...Am I forgetting something?
...
...
OH SHIT.
THE LETTER!!
Lyra is still here reading about diseases, so I can't ask Carl to read it right now.I'll ask him later. Besides, the Imperial Banquet isn't for another six months or so, right? There's no rush.
After deciding that, I stood up.
"Alright, I'm heading out. I've got some work to do."
"Work... you?" Carl asked, looking genuinely surprised.
"Yes. What do you take me for? I need to find a way to earn Lochu. I don't exactly have any income right now, and I still have to repay that loan with interest. There are a lot of things I need to think about. A new age is about to dawn on this world because of me. I am the visionary who will change everything. "
Carl didn't even bother looking up from his book.
"...Good luck with that. Just don't make me part of it."
"You will deeply regret not following in my footsteps, my dear friend."
As I was about to leave, Lyra closed the book she had been reading.
"Darcy," she called out, "the paperwork will be ready by tomorrow evening, so be prepared to sign everything."
I smiled beneath my mask.
"Absolutely."
Leaving the library behind, I walked straight back to my new house, my mind racing. What the hell had even happened today?
I went straight to my bedroom on the upper floor, shut the door, and collapsed flat on my back onto the bed.
...I just found a radioactive site?
I actually found a radioactive site. I am about to become the official owner of a nuclear goldmine ... and I'm funding someone who's researching electricity. Am I really going to have both of these industries under my complete control?
The more I thought about it, the more ridiculous it sounded.
Then another problem resurfaced.
...The loan.
I actually have to pay that mountain of cash back. How much did we say three percent annual interest on ninety million was? Ugh... I've never taken out a loan in my entire life. I don't know how any of this financial crap works.
And what if I fail to pay it back? What if the research goes up in smoke? I need to find alternative ways to make money. I can't risk my entire future on the success of a single project and a cursed wasteland. But... it would definitely help if I could verify whether that land truly is radioactive or just genuinely cursed. If only I had a Geiger counter, or at least knew how to build one...
Maybe I could use a Gold-Leaf Electroscope? How did that experiment go again? It's so blurry... It was something like a glass jar, a rubber cork, and a metal wire hooked up to a thin piece of gold leaf inside the container... but that's literally all I can remember. Goddammit, if only I had paid attention during physics class instead of daydreaming.
I sighed, staring at the ceiling. Alright. For now, rodents it is.
As I continued thinking about all the problems waiting for me in the future, time slipped away without me noticing.
Before I knew it, evening had passed.
Then—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Darcy! It's me, Lyra!" a voice called from outside. "I just spoke with her. Open the door!"
Wait...
Already?
I got off the bed and made my way downstairs.
My house wasn't exactly luxurious.
It had three rooms upstairs and one room downstairs, along with a kitchen. There was also one bathroom and one toilet on each floor.
Simple
When I opened the front door, darkness had already settled over Dunford.
The only light outside came from the torches burning along the bazaar streets.
Lyra stood there holding several documents in one hand.
"Come in," I said. "Don't just stand outside."
"Thank you."
She stepped inside and took a seat at the dining table.
She carefully placed the stack of papers down before setting an ink bottle and a dip pen beside them.
Then she looked up at me.
"Darcy... What name are you going to give this research project?"
"Shouldn't you be asking the researcher that?"
"She said she doesn't mind."
Lyra uncorked the ink bottle.
"Oh, and she's an elf."
She dipped the pen into the ink.
"Her name is Ferania Paderee."
An elf? Is... is that supposed to be a bad thing? What am I even overthinking for? My neighbor three houses down is an elf, and the head librarian is one too.
"...Is that a bad thing?"
"No."
"Then why did you mention it?"
"I just wanted to let you know exactly who you're dealing with," Lyra replied smoothly. "She also agreed to move to Dunford for the duration of the project."
Well...
That was faster than expected.
"So," she continued, readying the pen again, "what will the project be called?"
"...Why does a name even matter so much?"
"You can't just conduct large-scale research initiatives within the kingdom without explicit permission from the Empire,"
She began sorting through the paperwork.
"There's an official research council. Without their approval, you won't receive legal permission to conduct the project."
"Fine. How long does the approval process take?"
"Roughly a week or two. So, I need the official title and a brief description of what you intend to do."
"The project is called...Electricity,"
"And for the description?"
"I honestly don't know enough to explain it properly.just ask her. I don't have the technical terminology for it yet. Or better yet, just copy-paste whatever she wrote in her original funding proposal."
Lyra nodded and continued writing, dipping the pen into the ink every few sentences.
As I watched her write, a minor detail started driving me absolutely insane. Every single time she finished writing a sentence or two, she had to stop, lean over, and dip the tip of the pen back into the ink box.
That dip pen... is ungodly inconvenient to use. If only we had modern pens in this world... Huh. Wait a minute.
My eyes narrowed as my brain caught onto the thought.
Hold on... I could easily make a modern pen. That's a massive business idea, and I could probably prototype it without needing any complex outside help. But wait, what if the people here just prefer using dip pens? No, wait—the journalists I saw after the ruins were using the exact same style, and they looked visibly annoyed by it. If I can introduce a fountain pen with an internal reservoir, or a standard ballpoint... Modern pens prioritize consistency, reliability, and smooth durability.
Goddamn, what the hell is happening to me? Since when did I become such a money-minded capitalist? This town is seriously corrupting my soul.
"Ahem." I cleared my throat loudly to break my own internal monologue and change the subject to something immediately important. "Lyra, is it possible for me to physically inspect the land first? Decayspire, I mean. I want to see it with my own eyes before I officially buy it."
Lyra paused her writing, looking up in surprise. "But what about the capital you're borrowing?"
"I'll only borrow the money if I decide to buy the land after seeing it myself."
The moment the words left my mouth, I caught a sudden flash of worry in Lyra's eyes that she was desperately trying to hide.
"Are you planning to go out there alone?" she asked, her voice dropping slightly. "Are you absolutely certain? That place is notoriously unsafe, Darcy."
I let out a heavy sigh and facepalmed. Literally a moment ago, this girl was entirely willing to hand me a fortune to buy a cursed wasteland, but the exact second I mention physically walking onto the property, she gets terrified.
"Look, I'm literally planning to buy the place," I pointed out. "And no, I'm not going alone. I'm going to bring Joey and Jack along. If possible, I'll drag Carl out there too. We'll make it an official adventure for the boys."
"When do you plan to depart?" she asked, her eyes wandering over toward the kitchen.
"Tomorrow, if we can manage it. Or the day after." I walked over to the counter, lifting a pitcher to pour a fresh cup of water.
"In that case... what about your elf researcher?" Lyra countered, watching the cup of water with visibly thirsty eyes. "She will arrive in Dunford well before you get back. Decayspire is four or five days away by carriage."
"...Good point."
"In that case, I'll leave her care entirely in your hands," I said, walking over and sliding the cup of water across the table to her. "Please arrange a proper place for her to stay and secure whatever equipment she needs. I'll pay you for everything the moment I get back. But hey, no interest on those expenses, okay?"
Lyra let out a soft, melodic giggle, taking an elegant sip from the cup.
"Don't worry, I won't charge you any interest."
She placed the cup back on the table.
"Anything else?"
"Actually..."
"I also need you to help me get two live rodents in separate cages, a set of small sharp knives, and a butcher's knife meant for processing small animals." I sat down in the chair directly opposite her.
Lyra's head tilted to the side, her expression twisting into utter confusion. "Why on earth do you need caged rodents and butcher knives?"
"I just need to confirm a specific hypothesis before I officially finalize the purchase of the territory."
Lyra's grip suddenly tightened around her water cup, her eyes widening with genuine worry.
"Darcy...You're not planning to perform some kind of forbidden magic... are you?"
"No! Of course not!" I yelled, completely panicking as I slammed both hands flat onto the table. "I just need to run a biological test that requires them! It has absolutely nothing to do with forbidden magic, I swear!"
Lyra let out a breath, smiling awkwardly at my outburst. "Alright, Darcy. I will trust you. Just please ensure you don't do anything reckless whose price you won't be able to pay. And honestly, you don't need my help to source those items. You can find the cages and knives at the local blacksmith, and any pest catcher can supply you with rodents."
"Awesome. Thanks for the tip," I said, tapping my knuckles against the table. "Hey, can you come with me tomorrow to help me shop around? I'm still not entirely familiar with the town layout, so..."
"Alright, I can do that," Lyra said, pushing her chair back and standing up. "Let's meet tomorrow at ten in the morning. It's getting quite late, and I need to head back to give my father his night medicines and syrup. I will see you tomorrow, Darcy."
She gathered her inkwell, tucked the documents under her arm, and walked to the front door.
"See you tomorrow. Good night, and take care of your father," I said, watching her step out into the cool night air.
I slowly closed the heavy wooden door, locking it tight as she departed back toward her mansion, villa, or whatever it is the absurdly wealthy people in this world called their homes.
I dragged myself back up the stairs and collapsed onto my bed, staring up at the dark ceiling. As the adrenaline from the evening finally began to fade, a cold, paranoid thought suddenly crept into my mind.
Man, I really need to be careful about what I say and do for the sake of science. I seriously need to remember what the medieval era back in my world did to researchers and scientists, constantly accusing them of heresy and black magic. And man... I can't even imagine what they would do to me here if they suspected me of that. Especially since those things actually exist in this world. They might burn me alive, boil me, or just throw me into the ocean. Who knows?
Yeah... I should keep my mouth shut unless I know what I'm doing.
With that terrifying image burned into my brain, I pulled the blanket over my face and tried to force myself to sleep.