"As early as always, Your Majesty," said Gaston.
The old butler entered the king's room to rouse him from sleep. But Lark was already up before the castle's morning bell even rang. Lark stood in front of the windows as he gazed at the garden below.
He slept later and woke up earlier than most people.
Lark turned around and greeted the butler, "A pleasant morning, Gaston."
Judging by the traces of sweat on the new king's forehead, it seemed that he'd just finished his meditation. Or was it training? Gaston was pretty sure that Lark had mentioned a similar-sounding name before.
"A pleasant morning, Your Majesty." Gaston bowed.
Although there was still resentment within him, gradually, Gaston was becoming used to the current state of things. He'd already asked Evander Alaester if it was possible to bring back the old Lark. But to the butler's dismay, even the legendary magician did not know of a method to bring the real Lark back.
Gaston knew he should be grateful that the legendary magician did not take offense at his question. That question was, after all, akin to asking him to die and leave his current body. Even Gaston wasn't so foolish to bring up such a question a second time.
"Bath and breakfast have been prepared," said Gaston, his right hand adjusting his monocle. "Also, Big Mona has just arrived in the castle and wishes to discuss several things with you."
"It's probably regarding the promised reformation of the slums," said Lark. "Gaston, add an additional seat to the table. I'll speak with him during breakfast."
"As you will."
After taking a bath, Lark went to the dining hall exclusive to the members of the royal family. A sumptuous feast had already been prepared on the table. After Lark sat down, he gave the signal to the guards to let the fat merchant inside.
"Let him in," said Lark.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The door to the royal dining hall opened and the merchant, whose skin was glowing, entered.
"Ah, partner!" Big Mona said in a loud voice, his right hand holding a stack of parchments. "Or should I call you Your Majesty instead?"
Big Mona was frequently seen grinning from ear to ear ever since the death of Duke Kelvin. Even for a man with great ambitions like him, destroying the roots of the largest underworld syndicate was an extraordinary feat.
The fat merchant must have been in euphoria all this time, after finally reaching his current position.
"Sit down, Mona," said Lark.
Big Mona sat down. He stared at one of the dishes and immediately recognized it was white-horned red boar meat—a delicacy of the Youchester Duchy. "I must say," he said as he licked his lips, "as expected of the royal kitchen."
Lark chuckled. "Stop holding yourself back and eat."
Big Mona started devouring the food served before them. Amazingly, despite his gluttonous attitude, he still moved with grace and the demeanor befitting his status as the king's exclusive merchant.
"There's more where that came from," said Lark. "So, what brought you here? Is it regarding the slum reformation we promised?"
Big Mona wiped his lips with a napkin. "That's correct, partner. You know as well as I do—we need to carefully build up our reputation now that you've ascended the throne. It'll leave a bad image if the new king goes back on his promise to the slum people."
The fat merchant grabbed the stacks of parchment sitting on the table and handed them to Lark. "Look at this. Here's my proposal on the slum reformation, partner."
Lark quickly read through Big Mona's proposal.
Big Mona said, "The slums encompass not only the Outer District, but also the Middle District of the capital. We can't do a half-assed job if we want to incorporate the slum people into society." He raised his index finger. "First, I suggest we demolish the old settlements in the slums and relocate the people to the temporary shelter outside the capital."
"Won't that become an issue?" said Lark. "Some of them may feel like we're throwing them away, now that we're done."
"I'll speak with Luvik regarding this matter," said Big Mona.
"Fortunately, the slums of the capital are quite organized compared to the other cities. They have a single leader they follow and respect. Relocating them temporarily shouldn't be a problem as long as Luvik cooperates."
Big Mona grabbed the goblet to his left and gulped down its contents.
He raised two fingers. "Second, once the slum people have been relocated, we'll proceed with the clean-up of the slum area. We'll start building several key structures—a school, a Weavers Guild, inns, and of course several houses to accommodate the original residents. Even small cabins would do. What matters most is that they're clean and safe. And all of these shall be open—for free—to the slum people. It'll be the first step in incorporating them into society. What do you think, partner?"
"A school, a Weavers Guild, and inns," said Lark. He was surprised that Big Mona had no qualms about giving free education to the rats of the slums.
"More than a year ago, when I heard that you'd been providing free education to your soldiers," said Big Mona. "Honestly, I thought you were a madman, partner. But I was too shortsighted. Too prideful. So what if the commoners become literate? Now that you've become king, this will always work to your advantage. The difference between a literate and an illiterate subject is like that of heaven and earth. Once the literacy rate of our kingdom grows, it'll be easier to disseminate information and orders to our people."
As the king's most trusted merchant, Big Mona would definitely reap the benefits of this change as well. Lark's success was interlinked with his, after all.
"According to Luvik, most of the slum people are capable of weaving their clothes," said Big Mona. "Although we have a Weavers Guild near the castle, the services they offer are almost exclusive to nobles. So how about creating a Weavers Guild that caters to commoners? Of course, the slum people are amateurs. But everyone has to start somewhere, right? And we can also opt for the Weavers Guild near the castle to send some of their men to train them. Inns would also be a profitable venture for the slum people, especially with the sudden influx of migrants from other cities. Partner, this is the least we should do if we want to abolish the slums and incorporate the slum people completely into our society. It'll be a job they can at least take pride in."
Education, a job that could feed them, and a safe place to live.
Lark agreed with everything Big Mona said.
"We'll wring the treasury dry at this rate," said Lark. "But very well.
We'll proceed with everything you've suggested, Mona."
Big Mona laughed, clearly amused by Lark's first few words. "I heard of your proposal to Arzen Boris. Wring the treasury dry? I know you're rich, partner."
Lark smiled. The fat merchant was really sharp. He was probably the only person in the capital who had any idea how wealthy Lark actually was.
And he deduced all of this just by using the information he'd obtained from the proposal with Arzen Boris.
Big Mona paused. "I heard the dwarves sent an envoy. What happened to them?"
"Not only the dwarves," said Lark. "Everfrost also sent delegates for the coronation ceremony. What's strange is that both groups left immediately after leaving behind presents."
Big Mona frowned. "How rude. If this were the empire, they wouldn't even dare leave the country without groveling before the emperor. So, what treasures did they leave behind?"
"Black obsidian salt from Everfrost," said Lark. "And a pendant made of adamantite from the dwarves."
Big Mona almost stood up from his seat in excitement. "Pendant made of adamantite?! And it's made by the dwarves themselves!"
Lark had heard that in this continent, adamantite was so rare that even dwarves coveted it. It was understandable for Big Mona to be this excited.
Big Mona coughed. "Well, I didn't expect the dwarves to be this generous. As for the black salt, I've tried it before and I must say… it's quite similar to the umami salt we have in our kingdom."
"They gave us quite a lot, enough to fill an entire carriage," said Lark.
Since only a pinch was required for each dish, that was enough to last the castle several years.
"But I'm curious, partner," said Big Mona. "You need to pass through the empire to reach Everfrost. Even if they took the sea route, they'd need a couple of weeks just to reach our ports. But they—" "I had the same doubts myself," said Lark. "I would have tried prying more information had they not left so soon after the coronation ceremony."
"Should I send my men after them?" said Big Mona. "They shouldn't have gotten that far from the capital yet."
Lark shook his head. "No, leave them be." He took out a pendant and handed it to Big Mona. "What concerns me the most is this."
"This is," mumbled Big Mona, his eyes slowly growing wide upon realizing that the pendant had a platinum sheen, screaming of the word adamantite. "That pendant!?"
"Look at the letters engraved below it," said Lark.
Big Mona examined the pendant closely. Indeed, there were symbols engraved underneath it.
"These are letters? What language is this?" said Big Mona. To his untrained eye, it looked like nothing but intertwining symbols.
Lark cast his magic, preventing their voices from reaching the ears of the servants around them.
"It's Draconian," said Lark. "The language of dragons."
Big Mona stiffened. He stared at Lark for several seconds.
"Draconian…" "It's a message from the dragon guarding the dwarven kingdom," said Lark. He smiled, clearly amused. "The primary objective of the dwarven envoy must have been delivering this to me."
"What does it say?" said Big Mona nervously.
Lark took the pendant from Big Mona. "It says: The eastern wind blows northwest, toward the world's revolving center. The revolving center refers to the item inside. It's an instruction on how to open the pendant. It's basically telling me the proper flow of mana to unlock the artifact."
Lark channeled mana into the pendant, following the instructions written in Draconian. After several seconds, there was a soft clicking sound and the pendant opened, revealing a small gemstone inside.
"It's a communication device," said Lark. "And it's probably connected directly to the dragon who sent this artifact. Interesting, isn't it? If I were a human who does not know the Draconian language, this present would appear to be nothing but a pendant made of precious adamantite. But if a human capable of deciphering it were to receive this item, he would be granted the opportunity to converse with the dragon itself."
Big Mona swallowed nervously. He started losing appetite at the mere thought of the dragon who'd been guarding the dwarven kingdom for centuries. Even when he was still a kid, Big Mona heard tales about the legendary creature protecting the dwarven mountains. Although Big Mona had seen the Earth Scylla before, he still believed that the dragon was far more terrifying than the seven-headed monster.
"A-Are you going to use that to communicate with the dragon, partner?" said Big Mona.
"Not now," said Lark. "I still have to oversee the match between the Blackstone Soldiers and the royal guards."
This was the first Big Mona had heard of it. "A fight between the two groups? What happened?"
"Just a petty squabble. I know how strong the Blackstone Soldiers are," said Lark. "But I've yet to see the royal guards fight earnestly. This is my chance to see their capabilities."
This was one of the reasons he proposed this match. Using this match as a baseline, Lark planned on adjusting both groups' training accordingly.