Chapter 2683 – 2683. God’S Atlantis

Elena deliberately ordered her informants to stir up trouble in the territory of the Surgeon. The pretext was something vague like searching for traces of a cult.

‘The Surgeon must feel like he’s been slapped in the face with a bucket of water.’

It’s quite unpleasant to have informants from another faction running rampant in one’s territory. In fact, this was practically a blatant challenge.

‘But it’s not enough to use as a cause for war.’

The informants’ public identities had no connection to the Valdert family. Even if they were stirring things up, all they were doing was gathering information. They weren’t committing any crimes. If the Surgeon had no intention of going to war, all he could do was find fault with the informants and expel them.

Elena’s goal was the Surgeon’s reaction. If he openly protested, she would step back and draw a line.

‘If I had my way, I’d kill him right now. But I can’t. But I can’t leave him alone either. He’ll definitely have a negative impact on my wedding in some way.’

Elena deliberately met with the Emperor openly. The reason for the meeting was to report on the capture of Winter Castle and receive the Emperor’s praise. Of course, she expected that there would be behind-the-scenes talks. The Surgeon would surely be suspicious. Just the fact that she met with the Emperor was a form of pressure.

‘He must be uneasy since he attacked the Valdert family before.’

Elena didn’t say a word to the Emperor about the Surgeon. Revenge was hers. She had no intention of involving the Emperor.

‘Alright, Surgeon. Are you just going to take it like a punching bag? The fact that you haven’t officially protested means you’re going to move behind the scenes. Show me what you’ve got.’

That way, she could directly step in and crush his schemes as a warning.

A little while later.

One of the Valdert family’s butlers reported to Elena.

“My Lady, recently, merchants have appeared in the City of Summer. It seems they’ve come not for trade, but to settle in the city.”

The City of Summer.

It was the second most populous city among the territories owned by Elena. Its official name was District 3,042, Verdant Summer.

A district where early summer continued all year round.

In terms of economic scale, it was a much larger district than District 3,041, the Valdert Territory. Half of Valdert’s budget came from the City of Summer.

“What are the origins of these merchants?”

“Their origins are all different, and there was nothing particularly unusual. However, judging by their actions, it seems they’ve coordinated beforehand.”

Normally, she wouldn’t have paid any attention to the appearance of new merchants and would have left them alone.

But now, the situation was not normal. Due to the volcanic island, all of Atlantis was suffering.

‘If some merchants deliberately try to mess with the City of Summer… the economy is bound to be shaken. The situation is that bad.’

The Valdert family had been constantly monitoring the economy.

‘Since the Surgeon might be up to something, we’ve been even more vigilant. Merchants appearing at this time? It’s highly likely to be the Surgeon’s doing.’

Elena rose from her seat. She decided to take action herself. As she was about to leave the room, a woman appeared.

A beauty with black hair and eyes contrasting with her snow-white skin. It was Arel, whom Sung Yoo-jin had brought from the United States and who now worked for the Valdert family.

“My Lady, I would like you to confiscate the merchants’ assets instead of killing them right away.”

“…Arel. Did you happen to overhear the report just now?”

“I check all reports before they reach you, My Lady. Have you forgotten?”

“I was just a little surprised that you appeared and spoke when I was about to take action. Are things so bad that we need to covet the merchants’ assets?”

“Are you really asking that because you don’t know? The budget used for your wedding alone was more than 30% of the assets the Valdert family had accumulated. Most of the remaining assets are real estate. They are difficult to use in an emergency.”

Elena hesitated slightly. Honestly, she was aware that she had invested too much in the wedding.

“…You have to spend money when you need to.”

“You have to make money when you need to.”

It was advice for the Valdert family. Elena couldn’t argue with the advice that was filled with loyalty.

“I understand. I’ll try to squeeze as much money as possible out of those merchants.”

• • •

One of the merchants who had entered the City of Summer, Gont, looked out at the city scenery from his office window.

Despite the humid weather, everyone was wearing masks. It was because of the volcanic ash flying in the air.

In Gont’s eyes, these citizens looked like slaves. Slaves who would bring him money. At least, that’s what they would become in a few months.

‘Shake the economy, take a position in the gap, and suck up all the money. I don’t know whose idea it was, but… it’s a really tempting plan. Hehehe.’

With the money he received from investors and the wealth he had accumulated so far, he would establish himself in this city. He would push out the existing merchants and unite with the merchants who shared the plan. If successful, he would be able to firmly establish himself in this city.

‘The Illusion Lord is a bit of a concern, but the Illusion Lord is not a person who directly interferes with the economy. She’s known for not interfering as long as you pay your taxes well.’

Things were going well.

The items Gont was selling were daily necessities such as masks and water. He sold them at 10% to 20% cheaper than the existing market price. He had an overwhelming price advantage. When other merchants were forced to lower their prices, Gont lowered his prices even further.

“Mr. Gont! Other merchants are gathering to protest!”

“Ignore them. Sell more goods instead of dealing with those guys. We need to take control of this city’s economy within a month. We can make up for the losses later.”

“But is it really okay to do this? If the Illusion Lord is displeased…”

“Haha. I’ve already prepared the tribute to offer to the Illusion Lord. You just need to proceed according to the plan.”

Gont was on a roll. The plan was working perfectly. The existing merchants went bankrupt, and Gont’s merchant group took their place. Every time he saw the existing merchants closing their shops or leaving for other cities, he felt a sense of victory.

‘If things continue like this… I can also join the ranks of the great merchants.’

The success of the plan was just around the corner.

Gont requested additional funds from the investor, and the investor willingly sent additional investment money.

“Mr. Gont, we’ve succeeded! We’ve taken control of this city’s economy!”

“Now, even the Illusion Lord won’t be able to intervene easily. Because we’re the ones who hold the economic power.”

“We can’t miss out on drinks on this monumental day. Let’s have a drink!”

“Hahaha. That’s right. We can’t miss out on drinks. Pour me a glass.”

Drip, drip, drip.

Gont’s glass was filled with alcohol.

“Cheers!”

After toasting with his subordinates, he drank the alcohol.

The alcohol was really… like water that had been used to wash a rag.

“Ugh.”

Gont spat out the alcohol. Instead of alcohol, there was water that had been used to wash a rag in his glass.

“Damn it! Who’s playing these kinds of pranks on such a good day?!”

Gont glared at the subordinate who had poured the alcohol into his glass. The subordinate’s body collapsed. The subordinate who had fallen to the floor was a corpse with pale skin.

“…!”

Startled, Gont jumped up from his seat. He looked at his other subordinates. They were all bloodless corpses. The boisterousness from just now was gone.

“W-What is this?!”

Panicked, he turned his head to look at the entrance, wanting to escape. The door was open. A woman with short blue hair was standing there, leaning on a cane and sneering at Gont.

“The Illusion Lord…?! Could it be, is all of this your doing?!”

“Lower your voice. Don’t raise your voice.”

“This can’t be! We followed the law! We even sent people to offer you tribute! And you accepted the tribute! What you’re doing is betrayal! It’s an act of betraying the trust of the merchants! Do you think the other merchants will just stand by?!”

“Don’t use such strong words. It makes you look weak.”

“Aaaaaaaah!”

Gont screamed and threw himself towards the window. From the beginning, he knew he couldn’t win against the Illusion Lord in a fight. All he could do was escape from this place.

It was the moment he felt he had successfully broken through the window and escaped outside.

He was sitting in his seat.

“…I was definitely… Could it be an illusion? An illusion? Since when?!”

“Since when did I not use illusions… Haha. Let’s stop the games. It’s not a difficult question, so I’ll answer it. One minute. One minute based on reality.”

“…One minute?”

“Shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu.”

Clang!

With the sound of glass breaking, the scenery changed.

A narrower office, subordinates standing still with blank expressions, and the tribute that he had definitely used was placed on the desk.

Gont swallowed. His mind was a mess. It was hard to accept this reality. Was everything an illusion until now? Dozens of days had passed since he came to this city? Even now, those memories were vivid. No, maybe this is the illusion?

Elena ignored Gont’s confusion and walked forward. Her hand reached for the tribute placed on the desk.

Gold bars.

“Is this the tribute you were going to offer me?”

“Y-Yes, Your Excellency the Illusion Lord! I will offer everything I have! Please have mercy!”

“I can make as many gold bars and jewels as I want. It doesn’t take long either. If I snap my fingers like this… ta-da.”

Gold bars and jewels appeared on the desk, forming a small mountain. Gont’s mouth fell open. Even in this situation, greed was slowly rising.

“But I try not to make tributes as much as possible. Why? Because I know that even if it seems like a benefit in the short term, it’s a loss in the long term. I don’t want to ruin the economy with my own hands.”

When she waved her hand, the tribute created by the illusion disappeared.

“I looked into your investor. He’s a noble who engages in illegal activities, especially smuggling. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any connection to the Surgeon.”

“The Surgeon… are you talking about the Surgeon? We, we have nothing to do with the Surgeon!”

“To be caught in a spider web and not even know it. It’s pathetic. Of course, that’s just what I’m saying. I’m not pathetic at all.”

“……”

“There’s something I need you to do.”

“W-What do you need me to do?”

Snap.

Elena snapped her fingers. White powder appeared on the desk.

“It’s a magical powder that makes you feel good when you eat it. Go to the Surgeon’s territory and sell it. Of course, you won’t remember me. You’ll be selling this magical powder at a low price of your own free will.”

Elena disappeared along with the tribute.

Gont was dazed for a while before suddenly coming to his senses. His subordinates also came to their senses.

“Damn it! Clean up this powder!”

“S-Sorry. I’ll clean it up right away!”

“And pack your bags quickly! We need to move quickly to sell this!”

• • •

“I didn’t know that My Lady would engage in drug dealing.”

“He tried to screw me over, so I have to screw him over too to be fair. He tried to ruin my wedding, so he has to pay the price. Arel, is there any problem with the wedding preparations?”

“There isn’t. I would like to say that, but… there are still some unstable factors. First, the volcanic island, second, the Barclay Legion, and third, the Surgeon.”

“The Surgeon won’t move. He’ll be busy dealing with the drugs floating around in his territory, and he’s not stupid, so he’ll have accepted my warning. The volcanic island is a kind of natural disaster. Even I can’t completely deal with it. I can only hope that it will be quiet until my wedding. Well, we captured Winter Castle, so it should be quiet for a while.”

“There’s still one problem left. What are you going to do about the Barclay Legion?”

“I’ve already taken care of it.”

“Could it be Helten?”

Arel knew that Elena was one of Helten’s executives. That meant she had Elena’s trust.

Elena smiled and nodded.

“The Heavenly Demon will move.”