Berun was the royal capital of Wiltia. It was designed to spread in a circle around the principality’s royal palace in the center. Land was more expensive closer to the royal palace, so government offices, noble mansions and embassies from foreign nations lined the streets. The commoners lived in clusters of apartment buildings in the outer circle. Meitzer and Marissa were outside that outermost area in a suburb of the royal capital.
“This is barely part of the capital!”
Berun’s famous streetcars didn’t come out this far. Meitzer and Marissa had borrowed an automobile from military headquarters, bounced along unpaved roads, and finally arrived at their destination.
“This place feels like the edge of the world!” Marissa said the first thing that popped into her head.
“There sure are a lot of fields...” Meitzer didn’t disagree.
They were visiting VfR.
“What in the world is VfR? It’s the first time I’ve heard of it.”
“Well, not many people know it. Its official name is Verne für Raumschiffahrt.”
“Verne... The Association for Space Travel?” Marissa cocked her head at the word. “I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere... Oh!” She clapped her hands when she remembered. “I ran across that name when I used to read Fantastica!”
Marissa wasn’t born into a wealthy family, so she applied for a student loan to pay for her studies and joined the military to pay it back. She enjoyed reading and had a paperback book in her pocket at this very moment.
“Oh, you know it?”
“Wasn’t Verne the name of an author?”
“Indeed it was.”
If Marissa remembered correctly, the novelist J.B. Verne had once been popular.
“He wrote stories about circumnavigating the globe in hot air balloons and sea vessels and exploring an ancient empire on the seafloor. They were all really interesting.”
“Yes, that’s him.”
Verne died almost twenty years ago, but he had possessed incredible insight and imagination and described the dreams of science rather than pseudoscientific fantasy. Much of what he wrote came true, so he was also highly respected for his accurate predictions.
“In one of his works, humans journeyed into space, so this place is named after him.”
“Oh...” Marissa thought about it for a moment and then looked surprised. “Can people really go into space?” Scientific progress had been rapid, during which the Hunter Units—which even Verne hadn’t foreseen—were developed. Excitement tinged Marissa’s voice as she wondered if humanity would now touch the stars.
“No, that is still impossible.” Meitzer laughed good-naturedly. “However, the people here hope to make it happen someday. And they receive government funding.”
“Oh, really? That’s surprising.”
Wiltia had been victorious in the recent Great War. However, while production swelled, demand had drastically fallen, resulting in a poor economy that was gradually eroding various sectors of society. Even public agencies were being forced to decrease budgets, and the military was hit especially hard. Some military bases were having trouble even finding the money to fix broken showers.
“When the government is so tight fisted, I’m surprised it’s funding such a non-essential area.”
The government was pouring tax money into space travel when its finances were tight. Marissa, whose viewpoint was that of the common person, was surprised and dismayed.
“You misunderstand, Miss Marisha. Public funds are precisely for projects with long term results.”
“Really?”
“When something is sure to pay off, private investors and corporations will shell out money, even if you don’t ask. When a venture doesn’t pay off, public funding is necessary.”
Public money built housing, provided healthcare, and found work for the poor. Those were enterprises with no prospects of revenue. If you prioritized profit when it came to survival necessities such as electricity, water and means of transportation, people would die, starting with the poor.
The nation’s raison d’ être was protecting the people. That was its guiding principle, so seeking profit and high returns from that endeavor made no sense.
“VfR is researching space travel. Tell me, Marisha, what would be necessary for travel in space?”
“Huh?” In response to Meitzer’s question, Marissa was silent. She didn’t have an immediate answer. Flustered, what came out was... “F-Food!”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“It is?!”
“But what can you eat in outer space?”
“Huuuh?!”
Meitzer hit her with another question.
“You don’t know? Well, they don’t know either, so they conduct research and perform experiments to find out. And in the course of their progress, they may come across new technology and knowledge applicable in other areas.”
“Does it really work out that well?”
“Most of the time, no. But the basic theories that give rise to new technology bloom because of countless failures. Given that, it isn’t a waste. Not at all.”
If one hundred investments ended in failure but the one hundred and first gives birth to a revolutionary new technology, that alone could change the world. The aircraft now common in the skies began with brothers who ran a bicycle shop. And it’s well known how strangely people first looked at them.
“Wiltia won the recent Great War with the new weapon known as Hunter Units. That’s probably why the government decided there is a value in investing with the promise of giving birth to new technology that may in turn lead to new weapons.”
“Oh... I think I get it.” Marissa spoke as if he hadn’t fully convinced her. She still wondered what kind of revolutionary technology could come from a research facility located in the middle of a rural suburb. And then...
“... t!”
She heard a voice. “Hm?” Looking around, she saw a small human in the distance. It was waving a hand and shouting something.
“Someone welcoming us?”
The military had sent prior notice of their visit.
“Hmm... But something doesn’t seem right.” Meitzer put a hand to his mouth as he pondered, then he looked up. “Oh no... This is bad.”
“What do you—gack!”
Meitzer tucked Marissa under his arm and took off running. He ran so fast it was difficult to believe he was carrying someone. He ran with such power that it churned the earth, and the next moment, they were several hundred meters away.
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