"What…?" Rui stared at her. Though he had an inkling of what she was talking about.

"Of the four powerhouses of East Panama, the Kandrian Empire is the only one that is deeply connected to the Great Nam Ocean," She replied. "The other three powerhouses are landlocked and also quite distant from the coast, making it far more difficult for them. This is an enormous advantage for the Kandrian Empire that we have been remiss in capitalizing on sufficiently enough."

Rui stared at her, waiting for her to finish the argument in compelling him.

"It is possible for the Kandrian Empire to shoot past the three powerhouses by maximizing the potential of the Great Nam Ocean," She insisted. "While it is by far the largest, deepest, and most dangerous ocean in the world, it is also the most bountiful ocean in the world."

"So you're saying…"

"Yes, Rui Quarrier," She firmly affirmed. "If we can tap into the resources of the Great Nam Ocean with a developed sub-marine sector and industry that receives the funding and resources it needs to be prepared enough to maximize the potential of the Great Nam Ocean, then we can reach a much higher stage in the world than even what we have now."

She paused for a moment, sipping some tea that her servants had poured both of them. "The simplest ROI is gold. The esoteric marina gold that forms the basis of the Kandrian currency system was all mined from the shores and shallow parts of the ocean around the Kandrian Empire. However, some of the deeper surveys that I have had the Kandrian Seafare Association and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs conduct have given us reason to believe that there are far greater reserves much deeper in the Great Nam Ocean. However…"

"I assume the depth of these marina gold mines is quite challenging."

Princess Ranea nodded. "Kilometers at a bare minimum. However, the greater the depth, the greater the bounty of resources. By our estimates, if we can successfully harness the resources, then we can get a hundred percent ROI, perhaps even more, for even the massive expenditure that I had elucidated about earlier. It will easily justify all my decisions and enrich the Empire."

"There is a reason that the Great Nam Ocean has not been fully scaled nor mined," Rui replied with a stern voice. "The depth is one thing, but there are also powerful aquatic monsters that undoubtedly increase the difficulty of meaningful success and increase losses tremendously. Krakens, scyllas, jormunganders, leviathans, charybdises, umibozus… With such known horrifying monsters increasingly common towards the epicenter. Some even consider it the marine Beast Domain."

Most of the shipping routes were directed along the coasts of the Panama Continent.

There was a reason for this. The closer one got to the epicenter of the Great Nam Ocean, the more dangerous things were. It was like trying to cross through the epicenter of the Beast Domain while traveling on land from one side of the Panama Continent to the other.

It was madness.

The depths of the center of the great ocean were distanced from human civilization by virtue of not only distance but also the limitations of their medium of life. Life that had adapted to survive the depths of the Great Nam Ocean could not survive except for those depths of the ocean.

That was why the relationship between humanity and the depths of the Great Nam Ocean was fundamentally different from the relationship between humanity and the Beast Domain. The Beast Domain was a lot more easily accessible, making it more dangerous to humanity and vice versa.

This was not true for the Great Nam Ocean. There were far greater barriers that existed between humanity and the depths of the Great Nam Ocean; neither could easily intrude upon the other. This had caused humanity to take an 'out of sight, out of mind' approach to the perils of the depths of the Great Nam Ocean. (C) content.

Princess Ranea's ambitions, however, fundamentally embodied a different philosophy. She was willing to cross the barriers separating them and plunge to the depths of the Great Nam Ocean at her own peril to claim the bounties it hid.

"So let me get this straight, Your Highness…" Rui stared at her. "You wish to uproot several sectors, cutting funding to them, causing mass unemployment that could easily cause a recession, and then redirect all those resources to a maritime and seafare expansion for greater trade, as well as a sub-

marine sector in hopes of extracting the perilous bounties that the Great Nam Ocean has to offer? Such that it can justify the sheer amount of expenditure you invested and more?"

"Precisely," She declared.

Her blunt honesty was refreshing. She didn't try tomislead him.

Rui stared at her with narrowed eyes. "Even putting aside the guaranteed suffering that your plan will spread, the sheer risks you are undertaking are such that if you fail even in the slightest, you will bring about the destruction of the Kandrian Empire."

"I have a much higher opinion of our ability to overcome the risk, but even still, risk is always inevitable. Always. Especially if you want to rise," She boldly declared. "Unlike that warmongering fool Randal, I intend to endeavor productive ventures that promise great yield instead of war that simply destroys any and everything. The rest of my siblings, barring Raul, do not have a vision for the Empire that didn't come from selling themselves to their patrons. Especially that despicable bastard Rajak."

She snorted with disdain, turning back to Rui. "At least I have a definite vision that came from myself. I was the one who approached the Kandrian Seafare Association and the Minister of Maritime Affairs with my grand ambitions. And eventually, I will compel the entire nation with my vision of the future."

She turned to Rui. "I will unveil a new age within the Kandrian Empire, then East Panama, and eventually, the entire world."

Her eyes grew more defiant.

"The Age of Sailors."

Rui stared at her with disbelief as she uttered her ambitions to change the world.