"The Genius Prince's Guide to Reviving a Nation Out of Deficit" is one of the anime series coming out in winter 2022 and is based on a light novel. Although the title may appear to be based on a novel published on Let's Become a Novelist, it is not based on Narou but on a light novel that has also been adapted into a manga. In this article, we will be revealing spoilers for the first volume of the light novel "The Genius Prince's Guide to Reviving a Nation Out of Deficit" as well as volumes 1 and 2 of the manga adaptation!
Story Part 1: The Genius Prince of the Weak Nation of the Kingdom of Natra
The hopeless and weak nation of the Kingdom of Natra, with scarce resources, human resources, and industry, and even its citizens lamenting the fact that its king, who is responsible for governing the country, is bedridden, offers its last hope: the intelligent and genius prince, Wayne Salema Albarest, who is hailed as the next wise ruler. While beloved by his people and subordinates, Wayne himself had no desire to run such a crappy nation and instead wanted to sell his country to a hegemonic power and live a leisurely life. Wayne's true nature was lazy, but few knew this.
Wayne and Ninim
Wayne showed his true colors to his aide, Ninim. Ninim Raleigh was Wayne's childhood friend, and Ninim himself was a very talented person. However, the Ninim were a race called the Frum, who were discriminated against almost across the continent. The only countries free of discrimination were the Kingdom of Natra and the hegemonic Erswald Empire. Having such a Frum as his aide led Wayne to be treated as an oddball, but Ninim was an equal and always pushed Wayne.
Story Part 2: Negotiations with Ambassador Fish Brandel
Wayne enters into negotiations with Fish Brandel, the ambassador to the Earthwald Empire. Fish is a young, elite bureaucrat (with glasses and large breasts) and a formidable opponent. The focus of the negotiations is the treatment of the occupying forces. While the people of the country find the occupying forces unpleasant, Wayne enjoys the money he receives and doesn't want to worsen relations with the Empire. Therefore, Wayne requests funding and know-how for the occupying forces' stay. While this may seem like Wayne's overcharging, Fish agrees to these terms and concludes the negotiations.
As planned?
The ambassador agreed to the terms because Emperor Aswald's condition improved. If the emperor recovered, the Empire would intensify its military operations. Natla would become a vital military base and was a place they desperately needed to control. Wayne's proposal would pave the way for a peaceful settlement when making Natla a vassal state, which aligned with Wayne's desire to sell his country. Wayne viewed the Empire's rule as a good thing and believed the country would not fall into chaos. However, with the Emperor's death, all plans were scrapped, and the garrison was forced to withdraw, ultimately resulting in Natla's gain. Fish thought the whole thing was in Wayne's hands, but in truth, Wayne himself lamented how things had come to this.
Story Part 3: War with the Kingdom of Marden
Natla's military buildup was going surprisingly well. Thanks to weapons purchases aimed at currying favor with the Empire, the morale and training of the soldiers were rising. Wayne anticipated war would soon break out. The neighboring Kingdom of Marden was just as small as Natra, but the discovery of a gold mine changed things...or not. The wasteful and incompetent king prevented the people from receiving any gold, leading to growing discontent. Then, with the death of Emperor Aswald and the withdrawal of the garrison, Marden seized the opportunity to invade Natra.
I went too far...
Frankly, Wayne hated expensive wars. He just needed to keep costs as low as possible while still achieving enough military success to satisfy the military, so his ideal strategy was to start strong and then go with the flow. However, the Natra army proved more highly trained than Wayne had expected, and the Marden army was weaker than he had anticipated. Furthermore, Wayne's plan worked surprisingly well, resulting in a complete victory for the Natra army. While his soldiers rejoiced, Wayne felt gloomy about what was to come.
Story Part 4: The Natra Kingdom Army's Advance
The Natra army's complete victory put the military in high spirits, and momentum grew for an invasion of the Kingdom of Marden. This wasn't what Wayne wanted, but the atmosphere made it difficult for him to simply do nothing. So Wayne proposed a mission to seize Marden's gold mine. Normally, it seemed a bit reckless, and he expected it to be rejected. However, the military had already come up with a perfect plan for seizing the gold mine, and the situation was unstoppable.
They've seized it...
Though it was a somewhat reckless proposal, the mission to seize the gold mine was easily accomplished without much difficulty. However, once it was seized, Wayne had to allocate new personnel to operate the mine, which left him scratching his head. Meanwhile, King Fusuthare of Marden, defeated in battle and seized by his gold mine, is furious. His close aides, the foreigners and the loyalists, are engaged in heated factional conflict. Ziva, a loyalist, is disgusted by the backlash, but still hopes to negotiate his way back to the mine.
Story Part 5: War with the Kingdom of Marden
Ziva proposes paying reparations during negotiations, effectively making the war seem as if it had never happened. However, Wayne takes a firm stance, citing the horrors that Marden has suffered and the soldiers who died in the war. This was Wayne's strategy to be aggressive and get the mine purchased for a higher price. In reality, he had been informed by the miners that the ore veins were already nearing depletion, so he was trying to sell it for a higher price, but Ziva was touched by his firm attitude (act) of caring for the people, and it was because she cared about them that she ended the negotiations. Wayne's aggressive stance completely backfired, and the war with Marden began in earnest.
It's too hard to win, lol
Commanding the Marden Kingdom's military is General Dollarwood, a proud man who supports the foreign forces. Dollarwood treats the Natla Kingdom like nothing more than a bug, but despite overwhelming numbers, he struggles to conquer the Natla Kingdom, which maintains a purely defensive stance. Just when they think they've found a way through the mine, they're caught in a cave-in, completely outmaneuvered. All of this is Wayne's strategy, hurting Dollarwood's pride and clouding his judgment, and striking him in his desperate attempts to defend his position. Wayne's ultimate goal was to get Marden back to the negotiating table and sell the mine at a high price.
Story Part 6: Negotiations with the Marden Army?
However, this was exactly what Holonie, the Kingdom of Marden's Minister of Finance, had planned. Holonie had foreseen that Natla, a weak nation, was seeking peace. His plan was to provoke the peace emissaries into making unreasonable demands and then kill them all if they came out to negotiate. However, the emissaries had unknowingly incurred Wayne's wrath.
How did it come to this...?
Drawood then deployed a large number of troops and launched an offensive. Wayne targeted the now-thin main camp and personally assaulted it using a hidden tunnel. The messenger insulted Ninim, angering Wayne. He personally delivered the messenger's head to Drawood and brutally murdered Drawood with his own hands. With their commander killed, the Marden army collapsed. It seemed Wayne had a plan in place to sell the mine at a high price. However, the Kingdom of Marden's excessive military force led to its destruction by the neighboring Kingdom of Cavalline. Thus, the mine lost its market. Wayne lamented how this had come to pass.
[The Genius Prince's Guide to Reviving a Nation Out of Debt] Summary with Spoilers
This article introduces spoilers for the first episode of "The Genius Prince's Guide to Reviving a Nation Out of Debt." The story, in which the protagonist is constantly thrown into unexpected twists and turns, is easy to understand and entertaining, and the characters are adorable, making this anime highly recommended. It will air from January 2022, so be sure to tune in!
