Chapter 171: The Second Time
Inside Oscar’s residence, in the reception room.
In front of me and Oscar was a spherical object.
The object rested on the coffee table like a crystal ball and was connected to a thread stretching in from outside the room.
The thread and the ball were changing colors at regular intervals.
As Oscar read out the changes in color, he was recording them.
“Black black white black, black black black white, black white black black, white white white white—so, if I remember correctly, all white signals the end, right?”
“That’s correct. What does it correspond to when we apply the previous codes to that cipher?”
Oscar compared what he had written down with the chart I had provided him beforehand.
“Hello, how are you—oh!”
It was a simple sentence, but Oscar exclaimed in amazement.
“It really forms a sentence, doesn’t it?”
“Indeed. This is connected to my detached palace.”
“Your Majesty’s detached palace, then—around ten minutes by fast horse, I would say.”
“Try sending a simple message.”
“Understood… then…”
Oscar thought for a moment and touched the two small balls beneath the crystal ball look-alike.
The balls were in black and white, and touching them caused the ball and the thread to change to the same color.
Since it was his first time, Oscar focused on the cipher chart while sending the message.
The ball and thread switched between black and white, changing colors even after Oscar let go of them.
“Who?”
“Don”
“Is it the First Vizier?”
“Yes, he’s helping with the test.”
“This… this is incredible, Your Majesty!”
Oscar said, filled with excitement.
From a brotherly relationship to one of lord and vassal, it had been several decades in between.
This was the most emotionally raw and exciting “incredible” I had heard from Oscar.
“Depending on the length of the message, it might take ten minutes, but to accomplish this in less than a minute is unbelievable.”
“The benefits might seem slim at this distance, but even at the distance between cities, it could convey information at this speed.”
“If used well, we won’t need district governors anymore.”
“That’s a typical of those in power. That said, it will be necessary to have someone on-site who can effectively sift through information.”
“That’s true.”
“Previously, only those with strong administrative abilities were suitable, but with this, even puppets could work.”
“It’s innovative.”
“I’d like to get Henry’s opinion on this too.”
“That’s right. I’m not an expert, but I understand that, on the battlefield, the transmission of information is more critical than logistics.”
“Indeed.”
I nodded, satisfied with Oscar’s opinion.
I had brought this thread, now practical, to show him, and his reaction was fulfilling.
“There are two reasons I showed this to you.”
“Yes.”
Oscar straightened up again as if to reinforce the gravity of the discussion and faced me.
The fact that this thread was an innovative technology was something Oscar himself acknowledged, and with that, the discussion about making Oscar the minister of Internal Affairs was a crucial one that would determine the future of the Empire.
Instantly understanding this, Oscar behaved accordingly.
“Firstly, we need to connect this throughout various regions. For that, we must select skilled individuals in handling ciphers.”
“Understood, leave it to me.”
“At the same time, we need to create a new cipher. The current one is merely a makeshift solution. We should be able to devise a more efficient and clear cipher.”
“We should consider it strictly in terms of switching between white and black, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Leave it to me.”
Oscar bowed deeply, accepting my orders.
The creation of ciphers should be user-friendly for the on-site personnel, so it would be best if I did not interfere too much.
“And the second reason, which is more important but not urgent.”
“…What does that mean?”
“It is to develop something similar to this.”
“Something similar…?”
“A means to send binary information over long distances, like black and white, or present and absent.”
“You mean to develop the same thing?”
“Yes.”
“Why is that?”
Oscar’s face showed a look of confusion.
It was a reaction that was to be expected.
Given that the thread from Funbaba already existed, it was natural to question why we needed to develop something exactly the same.
“This was created based on the knowledge inherited from the Retired Emperor.”
“Impressive as always.”
“Don’t you realize it yet?”
“What are you referring to?”
“I inherited from the Retired Emperor.”
“…………Ah.”
Oscar paused to think for a moment before having a sudden realization.
“Can this… not be passed on to the next Emperor?”
“That’s right.”
I nodded clearly.
“Funbaba is fundamentally subordinate to me. I asked just in case, but they said they would obey the new Emperor if I ordered it.”
“That means only to Your Majesty.”
“That’s right, which also means that in the worst case, if I die—”
“Hearing that, it starts to look like an incredibly poisonous apple.”
Oscar looked dejected, and I nodded.
There’s no doubt it’s an innovatively convenient technology.
Given ten or twenty years, it will undoubtedly permeate society and fundamentally change the way information is transmitted.
However, if it can’t be passed on…
If it’s a technology that won’t be conveyed to future generations…
The moment I die, the technology could revert back several decades.
“If we become too accustomed to convenience, we won’t be able to go back.”
“Basically, we won’t be able to go back at all.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“If this is connected, it will render messenger pigeons and fast horses unnecessary transport.”
“That’s true.”
“Still not understanding?”
“Eh? Ah, I see—if this technology becomes unnecessary for decades, it will undoubtedly be lost.”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“Your Majesty, that’s impressive—you were able to imagine that far ahead. I was just caught up in how wonderful this is.”
“There’s no doubt it’s a wonderful technology. I will try to live as long as possible, and by then it would be good to have developed something equivalent.”
“Yes.”
“I won’t spare any expenses. Government or private, I don’t care where it comes from.”
“If that is the case, it would be easier to develop under the pretext of cost-cutting improvements.”
“I leave it to you.”
“Understood.”
After delivering two commands to Oscar, I took a breath.
Next, I would like to connect the provincial capitals with the Imperial capital, to actually see how it would operate.
I will keep the existing communication methods for the time being and use them in parallel.
New issues might arise, or even if there aren’t any problems, we might find points for improvement.
There’s a mountain of things to do, but I am confident that if things go well, the empire will leap to the next level.
To do that, first—
“—!!”
I gasped.
I could feel my face stiffening noticeably.
That’s because something strange in my line of sight caught my attention.
“Your Majesty? Is something wrong?”
“…”
“Your Majesty?”
Oscar leaned in to look at my face with a puzzled expression.
“…Oscar.”
“Y-Yes?”
“Gather all the Princes in the Imperial Capital. Wait, who is not here?”
“Um, the two who are not here are Brother Henry and Dustin.”
“Dustin? Where is he?”
There’s no need to mention Henry is “out on campaign,” but I raised my eyebrows, perplexed, to hear about Dustin.
“Well, supposedly he was taken back to his hometown by the request of his fifth concubine.”
“I see.”
I wasn’t angry, it was just Dustin’s way of being shrewd, so it didn’t particularly irritate me.
However,
“Summon him back immediately.”
“Dustin?”
“That’s right. If he doesn’t come back, I will punish him—this can be relayed as is.”
Relaying it as is.
Conveying the Emperor’s words directly is quite significant, as it leaves no room for misunderstanding.
Once it reached that point, even Oscar understood that “something has happened.”
Oscar nodded, although his face was tense.
“Understood. Is there anything else?”
“In any case, gather all the princes—my brothers.”
“What about Brother Henry?”
“I will go.”
“…Understood. Please don’t overexert yourself—”
Without hearing Oscar’s words to the end, I dashed out of the room and out of the mansion.
What I had been seeing.
The thing I had been perceiving since the moment I was born, since I reincarnated as Noah, my unique status.
――――――――――――
Name: Noah Ararat
Emperor of the Empire
Gender: Male
Level: 17 + 1 + 1 / ∞
| HP | C+SSS | MP | D+SSS |
| Strength | C+SSS | Stamina | D+SSS |
| Intelligence | D+SSS | Spirit | E+SSS |
| Speed | E+SSS | Dexterity | E+SSS |
| Luck | D+SSS | ||
| Fire | E+SSS | Water | C+SSS |
| Wind | E+SSS | Earth | E+SSS |
| Light | E+SSS | Darkness | E+SSS |
―――――――――――
There is a CHANGE in that status.
It is a change that occurred only once before.
I have come to realize something.
“ZIZ!!”
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Thanks for the chapter. 👍