Capital City 3

The commander spoke up.

"Let's discuss business. I came today not only because of Taro's introduction, but because I had something else I wanted to ask."

"Yeah, that's right. The new Empress, isn't it?

I was invited to a party hosted by the Empress recently. I attended and had a chance to speak with her. Well, it was basically a gathering of influential people under the guise of a citizen exchange event—more like a party where everyone was expected to show their loyalty."

"May I hear your impressions?"

Oh! So things like this still remain... Just as I thought, this really is another world.

"This is a service.

The Empress is young, but she possesses the talent to lead people. She also has a strong heart that isn't easily swayed by desire. But above all, she lacks experience. She seems quite awkward at negotiations— that was my impression."

"Age-appropriate, then. At least she has talent, so it's manageable. What are you planning to do?"

"If she's truly incompetent, I'll deal with her accordingly. If not, we'll handle it when the time comes."

Our conversation continued afterward, with a large amount of information exchanged. I was completely left out of it.

On the way back

"Taro-kun, if you leave that merchant group, you're welcome to come stay at my place anytime."

"Haha... um..."

What was she even saying? I laughed awkwardly and made a quick escape.

On the way home, the group leader treated me to lunch.

"You've been in this world for a while now—have you grown accustomed to it?"

"Thanks to your kindness, I've managed to get by. I'm truly grateful."

"Then, are you satisfied with your current life?"

"...What do you mean by that?"

"Please don't take offense, but now that you can manage your daily life and have some free time, doesn't that mean you've begun to discover what you truly want to do in this world?"

"Is this truly what you want to do?"

I'd been asked something similar by a high school teacher a few years ago. I never thought I'd hear it again.

"Looking at you these days, I get the feeling you're more passionate about something else than just carrying luggage for the trading group. Fortunately, it seems you also have talent for it."

Though your time here in the empire is brief, I'd like you to consider your future path during this period. I chose to align with her this time simply to broaden your options.

Moreover, your strength is formidable—someone capable of defeating a monster alone. If you're willing to travel with us, I’d gladly welcome you as a valuable ally.

But whether you desire that or not is uncertain, so I ask you to think carefully about your choices. Consider all possible paths.

To be honest, this world is barely past the medieval era.

I truly feel fortunate to have the freedom to choose my profession.

Perhaps worrying about one's future path is something that won’t change, no matter how much the world evolves. That night, I lay in bed, tormented by doubt.

The next day, I headed toward the library. On the way, I saw Emma loading and unloading luggage from an old, single-story house.

"Hey, Emma. You're amazing—how did you find a room this quickly?"

"Taro, it's been a while since yesterday.

I really pushed myself. Wasting time worrying was pointless."

Saying that, she flexed her arm, though she clearly wasn't doing it properly.

"You're right about that. Is there anything I can help with?

I'm pretty good at carrying things, you know."

"In that case, could you help me move the experimental equipment?"

It was incredibly heavy, and I was really worried about how to carry it.

Unexpectedly, I was treated rather harshly and made to do all the hard work.

It was grueling labor.

After transporting a certain amount of items, something caught my eye.

"Emma-san, is this what you mentioned yesterday?"

"Yes, you've figured it out well."

Of course I noticed. After all, I was considered excellent even at university.

It was a classic, large-scale steam engine.

It resembles the Watt-type steam engine shown in the thermodynamics textbook I saw during my first year of university.

"This is a steam automaton I devised. It uses a fire crystal to turn water into steam. The steam will drive a piston, converting its reciprocating motion into rotational motion to turn the wheels of a carriage."

The lecture had already begun without me noticing, yet it felt strangely nostalgic. I found myself naturally drawn in, focusing intently.

After asking a few questions, everything I knew and didn't know came back to me—clear evidence of deep research.

But then a thought occurred to me.

"By the way, how exactly are you supplying magical essence while the crystal is activated?"

"U-uh, well..."

His eyes completely glazed over. It seemed basic research was still needed.

Above all, this steam engine must be incredibly inefficient. It wouldn't work properly under normal conditions.

"What do you think about Taro's method of supplying mana? You were reading books about mana stones at the library, weren't you?"

"No, I'm just a porter for the merchant guild. I don't know the details, but if mana can be transferred to mana stones, maybe being able to store mana would give us a breakthrough?"

"That's true. Hmm, wait—actually, couldn't a trading guild handle the exchange of magical stones? We use them in large quantities for research, but supply is limited, making progress difficult."

"It's not impossible, but such items don't circulate easily even within trading guilds. The output seems unstable, too..."

"There's still so much we don't know about magical stones. Everyone's used them for ages, but they remain mysterious."

Understood. From here on, I'll secure a certain amount of the magical stones we find. I can't guarantee anything, so please don't get your hopes up too high.

Thank you. It's payment, after all...

Ah, about that—price is flexible. Research doesn't progress easily, you know. In return, I'd like to ask for information from you.

Information? What kind of information? I don't know much myself, though.

"Something like that—basically, anything related to the research except the actual results. That way, we can roughly gauge the country's technological level and also track emerging trends."

"I see, so that's the idea. Understood. Let's proceed with the contract, then."

After finishing the assistance, leaving the research institute, it was already around noon. What should I do? For some reason, I suddenly don't feel like going to the library today.

Since I'm already here in the capital, I might as well go sightseeing.