Read Novel Full Vol 14 Chapter 18
Vol 14 Chapter 18
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Chapter 18 – Presentation
The time I have spent working like a cart-horse is finally coming to an end, even though I have thrown myself into it. Now, all I have to do is… get through the last presentation to this big shot, and I’ll be free. So I’ll do my best.
“W-well then, let me explain.”
Oh no, my voice was hoarse.
I was already surprised by the atmosphere at the first greeting, but I became even more nervous when I heard that the two important people who had arrived were the heads of the commerce and finance departments and the officials in charge of these two areas.
Commerce and Finance seem to have similar roles, but are they different? I also had a question, but I had enough sense not to ask it.
It also bothered me that the person standing next to the two executives also seemed arrogant.
I guessed that he was an assistant, but since he was an assistant to the big shots, he must be high-ranking.
He held a handout in his hand and looked at me as if he was judging me. I want to leave.
But I can’t leave, so I begin to explain.
There is no handy whiteboard. Since I had to bring it from the luxury liner if I wanted to use it, I explained verbally while showing them the documents.
“Uh, first of all, please take a look at the first document.”
“May I have a word?”
“Y-yes, what is it?”
I was about to start my explanation with great enthusiasm when I was interrupted by the Minister of Commerce.
“I am grateful for the great investment you are making in the Aquamarine Kingdom. But to go to the trouble of gathering beastmen from other countries and developing them on a large scale in a place that has no particular advantages? I have heard about it from the guild masters, but I would like to hear from you why you are doing it.”
Is that where you’re coming from? If you heard it from the guild masters, why bother?
…But I guess I have to talk about it.
I can’t really talk about charity expenses, so it would be bland…
“I thought I could create a place of rest for the beastmen in this country where there is less discrimination. The reason I decided to develop a place where there are few advantages is because I thought that if the beastmen who enter the country later monopolize the good places, there will be friction.”
But the original purpose of the project was to spend charity expenses.
Hmm? The assistant nodded slightly toward the Minister of Commerce, and the Minister of Commerce nodded slightly in response.
…Maybe that assistant has some skills in detecting lies?
I’m glad I didn’t say anything inappropriate.
It’s also true that I want to help the beastmen, although it’s a much lower priority than spending the charity expenses.
As for the friction, that’s also true in my mind because it was an excuse I made up when the guild’s labor representative told me to develop a better place, but it was a real problem that was going to cause friction.
Maybe this assistant’s skills are not that accurate. I guess he could tell if I was lying, but he probably couldn’t tell the priority or seriousness of my objectives.
Otherwise, he would have immediately realized that there was a reason other than my flimsy idea.
“Why don’t you try to turn the land you have developed into a territory and leave it to the state, albeit with some contracts that don’t put the inhabitants at a disadvantage? It would be a huge loss if you spent a lot of money and your profits were to receive some tax revenue.”
Now, the question comes from the Minister of Finance.
It would be safer to tell the truth, except for what I can’t say because he might find out that I’m lying.
I hadn’t realized it before, and I gave a reason that wasn’t a lie but a thin one, but I’m not so clever that I can’t hide my true feelings about it.
“Because I don’t want to manage the territory. And money is not a problem since I have other places to earn it.”
I tried to wrap up my true intention of not wanting to manage the land in an ostentatious way by avoiding the trouble.
I avoided using the word “heavy loss” because it could be considered a lie since I had not lost any money.
I may be a surprisingly good negotiator.
The assistant who had nodded to the Minister of Commerce earlier nodded slightly to the Minister of Finance this time. It seems that he has the ability to detect a lie, after all. Is it a unique skill?
“Then…”
What, are the questions still going on?
＊＊＊
“I-I can’t think…”
Everyone except me and Alessia-san, was holding their heads, putting their hands to their eyebrows, looking up at the sky, or staring off into the distance.
“Hey, Wataru. Not everything can be talked about honestly, you know?”
I know that much without Alessia-san telling me.
It’s just that in a situation where you can’t lie, you’re asked a lot of questions that have some sort of implication, and you can’t even afford to keep your mouth shut.
At first, I thought I was a surprisingly good negotiator, but I am definitely not a good negotiator.
Power and position are annoying. I have plenty of money. I don’t need land. Me? I’m probably strong. I prefer the Aquamarine Kingdom because my slave’s family lives there. Spies? No, I am not.
Whenever I have revealed my true intentions without any pretense, not only the high officials but also the guild masters and the architect have looked at me like a dead fish.
Now, I am aware that my true intention is a little out of line with the world’s common sense because of the restrictions on God-related, other-worldly, and Ship Summoning-related content.
No doubt I’ve been recognized as a crazy weirdo by these people.
But it was interesting that the official who was supposed to be able to see through the lies couldn’t believe his own skills and started having other officials tell lies to check his skills.
It would have been a bad idea to do this in front of me, but I guess he got confused because my real intention was distorted.
“Well, if you don’t have any more questions, may I explain the documents to you?”
As I answered the questions honestly, my nervousness disappeared. I could now give the presentation without any problem.
“Y-yes, thank you very much.”
With the permission of the Minister of Commerce, I began my presentation.
“First of all, I heard that it would be difficult to suddenly develop the proposed site on a large scale, so I would build a housing and material depot for the beastmen in the village closest to the proposed site.”
I thought it would be enough to just build a town, but I was told that it would be impossible to build a port in a place that would require major construction and where there was no proper road to the village.
“When it is finished, we will build a road from the village to the proposed construction site.”
I never thought that in order to build a city, we would have to set up quarters in another village and build it from the road.
“Once the road is open, we will use the materials we have collected to build a small village near the proposed construction site.
Since it would be very difficult to suddenly build a large city, it was decided to build a village where the beastmen who would build the city would live. The merchants would initially do business in this village.
“We will build the original city while gathering people and materials in the finished village.”
I thought it would be better to expand the village into a city, but I was told that it would be better to have a satellite village than to put them all in one place, so I decided to do this.
I don’t know why it would be better, but I’m sure it’s what the experts say.
“First, let’s divide up the city.”
William-san, the architect, was very enthusiastic about the idea of developing the city from scratch.
I think we will probably end up with a functional and beautiful city.
I am looking forward to the completion of the project because the drawings were not clear to me.
The shape of the building was kind of round, so I didn’t think it would be a mysterious city.
I advised him to make the streets wider to be safer in case of a fire or something.
“When the city is finished, we will build a huge moat that will also serve as a reservoir.”
Since there is not enough water in the area, we need to be able to store a large amount of rainwater and water from the stream that we plan to draw from the forest.
“Once the reservoir and moat are completed, we will also build a reservoir and canal in the town to be used for domestic water. At the same time, we plan to dig several wells.
Since water tends to be scarce in this area, we need to be well prepared for water shortages. The architect’s words made sense to me.
“We are going to build a wall around the city.”
I was told that a very fine wall might not be necessary because of the water moat, but I asked for a fine wall because it was important to spend the money well.
I was told that there was a risk of running out of funds, but the next time I buy a luxury liner anyway, the charity expenses will increase. The potential for additional investment is great.
I thought that the God of Commerce-sama’s judgment might be a little delicate, but I think that a little strengthening of the defenses is permissible for the safety of the beastmen who are being targeted.
However, I think he would probably be offended if we built a nice facility or recreation center for the beastmen for nothing.
So, I want to make sure that I invest funds in the areas related to security.
“Once the walls are finished, the rest will be about building the city inside. I don’t know all the details, so you’ll have to ask the architect, William-san, who is also the designer of the city, about the rest.”
I could not answer the question if he asked me to explain in detail, so I explained at once, adding to the information written in the documents, and finally threw it all to William-san.
＊＊＊
“Whew, it’s finally over.”
In the carriage on the way back, I immediately felt at ease because a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
“You say ‘finally,’ but Wataru only spoke at the beginning and was mostly silent the rest of the time.”
“For some reason, no one asked me questions, so I didn’t have to talk.”
After I told the story to William-san, for some reason, no one asked me any questions.
Well, I guess they didn’t need to ask me questions because William-san answered all their concerns, but I think that’s the right way to throw everything at someone.
I hope this will continue in the future.
“You didn’t know why…?”
Alessia-san held her forehead as if her head hurt.
“Alessia, what’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?”
“No, I’m not. You see, the reason there were no questions is because they gave up on the relationship with Wataru. Powerful people naturally try to have a good relationship with those who have money and power.
Well, I am one of those people who want to be friends with rich people. I like rich friends because they buy me drinks.
And rich people who are not the arrogant type are fun to hang out with because they have a lot of room in their hearts.
“But Wataru was so open about his true feelings at the meeting that they decided it was dangerous for them to get involved with Wataru. Didn’t you know what you were doing?”
I see; that means I was in the position of a rich friend.
That meeting may have been to check my identity and whether I was a pawn to be used.
I am aware that I am rich now, but I never imagined it because I deliberately avoided getting involved with powerful people.
But…
“I don’t want to get involved in the first place, so if they avoid me, that’s fine with me.”
Speaking for myself, I think I would be a pretty useful pawn.
Those two guys who gave up on using me as a pawn will never succeed. Oh, they were some of the highest-ranking people in the government.
Since it was already a big success, they refused to have anything to do with me, who was like a time bomb. Smart people are different.
“If it’s okay with Wataru, then why not?”
Alessia-san smiled as if she had no choice.
It’s a little unpleasant to be looked at like a useless child. I did a pretty good job this time, you know?