Chapter 40 – Winning People (4)

‘As expected, I cannot get entangled with Heimdall.’

Having heard all about Heimdall’s past secrets, birth, and the situation he currently faced, I concluded as such.

Herman Melville’s support or whatnot, how on earth was he supposed to win against the four older brothers and sisters backed by their powerful maternal families, and how on earth was he supposed to protect me from them?

Moreover, now when I had no power, I must not get entangled with anyone.

That was also why I had not listened to Herman Melville’s words to the very end.

It was a mindset that my current self had to reflect upon once again.

“I cannot join you.”

So I refused.

Because the risk to bear was too great compared to what I would gain, and in the first place, there was no guarantee that Herman Melville would take responsibility for me until the end.

However, I had no choice but to alter my judgment at Natasha’s subsequent words.

“I came here by the order of Lord Herman Melville.”

Which meant she was Herman Melville’s direct spy.

“I will give you Lord Herman Melville’s magic engineering golem blueprints.”

Which meant she had built a relationship of trust and authority to solely decide on giving away an item of such value in an unexpected situation like this.

“Just do not become our enemy.”

Which meant they must hold onto me by any means necessary.

‘I do not know the reason they go to such lengths.’

All of her words and actions could be seen as Herman Melville’s will, but frankly, it was incomprehensible.

To him, I was Demian Vale’s son, and a coveted existence as a mature intermediate engineer at nineteen, but that was all.

Was there a reason to be this desperate?

‘…Could it be related to the Magic Ember?’

That was the only thing that came to mind right now.

He must have seen some aspect of me that I did not know myself.

‘If I can exploit Herman Melville rather than being exploited by him, it is well worth risking the danger.’

So, I forged ahead boldly.

Since I had just grasped through leading questions how necessary an existence I was to them.

“I do not need the blueprints.”

The other side presented the blueprints because they thought I was intermediate, but it held no value for me. Since I could just make it myself as an upper-intermediate engineer.

Above all, the hidden intention behind it was offensive.

Because despite knowing that I wouldn’t be able to manufacture a golem anyway, they were proposing blueprints that were practically a pie in the sky.

‘Of course, I do have both the skill and confidence to make it, though.’

Anyway, for various reasons, a blueprint of an item that even the Immortal Embers was not manufacturing had no way of being worth money.

Therefore, I demanded something other than an object.

“I want you, Natasha.”

That was safety.

If the concern was whether Herman Melville would take responsibility for me until the end, I could just take the person he cherished as a hostage and force him to do so.

‘Natasha McGrain will become my insurance and collateral.’

Although it was just a guess, considering all the circumstances so far, Natasha was fully worth her value as a hostage.

It was difficult to see her feelings toward Herman Melville as stemming from mere loyalty; she was highly likely to have a deep bond with him.

However, even if the guess was wrong, it did not matter.

Natasha was a competent talent with many uses, and I could also communicate smoothly with the Immortal Embers through her.

Also, in the worst-case scenario.

‘I could also hand over the spy Natasha and negotiate with Heimdall’s siblings.’

Of course, this case was if Herman Melville did not take responsibility for my safety.

Unless she betrayed me first, Natasha was also a talent I wanted to employ for a long time.

Because I felt she was extraordinary right from our first meeting.

Above all, there were tasks only she could do that I could not.

“…!”

However, was my move too bold?

Like a competent spy, Natasha’s expression did not change in the slightest.

‘As expected…’

However, I did not miss her pupils dilating.

It was a clue difficult to notice, but it was possible thanks to my bizarrely sharpened senses.

Once again, I benefited from this bizarre sense.

“Understood. If you can be satisfied with just me, I will gladly do so.”

However, whether my words had caused a misunderstanding contrary to my intention.

Sssrrk—

Natasha, who rose from her seat, slowly began to unbutton her jacket, tie, and shirt.

“Stop. I did not mean it in that sense.”

By the time about three buttons of her shirt were unbuttoned, I, who grasped the unfolding situation, grabbed her wrist.

Placing the jacket around the shoulders of Natasha, who looked bewildered, I spoke.

“There was a misunderstanding. Saying that I would take you was meant with the intention of making Lord Herman Melville take responsibility for me until the end.”

“Ah…”

“So, what I want to be guaranteed through you, Ms. Natasha, is my safety. Furthermore, it would be even better if I could borrow your capabilities.”

“Does that mean you will take me to your ember, Lord Aylen?”

“Indeed. To be honest, Ms. Natasha, you are insurance to me.”

“You mean… a hostage.”

“To put it badly, it could be expressed that way. But I have absolutely no intention of treating you as a hostage. For I will treat you as a colleague.”

It was fine to say at least this much.

Because if she followed me and went to our ember, we might share meals from the same pot.

It was not a figure of speech, but literally so.

‘Ultimately, the probability of her becoming an ally is high.’

For now, it was just a temporary alliance.

Although I did not know if I would stand on their side in the end, it was necessary to build trust with her, whom I would work with for the time being.

Doing so was also beneficial to me in many ways.

“Six months. You only need to be with me for exactly half a year. Then, I promise that I will align with Lord Herman Melville.”

I spoke solemnly, as if I had made a grand resolution.

So that she would think I had made a decision taking on some great loss.

The reason it was specifically half a year was due to the task Herman Melville had given me, the visit to the Magic Ember.

The time limit he set as an order was half a year.

And by that time, it would have been roughly decided whose side I would stand on.

That side would highly likely be Herman Melville’s.

But as to why I was making an uncertain promise while talking about probabilities…

‘Promises exist to be broken.’

Because it was fine as long as I did not keep it.

What made a promise kept was power.

Whether by force, contract, or whatever, you had to create a reason for the opponent to fulfill the promise.

Just as powerless justice was incompetence, a promise without coercive power was a sham.

The world was originally like that, and even more so in the political arena entangled with interests.

Therefore, I merely exercised coercive power with the hostage named Natasha to make Herman Melville take responsibility for me.

‘Although if there is something I cannot refuse at that time, the story will be different.’

At any rate, the coercive power to make me fulfill the promise would have to be created by that side.

“Half a year… is it? Understood. I will complete my preparations and follow you tomorrow before you return to your ember, Lord Aylen.”

‘It worked!’

Was it because the place where she lived and the contents of her mission would be completely changed for half a year?

Although Natasha contemplated with a serious expression for a long time, she ultimately accepted my proposal.

With this, I had succeeded in securing an outstanding intelligence agent in Natasha McGrain, along with a safety device to exploit Herman Melville with peace of mind.

‘Even if it takes ten days one way and twenty days round trip to exchange contact…’

That was under the assumption that matters were processed as quickly as possible without delay.

Regardless of magic engineering power, it was unavoidable due to the environment of the ice age and physical distance.

However.

‘If I look ahead of the situation that much and prepare, there is no problem.’

Nevertheless, I was confident.

How many various unexpected situations had I experienced during over three hundred playthroughs of ?

Even though it was a game, my rich experience was at a level to foresee most of the variables that could be assumed.

If it were compared to Go, wouldn’t it be about seven moves ahead rather than one or two?

Needless to say, if it was a neighborhood of a mere thousand people that was not even a small city.

“Good. Then, in commemoration of becoming colleagues… Ms. Natasha McGrain, I look forward to working with you.”

“I also look forward to working with you for the half year, Lord Aylen Vale.”

A handshake, a greeting to prove that there was no weapon in one’s hand.

In the narrow lodging, we held each other’s hands.

However, I did not believe.

The fact that there was no weapon in hand right now did not serve as a token that she would not betray.

The most threatening weapon was invisible, to be harbored in one’s chest.

And I was a guy who lived with dozens, hundreds of weapons held in my chest.

* * *

After Natasha and I concluded the temporary alliance of half a year, we were busy talking about work.

The problem to solve immediately was indeed the golem case.

“In the meaning of the alliance, I will just give you the blueprints.”

Natasha handed over Herman Melville’s blueprints.

Although I had demanded her instead of the blueprints, since Herman Melville had issued an order to help as much as possible anyway, she had no choice but to give them.

‘…Thank you, but I cannot use this.’

However, perhaps because Herman Melville had made it, the blueprints were of too high a difficulty.

The manufacturing difficulty, that is.

Consequently, with the thought that I had to make new blueprints that our ember could handle, I asked.

“I want to inspect and purchase the goods directly, but wouldn’t there be insufficient time until tomorrow?”

“You do not need to worry about that. Since we won’t go buy the goods directly. By any chance, have you eaten vegetables in your ember, Lord Aylen?”

“Yes, I have eaten them a few times, but why is that…?”

“The merchant who transports those vegetables is our person. There is scheduled to be aid once more at the end of the month, and he will carry the goods. The goods will be secretly airlifted by the organization. It is better for us to minimize our movements.”

Even if Heimdall was an isolated child, was it because a powerful figure like Herman Melville was attached to him?

Seeing Natasha’s voice full of confidence, it appeared that their organizational power was quite substantial.

“However, Lord Aylen, there is a limit to the items that can be obtained immediately.”

“Why is that?”

“Since you took top honors, do you know that an eight-seater off-roader will be deployed as your ceremonial vehicle?”

Since there was no way the Immortal Embers wouldn’t reward the top scorer of the exam, I thought there would be something.

But I never dreamed that it would be an eight-seater off-roader.

Because it was just a few days ago that Heimdall was excitedly bragging about his four-seater off-roader.

“I did not know. Since I came in a hurry and had no time to look into it. By any chance, is there reward money or something else?”

I spoke honestly.

Because showing a loose side occasionally would ease her vigilance.

“A hundred gold coins will be paid for research funds. A few pieces of magic engineering equipment will also be provided. Those will also be loaded onto the off-roader.”

“I see.”

“So, this connects to what I was trying to tell you just now: that eight-seater off-roader is the entirety of the space where goods can be loaded. Bulky items cannot be loaded, and the quantity cannot be large either.”

“What does the merchant ride? Doesn’t he ride an off-roader too?”

“That is correct, but the merchant’s off-roader is thoroughly inspected by the guard force. The only vehicle not subject to inspection is the ceremonial vehicle.”

“…”

If so, the plan fell apart.

The items to purchase were not just one or two, and in terms of count, they numbered over a hundred, yet the permitted space was a mere that.

‘What should I take, and what should I leave behind…’

The task became harder than expected.

Above all, there was the most important fact that I had not yet told Natasha.

“Ms. Natasha, there is something I haven’t told you yet…”

“Yes, please speak comfortably.”

“There are people I must bring with me.”

“Is that so? About one person would be fine.”

“Not one… but four. Four.”

“Pardon…?”

That was because there were far too many people I had to bring along.