I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 134

Taking What’s Coming (2)

The foremost tycoon in the British Empire’s financial world, successfully running businesses in the British Empire, the United States, and now even Canada.

James, even hailed as the father of human rights for Black people in the United States, dragged his weary body out of bed.

His close aides revered him, calling him the king of capitalists who built a kingdom made of money.

Of course, that only elicited hollow laughter.

The seat he occupies is indeed the throne of a kingdom built with money.

However, fewer than five people knew that the real owner of this seat was someone else.

In other words, James was not the owner of the kingdom but a steward… well, perhaps with more authority than a steward.

If he wanted, he could squander the kingdom’s money on entertainment, and the kingdom’s owner wouldn’t say a word about it.

But even if he wanted to enjoy himself, he didn’t have the time, so what good was all the money?

People get used to things as they go, but just as he got used to it, new tasks kept coming in, and surprisingly, the workload only kept increasing.

Still, thanks to appointing salaried figurehead presidents in each region recently, he managed to get some breathing room.

His biggest goal now was to keep whipping and exploiting the scapegoats who would replace him, so that this respite could continue.

If only the one above would refrain from starting new ventures and stay still, his long-awaited month-long vacation would not be a mere dream.

But once again, God abandoned James.

“We recently negotiated with the Russians and decided to buy Alaska.”

“Are you referring to that Russian territory attached to the top of Canada, Alaska?”

“Yes. We decided to buy it for a bargain price of 1.35 million pounds, but the problem is that Parliament will likely froth at the mouth, saying that’s too expensive. So, I think it would be better to just buy it with our own money.”

“1.35 million pounds isn’t a big deal, but it’s a bit of a waste to throw that kind of money at empty land.”

“Empty land? What are you talking about? If it were really such a worthless piece of land, would I be crazy enough to buy it with my own money? So, I’m saying, use the businesses that have advanced into Canada to make some bids. Inspect how many resources are buried there, and also tell them to prepare for mining.”

*I had a hunch, but as expected, this money-grubber wouldn’t do anything that would cause him a loss.*

I wonder how he knew, but it seems that Alaska also has vast resources buried there.

He already practically monopolizes coal and iron ore mining rights in Canada, but if he extends his reach to Alaska from here, how much more wealth will he amass?

“But will we be able to obtain the mining rights so easily?”

“I told you, we’re going to buy it with our own money. I’ll cover all the costs of purchasing Alaska. I’ll use my publicly disclosed assets to cover about 60 percent, and the remaining 40 percent can be raised through private investment.”

“So, you’re going to use Canadian resource mining companies for that 40 percent. It seems like the entire 1.35 million pounds could be covered with royal assets, but is there a reason you’re not doing that?”

“Well, if I effectively own all that land, there will inevitably be a lot of talk later when resources start pouring out. Even if it’s me, there might be some nonsense about how I bought it too cheaply and, as a member of the national royalty, I should be more generous from a grand perspective, or questions about whether it’s right for me to monopolize all those resources.”

*Isn’t it presumptuous to be thinking about dipping bread in the soup [profiting excessively] when the person who’s going to give the bread hasn’t even thought about it yet?*

Anyone would say I’m being overly excited, but I’m surprised at how I’m not doubting anything.

Since Killian said it would happen, it’s a confirmed fact that it will happen.

The question is, how many resources must be buried there for Killian to react like this….

“So, you’re trying to create the image that you’re sufficiently giving back by attracting 40 percent of private capital.”

“That’s right. And in fact, there will be immediate demand for coal and iron ore, and gold might also be found, so we need to prepare in advance, and it’s faster to mobilize the private sector for this. We can use more aggressive methods without any problems.”

“…Are you saying gold will also be found?”

Each word he casually utters is enough to take one’s soul away.

“Yes. But what will happen if the news that gold is being found gets out? All sorts of riffraff will flock in from all over the place, and it will be a complete mess, right? It’s not bad to have an influx of people, but the side effects that will arise from that are too severe, so we need to prepare in advance.”

Mining rights and land rights regulations, efficient mining using advanced technology.

And infrastructure construction for that purpose, every single item costs money.

Still, being guaranteed the rights to such vast land and the resources pouring out of it in advance, it’s hard to even grasp how much profit will be made.

And it sounds good to open up the rights to the private sector, but isn’t that private sector all Killian’s private organization?

In fact, the land of Alaska itself is becoming an inexhaustible source of money for the British Empire’s royal family… no, for Killian.

“Then I’ll send someone to Canada right away. We’ll have the coal mining, iron ore companies, locomotive companies, and manpower agencies all bid separately in divided bids. If about seven or eight companies divide the investment, they won’t be suspected.”

“Good. Then I should go to Parliament and give a speech. The important thing is that our British Empire completely occupies northern North America, and to do that, we need to push out Russia. To do that, I’m willing to open my pocket and use it to purchase Alaska. I don’t want to burden the citizens unnecessarily, so I won’t use a single penny of the country’s money. I’m going to give a speech like this, what do you think?”

“Tears of emotion are clouding my vision. Some might ask what’s left for you if you give so much for the country?”

“What’s left? The support and love of the good British citizens, of course.”

Killian got up from his seat with a nonchalant smile.

*This side also has more things to worry about*, but anyway, I’ve set up some people in charge in Canada, so squeezing them shouldn’t increase the workload too much.

“Have a good trip. Then I’ll go to Canada first….”

“Ah, one more thing before that. I heard that the demand for the clothing factories and hired artisans we acquired last time is soaring, so I think we should take this opportunity to firmly grasp London’s clothing industry and fashion world. What do you think about acquiring factories on a large scale to mass-produce ready-made clothes to supply to the workers, and supplying symbolic luxury goods that are hard to obtain even with money to the upper class?”

“Are you talking about things like the high heels that Her Majesty the Queen wore?”

“Yes. But it would look a bit cheap if you could buy something like that right away just because you have money. So, I think we should divide the lines and create a top-tier luxury brand, a slightly lower luxury brand, and a luxury brand for the general upper class who can’t afford to buy overly expensive items but can’t wear ready-made clothes either.”

*I realize this every time I see it, but Killian knows how to extract money from people by exploiting their psychology.*

If you create tiered brands for clothes and visually show that people wearing the higher-tier brands are immediately noticeable, they will feel a sense of superiority.

This is all possible because of the absolute advantage of using the Queen, the top model, to create the best luxury brand in the British Empire, but it’s true that there’s no better way to extract money than this.

After all, the person who started from scratch and rose to become the behind-the-scenes power of the British Empire has the ability to do so.

No matter how much he exploits this side, seeing these aspects naturally fills me with respect again.

“So, James, before you leave for Canada, prepare to launch a luxury brand by acquiring other companies if necessary.”

“…Me?”

“Then who else would I entrust this to if not you? You know, right? If this goes well, you can dress from head to toe in luxury goods that even the top-tier British aristocrats will envy.”

The time it took for the rising respect to disappear again was exactly 3 seconds.

No matter how talented he is and how close his level of predicting the future is to precognition, there is no worse exploiter than him in the world.

* * *

The purchase of Alaska, as expected, was controversial only at first and proceeded without any major problems.

The Whig Party, which tried to attack by saying it was okay to occupy Alaska, but why bother paying for it, shut its mouth when it said it would receive private investment and I would buy the lacking part.

“It is doubtful which capitalist will invest in such an icy wilderness, but if His Royal Highness the Prince Consort is spending his private funds, I don’t think there is any reason to object.”

He didn’t forget to add a word until the end, but what can I do?

The investment in the Alaska purchase price, premised on the distribution of vested interests, achieved all the planned amount in just one day after the announcement and was completed successfully.

As a result, the opposition party showed a reaction of ‘Why is this working?’, but soon lightly dismissed it, saying that they must have trusted and invested because it was something the royal family was doing.

Some people even expressed concern about what to do if they complained to the royal family about wasting money on the wrong thing.

What kind of reaction will they show when resources start pouring out of Alaska in earnest?

And what kind of grievances will Russia, which decided to sell Alaska for 1.35 million pounds, list in detail?

I’m already drooling with anticipation.

As I was happily finishing the work, the schedule to leave for Canada was finally set.

The Queen of the British Empire, none other than, is visiting the colony with the Prince Consort.

Ahead of this unprecedented event, the government concentrated all its capabilities to adjust the plan, and Victoria and I finally crossed the Atlantic together.

At first, I was worried that there would be a problem with living on the ship for fifteen days, but Victoria surprisingly overcame the shipboard life very well.

She sometimes said that she felt nauseous, but mild seasickness is something everyone experiences, so it wouldn’t be a big problem.

It wasn’t like last time when the time limit was tight, so I just spent a leisurely time with Victoria with the mindset of enjoying a cruise trip to Canada.

We ate together, chatted, fell asleep on the same bed, and sometimes mixed in fun jokes with officials and attendants.

After enjoying a long-awaited vacation to the fullest, when we finally arrived in Canada, we heard a huge roar that seemed to shake the entire port even before getting off the ship.

I understand that it’s such a commotion because the Queen of the British Empire herself came.

Perhaps that’s why the Governor-General of Canada, who had dark circles almost down to his chin from how hard he had worked, was more noticeable than the enormous crowd.

It would be dangerous if an old man like that collapsed from overworking, but who made him work so hard… it’s me.

“Your Royal Highness the Prince Consort! I really welcome you back to Canada… It is an honor that Her Majesty the Queen has come to such a place; it will never happen again in my life!”

The Governor-General, who was so happy that he tried to greet me first but realized it and immediately bowed to Victoria, slowly approached me and whispered in a small voice.

“Your Royal Highness, it’s an urgent matter, so I think I should let you know right before the event ends.”

“Did some kind of accident happen?”

“It’s an accident, but… it’s not our fault.”

He looked around anxiously, worried that it might spoil the festive atmosphere, and continued to speak even more quietly.

“Four days ago, American slave hunters crossed the border near the border, saying they were searching for escaped slaves.”

“That’s not a problem that started yesterday or today.”

“But this time the scale was a bit large. Moreover, they were armed with guns from the start… and a large-scale shootout broke out in the middle, resulting in many casualties.”

“That’s a big problem. Moreover, such an unfortunate event happened at this time when Her Majesty the Queen arrived.”

Not only did they cross the border, but they also caused an accident by firing guns indiscriminately?

And that too, at a sensitive time when the Queen and Prince Consort of this country are visiting.

How anxious will our Queen be when this incident is known?

As the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Canada and the Queen’s husband, I cannot overlook this matter.

I clenched my fist in anger as if to show it, and slightly lowered my head to hide the corners of my mouth that kept rising.