The world you've reincarnated yourself into was nearly perfect. The overdone and stale tropes gave you comfort. You know what to expect, and where to expect it from. That included the evil as much as it did the good.

Your dreams of having a harem of beautiful women that would pamper you and devote themselves to you entirely, mixed with your more recent desires to expand your wives and future children a nice place to live, was nearly torn to shreds.

Last week was almost enough to make the reality of this magical world set in: A force of nearly 1,000 bandits sought to invade your estate. You imagines this was the reason why many isekai protags liked going under the radar was soon shown to you, though in all fairness you hadn't been doing much to stand out. All you'd done was invade one of their smaller camps with a giant mech. Was such a response really needed? It seemed like cliches could be deadly.

But not for you.

Thanks to your leadership, the robotic clankers, the defensive preparations, your wives' fighting skills, and a giant laser, the bandit scum were repelled without much issue. With at least 400 dead in their ranks, the losses would keep them licking their wounds and give you some time to breathe.

Antagonists were a thing to be expected. Something that <span class="mu-i">you</span> expected. They existed to keep the story going and let the mc show off how cool he is, and maybe save another cute chick which would soon be added into his harem of doting women. What story would be complete without a few villains?

But on the other hand... It would be nice if everything got solved smoothly.

Anyway, the fact still remained: You needed to be prepared.

Three things were needed the most— money, energy, and an army.

Money was pretty much accounted for. You had a cotton farm and more than enough food items to sell. But if you really wanted to rake in those precious gold coins, there was a plan you'd been shaping together with Herta.

"As the Goddess of Artifice," She'd boast. "I'm without equal when it comes to creating things!" You were both seeking to smelt one of the rarest metals of the world.

Aluminum.

That flimsy stuff you used to take for granted in your last life was not yet mass produced. From your experience in Centria, it was bound to sell well. This was your golden goose, and you didn't intend to fumble it.

The size and scope of the project made it impossible to keep Ruby Rose from knowing about it. And once you told her of your plan, she was fully on board with it.

"Your genius is truly unparalleled, Master~" Her elegant contralto flattered you.