When they said they would send the 100th chapter, I should have left right away.
Claude blinked at his blurry vision.
Perhaps because of the tears, after rubbing his eyes a few times, the world soon brightened up.
Fortunately, it seemed like he hadn’t lost his head while he was spaced out.
He cautiously turned his head to look around.
There was no one in the room except for Claude.
“Ah, I really don’t want to work.”
Claude sighed while sitting on the edge of the bed.
“Shouldn’t they at least give me an adaptation period? How am I supposed to handle so much work all of a sudden? I’m not even someone who lived here.”
It was hard to feel motivated after suddenly being thrown into work after a long break.
He was worried about how to tackle all that work.
“I thought the Lord was generous with the money flow. What a demon, a real demon. No matter how urgent it is, telling me to do all this at once is insane! Can’t they just give me a reasonable amount of work?”
As Claude quietly grumbled, his voice unconsciously started to get louder.
“They don’t know how precious people are… Just you wait. I’ll make sure they know the work won’t get done without me. No, wait, since I’m the only one who will work anyway, should I just run away now?”
Just then, the door creaked open.
Claude jumped onto the bed in shock.
“W-who are you?”
A calm-looking maid slightly bowed her head.
“Hello, Chief Officer. I’m Wendy, sent by the Butler on his orders to assist you. I’ll be in charge of your escort as well. Nice to meet you.”
“Butler? Oh, Belinda.”
It seemed that Belinda, who had just been appointed as the new Butler, sent her personal maid.
But escorting? Claude smirked and questioned.
“Sure, fine, you’re a maid, but escorting? An ordinary maid guarding the Chief Officer of the territory, seems there really is no one else around.”
Instead of retorting to his sarcastic remark, Wendy simply waved her hand slightly.
Whoosh!
Something swiftly whizzed past his ear, and with a thud, a noise came from the wall behind him.
Claude broke into a cold sweat and slowly turned his head to look.
A cockroach that was passing by the wall was now stuck to a dagger, flailing around.
Wendy still maintained her calm expression and said, “The castle is old, so there are many bugs. Please take care of this problem too, Chief Officer.”
“…Yes.”
As a maid…
‘This territory really is anything but ordinary.’
Claude swallowed his tears inwardly.
“The Lord’s order is for you to start working as soon as you wake up. Now let’s get moving.”
“…Yes.”
Ah, it’s not an escort; it’s surveillance. I can’t escape. The maid is making me work too!
Claude felt like a sheep being led to the slaughter as he sluggishly got up.
He woke up.
Just as he was about to go out, Wendy suddenly added as if she just remembered,
“The Butler had a message for you.”
“What is it?”
“He said to wash up before starting work. He’ll kill you if you transfer even a single flea to the Lord.”
“… Right.”
He hadn’t been able to wash properly for days since coming from Austin.
Although it was great to wash up since he felt all grimy…
Couldn’t they at least say it nicely?
Was this the Chief Officer or a slave?
‘Oh, everyone is just dying to eat me up. Can’t they just say it? Maybe I should just smash everything.’
… He only grumbled internally. He didn’t want to end up skewered by a dagger.
Even as he moved to the prepared office after washing, Wendy said nothing.
Claude, who was observing the atmosphere, cautiously asked,
“Um… Are all the servants here like you? Like, not blinking an eye and throwing daggers and all?”
“No. The Butler has brought in a few people he trained since they were young. I was originally serving Young Lady Elena before I swapped this time.”
“Lady Elena? Ah, the Lord’s sister. Anyway, I’m glad to hear they’re not all like that.”
If all the maids were like Wendy, he’d definitely choke on his food while trying to eat without noticing them.
Claude, with a heavy heart, arrived at the office and sighed as he looked around.
Documents were piled up on the desk like a mountain.
These were the accumulated tasks the junior officials had left behind.
And that wasn’t the end of it. He also had to add the tasks assigned by Ghislaine.
‘Sigh, what can I do? I just have to work myself to death.’
*
Claude, caught up in the work he reluctantly and voluntarily started, lost weight in just a few days.
With tired eyes, he flipped through the documents and fell into contemplation.
“Hmmm, can this really be saved? It’s a completely wrecked territory. The top guy is decent, but that isn’t enough…”
The tasks assigned by Ghislaine were all necessary for the territory’s prosperity.
It was shocking how a noble could know this and instruct such tasks.
Most lords don’t even know how their own territories operate.
They only care about money or military power if they bother to care at all?
But Ghislaine was impressively thorough in the tasks assigned.
This meant he was fully aware of how the territory functioned.
Most of the tasks given by Ghislaine just required pumping in some money.
As for construction, it wouldn’t be difficult if mages assisted, even if it took a little time.
However, Penris Territory was like a bottomless pit.
For every bit of money spent, there had to be a way to earn it back somewhere, but currently, there were no means of making money in Penris Territory at all.
“The only thing with potential for money is the Lord’s Runestone.”
But the Runestone doesn’t just appear infinitely.
There’s no problem for now, but without a continuous source of funding, even maintaining the status quo would be difficult in a few years.
However, even after reviewing things multiple times and looking around the territory, he found no solutions.
“Money… A way to earn money.”
Claude fell deep into thought.
It was obvious that the territory was headed for ruin, and as the Chief Officer, he couldn’t ignore it.
It wasn’t because he wanted to escape from this seemingly never-ending workload.
Then, suddenly, Claude’s eyes sparkled as he smiled.
“This method seems good. Hehehe.”
If he was going to earn money, it had to be done boldly and easily.
And he had a sure-fire way in mind.
“Since I have something to report anyway… I might as well push everything at once since I’m going. They might like it.”
Claude gathered his thoughts and headed toward the conference room with determination.
He整理한 것들을 품에 안고 회의장으로 향했다.
“Ugh, the protagonist always shows up late.”
He deliberately walked slowly. Then Wendy, who had been quietly following him from behind, spoke up.
“Chief Officer, your pace is too slow. The Lord must have already arrived.”
“……Alright, stop hurrying me. Can’t I walk at my own pace? I’m dying over here! Can’t we just take a break once in a while?”
As he spoke, he felt choked up with emotion.
Wendy looked at the sniffling Claude with a somewhat pitiful gaze.
He may have an unfavorable impression, but she had seen him overwhelmed with work and unable to sleep properly these past few days.
It was a little sad.
“……Ah, yes. Please walk comfortably.”
Feeling a small victory, Claude walked slowly with a sense of pride.
By the time he reached the grand hall, having taken his sweet time, Ghislaine and the other retainers were already gathered.
When Claude appeared, all the retainers lowered their heads in greeting.
Claude raised his chin and enjoyed their attention.
“Wow, this must be why everyone wants power. Working hard is annoying, but this feels pretty good.”
After all, he was the Chief Officer of the territory.
Considering Ghislaine had also given him another title, he had reached a position of importance within the Penris Territory.
On top of that, since he had been granted the authority to appoint, everyone was on their toes, afraid of giving him any ammunition against them. They could end up with extra work if they weren’t careful.
Still, not everyone greeted him.
When Kaor met Claude’s gaze, he twisted his face in apparent disdain.
His expression was clear: if he got the chance, he wouldn’t hold back.
Claude felt a little uneasy about it.
“Hmm, that guy is genuinely dangerous to mess with. His patience seems shorter than an ant’s leg hair.”
Even with the Lord openly backing him, that guy used to wield a blade without hesitation in front of the Lord.
“It might be better to be friendly.”
Claude winked with all his heart.
“That jerk?”
It was like pouring gasoline on a fire.
As Kaor drew his sword like lightning and charged, Wendy quickly pulled out a dagger and blocked Claude’s path.
Belinda also moved next to Wendy, and Gillian gripped his axe while eyeing Kaor.
The soldiers guarding the grand hall rushed toward the Lord, clueless about what was happening.
Only the retainers were a mess.
‘These crazy guys are pulling out weapons in front of the Lord again!’
‘Where did the Lord find such lunatics?’
In that moment, Ghislaine lightly tapped his foot.
A heavy aura of menacing mana spread throughout the room.
Everyone froze, unable to move.
Ghislaine spoke in a dry voice.
“Cut it out. What are you doing in the meeting room?”
At his words, everyone had no choice but to put away their weapons and return to their original places.
Kaor glared at Claude until the very end, still huffing in frustration.
Only after Kaor turned away did Claude let out a sigh of relief.
“Wow, even trying to be friendly brings trouble. I bet he has no friends; I’d stake my hair on that.”
As the chaotic atmosphere settled, Ghislaine looked at Claude and asked.
“How are things progressing?”
“Well, um… I’m gradually gathering food and materials. We’ve put out recruitment ads for laborers, and we’re also looking for firewood farmers. However…”
“However?”
“We’ll need to completely withdraw the tasks the Lord assigned and come up with a new plan.”
The faces of the retainers turned pale.
They had already spent a ton of money and kicked off various projects; to withdraw everything now?
“Shall we?”
In fact, it was all directly ordered by Ghislaine.
Right now, Claude was openly pointing out that the Lord was wrong.
However, Ghislaine, upon hearing that, merely raised an eyebrow and countered with curiosity.
“Why? Is there a problem?”
“Of course there is! It’s not just a small problem; it’s a huge one.”
Ghislaine narrowed his eyes and gestured for him to continue.
Claude swallowed hard and opened his mouth.
“First of all, this territory has barren land. We can’t increase production capacity whether we improve agricultural techniques or whatever. If there’s no food, people won’t grow, and naturally, taxes won’t increase either.”
Ghislaine nodded in agreement.
“So?”
“What do you mean, ‘so’? Right now, under the Lord’s orders, we’re building all sorts of facilities. If there are no taxes coming in, where are you going to get the maintenance costs?”
“Hmmm.”
“If it were just a difficult farming situation, that would be one thing, but there are no resources at all. Since there are no people, we can’t produce any handicrafts as specialties, and since it’s not a trade hub, we can’t establish commerce either. Seriously, there’s absolutely no way to earn money here.”
“Just hearing that sounds tragic.”
“That’s what I’m saying! It’s so tragic that there’s nothing we can do.”
The retainers who had lived in Penris Territory nodded absentmindedly.
The previous lords had not tried to save the territory either.
They had all attempted various methods, but every single one had failed.
This war was also an attempt by the former lord to somehow find a breakthrough.
In the end, they lost and lost their life as well.
As the people agreed, Claude, motivated by their support, spoke even more passionately.
“A few facilities are necessary, I admit that. But the rest are completely useless right now. Let alone the reason to build them on such a large scale. What use is it to build all these facilities in a territory that’s essentially worthless?”
“Why are you trying to discourage our Young Master!”
Belinda yelled back.
“I’m not insulting; I’m just stating the reality.”
“We have a lot of runestones! We can use those!”
“I said earlier, the maintenance cost is the problem. Do runestones give birth to money? If we just blindly expand because we have money now, when the runestones run out, there won’t be anything left.”
“Isn’t that why you brought me here to solve it!”
Claude chuckled in disbelief.
“Am I a god? Just putting my hands on this wasteland will turn it into an oasis? Do you think digging the land will suddenly reveal a mine? The only way out of this is if a real god comes down and fixes it!”
“Why aren’t you a god then!”
“……Good question, why am I not a god? It would be great to just wipe out this territory completely….”
Claude accidentally let out his true feelings and quickly glanced at Ghislaine.
“No, my Lord. I didn’t mean it that way….”
Ghislaine chuckled and nodded.
“I’m not asking you to achieve the impossible. But if you’re saying this, you must have thought of some other method, right?”
“That’s right. Ultimately, the problem is that there’s no fixed income. We need to stop spending money uselessly and secure a stable source of income. And so, I have come up with! A quick and easy way to earn money. Once you hear it, my Lord, you’ll be smacking your knee in realization!”
“What is it?”
Claude declared confidently.
“We’re going to open a gambling house!”
At that moment, Belinda leaped into the air, and her foot directly struck Claude in the face.
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