"What a moronic proposal."
The words Sian finally spoke after a long silence.
By all appearances, a clear-cut rejection.
Yet what formed on my lips was a smile.
Because I could tell, even without hearing the rest, what his answer and his decision would be.
"......Just eight people against a nation? And seven of them are little brats? The only ones who'd bet on you winning would be brainless morons incapable of rational thought."
He rubbed his brow as if his head was pounding.
"Pouring your one and only life into an ideal that doesn't even have a chance. You people, who'd throw away the most precious thing you own, are without a doubt among the Empire's top morons."
He spoke in a voice of genuine incomprehension.
"......And I must clearly be a brainless moron myself! Because the moronic thought of wanting to stake my life on something this hopeless won't leave my head!"
"Y-Young Master! What are you saying?! If you get entangled with a rebellion, not even you can keep your life!"
"......Do you think I don't know that? Knowing full well and still having these thoughts is exactly why I feel like I'm going insane right now."
The butler, trying to stop his master from leaping into the fire.
But I was certain.
My gamble had paid off.
I'd been caught saying dangerous things about nobles stinking and whatnot, but I'd managed to turn the crisis into an opportunity.
From the very start, Sian seemed to have a keen sense of smell just like me.
That alone had sealed the outcome.
He must have felt the same things I did.
"Welcome aboard. Let's do great things together."
Living in a world like this must have been agonizing.
He must have suffered the same excruciating torment I had.
I extended my hand as the one person who understood.
The blond man looked me in the eye.
There was no hesitation left in his gaze.
"......All right. I'm in your hands."
He took my outstretched hand without delay.
"Since we'll be working together from now on, keep me informed. All I've heard so far is the progress of the plan."
"Of course. Ask whatever you want to know."
"What's the total headcount? I know we're outnumbered, but. I'd like to believe what's here isn't everyone."
"Well, obviously what's here isn't everyone."
Hearing my words, Sian's expression relaxed with some relief.
He turned and asked me again.
"So, how many total -- a few hundred or so? The children here must be trainees or new recruits kept in reserve. Where are the rest of your technicians, your combat personnel?"
But he was badly mistaken about something.
We were a startup. Where was the money supposed to come from to hire high-end personnel like security or specialized researchers?
I explained our reality to Sian.
"No, with you and Mr. Rotan added, the total comes to ten."
"......What?"
Sian froze at my words.
We were admittedly a fairly small company, sure, but quality over quantity was what mattered, wasn't it?
"Still, everyone's pretty capable, and the newest recruit handles the work of twenty people by himself, so don't worry. He's talented enough to run an entire trading company on his own."
"......That's reassuring, at least. So, which trading company? As my family's heir, I've cultivated connections with most trading companies. Maybe I know them."
"The Rotan Trading Company. And just so you know, the headcount is one. There used to be a few more, but according to Mr. Rotan, they all left."
It hadn't been that large a trading company to begin with.
But now it had gone from a small business to a one-man operation. Honestly, it was a bit of a stretch to even call it a trading company anymore.
"I was curious why everyone suddenly left, and every time I asked him 'Where did your subordinates go? Don't you want to go find them?' he'd nearly have a heart attack. They must have parted on pretty bad terms."
Just how badly had they parted?
He practically passed out every time the subject came up.
'Especially the time I told him I'd give him time off so he could go to wherever his subordinates were and try to convince them to come back...... I didn't know a person's face could turn that blue.'
So, well, we just decided he'd work solo for the time being.
Once we properly launched the business, we'd need to replenish the ranks. But we needed money before we could do anything.
"So in the end, you have exactly one ordinary merchant? That's all?"
"He does have existing supplier contacts from when he was running the trading company. For a one-man operation, his output is actually quite impressive."
"......I want to take back everything I said."
I did my best to defend Mr. Rotan's abilities. But it seemed like, from Sian's perspective, our fighting strength was unsatisfactory.
"So are you pulling out?"
I asked in a playful voice.
"You already know what answer I'll give."
"I do. Living doesn't feel like living, does it? Having to constantly endure the stench while surrounded by vile people. The kind of life where you'd almost rather be dead."
"......Yeah. I don't want to keep looking the other way anymore."
The man met my eyes.
"......When is the day of action?"
"Yulia. The most infamous and well-known noble in the Empire. The moment the 'soap' we're sending her is ready, we move. First impressions matter, so this one needs to be specially prepared."
"You're going to make a product with enhanced power."
"Yeah, powerful enough to purify everything, without leaving a single trace behind. The prototype should be ready by tomorrow."
Originally I'd planned to start with mass production first.
But things had changed now.
Our reach now extended into noble society. We could deliver our soap even to the biggest names.
Shouldn't we give to the celebrities first? Word of mouth from the famous was always essential in this kind of business.
"I'll take charge of delivering that 'soap' directly to Yulia. I'll give you a rendezvous point. Come find me when the product is ready."
"......Sounds good. I'm counting on you."
And so we secured a noble ally.
***
Inside the carriage on the way back.
The butler screamed desperately at his master.
"Wh-what on earth are you thinking, Master Sian?!"
His master had clearly gone mad.
The Young Master had never been like this. He had always been a wise man who knew how to conduct himself prudently.
But what was this now?
He'd obviously been bewitched by those insane rebels. Firmly believing this, the butler shouted at his master.
"It's dangerous! Do you have any idea how many people have died plotting rebellion?! And you're going to stake everything on that pathetic band of misfits succeeding?!"
He could understand, up to a point, agreeing that the Empire was corrupt. He knew the Young Master's character, after all.
But joining the rebellion? Believing those people could actually succeed and lending them his strength?
This was not a decision befitting the Young Master.
So please, come to your senses, the butler pleaded. Please, you have to come to your senses, he shouted again and again, but.
"You saw that man's face, right?"
The Young Master offered something strange instead of an answer.
On his lips was a smile.
A playful edge crept into the face that was always expressionless.
"I held a blade to his throat. And he wasn't the least bit afraid. He could have died the moment I chose to act."
"Th-that was obviously all just bravado!"
"Bravado? You think it was all an act? I'm not so sure. He looked different to my eyes. That man had no reason to be afraid. He'd already resolved himself to die long ago."
Sian recalled the scene he'd witnessed.
A new Empire. Purifying evil by burning it away with his own hands. He would build a new world where people could live as people.
He was prepared to give his life for that cause without hesitation.
Eyes that had gleamed with that kind of madness.
"Of course my blade didn't scare him. To a lunatic who's decided to take on the entire world with his bare hands, who's turned the entire Imperial Family into his enemy -- a single sword is a trivial threat."
He might have even found it laughable.
'What I'm up against is this entire Empire. And you think you can make me back down with one little sword?'
Seeing that, Sian had made his judgment.
Their forces might indeed be weak for now, but...... that madness. That tenacity and that spirit were absolutely not to be underestimated.
"You're being deceived, Young Master! How do you even know those people genuinely want to change the world?! Maybe they're just power-hungry lunatics!"
"Clearly you only know one thing and not two."
The butler's earnest words.
But Sian could only laugh.
......Those people, hungry for power?
That might be the most absurd thing he'd ever heard.
"You saw their skills too, didn't you? Just selling that soap would have guaranteed them wealth and power. Why would they stake everything on a rebellion that's almost certain to fail? What reason could there be besides conviction?"
Wealth, fame, power.
This was no revolution waged for those things.
Those people were instead putting their guaranteed success and their very lives on the line to try to change the world.
"They purely want to purify this world. A life wallowing in luxury in a world reeking of stench -- they kicked that away, saying it wasn't what they wanted."
Conviction mattered more than money and life.
Plenty of people said things like that. But how many could actually put it into practice?
Just rake in the money from the soap business. No need to fight the powerful -- just join them instead. Become one of the strong and live off the oppression of the weak.
But they'd abandoned the easy path.
A world where people can live as people.
They'd staked their lives on this foolish goal.
"They're lunatics. It's not rational in the slightest."
He wasn't really in a position to say that, having decided to bet on those very lunatics.
They were clearly out of their minds. That man was probably the most unhinged human being in the Empire.
"If you know that, then please pull out right this instant! We report those people and pretend none of this ever happened!"
"As expected, you only know the half of it."
But being insane was not a weakness.
At least from Sian's perspective, it was potential.
Wasn't it the simplest story in the world?
"There's always been a paper-thin line between a madman and a great man."
Sane people could only accomplish sane things.
It would surely take someone who was not of sound mind to reach a goal that was not of sound mind. Like that man he'd seen moments ago.
One fact that history had proven time and again.
"Madmen like that are exactly the ones who change the world."
***
Two days after Sian left.
Someone knocked on my door while I was resting.
It was one of the workshop children.
Heavy dark circles under their eyes. Completely drained and worn out from exhaustion.
But on their lips was a smile.
The child looked at me and spoke.
"......The product is ready, Leader."
Today was the day of action.