Chapter 847: You Forced My Hand

Upon hearing Arcueid's urging, Rozay and Sumire realized that this wasn't the time for banter. Sumire fell silent, while Rozay coughed lightly and said:

"Listen to the princess, everyone retreats. The train can be rebuilt, but if you die, it will be very difficult to find such excellent subordinates again."

Hearing this, the three immediately showed excitement. Their lives were spared, but more importantly, this was the highest recognition from their master.

Standing at the edge, Conductor Rodin glanced at the open carriage and the rows of Mystic Eyes displayed inside, and sighed in conflict: "Master, are we going to abandon these Mystic Eyes we've painstakingly collected?"

"It is indeed a pity. Although it's not all of them, it represents decades of accumulation."

Rozay sighed along with him. She called herself an artist, and the art she collected was Mystic Eyes. The idea of so many exquisite pieces being destroyed made her feel anything but indifferent.

"But there's nothing we can do about it. Compared to the Mystic Eyes, you all are more important. Just think of it as Sumire stealing them."

"Hey, you unreasonable woman, it wasn't me who took them, it was Einnashe!"

Smeily protested.

"But Einnashe is about to be defeated by the princess, so I can't take revenge on it. I'd rather blame you—wait, I've got it!"

Roazy's lazy voice suddenly changed, as if injected with passion born from interest.

"Since we're going to lose them anyway, why not give them away? Hey, that man over there, is your name Shinji? Shinji Matou, yes, Matou Shinji, just like that woman—Japanese names are such a mouthful. The train and the Ten Thousand Mystic Eyes Vault are yours now. From this moment, they belong to you, and you can do whatever you want with them. Oh ho ho ho, I'm a genius for thinking of this!"

"Wha—?!"

Shinji never expected Rozay to say something like that out of the blue. Everyone else, including Rozay's subordinates, reacted similarly, bewildered by her erratic thinking.

Giving something away just because it's destined to be lost so that it won't hurt as much—what kind of bizarre logic is that?

"Uh, thank you, Miss Rozay-en, but I don't know what to do with them."

"That's easy. They'll either be swallowed by Einnashe as nourishment or smashed by the princess you're protecting. Well, if you manage to protect the train, you'll have hit the jackpot."

Hearing Shinji's hesitation, Rozay eagerly offered suggestions.

"The Ten Thousand Mystic Eyes Vault on the train contains hundreds of Mystic Eyes, of various kinds. In the magus world, this is one of the most valuable hard currencies. Just one of them can be exchanged for millions of dollars or equivalent materials. You're being pursued by that troublesome woman, aren't you? With these, you could support her for hundreds of years."

That troublesome woman referred to Touko. Considering the love-hate relationship between Rozay and Sumire, it was likely that she had a similar dynamic with Touko.

Shinji had always suspected that this woman might be a masochist, getting happier the more you beat her, and the more damage you cause, the closer the relationship becomes. Of course, he could only think this in his head. What he said was something else entirely.

"Well...that may be true, but I don't know the key technology of the train, the removal and transplantation of Mystic Eyes. Without that, how many customers would be willing to come is anyone's guess."

"Don't worry about that. You can't do it, but that woman can—she's a monster in this field. I only taught her a bit of the basics, and she developed the Accumulated Mystic Eyes. Who knows what ridiculous techniques she's come up with now."

Rozay complained while casually revealing Touko's dark past.

"Even if you don't sell them, they make excellent weapons. The train's engine is equipped with a superweapon I designed, the Mystic Eye Grand Projection, which can use Mystic Eyes as consumables to unleash a hundred times their power. Sumire shed so many skins because of it—oh ho ho ho ho! That woman asked me for it countless times, but I never gave it to her. Now it's yours."

"But I still have to protect the train," Shinji said, rubbing his temples in frustration.

"There's no reward without risk."

Rozay smiled wickedly.

"Oh, I should tell her this right away. If you fail, just wait to be pestered to death by her. Sumire, watch things for me. I'm going outside to make a call..."

Then came another string of exaggerated "oh ho ho ho" laughter that made Shinji want to blast her with a mental bomb—what a weird gal! Compared to her, Touko's personality was far better.

At this moment, Arcueid urged him again: "Hey Shinji, aren't you ready yet?"

Perhaps she was starving, or perhaps the prey wasn't putting up much of a fight. The onslaught of the Icebound Crimson Core grew more intense. The three protective walls Arcueid had erected were all destroyed, and some vines had already reached the train's engine.

Shinji looked at the lifeless humanoid figure and then at the numerous Mystic Eyes around him, his mind racing with countless thoughts.

Honestly, a heavily damaged Crimson Core, forced to restore itself by devouring its spawn, didn't pose much of a threat to him. With a Command Seal and the True Ancestor's blood, no matter how strong the Einnashe's core resilience, how fast it could run, or how well it could hide, he could destroy it if he wanted to. The only question was how many trump cards he'd have to reveal—and that was precisely what Shinji was worried about.

He had too many secrets. Once exposed, no matter how determined Lorelei was to protect him, it might not be enough to shield him from all the greedy eyes. After all, she was just one of the Lord of the Clock Tower, not the ruler of the entire world of mystery. That's why Shinji had been holding back his strength. Even when fighting the Shadow Servant, he said he'd go all out, but only used techniques like martial arts and magecraft.

But to protect the train, these abilities were far from sufficient, and the train's size made it impossible to store in the Small World. If the train still belonged to Rozay, even though she was Touko's close friend, he wouldn't risk exposing himself to countless people by going all out.

But now it was different. Rozay had given him the train—a massive prize that Barthomeloi and Trambelio had coveted for years. With it, the Matou family could instantly rise from an ordinary magus family to one of the top houses.

Capital is reckless of the health or length of life of the laborer, unless under compulsion from society. Capital eschews no profit, or very small profit, just as nature was formerly said to abhor a vacuum. With adequate profit, capital is very bold. A certain 10 percent will ensure its employment anywhere; 20 percent certain will produce eagerness; 50 percent, positive audacity; 100 percent, and it will trample on all human laws; 300 percent, and there is not a crime at which it will scruple, nor a risk it will not run, even to the chance of its owner being hanged."

This doesn't apply just to capitalists; it applies to almost any situation. The balance of risk and reward is a timeless principle.

If the reward before wasn't worth more than 5 percent and wasn't worth Shinji taking risks, the reward now was at least 50 percent. Maybe Rozay was acting on a whim, but Shinji found it hard to resist the temptation.

As the final weight tipped the scales, his heart settled on a single thought—no choice, you forced my hand.