My Disciples Think I’m Strong – Chapter 97

The only ones remaining in the conference room were the two Dukes, Duke Tori, Princess Seri, Count Hostis, and myself.

The Guard Knights were still around, but they would sacrifice their lives for their lord, so they wouldn’t leak anything.

Count Hostis must have wanted to leave, but to exit this room would be akin to saying, ‘I embezzled funds.’

“So, what do you want?”

“…Praus, we need to talk, right? That information is yours after all.”

At her words, Rexton’s poker face crumbled in an instant. He stared at me with wide eyes, truly surprised by her statement.

“You….”

He could have said it himself, yet he insisted on mentioning me. Tch.

It was clear she didn’t want to awkwardly claim it as her own since she hadn’t discovered it by herself. She’s too diligent.

“How on earth did you obtain that information? Even the Secret Garden wouldn’t know about this, right? No… now that I think about it, I did hear something from the Secret Garden.”

I watched Rexton mumble to himself, puzzled.

I had expected him to get information from the Secret Garden.

They are the type of organization that will disclose any information as long as you pay a price that exceeds their own life value.

However, the key question was ‘how much’ was revealed after paying that amount.

I believed there would be surveillance even at this moment, but I hoped at least the details about the Artifact wouldn’t be leaked.

If the weapons or gear needed by the Heroes were snatched away by others first, it could become quite troublesome.

It was undoubtedly impossible to keep the Artifact completely hidden, especially since Sylphy’s Ring and the Purification Stone had been sold on the black market.

However, considering that Ella thought Sylphy’s Ring was pretty good equipment, it wasn’t unreasonable to assume that a level of logic-defying Artifact might just be regarded as an ordinary Artifact.

Moreover, even if the Artifact fell into the hands of others, unless someone knowledgeable of the game’s information existed, it was unlikely to become public, and during the research process, they would inevitably encounter trial and error.

Of course, I had no idea where the Artifact was hidden or what it looked like.

However, when it comes to ultimate weapons, you would have to overcome appropriate obstacles to obtain them, so there was no need to be overly anxious about it.

Once I acquired the ultimate weapon, the rest would essentially become useless.

“I hear you have never used the Secret Garden’s information network even once. There’s no larger information guild in the Empire than Secret Garden.”

What are you talking about all of a sudden?

“Praus, who is behind you? Who is bringing you that information? Speak up.”

“……?”

“Thinking back, I never would have imagined you would casually carry around the Spirit King. If that’s the case, it makes sense that you handled the Black Dragon and are a Hero as well.”

Did he also hear stories about the Spirit King from the Secret Garden…?

But what is this guy misunderstanding?

I did indeed prevent damage around me with Ariel’s help, but I had never received direct assistance from her in any fight.

If the fact that I received Aura is considered help, then I can’t argue about that.

…Ah, except for that Knight Commander that was blown away by her blessing.

“…The Spirit King is simply accompanying me for some reason. We have no contract.”

“What? So your power is entirely your own?”

“That’s right.”

He furrowed his brow as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Impressive. I’ve heard even the first Heroes had a hard time dealing with Demons without a contract with the Spirits.”

That shouldn’t be the case.

According to the setting of the first Heroes, while the types of talents might differ from the current Heroes, the differences were not extreme.

However, the first Heroes didn’t have anyone to guide them according to their direction, so they couldn’t achieve perfect growth and had to participate in the Demon War. That’s why the Spirits became heavily involved.

Of course, having the help of Spirits isn’t a bad thing. If someone contracted with Spirits while wielding the power of a Hero, that would be the best of both worlds.

“…What’s more important is not me, but Princess Seri, right?”

“No, what’s important is you. The fact that Princess Seri has changed this much and could boldly declare war against the Crown Prince is thanks to you.”

Ugh. This is exactly why I didn’t want to say anything.

I wanted others to know my position as just someone who aided her. Here, Seri had to be the protagonist.

Moreover, the reason I provided her with the information from the game was to present her as a capable human.

I wanted to instill the perception that I was just pretending to be incompetent.

However, now that all the facts were laid bare, I could only feel frustrated. I understood her efforts to consider me.

“That’s right. Praus is not simply strong. His way of thinking is quite flexible, and he can see through others’ psychology.”

How far are they going to overrate me?

Go ahead and praise her. I’ve been boosting her self-esteem for two months, so let her be a bit proud.

“I know. I’ve fallen victim to that before.”

Having received such excessive praise, my face was turning red. I awkwardly scratched my head.

“Alright, you two, just talk.”

“I want you to tell me about the information network.”

Information network, my foot.

I only knew game information.

But how could I say, ‘This world is based on a game’s scenario, and I’m the one who played that game’?

“Is there any reason for me to reveal that?”

“If you do tell me, I will support Princess Seri’s faction.”

“D-Duke Rexton… that means you’re betraying the Crown Prince—”

“Shut up. If you interrupt again, I’ll kill you before revealing any corruption.”

Rexton glared at the oblivious Hostis and pressured him. Count Hostis retreated, looking frightened.

When he looked back at me, his expression was not cold and rational but rather gentle.

He had intentionally softened his expression to make the deal more favorable for him.

“So, what’s your answer?”

To be honest, it was an incredibly tempting proposal.

Thinking that it was a chance to win him over in one fell swoop made my mouth water.

However, the information I had wasn’t valuable enough to share with him.

To be precise, I had no intention of revealing that I had come from outside the world or that this world was based on the game I played, regardless of any deal made.

If he were on my side, it would essentially mean Seri would become the Emperor, and it would practically be the same as Huang Zhong. But I could raise Seri to Emperor status even without him.

Regardless of whether he was with us, he wouldn’t have any choice but to follow us once Seri became the Emperor.

“…I’m sorry, but I can’t disclose information about the network. It’s not something I can offer in a deal.”

“Then the information regarding the corruption Princess Seri mentioned can’t be trusted.”

Even if he said that, he had continually been suspicious since the moment the allegations were presented.

Doubts only meant that he would clarify the information.

Certainly, the moment he stepped out of this conference room, he would initiate an investigation to uncover all forms of corruption.

And he wouldn’t forgive even the smallest embezzlement.

Thus, regardless of how I obtained the information, he would have no choice but to trust it.

Everything must be true.

“Regardless of how you obtained it, all of this is the truth, and believing it is up to you. Well… even if I say that, you will definitely investigate anyway.”

“…I felt this way since you visited earlier, but you seem to know me very well.”

I answered with a smile. Meanwhile, I took out the rolled-up parchment from my inner pocket and handed it to Seri.

I reminded him to tell her to give it to him when it felt appropriate for her.

“This contains information on individuals related to the corruption and the embezzled items. Duke Rexton, what do you think about this?”

“…What do you want?”

“All I desire is to become Emperor.”

He shook his head at the Princess’s proposal to support her aspirations.

“That’s not worth it. If I were to conduct an investigation from now on, the value of that information would only make my life a bit more convenient. Besides, what benefits will come back to me if you become the Emperor? I’ve heard tales about the need for harmony with other races; does that mean we must free the slaves?”

Leaning back with crossed arms, he resembled a merchant negotiating over a deal.

“That is correct.”

“Princess Seri, it seems you’re new to understanding the Empire’s currents and studying, so you might not know this, but the slave system currently constitutes a pillar of the Empire’s economy. Dismantling that pillar could lead to economic risks. Are you aware of this fact?”

I had expected there to be pushback regarding this matter.

As he said, the slave system indeed formed a significant part of the Empire’s economy. A vast one at that.

Over decades, the infrastructure had been nearly perfectly established, resulting in high commercial viability. And at the center of that infrastructure stood Rexton.

He had predicted from the beginning that the slave market would become a substantial industry and had worked tirelessly to build its infrastructure.

So when suddenly the next Emperor declares the abolishment of the slave system, it would not only result in a significant loss for him, but also would render his efforts up to that point meaningless, making it something he couldn’t accept.

“I’m aware of that. But that is a short-term concern, after all. The slave system has a clear ‘limit’.”

“Short-term? A limit? It’s not only been maintained for decades but has also become a means to amass wealth, how can you actually call this short-term?”

“There’s always resistance to exploitation.”

“Resistance? Is someone who has declared their ambition to become Emperor afraid of resistance? If that’s the case, I must have severely misjudged you.”

That’s why I labeled it short-term.

If the Resistance were to rise, everything would ultimately be over.

The slave system would lose all its utility, and instead, there would be nothing but mutual resentment.

Additionally, the limits were not just this.

“How could the Duke Rexton, who has exerted great influence on the Empire’s economy, not know the limits of the slave system?”

“…What do you mean?”

“I’m not merely talking about exploitation.”

Another lesson she learned during her two-month stay in Aus Territory.

That was the ‘flexible freedom’ granted to the other races according to their rights.

The other races, fundamentally, had a tendency to embrace nature rather than develop new goods, so they hadn’t advanced civilization like humans.

Also, driven by instinct, they resorted to brute force rather than planning strategies when battles occurred. That’s why they lost to humans.

Despite being slaves, they lived under human civilization, and they learned.

And those freed races began valuing their labor and started working, buying goods freely.

Seri realized that the economic activities of humans and other races were not that different from each other.

That was her first step in learning about the economy.

“Do you know how many people the Empire has increased by absorbing the other races?”

“About 120 million. Do you think I wouldn’t know that much?”

“That’s correct. Currently, the Empire has a total population of 220 million thanks to absorbing the other races. Do you know what that implies?”

He nodded, as if it were just commonsense.

“Increasing the population is an opportunity to expand the market.”

“That’s right. The difference between 100 million consumers and 200 million consumers is enormous. However, due to the introduction of the slave system, the economic rights of the other races have been robbed, and we are still only engaging in economic activity as humans. Despite having a much larger market, and more money to be rolled around.”

“But other sectors have also grown compared to before.”

“That could be the case. They probably spent more lavishly thanks to the cheap labor force of slaves. But can that be regarded as an expansion of the economy?”

She took a short breath and opened her mouth again.

“Indeed, it’s true that the scale of the economy has grown through the slave system. But the slave system only hinders market expansion and continues to foster resentment from the other races. Eventually, if the other races were to revolt, we would lose our labor force once more and, furthermore, become a significant threat to the Empire.”

He was speechless, his hand over his mouth as he pondered seriously.

In fact, Rexton likely knew this too. That the scale of the market could grow even bigger.

However, the reason he still didn’t act would likely be the imperial directive to suppress the other races.

During that time, it was probably a very sensitive period, and it would have been best not to attract the Emperor’s attention, so he was bound to comply.

Moreover, changing the structure when the infrastructure was already established would carry great risks, so he likely thought maintaining the current status was optimal.

“But still, isn’t the animosity of the other races towards the Empire unchanging?”

“That’s an unavoidable issue, but… In contrast, the other races living closely together didn’t seem to hate humans so much.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because Aus Territory has been living that way.”

“!”

Rexton looked at Aus.

With a precedent already established, he couldn’t refute that.

“Indeed, that’s true.”

He nodded a few times, as if in understanding.

“Anyway, what you’re saying is that the slave system… is hindering market expansion.”

“That’s the core of it, indeed, Duke Rexton.”

“Then let me ask you one thing. If they were freed from slavery and chose not to work, what would you think would happen?”

“That’s not something you need to worry about. Other races have a strong tendency to value labor. They’ve lived in an environment where failing to work meant dying. Because of that, they can pride themselves on being more diligent than humans.”

Even if he cannot stand with the Crown Prince, at least these words would eliminate justifications for supporting the slave system.

“…I can’t believe I overlooked such a talented woman.”

Chuckling lightly, a smile appeared on his face.