“You ready?”

It was a question that I hated to hear considering the circumstances.

We were heading to another country and usually when I visit another country, I’d have to speak some sort of universal language back in my previous life, thankfully the language is the same although they have a low accent.

There are some dialects that I heard were hard to understand but those who speak it aren’t common in their Capital, so there’s really no hindrance in terms of language barrier.

Their customs and culture are also a bit different compared to ours and as I researched, I found that they are quite an advocate for serfdom…

But it’s not like it’s uncommon, in Leotopia, we do have slaves…

The sight of the bustling city within the Darlberg Empire was on full view as the carriage we were in drew near to the entrance, the convoy of troops escorting us together with a small battalion of knights did little to calm my nerves.

I was anxious and worried.

The negotiation as he stated went well; securing trades on raw materials and luxury goods by opening our borders for merchants, coordinating on monster subjugations, clearing dungeon labyrinths and the likes.

All of which is what I typically know on Earth, though minus the monsters or dungeons. Dungeon never existed back on Earth and monsters or cryptids were eradicated before the 20th century thanks to the efforts of hunters and exorcists.

The terms were not bad per say but the conditions for some reason involved the marriage between Leo and the princess of Darlberg.

From what I heard and gathered from the intel of Rel, who now became a personal knight of Leo, the princess is considered to be a talented mage that comes once in a thousand years and a genius among geniuses, excelling in fields that range from politics, sciences, and economics.

Beauty so outstanding that men would fall head over heels upon seeing her.

Having her would be like winning the lottery.

“I still don’t understand why you are against it…” If someone were to hear what I said, suspicion would be definitely aroused.

Thankfully, we were the only ones inside the carriage and the sound seal I applied would reassure us that nothing that is being discussed here would be heard from the outside

“...Later, you’ll see what I’m talking about.”

“Don’t say something so ambiguous, at least tell me why?”

“How much do you know about metal works and forges in our kingdom?”

“I know that there are quite a lot of family owned forges, I heard that there was a smithing guild down the coast but they apparently went bust other than that, nothing much.”

“Right. It’s mostly family-owned businesses but in Darlberg, they don’t have that, instead they have what they call state-owned refineries and forges, and the concept of manufacturing seems to be implemented there.”

That was a lot to take in, but this explains the empire’s rapid development…

Shit…!

“Someone like us is among them.”

“Exactly, whoever came up with that cleverly hid their identity thus making it a collective property of the Empire, at least that’s what it looked like to me.”

“Are you suggesting that the people we are dealing with are you know…”

“Yes, that's what I’m implying.”

My heart skipped a beat then my head aches all of a sudden.

“Any idea on who it is?”

Leo shook his head.

“That’s why I wanted you to come, I need your expertise on information gathering.”

Ah…so we’ll be doing a bit of snooping around I see.

He did mention this in the letters that followed up the invitation and it’s not like I didn’t see this coming, it’s a good thing I brought an artifact much more capable than the journal.

Taking a small box out of the bag I brought with me, I carefully unlock its mana sensitive security system via my fingerprints.

“Is that a watch?”

“Yeah, it’s also my replacement for the journal.” I raised my hand and showed it to him.

“It does make sense using that instead of a paperback but I just have to ask, how?”

Although I hate recalling my past as an assistant professor, the experiences of making mystical apparatus and making prototype designs based on theoretical concepts on how to utilize mana as an extension really helped me a lot in being creative.

“Did you forget that I was from the Institute?”

He had a look and then abruptly changed the topic.

“Nevermind, that was a bit irrelevant—Anyways, the 1st unit of the Templars Order already arrived beforehand and has established an outpost. We’ll rendezvous there after the ceremony, any objections?”

“None.”

With that, our conversation ended as the blare of the horn announced our entry.

 

---

 

The ceremony was boring and long, to say the least.

But at least the food here is good, I only wish I could drink some wine…I’ll settle with water for now.

Glancing to my side while enjoying my meal, I saw one of the twins standing guard. Fel, if I recall, was assigned to me as my personal knight on this occasion instead of Kite.

She was also part of the first unit that arrived here beforehand.

We haven’t talked that much but I guess it’s fine…

“Greetings! I am Eisha the son of Marquis Welsthower, I heard that you’re a friend of the crown prince.”

The moment he said that, the meat on my spoon fell out and onto the table just missing the plate by an inch.

It took me a while to restrain myself from sending him a menacing glare.

I was annoyed but I didn’t show it.

Instead I put on an act, and gave out a small smile appearing rather calm, “Ah, yes indeed. I am August the son of Duke Rodin.”

Then another came up to me, butting in on our conversation.

How annoying…

Small talk was simple and easy, all I had to do was compliment them based on their appearance and then commend their position and status, acting like a total suck-up.

After yapping away for quite a while, they finally decided to leave me alone.

Laughing, one says, “Excuse me, but we have to go…”

“Is that so? That is unfortunate...” Now fuck off.

With a wave, they left and I stared at the fallen piece of meat.

I sighed.

It was such a waste of good meat, I took the napkin beside my plate and wiped it off.

Then I returned back to finishing my meal.

Taking in the flavor and savoriness of the exquisite dish, I compared the dish to curry and found that it was similar.

I can’t quite remember the exact taste of curry but the sauce was really something…

As if on instinct, I felt someone’s gaze and then quickly turned around.

Fel was giving me a weird look.

“What?” I ask.

“Those two weren’t on the list of attendees and as I recall, Marquis Welsthower never had a son…”

I almost jolted out of my seat but managed to stay calm.

Across the other tables with their fashionable and eye-catching attires, Leo and the princess of Darlberg being at the center of the spotlight, seemed to be having a casual conversation.

“Wow! The crown prince of Leotopia is really handsome!”

“Having such a wonderful and charming prince by your side, I’m jealous of the princess.”

“Hehe, his face is truly marvelous..hehe.”

Involuntarily eavesdropping on the murmurs of the noble ladies, I couldn’t help but be annoyed yet worried for Leo’s wellbeing.

Even still, I’m more worried about the two uninvited guests.

Putting my cutlery to the empty plate, I pushed off against the table and stood up.

“Let’s go and have a chat with those two.” Fel nodded at my words and we soon trailed the two individuals.

When they passed the corridor leading to the hallway, they suddenly split up.

One heading to the court outside presumably while the other went into the restroom.

“Apprehend the one outside, I’ll take care of this one.”

She nodded and left to pursue the one outside.

I prepared my watch with a spell while walking towards the area.

A small circle of mana formed, I adjusted it like a dial.

When I opened the door with a sudden push, the guy had already taken off his disguise.

His grayish hair turning bright red, before he could say anything, I quickly raised my left.

With my finger mimicking a gun, I released the spell.

High amount of electric current surged through the small bolt that left my fingertips, making him totally incapacitated.

In short, he got tasered.

Now how the hell am I gonna carry him?

 

---

After dragging the unconscious body out of the restroom, I was a bit out of breath.

Some guards noticed the commotion but a simple persuasion is all it took for them to turn a blind eye to this.

Fel and I met up and she bounded the two together.

We were in some guest room where I made sure that no one could peep or stumble upon this sight.

A mini-sealed field just like the ones I used back then.

I took off the bags on their faces and splashed some cold water to rouse them awake.

With a disgruntled groan, they mutter curses.

Shoving the watch in front of them, I activated the spell.

Mesmerized by the intricate circles overlapping each other, the two seemed to have fallen into a trance, their blank look staring at the distance.

It was all the confirmation I needed to proceed with my interrogation.

I then asked the redhead about their identity and what purpose did they come here with.

Expecting that they were probably sent to spy on us, I narrowed my eyes in anticipation.

“My name is Creed and his name is Klyde, we were tasked to scout out the prince and his people to determine whether they would be of help to the cause of the Revolutionary army.”

—Huh?

I looked back at Fel and we shared a look.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I ordered Fel to search their bodies.

Weapons, scrolls, potions and a ring that seemed to be used for communication were their notable possessions.

I took one of their scrolls that was empty and tinkered with it, changing the overall structure, I casted a tracking spell and connected the threads of mana with mine.

For now there isn’t much that I need to do, we are in foreign lands and acting recklessly was a death sentence for me.

“Fel, pass this information back to the outpost and ask for reinforcements to stand by near us—Don’t worry about informing His Highness, I’ll personally tell him about this.”

“Understood.”

Looking back at them in their state, I felt my nerves acting up.

Fuck, this was too much.

 

---

 

As the heavy pounding of the ores reverberated, the cracking noises produced an oddly satisfying sound to August’s ears, it reminded him of that world.

A heavily industrialized world where people slaved away in their entire lives for meager wages.

What they were at would be considered a workplace visit to August—No, to Theodore.

The tour very much reminded him of the times he went to industrial alchemical plantations for a brief stint of a part-time job.

“The ores that were mined from our deep tunnel of shafts are crushed. This is a process necessary to separate the sediment from the mineral we are trying to extract.”

A man working then scooped up a sample for them to see.

It was glittering like the stars in the sky.

The people or the tourists marveled at the sight.

August didn’t have to try faking it because he was genuinely intrigued and the crown prince with his confident smile didn’t seem to have any problem whatsoever.

The princess along with them was the one leading and explaining things on how their refineries and forges, she was their tour guide in layman's terms.

“Next, we transport this crushed ores to the refinery.”

The crushed ores were then dumped into carts.

Men and beasts worked together as they pushed loads of unrefined crushed ores.

August looked at the people he was with, noticing that the princess was preoccupied with answering the many questions that were thrown her way, he took the opportunity to talk secretly with the crown prince.

Conjuring a very small sound barrier, he whispers to him with a cheeky smile. “Leo, we need to talk.”

Unlike the facial expression August was showing, his tone was dead serious.

Leopold replied in the same manner, smiling as always albeit in a calmer tone, “What is it?”

“Fel and I had an encounter with two members of the revolutionary army.”

Taken aback by the sudden information, the crown prince almost lost his composure but fortunately remains as he was before.

“...Midnight at the outpost, we’ll gather everyone and have a meeting.”

August simply nodded, he looked around and saw that the people asking questions about the tour were starting to disperse.

He discreetly broke the sound seal off and the two returned to the group.

Unbeknownst to the two, the princess who was busy answering questions was keeping an eye on them.

She cautiously narrows her eyes in suspicion.