"So, Captain Din, what do you think of this mass-production model?"
"Well... how should I put it — it's half-baked, isn't it? You'd be better off just keeping a regular golem ready to move at a moment's time and storing it in a bag. Or alternatively, skip the armor to keep it light and use it as a disposable pawn whose only purpose is to get in the opponent's way."
A few days after the mass-production model was completed, Captain Din happened to show up alone for once, so I decided to ask him about the golem.
Captain Din wasn't exactly an expert on golems, but as a pure professional when it came to combat and squad deployment, he immediately rattled off examples of how the mass-production model could be used. For reference, the first mass-production unit was put through its paces by Captain Din, and a result, it took a powerful diagonal slash that cleaved it clean in two — armor and all.
"Disposable golems sound fine and all, but if you factor in the bag's capacity, I'd want them to have at least some degree of strength... I'll keep researching the mass-production model, but until then, I'll have regular golems kept on standby in a state where they can move at any time. I need to prepare a golem-specific bag."
"You'd need to prepare one... but that's not exactly something you can just whip up normally, you know?"
I hadn't been making Magic Bags or Dimension Bags lately, but between the ones that had gotten visibly worn and the ones I'd handed over to Marquis Samons and the others, my stock had dwindled a bit. So I decided to make a golem-specific bag along with a new batch.
"Oh, right — what brings you here, Captain Din?"
It felt strange seeing Captain Din show up by himself, since he almost never came unless he was escorting Maria or the King. Well, it wasn't impossible that he'd simply dropped by on a whim, but if visiting was the only purpose, he'd have come with Aina rather than alone.
"Well, you know... just a quick check-in. Tenma, you gave golems to the Duke Sanga family, the Marquis Samons family, and the Border Count Haust family, correct?"
"What do you mean?"
"All three families paid a visit to the Ootori household together, and apparently there are people who see that as a threat. Not just the three families — the Reformist Faction is making a fuss, claiming the Ootori family's golems should be seized for the defense of the Royal Capital. So, annoying as it is, I got roped into coming to hear you out, on account of being on friendly terms with you and holding a decent position."
Captain Din went on at length about what a nuisance the Reformist Faction was, which I already knew all too well and was about to ask him to stop — but it seemed like he was using this as a stress outlet, because even after I tried to cut him off, he wouldn't stop badmouthing them.
"Hypothetically... purely hypothetically, if I lent golems to people I'm close with, why should my assets be seized on that basis?"
"Well, that's true, but... if you really want a reason, it's a precaution in case the three families ever turned against the kingdom."
"That's ridiculous. In a national defense emergency, to suspect people who should be our allies... people who put themselves on the front lines to protect the country... If you really can't trust Duke Sanga and the others that much, then the people making all that noise should just go fight on the front lines themselves."
While putting on a show of being thoroughly disappointed, I said as much — and Captain Din nodded just as dramatically.
"Captain Din, I've only just started a family, so I can't really be away from the Royal Capital for long. But if danger ever threatens the capital, I'll gladly lend my aid. Please convey that to the King."
"Understood. I'll pass your feelings along to His Majesty. Oh, and I'll also mention that you said if they want to make noise, they should start by standing on the front lines and fighting themselves."
It looked like they intended to use me to put the Reformist Faction in their place. Honestly, it was a pain. But they were the ones who picked a fight first, and if I refused, it could set the Otori family as a precedent and effectively permit the exploitation of the citizens.
"Naturally, if a massive gap forms between the nobility and the citizens, the country could crumble before the Empire even has a chance to invade."
"I hate to say this as the one delivering the message, but... you come across less like a victim and more like the villain here."
"The villain? Come on... I'm just following the King's example here. He's the one dumping his problems on me instead of handling them himself."
They were the ones pushing political problems onto me, so I figured they could put up with a few barbs.
I had a feeling Maria-sama would probably chew me out before I even got the chance to complain, but... even so, I wouldn't hold back when the time came.
Probably, getting me to the point of actually going to complain was part of the King's plan.
It might have been Caesar-sama's doing, but either way, I'd just play it like always—making it clear that the Otori family and the royal family were on good terms and, in a sense, equals.
"Well then, I've got 'souvenirs' to prepare, so please let the King know to summon me on whatever day suits him."
"Understood. I'll be sure to pass that along to Lady... Ma. Ri. A.... That should make things easier."
With that, Captain Din left in high spirits.
One week later...
"So, did the souvenir operation succeed?"
"Hard to say how deeply the Reformist Faction read into it, but it should have served as at least a show of force."
Grandpa and I had been summoned by the King for a visit to the Royal Castle. When we went, we had Raiden drive the carriage with the Otori family banner prominently displayed, so the Reformist Faction would have received word the moment we came anywhere near the castle.
And even though we were "just visiting," we'd gone through the proper formalities to arrange an audience with the King, so everyone in the Royal Castle would have known our purpose.
"On top of that, I gave a souvenir to Baron Mustang too, so he's probably in total chaos right now."
When we entered the Royal Castle, I just happened to run into Baron Mustang, who just happened to be visiting—and I just happened to hand him his souvenir right in front of everyone.
For the record, the souvenir was something Jeanne had prepared—supposedly items she'd collected during her travels (sweets, liquor, and the like) as thanks for the time I'd spent listening to stories about her father.
"With this, Alex and his people should understand that the Otori family has allied with the Neutral Faction and is keeping a close eye on the Reformist Faction. That should keep them from making any hasty moves. Of course, it also means they might throw caution to the wind and act recklessly."
Even so, if today's little souvenir goes well, it should buy us some time. Besides, the Reformist Faction was already suspicious to begin with. If they've made a move, it's just proceeding as expected—and it seems the King and the others are already on guard against the possibility of a coup. Since the Reformist Faction has us in their sights anyway, all we can do is use the time this souvenir bought us to prepare the real one.
Today's souvenir was a large batch of healing medicine paired with a huge assortment of sweets. I handed over the medicine in public and conveyed my wishes for how it should be used, but the sweets I passed along silently alongside the medicine—so to anyone who doesn't know what's inside, it would look like part of the medicine, or...
p
e
r
h
a
p
s
something else entirely.
Surely even the Reformist Faction wouldn't guess that sweets were handed over alongside the medicine. They'll probably assume they're golem parts.
In addition to the high-quality healing medicine I'd spent time crafting before, I also handed over a large batch of lower-grade stuff I'd mass-produced in the time before being summoned. The high-quality batch was a gift for the King and the others, but the lower-grade stuff—some would be stored in the Royal Castle, and the rest would be sent to the battlefield as
t
h
e
official support supplies from the Otori family.
Though the Otori family is a rather conspicuous presence—and technically commoners—by stepping up with support, the nobles who had been holding back (or being stingy) now faced the risk of earning a terrible reputation: that their contributions were worse than a commoner's.
The first to catch wind of that risk was Baron Mustang, who immediately declared to the King that he would provide additional support. Apparently, Baron Mustang hadn't been holding back on purpose—he'd simply judged that being the first to step up came with all sorts of advantages.
Thanks to Baron Mustang's declaration, the Neutral Faction and Royalist Faction nobles quickly decided on additional support—and pressured into following suit, the Reformist Faction reluctantly did the same. That should chip away at the Reformist Faction's power, at least a little. For reference, the better healing medicine I'd provided had effects including "disinfection, detoxification, hemostasis, enhanced healing, and stamina recovery," while the lower-grade version only had "disinfection, detoxification, and hemostasis," with effects less than half as potent. As far as emergency medicine goes, it's not bad—and more importantly, it's relatively easy to produce in large quantities. As for the sweets, they were all baked goods with a long shelf life, made with nuts and dried fruit, so they were nutritious enough to serve as emergency rations during a siege. If they lasted that long, anyway.
Even so, Baron Mustang certainly knows how to play the game. He's planning to use the fact that Tenma delivered Jeanne's souvenir to his advantage. If word gets out that he received his gift before Alex and the others, and then followed right after Tenma with additional support, anyone who only knows the rumors would assume the Otori family and the Mustang household are on very close terms. And if we win this war, he'll definitely earn top marks among the nobles who never set foot on the battlefield—no question about it.
Since this is a war, losing could mean losing everything—but winning could yield returns that far exceed the investment. Acting first is always going to be looked upon favorably for that reason. Even if it was after the Otori family, being the first among the nobles is what matters. In fact, it looks like the other nobles only moved because Baron Mustang did.
"Still, for the Neutral Faction nobles to decide on additional support is practically a pledge to side with the Royalist Faction if something happens. If the Reformist Faction's coup succeeds, those who took hostile actions shouldn't expect to be treated favorably."
If the Reformist Faction were to employ a long-term strategy of appeasement, who knows what would happen, but in the current situation, a coup seems possible only through short-term action. So no one from the Neutral Faction should defect so easily.
"Well then, let's get started on the real souvenirs as soon as we're back. Of course, Grandpa, I'll be asking for your help too."
"There's not much this old man can do, but I suppose I'll do my best for the Otori family."
Grandpa and I returned to the mansion and immediately set to work on the souvenirs. Since I had a clear image of what I wanted to make, I managed to produce three prototypes at a pace of one per day.
"Tenma, Lani-tan is... wait, there's another doll."
On the third day of production, while I was taking a break after finishing the third prototype, Amul came to inform me of Lani's arrival. It was probably the report from the favor I'd asked last week.
"It's a golem, not a doll. And this golem is a secret from Lani-san too."
Lani-san... Well, the Southern Baron household could be considered part of the Royalist Faction, but we need to keep the golem's existence—our shield against the King's enemies—as secret as possible.
"Understood."
As for Amul, he seemed to believe that even if a coup happened in the Royal Capital, the South would suffer the least damage. He even said it was better not to offend Maria-sama and the others, so he probably wouldn't leak information about the golem to Lani-san.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Not at all, I was the one who came unannounced. So, the scheme proposed by Tenma-san is... going well, by all accounts. Almost too well, actually."
What I'd asked Lani-san to do was to buy up resources from the Reformist Faction's territories... especially Duke Dahlam's domain. Well, if the traveling merchants led by Lani-san bought them up directly, it would raise suspicions quickly, so I also requested cooperation from Jayman of the Jay Trading Company. I had them act as intermediaries and set up temporary shops in locations outside of Duke Dahlam's territory to stockpile weapons and food.
Under the pretext of starting a new business, I forced them to gather goods. But I made sure taxes were properly paid in the towns where the shops were located, and separately, I paid off the local officials with bribes to look the other way. The official reason for aggressively stockpiling goods was framed as preparing to profit from rising prices due to the war with the Empire.
The bribes given to the officials were more than sufficient, so it seems they've squashed any information about the stockpiling of weapons and food. For now, everything is going smoothly. However, some officials are surely suspicious despite taking bribes, and others might be thinking they can just confiscate the goods when the Reformist Faction launches the coup. So I instructed that only low-quality weapons and armor, perishable food, and jewelry be left in the shops. Anything useful was transported by Lani-san's people and the Jay Trading Company to the Otori household, the Southern territories, or the Margrave's domain.
Beyond what's gathered at the shops, Lani-san and her people are also directly collecting food by visiting farmers and small-to-medium-sized villages and towns. This method yields less than the shops, but it's easier because there's less risk of drawing officials' attention like the shops do.
"For the decorative items, we can have Viscount Haust and the others provide payment. Selling low-quality or perishable goods still counts as shop inventory, so it serves as some misdirection. In the long term, it's full of problems, but in the short term, it doesn't seem like such a bad method. If we're about to be exposed, we can just flee in the night, and at worst, as long as we can build up food and weapon stockpiles for us to use against the Reformist Faction before retreating, that's enough."
The process would be a huge success if it also managed to hinder the Reformist Faction's actions.
For the southern front, they receive weapons and food in lieu of commission fees. Jeanne Trading Company gets to do a favor for the Royalist Faction in the border lord's territory. Additionally, they're handing over rights to store sales and dummy products—goods that might end up being scrapped anyway. The Ootori family has been covering the initial costs and any shortfalls along the way, but since they're getting their allocated share of food and weapons, they're not taking a major loss, and if things keep growing, they should be able to recover nearly everything. Plus, if you think of it as an expense to curry favor with the Royalist Faction in the border lord's territory while also improving safety, it can be considered a net positive even at this point.
"However, if we're not careful, the Royalist Faction might grow suspicious of us too, so it's fine if the Ootori family's profits take a hit. In fact, if it looks like we're going to make a big profit, feel free to funnel that surplus into the border lord's territory. That's the kind of arrangement I'm asking for."
When it comes to the Ootori family's revenue from this operation, Lani-san and Jeanne Trading Company know more about it than I do. Besides, they're the ones actually bringing the allocated shares to the Ootori family, so it would be more reliable to have them manage it.
"Understood. I'll consult with Jeanne Trading Company and manage the Ootori family's revenue accordingly."
With that, Lani-san deposited this round's allocation and took her leave of the Ootori household. She mentioned she would be handing the goods over to the person in charge of the border lord's territory before returning to the duchy.
"Well then... Now that we've got more materials, let's pick which ones to mass-produce as souvenirs for the King and the others."
The items we're planning to mass-produce as real souvenirs are golems, as I'd told Amour. What all three prototypes have in common is their purpose: to obstruct and stall enemies inside buildings.
First, the one made on the first day is a slightly smaller version—about 150 centimeters—of the mass-produced model that Din had tested: a golem with an iron body shaped like a mannequin, with no armor attached.
Next, the one made on the second day is an even smaller golem—about 100 centimeters. Because the whole thing is smaller, the arms and legs are shorter too, and since the overall shape is boxy, it takes up less than half the storage space of the first day's model.
And the one finished today is a quadrupedal golem roughly the same size as the second day's. Since it's on four legs, its mobility is higher—I was thinking it could charge at enemies to intimidate them, or serve as a stand-in for someone who's been injured and can't walk. This quadrupedal model also uses about the same storage space as the second day's.
"Hmm... The golem made on the first day doesn't seem all that different from the one Din destroyed. That leaves the second and third day's models, but... they only look similar in size—their design directions are so different that comparing them is rather tricky."
I shared Grandpa's opinion and figured it should be either the second or third day's golem, but I was torn on which one to go with.
"At this point, I guess there's nothing to do but run them and see."
We could make both, but then the numbers and performance would end up being half-hearted. So I decided we'd actually run them and determine which one was more practical.
"Alright, the course will start and finish in front of my room—head down the stairs, turn around at the entrance, and come back up. Grandpa will be at the starting point, Jeanne on the stairs, Primera at the bottom of the stairs, and Aura at the turnaround point to observe the golems. I'll run alongside the quadrupedal one, and Amour, you run alongside the bipedal one—got it?"
Additionally, just to be safe, Shiromaru and Solomon would keep watch around the manor for any potential surveillance, while Slarin was assigned to handle their tasks and deal with any visitors who might arrive during the experiment.
We also decided that Jeanne and the others would use one of the golems they normally operated as a makeshift wall, in case both golems went charging through.
"It looks like everyone's in position. Then—start!"
At Grandpa's signal, both golems took off at the same time.
But just as I'd expected, the quadrupedal one was faster, and the gap between it and the bipedal one widened almost immediately. However,
"It's faster than the bipedal one, but not as much as I'd hoped."
The quadrupedal one's speed was only slightly faster than a person's jog—considerably slower than I had anticipated. The bipedal one, on the other hand, was only marginally faster than a walking person, running at roughly half the speed of the quadrupedal one.
"Well, with some adjustments, we can probably make it a bit faster. Next up is the stairs."
I looked at the stairs looming before us and glanced at Jeanne, half-expecting to see how the golems would handle the descent, when—
"Ah!"
The quadrupedal one couldn't turn toward the stairs and slammed into the golem Jeanne had placed as a barrier. It then tumbled down the staircase, breaking apart mid-descent with one of its legs snapping off.
"Tenma, the bipedal one's going!"
Just a few seconds after the quadrupedal one's failure, while we were all still stunned, the bipedal one arrived at the stairs.
"Good, it's turning—ah..."
Perhaps because it had witnessed the quadrupedal one's tragedy, Amur almost let out a cry of joy when the bipedal one it was managing successfully turned toward the stairs... only to fall speechless the next instant as it misstepped and went tumbling down. Well, speechless wasn't quite right—Jeanne, Primera who was watching from the bottom of the stairs, and I were all equally dumbfounded.
"Both of them failed... no, wait—that's not right!"
The bipedal one, which we'd all assumed had been knocked out of commission just like the quadrupedal one, had indeed broken the staircase railing on its way down—but showed no major damage. It simply stood back up and descended the remaining half of the staircase. Well, once again it had misstepped on its very first step and tumbled all the way to the bottom... yet without pausing, it rounded the halfway point where Aura was stationed and climbed back up the stairs as if crawling. And then—
"The bipedal one—reached the goal!"
Its speed had dropped compared to the start, but having survived two catastrophic falls, it had somehow made it to the goal—not without incident, but it got there all the same.