Infinite Reincarnation – Arthur Hurt - Chapter 130



Only Noblemtl

Episode 130

25-Trends

“Well made.”

To the queen’s admiration, Arthur continued his explanation.

“We used water-resistant ink on paper that doesn’t tear easily even when wet. It’s part of our anti-counterfeiting measures.”

In order to do this, Arthur and Jaran also purchased a paper mill and a dye factory. Paper that did not tear easily when wet and ink that did not smudge were expensive, so Arthur personally visited the paper mill and dye factory to inspect the production process in order to make the production cost below the face value.

In particular, in order to make paper that would not tear easily even when wet, while at the same time maintaining production costs, cotton fibers had to be added to the papermaking process at an appropriate level, and the ratio of resin, wax, and volatile oils in the ink had to be adjusted to be suitable for printing currency.

And it all had to do with anti-counterfeiting measures.

“This is a test printing plate.”

Arthur also held out the copperplate. Just by looking at it, one could tell that it was a very elaborately made printing plate.

“Good.”

The queen smiled, nodded, and asked.

“What is this anti-counterfeiting measure?”

“that…….”

Arthur explained to the queen a total of five anti-counterfeiting measures.

The material of the paper that doesn’t tear as easily as toilet paper even when wet, the ink that doesn’t smudge easily even when oily, the printing plate that is divided into three to print in three stages, the sophistication of the plate itself, and the margins that cast specific shadows when exposed to light.

The queen asked with wide eyes, curious, as if she was very impressed by the last part.

“Hidden picture. How did you do this?”

“It’s a silly prank.”

All it took was finely ground white stone powder and oil to soak into the paper. Of course, it would be a pain to figure out what kind of ore powder it was and what solvent was used, but honestly, it was a technique that could be easily imitated.

The core of Arthur’s counterfeiting prevention measures was to increase the cost of production to a level where it would be difficult to attempt counterfeiting. If counterfeiting cost more than the face value, there was no reason to take the risk and commit a crime.

But then you might wonder where those in the business of issuing currency could make money, but since it was a business targeting the entire kingdom, as long as they didn’t lose money, they could make a lot of money.

Being able to control prices through the money supply and being able to gauge the flow of funds and which parts of the economy were active through currency circulation was in itself an enormous privilege and power.

If you could gauge where your money was flowing, or if you could control its flow, investing was like swimming with your feet on the ground.

“Here are some counterfeit prevention measures that I have put together.”

Arthur handed the remaining envelope to the queen. It contained the specific methodology of the anti-counterfeiting measures explained above, as well as the know-how on the mixing ratio of materials.

The queen accepted the envelope with a satisfied smile and said:

“Please continue to work hard for the kingdom.”

“It is an honor, Your Majesty the Queen.”

“Oh, don’t worry about Baron Kshan anymore. I’ll make sure he doesn’t even pay attention to that girl named Amelia.”

“thank you.”

Arthur bowed deeply.

It was such a strong statement that Enuri felt she had received it in abundance. Now that the queen had said that, Baron Kshan no longer had to worry too much.

The queen asked him one thing.

“But is it really necessary to fight with Baron Kshan for that girl?”

“He is a child I regard as my nephew.”

“okay.”

There was no misunderstanding that the child was his lover. If Arthur had been that kind of person, he would have divorced his current wife and married a nobleman who offered him a young girl for political reasons. What’s more, wasn’t he a loving husband who even tried to give his current wife the title of lady?

“It wouldn’t be easy to treat a child who isn’t related by blood as family.”

“Sometimes, those who are related by blood are worse off than others.”

“… … I see.”

The queen nodded with difficulty, her voice trailing off.

Her expression showed that she knew that family wasn’t just about blood ties.

***

25-Trends

Did the Queen really warn Baron Kshan?

Arthur became slightly anxious when he saw no significant change after several days of handing over the counterfeiting prevention measures to the queen. However, after the weekend, a distinct change occurred.

“I’m back!”

“Master!”

When Cho-reng appeared looking neat and tidy after being released from prison, Amelia ran to him and hugged him.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Have you had a good rest?”

Cho-reng thanked Arthur, who was behind Amelia.

“Thank you.”

“What did I do?”

“Before you were released, that bastard came to visit me and said, lamenting that your skills were not ordinary.”

The child that Cho-Reng was talking about was Baron Kshan.

“Is that so?”

“How on earth did you convince that kid?”

Arthur smiled, finding it difficult to answer. It was not persuasion, but pressure, and there were national secrets involved.

“huh?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

At Arthur’s words, Cho-reng suppressed his curiosity and stopped urging him.

After Cho-Reng was released, Samuel welcomed it and quickly worked to normalize and strengthen the Ridis Theater.

While Cho-Reng was pursuing his dream of becoming a theater owner with the strong support of Samuel, Arthur stayed in his workshop and focused on improving the plates and printing press.

Although printing technology existed at the time, it was not sophisticated enough to print currency according to Arthur’s standards.

Improving the printing press was not difficult, but the most labor-intensive part was the printing plate.

The queen was given a sample of how to print one bill at a time. However, printing them one at a time would not cover the issuance cost. At least 20 bills had to be printed at a time.

So Arthur had to go through the trouble of making 20 identical prints on a large copper plate. If one was wrong, they all had to be re-engraved.

Of course, Arthur did not work by hand carving everything one by one in an unskilled manner.

First, an elaborate design was printed on thin paper using the original printing plate, and several of these were placed side by side on a large copper plate whose surface was cleaned. Then, the paper was precisely cut with a scribe, and then a thin paraffin treatment was applied, and the paper was completely removed. Then, an etching solution was poured on the surface and slightly shaved off. This was a basic lithography technique.

It was easy to say, but Arthur’s metallurgical and chemical technologies were far beyond his level, so trial and error were inevitable, and this was already his third attempt.

In addition, to prevent counterfeiting, it has to be printed in three stages with different colored inks, so two more similar ones have to be made. How could this not be a hassle?

While Arthur was working so hard, an uninvited guest visited.

“How did you come here?”

“I came to see you.”

It was Baron Kshan. Arthur frowned when he appeared like this, thinking that their relationship had already ended.

Baron Kshan opened his mouth to speak to Arthur alone in the room.

“You have done a great job roasting the queen.”

“Bake and boil? How rude.”

“Otherwise, Your Majesty would not have singled out a commoner woman for comment.”

He pointed it out. It seemed that the queen had not ignored her promise to Arthur. However, she could not be trusted completely. Arthur’s memory still lingered in the royal family’s neglect of the illegal copy music box.

He snapped out of his thoughts and spoke mockingly to Baron Kshan, who was referring to Amelia as a commoner.

“Just a commoner? Was the Baron’s love limited to that extent?”

“… … Ugh! Ugh!”

Arthur stuttered in the middle of his sentence. Suddenly, Baron Kshan began to sob.

What the hell is going on? Baron Kshan took out a handkerchief and sniffed, wiping away the tears that were welling up in his eyes.

“Oh! That pretty thing, whoosh! When it was the most lovely, oh!”

Was it because the frustration of not being able to satisfy one’s tastes was so great, or was it true love?

Arthur could not accept the latter. After all, Baron Kshan was a man who could not distinguish between desire and love. He was a man who could love only a part of a human being, not the whole of him.

“Is that all you have to say?”

To Arthur, Baron Kshan’s visit seemed to be a simple expression of dissatisfaction with the Queen’s manners of roasting him, and not an attempt at intimidation, threat, or resistance.

“Just, huh! I just came to say that I will remain as Amelia’s audience from now on.”

He continued, blowing his nose with a handkerchief.

“Ugh! It’s a shame that Amelia is afraid of me.”

“Shouldn’t you have just stopped doing bad things in the first place?”

“Weren’t you the ones who prevented me from talking to Amelia? That’s why I kept Viscount Cho-Reng in custody.”

“……ha.”

Arthur sighed. Judging from the attitude of Baron Kshan, he seemed to be trying to approach Amelia politely. However, such an approach was unacceptable as a guardian, as it had the same purpose as a debaucher approaching an adult woman.

“Anyway, are you giving up?”

Baron Kshan nodded with a complicated expression like a man who has been dumped.

It seemed like he had come here to tie up some knots in his heart.

Arthur felt both a sense of relief and a sense of relief at the same time. If the Baron had not held onto a single thread of reason, the Queen’s pressure would not have worked.

Baron Kshan spoke to Arthur, who was feeling a new appreciation for human reason.

“Then I guess I’ll go.”

“excuse me,”

“I don’t want to talk anymore.”

Baron Kshan, who had regained his composure, cut off Arthur’s words with a firm voice, opened the door, and went out.

On the table where Baron Kshan was sitting was a handkerchief that he had used to wipe his tears and blow his nose. I was going to tell him to take that… … .

Arthur, who was left behind, carefully picked it up without getting it on his hands and put it in the trash can, sighing.

“ha…….”

It really varies.

***

A month after Arthur had produced the printing plates and handed them over to Jaran, the king, having received a report that sufficient currency had been secured, announced through his treasurer that he would be issuing gold certificates.

Many people responded by saying, “Gold certificate? What can you use that for?” However, when Mato Trading Company started trading with gold certificates, it gained a certain level of credibility.

Those who did business with Mato Trading Company began to use gold certificates, also known as scalons, thanks to the trustworthiness of Mato Trading Company (if the crown did not convert their currency into gold, Mato Trading Company promised to compensate instead).

After using it, I found it to be very convenient. Since Mato Trading Company deals in expensive items, the amount of money that goes in and out is also large.

Although the first step seemed to be off to a good start, Scalon did not immediately reach a stable state in the market.

“The rate at which gold and silver are consumed is too high.”

Jarani frowned as she looked at the documents, and Samuel continued speaking.

“Most of those who exchange Scalon for gold are landowners.”

“You’re not stupid.”

Arthur replied.

The king would not have been doing something for nothing, so they tried to interfere for the time being. It was natural that the introduction of paper money would help strengthen the royal authority, and it was not difficult to prevent its introduction by referring to the failure cases already recorded in history.

It was to change Scalon into gold to the point where it was no longer possible to do so.

But their attempt was impossible, because the issuance of scalons was limited to the royal treasury.