There Was A Brief Incident

Peeeeep—!

With a rough whistle, a steam locomotive ran along the rails. Inside one of the luxurious compartments attached to the train, Ian sat gazing out the window at the passing scenery.

Seated across from him was his aide and escort, Captain Mardin Luso. The two were currently en route to the Moria Empire, passing through a place called the Kingdom of Norseman.

They had received word that they could not sail their battleship directly into Moria’s territorial waters. So they had docked the ship at a port in the adjacent Kingdom of Norseman and were now traveling by train to cross the border.

“This country, Norseman, really has a different feel to it compared to others.”

“Likely because it’s in the middle of the continent — it tends to be quite dry. On top of that, the sun is intense here, which is why the hat industry is highly developed. You probably noticed before we boarded the train that everyone was wearing unusual hats.”

“I did. Everyone was wearing white hats. Seems you studied this place beforehand?”

“Ha ha, partly — and I’ve also studied some things before.”

“Is that so? Anyway, I heard there are deserts here too?”

“Yes. If you go inland, there are desert regions that stretch across multiple countries. These deserts essentially form the northern and western borders.”

“Seems like a tough region for agriculture.”

“That’s true. They don’t produce much food locally, so they rely heavily on imports from the east and west. Also, because they’ve invested a lot in fishing, you often see fishing vessels from these central nations all over the world.”

“Ah, that’s what I read about in the paper. Didn’t they enter our colonial waters without permission and start overfishing?”

“Yes, and that’s caused all kinds of trouble. Especially since it’s difficult to touch any vessels flying Moria’s flag. So the more cunning fishermen from other nations tend to stick close to Moria’s ships when operating.”

“Problems like this seem the same everywhere.”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing. Anyway, what do you think about the purchase of the battleship that the Nubea Kingdom originally ordered?”

“Well… from a naval officer’s standpoint, I wonder if it’s really necessary. It’ll definitely be inferior in performance. But from a diplomatic perspective, I think it’s essential.”

“You think so too, huh.”

Ian understood that this was a diplomatic purchase and thus not something he could object to. What bothered him more was why he had to go negotiate it. Was it because his punishment over the Third Prince’s zoo incident was considered insufficient?

“Still, they’re entrusting me with a significant task. Before, they wouldn’t have even let me sit at this kind of table.”

All things considered, it would help raise his profile. With that thought, the train Ian boarded continued to roll onward. After traveling for an entire day, they finally reached the border of the Moria Empire.

At that point, the train came to a stop. Since they couldn’t cross the border immediately, they would undergo inspection and identity checks here. Through the window, Ian could see soldiers moving about. Their uniforms caught his eye.

“They’re all dressed in white here.”

“Likely to reduce heat from the sunlight.”

“True. Wearing black would be a lot hotter.”

“Looks like the inspection is about to begin. I’ll go bring the interpreter.”

Mardin stood to summon the interpreter from the next room. Being large and over two meters tall, he had to duck to get through the narrow doorway. Watching him for a moment, Ian returned his gaze to the window.

He heard various voices outside, in a language he didn’t recognize. Unlike the Doicheun Empire, which shared the same language and script, Moria’s language made communication difficult.

‘Feels like looking at Earth’s Middle East, but at the same time, it’s very different.’

Rather than turbans, most people wore wide-brimmed, snow-white hats. Looking at it now, Ian once again felt like this was truly another world. Just then, clack — the sound of the door sliding open reached his ears. Thinking it was his aide, he looked up, only to see three soldiers standing there.

“Damn, they got here first?”

He figured it didn’t matter. One of the men stepped in and looked Ian over before speaking. Of course, Ian couldn’t understand a word. Judging from the soldier’s tone, he might have been asking for ID.

“Where did I put my ID again?”

He figured it was in his bag. Then, a strange feeling struck him — Was this really normal? After all, he was here representing the Polia Kingdom. Moria should have sent someone to receive him.

“Even if we’re just a kingdom, we’re one of the stronger ones. They wouldn’t just ignore that, right?”

As he looked at the soldiers, he caught a flash of nervousness in their expressions. That was enough to tell him something was off. But then… where was Mardin, who had gone to fetch the interpreter? If he was just next door, he should’ve noticed something by now.

“Hey, can you hear me? (in Moriaan)”

“I don’t know what you’re saying. Don’t you have someone who can interpret? I’m clearly a foreigner.”

“What’s this? What language is that? (in Moriaan)”

“Let’s just go. He’s not worth it. (in Moriaan)”

“No, he might be. Judging by his clothes, he looks like he’s from a wealthy family. (in Moriaan)”

Though he couldn’t understand the words, their body language was off. Still, Ian didn’t feel particularly threatened. He simply stared them down to see what they’d do.

Then the one in front raised his pistol and pointed it at Ian’s chest.

“What the— they’re not soldiers, they’re bandits?”

Boldly pulling this in a border zone crawling with soldiers? Could they really get away with that? Apparently, they were demanding valuables. Ian clicked his tongue.

“I’m experiencing all sorts of things the moment I reach the border.”

“Hand over everything you’ve got. Do you understand me? (in Moriaan)”

“Tsk. Definitely bandits.”

“Quit mumbling and fork over the money. You don’t want to die, do you? (in Moriaan)”

“If you’re going to rob someone, you should at least know who they are. Also, if I can’t understand you, what good is waving that thing around? You think that’ll make me hand anything over?”

Ian’s incredibly calm demeanor made the three men scowl. Seeing that, Ian had to stifle a chuckle. To the three, his smile only provoked them more.

Normally, pointing a gun was enough to make someone surrender and give up their belongings. But this man was just laughing. They couldn’t help but think — Was he insane? Deciding they couldn’t waste more time, the man in front stepped forward.

“You little shit, what’s so funny? You want to die? (in Moriaan)”

He approached with lowered voice, perhaps to avoid attracting attention from outside. As he neared, Ian shook his head, met his gaze — and activated his mental manipulation. Zzzzzzz— As their eyes locked, the man’s pupils began to fade.

“Hey, what’s wrong? Why are you just standing there? (in Moriaan)”

“Hey, snap out of it! (in Moriaan)”

The two remaining men called out to their companion in front of Ian. At that moment, the man suddenly whipped his head around. His bloodshot eyes glared menacingly, and drool poured from his bared teeth. As his grotesque expression stunned the others, he abruptly lunged at them.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing?! (in Moriaan)”

“Are you out of your mind?! (in Moriaan)”

He charged, slamming into the two and knocking them into the corridor, where they crashed into a window with a loud CRASH! as the glass shattered. Then, with clear intent, he began pummeling his two companions with his fists. In response, one of them, desperate, pulled the trigger on his gun.

Bang! Bang bang! Bang!

Gunfire rang out, sending chaos through the passenger car. Watching the scene unfold, Ian was struck by how bizarre the situation was. He also couldn’t help but marvel at the utility of his mental manipulation ability. It allowed him to handle threats cleanly without leaving any trace.

If he had used telekinesis instead? It might have left too many questions. Seeing limbs twisted and bodies mangled would definitely have raised suspicion.

“Still, seeing it up close like this… they’re harder to kill than I expected.”

He realized this was probably the first time he had witnessed the full effects firsthand. Usually, he used mental manipulation and only saw the aftermath. But now, he saw that unless someone was hit in a vital spot like the head or heart, they kept attacking even after being shot.

“It should be wearing off soon.”

Unfortunately, short-term mental manipulation had a drawback: it didn’t last long unless reinforced repeatedly. Just then, a confused voice rang out.

“Ugh? Wh-what am I…? (in Moriaan)”

The man, unable to grasp the situation, looked down at his chest and abdomen where pain flared — both areas were soaked in blood from gunshot wounds. His white uniform made the red even more vivid, making it clear how serious the situation was.

At that moment, the two who had been holding him off stopped and fled. The wounded man reached out, trying to call them back, but no words came. They were already sprinting to the end of the corridor.

Though some passengers were blocking the exit, the threatening scene caused screams and gasps, and the crowd scattered. Even if they managed to escape temporarily, there were too many witnesses for them to avoid being caught by the stationed soldiers.

“Guh… urgh…”

Meanwhile, the injured man, groaning in unbearable pain, collapsed. As he turned his head, he spotted Ian standing there — and seemed to realize something had been wrong all along. But the wounds were too severe, and he couldn’t hold on. He died shortly after collapsing. The situation appeared to be over.

“That’s what you get for targeting me.”

Just then, with hurried footsteps, Ian’s aide Mardin appeared. Upon confirming that Ian was unharmed, Mardin sighed in deep relief. Ian greeted him with a sharp remark.

“You finally made it? What took you so long?”

“Well… there wasn’t an interpreter nearby, so I went farther to find one. I’m terribly sorry — I should’ve been here.”

“No matter. Seems they were bandits, and out of greed, they started fighting among themselves. Two of them ran off that way.”

“I’m just grateful you’re unharmed.”

“Guess I’m a little lucky.”

Despite the situation, Ian spoke with a calm smile, leaving Mardin with a strange feeling. Still, he could only be relieved that his prince was safe. By then, a group of soldiers had arrived, and Ian was able to move elsewhere.

Later, a diplomatic official arrived, bowing in apology to Ian for letting him get caught up in such an incident. Ian waved it off and disembarked. Due to the shooting, the train could not resume its journey immediately.

They had to remain in the border town for the time being. Ian was escorted to a hotel arranged by the diplomatic office, where he stayed the night. Only the next day was he able to reboard the train and continue the journey. Soon, the train crossed the border and entered the land of the Moria Empire.

As they crossed the border, Ian noted that the landscape wasn’t much different from the Kingdom of Norseman. Being in a similar region, it was only natural that the scenery would resemble that of its neighbor. Still, what stood out was that the cities along the train route were clearly larger and more developed.

The Moria Empire had a population of 230 million — a massive number. Though it had the smallest territory of the empires, in scale it was still several times the size of the Polia Kingdom.

Even though Polia had the largest territory among the kingdoms, it was still dwarfed by Moria. Naturally, Moria had abundant goods, and with so many people, it was also rich in manpower. It had numerous mountains and exported vast amounts of natural resources mined from them.

As they passed several major cities and continued eastward, the final destination was none other than the capital of the Moria Empire. Since Ian was there as a national representative, he would inevitably have to meet the Emperor. Only after visiting the imperial palace in the capital could proper negotiations begin.

Of course, Ian himself wouldn’t have much to do. His role was essentially ceremonial — to represent the kingdom’s face. The real negotiations would be handled by the ambassador and diplomats at the Polia Kingdom’s embassy in the Moria capital.

Finally, after the long journey, they arrived at the capital of the Moria Empire. For Ian, it was his first time ever setting foot in an imperial capital.