Suddenly, the words she had spoken in her childhood came to mind.

“When I grow up, I want to leave the imperial palace. I’ll leave the island and travel to the vast world! I’ll cross the sea and reach the distant continent…”

Reflecting on those words, Herdin looked at Luce, who was sitting across from him, checking schedules and documents.

“Luce.”

“Yes.”

“How about having a port connected to Ardell on the eastern continent?”

The Ardell Empire was located in the western part of the continent, and there were no ports in the eastern part. Therefore, to engage in exchanges with the eastern continent, one had to circumnavigate the large western continent.

Although there was a sea connecting the eastern coast with some territories, including the Delmarc Duchy in the northeast part of the empire, it was all marshland, and there was no large harbor suitable for docking big ships.

Trade with the eastern continent, which everyone was coveting even in the face of war, was something Herdin had been eyeing for a long time.

The problem was that there seemed to be no practical way to achieve it.

It might have seemed out of the blue for Luce to ask about it, but he sincerely answered his lord’s question.

“It would be fantastic, wouldn’t it? We could obtain goods from the eastern continent, which are currently imported through other countries, at a lower cost. Conversely, we could also export more goods without intermediate fees, leaving us with a greater profit.”

“That’s true.”
“That would truly mark the beginning of a golden age. Therefore, Your Majesty, whenever there is an opportunity, you are contemplating how to provoke war with Clarnia. Of course, I think such thoughts are insane… But why bring that up all of a sudden?”

“I’m thinking of building a port that connects to Lebren.”

Lebren was a territory belonging to the Delmarc Duchy, located along the eastern coast.

“How? All of Lebren’s waters are marshlands.”

“What if we fill those marshlands up to the deep sea where large ships can enter?”

“How is that possible?”

Herdin proposed a solution that was in a completely different direction from what Iver had been considering, even involving war.

“With a lot of dirt and money.”

A crazier method.

It was an investment that only Delmarc could afford.

“…Are you serious?”

Reading sincerity in Herdin’s eyes, Luce jumped up to the carriage ceiling, slightly exaggerating.

“Do you have so much money that it’s overflowing, and now you want to throw it into the sea? Instead, how about giving it to me?”

However, Herdin was confident.

“As you said, the port in Lebren will bring tremendous benefits to Delmarc and, furthermore, to Ardell. It won’t just be material gains, but also the value of civilization and knowledge beyond that.”

Certainly, if the port were to be built, it would usher in an era entirely different from what they had experienced so far.

‘No, it can’t be that simple.’
Filling the marshes of Lebren territory to create a port was a project with astronomical investment costs, even if one could roughly guess.

‘Thinking of filling the sea to create a port. Impressive, or reckless…’

No matter how many times she thought about it, it was a surprising idea.

However, Herdin seemed to seriously consider the plan.

“First, draw up a budget and bring it to me.”

If Herdin said so, Luce had no veto power.

“Yes, sure…”

As the two finished their conversation, the carriage arrived at the Duchy. As always, Mason greeted the two.

“Welcome back, Your Excellency.”

“And where is my wife?”

“She went out, saying she has a lunch appointment.”

Just as she was about to ask what the appointment was, Mason spoke first.

“And a guest is waiting.”

“A guest?”

There were no guests scheduled to visit today, as far as she knew.

“Who?”

“A priest from the temple, and he mentioned that he has something important to discuss with Your Excellency. Since his identity is confirmed, I have temporarily escorted him to the reception room.”

“A priest…”

Was there a priest she had built a personal relationship with to meet privately?

“His name is Miella Elias.”

It was an unfamiliar name, but hearing a woman’s name, there was someone she could guess.

“Bring the carriage around.”

Herdin removed his leather gloves and headed towards the reception room. In the reception room, ‘that person’ he had expected was waiting.

“Oh, hello, Your Excellency.”
While exploring the reception room, Miella was surprised and greeted him. A flush appeared on Miella’s face as she faced him, but Herdin’s gaze cooled indifferently.

“We meet again, Reverend. I didn’t know it would be our house. Our relationship wasn’t special enough for us to meet privately.”

“Coming without any notice might be rude, but it’s about an important matter that I’ve come to discuss, even if I have to inconvenience you.”

“What matter?”

At that moment, a maid entered with a knock and placed a cup of tea in front of Herdin.

Miella spoke only after the maid left.

“Madam of the Duke…”