Fighter Sales Take Flight

October 12

Prince Ian was having a conversation with the chancellor who had come to see him. The topic was about the Doicheun Empire’s intention to purchase fighter jets.

“How is the transaction proceeding?”

“Yes, negotiations are currently underway with the officials sent from the Doicheun Empire.”

“They said they didn’t need them before, and now they come running—seems they must be desperate.”

“It seems they’ve realized it is becoming difficult to produce enough on their own.”

“I hear they suffer many crashes?”

“They say the loss of fighter jets is no joke. Dozens a day means hundreds in just a month. Over the span of a year, how many must they have lost?”

“Indeed, empires certainly do produce a great number of fighter jets.”

“With many factories converted into munitions plants, such production capacity is possible.”

“That would boost production, but economically it would be a massive loss. If they win, good for them—but if not, then all the losses will be theirs to bear.”

“Correct. Moreover, they say demand for manufactured goods has skyrocketed recently. With so many facilities converted, there’s hardly any way to procure them.”

“Even though we are steadily producing and selling, it still isn’t enough—gives one a sense of how vast the empires’ populations must be.”

The Polia Kingdom’s economic growth rate was currently climbing steeply. Since less than 30% of its factories had been converted into munitions plants, the rest continued to churn out consumer goods needed for daily life, generating enormous wealth.

“Fortunately, the Magnia Empire is also selling consumer goods, so people can still get their hands on them to some degree. Without that, countless people would not even be able to live properly.”

“That’s true. In any case, this is our chance to make the continent truly recognize Polian-made products. Once you’ve used a convenient household item, you can’t easily switch to another, can you?”

“Of course. That’s why we are thoroughly inspecting and ensuring our products are of proper quality.”

“If there are companies cutting corners—skimping on raw materials just to make more profit—investigate them thoroughly and make an example out of them.”

“Of course. Such people must be properly dealt with.”

Ian thought this great war was indeed becoming an opportunity for the Polia Kingdom. By the time the war ended, advancements that should have taken decades would already be completed. This would surely raise national power even higher.

“How many fighter jets are we talking about selling?”

“As it is the first sale, not many. Around thirty units are expected.”

“Thirty seems far too few. They must need far more fighter jets.”

“Considering it’s the first deal, that’s about the number they want. They’ll test them in combat first. If a second deal happens, the number will jump into the hundreds, and then we’ll have to drastically increase aircraft production.”

“Hmm, how many fighter jets do we currently possess?”

“About seven hundred, to my knowledge.”

“Seven hundred—quite an increase.”

Just last year they had barely produced fifty, and added another hundred. Now, by October, the number had risen to seven hundred—a remarkable increase indeed.

All this was in preparation, anticipating possible unforeseen variables.

“If hundreds of fighters are required, we’ll have to greatly expand our aircraft factories.”

“Especially if sales happen on both sides, then expansion will be even more necessary. Let’s wait until sales begin—only then expand the facilities. Building now and finding no buyers would be a loss for us.”

“Understood.”

It was the buyers who were desperate, not them. With that reply from the chancellor, Ian realized the possibility of selling fighter jets was now open—and with it, the certainty of gaining far more wealth.

‘If we sell fighters and they’re properly used, we’ll gain a treasure trove of combat data.’

If deployed in actual battle, it would only benefit them. They could acquire the know-how to develop even better fighters. Naturally, he intended to send people to interview pilots about shortcomings.

Indeed, one condition of the sales contract was to keep such personnel safely in the rear of the battlefield and allow them to conduct interviews.

“Ah, and about the goblins. I hear those creatures have recently formed villages on the islands?”

“Yes. Aerial reconnaissance revealed places resembling villages scattered across the area. Whether they are proper villages is doubtful, but they’ve built something like them.”

“To form villages—they must intend to settle there. But did they even have females among them?”

“Well… that much, they haven’t been able to determine.”

Indeed, without being able to fully investigate the dangerous goblins, no one could know if they had females. Still, forming villages meant they were building their own civilization.

That raised the question—should they perhaps be considered an intelligent species?

“Do the goblins remain savage?”

“Yes. To get a closer look, sometimes boats approach the shore, and each time, they threaten by throwing handmade stone spears.”

Of course, it posed no real threat. For reference, currently one cruiser and over ten destroyers were stationed around the islands. Any attempt by the creatures to leave was swiftly dealt with.

“Is that so? As savage as ever. And taming them—still impossible?”

“The zoological society has been trying, but it’s not working at all. Their hostility toward humans is simply too great.”

Hearing this, Ian felt it was only natural. Records described monsters as untamable beings. If they could be tamed, surely some would still live alongside humans.

At present, about thirty goblins had been captured. Five were sent to zoos for taming research, while the other twenty-five were used for live experiments.

Ian suddenly remembered something—the women who had been assaulted by goblins. He wondered about their condition.

“And the women—how are they now?”

“Most have chosen abortion and completed treatment. Some returned to their families, but others, unable to, now live together in one place.”

The situation was grim. Even after being assaulted, many families still cast harsh looks, preventing the women from returning home.

“And I heard some chose to give birth?”

“Yes, about two of them did.”

Some could not bring themselves to kill the life inside them. But the result was grim.

“They say even those infants showed strong aggression?”

“Yes. They were just newborns without developed teeth. Had they already had teeth, the mothers’ flesh might have been torn off. The two women, shocked, have since relinquished all rights to the goblin infants, now in isolation.”

“The shock must have been immense.”

It was truly a pitiful matter. Ian thought the state must help these women live proper lives.

“If they wish, grant them new identities and a chance to start anew.”

“Yes, understood.”

The chancellor thought perhaps it was too much kindness, but since the king himself ordered it, he could only obey. After further discussion, the chancellor left, and Ian returned to his pile of documents.

‘Ugh, there’s too much work.’

With so many projects reshaping the nation, the paperwork was endless.

Several more days passed, and glad tidings arrived. The Doicheun Empire formally purchased fighter jets—not thirty, but fifty. Soon after, the Moria Empire and the Noma Empire also expressed intentions to buy.

For now, Ian decided to wait and see. If second deals occurred, then production would have to expand. Meanwhile, another piece of good news came—the discovery of a new oil field.

Drilling had been conducted in hopes of finding more, and they discovered a new deposit 200 km southeast of the previous site. Ian realized the homeland of the Polia Kingdom was turning out to be ideal land for oil.

Still, coal remained the primary energy source. It was still widely used throughout society, though inevitably, oil would replace it in time.

Since it was not urgent, development would proceed slowly. Unlike before, when they had to import oil, their current fields already produced enough to meet demand—and even some for export.

Thus, they planned only basic facilities for the new site, cautious of overproduction.

In any case, selling fighters and discovering oil meant only good news for the Polia Kingdom. With more money circulating, people’s spending naturally increased.

Even though the king had curtailed luxury and reduced parties, underground entertainment was thriving. People were buying mansions, and with buildings seen as wealth, construction boomed.

Thus, ten-story buildings began rising all over the capital.

This created new jobs, drawing many to the capital. The population of Pullea, once over two million, now approached three million.

Experts predicted four million within a few years. The capital city grew ever larger, and real estate prices threatened to skyrocket—something Ian planned to address.

Meanwhile, the war in the Old Continent grew ever larger. By December, nearly twenty million soldiers clashed on both sides.

After nearly two years, the scale was immense. Most of the Leman Federation’s land had been reduced to wasteland. Cities and villages were gone—rightly called a land of death.

Corpses lay across muddy fields, the ground cratered by countless shells. Experts said it would take enormous effort and time to make the land habitable again.

Yet the war showed no signs of ending. The Doicheun Empire now occupied nearly all of the Federation’s land. The allied forces’ defenses had only grown more desperate.

Both sides freely used poison gas, forcing soldiers to fight in gas masks. Thousands of artillery pieces pounded each other ceaselessly, the soldiers fighting in fury.

People despaired that the war might never end. Some said it would last until the entire population perished. With both sides evenly matched, no end was in sight.

Everyone was exhausted, drained. War expenditures were crushing. Territories not directly at war suffered under massive taxes, straining their economies.

Prices of daily necessities skyrocketed to dozens of times what they were before. People barely survived.

Meanwhile, propaganda was everywhere, proclaiming imminent victory. “Just a little more and we win!” they declared, to soothe the masses.

But colonial issues arose. With so many colonial troops sent to the front, resentment flared.

Rebellions spread throughout the colonies. Normally, force would have crushed them, but the empires lacked the strength. They resorted to words instead.

They even made empty promises to grant independence if the colonies kept supporting the war. Colonial leaders, hopeful, signed pledges.

Thus, chaos slowly eased. Yet whether the empires would keep those promises remained uncertain.