Chapter 42: Former Subordinates and the Elven Fire of Reform

May 4th…

After concluding his morning meeting with Fen, Yang Hao informed the Ling Tribe members and the Joseph family, who were staying in temporary rooms at the Green Courtyard, to follow the elves’ guidance and be mindful of their behavior when going out today. He then took Teresa out under the pretext of work, heading to the commercial and artisan streets of Fingal to understand the state of the elves.

After all, reforming an ancient and perfect country without conducting proper research was out of the question.

Moreover, Teresa had been sulking and clinging to him yesterday, which made Yang Hao feel quite guilty. He thought that combining work with a romantic outing might be a good idea.

Driven by these thoughts, he invited Teresa to take a walk with him. Teresa, after playfully biting his ear, dressed up beautifully and took his arm as they went out together.

Fingal was a vibrant city. The pedestrians looked exceptionally strong, truly a nation of wealth and strength. Yet, for some reason, Yang Hao couldn’t shake a feeling of oddness.

“They are eating snacks from a thousand years ago, wearing clothes styled from a thousand years ago, and the buildings’ designs also resemble those from a thousand years ago. Everything looks so perfect… and outdated.”

Teresa whispered in Yang Hao’s ear while munching on a meat snack bought from a food store.

“In a sense, it’s like this city and the world we live in outside are on two different timelines. It really makes you feel like you’re living a thousand years ago.”

“That’s why Fen is so eager for reform. A perfect wooden sword can’t compete against a flawed steel sword, let alone an ironclad warship.”

“Speaking of which, what is an ironclad warship? Yesterday, after you went out with that Kenna, you looked really upset. Can you tell me about it?”

“It’s just…”

Yang Hao briefly explained to Teresa the major events that Kenna had told him about the previous night.

The roaring cannons on the sea, the peculiar magic that lit up the dark ocean, and the black dragon shot down before the elves’ very eyes.

Yang Hao was filled with concern because he understood that the unease of the past had become a reality: the development speed of Isugard across the sea was too fast. They had already formed a fleet of ironclad warships and were now engaged in a massive naval battle with another nation that also had ironclad ships.

This was not good news for Yang Hao. While he had no illusions about the Roman Empire, if it were to be colonized by Isugard, the ancient and perfect new home of the Elven Kingdom would inevitably face the same fate of invasion.

The elves’ bows and arrows were very strong.

But compared to naval cannons, they were like child’s play.

So, Yang Hao was deeply worried, once again trapped in the same anxiety he had experienced in the past.

But fortunately, this time he had a lover willing to share the burden with him. The elves, although stubborn, were open to reform, and most importantly, they had the Roman Empire as a significant buffer between them and Isugard.

“This was indeed good news,” Yang Hao muttered.

Then he revealed a significant piece of information to Teresa, “That black dragon, if I remember correctly, it should be Nia, the head of the Isugard Research Institute, with whom I had a secret agreement where I would make the Roman Empire appear strong to lure Isugard into seeing it as an ally rather than an enemy. Now that I’m gone, the Roman Empire is in chaos, and soon Isugard will find out. If the black dragon survives and reaches Dreke Port but finds she can’t meet with me that agreement will likely be void.”

“Secret agreement? Ugh… Can you just tell me the outcome? I don’t really understand all this.”

“Simply put, if I were still the Regent of the Roman Empire, I could do my best to uphold the secret agreement. The best outcome would be becoming allies with Isugard, and the worst would be delaying Isugard’s invasion, at least for five years until they realized the true state of the Roman Empire, buying time to complete industrialization and give the Roman Empire the capability to produce firearms and ironclad ships. But now…”

He spread his hands, hugging the nun and gently moving her aside to let a group of pedestrians pass by. 

Then he muttered, “It’s already over. The best outcome for the Roman Empire is if the coastal military district of Dreycar can hold the enemy at the coastline. The worst outcome is that, except for the diocese, the rest will become colonies of Isugard. They’re done for, but now we have time.”

“But why is the diocese excluded?”

“Geographical reasons. It’s the farthest north, with numerous noble landlords, royalty, and military districts serving as a buffer in between. Although the diocese lacks renowned generals, the morale of those drug-using followers is, in some ways, higher than that of the regular army. Not to mention the advantages priests have when fighting on their home turf.”

“That makes sense.”

The young nun nodded thoughtfully, stuffing a snack into her mouth. She now had a deeper understanding of the current situation on the Elusia continent.

On one side was the barbarians doomed to die, another was the Elven Kingdom, which could use the barbarians’ bodies as a buffer, and then there were the unknown northern tribes. It was indeed a troublesome situation.

So, the immediate priority was to equip the elves with Isugard’s technology.

Teresa’s eyes asked the question, and Yang Hao led her to an elven bow-making shop.

“Welcome—whoa?! Your Highness?!”

“Arthur?!”

However, unexpectedly, upon entering, they ran into an acquaintance.

Yang Hao and the blond man sitting in a wheelchair behind the counter stared at each other.

After a moment, the man put down the glass he was polishing, wheeled himself over to Yang Hao at high speed, and emotionally hugged Yang Hao around the waist.

“Holy shit, Your Highness, you’re still alive?! I thought you died at the hands of those bastards, but you’re actually alive?!”

“I’m alive and well. But what happened to your leg?”

Yang Hao remained calm. On one hand, Arthur was one of his most trusted subordinates, and on the other hand, it was because of Teresa’s constant casting of the Tranquility spell.

Remaining calm, he patted his former subordinate’s back. Then he took a step back and looked at Arthur’s leg with some surprise.

Arthur’s left leg was obviously broken, but in the Elven Kingdom, wasn’t treating such bone injuries a matter of minutes?

Could it be that he was bullied in the Elven Kingdom?

Yang Hao’s confusion made Arthur scratch his head awkwardly. 

“My wife beat me. The owner of the drugstore and I accidentally… well, hay meets fire, you know? Then I found out my wife was standing at the door watching us for over two hours, and… well, that’s what happened.”

He pointed to his broken leg with embarrassment. 

“My wife broke my leg. She said I couldn’t get it treated until her anger subsided. I was at fault, so I always keep a wheelchair handy.”

“You always keep a wheelchair instead of genuinely repenting?!”

The young nun was bewildered, clearly shocked by Mr. Arthur’s lifestyle.

Arthur, last name unknown, was a capable subordinate brought up from the bottom by Yang Hao.

He had his own insights and expertise in diplomacy and craftsmanship, but his promiscuous attitude matched his abilities. 

Although he had three principles—”no touching married women, women with boyfriends, or minors or women without self-control”—his promiscuity was notorious even in the Roman Empire.

He was known as the Night Emperor who spent three days playing with all 50 courtesans in a brothel and the Flower Thief who impregnated eight noblewomen, including several married ones, before being promoted by Yang Hao.

However, he was also the first diplomat in Roman Empire history to earn the respect of the elves and the skilled craftsman who perfected the details of the steam factory Yang Hao spoke of.

Arthur was such a man. His abilities were as high as the sky, and his promiscuity was equally boundless.

But this man, not only had a wife in the Elven Kingdom but also dared to cheat on her in her presence?!

What an incredible lack of fear.

Yang Hao and Teresa gave Arthur a very strange look as he made tea for them. Arthur, in turn, looked at Yang Hao thoughtfully.

“So, my virgin highness has finally graduated from being a virgin? I always said that the Night Witch, who only cares about studying magic, doesn’t understand anything about men and women. Now that you’ve lost your virginity, Your Highness, I can openly brag about how we used to visit brothels and scout for women together…”

“Screw you! I haven’t done anything like that with my man! Yang Hao, what’s wrong with your subordinate?!”

“I’ve gotten used to his slander. If he ever acts normal, I’ll immediately call the best doctor to check his brain.”

Yang Hao sighed heavily, holding the hand of the agitated nun who seemed ready to smash a holy book over Arthur’s head, trying to calm her down. He then turned back to continue:

“So, how exactly did you survive? The elves are so conservative and stubborn. I can’t imagine how you managed to stay alive with just a broken leg.”

“You’re talking about that?” Arthur blinked, placing two cups of green tea on the table and handing them to the two. He then gave a shy smile, “It’s related to elven social customs and traditions. After all, Your Highness, you should know by now that elves highly value promises.”

“Which is why I can’t understand how you managed to survive.”

“It’s related to the promise made when I got married. When I got married, I told my wife, who proposed to me, that I’m naturally promiscuous and that I can’t go a day without sleeping with a woman. She accepted this flaw of mine under the condition that every time she catches me, she’ll break my leg.”

“May I ask, how many times has she broken your leg?”

“Around fifty times this year, I think.”

“It’s only May 4th?!”

At this point, even the usually composed Yang Hao nearly lost it.

Arthur had been caught cheating over fifty times this year, and it was only early May…

Calculating based on a month having 30 days, 124 days with over fifty incidents of cheating.

‘Should I be impressed by the elves’ calmness or amazed at your luck for surviving?’

Yang Hao looked at Arthur with a mixture of incredulity and disbelief, while Arthur just smiled proudly and explained that they were still a loving family, at least in the eyes of the elves.

“After all, elves are a race that keeps their promises,” Arthur reminded them again. “I didn’t break my promise, and neither did she. So, in the elves’ view, we are a happy and harmonious family. Though I must admit, I’ll probably spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair. Anyway, Your Highness, why did you come here?”

“You know what happened in the Roman Empire. Now, I’ve taken on the position of Regent of Caparia and am preparing to assist Fen with the reforms.”

“So that’s it. Well, that’s not too bad. The elves are very supportive of Fen’s reforms, so Your Highness shouldn’t face much resistance.”

A good subordinate wouldn’t delve into their superior’s painful experiences, and Arthur was clearly very competent, aside from his promiscuity.

“Actually, I’m also very troubled by the elves’ idea of perfection. You know my family makes bows. I handle sales, and my wife makes the bows. But, you see… the elves consider weapons to be works of art rather than simple, utilitarian products, which means it takes them a hundred years to make a single bow.”

“A hundred years?”

“Just look at the bows on the wall. Look at the intricate engravings, the gold leaf inscriptions, the cylindrical paintings, and the decorations. Elves love to make everything perfect. But in my opinion, it’s unnecessary. Weapons should be as simple as possible, discarding all useless parts and keeping only what is functional. But the elves’ art pieces clearly aren’t weapons, at least not the kind of cheap, practical equipment we think of for arming legions. Pursuing perfection too much isn’t always a good thing, especially when the skies are darkened with the clouds of war. It looks priceless, but in modern times, its only value is as a piece for display.”

The blond beast with deep insights into industry sighed heavily as he spoke, “This is the problem with elven weapons. Perfect, but no longer keeping up with the times. What we need are arrows and longbows that can be mass-produced at a rate of 500 per day, not exquisite arrows and a single longbow that take 100 years to make. This is no longer an era where individual perfection can withstand the test of war.”

“This is also why Fen is so eager for reform.”

“But the Elven Kingdom has an advantage over us. They don’t have unruly citizens. The Roman Empire not only has them but also a whole bunch of… sigh. Never mind, let’s not talk about that. So, Your Highness, would you like me to take you out for a tour? Understanding the areas that need change requires a local guide.”

“And your shop?”

“Just leaving the door open is fine. Anyone intending to buy something will leave the money right there.”

With that, Arthur downed his green tea in one gulp, placed a “Shopkeeper Not Present” sign on the counter, and, in a bold manner, pushed his wheelchair out, leading Yang Hao and Teresa away from his home.