After hearing Alice's report about the battle results, both her father and the minister suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of envy.
Originally, they had assumed the expedition would be extremely dangerous.
After all, the enemy had been a Demon Lord.
But who could have imagined that the ten-thousand-man army had essentially gone there just to make a token appearance? Not only did they return with enormous military merit, but the strength of nearly every soldier had increased dramatically.
Normally, whenever the kingdom went to war, it meant burning money.
Either the national treasury would be drained dry, or the government would have to squeeze additional taxes out of the common people.
Yet when it came to Ren Kuroda's campaign, the army returned after only a few days—not only with almost no casualties, but also hauling back mountains of treasure.
This wasn't war.
This was practically armed robbery.
Of course, compared to the wealth they had physically brought back, what pleased Ren even more was the fact that the trade channels of the Beast Kingdom Eurazania had now opened up.
Looking across the entire world, there were probably very few human kingdoms capable of trading simultaneously with the Dwarven Kingdom, a monster nation, and the Beast Kingdom.
But now Falmuth had done exactly that.
It was easy to imagine what would happen next.
Goods imported from Dwargon, the Jura Tempest Federation, and Eurazania would become exclusive commodities within the human nations.
Falmuth was already a human kingdom, and thanks to its geography, it sat at a crossroads that made it a natural commercial hub among nations.
Now that multiple international trade routes had been opened, if the kingdom still failed to prosper…
then there truly would be no justice in the world.
Because of this success, when Ren's policies were implemented across the kingdom, no one objected.
Whether noble ministers or ordinary citizens, everyone supported the measures wholeheartedly.
For the common people, they didn't have a clear understanding of just how powerful their king truly was.
After all, most of them had never seen King Ren personally fight.
But when it came to governance, one thing was obvious.
Ren Kuroda had ruled for only a few short months, yet the entire Kingdom of Falmuth had already undergone a complete transformation.
The common people were no longer subjected to the same oppressive exploitation by nobles as before.
Their lives were steadily improving, and their standard of living compared to the past was like the difference between heaven and earth.
As for the noble ministers, they were even less inclined to question Ren's decisions.
After all…
their king was now a genuine Demon Lord.
If he became displeased and decided to kill them outright, what could they possibly do about it?
Besides, the stock benefits from the road-construction project Ren had introduced earlier had already made many nobles ridiculously wealthy.
Now they believed that although the new king was somewhat strict toward the nobility, he was ultimately still reasonable.
And in terms of governing the country, he was clearly far more capable than the former king, Edmaris.
At the very least, the nobles who held shares no longer needed to run businesses themselves or squeeze the commoners for profit.
Simply by collecting dividends, they could live extremely comfortable lives.
And according to King Ren's own explanation, the more prosperous the Kingdom of Falmuth became—and the more its commerce expanded—the greater the dividends from those shares would grow.
Because of this, the entire kingdom—from top to bottom—now shared the same wish:
They wanted Falmuth to become even more prosperous.
Most noble ministers didn't fully understand what their king meant when he talked about things like "commercial hubs" or "monopoly enterprises."
But one thing was certain.
Following King Ren's guidance had already proven profitable.
That was enough.
After one long meeting, although the ministers all looked thoroughly confused by the end of Ren's explanations, they still came to the same conclusion.
If something as absurd as raising money from nobles to build roads could somehow make everyone rich…
then the king's other policies would surely be even more reliable.
Duke Brans, head of the Brans family, which had recently risen to prominence within the royal court, spoke solemnly during the discussion.
"Whether in terms of military strength, strategic wisdom, or domestic governance, His Majesty Ren is the most enlightened ruler I have ever witnessed."
Even those nobles who had once displayed arrogant attitudes toward the new king found no fault with Duke Brans's statement.
However, one minister eventually voiced a concern that had been weighing on his mind recently.
"Duke Brans," he began carefully, "our king becoming a Demon Lord certainly demonstrates the military power of our nation. In that sense, it's actually a good thing—ordinary troublemakers will no longer dare provoke the Kingdom of Falmuth."
"But there are also… disadvantages."
"Falmuth is still one of the Western Nations, after all. In the past, we have always followed the lead of the Holy Empire of Lubelius."
"Maintaining close ties with the Jura Tempest Federation—which previously fought against the Western Nations' coalition army—is already sensitive enough."
"Now that our king himself has become a Demon Lord… do you think the Holy Empire of Lubelius might have something to say about it?"
In truth, the ministers had very little to complain about regarding their current lives.
Whether in terms of national power or the quality of life among the population, the Kingdom of Falmuth was improving day by day.
If there was one lingering concern, it was Ren's identity as a Demon Lord.
Even setting aside whether Demon Lords and humans were natural enemies…
the Holy Empire of Lubelius was unquestionably an organization that stood in direct opposition to Demon Lords.
Back when Falmuth had still been weak, it had behaved just like the other Western Nations—basically acting as a loyal follower of Lubelius.
But now the situation had changed dramatically.
The ministers worried that Lubelius might impose sanctions on the Kingdom of Falmuth.
Especially since not long ago, the coalition army of the Western Nations and the Church had been completely annihilated by the Jura Tempest Federation.
Relations between Lubelius and Tempest were now openly hostile.
And since Falmuth maintained such close ties with Tempest…
there was a very real possibility they could become collateral targets of Lubelius's anger.
"Exactly," another minister added.
"Duke Brans, your granddaughter Alice now serves as one of His Majesty's attendants, correct?"
"Surely you must have heard something about how His Majesty plans to handle this issue?"
To be honest, many of the noble ministers didn't actually admire Duke Brans himself.
But they couldn't deny that the man had made astonishingly shrewd decisions.
When everyone else had been resisting Ren's rule as the new king, Duke Brans had not only invested the largest sum of money into those so-called "stocks" that everyone had mocked—
he had also placed his direct granddaughter at the king's side.
Rumor even suggested that Alice might eventually share the king's bed.
Given enough time, she might even become one of the royal consorts.
Back then, people had thought the entire Brans family was completely insane.
But looking at things now…
they realized that they themselves had been the true fools.
"As for His Majesty's decisions," Duke Brans replied calmly, stroking his beard, "this old man naturally does not know the details either."
"But regardless of whatever choice His Majesty makes, the Brans family will firmly stand by the king's side."
He paused before continuing.
"And besides… think about it carefully."
"With His Majesty Ren's personality, do you truly believe he would choose to compromise with the Holy Empire of Lubelius?"
"And more importantly…"
"Between the power of a Demon Lord and the authority of the Holy Empire…"
"Which one do you believe is truly stronger?"
"Falmuth is no longer the Falmuth it once was."
"In the past, perhaps our kingdom had to survive by bowing to greater powers."
"But now…"
Duke Brans slowly swept his gaze across the room.
"Do you really believe that the Kingdom of Falmuth—together with the Jura Tempest Federation, which annihilated the coalition army of the Western Nations…"
"and the Beast Kingdom Eurazania…"
"needs to be afraid of the Holy Empire of Lubelius?"