A Treacherous Courtier Manages the Empire Well

83 – A Worn-out Development Like a Worn-out Novel

The pirate village of Lawless Harbor was engulfed in flames in no time. It was a neighborhood with no civilians to begin with. Commander Barasillo, the legion commander, was well aware of that fact.

“Once the value of women and children as hostages disappears, they become victims of rape, execution, or thrown into the sea by wicked scoundrels.”

Life as a pirate had already become brutal. There were no kind pirates to feed their families. Thanks to their cruelty, ironically, Commander Barasillo could plan more easily.

No need to worry about hostage rescue or anything else; just burn the entire village to the ground. Of course, even though he agonized over the faraway Sultans across the sea, the ultimate plan to deal with the great dragons ended in failure, so there was no way it could be in the pirate village.

“Ah-ah!!”

The moment the breath hit directly, the bodies of the pirates were completely charred and crumbled. Wood, various liquors, explosives all exploded at once, creating a spectacular fireworks display. With just three breaths from 200 dragons and red dragons, the pirates’ village was erased from the Mystic Island.

“It’s over. Commander Barasillo.”

Seeing the red dragon returning to the aircraft carrier and yawning leisurely, Barasillo clenched his fist.

Now it was certain.

Every sea known to humans now belonged to Aylam.

Good news began to spread one after another from the sea.

The pirates of Lawless Harbor were exterminated, and the wrath of Sesis was subdued.

“We will depart!”

Cars, refrigerators, air conditioners, and other bulky items, as well as grains and various fruits that began to be mass-produced in the Western Continent, were carefully loaded onto container ships. The Blue Dragon quietly placed its hands on the large ships just before departure and cast powerful weather magic.

“Today, the storms and waves will go from this direction to that. It will rain from here to here.”

“Blue Dragon’s weather forecast! Immediately transmit to the navy and ships via magic communication!”

Thanks to the Blue Dragon’s weather forecast and weather magic, the large ships could easily cross the chaos caused by Sesis’s anger. And so.

What used to take nearly a month by sea now only took 3 days.

The transportation revolution was inevitable.

The newly opened three Laco Mountain trade routes.

And even mass transportation through port trade.

Aylam could now import Karamba’s herbs, spices, silk, perfumes, and more at even lower prices, and Karamba itself flourished with abundant grains and various electronic goods.

And with the exploration of the sea.

“Karl Hanson. Report.”

“Quarterly revenue fluctuations and operational status by business sector.”

“Hmm… Nothing out of the ordinary.”

Stability had arrived.

There were no notable developments or big businesses anymore.

Finally, I could relax a bit.

“Most of the major events in the original novel were avoided. Aylam has stabilized, Sultans have given up their greed, and the relationship between Karamba and Aylam is very smooth. There shouldn’t be any major issues now.”

No matter how I turned the tables, there seemed to be nothing worth calling a crisis anymore.

Finally, I could smile.

That evening.

“Dear.”

“Why so serious? Karina?”

“Do not call me Karia, but address me as Landordo, my dear. I always wanted to be called that way.

After returning from the military, I embraced Karia, who was sulking, and lay on the bed. A luxurious hotel. A beautiful wife. The messy developments seemed to have vanished into a peaceful atmosphere far away.

I chuckled softly.

“Dear.”

“It feels good to hear that.”

Karia nestled in my arms. I embraced her, smelling her scent. We were both too busy to make time for dates or fun together, but during dinner time, we always made sure to spend time like this, snuggled up together.

There was no need to do anything extraordinary. Just lying together, eating our favorite snacks, watching TV, or chatting.

“Monster Hunter. They say next week’s the final episode.”

“Is it ending?”

“Yes. Dear. It is.”

“Oh. That’s a shame. I enjoyed watching it. The soldiers in the legion found it entertaining too. They aired it every weekend in the barracks.”

“Don’t worry, other shows are in the making, so stay tuned.”

After grumbling for a moment, Karia leaned her head against me.

“It’s peaceful. A few years ago, the Empire wasn’t like this.”

It was harsh.

I didn’t expect to change this much either.

I nodded.

“It was a country that could collapse at any time. I worked hard to establish it.”

“Thanks to Landordo, everything.”

“What about me? It was the effort of many talents in the Empire.”

Karia. Selene. Adran. Seorik. Various human races, magicians, and scientists of the Matop.

It was all thanks to them.

As I reminisced about the past with a proud expression, Karia suddenly playfully bit my cheek and looked at me.

“Would you like to have a baby?”

“A baby?”

“Let’s have five.”

“So many?”

“Or should we form a soccer team? Landordo’s abilities are good, right? I’m sure I can provide for them even after retiring from the military, right?”

“Of course. I can definitely provide for them.”

“Then let’s have as many.”

I shook my head at that suggestion.

“To avoid bankruptcy, we might need to pray. Should we eat the Fruit of the World Tree?”

In this world, the Fruit of the World Tree was the ultimate remedy. If we ate it, we might actually be able to form a soccer team.

“Elves haven’t interfered in the human world for a long time. It won’t be easy to agree, but for the soccer team, I’m willing to fly to the land of the elves on a dragon.”

I playfully bit Karia back in response.

“Sure, go ahead, dear.”

“I’ll choose the names.”

“Sure thing.”

Karia smiled like a child.

I watched her and smiled contentedly.”

Now, as the curtain falls,

I welcomed the eternal happy ending.

It would have been perfect if someone had said “the end” with that kind of atmosphere.

The worn-out development seemed to have disappeared far away forever.

“Lord Landor.”

“What is it? Karl Hansen? Why the long face?”

“It’s reported that the Sultan of Karamba has collapsed. He’s in critical condition. Currently in a coma.”

“What?”

The worn-out development had struck Karamba.

“The Sultan has collapsed?”

Prince Rashid, who was working as usual in Dargamba, immediately boarded the express train and rushed to the Moon Crescent Palace like a bullet. Many tribal chiefs and his younger brother Amir could be seen anxiously pacing outside their father’s sickbed.

“What’s the reason?”

“It’s still under investigation. He usually kept to his room due to his usual lethargy.”

“The shamans?”

“They are all inside. Since they are currently treating him, we should have a conclusion soon.”

The two sons waited anxiously outside. How long did they wait while sipping Karamba’s extremely sweet tea?

Finally, the shamans who had finished the internal treatment walked out.

Many tribal chiefs approached them to hear the results, but Amir stopped them.

“Please make way.”

Primarily, only I and Rashid should go in, meaning that everyone should step back. They all understood. Nodding, they backed away from the room.

Now only the shamans and Rashid remained.

“What’s the cause?”

“It’s simply old age. Coupled with having nothing to do, he succumbed to the stress of inactivity. Due to frequently consuming Ayllamian desserts, he gained weight rapidly. It is assessed that a cerebral hemorrhage occurred due to the resulting hypertension.”

“Is treatment possible?”

“We will do our best.”

It was a difficult situation.

It wasn’t even a shocking incident.

The Sultan had aged, and with Rashid’s rebellion, it was shocking to realize that there was no longer a need for an old conqueror like himself in Karamba, spending his days playing and eating in a melancholy manner.

It would be good if he could be cured, but even if it was impossible, it was not their place to blame the shamans.

“For now, I understand. This fact must not leak.”

“Of course.”

The astute shamans who had long served the Emperor knew what to say and what not to say. They were people who could distinguish well between what should be said and what should not.

After the shamans left, the two sons stood silently for a long time.

“It would be good if he recovers, but it seems unlikely.”

Amir nodded in agreement with Rashid’s words.

Both of them understood well what this meant.

It meant that one of them would become the Sultan.

If there was a testament from Sultan Saladin stating that Amir should be the Sultan, the story would be different, but if not, the next Sultan would be decided by a tribal council, and in that case, there was a high possibility that Rashid, who had revived the empire with gold, would be chosen.

“Let’s hope for an uneventful outcome for now. What else can we do?”

“That’s right.”

“I will stay in the palace for a while.”

In the midst of the complicated situation, Rashd spoke those words and then withdrew in front of Amir. Amir watched his disappearing figure in silence for a long time.

Amir gnawed his lips nervously.

“Damn it.”

Amir had lived a life path more like a father’s than anyone else’s by his father’s side.

From a young age, he entered the Sultan’s army and followed his father to participate in conquest wars. Even though he was almost the last to put a spoon on a table almost entirely set by the Sultan, no one in Karamba denied that Amir was a hero of the conquest wars.

Was that all?

When Rashd was touching gold coins at Daganba, Amir, who had always been by his father’s side, had been a companion to him and had shown a strong presence as the military commander in place of his absent father.

In short, he had desperately tried to become the ideal son his father wanted.

Yet.

Despite all that effort, why did he still feel so distant from the Sultan’s position?

Why did he think his father might put Rashd, who hadn’t even been able to visit due to being busy, on the throne?

“That can’t be. Father would never choose Rashd over me.”

He was the one who had spent the most time by his father’s side.

Amir was the one who had imitated his father’s youthful appearance and tried his best to resemble him.

So, if his father had a conscience, he should pass the Sultan’s position to him.

“He must have written a will.”

Amir, who had lived in the palace with his father, had observed Sultan Salahuddin’s every move more than anyone else. He knew that the Sultan had secretly called people to write a will and hidden it in a secret vault within the palace, unknown to anyone.

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He immediately selected the top 5 sorcerers from the execution unit and secretly headed to his father’s secret vault with them, so that Rashd and other tribal leaders gathered in the palace wouldn’t notice.

He needed to open the vault and secretly verify the will to be sure that he would become the Sultan.

However.

“……..Father.”

That night.

As he opened the vault door, feeling the secretive dawn air, Amir could only let out a disappointed and twisted laugh upon confirming the will inside.

“Are you betraying me in the end?”

The will was written with powerful sorcery that made it impossible to erase or modify, appointing Rashd as the next Sultan.