How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Volume 1

I had gotten into the university’s School of Socioeconomic Studies (with the subject I had selected for the socio- part of the entrance exam being World History, by the way), and my dream for the future had been to become a local government employee. This was all within my field of expertise.

Hearing this plan, the king had taken on a ponderous expression, but the prime minister, Marx, had been enthusiastic. He must have ultimately decided that, rather than turn over the hero to preserve the status quo, enacting economic reforms was more likely to leave the country with a future. The king became more enthusiastic as we went on.

As the guy who suggested it, I knew I’d probably be expected to put in a lot of the work on those reforms, but only as a single bureaucrat in the finance ministry… that was what I had thought.

“And then he pushed the throne off on me.”

“Um, well… Sorry.”

“It’s nothing you need to apologize for. If anything, you’re a victim in all this, suddenly finding yourself engaged to me.”

“Well, yeah… Wait, huh? Which of us is higher-ranked now? Do I need to be super polite and formal?” She looked unsure of whether she should speak to me as a commoner would to a king, or as a princess who was candidate to be queen.

“…We can keep it casual, I guess?” I said.

“…Sure.”

“Also, don’t worry about the betrothal thing. I’m just holding onto the throne for now. I’ll probably quit this whole king gig in a few years, anyway.”

“Huh? Why?!”

“Because I only ever planned to work hard enough to earn the subsidies for the Empire so that I wouldn’t be turned over. Now that I’ve been handed the throne, I’ll do enough to get this country on the right track, but after that, I’ll leave it to the people of this country to handle the rest. Of course, we can tear up the engagement then.”

I gave Liscia a reassuring smile.

◇　◇　◇

“I’ll probably quit this whole king gig in a few years anyway.” My eyes went wide when I heard Souma say that.

He makes it sound so simple. Does he even realize how difficult that would be?

Even someone like myself, who had focused so much on military matters that my political knowledge was a bit weak, could see the situation our country was in. I believe the word was “checkmate.” Food shortages, economic malaise, the influx of refugees caused by the invasion of demons, plus pressure from the Gran Chaos Empire. We had nothing but uncertainty bearing down on us.

For that reason, I could somewhat understand my father’s decision to immediately abdicate the throne to someone he sensed was more capable. But still. Considering all that, was it even possible to get this country back on track? Even supposing he somehow could, would the people allow a king who had accomplished such a great feat to retire so easily?

“…So, do you think you can secure the funds for the war subsidies?”

“Hm? Yeah. I’ve already secured the funds to send to the Empire.”

“…Huh?”

“Right now, I’m trying to squeeze out the funds for my reforms. They’ll cost even more than the war subsidies, after all.”

Wait… Wait, wait, wait, wait! He’s already secured the funds? The amount the Empire requested was so massive that it was equivalent to the national budget, from what I heard!

“Where did we have that kind of money…?”

“I sold off, like, a third of the treasure vault.”

“The treasure vault… Our national treasures?! Don’t tell me you sold off our national treasures! You didn’t, did you?!” I closed in on Souma, who looked very blasé about the whole thing. “The national treasures belong to the whole country! Just arbitrarily selling them off is a betrayal of our people!”

“Now, now, just calm down. If you say they’re the property of the people, I’d say selling them for the benefit of the people is all good.”

“Even so, there must have been objects with historical and cultural value…”

“Ohh, if that’s your concern, I had those set aside. All I sold were jewels and ornamental objects that had material value.”

Souma looked through the paperwork for the treasure vault inventory. “Treasures were divided into three categories: Category A (items with historical or cultural value), Category B (items without historical or cultural value but with monetary value), and Category C (everything else). We only sold items from Category B. Rather than sell the stuff in Category A, if we put it on rotating display in a museum, it’s likely to serve as a more permanent source of income.”

“Well, maybe… What about Category C?”

“Magic tools, grimoires, and the like. Honestly, I’m not sure how best to handle them. You could say they’re like weapons, in a way. We can’t sell them off or put them on display without the proper precautions. That full set of Hero Equipment looked like it might fetch a nice price, though… Mind if I sell that?”

“Please, don’t…”