When they said they’d send the 98th chapter, I should’ve peaced out.
Upon arriving at Penris Castle, the party was greeted by a horrifying sight.
People looked no different than beggars.
As if they’d given up all hope of life, their eyes resembled those of dead fish.
Ghislaine frowned.
“The situation is worse than I expected.”
He had anticipated this after seeing the conditions of the villages they passed, but he never expected it to be this bad around the lord’s castle too.
This meant they had completely drained the territory of its potential.
The soldiers guarding the castle weren’t much better off.
Their equipment was tattered, and there was not a hint of spirit among them.
“A bunch of beggars without the strength to start a rebellion.”
One needed at least some strength and motivation to attempt a rebellion.
The people waiting for death looked too exhausted even to resist.
Even though they must have heard the news about the new lord coming, their eyes were filled with despair.
They had been exploited for so long that they couldn’t trust anyone, regardless of who became the lord.
Perdium was poor too, but at least the people weren’t this defeated.
The other members of the party shook their heads and clicked their tongues.
No matter how you looked at it, the previous lord had exploited them to the bone.
Penris Territory had no usable resources or special products. It wasn’t good farmland either.
The lord had no choice but to keep squeezing the territory residents to live in abundance.
“If our lord hadn’t become the new lord, they would’ve withered away completely.”
Belinda shook her head in disbelief.
Thanks to Ghislaine, who held the Runestone, there was still a glimmer of hope.
Feeding the territory residents and developing the territory meant money was essential.
Claude realized this fact too and steeled himself.
“It’ll take a long time to develop the territory. At least it’s fortunate the lord has plenty of money. Surviving shouldn’t be too hard.”
Claude contemplated all the information he had gathered so far from various angles.
“It’s definitely worth a shot. There’s value in the challenge.”
He thought of it as an opportunity to showcase his abilities, but…
If he knew Ghislaine’s true intentions, he would’ve fled for his life without a second thought.
Claude still had no idea how significant Ghislaine’s goals were and how fast he wanted to achieve them.
The fact that Duke Delphine was Ghislaine’s enemy was also a secret he deliberately kept from his closest associates, Belinda and Gillian.
Naturally, he had no intention of spilling everything to Claude, who he had just met not long ago.
Claude had no intention of revealing everything to Ghislaine, who had only just arrived.
The main reason was that there was no need to bring up stories without any evidence, which would only create unnecessary chaos.
It would have been far more convincing to say he harbored ambitions to topple Duke Delphine.
‘Not yet.’
Ghislaine turned her gaze away from Claude’s thoughtful face.
After all, the duke would eventually reveal himself.
The truth could wait until then.
*
As soon as Ghislaine entered the castle, she summoned all the officials.
Though few in number, they were the ones who maintained at least minimal administrative power so that the territory wouldn’t be completely paralyzed.
Upon seeing Ghislaine, the officials hurriedly bowed their heads.
“Greetings, my lord. We didn’t prepare a welcoming feast since we weren’t sure when you would arrive. Just give us a moment, and we’ll…….”
When a new lord arrived, it was customary to hold a grand feast.
The officials were afraid of incurring the wrath of the prideful nobles and decided to bow their heads first.
“That’s enough. I’m not here to tire you out with such things.”
Ghislaine’s response bewildered the officials.
They couldn’t tell whether she was being sincere or sarcastic out of anger.
She clicked her tongue and continued talking.
“I’ll say this now. For the time being, holding feasts in the lord’s castle is prohibited. I won’t stop personal events, but I won’t tolerate any harm to the territory residents.”
Leaving the anxious crowd behind, Ghislaine immediately started issuing orders.
Her intentions were crystal clear.
She didn’t want to waste time explaining and trying to get everyone to understand.
The priority was to stabilize the territory as quickly as possible.
“It looks like the territory isn’t in good shape, so let’s prioritize normalizing it. This might feel a bit forceful, but I hope you all comply. If you have any good suggestions, don’t hesitate to share.”
Everyone nodded, accepting her commands.
Those who had participated in the war had already lost their heads under Ghislaine’s authority.
Knowing this, the officials didn’t dare to voice any objections.
“All existing positions will be abolished, and the advisory council will be restructured.”
The gathered crowd tensed up, their faces growing serious.
How the offices were distributed would determine whether they could maintain the power they had held until now.
After a moment of pause to assess the expressions of the people, Ghislaine pointed at Claude and said,
“From now on, Claude will take on the position of Chief Officer, responsible for setting and implementing policy. Consider this my order and cooperate unconditionally. I will also delegate the authority to appoint secretaries and other administrative staff to Claude.”
The officials were a bit surprised by the unexpected announcement but quickly accepted it; it was common to place close associates in key positions.
Claude looked as if it was only natural.
Ghislaine had always wanted to entrust the management of the territory to him from the start.
Considering the state of the territory, giving Claude the position of Chief Officer was necessary for him to carry out his work as he wished.
Ghislaine continued speaking.
“The Treasurer’s position will also be taken by Claude.”
At this, several members gasped involuntarily before quickly shutting their mouths.
It was rare for one person to hold more than one high-ranking position.
Claude was slightly surprised but soon came to terms with it.
But soon enough, he understood.
“Well, I guess it would be faster and easier for me to handle the finances myself.”
When things got busy, it was better to deal with the person in charge of financial management than to argue and end up with more work.
He felt confident he could handle that much.
In a situation where escape was impossible anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to gain more authority.
But Ghislaine’s words were far from over.
“The intelligence officer will also be Claude’s responsibility. The officials under him will recruit and use their own as needed.”
Claude started feeling an ominous sense of dread as his face stiffened.
Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.
“Y-Yeah. Information is important. It’s better to prepare in advance rather than scrambling to get ready after a war breaks out.”
But Ghislaine didn’t seem finished.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its head will be managed by Claude…”
“The territory’s public order officer will be entrusted to Claude. Soldiers will be replenished based on the situation…”
“During wartime, Claude will serve as the operational staff officer…”
“To develop the territory quickly, we will establish a special development department. Claude will lead it…”
“We will revise the laws of the territory. The Chief Justice will be Claude…”
“The management of supplies and the duties of the military officer will be handled by Claude…”
“We will establish the merchant group of the territory. The Merchant Leader will be Claude…”
With each of Ghislaine’s statements, the people present turned pale.
Claude began to tremble.
Suddenly, he recalled Ghislaine’s parting words before leaving Austin.
– Don’t worry. There are many ways to exploit you.
Ah, that remark was really heartfelt back then.
“So, basically, you want me to take care of everything annoying! Just how much do you plan to grind me down?”
In reality, managing the territory could be done just with the Chief Officer’s position alone.
However, giving him all those roles meant that he wanted to be involved directly in everything to make sure it got handled properly.
Some people need to have definite results in everything they do.
Unfortunately, this wretched young lord seemed to belong to that category.
But doing all that himself was quite bothersome, so he dragged Claude in to dump it all on him!
Trying to manage that much work would be exhausting. So, it made sense that he brought in someone else to take the load off.
There was no way someone with less stamina than the lord could survive this.
With a serious expression, Claude pleaded.
“I want to spend the rest of my life with Anna. Please allow it. It seems that I don’t fit in here. The air doesn’t suit me, the water doesn’t suit me… nor does the work.”
Ghislaine asked lethargically.
“But you said being together hurts your heart?”
“Time heals that sort of pain. I was just trying to sound cool. It’s painful, but that’s youth.”
While it was a bit embarrassing to be caught saying one thing and then another, it was better to embarrass himself for a moment than to work himself to death.
But Ghislaine was not someone to let go easily.
“It’s already too late. You only have one way to leave now.”
“What way…?”
Ghislaine smiled kindly.
“Pay back the money. Then I’ll send you off right away.”
“Ugh…”
Claude couldn’t muster up a response and only clenched his fists.
He wasted years at the gambling house because of that damned money.
Having barely escaped from the gambling place, he found himself trapped by money once again.
‘I can’t back down now!’
Claude gritted his teeth.
If he was going to die anyway, he decided he might as well speak his mind before going, when suddenly Belinda started to fuss from behind.
Just when I decided to speak my mind before I bit the dust, Belinda started yelling from the back.
“Young Master! Why are you taking on so much work?!”
Claude brightened up, turning to Belinda.
She was an infuriating woman who could bash people with her words, but right now, he was incredibly grateful.
“That guy is a gambling addict, a loser, someone who’s given up on life, a total idiot, and a runaway! He probably doesn’t even understand women’s feelings! He probably can’t even clean a restroom!”
‘Well, it’s not that extreme…’
He wasn’t sure if he should support her or not.
Claude made a face that was a mix of laughter and tears.
He glanced around.
The existing stewards were all looking at him with suspicion. Prejudice was creeping in before he could even do anything.
Just as Claude was about to stop Belinda, Gillian’s heavy voice rang out.
“My Lord, he is an individual whose abilities have yet to be verified. Perhaps we should assign tasks to him gradually?”
‘That’s right, that’s how you should put it.’
Experience really differentiates people. Gillian was maintaining a respectful tone while persuading Ghislaine without belittling him.
But just when the atmosphere seemed okay, Gillian added.
“He’s a former gambling addict. It’s a well-known fact that gambling can ruin one’s mind. He might have forgotten even how to read.”
‘Hey!’
Claude glared at Gillian with dead eyes.
But Gillian continued without a care.
“Even if it’s not that severe, his body and mind won’t keep up. He hasn’t studied or worked for years. The more authority we give him, the more likely he is to misuse it and get back to gambling.”
His tone was more polite than Belinda’s, but a serious backhanded compliment felt worse.
Claude, flustered, looked around again.
Now everyone’s eyes were completely clouded with suspicion.
As Claude’s gaze wandered, it landed on one person.
A guy with messy red hair was leaning awkwardly with a tilted head, glaring at him.
‘What was his name again… Kaor?’
Kaor had been in charge of public order in Penris Territory while Ghislaine went to Austin.
Today was the first time they were meeting.
But Kaor’s gaze seemed way too…challenging for a first meeting.
‘Why is he staring at me like that?’
It was as if he was trying to establish dominance, not blinking as he stared at Claude.
Seeing that, Claude couldn’t help but chuckle.
He lived rolling around with gangsters every day at gambling dens and had even been involved in a rebellion.
He had been through too much to be intimidated by just a stare.
‘Eat this!’
Claude discreetly flipped off Kaor.
That made Kaor’s face contort as he reached for the sword at his waist.
However, though he trembled as if ready to jump out, he couldn’t move while sneaking glances at Ghislaine.
‘Feeling frustrated? Can’t move in front of the Lord, huh?’
Claude decided to push it a bit further and wiggled his thumb between his fingers.
“This punk!”
Eventually, Kaor couldn’t hold back his anger and drew his sword, lunging out.
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