HARMONY [LITRPG / ISEKAI / PROGRESSION / OP MC]

The governor of Forontia watched with bated breath as the world was trying to drown him from the inside out. If it wasn’t the constant threat of gangs over his head, it was a demonic attack. If it wasn’t a demonic threat which he had no clue how it had even appeared, it was an ambitious young woman seemingly taking control of everything he had in his land.

Honestly, he just wanted to drink his wine to forget everything that occurred in the past few weeks.

Instead, what looked like towers of documents crowded his desk where his usual snacks with a glass of wine resided, his favorite brand bottle standing proudly like the flag displaying Forontia’s dignity. Some papers were scattered on the floor, the surrounding furniture slightly disturbed and scuffed from the governor constantly pacing around in his office dealing with these matters.

Reports of recovery demands, signatures for rebuilding expenditures, and demanding exports through channels that were drying up each day constantly pressed him. When he first accepted the position as governor, Winston knew the difficulty that would come from leading the frontier city near the Ruinga mountains, yet things had been going surprisingly well for the past few years.

Then he heard that his city became a cesspool of villainy across the nation, with all three notorious gangs making their base here and even having their own centralized location known across the city as the Dark Zone. That grim dark spot became a stain that plagued Winston’s mind as governor, but he also had to recognize that, thanks to that, the city had flourished in ways he hadn’t expected.

So what if he accepted some bribes here and there? It wasn’t like the entire city became lawless, right? And in a way, it sort of became symbiotic with how the gangs and the citizens of Forontia worked together to keep the city floating.

Yet now he found himself in a position where everything had fallen apart. His own investigators revealed that Red Riot was the one responsible for the demonic threat that nearly destroyed his city, and he was certain there were plenty of people with substantial power and backing who wished for him to pay for this gross oversight of this atrocity.

But he could handle that. While Winston wasn’t exactly competent, he was still an official sent by the kingdom of Ghalea who had clawed his way up the ladder with precision and grit. Even after this, he knew if he played his cards right, he could get away from receiving punishment by merely accusing the real criminals for this threat, then using the information provided to Winston by these very gangs he made secret dealings with to screw them over and demand compensation for the damages caused.

He wasn’t even afraid of the gangs’ retaliation as after the attack, the gangs were nothing more than remnants who have been severely weakened thanks to the majority of the attack centering on them. It made it more obvious that they were the ones responsible for calling the threat as most of the monstrous horrors surfaced from the Grim Corner, which only elevated Winston’s word above the naysayers and the complainers.

But of course, life never worked out the way one wished. All because a single young woman was vicious enough to target the jugular of a weakened veteran when the opportunity arrived.

Nina Alcatrox had been a name that had plagued his reports time and time again, yet he didn’t bear it any mind before now. He knew of the noble family with such a name, but Winston didn’t pay it much mind considering that his city wasn’t exactly a safe place for those that knew better. He figured it was just some upstart that would eventually fall into the clutches of the Red Riot, or if the reports of her beauty was to be believed, become a poor victim of the Chainlords.

Instead, she became the bane of these two gangs while constantly pecking them for their valuables and personnel. She was like a crow that constantly badgered and stole from the rich, using what she took to make a proper nest for her to use for her own plans. However, she mostly kept to the business of the Grim Corner, and even after making her own shop within his city, Winston once again didn’t pay her any mind.

Then the attack happened, and suddenly she was appearing on every single report in every document he was handed. Her name often passed through everyone’s lips, and all of a sudden she was becoming a bigshot even among the high-rollers of the city. Naturally, the wealthier citizens and minor nobles left the city once the attack occurred, using their own ways to escape and leaving the rest of the city to fight for itself. Due to that, funds had dramatically been decreased to the point where the city wouldn’t have recovered at all.

And all of a sudden, Nina was buying up every damaged property that the wealthy once owned, with funds that seemingly came out of nowhere. She helped the downtrodden by giving them emergency supplies, aiding the injured and broken while restoring the economy of the city through her vast connections she picked up along the way.

Now why was Winston in over his head despite this obvious benefactor helping him so much to restore the city back to how it was? It was simple. She aimed to take his position.

Normally, such a thing wouldn’t occur so naturally, but one had to remember that this world worked on the concept of power and wealth. In Forontia’s case, one didn’t necessarily need to have a high level to rule. In his example, Winston is just a simple level 22 Mage. He barely fought even in his younger years, mostly focusing on judicial affairs within the kingdom before being sent here to govern the city.

Instead he used his resources provided by his wealthy family to get this position, along with some minor bootlicking for those arrogant nobles and some slight sabotage here and there, but all in all, it was the kind of position that was gained easily thanks to his hard work.

Hard work that could easily be overcome with merit, feats, and plenty of funds to be had. Not only did this Nina Alcatrox have the funds to basically rebuild the city back to how it once was, but she also had the power that had eventually saved this city from the demon threat. Winston didn’t know where this Aidan came from, and according to his investigators, he seemingly came out of nowhere and was hired to be Nina’s personal bodyguard.

Now he was known as the hero of Forontia, with Nina quickly becoming a figurehead of hope for the citizens who are still heavily affected by the attack. And right now, that very same figurehead was coming over to visit him according to his messenger.

She wanted to talk about the potential future of the city, but Winston knew better. He would normally reject such a visit, and he technically could, but he knew that if he did so, he would bring loads of trouble onto his head by his own peers and workers who were saved by Nina, and would question his ethics and leadership.

When a knock on the door rang out, Winston took a breath before answering. He had to deal with this one way or another, so he might as well do it.

“Come in.”

The door opened, revealing a similar-aged man who stepped forward and bowed his head. “Sir, may I present Nina Alcatrox and her partner, Aidan Munez.”

As soon as the man introduced them, two figures walked in. She wore an immaculate sharp suit with a long skirt, displaying the sort of beauty that even noble women would kill for. Her sharp amber eyes stared directly at Winston, giving no edge, as if demanding that he respond to her fully, or else consequences would be had.

The other was a young man in a wretched state that instantly made Winston pity him. While he looked well-dressed in his own suit, perhaps given to him for this occasion, there was an empty sleeve showing his missing arm and a clear limp, an obvious prosthetic loosely covered in the pant cloth.

He heard that this hero of Forontia had been seriously injured when he fought against the Matriarch, that he had both an arm and leg cut off from the fight. He heard it and thought nothing of it, but seeing the man before him made him rethink. The man barely looked like he lived before thirty, yet had made such a sacrifice that would stump many veteran fighters to giving up on their life of battle and glory.

“Governor Winston, it is a pleasure to see you,” Nina Alcatrox said, bowing her head along with Aidan. “I thank you for giving us the time to have this meeting with you.”

“The pleasure is all mine, Miss Alcatrox,” Winston said, putting on his usual business smile even when his insides were churning.

“Please, just Nina is fine. We don’t need to make this so formal,” Nina smiled, and it was quite a killer one at that. But in Winston’s eyes, he saw nothing but sharp fangs ready for maim and devour him whole. Even then, he nodded in return.

“Nina it is then,” Winston smiled. “And I take it you are Aidan? I have heard so much of your exploits so let me just say this. I thank you for your service to the city. You have not only saved many of my people, but have also defeated a threat that could have brought the Ghalea Kingdom to its knees, if not perhaps the entire Maelstrom continent.”

Winston, of course, did his due and bowed his head to the man despite his higher station. More than anything, he didn’t plan on pissing off the very man that had taken out such a powerful demon. While he still couldn’t believe it himself, he had heard from his spies that the monstrous being was around level 90, something that seemed so damn foreign to this barren city despite its closeness to the Ruinga mountains.

The young man nodded in return, a pleasant smile on his lips. “I only did what was natural, sir. I grew to love Forontia and its people, and have made many friends here while I ran the Raining Treasures. The last thing I wanted was to see them suffer when I have the power to do something about it. So I only did what was necessary, consequences be damned.”

As if showing off his proud decision, he moved his arm stump a little to show that he didn’t mind at all about the loss of his limbs. Winston could only marvel at the tenacity of this man.

“Truly a nobler hero than we deserve,” Winston said, his flattery showing a bit of genuinity here. “It is such a shame that you have ended up in such a state. If you wish, I shall do whatever I can to procure any restorative concoctions to help you regain your limbs, though that might take a bit of time…”

“Please don’t worry yourself, sir,” Aidan answered. “I gained so much from the many people who offered to visit me. They kept showering me with gifts, medicine to help me recover, and I feel like I’m taking advantage of them. I plan to take it easy and rest up whenever I can.”

“And I already made some plans to procure the medicine for myself,” Nina intervened, surprising Winston. “Aidan is my most trusted friend, so I always planned on helping him recover.”

“I see,” Winston nodded.

Frankly, he should’ve expected as much, but normally medicine to recover lost limbs, especially limbs that had been cut off for longer periods, are extremely rare to find, and if they were found, they were very expensive to purchase. Winston was honestly glad he didn’t have to go through the extra effort to help Aidan restore his limbs. It would’ve been such a pain to go through even if it was for the hero.

“Then I hope you recover fast and recover well,” Winston added, receiving Aidan’s grateful nod. “Now then, let’s move on to the main topic of this visit. Nina, is there anything you wish to say now that we have this chance?”

“I only wish to aid in the restoration of Forontia,” Nina said. She pulled out what looked like documents from her bag, her eyes focused on Winston. “I’m sure you have noticed that I made some purchases here and there, and I only wish to discuss the intended use of them along with the future of the city. I know it is not my place considering the circumstances, but I believe that this would be in your best interest.”

“Ah, yes,” Winston said, doing his damndest to keep smiling without showing any cracks. It was as he expected, yet hearing it all only made it worse. “I heard so much of your exploits these past few days, and I can’t thank you enough for your generous efforts to help my people. But as much as it pains me to say this, I’m not sure what it is you’re trying to do here. As you can see, the city is under duress with many of our main faculties and businesses heavily impacted. It would take quite a long time to recover, especially as most of our workers were unfortunately taken during the attack.”

“That is indeed one of the things I wish to discuss with you,” Nina said. “I’m sure you have noticed that I have recently purchased a large amount of items from the brokers and traders that I have been in contact with. I plan on helping to rebuild the important locations to bring this city back to its feet.”

“...If I may, Nina,” Winston frowned, bringing up the question he was building up for this. “I did indeed hear, and I find myself perplexed. You have purchased a large number of items, yes, but none of them are for restoring damaged property as far as I know. Most of them are mundane items with very little value, and if I’m allowed to say, they don’t seem very… useful even if you melt them down to make materials for the necessary constructions. What exactly is it do you plan to do with such items?”

All of a sudden, Winston felt a strong chill run down his spine as he saw Nina’s smile widen. It was as if he fell for a trap that she clearly expected him to run into despite asking a very simple question.

“A very reasonable question, one deserving an honest answer,” Nina said, then turned around. “Please follow me to this empty table, and I shall show you.”

Winston grew concerned, yes, but he also grew curious as he followed her. He was thankful she didn’t bother criticizing him for the messy office as she walked around the bits of mess he left around before facing a small round table left barren for any type of meeting. Aidan also followed, and the two paired up with Winston standing off the side.

Nina then pulled out several mundane looking items, all of which belonging to the rubble that cluttered everywhere around the city. Several pieces of broken wood and stone that anyone could pick off the ground.

“Aidan, go ahead. Show the governor that his worries are needless.”

Nina said, and Aidan did as ordered before placing his hand over the rubble. A small orb of energy formed that covered the items entirely. Winston’s eyes grew in interest as he indeed heard about how there was a talented mage that could seemingly create anything that one asked. Ranging from specific tools to hard-to-find products, this man could make anything.

Yet despite hearing about it, Winston couldn’t help but freeze when the seemingly useless pile of rubble transformed into an immaculate and well-decorated figurine of a homely abode, a square shaped building that looked like a place a family could live in.

But that wasn’t all. There were intricate details of roof tiles and even glass that shouldn’t have existed according to the simple materials used in its creation. There were different colors that really made the design of this figurine household really brighten up. It was the sort of house that even a noble wouldn’t mind living in.

When Winston couldn’t hold himself back and Nina gave him permission, he opened the tiny door to the inside of the household, and became aghast at the already furnished living room inside. He also peered through the window to see rooms already decorated as well, boggling his mind at the detail put into it.

“T-This is beautiful,” Winston said, prompting Aidan to smile.

“Thank you, sir.”

“As you can see,” Nina continued. “Aidan has the ability to craft anything he desires through his talent. The materials don't matter as long as he has the necessary mass that each material brings. As long as it fully exists, enough for us to touch, Aidan can craft it into whatever form he desires, regardless of the materials’ original composition. Of course, this is with complete details in mind. The more details he adds, the more materials and mass he needs to make these specific details. However, if we’re only focusing on constructing simple buildings and not bothering to furnish them, we can easily make up for the time loss with all the materials I have purchased. I only need your permission as well as some leniency for entering private property to make this a reality. You can help us rebuild many people’s lives in just a matter of days, rather than the months or perhaps years it could take to find and manage many people throughout this process.”

Winston wanted to sit down and swallow this information fully, because he was having a hard time adjusting to the impossible implications he was met with just this visual alone. Most of his reports that were cluttering his desk were mainly infrastructure notices and deadlines demanding for these very buildings that were seemingly impossible to restore under due time. And all of a sudden, Nina comes in with exactly what he needed with little to no effort.

“Of course, I’m not going to do all of this entirely for free,” Nina suddenly said, and rather than feeling an insurmountable dread coming in, unexpected relief came instead as Winston paid attention. “All I require from you are simple documentations regarding a few important matters that I wish to discuss with you privately, if you have the time. Of course, we can do all this busy work at a later date if you need more time to consider. But I highly suggest that we settle this as quickly as we can due to some time constraints on my end. I hope you understand.”

Winston considered this for a moment, but he knew deep inside that this wouldn’t be that different than what he expected. Still, he nodded to her assessment, and as soon as her confidant left the room to leave Nina and Winston alone, they discussed more in detail about the future matters of the city.

…..

“Thank you once again for your time, Mr. Laudry. Please inform me for anything you need should anything arise from this.”

Nina said before she and Aidan left the office, leaving a rather bewildered former governor behind. Aidan couldn’t help but feel sorry for the guy, considering he seemed out of his depth as his office looked quite messy when they arrived.

“Man, I can’t believe you let him go with a golden parachute like that,” Aidan said as the two walked across the hall of the governmental office where the governor resided.

“Golden parachute…?” Nina asked, rightfully confused.

“Oh, uhh, basically giving an out to the guy from his important position and even giving him a lot of money to live off of. I guess it would be like giving him golden armor to help him survive and thrive?”

“Golden armor… I supposed that seems accurate enough,” Nina said. “And it’s not that surprising. While he was incompetent as a governor, that doesn’t mean he was lacking in other important factors. He has connections and resources that are different than my own, so having his support while I remain as governor would only benefit me in the long run. Especially when he eventually report back to the kingdom about the beneficial changes occurring within the city.”

“Right. I guess he still needs to report to the kingdom about it, and he couldn’t exactly do that if he isn’t governor.”

“It doesn’t matter who is actually the real governor in Forontia. What matters is that the kingdom believes it is still Winston Laudry.”

“So he’s just a figurehead on official terms, but you’re the real boss,” Aidan nodded. “I like that.”

“Well, not for long.”

“Huh?” Aidan let out.

“I don’t plan on staying here for long. I’m ready to expand my influence, and I’m heading towards the next city to do so. In the future, we’ll be heading towards Palestorm, a large port city and trading hub for other cities connected to the Ghalea kingdom. Having that city under my thumb is essential if I plan on expanding further to the kingdom later on.”

“Geez, you’re planning on a whole country takeover?” Aidan asked in surprise. “I thought you said this city was important.”

“It is, or rather, it was. But things have changed now.”

Nina turned her gaze onto him, and he felt her soul rise in what felt like anticipation and… suspicion? She treated him normally before this, but this was the first time she responded like this.

“The change is clearly due to your influence. With your power, I plan on using it to reach my goals and attain a better power than just mere wealth and levels can provide. Of course, this would only make things better for you as my trusted friend. Then again, perhaps that’s not how you feel considering how we met and all. But what do you say?”

That was also the first time she bothered to ask him like that. While he could read her soul and sense her emotions and intentions, he can’t exactly read her mind. All he knew was that she was expecting something from him, wondering what he would say in response.

As for the answer? It was obvious.

“I say hell yeah,” Aidan answered with ease. “I mean, yeah, being bound isn’t exactly a favorite of mine, but even I know that this is only going to get better for me. Right now, my plans are simple–get more levels and get stronger. Obviously it’s just going to be easier for me to do that if you make my path easier by getting rid of anything unnecessary that would get in my way. And in return, I help you make things easier by getting rid of anything unnecessary in your way.”

“A symbiotic relationship, if nothing else,” Nina replied with a smile.

“I mean, we’re at least a little closer than that, right?” Aidan teased. “We went through life or death situations a few times by now. And I like to think I know you more than you think.”

“It’s not exactly easy knowing me. Then again, you’re the only one who have lasted this long with me.”

“Having a shit ton of Vitality would do that for you,” Aidan joked.

“I don’t doubt that for a second,” Nina smirked back. Her soul genuinely showed joy in that small instance, making Aidan feel a little giddy.

Sure, their relationship was completely filled with holes and hidden agendas, but both Aidan and Nina knew one thing more than anything else. They have no one better than each other to deal with every situation that required their particular skills. It was also good enough that he enjoyed her company, even if others saw her as some sort of figure of evil.

Honestly, he didn’t mind that part. It actually makes her even more charming to his eyes.

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