Ch.13 Coffee and Supply Lines (Patreon)

After a good night's sleep, I walked out to the fields where we would make chocolate that day. The early morning air hung heavy with the intoxicating scent of cocoa, filled with the earthy perfume of ripening cocoa pods. The sky was a watercolor canvas just being touched by the brush of dawn, hues of pink and gold interweaving seamlessly, reflecting gently off the vast emerald sea of leaves that spread out before me.

Everywhere I turned, I could hear the vibrant hum of life, the percussive beat of distant workers' boots breaking through the carpet of fallen leaves, the staccato chirping of crickets playing their morning symphony, and the chatter of the early birds.

It was a good morning to make drugs.

Our drug called for simple ingredients:

1 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup cocoa butter

1/2 cup sugar cane syrup

1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

That's it. Melt the cocoa butter over a double boiler and then add warm milk to it. Once combined, add sifted cocoa powder, cane syrup, and vanilla extract. Mix well, pour the mixture into a container, and let it cool for two hours in a cool, dry place.

It really isn't a remarkable secret. There are no gremlins adding pixie dust into the mix. Nope. In a few hours, we would have a truly absurd amount of milk chocolate, which we would package for the affluent nobles who would pay twenty silver a bar to get their hands on it.

"Making chocolate is very simple, but we'll need to keep the recipes a secret," I explained to Thea and Lyssa. "Therefore, you'll be the ones to add our secret ingredients until Peggy gets here."

They nodded, and we set to work.

First, I gave everyone standardized bowls to scoop cocoa butter. Once measured, we put the cocoa butter into the double boilers we made for shea, allowing it to melt gently into a liquid. Lastly, I had Lyssa and Thea measure the other ingredients before handing them off for sifting and mixing.

I personally worked with a group of people to heat cow's milk to around 161°F or 71.7°C, which was an estimate. I still hadn't introduced thermometers and heat gauges yet, but I would do so when I returned. For now, it was enough to pasteurize the milk and kill the bacteria. Then, I used a basic ice spell to cool it rapidly. Creating cooling systems would be necessary in the future to handle mundane but important processes like this.

Regma brought us the first 500 clay chocolate bar molds from the pottery guild that baked the quicklime, and we had the workers pour the chocolate mixture into the molds.

Once we finished, we moved the molds to a cool storehouse and covered them with a cloth. I secretly cleaned the cloth with my magic, although I made a show using wind magic to blast out dirt before washing. Both magics were inconvenient, as they weren't scalable, but the first batch of chocolate spread the hype and set the price point. Therefore, it was critical.

Once the chocolate bars cooled, I put them into small containers to prevent them from breaking during transit.

"We'd probably benefit from just sending the raw ingredients home," I mumbled, feeling the humidity in the air. "They'll melt or break before they make it to Valeria. Hmmm... I suppose we'll make the cosmetics here and process the chocolate in Elderthorn. Then I can set up swamp coolers using bellows."

By putting water-soaked cellulose from trees in front of the air-blowing system for a blast furnace, I could create a swamp cooler to keep crops, chocolate, and other goods cold throughout the seasons.

“Carter still isn’t advanced enough to create steam engines. However, once he can, the world will skyrocket in its efficiency. Therefore, I have to prioritize metalwork first and fore—”

"What are you mumbling about?" Lyssa sighed, sweating buckets while watching me stand around with a pensive expression.

"Nothing," I replied. "I was just taking a moment to be thankful for everything you do for me."

Her icy blue eyes pierced through my soul. "If you can't lie well—don't. Compliments turn into insults."

I rolled my eyes in vexation as I walked away, grumbling, "Wants me to be a kid; chastises me for acting like one."

---

Lyssa's eyes glazed over before Thea giggled with a bright smile, and her mood elevated, watching me walk around and find solutions to storage and transportation problems. "Well, he's too boring to be a demon lord...." Her eyes widened when she saw Thea giving her a deadly glare. "I was just kidding. I don't think he's the demon lord...."

Thea's gaze didn't waver, making the woman's mouth twitch.

"And..." Lyssa said. "He's not boring?"

Thea's eyes lit up with a bright smile. "I agree!" Without a second thought, she returned to work, humming a warm tune, making Lyssa shudder.

---

After the first day, we created a total of 500 chocolate bars. The next day, we made 750, 1,000 the following day, and finally, up to 2,000 over the week as we acquired more molds and increased efficiency.

In addition to milk chocolate, we made dark chocolate of grades by simply omitting the milk and regulating the cocoa-to-sugar cane ratio. We also added almonds, macadamia nuts, and dried fruits into the chocolate for variety.

Variety was key.

I had provided the town with more income in two weeks than it had traded for in the past year, so we all celebrated with chocolate and coffee cherry wine at the end of the week. Being hailed as a king and visionary for making simple products felt strange. This was... nice.

Perhaps I have emotions, but they're so twisted and gnarled behind walls of distrust and manipulation that they're not showing. That made me nervous because I could see how close I was to experiencing emotions whenever I closed my eyes.

—

Unique usages: (938/1,000)

—

It’s starting to stress me out.

I wouldn't say I'm happy, but I'm so much better off than I was on Earth that I’m afraid emotions will ruin everything. Still, Aphrodite called it mandatory, and I could always make myself cold and callous again. I think.

After a restless night, I woke up with bloodshot, tired eyes. "I'm going to make coffee today," I grumbled. "Not that it will help me today."

With a yawn, I went to the coffee cherry orchard.

Coffee is similar to cocoa in many ways. Like cocoa, coffee beans are the seeds of a fruit called "coffee cherries," each containing two coffee beans. They are red, resemble tiny crab apples instead of traditional cherries, and grow on trees.

If I were to make coffee from scratch, I'd have people remove the beans from the pulp and order large barrels to store it. Unlike cocoa, whose pulp is necessary for fermentation, fermenting coffee cherry pulp isn't required. Instead, people either eat it or ferment it into coffee cherry wine.

To make the wine, add four cups of water to every cup of cherry pulp, cover it with a clean cloth, then wait one to two weeks. After that, strain the liquid through a fine mesh cloth into a cask.

Wine.

Seriously. That's it. It tastes like swill unless you let it age for 3-6 months, but it won't become more alcoholic after the fermentation. It's interesting.

However, there was no need for me to make coffee from scratch. Instead, I just needed the beans, which were usually discarded.

After going to the farm with Regma and negotiating a deal to buy all of the coffee beans at a low, fixed price, I purchased large casks and filled them with water. Then, I dumped hundreds of pounds of coffee beans into the water, covered it with cloth, and let it soak for 24 hours.

This process uses bacteria to remove the mucilage, the membrane from the pulp stuck to the seed.

A day later, at the same time, I had people pour out the water and set the beans up for air drying in the summer sun. This process would only take a few days in this heat but could take weeks if the weather isn't suitable. Therefore, I'll need to teach a dry heat spell to the workers I send to ensure timely drying and quality control, as quality dehumidifiers do not yet exist, and I'm already stretched thin.

Now it was just time to wait.

I spent most of my remaining time in Luminara eating food and relaxing while my people produced a metric ton of chocolate and hundreds of pounds of cosmetics. Naturally, we kept the secret ingredients hidden, but there wasn't much harm in knowing. Anyone who made chocolate would still need to transport it to Valeria, market it, and sell it. Making something doesn't guarantee profitability, and people will soon learn that.

So I relaxed with Thea while the coffee dried.

Once it was finished, I taught people how to roast coffee beans, which was similar to roasting cocoa beans.

The beans start out yellow-green before adding them to a pan over medium heat, stirring them constantly. Around the time the beans become yellowish-brown, they start popping like popcorn. The pop is known as a "crack," which is a distinctive characteristic of coffee beans.

Once the beans crack, they're considered roasted. However, the heat continues depending on whether you want a light, medium, or dark roast. So, if you’re wondering what the difference is, look at the color. Yellow-brown. Brown. Dark brown.

That’s it.

After roasting the coffee beans, you leave them to dry for two days to release carbon dioxide built up during the roasting process. This period is called the "degassing period" or simply the resting period.

***

By the time the week passed and the coffee was ready, I looked like a zombie from overwork. There was just too much going on. However, at least there was coffee now!

"Thank you, Yessa," I said, picking up fresh coffee beans she had just ground. I put them into a gourd. "Efferte Phlegethon et coquite peccatores."

To everyone's shock, a mixture of water and fire magic created a boiling river that flowed into the gourd as I rubbed my eyes, oblivious to everyone's astonished expressions.

Then I closed the lid, rubbed my temples, and let it soak. At the end of the soaking period, I placed a cloth over the top of the gourd and poured the coffee into a cup in one fluid motion, as if it were only natural.

After taking a deep whiff, I took my first sip of Soracan Coffee. The taste brought slight tears to my eyes. “Wow, this tastes like shit.”

However, it did the trick, awakening me from the dead and allowing me to look around for the first time. A dozen people were staring at me as if they were looking into the eyes of God. “What’s going on?” I furrowed my brows.

"It's just that no one ever sees you use magic," Thea giggled. "Despite your power and strength, you spend most of your time... making stuff like they do."

"Oh, that's right, I haven't met anyone with magic here," I remarked, realizing the absurdity for the first time and then looking at the gourd. 'There's no way in hell I'll tell them that I used the first line of a vicious B-rank spell to make coffee,' I internally added.

Roughly translated, the line I used meant, "Bring forth Phlegethon and boil the sinners," referring to the boiling Greek river that boiled people for eternity in Dante's Inferno.

Speaking of which, it wasn't a coincidence that a Greek god sent me to this world. While the names differed, many Greek mythology "myths" are attributed to the Thannoka religion in Novena and beyond. I discovered this after researching why Cocytus was in the name of my ice spell and why Phlegethon was in my fire spell. I'm also curious about what kind of magic might be associated with Styx, Acheron, and, most importantly, Lethe—the rivers of Unbreakable Oath,

It was just the first line of a six-line spell that literally summoned a massive flood of boiling water. However, I only needed the boiling water part, so it wasn't a big deal.

"I see...." I said, running my fingers through my brown hair. "Then how about a magic trick?"

As I moved my fingers, my hair turned white.

An explosion of shock and awe erupted in the area, along with laughter and a hint of fear. It was a complete spectacle in my eyes, as I had barely woken up, so I released the dark spell and returned to normal. With a bow, I faded into the background for eight more cups of terrible-tasting coffee.

"They should be here in the next few days," I noted, walking into my room, followed by Thea. "It's almost time to go home."

***

After showing everyone the coffee-making process, I had nothing else to do. We had people making chocolate, coffee, and cosmetics, and we only needed to check in periodically to weigh some magic ingredients while the inventory appeared. Additionally, I used ice magic to cool down the storehouse.

Otherwise, Thea and I played cards and board games or explored the area, swimming in ponds, enjoying the sights and animals, and doing other touristy things.

A week flew by in that manner before our troops arrived atop a massive blue wyvern, once again causing panic across the land. However, I had forewarned everyone, so Zora and Regma were able to calm people down as the majestic creature descended to the ground, causing dust and debris to billow from its wings.

"I HATE YOU!" a familiar voice screeched from above.

I cupped my hands around my mouth and took a deep breath. "I MISSED YOU TOO, PEGGY!"

"YOU'RE THE WORST!" Peggy screamed.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" I yelled. "YOU THINK I'M THE BEST?!"

The woman wasn't amused when she dismounted from the wyvern and walked up to me, her face green and twisted.

"You don't look so hot," I remarked, mischief in my eyes.

"This wyvern kidnaps me in the middle of a class—without so much as a note for explanation—and then flies me over an ocean where I can't even get a little privacy around these men, and you have the audacity to joke about it?" Peggy snarled.

I frowned with a serious expression, turning to the other battered men and women suffering from hunger and dehydration. Then I looked at Zenith, who was snorting at them. "Since Zenith didn't explain," I narrowed my eyes, "let me break down what's going on. But first, let's get you fed and hydrated."

After providing a lavish feast with all the water everyone could drink and issuing a few strategic apologies, thanks, and the like, I got to business.

"I've called everyone here today, at least temporarily, to kickstart a revolution in cosmetics," I announced. "With the products you will make, we'll take this world by storm."

I explained that we would be making non-toxic foundation, concealer, and color correctors initially, with plans to introduce blush, lipsticks, and other products in the future.

"These cosmetics are much like soap, and we’ll also be using the butters in our soap," I continued. "Therefore, the Peggy's Soap and Zenith Cosmetics lines of Everwood Company are now partners."

Peggy's eyes widened in shock when she saw me pull out a logo that was similar to the Silverbrook Soap-Makers Guild logo, which featured a soap bar resting atop a bubbling brook and surrounded by herbs, but with the Everwood Insignia encasing it—a regal, ancient tree under a crown, with roots forming a shield. In the blended version, the shield was hollow, revealing Peggy's logo underneath. "Is that... mine?"

"As a product line owner, you represent a company under my umbrella," I explained. "This is your baby. Your pride. Your joy. And those involved in starting it will receive a percentage. Follow my vision, and you'll all be wealthier than most nobles by next year!"

As the seasick group cheered, I explained that Everwood Company was becoming an umbrella corporation that handled trade routes, imported supplies, exported goods, and managed contracts and legal matters.

In short, Peggy would focus on creating the best soap and cosmetics imaginable. At the same time, we took care of the rest—providing raw materials, packaging, selling the goods, and resolving any legal issues.

This type of business model is called a "supply chain;" it is similar to what Amazon, a company from my home city of Seattle, Washington, does. And, like Amazon, I planned to have my hands in everything! Everwood Company would be a business empire that spanned modern civilization.

After the announcement, we celebrated by getting twisted on cherry coffee wine. Peggy was a lightweight, so she was flushed in the cheeks and giggly after a few glasses.

By the way, it was legal for children to drink alcohol in most Solstice. A primary reason is that it’s less prone to bacterial diseases than water, especially in cities without sewers. Practical.

"What's your deal, anyway?" Peggy slurred, pushing my shoulder. "Mr. Big Bad Murdering Bread Maker. Mr. Soapy Sage Soaper... you. Hic."

“What do you mean?” I frowned.

“What do you mean ‘what do I mean?’” She swayed back and forth. "You're... like a god. Not a demon lord, but something else. The prophet thing just... doesn't check out. You're too handsome."

‘This must be the charm spell Aphrodite put on me,’ I sighed internally. ‘It was helpful at first, but as my popularity grows, it’s just getting obnoxious. I wonder if she’ll turn it off.’

“What does being handsome have to do with being a prophet?” I frowned.

"Everything!" Peggy snapped, pointing her finger at me accusingly. "Ev-ree-thing~!"

"Get your hands off the young master before I rip out your spine and whip your workers with it," an icy voice called out from behind.

"W-Wait! Who is this?" Peggy slurred, seeing Zenith grab her at lightning speed and stare at her with lethal amethyst eyes.

"Zenith, Peggy is my business partner; please release her," I ordered.

The silver-haired woman let go but didn't walk away.

"Zenith, as in the cosmetics I'm making?" Peggy's eyes wandered a few centimeters. "Oh my, you're hurt—hey, wait!"

Zenith's eyes trembled when she realized her makeup wasn't fully covering her burn, and she tried to storm away. However, I reached out and grabbed her hand. "Wait up, Zenith," I said. "Peggy is the one making the makeup."

After ten gruesome minutes of trying to convince a drunk woman to engage in conversation with a highly violent and destructive princess, Peggy said she could fix Zenith's makeup, and they instantly became best friends.

‘Zenith’s great… if you survive long enough to get on her good side,’ I silently sighed, watching them gossip about me while I was still five feet away. Then I turned around and found Thea waiting for me nervously. “Do you… want a hug?” I asked, opening my arms. A split second later, I took a Thea to the chest and coughed, hitting a wall while she rubbed her ears on me.

I took a deep breath and hugged her back. Then we sat on a rooftop and watched the stars for an hour before she passed out, and I put my cat princess to bed.

It was a good night and a nice end to my "vacation" in Soracan.

***

Over the next week, I helped teach Peggy the ins and outs of cosmetic making and shared numerous other secrets, including where to source pigments for future makeup, how to make makeup for long-term storage, and various oils that can enhance the products.

During that time, she also learned how to manage the chocolate and coffee operations, which were separate but interconnected. In the future, I planned to place a sweets tycoon at the helm of the chocolate production, but for now, Peggy agreed to oversee both operations because cocoa butter was vital for cosmetics and soft soaps.

Strangely enough, we couldn't make soft soaps with shea and cocoa until I introduced electricity to the world. Electricity was essential for electrolysis, separating water into hydrogen and oxygen. This process was necessary to create sodium hydroxide, crucial for saponifying soaps with high shea and cocoa butter content. However, even without soft soaps, we could still produce lotions and moisturizers, so there were immediate and long-term benefits.

Once she felt ready, we loaded up a full caravan with crates of chocolate, and we set off toward Nimba Road.

Much like the Silk Road, the Nimba Road served as a vital trade route for commerce and cultural exchange, connecting Valencia to Leeshmar. This renowned port town facilitated the shipment of goods between the Valencian continent and Novena, where Valeria is located.

The road was expansive, winding through the Valedor Rainforest, crossing radiant rivers, and traversing mystical mountains before reaching the Mystic Azure Sea. Merchants traveled along its path in various ways—some preferred gliding above the treetops on sturdy “hawksails,” large winged reptiles; others used long-tailed “luminescent lantherns,” cat-like creatures with remarkable strength, to pull carts stacked high with goods. Many also chose to walk with backpacks or utilize oxen-driven wagons for slower transportation.

We opted for long-tailed luminescent lantherns as our mode of transport, as these massive yellow cats could haul half a ton of supplies at high speeds—and Thea adored them. She was incredibly cute, taking turns riding them and hugging their large furry necks, and I found myself spending a lot of time... smiling. It was a strange feeling.

It never lasted long; the moment literally anyone else said something to me, my smile disappeared, and a wave of vexation engulfed me. But at least it was a start.

The journey from Luminara to Leeshmar took three days, so we spent the first night at Moonrests, rest stops for travelers. People called them "Moonrests" because they were built under ancient pillars made from limestone waxed with mashed-up Luminara flowers, causing them to glow and ward off intruders.

Luminara took its name from the flower, and we hadn't fully grasped its significance until twilight when the forest came alive with the soft glow of hundreds of thousands of fireflies. At that moment, we felt an inexplicable compulsion to continue down the road.

It was a truly beautiful sight.

During our stay at the Moonrests, we mingled with other caravans passing through and listened to their stories. Though Thea and Lyssa were still picking up Vershir, I could engage in basic conversations due to my ability to speak multiple languages and memorize words—I only had to learn syntax, which came along quickly.

The travelers discussed the Great Lantern Night, a festival where people gathered to eat, dance, and release thousands of paper lanterns into the sky using kites. I hoped to witness this festival one day.

They also shared tales of their wares, including glimmerberries, luminescent berries that restore energy; silverleaf tea, a ceremonial drink for meditation; and suncaps, mushrooms that enhance strength and endurance.

We offered to trade chocolate for their goods and soon found ourselves unloading crates—full crates—of chocolate. By the end of the first night, I had made ten times what I had invested in the beans and labor, and we hadn't even reached the sea yet!

We were on track to amass a fortune for our war chest.

The following day, we continued our journey, passing through the jungle Zenith had flown us over. Everything was going smoothly until midday, when we encountered a checkpoint.

Regma gulped and looked at me as burly individuals armed with machetes inspected the caravan luggage of those ahead of us, shouting commands in Veshir. They immediately started stealing the wares from the man, making my blood boil. “Lord Everwood, it really isn’t that much.”

"Oi! Dal mi diran legal ataki ore lava zoi man's wares!" I roared, causing the young woman's heart to skip a beat.

"They don't have any legal orders to show you!" Regma hissed, panicked. "This is 'common law!'"

“Not anymore, it’s not,” I declared.

The men exchanged glances, and one with a scar on his chest snarled, "Kyan kau diran?"

"Do I want to die?" I laughed in Veshir. "I should be asking you that. If you're not an official, leave or I'll kill you."

"Don't tell them you'll kill them!" Regma yelled at me, observing the men's eyes turning bloodthirsty. "You'll anger all of Cobra!"

"Good," I retorted, dismounting from the reins of my lanthern. "I'm only here temporarily before my guards take over. It would be better to eliminate most of the group now."

With an icy expression, I approached them.

"Do you not know who we are??" one of them chuckled.

"If you're not an official, I don't care who you are."

"Who does this cocky teen think they are? Let's kill this kid!"

The man swung his machete at my head, but I effortlessly grabbed his forearm. He stared at my fourteen-year-old frame in disbelief, noticing the throbbing veins on his bicep as he tried to push forward and failed. "Hia?"

CRAaaaACK!

After flexing my hand and applying immense grip strength, the man's forearm shattered, his muscle fibers tearing and fraying in a chain reaction, rendering his arm useless.

BOOM!

Before he could scream, I turned his arm towards his wagon and kicked him into it, shattering the wood.

"W-We are from Cobra. Gruder Rega Salaza heads us!" the other man yelled.

"I don't know who that is, and I don't care," I replied, advancing towards him.

That's just a name to me. It means nothing, like your petty weapons.

The other man screamed as I punched him in his rib cage, puncturing his lungs with his shattered ribs.

Once I finished dealing with them, I looked at my people. "Go on ahead, Thea," I instructed.

Thea nodded and beckoned everyone to continue, including the man they had initially stopped.

Once they were out of sight, I dissolved their wagons and all the stolen goods. “Have fun thinking someone skipped town with your goods, Gruder Salaza,” I smiled. "Hunt for them and the others goods are about to vanish like ghosts on this journey."

With a malicious grin, I dispersed the ashes with a gust of wind. "By the time you realize that something is breaking your people, you'll be consumed by despair and incapable of fighting back," I declared. "I will turn my laws into a haunting tale, a ghost story that instills fear and obedience in all who hear it."

They'll know someone has been killing their people. They might even learn that I'm the one responsible. But they'll never find a body. Their people will simply vanish without a trace, and they'll be left without closure. They'll send their organization after me, only to vanish like a ghost story. Psychological warfare. That was my strategy.

After tidying up the details, I returned and asked the man they had been robbing to accept our protection until we reached Leeshmar. For the success of my ghost story, the witnesses needed to remain silent. If I could get him and the others aboard ships, they would disappear for at least half a year, and nobody would ever suspect a thing.

In a mix of fear and gratitude, we came to know him as Old Man Briggs, and he agreed to our offer. With that settled, we continued our journey.

Two more incidents along the way had the same outcome, and the second group became afraid to say that someone stole the goods from them instead of saying that they didn't find anything. It was working.

That evening, we gathered around a campfire at a Moonrest, sharing stories with Old Man Briggs. He was renowned for acquiring “skyroot,” a wind magic balancing resource, and bringing it to Novena. Hence, like many merchants, he could speak Skylandish.

"It helps balance wind mana?" I inquired. "What does that mean?"

"It's like a shortcut to stabilize your mana release," Old Man Briggs explained, giving a likable grin despite missing a few teeth. "Wind mages who use it find they can hover in the air using their magic, as it takes root in their minds." He tapped his temple a few times for emphasis.

"Ah, so that's why they call it a root even though it's a nut," I replied, examining the blue walnut in his hand. "How much does it cost?"

"Oh, this one?" he chuckled, looking at the walnut. "It's yours, friend. I was mighty displeased when you went around killin’ those people, but now that you're protectin’ me, I reckon I'll make three times as much this year."

I accepted it with a smile and signaled one of my helpers to bring over a crate.

When she opened it, Old Man Brigg’s eyes widened in surprise. "This smells mighty nice."

"This is chocolate," I smiled. "There are many varieties..." For the next half hour, I explained the different types to him and announced that I was giving him a crate in exchange for the information and such a valuable resource, as I could tell it was worth a significant amount.

In the end, I managed to trade for a second skyroot for Thea, offering a box of cosmetics and a crate of chocolate with a market value exceeding 1,000 gold. It confirmed my suspicions.

When the night drew to a close, we settled down for some rest before embarking on the final leg of our journey the next day.

As we neared the city, the road became more crowded. There was an influx of traffic, with large lantherns, oxen, backpackers, and aerial transportation filling the path.

A few hours later, the scent of saltwater wafted over the horizon, cutting through the jungle smells and the ever-present aroma of Luminara flowers that guided our way.

“Thank god,” Lyssa groaned. "I never realized how much I appreciate having Zenith... whatever." Zenith gave a proud smirk before both fell silent.

It was a matter best kept under wraps; no one wanted to reveal that we had two divine beasts in our caravan. But then again….

“Shhhhhhhh!” I yelled. “Don’t announce that we have divine beasts, you idiot!”

The area fell silent as the words reached nearby ears.

"W-We didn't say anything!" Thea trembled, confused.

"What are you talking about, young master?" Zenith asked, baffled by the accusation.

"Never mind, just keep it down!" I said, winking at the two women as whispers and rumors spread among the travelers. They finally understood my intentions, although Regma and Lyssa seemed exasperated.

“Lord Everwood, you’re not going to be here forever,” Regma snapped. “Once you leave, we’re going to deal with the aftermath.”

"Incorrect," I replied, glancing at the knights riding on horses behind us. "These three soldiers will handle it. They're more than capable, especially since Peggy can fold your father's spine in half and use him as a chair. So she just need two guards."

Regma's cheek twitched as she processed my words. "The soap maker?"

"The very same," I replied, stretching my arms. "Just wait and see what happens when these people try to rob us. Wheeeeeeeeeeew! Thorns!"

“SIR!!” the ‘Thorns’ guard unit yelled in unison. Naturally, the title came from being the guards of Elderthorn.

"I'm going to take a nap," I declared. "Don't disturb me, Thea, or Zenith for any reason."

"SIR, YES, SIR!" they responded.

With those words, I tilted a straw hat over my head and leaned back. "Relax."

Within an hour, a large group of slave traders arrived, blocking the road as they roamed shirtless. They rode Willaboars, gray pigs with red streaks that gave off an eerie aura.

"We heard there were divine beasts in this area!" the leader, a man with a black mohawk and a fish hook scar on his face, bellowed.

In mere seconds, my three guards sprang into action. "Oi! Dal mi diran legal ataki!"

Regma's eyes widened as she heard them repeat the same phrase I had used earlier: Show us your legal paperwork, or else face death. "You can’t be serious..."

After the gang leader laughed and brandished his sword, the others followed suit. However, their mirth turned to shock as the leader's head and body promptly fell on opposite sides of his boar, followed swiftly by the boar itself.

The raiders didn't even have time to react before my guards swiftly and mercilessly slaughtered each and every one of them.

"You see, where we come from, boars grow ten times larger than that, and a soap maker can snap a chieftain's spine," I smirked, observing Regma's bewildered expression. "These people might as well be free food. Well, their boars can serve as food, at least. We wouldn't even feed these swine to our pigs."

With those words, I closed my eyes again and returned to my nap.

I was certain there would be a genuine clash with these people in the future, but that day was not today. For now, my guards were more than capable of dealing with them.

My main concern was preventing my people from exploiting others in my absence. It was something I would not tolerate. My methods were questionable, but they were fair.

After delivering a demonstration that people should never mess with Everwood Company, we continued our journey, finally reaching Leeshmar. The city offered a breathtaking view of the Mystic Azure Sea.

With a deep breath of salty air, I stretched my arms. It was time to go home.

"Now, it's time to make millions," I grinned, contemplating the chaos that lay ahead. After all, I was about to turn fifteen years old, officially becoming a suitor for the princess. However, I had other plans and was gathering as much leverage as possible. ‘I need to be prepared for war in case the crown betrays me,’ I added in my thoughts.