Book 4: Volume 8 Chapter 2, Operation Failure!

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

Originally, Towa was Kousuke’s Biological Son, so subservience shouldn’t have been necessary. But Towa was also King of Razequa Amamiya, and the country’s unique nature complicated their relationship.

 

Razequa Amamiya had developed from a village founded by Kousuke, the Tower’s conqueror. Given that Kousuke himself was a living god, someone even foreign Kings would revere, Towa’s behavior was only natural. Had he acted otherwise, future Kings might have followed suit.

 

In that sense, Towa’s attitude at this moment determined the position of Razequa Amamiya’s future Kings.

 

None of those around Towa criticized his behavior. Kousuke was the most important figure in both Razequa Amamiya and Amamiya Tower itself. No one present doubted that.

 

Though not yet officially operational, many people already worked at the facility. However, few remained in the area where they were heading; unnecessary personnel had been cleared away for security reasons, given King Towa’s presence.

 

Though the security measures were originally for Towa, they now served to protect Kousuke. Not that it mattered much, given Kouhi and Mitsuki’s presence. Even an ambush would fail to harm him.

 

The strange situation of King Towa leading and guiding Kousuke continued, but no one in the group found it strange. Everyone considered it natural.

 

After walking for some time, they reached their destination.

 

“This is it.”

 

“I see.”

 

At Kousuke’s nod, one of Towa’s attendants opened the door. Naturally, the King couldn’t be first. Though no one inside should wish Towa harm, precaution demanded this arrangement.

 

The door opened without incident.

 

Inside, Crown members were already assembled. The three department heads knew of Kousuke’s visit, but the top-secret nature meant others weren’t informed. They looked confused when the conversation centered around Kousuke rather than Towa, who should have held the highest position.

 

Incidentally, the head of the production department, having no connection to this facility, was absent.

 

“That’s how it’s constructed. Do you have any questions?”

 

After receiving Dulles’s explanation, Kousuke shook his head.

 

“No, not really… I’m just surprised at how large-scale it is.”

 

“Haha. We’re looking ahead to the future. Initial production targets are less than half the facility’s capacity.”

 

“Isn’t that wasteful?”

 

Schmidt answered Kousuke’s question. “It’s difficult to completely predict demand in the current situation.”

 

While some excess capacity was natural, a facility operating at half capacity seemed wasteful to Kousuke. But that was a perspective from a world where demand was somewhat fixed and predictable. If they expected future growth, building with excess capacity wasn’t entirely wasteful, especially for something unprecedented like a Magic Power supply facility, where demand remained difficult to predict.

 

Kousuke, who did not fully understand even the city’s current state, had no intention of commenting further. His purpose was simply confirming whether the facility operated as expected. Best to leave the operations and management to Crown, who had been entrusted with it.

 

After Kousuke finished his questions, Towa and government officials began asking their own.

 

When the questions concluded, it was finally time to activate the facility. Since they had more time than originally planned, they disbanded temporarily, and Kousuke and Towa headed to a prepared private room.

 

♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦

 

In the prepared room, only Kousuke, his two companions, and Towa remained. The guards who normally never left Towa’s side had been told their presence wasn’t necessary with the two messengers there, leaving them no choice but to withdraw.

 

Thanks to that, Towa could enjoy his lunch in peace. Though inevitably, the food had already been tested for poison and gone cold.

 

Meanwhile, Kousuke watched those leaving with an apologetic expression and muttered with a wry smile, “They don’t need to be so nervous.”

 

“Don’t say such unreasonable things, Father. To them, you are someone to be revered, you know?”

 

As if Kousuke’s wry smile had transferred to him, Towa replied with his own.

 

Kousuke understood Towa was right, so he simply shrugged, and the conversation ended there.

 

While eating, they discussed the facility.

 

“So, what did you think?”

 

“For now, it seems there are no problems based on what I’ve heard.”

 

Relief clearly washed over Towa’s expression. A large amount of tax money had been invested in construction and operation costs. If it failed, the repercussions would fall squarely on him.

 

“That’s good.”

 

“But…”

 

“?”

 

“We won’t know if it will operate properly until we actually run it.”

 

Kousuke flashed a mischievous smile. Sensing the joke from his expression, Towa frowned.

 

“Please stop. If you say things like that, it might actually happen.”

 

Now it was Kousuke’s turn to frown.

 

“No, no. There’s no way that would happen.”

 

Kousuke said it hastily, but Towa looked skeptical.

 

“Really?”

 

“Really… Probably.”

 

Looking away as he said it, Kousuke was anything but convincing.

 

♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦

 

After everyone finished their meals, it was finally time to start the facility.

 

Kousuke and the others stood in what resembled a central control center, where any problems would be immediately visible.

 

Once everyone gathered and preparations were complete, the facility began operating.

 

It started smoothly, but the staff’s faces began turning pale.

 

From his vantage point, Kousuke quickly understood why. Beyond a certain point, the systems weren’t coordinating properly, preventing Magic Power from being transmitted.

 

“Hey, hey. They don’t need to fulfill that prophecy!” Kousuke blurted out.

 

Those around him tilted their heads in confusion before simultaneously turning pale—probably thinking they’d failed with Kousuke present, of all times.

 

Only Towa looked like he was suppressing laughter. He knew very well that Kousuke wouldn’t get angry over something like this.

 

The high-ranking officials turned pale, the facility staff even paler upon seeing that, and an unsettling atmosphere enveloped the initial operation until Kousuke stepped in to help.