Blessed by Abundance, Becoming a Scourge of Terra

They were just waiting for some sucker to get carried away and buy it all.

So, after all that picking and choosing, by the time Teresis returned from official business, nothing remained in the entire Demon King's Palace except the throne.

Even the cabinet in Teresis's room had been hauled out, though there had never been much inside it to begin with...

"Theresia, what are you doing?"

Teresis hurriedly grabbed his younger sister and stopped her from putting price tags on more things.

He knew perfectly well how desperately Theresia wanted money, but none of this junk looked like it could fetch a high price.

How could a thin, broken silver bowl possibly sell for ten gold coins?

Had she gone crazy, or had the world gone crazy?

"What if this bowl was used by every Demon King throughout history?"

Little stars sparkled in Theresia's eyes.

Teresis could only shake his head regretfully. "Do wealthy people in other countries even know our Demon Kings? And just because you say so, does that make it true?

Those nobles aren't fools. They won't spend money on utensils that are practically useless."

"I can certify it. I'm a Demon King too, and I'm not afraid of embarrassing myself."

Could a Demon King's personal certification possibly be fake?

"So once people find out, your international reputation will plummet, and Kazdel's image may be damaged as well."

Teresis had considered this method long ago, but anything truly valuable had already been seized by other countries during past wars.

Why would they leave behind anything worth selling?

Theresia's expression immediately fell. That did seem to be the case.

I'm so stupid. So, so stupid!

Was there really nothing in such a vast country worth buying?

Just how badly did Theresia need money?

If someone were willing to pay enough, she could even sell the underwear she was wearing.

That was no exaggeration. She was genuinely about to go mad from poverty.

Even if they turned the entire Demon King's Palace upside down, everything in it probably wouldn't be worth a thousand gold coins.

All that stuff was enough to form a small mountain, yet it was worth less than a single sofa in Huang Cao Castle.

Back when Theresia had been a weaver, she had been poor too, but aside from food, there had been little else to spend money on.

Managing a country was different. Funds were needed everywhere.

Should We Try the Demon King Idol Plan?

After thinking it over, Theresia recalled a business method she had learned about in a book called influence.

"Brother, do you think I'm pretty?"

Theresia blinked her beautiful eyes at Teresis.

He examined her carefully, then nodded.

By ordinary standards of beauty, Theresia was undoubtedly a stunning beauty.

She was flawless in every way, but what did that have to do with developing the country?

"Heavy industry is out of the question. If we want our first pot of gold, we'll have to take a shortcut."

Theresia spoke to herself.

Teresis knew his younger sister very well, so he immediately understood what she had in mind.

Theresia wanted to make herself the representative of Kazdel. The clothes she wore would become fashionable, allowing them to attract light-industry orders from various countries.

Once the products were made, they could add labels like "Hand-knitted sweater by the most beautiful female Demon King" or "Hand-knitted scarf by the most beautiful female Demon King."

With her status backing them, wouldn't they sell for an impressive price?

But there was still one problem: everyone knew that a Demon King's combat strength was absurdly high.

If such a dangerous person entered high-end banquets, wouldn't the nobles be courting death?

"So first, we need to find someone who can bring me into the upper circles of other countries."

The first person Theresia thought of was the Shapeshifter Collective. After all, he had traveled this land for many years and could transform himself.

Surely he knew some people among the upper echelons of a few countries.

No sooner said than done. Theresia immediately dragged over the Shapeshifter Collective, who had been scavenging near the Demon King's Palace.

In response to being forced into unpaid labor, the Shapeshifter Collective promptly gave his answer:

He couldn't infiltrate the very highest levels, but he did have several noble identities.

If it were really that easy to infiltrate the upper echelons of other countries, the Shapeshifter Collective should have been the Demon King instead of Theresia.

If they had truly infiltrated them, Kazdel would not have been besieged by every nation decades ago.

There were a few minor noble identities, but none of them amounted to any real social standing.

Racial talent was one thing; whether one could actually make it work was another. The shapeshifters' abilities were nowhere near as invincible as imagined.

"Is there really no one...?"

Theresia felt quietly despondent.

Teresis could not bear to see his younger sister worrying like this every day, and someone came to mind.

Mr. Huang Cao seemed to have said he came from Yan Country and had traveled through nations across the world. Perhaps he had some solution.

"My younger sister, what price would we have to pay for this so-called brand plan?"

"Cut military spending, and lay off some personnel at the same time."

"Absolutely not!"

Teresis rejected it at once.

Disarmament was impossible—utterly impossible, at least for the Kazdel of today.

Theresia explained her own view on the matter, including some of Huang Cao's assessments.

Teresis was pleased that his younger sister could take Mr. Huang Cao's advice, but some words should be heeded, while others should not.

"Mr. Huang Cao's wisdom is undoubtedly exceptional, but what he said is ultimately only speculation. Though highly credible, Leithanian's current performance is indeed progressing as he expected."

"But we cannot tie Kazdel's fate to a few words, no matter how difficult things are now."

Disarmament was absolutely out of the question. Teresis was looking further ahead: without strong national defense, no subsequent development could be sustained.

Without security as a guarantee, no matter how well they developed, they would merely be making a wedding dress for someone else.

Teresis felt that his younger sister's ideals were overly ambitious, though the series of development plans she had laid out were not particularly outrageous. Their only flaw was the lack of a suitable environment.

Theresia lowered her head, understanding that she had been far too idealistic.

"More importantly, our country currently does not have enough jobs to absorb the people discharged from the military."

"Even if we were to disarm, we would have to give those people somewhere to go."

After that round of analysis, Theresia finally cooled down. The fired-up look on her face instantly faded.

Without question, Teresis's approach to national development was more conservative, leaning more toward absolute practicality.

In theory, it would have benefited the Sarkaz most if these siblings had become Demon King together. The two could have complemented one another perfectly.

But only one person could be the Demon King.

Just as Theresia was troubled, Teresis continued, "Actually, what you just said is not entirely impossible. You could first make a batch of clothing samples and take them to the international market to try your luck. Perhaps someone with an eye for quality might really take a liking to them?"

At the very least, the gimmick of the most beautiful Demon King was quite compelling. It could satisfy the vanity of certain people rather well.

Look, even the Demon King personally knitted clothes for me. Can the clothes you are wearing do that?

"I heard that Banshee River Valley has made quite a bit of money recently through continuous trade with the outside world, and it seems they also sell textile goods. You could go ask Sister Lamian and learn from her experience."

Teresis suddenly said.

Banshee River Valley's secrecy measures were ultimately still inferior to Eden's.

The banshees could not possibly refrain from spending their money after earning it. Since they went out, some rumors were bound to spread.

Teresis's intelligence organization was no joke, but out of respect for that banshee, he had not investigated too deeply.

Making money, after all, was nothing shameful.

Everyone was having a hard time now, and there was no need to question their loyalty. Anyone disloyal had left centuries ago; there was no need to wait until now.

There was no need to doubt the loyalty of the Lords of the Royal Court who had remained in Kazdel, which was why he had not pursued the matter further.

Those who wanted to collude with foreign nations had already done so centuries ago. There was no reason for them to wait until now.

Especially since, in past wars, the banshees had contributed immensely and had nearly vanished altogether.

Teresis had never collected any money from Banshee River Valley, though his younger sister might be another matter.

"Huh? Sister Lamian has been trading with the outside world all along? I actually had no idea."

"I thought she would have told you."

Teresis spread his hands, indicating that he did not want to meddle in the affairs between the two of them, then left the room.

Watching her brother walk away, Theresia's mind raced. That very night, she prepared to set out for Banshee River Valley.

But before departing, Theresia loaded several carts of grain and headed for the valley.

It had been borrowed over a decade ago... Though she was embarrassed to say it, she had only remembered it today.

So, Sister Lamian, can we reconcile?

Seven days later, Theresia dismissed the grain convoy and stood alone before the sign bearing the name Banshee River Valley.

Meanwhile, Lamian, seated at the center of the valley, was panicking like crazy.

Banshee River Valley was a little too prosperous. While other regions were still gnawing on tree bark, the banshees living here had already moved into brick houses.

That was right—modern brick houses, with tiles even laid on the walls.

Their everyday comfort was basically on par with that of Victoria's minor nobility.

The Speaker Had a Banshee Wife?

The banshees ate and played well every day, and those with some spare money even had cosmetics to use.

There were several hundred small single-occupancy homes throughout the valley. Its level of development was almost identical to Eden's, though the latter was slightly more advanced.

Huang Cao had even planned to dig a tunnel and use an underground train to directly connect Banshee River Valley and Eden.

But why had Your Highness suddenly come, without even notifying her?

Lamian was rather surprised. According to protocol, the Demon King would usually send someone ahead to notify the Royal Court before paying a visit.

Unless there was truly an urgent matter. The last time she had come without notice was ten years ago, when she had borrowed grain.

That meant Lamian had no chance of hiding her little treasury on such short notice. If it was discovered and she wanted to borrow money...

Would she drag it out for another decade before repaying it?

If she came once every ten years, wouldn't Theresia no longer need to repay her once Lamian was buried?

Banshees did not live nearly as long as Demon Kings...

"Let's call and ask."

Lamian decided to make her best friend wait for half an hour first, then call Huang Cao to ask.

After all, the valley's current development was entirely thanks to the channels and job opportunities Huang Cao had provided. The generous pay was what had brought about its present prosperity.