...the Prime Minister was elected king?

　Aifa nodded quietly as she confirmed that.

''Yes.''

　When Taiki laughed at his too short answer, he smiled and Yuri answered for him.

''Although you said it was tentative, the new king has reaffirmed the alliance with the Celestial Kingdom that was once broken off. The King's nobles have also lost their momentum due to the death of their beloved king. Of course, the fall of the Kingsguard, who lost their master of the slave contract, is also a factor. The royal bloodline remains, of course, but since the former king is believed to be related to Lord Taiki, I'm afraid it won't come up in politics...

　Hearing those words, Taiki let out a thin breath.

Anyway, the ideal outcome would have been bloodless, but it turned out to be the worst. There were no casualties among the general public, but...

　Eira opened her mouth to the depressed Taiki, raising her eyebrows painfully.

''Try not to get too much on your mind.......Either way, the Karruk Kingdom was about to be caught up in a battle for its existence. Compared to that, we sacrificed far less.

Well, yes, but it doesn't feel good.

　Maea nodded her head at Taiki, who was troubled while answering that to Eira's encouragement.

''........The new king will listen to Taiki-sama. All slave people will be treated well. Besides, I heard that those who were forced into slavery will be freed. So, the best of both worlds?

　Taiki laughed in annoyance at Maea, who muttered such things with a serious face.

''Well, I think it's a good result in that aspect. No, maybe I'm being arrogant. Let's think about the future and keep it positive.''

　With a dry laugh, Tyki stands up.

'I'll have to talk to the new Karruk King, Straus-san, in person as well.






　Receiving an enthusiastic welcome, Tyki was invited to the royal castle and was ushered straight into the guest room.

　Without saying a word, Taiki was greeted by a line of maids holding silver trays with water, liquor, and fruit in their hands, and he was greeted with a black and white look in his eyes.

　Then he heard footsteps running as fast as they could from a distance and looked in the direction of the sound.

'Oh, I'm late!'

　The door opened vigorously, revealing the former vizier, Straus, clad in a pure white cloak.

　Straus looked unfamiliar in his clothes by all appearances, but instead of rushing into it, Taiki stood up and greeted him.

''It's been a while. I'm sorry for the suddenness of my arrival as well. You must have been surprised to see me here so suddenly.

　Then Straus shook his head from side to side so vigorously that his neck seemed to snap.

''No, no, no! What an honor it is to have Master Taiki here! No, thank you so much for coming all the way to this country...!

　Straus began to greet him with a low profile that could be described as sneering, but Taiki raised one hand with a dry laugh.

''Ah, haha ... no, it's my pleasure to meet the new king, Straus-san. I hope we have a good meeting today.

　The moment Taiki said it, Straus's spine straightened and cold sweat broke out on his face.

　It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get your hands on a new one, but also a very serious one, depending on the recipient.

''Ko, it's my pleasure to ask you to be gentle with me.......! Please, please show some compassion.

　Straus bowed his head many times with the appearance of an iniquitous person no longer waiting for judgment.

　At this point, the power relationship between the two sides was clear, and it was as if the course of the subsequent meeting was all decided in favor of the Celestial Kingdom.

　As a result, Straus agreed not only to free the slaves held by the royal family, but also to abolish the old system of slave contracts, and he replied that with regard to illegal slavery through village hunting and kidnapping, he would severely punish those who carried it out as well as the merchants who handled it.

　Finally, at the suggestion of Taiki, who was worried about the decline of the Karruk Kingdom, he promised to send robots, including air transport, to the region.

　Although the proposal was out of sympathy, Straus was grateful to the point of tears, and as a token of his loyalty, he took over a set of silver armor that the Kingsguard had been equipped with.

　This is a national treasure-grade magic item called anti-physical armor, but Taiki received it with great joy, saying it was "super cool" without understanding it well.

　Incidentally, the Konoe Knights were all fainted and captured as soon as Inicida died, but they had promised to free themselves from slavery later, and there were currently only a dozen or so private soldiers protecting Straus, which was a small number.

　However, this caused the meeting to be firmly blustered by Straus at home and abroad, and it was spread with a national treasure from the kingdom of Karruk, and a free loan of flying golems from the land of the sky.

　Most of the nations took this result as the Kingdom of Karruk becoming a vassal state of the Celestial Kingdom and coming under the aegis of the Celestial Kingdom.

　Straus was relieved that things had turned out as he had hoped, and for the first time in a while, he was relieved to be free of insomnia.





　Taiki gazed at the view of the ground from the sky while listening to the situation of the slave shops he had built in the Karruk Kingdom and other countries.

''........and you all are producing solid results beyond expectations. Especially Katerina-sama is amazing. I don't know how you did it, but you are accepting many slave hunting victims. Gray-sama is not making any profits because he is devoted to emancipation, but on the contrary, the number of slaves he has freed seems to be the largest. And Letitia-sama, it seems that you are using most of the profits from slave trading to expand your store. Because of that person's nature, it seems that she is trying to create a place to live and work so that she can feed as many orphans as possible. So they are not profitable right now, but I think they have the most room for growth in the future.

　Taiki nodded at Yuri's report and replied with a raw "Hmmmmm". Then Eira opened her mouth.

''I'm sure Taiki-sama's wish to improve the treatment of slaves will definitely go forward, but.......''

　To Eira's words of concern for Taiki, who looks a bit listless, Taiki replies with a wry smile.

''That's right. There's no point in worrying about it. Let's leave the rest to Gray and the others. By the way, I was looking around at the scenery of various places for a change, and I found a strange country.

　With that, Taiki projected the view on the screen.

　A white mountain covered in snow. The contrast between the beautiful and rugged snowy mountains and the deep blue sky was stunning. On the white mountainside, there was a beautiful white and blue castle in harmony with the landscape. The castle is designed to resemble a Gothic structure with several spires.

　Underneath the castle, the white streets spread out like a fan to the foot of the mountain. Even from a distance, you can see the white shining walls surrounding the castle town in a grid pattern, which shows the solidity of the castle.

　The castle and the castle town are beautiful, and the shape of the mountain is a natural fortress.

　The sight of this scene caught everyone's attention for a moment, but eventually, without anyone else, they opened their mouths.

''.........Terziel Mage Kingdom.

　At those words, Taiki rolls his eyes with interest.



　When Tyki asks that, Eira pulls her chin with a difficult face.

''Well the Terziel Mage Nation has cut off all diplomacy and is said to have its own culture. However, due to its nature, it is said that it is extremely difficult for someone from another country to enter that castle town. As for the royal castle, we have no information about it other than its exterior.

　And Taiki's eyes shine even brighter when he hears such an explanation.

You are very thorough. But it's not like you can find all the resources there, is it?

They do exchange goods at the foot of the mountains, but they are mostly dependent on their own resources. However, they are mostly dependent on their own resources, and imports and exports are not active.

''Hmmm ... a monarchy means there's a king and he's in politics, and the people are looking at the king, right? I wonder what kind of person he is. I'm curious to know if he's doing something like isolation.

That's why it's rumored that the King of the Mage Nation has never revealed himself to us... If the surrounding countries asked for negotiations, the messengers would only go to that country, and we never heard of a meeting being held within the Mage Nation.

　Aifa quietly opened her mouth to Taiki and Eira, who were having such a conversation.

''........According to the rumors passed down through the elven families, the king of the Terziel Mage Kingdom is said to be a survivor of the High Elves. It is said that the beginning of the Mage Kingdom was when he built a settlement in the mountains to separate himself from the secular world.......

The High Elves? They are the ancestors of all the elves in the myths. I'm sure they have a very long life span of several hundred years. It's amazing.

Hundreds of years!

　Maea responded to Aifa's words. Then Taiki nodded.

'Sounds interesting. A high elf, huh? I'd like to meet them.'

　With that uttered, Taiki decided his next destination was Terziel Mage Country.

''I hope we can get inside...''

　Diagonally behind the excited Taiki, a troubled laughing Eira and A1 were quietly looking up at the screen.