# E2 - If You Possess an Aptitude, We'll Make Use of It
Source: [Crunchyroll](https://www.crunchyroll.com/watch/G4VUQMMN1/if-you-possess-an-aptitude-well-make-use-of-it)
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(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
**[00:11] ---**
This world has magic,
and unusual creatures living in it.
**[00:15] ---**
So if you feel like flying,
you can always hop on a wyvern.
**[00:20] ---**
Large domesticated creatures
pull the wagons,
**[00:23] ---**
and the power for steel battleships
is provided by giant sea dragons.
**[00:28] ---**
There are no lightbulbs,
but the streets are illuminated at night
**[00:31] ---**
by lamps filled with glowing moss,
**[00:33] ---**
and cooking is done with wood-burning
ovens that use fire-based magic.
**[00:38] ---**
Even without any science in this world,
**[00:40] ---**
many things are accomplished
through the power of magic.
**[00:44] ---**
On the other hand, if you exclude
the magic and unusual creatures,
**[00:49] ---**
the level of technology
in this country is not very high.
**[00:52] ---**
The Industrial Revolution
would still be far off,
**[00:55] ---**
and the feudal system is still in place.
**[00:59] ---**
So now...
**[01:02] ---**
...I'm the king of this country.
**[01:15] ---**
*"Never mind, face forward,"*
**[01:20] ---**
*my heart just cried until it was hoarse*
**[01:26] ---**
*When you lose something,
is that the end of it?*
**[01:31] ---**
*Is there no putting things back
the way they were?*
**[01:37] ---**
*Just as a line of clouds
moves off somewhere*
**[01:43] ---**
*when you take your eyes
off of them for a moment,*
**[01:48] ---**
*so does everything else*
**[01:53] ---**
*I never thought there was a version of me*
**[02:00] ---**
*that the world would have a need for*
**[02:05] ---**
*But when I believed in what I believe,*
**[02:11] ---**
*I found myself as I truly am*
**[02:17] ---**
*Hello, yes, the first step
I take after nodding*
**[02:23] ---**
*Hello, yes, is toward
the yet-unseen horizon*
**[02:35] ---**
A magic check?
**[02:36] ---**
"If You Possess an Aptitude,
We'll Make Use of It"
According to the literature, heroes
that are summoned from other worlds
**[02:40] ---**
are sometimes imparted some sort
of magic when arriving in this world.
**[02:46] ---**
In other words, we're going to
find out if I can use magic, too?
**[02:54] ---**
I just have to touch this, then?
**[02:57] ---**
Yes. If you are able to use magic now,
**[03:00] ---**
the nature of the magic you have
will come into your mind.
**[03:04] ---**
Oh, yeah? That's quite
the considerate design.
**[03:34] ---**
How did it go?
**[03:36] ---**
Apparently, I'm able to use magic now.
**[03:40] ---**
Oh...
**[03:43] ---**
But what kind of use
does this magic even have?
**[03:55] ---**
Souma, I'm coming in.
**[03:59] ---**
Huh?
**[04:07] ---**
What the...?
**[04:10] ---**
Ah, you're here, Liscia.
**[04:15] ---**
Um, this is you using magic
to move those pens, right?
**[04:20] ---**
I guess that's what you would call it.
**[04:22] ---**
Anyhow, the power I can use is to
copy my consciousness into objects,
**[04:27] ---**
and then freely control them.
**[04:29] ---**
Oh, what I mean is, I'm not the one
moving those pens over there.
**[04:34] ---**
They've taken on my consciousness,
and are moving on their own.
**[04:38] ---**
I've named this power
"Living Poltergeists."
**[04:44] ---**
A bit *chunibyo* of me, I suppose.
**[04:47] ---**
I don't know what this chuni-whatever is,
but that is some weird magic.
**[04:51] ---**
Yeah. Right now, moving three objects
is the most I can do,
**[04:55] ---**
and it looks as though they have
to keep pretty close to me, too.
**[04:59] ---**
With this power,
each independent consciousness
**[05:03] ---**
can deal with multiple
matters in parallel.
**[05:06] ---**
In other words...
**[05:10] ---**
In other words...?
**[05:12] ---**
It's super-convenient for doing paperwork.
**[05:16] ---**
Yeah, and as a result,
the work is coming right along.
**[05:20] ---**
If I didn't have this power,
**[05:22] ---**
I would have been buried under
a mountain of paperwork by now.
**[05:29] ---**
It looks to me like you're
plenty buried under it as it is.
**[05:34] ---**
By the way, what's all the fuss about?
**[05:36] ---**
We're digging up untapped money.
**[05:38] ---**
Untapped money?
**[05:40] ---**
More precisely, we're beating the bushes
for unaccounted-for expenditures.
**[05:44] ---**
When comparing budgetary requests
with financial statements,
**[05:48] ---**
even if the requested amount
and the spending are the same,
**[05:51] ---**
if the itemized expenses
are greater than what was budgeted,
**[05:54] ---**
it indicates wasted spending performed
to use up the requested funds.
**[05:58] ---**
Or it represents the possibility of
misappropriation disguised as spending.
**[06:02] ---**
We're checking it out,
and if there is any funny business,
**[06:04] ---**
we're getting the responsible parties
to pay back the missing amount.
**[06:08] ---**
And if any personal embezzlement
is discovered,
**[06:10] ---**
they'll be charged with paying it back,
and if they don't, they'll be arrested,
**[06:13] ---**
and their property will be confiscated.
**[06:16] ---**
But why would you go to these lengths?
**[06:18] ---**
You secured the financial
assistance for the empire
**[06:21] ---**
by selling the national treasures, right?
**[06:24] ---**
Yes. For the time being,
**[06:26] ---**
I don't have to worry about myself
being turned over to the empire.
**[06:30] ---**
But we can never have enough capital
**[06:33] ---**
to get the way this country
runs back on track.
**[06:35] ---**
Same goes for manpower.
**[06:40] ---**
I wonder how Souma and
Liscia are getting along.
**[06:44] ---**
Knowing those two,
**[06:46] ---**
I'm sure they're doing fine.
**[06:49] ---**
You think so?
**[06:51] ---**
Yeah, you're right.
**[07:46] ---**
Huh? Oh, did I fall asleep?
**[07:49] ---**
G-Good morning, Liscia.
**[07:51] ---**
G-Good morning... H-How long
have you been standing there?!
**[07:54] ---**
How long, you ask? I just barely got here.
**[07:58] ---**
Wh-What were you...?
**[07:59] ---**
Oh, I was just thinking,
"She sure is sleeping comfortably."
**[08:04] ---**
The work is all finished. Did you
want to sleep a little longer?
**[08:09] ---**
Oh, mm-mm. I'm fine.
But what about you, Souma?
**[08:15] ---**
You look like you haven't
slept at all, have you?
**[08:18] ---**
I'm planning on getting
plenty of sleep later,
**[08:21] ---**
but would you join me for a little bit?
**[08:24] ---**
Huh? Right now?
**[08:26] ---**
Mm-hmm.
**[08:28] ---**
There's something I want to show you.
**[08:41] ---**
Easy! Don't hold on to me so tight.
**[08:44] ---**
Sorry, but this is pretty scary for me.
**[08:47] ---**
You're pathetic. Shouldn't the man
ordinarily be up here holding the reins?
**[08:52] ---**
I can't help it. This is my
first time ever riding a horse.
**[08:56] ---**
It is?
**[08:57] ---**
In the world I came from, we had
plenty of other handy vehicles,
**[09:00] ---**
so we didn't need to ride horses.
**[09:05] ---**
The world you came from...
**[09:08] ---**
Tell me, Souma...
**[09:09] ---**
Hmm? What is it?
**[09:10] ---**
Did you leave any family
behind in your other world?
**[09:15] ---**
Or, you know, g-girlfriends, or anything?
**[09:19] ---**
No, no one. My grandpa
was the last of my relatives,
**[09:23] ---**
and he passed before I came here.
**[09:25] ---**
I'm sorry.
**[09:26] ---**
There's nothing to apologize for.
**[09:28] ---**
Grandpa lived a full life. So you see,
**[09:32] ---**
there's no one waiting for me to return,
**[09:35] ---**
and I guess I'm in no hurry
to go back right away, either.
**[09:38] ---**
Oh, you don't say...
**[09:51] ---**
Stop here.
**[10:06] ---**
It looks pretty, glistening
with morning dew.
**[10:09] ---**
Pretty, is it?
**[10:11] ---**
This isn't what you wanted
to show me, is it?
**[10:15] ---**
Yeah.
**[10:17] ---**
These "inedible fields" are the reason
for the country's food shortage.
**[10:21] ---**
Inedible fields? What do you mean by that?
**[10:25] ---**
Just what it sounds like.
**[10:27] ---**
All of the fields stretched out
before us are cotton fields.
**[10:30] ---**
Ah, you mean that they can't be eaten.
**[10:35] ---**
To get right to the point, the country
has run into a food shortage
**[10:39] ---**
because there are too many cotton fields.
**[10:41] ---**
How so?
**[10:45] ---**
It started with the expansion
of the Demon Lord's Domain.
**[10:48] ---**
Up to that point, the northern countries
produced lots of cotton,
**[10:51] ---**
but with all the damage the monsters
were doing, their production plummeted.
**[10:56] ---**
Come to think of it, it gets warmer the
farther north you go in this world, huh?
**[11:00] ---**
Is it different in your world?
**[11:03] ---**
In the country I came from, it was
the opposite. Well, be that as it may,
**[11:08] ---**
with supplies dropping,
the purchase price of cotton increased,
**[11:11] ---**
and you could sell as much
of it as you produced,
**[11:14] ---**
so the farmers of the kingdom
stopped growing
**[11:16] ---**
the food crops that they had been raising,
**[11:18] ---**
and to a man, they all
started growing cotton.
**[11:21] ---**
A crop that you can't eat,
but grow to sell to someone else
**[11:24] ---**
is what's called a "commercial crop."
**[11:27] ---**
It's when the farmers all began growing
commercial crops en masse
**[11:32] ---**
that the country's food
self-sufficiency declined.
**[11:36] ---**
And that's what caused our food shortages?
**[11:38] ---**
No, you can always import food
from other countries if you're short.
**[11:44] ---**
Right, and cotton sells
for a higher price.
**[11:48] ---**
We could just use that money
to buy food, right?
**[11:50] ---**
Right. But then cotton prices crashed.
**[11:56] ---**
When other countries realized
the profit to be made,
**[11:58] ---**
they also rushed to produce cotton,
**[12:01] ---**
and the global supply grew
larger than the demand for it.
**[12:05] ---**
When that happened, the kingdom,
which was relying on export revenue,
**[12:09] ---**
became strained in a hurry.
**[12:10] ---**
Because the funds they needed to buy
food from other countries decreased.
**[12:15] ---**
With fewer imports, domestic food
distribution naturally skyrocketed,
**[12:20] ---**
and the classes who had the
lowest incomes suffered the most.
**[12:24] ---**
This is one of the focal points that
is currently undermining the country.
**[12:30] ---**
I didn't know that.
**[12:33] ---**
How could I not know something like this?
**[12:36] ---**
I'm a failure as one of
this kingdom's leaders.
**[12:40] ---**
Don't get so down on yourself.
You can learn this kind of thing as we go.
**[12:47] ---**
Wait, is the reason why you wanted
to show this to me because...?
**[12:51] ---**
Yeah. Someday, Liscia, you will be
in a position to lead this kingdom.
**[12:59] ---**
So I wanted you to be aware of this stuff.
**[13:04] ---**
So that after I'm gone, you'll be able
to manage the country well.
**[13:19] ---**
"Principality of Amidonia: A state centered
around humans. Governed by the
Amidonian family, the country has an
austere ethos and a strong military force."
**[13:22] ---**
"Liscia Elfrieden: Sticks to her guns once
she makes up her mind. Attended a military
academy and has spent much time in the
army, so her personality is strong-willed."
**[13:28] ---**
Our first step is to limit the
planting of commercial crops,
**[13:31] ---**
and bring back the food crop fields,
increasing our self-sufficiency.
**[13:35] ---**
The kingdom will provide subsidies
to support the changeover.
**[13:39] ---**
Our first priority should be
planting widely-utilized soybeans
**[13:41] ---**
and potatoes, which can stand up
to inclement weather.
**[13:46] ---**
Liscia, are you listening?
**[13:48] ---**
Huh? Oh, mm-hmm, I heard you.
**[13:51] ---**
Agricultural reforms are not something
that happen overnight.
**[13:54] ---**
So for the time being, all food,
whether imported or domestically produced,
**[13:59] ---**
will be purchased by the kingdom
and sold for less than we bought it for.
**[14:03] ---**
Isn't that going to put us in the red?
**[14:07] ---**
Mm-hmm, and I'd like to
make it up with our exports...
**[14:12] ---**
...but we have to find
something instead of cotton,
**[14:14] ---**
which was our previous cash cow.
**[14:17] ---**
That's going to be difficult.
And be all that as it may...
**[14:22] ---**
Why are you eating in here,
when you're supposed to be the king?
**[14:26] ---**
Don't worry about it.
We're busy economizing the castle.
**[14:31] ---**
We have to conserve when it
comes to meal expenses.
**[14:33] ---**
Yeah, but still...
**[14:35] ---**
It has been a long time, Princess.
**[14:38] ---**
Or should I be addressing you
as "Queen" now?
**[14:41] ---**
Oh, that... Nothing yet has been...
**[14:44] ---**
Souma, this is Sir Ludwin Arcs,
Captain of the Royal Guard.
**[14:50] ---**
Souma Kazuya. I'm sort of
the country's acting king.
**[14:55] ---**
Ludwin Arcs. Your Majesty's job
performance is the talk of the staff.
**[15:02] ---**
Then tell the staff for me that if they
have time to chit-chat, work harder.
**[15:08] ---**
Understood, sire.
**[15:09] ---**
May I join you for breakfast?
**[15:12] ---**
It's fine with me.
**[15:15] ---**
As long as I'm here, would it be all right
if I asked you a question?
**[15:19] ---**
If it's a question I can answer, sure.
**[15:21] ---**
Sire, are the reforms you are attempting
to carry out proceeding smoothly?
**[15:26] ---**
No, not very smoothly at all. Our human
resources are particularly troubling.
**[15:31] ---**
The prime minister, Marx, aside,
no one else is of any use.
**[15:37] ---**
I took on all the senior officials
from the previous king,
**[15:40] ---**
and while I hate to say it,
**[15:41] ---**
they are the same people who let
the kingdom get as bad as it is.
**[15:45] ---**
My ears are burning.
**[15:47] ---**
Hey, hold on, Souma...
**[15:49] ---**
Someone who will tell me
what I want to know,
**[15:51] ---**
and is willing to work on the things
I want them to work on--
**[15:55] ---**
That is the kind of retainer I want.
**[16:01] ---**
Use the Gemstone Broadcast
to recruit people?
**[16:05] ---**
Yeah. The Gemstone Broadcast reaches
all areas of the kingdom, right?
**[16:10] ---**
Y-Yes. As long as the reception
environment is set up,
**[16:15] ---**
anything spoken in
the castle's Gemstone Room
**[16:18] ---**
will be heard everywhere in the kingdom.
**[16:21] ---**
Then it's just the thing for making
a widespread appeal to the people.
**[16:25] ---**
It's usually used for New Year's
greetings from the king,
**[16:28] ---**
or to issue important edicts and such.
**[16:31] ---**
This will be the first time
it's used for job recruitment.
**[16:34] ---**
How is it usually done?
**[16:36] ---**
Well, let's see... We rely on
the person's connections,
**[16:40] ---**
or hold a written exam and
recruit those who pass it.
**[16:44] ---**
That sounds pretty biased, doesn't it?
**[16:46] ---**
By the way, what's the country's
literacy rate, anyway?
**[16:49] ---**
Half the people can read.
About 30% can write, I'd guess.
**[16:53] ---**
That's no good at all, is it?
**[16:56] ---**
You can't decide if
someone is right for a job
**[16:58] ---**
based only on if they can read and write.
**[16:59] ---**
Imagine excluding 70% of the people
from the recruitment exams as a result!
**[17:03] ---**
How many diamonds in the rough
are we going to leave undiscovered?
**[17:07] ---**
I have no response to that.
**[17:15] ---**
Well, once the financial
situation stabilizes,
**[17:18] ---**
we can solve that issue as time permits.
**[17:21] ---**
But first, we have to recruit
some people in the here and now.
**[17:26] ---**
What sort of people are you
planning to get together?
**[17:29] ---**
I've thought about what I'm
going to say to recruit them.
**[17:31] ---**
Although, I'm really just borrowing
the words of a hero I respect.
**[17:36] ---**
A hero?
**[17:37] ---**
Yeah. An "unscrupulous hero
in chaotic times," at that.
**[17:42] ---**
"Wei"
"Shu" "Wu"
The late Han Dynasty--
**[17:43] ---**
"Wei"
"Shu" "Wu"
Cao Cao, who laid the foundation for Wei
during the Three Kingdoms period,
**[17:46] ---**
was so dedicated to gathering men
of ability under his command,
**[17:50] ---**
some called him obsessed
with collecting personnel.
**[17:53] ---**
To further Cao Cao's
widespread demand for talent,
**[17:57] ---**
in the year 210, he issued his
"Order of Seeking Talents."
**[18:00] ---**
Within it was a passage that has
been spoken for generations since.
**[18:05] ---**
That being...
**[18:06] ---**
If you possess an aptitude,
we'll make use of it!
**[18:09] ---**
That is the new king?
**[18:11] ---**
He looks so young.
**[18:13] ---**
My people,
**[18:14] ---**
this nation is facing
an unprecedented crisis.
**[18:18] ---**
The chronic food shortages,
the economic depression,
**[18:22] ---**
the influx of refugees whose lands have
fallen to the Demon Lord's Domain--
**[18:25] ---**
each of these are grave afflictions
that plague our kingdom.
**[18:29] ---**
Additionally, there are those
in our neighboring countries
**[18:31] ---**
eagerly taking aim at our kingdom.
**[18:34] ---**
When faced with this situation,
**[18:37] ---**
our former king determined
that he was not up to the task,
**[18:40] ---**
and entrusted our future affairs to me.
**[18:42] ---**
In a world at peace,
**[18:45] ---**
our former king was indeed worthy
to be esteemed as a great ruler.
**[18:48] ---**
However, this is an age of upheaval.
**[18:51] ---**
The king to be sought during times
of upheaval is not a saint,
**[18:55] ---**
but a survivor, who is tenacious.
**[18:58] ---**
This is because such a ruler
will ultimately be conducive
**[19:01] ---**
to keeping your families
and property safe and secure.
**[19:04] ---**
That is why our former king chose me.
**[19:07] ---**
Because in terms of tenacity alone,
I am superior to our former king.
**[19:15] ---**
I am currently spearheading
a number of reforms.
**[19:19] ---**
However, we are overwhelmingly
shorthanded for the task ahead.
**[19:24] ---**
As such, I am here to recruit
those of you here who have talent.
**[19:33] ---**
What we require in these troubled times
**[19:35] ---**
are not those who excel
in peacetime matters,
**[19:38] ---**
but those who are far and away
outstanding at one thing.
**[19:41] ---**
The form that talent takes is unimportant.
**[19:43] ---**
If you can say for certain that you
are second-to-none at something,
**[19:47] ---**
come and stand before me!
**[19:49] ---**
Your education, your age, your social
standing, your place of origin,
**[19:52] ---**
your ethnicity, and
your sex do not matter.
**[19:55] ---**
It's no matter if you can read and write,
or how many possessions you own,
**[19:59] ---**
or how attractive you are, or if you have
any other skeletons in your closet.
**[20:04] ---**
"I am better at this than anyone. No one
in all the land can outdo me at this."
**[20:09] ---**
If that is what you believe, then come
and present yourself before me!
**[20:14] ---**
There may be those of you who are
hesitating, wondering if your talent
**[20:17] ---**
will actually be of any use.
**[20:20] ---**
However, that is not for you to determine.
**[20:23] ---**
I, the king, will determine whether
or not our country needs your talent.
**[20:29] ---**
I do not care if others say
that your talent is worthless.
**[20:33] ---**
So do not hesitate!
**[20:38] ---**
If a person's ability is judged
to be useful to the country,
**[20:42] ---**
I will afford you every courtesy
and take you on as my subject.
**[20:50] ---**
And if you are still thinking twice
about it, here is what I'll do--
**[20:53] ---**
if you can demonstrate that your talent
is unequalled in all the kingdom,
**[20:57] ---**
then in the name of the King of Elfrieden,
**[20:59] ---**
I will issue you a Certificate
of Peerlessness,
**[21:01] ---**
and grant you a monetary reward!
**[21:05] ---**
Does *that* give you a bit more
incentive, my people?!
**[21:17] ---**
You may recommend yourself
or someone else.
**[21:20] ---**
If you recommend another,
you will get 30% of the reward.
**[21:24] ---**
You will be the ones who,
in this time of crisis,
**[21:28] ---**
will bring forward those who
are too reclusive otherwise!
**[21:30] ---**
Also, if your talent involves
"being stronger than all others,"
**[21:33] ---**
or "being the best singer,"
or others that are competitive,
**[21:36] ---**
the candidates will compete ahead of time,
**[21:39] ---**
and the top delegate will be selected,
so bear that in mind.
**[21:43] ---**
And with that,
those of you with aptitude...
**[21:47] ---**
come to the capital, Parnam,
to shake my hand!
**[21:58] ---**
What was that bit at the end?
**[22:00] ---**
Just getting into the spirit of things.
**[22:01] ---**
Now, look...
**[22:09] ---**
I sure hope a lot of the new
personnel I need show up.
**[22:17] ---**
*The wind blowing by rushes
through the world,*
**[22:21] ---**
*connecting us when otherwise
we never would have met*
**[22:26] ---**
*Unfurling wings that no one else can see,*
Are you sure you will not
change your mind?
**[22:29] ---**
*Unfurling wings that no one else can see,*
No, Father.
**[22:30] ---**
*I take flight in search of a miracle
that no one else can find*
**[22:43] ---**
*Seeking the courage to keep on choosing*
**[22:47] ---**
*the outcome of an ever-meandering morrow,*
**[22:51] ---**
*I never want to fear change*
**[22:55] ---**
*or doubt the blueness of the sky*
**[23:00] ---**
*More than any dreams I once had*
**[23:02] ---**
*and beyond any future I've imagined,*
**[23:04] ---**
*I want to keep on drifting along*
**[23:08] ---**
*within this transcendentally beautiful
moment I'm spending with you*
**[23:13] ---**
*If I can make that come true...*
**[23:16] ---**
*I shoot up through the blue
to the sky where we connect*
**[23:21] ---**
*Grasp my destiny and reel it in*
**[23:25] ---**
*And through our joined hands,*
**[23:29] ---**
*you feel my helpless wish for eternity*
**[23:34] ---**
*Even if this is only an illusion*
**[23:36] ---**
*taking place within someone's dream,*
**[23:38] ---**
*I'll still take this blowing wind*
**[23:40] ---**
*and hold on tight as I take flight*