<div> Chapter 83: A bloodless war
 "An opportunity to take over this place?" Selia’s eyes widened in confusion. "But..." she hesitated for a second, "weren’t you all terrified of the idea of the war coming to this place? And now you are thinking about bringing it here yourself?"
 ’A valid concern,’ I thought, a small smile creeping up on my lips. "The thing is, who said anything about bringing the war here? War is always a terrible loss of manpower, full of traumatizing tragedies and loss of material."
 The irony of how I brought personal tragedy and mercantile outlook at what ultimately meant losing money wasn’t lost on me.
 To a degree, I would venture to claim it was something I did intentionally.
 "Okay, I’m lost," Selia opened up her arms and shook them. "How else do you wish to take over this... no, any place at all?" she shook her head. "I understand your desire for money, it’s something perfectly natural in a world where coin can buy security of many different forms. But don’t underestimate the people here."
 Once again, Selia shook her head. This time, however, with a much deeper feel to it.
 "This town isn’t known for people that can be easily or cheaply bought."
 Hearing all of this, I could only close my eyes and put on a polite smile.
 "Selia, Selia, Selia..." I muttered. "There are ways in which I cannot and can never hope to hold a handle to you. But tell me," I leaned my head over to the side and gave her the most charming smile I could produce. "You’ve conquered me whole, and yet, I cannot recall you even as much as spanking me for it!"
 Saintess blushed, clearly not expecting me to bring out this angle, and especially not out in public.
 "Listen, while my world is full of extreme conveniences, it’s all but a mask," I shook my head, this time with an exasperation I often felt whenever studying the details of my country... no, my world’s past. "It’s all just a pair of perfectly white gloves without a single speck of dust on them. But would you care to know how the leaders of my world manage to keep their hands so impeccably clean?"
 Selia’s expression darkened a little.
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 </div> "I do have a feeling you are about to tell me, aren’t you?"
 I only smiled in response.
 "It’s simple, really," I shrugged my shoulders. "The cleaner the hands of one person, the dirtier the hands of people he employs to do the dirty work for them."
 "Is that how it is?" Selia raised her eyebrows. "You plan to take over this place by hiring muscle to do it for you? And what will you do once they turn on you?" she asked, only narrow slits of her eyes now open as she gave me one hell of a stare.
 "How would that be any different to inviting a war to this place?" I countered, once again shaking my head. "Selia, dear, if anything, I would only ever hire muscle to protect myself from the aggression of others. If it was up to me, all violence in this world would disappear, with everyone forced to solve their issues through negotiation and handshakes."
 I took in a deep breath and looked up to the sky. Then, after staring into this expanse of blue dotted with the three orbs of the moons floating out in space.
 "Do you remember what, beyond the money, I asked from my deal with Greg?"
 Selia didn’t miss the abrupt change of topic.
 "Yeah," she nodded her lovely head. "You asked for them to help you out when you will get some other ideas for what to craft and make money from."
 "Exactly," I vigorously nodded my head. "And do you think I did it for no reason at all, just to make sure they could craft stuff I might end up taking a fancy to? Or maybe..." I paused for a second, taking a step forward and looking up Selia’s face from up close, "you expected me to, one day, ask for a sword and armor so I could become an adventurer of sorts?"
 Selia matched my stare at first, only for her cheeks to cover with a faint layer of pink right as she turned her eyes away.
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 </div> "I don’t blame you. I would love if you could take interest in things I myself enjoy. But no, that was never my goal. Or rather..." My expression soured a little. "Back then, I added that stipulation merely just in case. At most, I expected a day would come when I would like to try to bring some more conveniences of my world to this place. But now? With the war starting?"
 I shook my head.
 "Right now, I no longer have the freedom to do whatever the heck I want," I explained as I retreated a step and looked away. "From what I know of history of my world, wars tend to spill over much further than anyone ever intended. And even if this place is safe right now, who is there to say things will stay that way?"
 I shook my head before locking my hands behind my back.
 ’Maybe that’s what I came to this world for?’ I thought, once again turning my gaze towards the skies. Then, after taking a deep breath...
 "With the invention of the charcoal and the supply of coal dying due to the war, it’s only a matter of time before Greg becomes the sole supplier of fuel for this whole town. Every smithy, every kitchen, every inn..." I paused for a second. "Before long, they will all be buying charcoal from Greg. And once that happens, it will be only a matter of time before someone else will figure out how to produce charcoal themselves."
 "I mean..." Selia’s voice lacked its usual confidence. "Isn’t it a bad thing?" she asked, our bond telling me she wasn’t exactly sure where I was going with this whole topic. "It’s your only source of income, so if others start to sell fuel too, wouldn’t your entire business fail? Or, at the very least, take a considerable hit?"
 I smiled... and then turned away, showing Selia my back rather than my face.
 Right now, I wasn’t exactly sure what my expression was. And to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t all that sure it was one I wanted Selia to see.
 "That’s exactly what’s going to happen," I shrugged my shoulders. "Which is why, by the time it happens, I will have to introduce something else that everyone will be desperate to buy. And once the method of producing that thing gets stolen or replicated, I will have Greg introduce something even better. And better. And better..."
 I closed my mouth and took a moment to stabilize my breath, using my calming technique not to calm down my anger but my excitement instead.
 The kingdom-building fire, a spirit of pioneerism that the modern world left with no way for me to express, was now growing with each passing second. And just by thinking about what I could do in the future, I only fanned those very flames.
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 </div> "Tell me, dear," I turned back to face the saintess again, my face now perfectly controlled. "If this process of me introducing a new tool everyone wants only for it to rapidly spread through this town before the whole thing repeats again and again..."
 I shook my head before looking directly into Selia’s eyes.
 "Tell me, wouldn’t the people of this town grow tired of Greg holding monopoly of every invention I copy from my world?" I asked with just a hint of a smirk lingering in the corner of my mouth. "And once that happens, wouldn’t they be happy if I decided to just get everyone to cooperate, so that we can flood the war-torn country with inventions that make everyone’s lives easier?"
 My smile faded a little only for my eyes to fill with fires of determination.
 "In the times of war, where more and more men will leave their jobs to join the military only to then die a dog’s death on some battlefield no one will ever hear the name of, who could resist the allure of tools that allow one man... or a woman, to do the work of ten men?"
 Once again, I turned silent.
 To take some time to consider my next words. To give my excitement some time to die down.
 And because I’d only now realized that Selia wasn’t the only one listening in to my speech by now.
 "That’s why it doesn’t matter to me if people steal the secret I shared with Greg," I spread my arms open and then shook them with a mix of nonchalance and disregard. "And you know why?"
 Selia’s face was perfectly still, just like the rest of her body.
 She then slowly closed her eyes before opening them up again.
 "I think I now do," she admitted with a sigh. "Because by the time they steal it, you will no longer rely on it to make a living yourself."</div>
 

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Chapter 83: A bloodless war

Chapter 83: A bloodless war "An opportunity to take over this place?" Selia’s eyes widened in confusion. "But..." she hesitated for a second, "weren’t you all terrified of the idea of the war coming to this place? And now you are thinking about bringing it here yourself?" ’A valid concern,’ I thought, a small smile creeping up on my lips. "The thing is, who said anything about bringing the war here? War is always a terrible loss of manpower, full of traumatizing tragedies and loss of material."...

FFF-Tier System, SSS-Rank Wife

Chapter 83: A bloodless war

FFF-Tier System, SSS-Rank Wife - Chapter 83: A bloodless war