Kuddddeuk──. An ominous vibration that seemed to scrape beneath our feet. “......What was that?” Ren flinched and murmured. The champagne in the glass she was holding trembled slightly. "I wonder." I replied as if I didn’t know and took a sip of champagne. The people inside the hall glanced around at each other with uneasy eyes. ...... However, after the first cracking sound, nothing else happened. No incident occurred, and only a brief silence flowed. ─Hoo~ Now then! The CEO quickly regained his composure. He scratched his eyebrow with his fingernail and then clapped his hands. ─Were you all startled? Great births are always accompanied by labor pains. It is the majestic sound of the earth settling into place beneath the sea, so please relax and enjoy yourselves! “Phew.” Just as many people, including Ren, let out sighs of relief, again. Pusssss───. The sea beyond the stage churned strangely. The waves surged violently as if to swallow the island whole. “.......” I gazed at that place. The virus within me understood the flow of mana rising from that scenery before I did. Creating artificial land through human power. It is a possible technology. It is not an impossible technology. A small-scale island like this Panulan Island might be sufficiently maintainable. However, they were too greedy. If you forcibly raise too vast an area of land all at once like this, an imbalance arises between the Mana of the sea and the Mana of the ground. The water pressure and gravity of the sea. The repulsive force of the massively congealed land. By that contention, magi-tech will be destroyed, and the price of underestimating the laws of nature will be horrific. ─Now! This brings us to the main point. Our Ransom Corporation will grant the right to first purchase the territory of this newly risen continent to the shareholders who have come today....... Kuddddeuk──. ─By granting....... Kuddddddddddeuk──! Between the CEO’s words, sounds like bones being crushed burst out in succession. It was now at a level that could not be ignored. Most of the VVIPs who valued their own safety were already preparing to leave with their bodyguards. “......Ah, f#ck, why is this happening.” A rough curse burst out of Ren’s mouth. I quietly set my glass down. Kuddddddddddeuk────! The shaking intensified. Only then did a guard hurriedly climb onto the podium and urgently whisper something into the CEO’s ear. The CEO’s face flushed red. He shoved the guard aside as if angry and grabbed the microphone, but. ─....... No sound comes out. Whether the power was cut or the equipment broke, it’s impossible to tell, but the sight of him just moving his mouth was quite pitiful. And then, in the very next moment. Kwaaaaaa───! The artificial land collapsed as if it exploded. A massive shock sent the sea surging upward, and a tidal wave like a pile of bricks pressed in from all directions like a tsunami. Only then did people begin evacuating. Kyaaaaaak─ Uaaaaaak─ I stood up from my seat. I strolled leisurely through the pandemonium where screams, curses, and the sound of waves were mixed together. I moved my steps to avoid overturned tables and shattered glass shards. “T-this, what is this─” In the middle of that hellish scene, I spotted Russell, standing blankly, unable to go anywhere. “Ah, crazy, what the hell is this─“ “Vice President Russell.” When I placed a hand on his shoulder, he flinched and turned around. With an innocent, dazed expression, he tilted his head. "......President?" “The promised payout of 1,000 times on 100 dollars.” The contents of the bet were that if Ransom failed, I would give him 1,000 times 100 dollars. If Ransom succeeded, he would give me 100 dollars. “Huh? No, what, now of all times, a bet─” “It’s 100,000 dollars.” “What the hell is a hundred thou─” I took out a check I had prepared in advance from my pocket and handed it to him. “......Huh? Wow. Well, thank you for now?” Russell accepted it eagerly and slipped it into his inner pocket. "Well then, take care." I moved my legs, leaving Russell’s vacant eyes behind. Pushing against the chaotic crowd, I arrived at the helipad. "Sir. You can board now." I got onto the helicopter that Dieter had been waiting in. Dududududu──! The helicopter lifted off with a deafening roar. Beneath my feet, the artificial island that had turned into a hellscape grew distant. The collapsing land and the heaving sea surface. Countless people could be seen escaping aboard lifeboats. They staggered in the waves and screamed, but they would probably arrive safely. Canilan is a country famous for insurance. If they were invited to this island, they should have the means to pay for their own lives. Dududududu── After a while, the helicopter landed on the safe Canilan mainland. “Sir.” Dieter handed me a terminal. I checked the screen. At some point, an enormous profit from short selling was already displayed. “Good work.” I lightly patted Dieter on the shoulder. “Too bad for Canilan.” Today was merely the beginning. But well, even if it hadn’t been me, this was bound to happen anyway. Even before my regression, there had been several businessmen who caught the same ‘timing’ as I did. “I’ll be staying in Canilan for the next few weeks.” “Alright.” Dieter would probably have a lot to do. Because work was needed to turn money into more money, build influence in Canilan, and at the same time acquire the technologies that could be considered its real core. “Good work.” Their party had ended, but for me, it was just beginning. *** Ransom Corporation failed. At the same time, a certain 'element' that had constituted Canilan's golden age was partially destroyed. Ransom’s stock price plummeted straight down, breaking through all safety mechanisms, and signs appeared that the aftermath would spread to other companies as well. “Ha.......” Ren paced back and forth inside the Akarius commander’s office all day long. Bloodshot eyes. Clutching her terminal, she kept making call after call. Ttiririring- ttiririring- The longer the ringing tone continued, the more her insides burned. Ttiririring- ttiririring- ─Hello. At last, a voice came through the receiver. "Ahf#ckfinallypickingup!" (TL: "Ah f#ck, finally picking up!") Ren poured out her words. ─......Ugh. Hey, why are you being like this, seriously. I'm having a hard time too right now. You know that. Russell’s voice was heavily hoarse. From around him came a mix of loud shouting, ringing phones, and the sounds of things being smashed. "Heyiamnoottryingtoblameyouijustwanttotalk." (TL: “Hey bastard I’m not trying to blame you I just want to talk.”) She spat out the words without even breathing, afraid he might hang up again. ─Alright. Talk. I won’t hang up. “Phew. Hey, anyway, Ransom, this Ransom thing, fine. Let’s say it’s a loss. Still, that remaining CDO or whatever, I'm still in the plus, right?" Ren asked, grasping at straws. ─....... Russell said nothing. His silence was unsettling. “Can’t I sell this now? Can’t I cash out even now?” ─......I told you you can’t sell it. That’s the contract terms. How many times did I say there’s a mandatory one-year deposit period. No early redemption. “Hey!” ─Just wait a bit. Once the market calms down....... “"Son of a─!” Ren was about to spit out a curse but held back. ─......I’m sorry about the Ransom thing. But honestly, that’s what investment is. You bear the risk yourself. “I know. I know, but can it recover?” ─How many companies are there in Canilan. Just because one goes under, do you think the country will collapse? Rustle rustle. From beyond the receiver came the sound of him packing something. It sounded like paper bundles being stuffed into a bag. “You, don’t tell me...... you’re thinking of running?” ─Hey now, what are you talking about. Wow, but seriously, I’m glad I bet on with guy back then. “What bet.” ─Nothing. I’m hanging up for now. Click. The call ended abruptly. A vein bulged at Ren’s temple. "Ahyouf#ckingbastardseriously—" Just as she was about to throw the terminal. Ttiririring. A call came in immediately again. The moment she checked the display, Ren’s heart dropped. “Kronen Schatzinsel Bank” It was the bank that had lent her money with all of Akarius’s mercenary contracts and future profits as collateral. ....... The failure of Ransom Corporation. Its shockwave struck Canilan’s securities, banks, insurance, and corporations in succession. In particular, the air inside securities firm offices was as precarious as thin ice. Of course, for now, it was only one company called Ransom that had failed, but that crack had given everyone a certain 'awareness'. That perhaps we had been pushing things too far all this time, “No, no. It’s fine. It’s okay.” In the break room of Merilch Securities. Employees smoked cigarettes with trembling hands as they talked to each other. “We have insurance, right? Right?” Insurance products that cover the principal and losses if a company goes bankrupt. Insurance and corporations are inseparable. “......Hey.” At that moment, the team leader in the corner opened his mouth with a bloodless face. “That. We sold all of that.” “......What?” "Don't you remember? Last quarter, to meet our performance targets, we added a risk premium and sold the entire lot. We thought the companies would never go bankrupt anyway, that it was a waste to pay those insurance premiums." The employees’ complexions turned ashen, like cigarette ash. “Wh- who to? What kind of, what kind of crazy bastard bought that, and when?” The team leader muttered while rubbing his dry face. “I don’t know. The name was something like…… Ebert, I think.It was a fund made by an imperial noble.” A lunatic who suddenly appeared and bought up all the insurance contracts and related derivatives while being treated like a moron. In other words─ a madman who shorted the entirety of Canilan. Ah, should we call him a prophet now? “We’re the lucky ones. Among the insurance companies, there were places that even created entirely new products and sold them.” “Huh…… no, no, but still, surely it won’t collapse that badly, right? For us? Ransom will end with Ransom, won’t it……” “For now, we can only hope so.” The team leader bit down hard on his cigarette. ....... In a high-rise building in Canilan’s financial district, the office of the executive director at Rekiano Securities. The back of Dason, who resembled a badger, was drenched in cold sweat. “.......” The numbers on the monitor rippled. Ransom’s stock price was plunging straight down. This 'Community Land Protocol' absolutely had to succeed. At the very least, it had to show some possibility. The resources poured into that project were astronomical. In Dason's mind, who had been rolling around in this industry for a long time, the next scenario took shape. First, the subcontractors supplying Ransom would go bankrupt in a chain, and next, the banks that had loaned money to Ransom would be unable to recover their funds. Then the banks, to make up for their losses, would refuse to extend loans to other companies or recall them outright, and like that…… “E-executive Director.” A secretary came in and handed over some documents. “Ransom has urgently requested liquidity support…….” Dason grabbed and tore at what little hair he had left. “Ransom is finished. After crashing and burning that miserably, what do they expect, more importantly. That insurance, the guy who bought those insurance contracts?” He braced himself on the desk with trembling hands. “That imperial guy called Ebert or whatever.” “Yes, yes.” “That guy is from the Empire, so he probably doesn’t yet know how serious the situation in Canilan is. He’ll just think he got lucky. Tell him to sell it back.” They had to buy it back somehow. “Offer to pay double, including the fees paid so far, plus a premium.” “D-double, would double be enough?” “Pretend to negotiate and going up to triple─ no, even quadruple is fine, but not beyond that. If we offer too much, he’ll get suspicious.” Before long, the payout on that insurance contract would skyrocket, and if that happened, Rekiano would go bankrupt. “Ah, but where that person is located……” “Find him! Search everywhere and find him!” The badger screamed as he hurled the phone. “Fu#k, go kowtow and smash your head on the ground or lick his shoes, do whatever you have to do and buy it back! If you don’t, we’ll all─ die!” ....... After returning to the Empire, I stopped paying attention to Canilan's affairs for the time being and returned to my duties as a knight. It was the analysis of active mana residue that had accumulated in the meantime. “.......” When I stared at the documents containing the crime scenes, the virus within me took over my optic nerves. The fragments of mana in the photographs, the active residue, glowed blue and reconstructed themselves before my eyes. Analyzing the scene like this, again and again. "Sir Knight." A staff member entered. In his hands was some kind of envelope. “It’s a letter from Empire Point.” “A letter?” “Yes. An instructor named Phillips came directly to the knight order and asked that it be delivered.” Phillips. I searched my memory for a moment. An instructor of commoner origin at Empire Point. A rather humane person who had worried about Hannah during the Jacob incident. I accepted the letter and unfolded it. ──To Sir Maximilian, heir of Ebenholtz and a knight of the Sentinel── I am Phillips, an instructor at Empire Point. Though I know it is discourteous, I have taken up my pen, and for that I would first like to express my deepest apologies...... ......The cadet I instructed, ‘Hannah Usar’, achieved by far the top ranking among this graduating class. Not only in swordsmanship, Mana sensitivity, and tactical understanding, but also in all fields including the newly added Aerial Assault, she is a talented individual who earned excellent results. However, Cadet Hannah has currently not received a single letter of recommendation. At this rate, she faces the risk of being unable to receive even a regular knighthood appointment, let alone enter the Sentinel, and may be forced to repeat a year or abandon the path of knighthood altogether....... ─────── I skimmed over Hannah’s transcript attached to the back of the letter. Perfect scores in practical exams. Top evaluation from instructors. Even so, the reason she received no recommendations was obvious. To begin with, around this time of year, there was originally no possibility at all for a mere commoner to enter the Sentinel. The noble cadets would engage in counter-maneuvering to ensure that recommendations did not go to others. “Hm.” It would be burdensome for me to put my own name down as a recommendation. I’m not yet of an age appropriate for that, either. Still, Hannah must join the Sentinel. I don’t yet know her ideology for certain, but she is clearly a talented Aran. She is a character who can give hope even to commoners. “Three letters should do......” To join a massive knight order like the Sentinel, three letters of recommendation are required. One from the military, one from a knight, and one from the imperial family. I had people in mind for each, so there shouldn't be a problem. “I’ll be seeing you soon.” I twisted the corner of my mouth while looking at Hannah's photo enclosed with the letter. ~~~ Happy New Year, Everyone!!! 🎊🎉🎊🎉