My Alter Ego’s Path to Greatness - Chapter 129

#129

Interlude (1)

“So, the top of Torail asked you to delay payment for bituminous coal?”

“Yes, yes….”

“And you accepted it as ancient times?”

“Ha, but I didn’t just give permission! We decided to pay interest according to the overdue payment deadline, and from future transactions, we can increase this ratio a little more…”

“Sseu-eup, you’re still out of your mind! interest? Deal afterward?”

The office of the head of Hubert Chamber of Commerce.

A dwarf of short stature was venting his anger in front of a merchant.

While several merchants who had come in to report on business were staring at his abstract-like appearance, Howard, who was in the middle of a fuss, took a deep breath and spoke in a calm tone.

“Hoo, you know that bituminous coal is a necessary item for smelting, right?”

“…of course.”

“And I know very well what the situation is up there now.”

“…yes.”

“A human who knows that! What are you asking while handing over items that are no different from military supplies during this exhibition? interest? “Hey~?”

However, his calm attitude did not last long and he started shouting again.

Iron is the most basic material for weapons, and bituminous coal was an essential fuel for producing high-quality iron.

Now that the production of weapons has increased rapidly, it is said that if you want to find a sales outlet, you can find it.

However, what he brought despite risking the funds being frozen because he could not receive payment was the words ‘normal interest’ and ‘unlimited future concessions’… It

was a situation where he could not help but be angry.

“…There’s no way a merchant wouldn’t know such basic things.”

Howard, who was spitting out anger with a red face, muttered quietly again and glared at the merchant who was just bowing his head.

Howard, who was supposed to be just an ordinary dwarf craftsman, quietly engulfed the space, creating an atmosphere where it was difficult to breathe.

“It looks like Hubert was trying to pick up another bag while he was away. Did I look that funny?”

“Oh no! “Do you misunderstand that…!”

“You will find out if you investigate.”

“Now… just a moment! Howard! “Wait a minute, tell me…!”

In the end, the guards came in at his signal and took the merchant away, and there was silence in the office for a moment.

“What are you doing? “There’s no time, so quickly report to the next person!”

But that didn’t last long either.

The uncomfortable situation finally came to an end when Howard, after hearing reports from all the merchants, gave business orders.

“Then I’ll just leave, so unless it’s really important, handle it at your discretion and report back later!”

The merchants of Hubert Company were able to breathe easy only after Howard disappeared after finishing his work.

“Wow—I feel like I’m working with the owner of the store.”

“Did you feel that way too? At first, I thought they had appointed a dwarf whom I had never seen before to sit down as the store owner’s assistant manager…”

The merchants of Hubert Store moved to their seats, each whispering.

When they heard that Hubert had to leave his position due to an unexpected situation and that Howard had taken over as acting stock owner of the company, they couldn’t help but feel resistance.

That was a situation where an unfamiliar dwarf who had only just joined the company suddenly sat on top of the head.

How sincerely can the merchants who have run the company up to now follow the rumor that a person with unproven ability is interfering in every aspect of the operation?

Of course, no one was stupid enough to show such a sign in front of Harley’s suddenly approaching muscles.

“Hmm… But it looks like they are definitely in contact with the owner of the store. “The work orders were ones that he could have given himself.”

“Actually, it was something I was worried about too. “I thought it was all a conspiracy since the Lord of the Chamber of Commerce disappeared, but… I think you can rest assured for now.”

Since Harley, who was almost like a co-representative, was appointed as his deputy, he initially followed Howard, but the merchants were keeping a close eye on his movements.

I was wondering if this was all someone’s plan to hijack the company.

However, he only made efforts to maintain the Sanghoe as usual and did not show any moves to steal interests or assets.

At best, it can be said that all they do is supply various materials to their personal workshops.

Of course, this was not a problem as Hubert had allowed it from the beginning.

“Anyway, did that guy from Kaol really receive kickbacks from the Two Rail merchants?”

“Okay—I’m not at the point where I can jump to conclusions yet, but it was definitely suspicious.”

“You’re so fearless.”

“That’s right.”

The merchants clicked their tongues and shook their heads.

Since the captain of the ship had disappeared, I understand that he was greedy, but putting it into action himself was literally a fearless act.

Above all, didn’t ‘Harley’ even give a warning himself?

Recently, the priority goal of Tarak’s trade has been to supply supplies to the Iron Citadel, which can be said to be the front line.

Naturally, the news had to be delivered in real time, and the most talked about topic of late was by far his monstrous performance.

‘Furthermore, the Tarak Security Forces are seen patrolling around the commercial area from time to time and seem to be paying attention, so it would be foolish to act rashly here.’

Of course, it seemed like Kaol had noticed to some extent and prepared his own excuse instead of directly embezzling funds…

but that was the same as ignoring him, as Howard said.

‘It wasn’t just about conveying the Lord’s instructions like a parrot. Plus that breathtaking charisma… I need to check this one more time to make sure I haven’t missed anything.’

In the end, the merchant who sincerely gave in, hurriedly left to check his work again.

And he wasn’t the only one who thought that.

Despite Hubert’s absence—.

Thanks to Howard’s efforts and Harley’s influence, the company was moving along smoothly.

***

“Hey, Hubert needs to come quickly! Time is so precious. But that doesn’t mean we can’t sit idle at the Chamber of Commerce!”

Howard continued to grumble and entered a building.

The place he headed straight after finishing his work at the store was a private workshop he had set up nearby.

Due to unavoidable circumstances, he was also working at the Chamber of Commerce, but his original goal was to utilize time difference to imbue Earth’s knowledge into his body as quickly as possible.

Of course, considering the time difference with the Earth, the time to process work is not that much, and most of the time is still spent in the workshop, but…

Now that I am laying the groundwork from the ground up, every minute and every second has no choice but to be a waste.

‘Also, even if the time multiplier is ten times different, the time required to acquire it cannot be the same as simply knowing it as knowledge.’

Because of this, the initially scheduled daily quota was significantly pushed back.

To make up for it, I need to work diligently from now on.

“Ehm! “Then shall we begin today’s work?”

Howard, who had changed into work clothes, warmed up lightly and approached the furnace that was emitting heat.

A magic brazier that maintains heat even when he is away and is equipped with safety features to prevent fire hazards.

Thanks to the generous spending of money, a lot of magic for convenience was applied throughout this workshop.

So that he can only focus on improving his skill level.

‘Hmm, I guess I should raise the temperature more.’

Howard checked the temperature by gently extending his hand towards the furnace and threw a pile of coal in with a skillful movement.

The heat, which rose rapidly, gradually stabilized when it reached the optimal temperature he wanted.

‘It’s just right.’

It was surprising considering that it had only been a short time since he began full-scale training, but it was nothing special to him.

‘It’s definitely different from a human’s senses. Because the differences are so great, they can only be called a race of artisans.’

Dwarves were able to do things that a human would have had to learn through countless years of experience, simply by instinct.

I was able to adjust the temperature of the fire to decimals just by seeing it with my eyes and feeling it with my skin.

By holding the coal in my hand and measuring its weight and particles, I could intuitively know how much the temperature would rise when it went into the fire.

The optimal center of gravity that is naturally felt when holding a hammer and the characteristics of the material that are vividly conveyed at the fingertips are also something that humans do not have.

At the same time, since they were born with delicate dexterity and a strong body, they were bound to be far different from the starting line than human craftsmen.

To the extent that asking them to compete on the same level is too harsh on them.

‘Well, I’m glad I’m a dwarf this time.’

I wonder how much time it would have taken if I had had to grow from scratch without these merits…

Once again, I felt grateful to Elinne, the pickaxe, and to Zaonic, who willingly gave it to me.

“Hmmmm! I guess I should start by lightly smelting iron ore first!”

Howard continued his training hard today, gathering materials such as bituminous coal and limestone piled up on one side of the workshop.

With extreme concentration, the knowledge passed down from Earth was imprinted in my mind like a sponge absorbing water.

Information processed through all kinds of media, including photos and video documents, was reproduced at Howard’s fingertips and became his blood and flesh.

Kang—! Kyaang—!

In this small workshop, where not many people are still paying attention, a craftsman was growing step by step.

***

Warm light enveloped the surroundings and seeped into Hubert, who was lying on the bed, sighing.

The “Auterica Holy Method,” which contains the power of healing, helped restore the body and invigorated it.

‘Still, recovery is faster than expected at this rate, right? There is no need to go for several days. We will be able to move in just one day. ‘I guess I underestimated myself.’

Damage reduced from fatal wounds with “instant death immunity” improved faster than expected.

The synergy between Heinrich’s recovery method and “Super Recovery” was beyond imagination.

In fact, my previous experience with Heinrich was a big part of the reason why I took a long expected recovery period.

A strong body through extreme training and divine power, as well as the blessed protection common skill “Super Recovery”.

Heinrich, who had such extreme conditions, had to recuperate for nearly a month in the best environment of the Great Temple of Roselia immediately after his fight with the Immortal King Hans.

Naturally, with the exception of “super recovery,” Hubert’s recovery period, which was poor in terms of his physical condition and the level of healing techniques he received, could not be evaluated as harshly.

‘But we overlooked the fact that Heinrich’s opponent was an immortal king.’

Even though it was the same fatal wound, the level was different.

Unlike Heinrich, who was struck by a vicious curse and could not recover properly, didn’t Hubert’s heart and internal organs just get crushed?

‘No, that in itself is more serious, but… Still, thanks to the ‘instant death immunity’, the result was only a lot of damage to the internal organs.’

And such injuries were able to be recovered quickly through the combination of “super recovery” and divine healing.

So much so that Hubert can be sent to Outerica as soon as the next transfer team’s cooldown comes back.

“Well, after Hubert leaves, I’ll have to do that boring work again…”

I looked at Hubert, who was lying down in awe and operating the tablet with only his fingers.

Naturally, it was a process to impart metallurgical knowledge to Howard.

Although Howard’s mind was able to ‘understand’ it once he read it, he couldn’t help but find the process itself cumbersome.

There was nothing fun about sitting blankly and cramming that vast amount of knowledge into my head.

‘With Avatar, I can filter those emotions with the “Mind Herb”, so I don’t mind mechanical repetitive work, but I’m in a position where I just have to endure with pure mental power.’

Of course, through multiple enhancements, my mental strength had already surpassed that of a human, but I could not clearly feel that fact.

That’s right….

‘I have eight bodies moving at the same time.’

Except for Hubert, all of them had extreme mental exhaustion.

In addition, although it is said that the “Mind Herb” is the main ingredient in adapting to dimensional time lag, it also takes some effort in preventing mental contamination.

I was in a situation where I felt like I was lacking no matter how many mental resources I had.

‘As expected, there is only one thing that can solve this situation.’

But as always, I had a breakthrough for him.

It’s about strengthening your unique skills and creating a new alter ego.

As expected, “Avatar” was the best.