Half a month later, in Trullinczentyr.
At a banquet hosted by the Minister of Finance.
Meklen Neum, Leithanien's wealthiest Elector, had been in high spirits lately, as bright as the June sun in Trullinczentyr.
He had even spent a fortune to acquire a blue sapphire known as the 'Heart of the Deep' from a bankrupt Victorian noble, having the finest craftsman set it in his cravat pin.
"Oh, Meklen, my dear friend."
Ziegler Augustin, the Elector of Fordgang Grand Region, drifted over with a wine glass in hand, feigning casualness.
"It seems business in Caplania has been excellent this year. That gem alone could probably buy half an armory, couldn't it?"
Ziegler's words were three parts envy and seven parts probing.
The other Electors present—Gabriel Alarand of Niedenher Grand Region and Alfred Utica of Enwald Grand Region—also pricked up their ears.
They had all heard that Caplania's merchant caravans had been unusually active lately, having all but monopolized the transport routes to Ursus.
Meanwhile, prices for iron ore and coal on the international market had been soaring, and the shadow of the Neum family seemed to be behind it all.
Meklen stroked the gem on his chest, an innocent smile playing on his lips.
"Not at all, not at all, Your Excellency Ziegler is too kind," he said, wagging a chubby finger.
"The transport business... it's just so-so. Barely enough to make ends meet."
"Speaking of which, I heard the grain harvest in your Fordgang wasn't ideal this year?"
"Grain prices in Ursus shot up a while ago, and I happened to have stockpiled a batch. If Your Excellency Ziegler is interested, I can give you a friendly price."
The smile on Ziegler Augustin's face froze for a moment.
He cleared his throat, trying to steer the conversation back on track. "We can discuss that later. I heard... that Wolner of Schtong visited Wasser Fief some days ago?"
At this question, all the nobles who had been eavesdropping nearby paused their conversations, their gazes drifting pointedly in their direction.
Wolner von Hochberg?
That Elector, renowned for his poetry and elegance, would actually visit that workers' chief?
Meklen downed a large gulp of wine and let out a satisfied sigh.
He wiped his mouth and said, "He went. And not only did he go, I heard they hit it off splendidly."
"That sentimental fellow Wolner is actually concerned with his fief's economy now!"
"He was asking me whether it's faster to transport ore from Schtong to Wasser Fief by waterway or by the newly built highway."
"'A newly built highway?'" Ziegler keenly seized on the keyword.
"Yes, a highway," Meklen said, as if it were a trivial matter.
"Wasser Fief and Schtong are planning a joint venture to build a high-spec highway connecting Eisenwald to the mining districts of Schtong."
"They say it will cut transport time in half."
"Oh, right, I believe the project was open for public bidding, but..."
He deliberately drew out his words, glancing around at the curious yet wary faces.
"...most of the engineering contracts have already been secured by Wasser Fief's People's Construction Company and a few of our own engineering teams from Caplania."
"Can't be helped. Who else has the newest equipment and the most efficient workers?" He spread his hands, feigning helplessness.
"His Excellency Wolner says it's to embrace the new era."
"Isn't that hilarious? A poet, starting to talk about eras!"
The sheer amount of information packed into these words left everyone present feeling dizzy.
A joint highway venture?
Wolner and Lacey?
Weren't those two completely unrelated?
When did they become so close?
Such an action meant that Schtong was aligning itself with the Workers' Party.
What stung them even more was the unconcealed boasting in Meklen's words.
While they were still bickering over funds to repair the potholed dirt roads in their own fiefs, others were already building a high-spec highway connecting two grand regions.
And the ones spearheading it all were the merchant they despised most and the mud-leg they most wanted to see hanged.
"It's just a highway. How much profit can there be?" a young noble muttered disdainfully from a corner, his voice laced with sourness.
Meklen heard him and laughed, revealing a set of white teeth.
"Profit? Young man, your perspective is far too narrow."
He set down his wine glass and walked to the center of the hall.
"Do you know that a railway from Caplania to Wasser Fief is currently being surveyed? Do you know what that means?"
He held up one finger. "It means that the iron pots, farming tools, and fabrics produced in Wasser Fief's factories—so cheap you can't even imagine—can flood the markets of Caplania within a single day!"
"And our grain, timber, and crafts from Caplania can be transported into that industrial zone at the lowest possible cost."
He held up a second finger. "This railway—the preliminary surveying, design, and procurement alone—costs an astronomical sum."
"The procurement of iron ore and coal alone has cost enough money to buy this entire manor you're standing in."
"And that... is only the beginning."
Meklen's voice echoed through the quiet hall, striking at the fragile pride of the old nobles.
Finished, he picked up his glass, took a satisfied sip, and then turned to leave, leaving a crowd of pensive old nobles in his wake.
The atmosphere of the banquet remained lively, with elegant music echoing beneath the crystal chandeliers.
But for this group, especially the three Electors—Ziegler, Gabriel, and Alfred—their minds were already in turmoil.
For these Electors with their modest territories and mediocre power, wealth growth had long since hit a bottleneck.
They didn't possess the formidable military strength of Heidenshweir, nor did they control the lifeblood of commerce like Caplania.
Maintaining their current dignity was already their greatest ambition.
But now, Lacey, a man of humble birth; Meklen, reeking of coin; and Wolner, who had only ever cared for poetry and romance, had joined forces to forge a golden road they wouldn't have even dared to dream of.
Jealousy.
It was true jealousy.
After the banquet, the three of them gathered, as if by unspoken agreement, in a quiet side hall.
"We... cannot continue to stand idly by."
Ziegler Augustin was the first to speak, his expression grave.
"That fatso Meklen's words may have been exaggerated, but you saw it yourselves—his attire, the triumphant looks on his advisors' faces. It doesn't seem fake."
"If this continues, the gap between us and them will only grow wider."
"'But, that Lacey...'" Gabriel Alarand said, worried.
"He's an absolute madman!"
"The things he's done in Wasser Fief—abolishing noble privileges, establishing some 'special people's court,' throwing the entire family of Count Austin from the tower!"
"If we were to cooperate with him, wouldn't that be like asking a tiger for its skin?"
"Once he grows stronger, the first ones he'll devour will likely be us old nobles!"
"Gabriel has a point," Alfred Utica chimed in.
"Imperial authority, tradition, order—these are the very foundations of our existence."
"That Lacey, he wants to overthrow it all. Cooperating with him would be a betrayal of our own class."
"Class? Tradition?" Ziegler sneered.
"My friends, when Meklen's transport fleets fill the ports and Wolner's granaries are overflowing, can your so-called class and tradition trade for even a single wagon of coal?"
He looked at his two colleagues and said, word by word, "The times have changed!"
"The Twin Empresses have tacitly approved Lacey's existence. Even the ever-so-lofty Wolner has chosen to work with him. What does that tell you?"
"It means that Lacey represents a tide we cannot stop!"
"What we need to consider now is not whether to get on the ship, but how to buy a ticket for the most respectable price!"
Ziegler's words plunged the side hall into a long silence.
After a long while, Gabriel finally spoke with difficulty, "But... Wasser Fief is locked down like an iron barrel. The news we get is hard to verify."
"What if Meklen and Wolner are just a front put up by Lacey, and that land is actually a trap?"
"Which is why we must go and see for ourselves." A look of resolve flashed in Ziegler's eyes.
"We can no longer rely on hearsay and rumors."
"The three of us will each dispatch our most reliable teams, under the guise of a trade inspection, to Wasser Fief, to Schtong, and to the railway construction sites in Caplania. We will see with our own eyes what it's truly like there!"
"I agree," Alfred nodded immediately.
Gabriel hesitated for a moment before finally giving a slow nod. "Alright. You have to trot it out to see if it's a mule or a horse."
"I want to see for myself if the pie he's drawn is something we can eat, or if it will poison us."
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