In Another World With My Smartphone: Volume 17

by Patora Fuyuhara

  Ohh, here’s an idea...

  “Here. There’s something I’d like you to take a look at, actually. It’s something I think you’ll be impressed with.”

  “Hm?” I took everyone out to the Triharan palace courtyard and pulled out an Ether Vehicle from my [Storage].

  It was a slightly better version than the Fiat 3.5 HP models that I’d sold to the world leaders back home.

  “This is an Ether Vehicle. It’s an autonomous vehicle that can move without Gollem interference.”

  In the place I called home, transport was mostly done via horse-drawn carriages. Transportation in the reverse world was mostly done via Gollem-drawn carriages.

  Usually, Gollem carriages were pulled by multi-legged Gollems, or Gollems that had continuous metal tracks like those used on tanks. They could lug around a lot of cargo. There were also smaller options available for personal use.

  Science in the Reverse World was heavily based on Gollems, so virtually everything they invented required Gollems to actually function. Transportation naturally fell under that umbrella, too. Even the ships in the reverse world had Gollem parts.

  Ether Vehicles, however, were pretty much ideal. Other than the Ether Liquid they used for fuel, it was entirely composed of parts most engineers in the reverse world could understand. Plus, it didn’t need a Gollem to operate.

  I hopped into the Ether Vehicle and drove it around a few times, showing everyone how it handled. I returned to the original position, and Prince Lupheus immediately wanted to give it a go.

  “This is incredible! The power must come from a magic-based engine... But it certainly isn’t an ordinary one. I didn’t even know speeds of this level were possible with such a small-sized power source... I wonder if I could use a Barreken-brand engine if we increased the size a little... Ah, but would that reduce speeds due to the weight offset? Hmm... And it’s astounding how the magic energy is distributed, these parts are incredible...”

  The prince started murmuring to himself as he investigated each nook and cranny of the Ether Vehicle. I had a feeling he’d get along with those tech-loving dwarves back home.

  “You can have this, if you want.”

  “I can?!”

  “Sure. In the world I come from, a bunch of countries are trying to make new models based on this one. I have a feeling you’ve got plenty of ideas yourself, right?”

  “I do, yes. I’d love to try improving this design. It’s honestly fascinating... I can’t remember the last time my heart fluttered this way.”

  I could understand him a little. When I was a kid, I had a little toy car of my own... I’d happily buy new parts, opened up holes on it for weight reduction, streamlined it for more aerodynamic capability... Precious memories.

  I passed over an operations manual and a basic blueprint to the prince. It was written by Doctor Babylon and Rosetta. Obviously, it’d be bad if he didn’t know how to reassemble it.

  I passed on a few bottles of Ether Liquid as a bonus, too.

  The giddy prince happily took it all, thanked me profusely, and drove his Ether Vehicle straight to the Gollem workshop near the stables.

  “...He probably won’t come out for a few days. We’re not gonna get more marriage-related information out of him.”

  Princess Listis heaved a sigh as she crossed her arms.

  Frankly, I thought he looked a lot better than the miserable young man I’d seen earlier, but my opinion wasn’t the one that counted here. I could only hope that the princess of Strain would be able to tolerate his hobby.

  Married couples could definitely fight over petty things like personal interests... But it was better to do that than to lie.

  “No worries, I’ll go talk to the Queen of Strain about the marriage. I promise we’ll do our best to represent you. Even if they say no, we’ll come back to tell you exactly why.”

  “Best of luck... Or rather, thank you for this.”

  Princess Listis waved us off as we hopped through a [Gate] to the kingdom of Strain. It was time to play matchmaker.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  Strain’s capital city, Citronia, resembled Belfast’s capital quite a bit.

  It was just as lively as Allent’s capital city, too. There were many people and Gollems making their way around the bustling streets.

  “It’s a nice city...”

  Hilde gazed around and muttered her impression of the place. Linze stood nearby, curiously gazing at all the Gollems.

  We headed to the shining white castle ahead. It was a very beautiful building with red-colored roof tiles. It contrasted well against the blue of the sky.

  I gave my name to the guards by the castle bridge, and we were escorted in quickly. It seemed that the queen had already planned for my arrival.

  We waited in a guest room for a while before Queen Margarita came to see us, with a few knights and hand servants in tow.

  “Welcome, Grand Duke. It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

  “Likewise. Sorry for the short notice on our visit.”

  I didn’t really think I’d be visiting her again so soon. It had only been a couple of days since I saw her at the restaurant, so I figured I wouldn’t be seeing her again until the summit.

  “And who are these young women?”

  “Ah, this is Linze and this is Hilde, two of my fiancees. Linze is a mage who wields magic from a bygone age, and Hilde is a princess from a kingdom of knights.”

  “Goodness me... And here I thought it would end at the three I met at dinner.”

  The queen had a baffled look on her face. Apparently, she thought it had ended with just Yumina, Sakura, and Sue... But nope. There were another two visiting this time. I didn’t really know how to break it to her that I had nine brides-to-be. And that was why I didn’t.

  I didn’t know much about how the Reverse World treated marriage in general. It was possible that even royals of this world didn’t have many spouses.

  I asked for clarification, and my original guess was wrong. Apparently, it was fairly normal for nobles and royals in the Reverse World to have many partners.

  The former King of Strain had two wives, in fact. Each wife bore him one daughter, and the eldest of those two daughters was Queen Margarita herself.

  The queen had married a duke’s son, and gave birth to a daughter and then a son. The daughter in question was Princess Berlietta.

  Since she happened to be brought up, I seized the opportunity to cover the matter entrusted to me by the Triharan royal family.

  “...The emperor of Triharan really said that? I’m thankful for the offer, but...”

  The queen frowned, implying rejection was on the table. Everyone around the queen made some awkward faces, so apparently whatever the issues were... they were well known.

  Damn it, I even dug out the prince’s family history and everything... Was it all for nothing?

  “Erm... Does your daughter already have a suitor she’s interested in? Or do you just not want to connect your nation with Triharan?”

  “No, that isn’t the issue. I actually feel like marrying my daughter off would be a burden to Prince Lupheus.”

  The queen smiled wryly.

  “Berl... Berlietta is... Somewhat of an odd young lady. Since a young age she’s done nothing but involve herself in Gollem tinkering, and studies of magitechnology. She’s a recluse, so to speak.”

  Wait a second... That actually sounds perfect, doesn’t it?

  “Perhaps she takes after me a little too much... When she becomes interested in something, she’ll engross herself in it so deeply that she’ll ignore everything else. We’ve talked about potential suitors in the past, but she merely told me that she’d rather invest time and effort into building a magical motor than something as unoriginal as a baby.”

  Hrm... So I guess we’d need to get her to be interested in him before bringing up marriage talks.

  Still... I think I can bait her pretty easily. I’ll just do the same thing I did with the prince, show
her something cool.

  “Would you mind if I met with Princess Berlietta? I’d like to speak with her, and then hand her a present.”

  “That would be agreeable to me. I’ll have her called to meet us, she should be in her workshop right now.”

  One of the maids exited the room to fetch the princess, and the topic of my discussion with Queen Margarita switched to the displaced refugees from the regular world.

  There were eight refugees currently taking shelter in Strain. Of the eight, three had decided they didn’t want to go home. Since that left five lost people who wanted to head back, it would be up to me to warp them home later on.

  Queen Margarita began questioning Linze on multiple topics. Apparently, she was curious about magic.

  “So even someone from my world could use magic, should they have the right aptitude?”

  “That’s right, yes. This world has a thinner amount of mana in its atmosphere, so it would take a truly talented person to cast more powerful spells... But it should be possible. The right person would at least be able to cast standard spells.”

  “How would one be able to know their aptitu—”

  The queen was cut off by the arrival of a lone woman. She had brown hair, much like her mother. It was tied up, but messy in a few places. It seemed like she’d ran all the way here. I heard she was around twenty, but she looked much closer to someone my age due to her thick-rimmed glasses and baby-face. Guess this is Berlietta.

  Her outfit didn’t exactly exude feminine charm. She was wearing the kinds of workman’s coveralls that Rosetta wore... The oil-slicked workman’s pouch about her waist also made her look more like a laborer than a princess. Frankly, I wouldn’t have even been able to tell at a glance that she was royalty.

  “Berl... Berlietta. Why are you wearing that? Did I not tell you to change your clothing when we have guests?”

  “Mother, please don’t worry about that right now! I need to know if that’s the person who gave you that Smarfoam thing?!”

  The girl ignored her mother and stared at me. I could practically see the stars in her eyes.

  “Nice to meet you, Princess Berlietta. I’m Mochizuki Touya, Grand Duke of Brunhi—”

  “Please give me one of those snarfphones! It’s incredible! A technological marvel! It’s a mass-produced model, isn’t it?! That means it isn’t an ancient object like the legacy Gollems, I can tell! What kind of tech did you even use to get it so small? Are you perhaps using methods derived from the ol—”

  “Hey, hey, hey! Personal space!”

  I held up my arms to block Berlietta as she brought herself dangerously close to me.

  Hilde parted the two of us and narrowed her eyes at the other princess, causing her to back off a little.

  “Sorry, I didn’t create it. The ones who did work for me, but I, unfortunately, won’t be able to answer any of your questions.”

  “...That’s a shame. I was hoping I’d learn something of note.”

  Princess Berlietta slumped her shoulders and sat down on a nearby armchair. It was as if all energy had drained from her body. The contrast in her behavior was extremely noticeable.

  “Please forgive my daughter’s disrespectful display, Grand Duke...”

  “No, don’t worry about it. She just caught me by surprise a bit. You did warn me about her interest in magitech, so it’s sort of my fault anyway. Actually, that reminds me, I mentioned earlier that I have a present here for her...”

  “A present?! I-Is it one of those fabled smarf... smartphones?”

  “...No, it isn’t.”

  Berlietta’s shoulders sank again. We walked out to the courtyard. It wasn’t like I could take her gift out of [Storage] indoors.

  “This is amazing! Can I really keep this?”

  “You can.”

  Princess Berlietta had already started tinkering around with the Ether Vehicle’s engine.

  “Is it really okay if my daughter has this, Grand Duke?”

  “It is, I don’t mind. I gave one to the prince of Triharan as well... The prince actually has an interest in magitechnology as well, I think he’d get along with your daughter.”

  “Oh my! That’s promising!”

  Berlietta stopped tinkering and instead turned and looked over at us with suspicious eyes.

  “What are you discussing?”

  She didn’t know why I’d come here, so I filled her in on the situation regarding Triharan. I explained that the prince wanted to marry her and that he was also an enthusiast in the field of magitechnology. Then, I passed over his personal details and a photo of his face.

  “Hmm... He certainly seems attractive...”

  Princess Berlietta muttered slightly after looking over his details. It seemed like she was tentatively interested, at least. She was probably reassured by the fact that their hobbies lined up.

  “Would you like to meet with him? You can just talk a little for the time being. He was also really interested in the Ether Vehicle I gave him, so I’m sure you’d be able to talk at length about it.”

  “Well, I suppose... If it’s just a meeting and a conversation...”

  Princess Berlietta looked down slightly as a red flush overtook her cheeks. The uncharacteristic response prompted the nearby knights and servants to start muttering to each other.

  “Lady Berlietta’s interested in a boy...”

  “Lady Berlietta, who always holed herself up in her workshop, is interested in a boy...”

  “She never showed an interest in fashion or men, but now Lady Berlietta is interested in a boy!”

  “P-Please be quiet!”

  Berlietta’s blush grew deeper as she yelled, and she immediately drove away in her Ether Vehicle.

  Damn, she’s got the steering down.

  “Goodness me... That girl’s never blushed like that before. Please, Grand Duke, convey our intentions to the prince and his family. It may be my daughter’s last chance for salvation.”

  “I wouldn’t go that far, but I’ll arrange a meeting for them both. I’ll be in contact about it soon.”

  Thank goodness... Seems like this all just might work out.

  Whew, I thought. I’m sure they’ll get along because of their hobby.

  But I didn’t realize the untold chaos that their shared hobby would eventually create...

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  In the Reverse World, my main base of operations was on Drakliff Island.

  It was an island of Dragons, so no other humans were allowed to set foot there. The one who sat as the island’s overseer was Shirogane, the Silver Dragon.

  If a ship approached the island, then Elder Dragons would warn the people aboard not to approach. If they failed to heed the warning, they’d be chased away.

  I told the Dragons to avoid killing when they could, but that wasn’t absolute. If the island came under attack, they were free to kill in self-defense.

  Drakliff island was located within a landlocked body of water, surrounded by Triharan, Strain, Allent, and Gem.

  Since the island was located roughly between the territories of Triharan and Strain, I thought it’d be a good place for the prince and princess to meet.

  The emperor of Triharan and his son arrived on the island first, followed by the queen of Strain and her daughter. They gathered on the island as Dragons freely soared overhead.

  Prince Lupheus had come looking slightly more formal than usual, but he was still his recognizable self. Princess Berlietta, on the other hand, was almost unrecognizable when compared to how I’d last seen her.

  She wore a beautiful pink dress and a small tiara on her head. Her brown hair flowed freely down her back, and she wore much more flattering glasses. Her cute baby-like face was also lightly accentuated with makeup. Women were pretty versatile creatures when it came to fashion, it seemed...

  After the introductions, it was time to see how well they’d get along.

  I was technically the one doing the matchmaking here, but I was also kind of a
total outsider... That was why I tried my best not to get involved in their conversations. I didn’t exactly know much about Strain or Triharan anyway, so there wasn’t a lot for me to add.

  I wasn’t the only one not saying much, though. The queen and emperor were happily chatting away, but the prince and princess seemed too nervous to actually speak.

  “My home has a beautiful garden, you know. It has a full view of the island. Maybe you two would be more comfortable taking a walk out there?”

  “Hm? Ah, yes... If Princess Berlietta would be happy with that...”

  “Huh? Oh, yes... I think I would. L-Let us go.”

  The two of them shyly toddled outside, each of them followed by a bodyguard.

  I also sent out Kougyoku to keep an eye on them from above.

  “Seems like they made a decent first impression at least.”

  “Indeed. The atmosphere was quite calm.”

  The emperor and the queen both looked over at their respective children with smiles on their faces. I could see that they were speaking as parents, not world leaders.

  Still, they did have to go into government mode at some point. This was a rare opportunity for two monarchs to have an audience with one another. The two of them promptly began chatting over legal proposals, trade agreements, and so on.

  That wasn’t a discussion I could participate in, so I left them in Shirogane’s care. Ruby, Saph, and Emerl bowed to me as I left for the garden.

  I’m not going out to interfere or anything... I just want to take a little peek at how they’re getting along. Just a little one.

  I sat down outside the house and synchronized my vision with Kougyoku’s. She was perched atop a tree branch, watching the duo intently. They were walking alongside each other, but they were still maintaining a respectful distance.

  It seemed like they hadn’t broken the ice. From where I was looking, it was more like they both had good ideas for conversation starters, they just couldn’t find the right moment to talk. I wondered why they didn’t just start talking about magitech, I was sure the conversation would flow naturally if they brought up their mutual interest.