been persecuted in Karamba, their self-esteem was shattered, so even a small amount of negativity towards them would be deeply felt.

However, I firmly nodded before pushing the unease about Crack deep into my heart.

“Yes. The merfolk have more than enough worth investing in such an amount. I am confident, Princess Selene.”

“…Is that so?”

Princess Selene nodded in a voice filled with conviction.

“If you say so, I believe you. Crack, was it? It might be a bitter pill for you, but for me, it was a concern that couldn’t be avoided. Still, I apologize.”

Seeing Selene bowing her head, Crack shook his head in confusion.

“Oh, no, no. Just being treated kindly by you is more than enough. Yes…”

After exchanging glances with the bewildered Crack, Selene smiled faintly and began discussing the details of the transportation operation.

“Long-distance. Large-scale teleportation. To make this possible, three things are needed.”

“What are they?”

“First, the teleport station must be high. Much higher than usual. And because the magical movement abilities of the magic circle need to be very powerful, the power source to activate a strong magic circle must also be very powerful.”

“Can’t we solve that problem with high-purity magic stones?”

“Yes, that’s correct. However, even if we use high-purity magic stones, the power source needs to be quite large. And finally, to enable long-distance connections, we need to produce very sophisticated teleport scrolls. Expensive scrolls that cost several hundred gold each.”

“Is it possible, Princess?”

Selene shrugged her shoulders.

“Teleport scroll production, installation of teleport magic circles with a dimension different from the usual, securing a power source. Everything is possible. The problem is the building. A very tall and wide teleport-specific building is needed… It would be advantageous if it were even a little closer in distance, so maybe it should be installed in Lord Elond’s territory. However, you would need to have experience in erecting such a high-rise building.”

“If we don’t have it, we can challenge it.”

A skyscraper.

Reinforcement will be necessary, and concrete will be essential.

And I knew of a presence that goes crazy about such giant structures with steel in them.

A few days later.

“Karaam Longbeard!! You damn bastard!!”

“Why are you drinking and causing a ruckus! Randor!!”

“Can’t we build a damn huge building for once? A building so damn tall it uses steel bars as pillars! A building that makes the earth seem like it has an erection!”

“Are you saying that as if it’s a good thing! Of course, I want to build it! Hey! If you’re really going to build it, we’ll come and work for you! Stop talking nonsense, you damn bastard!!”

“Really? Then do you trust us and work?”

“hahahahaha! Proceed, you damn bastard!”

I successfully teased them while having a drinking contest with Karaam Longbeard and his dwarf friends.

There was a saying that even ghosts could summon gold.

I really liked that saying.

“Did you call me, Lord Landor!”

The empire’s top architectural experts gathered together like bullets at the call of the Merchant Guild. Upon the request of Carya, the engineers of the Iron Blood Legion and the nomads of the prestigious Limnak Plains, known as the Elementalists, also gathered.

Not only the dwarf fetishists, who love steel and giant structures even more than beer, but also the tribespeople excluding the personnel of the ironworks, gathered together regardless of age or gender.

But that’s not all. Many engineers, mages, scientists, and alchemists who were dispatched from Matap, as well as engineers and builders from various places, gathered, completing the strongest labor squad of the empire.

“We will build a skyscraper.”

“How tall should it be?”

“A building tall enough to reach here from Karamba in an instant! According to Princess Celine’s calculations, it should be at least 150 meters high, considering the installation of various high-energy power sources and large-scale magic arrays. It should be around 200 or 250 meters, at the very least. It will be a super high-rise building that the empire has never built before.”

Upon hearing my words, Karaham Longbeard excitedly chugged his beer.

“Well, f*cking getting excited huh? Alright! Let’s come up with a design!”

Upon hearing that, engineers and soldiers from Matap, dwarfs, and construction contractors rushed in and started designing the blueprint.

“The columns will be important. We’ll probably have to install multiple.”

“Reinforcement! Let’s use reinforcement bars for columns! And then coat them with cement!”

“We’ll need something much stronger than ordinary cement. We’ll change the mixture and conduct research.”

“Leave the cement application to us once it’s ready. Recently, the construction boom has caused so many cases of cement pouring accidents, seriously. hahahahaha!”

“Moving heavy things like reinforced bars and cement is our job as Elementalists. If we utilize the spirits of the wind, we can easily move them.”

“Since it will be a very tall building, we need to dig deep into the ground to ensure stability. Tamer Khan, can the Elementalists help us dig the ground?”

“Of course we can. I’m here, the top-ranking Elementalist. Do you think it’s impossible?”

“Perfect! Then let’s start designing in earnest…”

Seeing the smooth progress of the work, I smiled happily and stepped back. Once the experts take over, it will be fine. While stepping back, I turned my head at the sound of sobbing.

When I averted my eyes, I saw Crack being comforted by Chertu.

I approached the two of them.

“I didn’t know you would go this far for yourselves, Landor.”

Chertu lightly pats Crack’s shoulder and smirks.

She wasn’t laughing at Crack. Even though he was a middle-aged man who had experienced many tribulations and was crying now, she didn’t blame or mock him.

She understood too.

She understood what it meant for the people in the water to go this far for the inhabitants of Ayram.

I waited for Crack’s tears to stop, and when he calmed down, I approached the two of them and uttered a serious remark.

“Crack, Chertu, listen well. Even if that super high-rise teleportation station is completed, if the two of you don’t handle it well, it will be useless. That super high-rise teleportation station could become a means to destroy the empire.”

The two immediately understood my words.

“If Sultan, who is looking for a means to cross the Hosh*tamun Lacroze Mountain Range, comes to know about this teleportation station and the scrolls…”

“Catastrophe. It’s a huge catastrophe. So it’s important not to get caught by the sultan. Even if there’s only one teleport scroll. It must never fall into the sultan’s hands. So this is a fairly difficult task.”

Hundreds, or even thousands, of people would disappear by teleportation without giving away the existence of the scroll to the sultan. In other words, it required caution and thorough planning that rivaled espionage operations.

And for that to be possible, Crack’s contribution was more important than anyone else’s.

The Emperor of the Slums.

The Emperor of Petty Theft.

Even the incredible infiltrating ability that the Southern Hunters of CeoRic, who had caught the Rang tribe, had not discovered until the end.

It was not an exaggeration to say that the success of this transportation operation depended on how well the ToaTribes would perform.

“Crack. Once the construction is completed, we will secretly distribute the teleport scrolls through the merchants. We must ensure that not a single scroll is lost and that thousands, or even hundreds, of people must teleport in an orderly manner from a large open space for the operation to succeed. Is it possible?”

“Lord Rendor, we have lived by stealing things from the slums. If it’s that kind of operation, we can do it more naturally than breathing.”

Crack wiped away his tears and smirked.

“I will make sure that there are no dropouts and no leaks of the scrolls. Entrust it to me.”

“Good. I will trust you. Crack. For the Suin.”

When I reached out my hand, Crack stared at it for a while and then respectfully kneeled down before firmly grabbing my hand.

“For the Suin. And for Ayram.”

CherToo seemed quite surprised by his actions. When she looked at me as if asking what this was, she cautiously answered.

“It’s the gesture made when a slave in Karamba swears allegiance to their master. The Toa tribes, including Crack, are the most persecuted tribe in Karamba. So they hold deep resentment towards humans. I didn’t expect him to make this gesture.”

I laughed at her words.

“Since he has sworn allegiance, we must give him a proper reward in return, right?”

“How long will it take to complete the Super High-rise Teleport Station?”

In response to Crack’s question, I looked at the Empire’s strongest labor squad that was eagerly discussing how to construct the tall building.

I know very well about their abnormal construction speed.

Elementals were gods.

Magic was invincible.

“It will be completed within 3 to 4 months. So, Crack, go back and plan the operation well.”

“Understood, Lord Rendor.”

After respectfully greeting, Crack disappeared while having various conversations with CherToo. I observed the hardworking labor squad discussing how to construct the tall building from a distance.

“A teleport station, huh.”

I had no intention of using it as a one-time transportation building for the Suin.

Before coming here, I had already asked Princess Selene and received a very interesting answer.

“It’s called a teleport station. Can it be used for purposes other than transporting objects with its excellent teleportation ability? For example… transmitting voices or transmitting videos.”

“If we remodel the magic runes, it should be entirely possible, right? In terms of conveying something from a distance, the concept is the same. In fact, if we only transmit voice or video, it would require much less elixir, so the maintenance cost would be lower. But why is that?”

I chuckled, recalling my conversation with Princess Selene.

“Princess Selene, have you ever heard of the word ‘broadcasting station’?”

I murmured quietly, referring to someone who wouldn’t respond.