66 – Plans begin!

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PART 0

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I can't even remember the last chapter in which a [Part 0] appeared, but I'm not going to look for it; I'm too lazy, even if it only takes me 1~2 minutes at most.

Now on to what really matters. Let's talk about Volume 3 and what to expect. Making the years pass faster while focusing on important events and the protagonist's and others' strength is my goal.

In addition, I'll be working on important storylines, as will be the case with Shunam.

Please understand that this volume will focus on the Krugar Mountains' development and how they will affect the continent and then the world.

Another factor I want to focus on heavily in this volume is the world. With the Churches gaining more power and influence, it's only natural that individuals from other continents will start interfering more in Skarla's life, which will become even more frequent when she officially reaches Level 21 and becomes a full legend.

If all goes as planned, this volume will be exceptional and will continue until chapter 100. I hope you enjoy it and have a satisfying read.

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PART 1 – Start of the Conflicts!

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A calm emerged soon after the wedding tournament, characterized by fighting and the declaration of the deposed princess. The empire believed it could finally breathe after so many disasters.

Even though there were rumors about the heinous acts committed by Torwin, they were nothing more than rumors.

And little by little, people's attention was turning to the Krugar Mountains. A region that had been the empire's dream for centuries, and now peace had broken out and the mountains had been conquered by Skarla.

Only there was no real declaration of this, which put a lot of pressure on the Imperial Family, especially after Hackel did what he wanted and declared himself to Skarla in front of tens of thousands of people.

The Emperor and Empress were deeply troubled by the letters and declarations they received from various nobles. Numerous individuals demanded the removal of Skarla's title, citing her lack of loyalty and patriotism among other reasons.

However, this came to an end when Kalen Zenirys, 1st Prince, with the support of the Duchess Sieres Family, presented evidence of the actions of the Torwin Kingdom.

Gojira's actions, which involved manipulating the nobles of the Empire to bring a Black Dragon's calamity to their demon-infested lands, were supported by evidence. The Torwin Kingdom, aware of the upcoming tournament that would draw numerous talented and influential individuals from across the continent, transported Gojira's dragon egg to that location.

Immediately, public outrage arose. With the official declaration of the Torwin Kingdom's heinous acts, the rumors, already carrying some weight, spiraled out of control, further influencing and enraging the masses.

Given that Gojira's actions had not proceeded as expected, the Torwin Kingdom appeared well-prepared for this; they had been anticipating a potential discovery and had already begun their preparations. As soon as the news broke, they began recruiting soldiers to stay on the main borders.

The situation was heating up and getting worse by the day. There were peace talks going on, but it didn't matter until Gojira, who had been out of sight for so long, flew into the sky and brought down one of the Torwin Kingdom's fortresses, killing thousands of soldiers and some nobles.

She also wreaked havoc on several villages, inflicting death and devastation. As she approached a town, a figure named Skarla halted her with a shove, causing the two to vanish.

Torwin, enraged by the attack, tried to gain the upper hand in negotiations, but Gojira doesn't belong to the empire; she's independent, and the Torwin Kingdom had to thank them for sending Skarla.

As soon as they mentioned Skarla's name, they started attacking her, claiming that her unsupervised entry into the kingdom's territory was a provocation, among other things.

They attempted to assign all the blame to Skarla, but it's important to note the impact this had on ordinary people. Both the Empire and the Kingdom received news of this through rumors.

The empire laughed at Torwin's despair, while the kingdom itself was ashamed. The empire clearly lacks control over Gojira, and Skarla's voluntary commitment to safeguard her lands and the common people from further harm is a blessing.

The King of Torwin wished to avoid prolonging this conflict, particularly with the loss of one fortress, but unfortunately, the Empire was eager for war.

So in the midst of the negotiations, the Empire took the time to recruit soldiers and deploy them, preparing a large and strong army. The recent confrontation with demons helped a lot in leveling the playing field, and then there was the invasion from the north.

The losses were enormous, but the number of elites forged through the battles was numerous.

The Torwin Kingdom struggled for two long months to formulate a peace proposal, losing as little as possible. Meanwhile, the Empire made ludicrous demands, demonstrating their unwillingness to negotiate and their desire for bloodshed.

However, the Torwin Kingdom managed to delay the official declaration of war by two months. With that declaration, the armies began to march.

Amidst all this, Skarla made a declaration, noting several names in a letter to the King of Torwin. Skarla declared in this letter to everyone that she would personally move if any of the Masters on the list had participated in the war.

Overall, the list contained 10 names. That's equivalent to exchanging 10 Masters for a single Legend. Torwin saw this as a fair deal; even though the names were important, there were many nobles who agreed to leave them out, as it would prevent them from getting stronger by killing their enemies and not gaining military merits and greater power.

In the end, even in the midst of a war that could shake their entire nation, nobles still act for their own benefits and authority.

And with that statement made, Skarla can relax.

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PART 2 – Veremor Castle!

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Skarla relaxed as the flames of war burned.

Letiphia sent Berinth, her eldest son, to lead the Veremor Family troops in the war. He even took Makaulu and many other orcs from the mountains as mercenaries.

Gakai very much wanted to participate in the war, but both Skarla and Makaulu were firm in their refusal. There is no world where Gakai has gone to war while pregnant.

Skarla, who had arranged for Letiphia to build a large swimming pool in the backyard for her children's enjoyment, suffered a setback. Their peace didn't last long.

A tremor arose near the pool when a figure with long, black, scaly wings landed. Gojira, full of anger and frustration, approached.

“Hey! You bitch!” - Gojira roared in rage as she advanced towards Skarla.

“Stop shouting; you'll scare the children.” - Skarla snapped her fingers, strengthening her grip on her children.

“Fuck you! You said I'd get revenge for what they did to me and my son, but what kind of bullshit is that?! Not only did you stop me from destroying this shitty kingdom, now you won't tell me when the war starts.” - Gojira angrily grabbed Skarla around the waist with her tail, pulling her out of the water.

Skarla sighed and slapped Gojira's tail, propelling it away from her. Gojira growled as she grabbed Skarla by the collar. - “You're not going to answer me?”

“Stop acting like an animal and relax. You'll get your revenge, but things have to be done calmly.” - Skarla pulled her hands away.

“You promised me! I followed your plans, but you keep leaving me out of things; you tell me to do something, then I do it, only for you to come along and stop me.” - Gojira growled as she crossed her arms, her nails digging into her flesh, showing that her anger was rising.

Skarla looked into his eyes and said. - “You're following the plans so perfectly; why ruin everything now for lack of patience? Atharius is getting better, and it shouldn't be long before he's healed. Your enemies are suffering physically and psychologically; why end it all so quickly?”

“Enough games and tell me what's going on?” - Gojira growled, not letting Skarla use her son to calm her down, even if it was true.

“We need to make the Dragon who is working with Torwin show himself. If we can get other dragons involved to attack Torwin, it will be an absolute victory. Not to mention that we don't know their real strength or how many dragons are with them. If we let you loose slaughtering the kingdom, they could come out and kill you.”

“I know you're frustrated and want revenge for what they did to your son, but losing control now will only lead to a disastrous end. I've said it before, and even if I hadn't, it's obvious what needs to be done. Now stop acting like a child, grab a drink, and go enjoy the water. Play with your son; he's having a great time.” - Skarla pointed to a small boy with sharp teeth, black hair, and several black scales on his body.

“Huh? Has he learned polymorphia yet?” - Gojira was shocked to see the child, smelled him, and now that she was calmer, realized that he was indeed her son.

“Yes. As I said, we're making progress with his treatment, and I've already helped him control the energy in his body. He ended up trying to imitate my energy circulation and ended up transforming into a human. It's still imperfect, but he seems to like it.” - Skarla smiled.

“Mommy!” - The adorable Atharius flew into Gojira's arms as he was finally allowed to feel her.

Gojira looked at her adorable son and could feel the wisdom in his eyes, but also the naivety.

“I particularly want him to be cute for a long time; I'm afraid that when he's 100% healed, he'll end up inheriting things he shouldn't from his father. Let's pray he doesn't change too much.” - Skarla smiled as Atharius flew into her arms, picking him up and cuddling him.

Gojira looked at her son and had to agree that this was adorable. As the pinnacle of evolution, dragons are born wise, leaving no room for innocence and cuteness in their early years, unlike other species.

“Revenge will come in due time.” - Skarla held out her hand to an approaching maid. - “Go with her and change into a bathing suit; come and have some fun too.”

Gojira growled. - “Why do I need a bathing suit?”

“To swim in the pool. Why else? Mom's dumb sometimes.” - Skarla looked at Atharius.

“Dumb mom.” - The boy laughed as he pointed at Gojira, who growled and went with the maid to change into a black bikini, exposing her beautiful curves, and then got into the water.

Gojira didn't understand the fun of swimming, but that's because she's a dragon and doesn't feel environmental changes. Skarla doesn't feel it either because of how strong she is, but it's very hot, and children will have fun with anything.

As a result of so many factors, Gojira ended up playing with Atharius, who was so cute; she herself couldn't keep herself angry any longer, her frustration draining away as her son played with her and laughed.

Seeing him play with Skarla's daughters, calling them sisters, was a strange but pleasant thing.

“Being a dragon must be sad.” - Skarla said quietly as she bit into a piece of meat from the barbecue.

“Why do you say that?” - Gojira, who wanted a break, gave her an inquisitive look.

“Your children are born old and wise, only needing your protection for the first few years, before being thrown out of the house to live on their own until they get older, have children, and repeat themselves. You, the mother, after expelling your child, are left alone, spending decades sleeping and, to pass the time, attacking and sacking villages or towns. Repeating this process for centuries or millennia.” - Skarla sighed, and pity was obvious in her eyes.

Gojira remained silent for a while, but then she began to huff. - “Don't talk nonsense. We've lived for much longer than you ants can imagine, so we have no reason to waste our time like you in silly conflicts.”

“You're wrong. Because we are short-lived ants, we value every day of our lives. You and your kind are born powerful and smart; you don't have to do anything, and you become strong naturally. You do nothing but survive in this world; you can't appreciate the little things in life because everything has to be great, or it's not worth it.” - Skarla laughed, pointing at the children.

“That's the pleasure of being a mother. Creating a life and watching it grow, learning from its mistakes and successes, doing things that irritate us, as well as accomplishing things that make us proud. Yesterday Gina tried to read a book, imitating Letiphia, repeating some words correctly, but being a mess in everything else. Even so, we laughed and congratulated her on trying to learn.” - Skarla smiled gently as she looked at Gina.

“Atharius isn't my son, but I am a mother, and when he turned human, surprising me and all of us, I was proud, and I doubt you don't feel the same. It's simple things like this that make life more fun and incredible.” - Skarla had finished eating her meat and was licking her fingers.

“I can finish Atharius' treatment in the next two weeks, which should allow him to inherit all the fragmented knowledge, but if that's done, he's likely to become an ordinary dragon and lose that cuteness and innocence.” - Skarla sank into the water, turning to Gojira sitting on the edge of the pool.

“I can stop the treatment now; over time he will inherit the memories and knowledge, but he will continue with his current personality, developing it on his own without the effects of the draconic heritage. Think about it: whether you want a child who will be able to see his real physical and mental growth, or whether you just want another generic dragon to take up space in this world.” - Skarla turned away, keeping contact between their eyes.

“Go rest; I'll finish things here.”

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PART 3 – Actions & Business!

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The war that broke out attracted everyone's attention. With Skarla out of the war on the grounds of keeping 10 Masters away, the empire was in high spirits.

The enemies lacked the support of a legendary figure and had 10 fewer masters than they did. Naturally, the empire was already quite large, which led to an increase in troops and specialists.

As a result, they had a numerical advantage and were far ahead in terms of Masters. However, powerful elites alone do not win a war.

But just having high morale was more than enough. Merchants focused their attention on the war because such conflicts are extremely lucrative.

The Sieres Duchess Family was taking the lead in this war, especially the 1st Prince, Kalen Zenirys.

Because they "discovered" everything and discovered such schemes, they were given the power to lead the war. Naturally, it was all planned.

Angelo, Kalen's brother, was more military-minded due to his superior skill in this area and his upbringing in a military-focused family.

But the problem arose with his proximity to the Radiant Church, which has been gaining a lot of power and influence recently. Given Angelo's strong loyalty to the church, it was necessary to grant Kalen these conquests in order to strengthen his faction.

Even though the Imperial Family is a family that certainly has a lot of love involved, they are still political and ambitious, and they understand the dangers of a religion gaining so much power in their nation, as it is the same as dividing their authority, something that someone at the top doesn't want.

Skarla's evidence and information led to the selection of Kalen.

......

With the war being the business of the Sieres family, Skarla had time to act in the Krugar Mountains.

All eyes were on the war, allowing her to act.

First was integration. After spending many months in the mountains, they returned with new knowledge, various gifts, and the wonders of the modern world.

Despite the numerous stories circulating, a positive development soon emerged: the arrival of a powerful merchant group, the Gander group, under the leadership of Zenyo Gander.

Zenyo has been trying to get in touch with Skarla since the tournament, but she was too busy, and even with the history they had, she's not the kind of woman who gives second chances to those who turn their backs on her.

Despite the peculiar nature of her relationship with Zenyo, Skarla maintains a simple demeanor. Even though Zenyo didn't do anything serious to affect his confidence, it was enough to lose her and make him the last man standing.

Then, a week after the war began, Zenyo approached her, but she didn't have any business to attend to at the time. Next to Zenyo was someone she had forgotten about, Bianca Paravanato.

The two of them were together, much to her surprise.

...

“I admit I didn't expect to see you, Bianca, but I heard about your merchant group. My condolences.” - Skarla raised a glass to the young woman who bowed and thanked her, having mixed feelings.

“Marquise, thank you for taking the time to listen to this humble merchant.” - Zenyo bowed, because he was here for business.

“You don't need a title; you can call me by my name when we're alone. But leaving intimacy aside, what exactly have you come for?” - Skarla's eyes were sharp, and they both shuddered.

“Lady Skarla, since I know you don't like small talk, I'll get straight to the point. The Gander Group wishes to support you in the expansion and development of the Krugar Mountains, in order to establish a trade route with you.” - Zenyo was precise, knowing that Skarla had lofty goals.

Skarla smiled. - "I can see that you're still as intelligent as ever, but why should I grant you such a privilege?"

Zenyo smiled. - “Because you know I'm the best!” - Her tone was full of pride and confidence. - “There is no better merchant in these lands than me; even if I'm not the richest, I'm the one who has reached such a position on my own, while those above me have been working for centuries; if I had the same amount of time as them, I would have surpassed all those bastards put together.”

Skarla snorted. - “You are indeed talented, but you just don't have the time. Don't blame your failures on things you have no control over; that's characteristic of pathetic people.” - His gaze fell on Bianca, who lowered her head in shame.

“Oh, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to show such a pathetic side in front of you. But even though I've made mistakes, I'm confident that I'm the best partner you can have. I have already prepared the necessary resources, and my subordinates are actively gathering more. We're also looking for reliable experts in various fields, from agriculture, forging, weaving, architecture, and much more. I've also contacted several of my friends, and with their permission, it would be possible to establish an area for magical studies.”

Skarla was slightly surprised. - “I can see that you have a lot of confidence that I would accept. But should I refuse, you will receive a massive monetary loss, as well as your name being tarnished among these various friends of yours.”

“Indeed, I made my actions knowing that I would be accepted, and I still maintain such confidence.” - Zenyo smiled, not backing down. - “I've already ordered the materials you'll need to structure the mountains; everything is being transported here as we speak. Even if you refuse to work with me, I guarantee that if you try to buy the same resources from other people, it will take you a long time to gather 1/10 of what I have at the moment. And even if I'm harmed by your refusal, I still have the resources to hold and retain these materials for 1 or 2 years before I go broke.”

“I sense slight shades of menace.” - Skarla smiled slightly.

“I'd never dare do that; I'm not that brave.” - Zenyo laughed. - “I'm just a merchant who's very convinced of his abilities. If I'm turned down, I'll just have to find other buyers for everything I have; it'll take time, but I'll certainly get back some of what I've lost. If you accept, you'll receive a massive investment, and you'll be able to start restructuring the mountains in just a few days.”

Skarla laughed. - “I like the merchant Zenyo. Well, I'll sign a business agreement with you for the next 10 years. For an investment of 40 million in gold, which I believe is 4/5 of your assets, I'll give you 4% of the shares in the northern trade route, the mountains, and the empire.”

“4%? Shares?” - Zenyo frowned.

“That means you'll be entitled to 4% of all the revenue the trade route makes. It will be an invisible asset that you will own by subscription; in all, there will be 40 subscriptions, each equivalent to 0.1%, with each one worth 1 million gold. You can keep or sell this in the future; if the routes prosper, this asset could appreciate, equaling 1.2 million or more. But we know it could go up to 3 or even 5 million in the next few years.” - Skarla smiled.

Zenyo did some math and swallowed her saliva. - “Just to be sure, will I have these shares for 10 years?”

“No. You will have to support the development of the mountains for the next 10 years in exchange for your initial and future investment. The 4% you own will be yours forever, something you can sell to whoever you want or pass on to your children. Even after 10 years, it will still be yours, because it's something you bought now.” - Skarla smiled, and Zenyo's eyes widened.

Bianca remained silent until she posed a question. - “If it's 4%, what about the remaining 96%?”

“Naturally, I own that 96%. Let me explain a fun system about this percentage. Whoever owns 51% of the shares will have the greatest voice and authority over the Trade Route. What matters here is not physical strength or political power, but the power of money.”

“And another interesting factor is that as you will own 4% of Trade Route shares, I, as the owner of 96%, will have to cover any extra investment after the initial one. So if you invest 1 million with the weight of your 4%, I'd have to invest 24 million, understand?”

“And if you cover my investment?” - Zenyo narrowed her eyes.

Skarla smiled and explained. - “I'll be vague, but let's say I can't cover your investment; naturally, I can't let you lose out. There will be several ways for me to cover the investment, but one of the easiest would be for me to force myself to sell you part of my shares, or even sell them to outsiders to pay your share of the investment. There will be laws and rules about shares in the future; it will be much more complex.”

“What if I become the owner of 51% of the shares?” - Zenyo scratched his chin.

“You would have greater authority over the Trade Route, surpassing even me. Be aware that there will be other shareholders with varying percentages who can join together to make decisions, and their votes will carry more weight. Future decisions on the development of the Trade Route will be made exclusively through meetings with the Major Shareholders.”

“... Why would you do this kind of government? Wouldn't it be easier just to control everything?” - Zenyo was confused.

“Zenyo, I'm strong, and there are hardly any people who can go against me in this world. I can do whatever I want. I can kill you now and say that you disrespected me; everyone would mock you for talking nonsense to a Legend who can kill you like an insect.”

“I appreciate the explanation, but being compared to an insect or assuming my death is not a pleasant thing to imagine.” - Zenyo laughed bitterly.

“I apologize for the rudeness, but it's just an example. But you understand that the world is for the strong. Strength allows you to do whatever you want, with whomever you want, and the rest of us must only bow our heads or close our eyes, even in the face of injustice.” - Skarla smiled, and Zenyo nodded. She looked at Bianca next to her.

“Tell me, Bianca, what do low-level, weak but intelligent merchants need?” - Skarla smiled.

Bianca was surprised by the question but thought to the best of her ability, coming up with the answer. - “Security! In a world where force is law, we need security that our goods won't be taken, or our lives.”

Skarla smiled. - “Exactly. That's what I'll give the merchants: security. You, a talented merchant, can work your whole life, create connections, and much more, but then a noble decides to take your things and uses disguised knights to attack you, kill you, or those around you, until you hand everything over to the noble promptly.”

“Now tell me, with such acts likely to occur, or in other cases, simply becoming the target of a greedy mercenary group who saw the opportunity to instead of escorting your goods, steal them, making excuses that they were bandits, and then profit from it, while you take all the loss. But in what I aim to build, I will provide security for my people and those who trade with me. I'll allow them to structure their groups as companies, being able to sell their shares in exchange for investments, while of course paying taxes to the nation I'm going to create.”

“I'll give you the security you crave; I'll give you the authority to govern your own resources, because as long as you pay the taxes, you can develop and expand as much as you want. In exchange for my protection and security that your assets won't be taken just because someone is stronger or has political power, you as a merchant would feel safer investing in my nation, because even if you don't have the money in a place you can see, you would know that your name would be marked on companies, which would constantly earn you income.”

Zenyo and Bianca were quiet, thinking about all this, which for traders sounds like paradise.

“What will you get out of it? The taxes? What would the taxes be like?” - Bianca asked, full of curiosity, controlling her breathing as she admittedly got very excited now.

“Since in the first few years I'll be the basis of the government, having a lot of money, I'd buy a good chunk of the companies that would set up in my nation, which would make me and my family owners of a larger part of the nation, and of course, we'd have a lot of money going into our pockets. As for taxes, that's something that will be discussed, but you know what net and gross profit are, right?” - Skarla asked calmly, but they didn't know these concepts.

Gross Profit: You purchase food from multiple sources, rounding everything up to 10,000 coins, and then resell it for 30,000 coins. After deducting the cost of materials, your gross profit would be 20,000 coins.

Net Profit: This follows the pattern above, except that we add to the reduction the costs of transport, labor, employee salaries, and other factors. Ultimately, we incur expenses of around 20,000, resulting in a profit of 10,000.

“Taxes will follow the Net Profit, what your company has actually earned, a percentage of which goes into the pockets of the government; the rest is yours and the company's to spend.”

“But isn't Gross Profit more advantageous for the nation? The fewer the variables, the higher the number for the percentage of taxes to take from the nation.” - Zenyo scratched his chin.

“Indeed, but to do so is tantamount to stepping on your people. Because among entrepreneurs, we're not just talking about the big ones like you, Zenyo, but also small businesses, people with just one store or restaurant. In other words, if you have a business that sells products, regardless of the price, that's what we're going to take your taxes from.”

“If we use the [Gross Profit] base, do you know what could happen?” - Skarla smiled and pointed at Bianca. - “Think and answer; I know you can.”

Bianca frowned, thought, and... - “The products would be more expensive. As a business owner, I wouldn't want to have less money; I couldn't take it out of my staff's salary, so I'd raise the prices of my products to a suitable range so that I could make a profit, even with the high taxes.”

Skarla smiled. - “Exactly. I want to create a strong and stable economy and spread plenty of education to the people of the mountains. With cheap taxes and security, merchants would be more willing to invest in my nation, setting up their businesses here, strengthening connections, and naturally, throwing more money at my nation's economy.”

“In 20~30 years, the model should be taking perfect shape. The income would be massive, because the empire's connection with the north is too good.”

“I realize the potential of this method of government; in a place where money is safe and guaranteed, I have no doubt that the Kingdom of the Great Desert, Jarletia, would try to copy it. It's currently the largest economy on the continent.” - Zenyo sighed.

“Don't think about it too much, because I think it's unlikely that they'll be able to copy what I'm going to do.” - Skarla smiled.

“And why do you say that?” - Zenyo was curious.

“Jarletia is a prosperous and greedy nation, where a lot of money flows due to the thriving trade route. But it is a nation ruled by a tyrant who loves gold above all else and who has many powerful and loyal subordinates.” - Skarla smiled.

“Even if you're not a tyrant, what would make you so different?” - Zenyo was curious.

“I don't plan to rule the mountains. Since money will be the focus of the government, it goes without saying that I will create a strong government that doesn't need someone like me to rule it.” - Skarla smiled at the pair's confusion.

“After I get what I want, I'll give up the government and let the people decide who will lead them. The mountains will be divided into several prefectures, where the people will decide the prefectures' main command rooms, who would be in charge of the economy of their areas, as well as the construction and development of their prefectures.”

“Part of the taxes would be given to the main government; the other part would be sent to invest in education, health, housing, and so on in the prefectures. Because a nation that I want to create and that will be very prosperous is a nation where the people decide things.”

“Would you give up your power? Would you give up being a queen?” - Bianca was shocked.

“What's the pleasure of being a queen? I'm not interested in that position; I think it's pathetic. I'm strong and intelligent; I'm going to use these points to get a lot of money and increase my strength, train those who are important to me, and advance.”

“I'm going to establish a nation that will guarantee the power of my money, which will shape the surrounding nations to follow suit and thus prosper even more. I'm going to create a supreme empire through money, in which my family will be powerful for all the money they'll have and strength in levels will be secondary.”

“But would you hand over such a powerful nation into the hands of a random person? Surely the king or queen elected would be someone greedy and manipulative.” - Zenyo narrowed her eyes.

“In fact, that's why there will be a time limit for each elected person's rule; five years should be more than enough. After those years, a re-election would be held, where the people would judge whether the government was good or bad, whether they would vote for someone else or the same person. There will certainly be room for lies, accusations, and manipulations, but not everything can be perfect, and that's why strong and intelligent people are needed.”

“What a ruler fears most is an aware people. Smart and aware people are difficult to manipulate and deceive, which is why there is little investment in education, because it gives room for thought, and that is something very dangerous for commoners.”

“But in the government you want to create, there won't be any commoners or nobles, only those who have a lot or a little money.” - Zenyo laughed.

“Exactly. Social classes will be established according to who has money and how much they have. Naturally, the more money and companies in your name, the greater your influence, with which you can invest in the candidacy of politicians who can support you with more lenient laws or give you greater authority over future government business. There are endless possibilities with this method of government, where merit is above all else.”

“If you're intelligent, you can study and earn money, becoming successful in life. But if you're not clever and don't like studying, fine, be strong. Become strong, do dungeons and sell your resources, help kill dangerous monsters, become a soldier, and so on. There will be opportunities for everyone; it will just be up to you whether you want to be someone who works hard to achieve things or a lazy person who wants to take the easy way out and wait for fortune to smile on you.” - Skarla snorted disdainfully, remembering her first life.

How she had desperately struggled, coming from a poor family, to gain a foothold with her genius. But there were those intellectually useless people who were more successful than him, who gained opportunities because of their parents, even though such privileges are not evil but laziness.

These people were so comfortable with their moms and dads being powerful and rich that they could make as many mistakes as they wanted or act like superior people that there would be no consequences for them.

In the end, what Skarla despised in her life were not privileged people; what is it to blame them for their parents or grandparents having achieved so much that their future generations could live in great luxury? That's a well-deserved merit, whether by legal means or not.

But what annoys him is that people with so many opportunities and privileges don't give their all and yet receive so many gifts, as if they were blessed by heaven.

Meritocracy is what Skarla believes in and follows. She will create a government based purely on this. Even if it's not the ideal method of government, it's the ideal one for her.

......

With agreements signed, by the time they started moving into the mountains, hundreds of wagons were moving, and it was time to start the development of the Krugar Mountains, a region that will go down in history.