By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 13 - Chapter 7

Chapter 8, Episode 7: Lunchtime Small Talk

“Mm... This tastes like something that was made fresh in the city. I would not have believed this was a ration pack, had I not seen it being cooked myself! And it only needs to be boiled in its pack for such a short time... It’s perfect for camping and mid-march meals. If I had known of this when I was in the Order, I would have made sure both the Order and the military implemented these packs!” Sever was the one most excited about the instant meals I’d had the goblins heat up.

“I get it, Sever,” Remily said. “But you need to calm down.”

“It is incredible that we can have a proper meal out in the field in such a short time,” Reinbach said.

“These freeze-dried soups only require hot water. While they’re a convenient option for adventurers, they would make for a drastic improvement to military rations,” Sebas noted.

“Do you plan to sell these, Ryoma? I would pay good money for these,” Sever said.

“I’m glad you like them so much, but I’ve passed the manufacturing and distribution of these products onto Duke Reinhart,” I said.

“Hmm... Considering their potential, I suppose only a powerful noble could handle their distribution appropriately,” said Sever.

“If Ryoma weren’t protected by the Jamils, plenty of thickheaded nobles would try to get their grubby fingers on these. Good call, Ryoma,” Remily said. “These really are delicious... Slimes can be quite useful, can’t they?” But then she fell silent, seemingly lost in thought. From how quickly she was eating, she was still enjoying the food, at least.

“What’s the matter?” asked Reinbach.

“Well... Hearing Ryoma talk about his slimes—it seems like such a waste. An acquaintance from the capital recently told me that the slime lab in the National Monster Research Institute is being shut down,” she said.

“Wait, really?” I asked. Caulkin, one of my employees, used to work there.

Reinbach looked surprised. “Reinhart hasn’t told you?”

“Nothing about the capital, really... I’d heard from someone who used to work there that the slime lab had always been undervalued within the institute, but this is my first time hearing about its closure,” I said.

“Did you know that reports of monster sightings and attacks have been on the rise these past few years?” Remily asked.

“Only rumors,” I said.

“We have record of more monsters showing up and wreaking more havoc than usual in recent years, so we’ve been on high alert as a nation. Information is among the most important commodities of war, wouldn’t you agree? If our expected enemies are monsters, we need more information on monsters. When mutations or new species arise, monster researchers at the institute are called upon. Researchers will have more and more on their plate, so the higher-ups of the institute are trying to focus their resources on high-priority subjects,” Remily said, with a twinge of bitterness in her voice.

But now I was more concerned with what was going to happen with the slime researchers. “What will happen to the employees of the slime lab?”

“Don’t worry about them,” Reinbach said. “The House of Jamil will take in any who wish to work for us after they’re let go from the institute.”

“Really?!” I asked.

“Yes. His Majesty contacted the duke directly before the lab’s closure was finalized,” Sebas said. “I was involved in some capacity, but the duke spoke of having them continue their research on slimes, so we were under the impression that they would be working for you, Master Ryoma.”

“Continue research...” I muttered. Something came to my mind.

When I had first been hired as Reinhart’s engineer, during one of our meetings he had shown interest in my food-production plant—he’d even put forward the idea of building a brand-new farming village, partially to test the plant’s productivity. He mentioned two reasons for conducting this experiment: one, he wanted to see if anyone could handle all the steps involved in slime farming besides me, and to evaluate their effectiveness; two, he wanted to fortify the Jamils’ food stores so as to prepare for any emergencies.

With the construction of instant food plants and factories on the horizon, the scope of this project was going to grow dramatically. That was why we had decided that I wouldn’t be involved from the get-go. That was no skin off my back, so I had agreed, knowing that I could still go wherever and do whatever I wanted... Maybe the king’s request had led to that conversation, I realized now. Naturally, Reinhart couldn’t have discussed any details about his meeting with the king with me.

“Cost effectiveness is another matter, but if there were a whole village dedicated to producing and storing these meals as emergency rations, it would be a lifesaving safety net,” Sebas said.

“If someone needs to represent the project, things might go over more smoothly with a researcher from the capital than with young Ryoma,” Sever chimed in.

“Plus, the duke is taking in researchers who have been kicked out of the institute, regardless of the reason behind it. Perhaps he intends to let the dust settle before making them privy to any secrets,” Remily said.

“I pity their circumstances,” Sever said, “but there’s no telling their character or state of mind. In a moment of desperation, with their livelihood and honor on the balance... There’s no guarantee one of them wouldn’t be tempted to steal Ryoma’s contributions for himself upon meeting him.” He glanced over at my cooking cart, instant meals, and armor. Everyone, including me, agreed with his assessment.

“There are points of concern to be sure,” Reinbach offered, “and navigating these treacherous waters falls on the shoulders of the duke. The researchers will be given a second chance at their careers. Their efforts, and Reinhart’s, will determine their fate.”

“I agree,” I said.

One of the benefits of slime farming was the ease of obtaining farmland. In fact, that was how I could make my base in the middle of Gimul at all—a large warehouse or two would provide enough space to manufacture these instant meals. The Jamils would have no trouble recruiting trustworthy staff. Not to mention access to magic in this world—even if they had to develop a random plot of land from scratch, they should be able to accomplish that without spending too much time. I would be hoping for their success, for sure.

On another note, there was something else that had piqued my interest. “Speaking of...can I ask what sort of person the king is? If you don’t mind...” The only thing I knew about the king was his name, Elias de Rifall. But he probably knew a good deal about us through Hudom, and he might be involved in this project. If we were going to cross paths, I wanted even a small hint of his character.

When I explained this, everyone but Remily fell silent.

“No need to worry about little Elias,” Remily said. “He’s a bit unorthodox by royal standards, but otherwise reasonable when you sit down and talk to him.”

“Really?” I asked the others.

“There’s no doubt about that,” Sever agreed. “He is not afraid to make tough decisions, but he is far from heartless. He was privy to the closure of the slime lab and was frustrated by it. After all, researchers at the institute are the brains of the country itself. The slime researchers were surely valuable human resources. It must have been a tough decision to open up other resources in the institute.”

“Even if they simply switched the researchers to another lab, there’s no guarantee they’d be treated differently,” Remily added. “If there was a chance that they’d still be subjugated in the shadows, Elias might have decided it would be better for them and the country as a whole to have them conduct their research in a new environment.”

“If their research proves useful to the country, the king can access their results through the duke,” Sebas said. “Nobles in the capital won’t be too happy about it, but His Majesty never hesitates to make bold decisions whenever the situation calls for it.”

“If His Majesty is receiving word through Hudom, there is no doubt you are a part of his plans,” Reinbach said. “That being said, now that you are officially our engineer, no unreasonable demands will be made of you without Reinhart’s approval. Even royalty would not ignore a noble’s rights and run the risk of losing trust with his people. His Majesty will weigh what is best for the country.” He smiled.

Sever and Sebas were both choosing their words carefully, but they seemed to share the opinion that the involvement of the king would not cause me any trouble. So I decided to trust that.

“Okay. If something ever comes up, I might ask for your help,” I said.

“That’s it?” Remily asked. “You don’t want to ask any more questions?”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious, but all I needed to know was that His Majesty is not a tyrant. I’ve expected the story of the attack on Gimul to reach the capital, and I trust the Jamils to handle anything that comes up because of it. I trust them well enough to do that.”

My smile drew out theirs.

Our relaxing lunch came to an end with a cry from the distance. As soon as the crowlike shriek reached us, the goblins were on guard, reaching for their weapons, setting their lunches aside.

“A flock of harris crows. Maybe they smelled our lunch,” said Remily.

“Most likely,” Sever joined. “Oh, no need to deal with them head-on. They travel in large flocks, but they are weak monsters on their own. Scare them a little and they’ll fly away. Like this.”

I’d been preparing a spell while calming the goblins down, but Sever stopped me from casting. He cast Tornado, sending a flurry of wind into the air and blowing about twenty of the birds away. While it didn’t look like it had done that much damage, the flock scattered and flew away in the opposite direction.

“Those can be troublesome to take out. This way is much faster and doesn’t cost as much stamina or magical energy,” Sever added.

“Thank you,” I said.

“I could do this all day. Someone helped me realize that I still have plenty of time before I retire! Ha ha ha!”

Sever almost seemed like a different man compared to my first impression of him.

“Don’t get carried away and overextend yourself, Sever. You may feel younger, but your body is not. We can’t pick up as much of your slack as we used to,” said Reinbach.

“Oh, I understand I’ve aged. Just not to the point where I’d let a flock of birds get the better of me,” Sever persisted.

“You are getting carried away. That has always been a specialty of yours—”

“You’re one to talk, Reinbach! Do you remember when...”

Sever really had gotten more energetic. He launched into an argument with Reinbach, but they seemed almost invigorated by it. Sebas and Remily returning to their lunch like nothing was out of place showed me how long they had known each other.

I couldn’t help but hope for friendships like this that would keep me young in my later years.