Chapter 171: Verification Is Good Enough (1)
The Dwarfs were taken aback and shouted in unison.
“Lord! A month is way too short!”
“Come on, why are you guys whining? Aren’t you the strongest technicians around? You said you’d do whatever I wanted, right? Changing your tune like this could lead to trouble.”
“Uh….”
The Dwarfs made expressions of real distress.
Normally, humans would make requests within the realm of common sense. They were confident they could meet the conditions with their skills.
Honestly, they admitted they got a bit carried away and blurted out a bunch of things. But they never expected it would come back to bite them.
“Isn’t it normal to be a bit humble and accept things nicely when you’re dealing with nobles? Especially nobles!”
This was the first time they encountered a human who took everything given to them without any hesitation.
They really had to cut down on their time for eating, sleeping, and, you know, other personal needs just to get the work done.
“Damn it, why did I stick my neck out? I should have just kept quiet.”
The Dwarfs appeared to be on the verge of tears. Still, it was true they had already made a promise, and it looked like there was no way to back out now.
However, not having had such experience in life, Galbarik played the martyr and probed Ghislaine.
“Lord, there’s just too much work. If we try to finish it all in a month, we’re all going to drop dead from overwork!”
“You’ll die anyway if you don’t work.”
“Huh? Why? Are you planning to kill us?”
Legally, they were slaves, so there wasn’t much they could say if they were killed for not obeying.
Ghislaine shook his head and replied.
“We’ve been marked by Count Desmond, the Great Lord of the North. A war is going to break out soon. If we don’t finish the job I set in a month, we’re all dead.”
“…….”
“Honestly, you’ve been lounging around under nobles’ care, right? With that lazy mindset, you won’t survive in this rough North.”
But the name of Count Desmond didn’t resonate much with the Dwarfs.
‘Even if a war breaks out, we won’t be in danger…’
Dwarfs aren’t particularly afraid of wars between humans.
Lords wouldn’t dare to kill Dwarfs like them who were valuable and expensive.
Unless you personally wielded a weapon on the battlefield, they usually ended up as spoils of war instead.
But Ghislaine wasn’t clueless.
“If preparations aren’t completed within a month, Dwarfs will end up at the frontlines during the war.”
‘Wow, is this guy for real?’
The Dwarfs exhaled deeply and shot Ghislaine a glare.
What made him think they would be sent into war when they were worth so much? No lord would have the guts to pull something like that. This had to be an empty threat.
It didn’t exist.
Ignoring the suspicious glances from the dwarves, Ghislaine grinned.
“You just got here and don’t really know me yet, right? Today, I’ll give you some free time. Once you figure out what kind of person I am, you’ll understand what to do. I really want to be nice, but for some reason, no one believes me.”
With that, Ghislaine left the room.
The dwarves, bewildered, watched his retreating figure and then burst into laughter one by one.
‘Did he think those threats would work on us?’
Having dealt with all sorts of nobles, the dwarves weren’t frightened at all.
“Well, well, since we’re not familiar with the atmosphere here yet and don’t really know much about the territory, let’s take a look around,” suggested Galbarik, and the dwarves began to wander through the territory, asking about the Lord.
The people willingly shared what they knew.
“Oh, the Lord? Once he makes a decision, he never looks back and just pushes forward.”
“He secretly gathered troops and entered the Forest of Monsters without his father’s knowledge. During the war, he also went out on his own to take down enemies. Just a few days ago, he even raided my father’s territory’s forest.”
“Yeah, that’s right. Even when Count Digald and his retainers surrendered, he just killed them all.”
“Do you know Marquis Branford? That guy even made a life-or-death bet with him.”
The more the dwarves listened to the stories of the territory residents, the more they realized something was seriously off.
Every story they heard was far from normal. No sane person would act like that.
It was only because the results were good that the residents praised him; if you looked into the process, it was alarming.
And they were last shocked to see the mages working at the construction site.
‘What kind of mages…… look this shabby?’
It was hard to tell if they were mages or construction workers with how rough they looked.
Alfoy, wearing a tattered robe, leaned on one leg and scanned the dwarves from top to bottom.
“The work time is a month, huh? That’s generous. Why did the Lord give such a long time?”
“……Did you say that’s generous?”
“Why, what? We made a hundred Mana Convergence Circles in just two days! And you guys can’t finish that in a month? Come on, dwarves aren’t all that impressive.”
“Wait, does that even make sense?”
“Why wouldn’t it? We made hundreds of Runestones to be placed in the farmland in just a week!”
When Alfoy boasted proudly, the mages nodded with smiles, seemingly pleased.
Galbarik carefully asked, “Are you really mages?”
Alfoy straightened up and raised one hand to conjure a fireball.
“I am the heir to the Tower of the Bloody Flame, known as the greatest Mage Tower in the North. You can also call me the Flame Man Alfoy, who never gives up!”
The dwarves stared intently at the fireball Alfoy created. They had never heard such a title, but he seemed to be a real mage after all.
Unable to contain his curiosity, Galbarik asked, “Why is someone like you, an heir to a Mage Tower, living like this here?”
Suddenly, Alfoy slumped his shoulders and explained how he ended up stuck in Penris Territory.
Forced to come here without knowing what he would be doing, and now he was a slave who couldn’t even escape, the dwarves were once again struck by shock.
A territory where the heir to the Mage Tower and mages couldn’t escape and were working their asses off?
Finally, they had to accept the uncomfortable truth they had been trying to deny.
There was no choice but to accept the truth he wanted.
‘Ah, the lord was really a crazy person. It’s because he was crazy that he could create such nonsense.’
Alfoy said, gripping Galbarik’s shoulder.
“They said we’ll be put to work at the construction site, right? Let’s do our best. Here, if nothing else, they give you lots of food. We can eat to our heart’s content.”
It was a line that showed Alfoy had completely adapted to the territory.
Exhausted from busy labor, Alfoy and the mages had now reached the point where they would be satisfied with just having food on their plates.
Seeing the strange madness in the mages’ eyes, the dwarves took a step back with uneasy expressions.
‘I have to run away. If I stay here, I won’t die of natural causes. I absolutely have to escape.’
Alfoy, who saw through their inner thoughts, said seriously.
“Don’t even think about running away. Even if you do escape, you’ll just get caught. The lord’s specialties are pursuit, ambush, and extermination. I, as a mage, couldn’t escape, so do you think you can? So let’s not run away and stay together for a long time.”
Each of Alfoy’s words was filled with sincerity. It was only natural that having more hands on deck would give them even a little breathing room.
He continued speaking as if to comfort the dwarves.
“Let’s gamble and drink together sometimes. Surprisingly, it’s fun staying here. If you don’t know how to gamble, I’ll teach you.”
“……”
A moment of awkward silence followed.
After pondering for a while, Galbarik turned to the dwarves and spoke with effort.
“……Let’s get to work quickly. We don’t have time.”
To avoid being dragged into the strike force, they had to finish the work in a month, no matter what.
*
Ghislaine was deep in thought as she reviewed the plan she had devised.
‘Fighting against the Duke Faction is meaningless if only we become stronger here.’
No matter how quickly Penris grew, it would be difficult to catch up to the already formidable forces of the Duke Faction.
That was why she had to draw in the Crown Prince Faction.
Currently, the Perdium Territory guarding the north also needed to become strong, just like Penris.
Only then could they withstand the future conflicts together.
‘We have no choice but to grow that side as quickly as possible. While we’re at it, we should also have Perdium learn the Mana Circulation Method.’
Ghislaine immediately loaded food onto dozens of wagons and headed north to the fortress where her father was stationed.
Northern Fortress, Kaifiller.
It was the northernmost front of the Ruthania Kingdom, guarded by County Perdium.
Except for the small water source near the fortress, most of the surrounding area was barren land, bleak to the extreme.
The Perdium Count family had been defending this desolate fortress from barbarian invasions for hundreds of years.
Because of that, the Perdium Territory had become endlessly impoverished.
Yet the honorable family heads endured the losses and continued to guard the fortress, making it a source of pride for their family.
Zvalter, the Count of Perdium, who was guarding the place symbolizing the honor of Perdium, appeared with a very displeased expression upon hearing Ghislaine’s arrival.
Alongside him, Knight Commander Randolf, equally aggravated, followed.
As soon as Zvalter saw Ghislaine, he shouted.
“Ghislaine! I’ve already heard the news! I let it slide because of the achievements you’ve made, but you have gone too far! How can you recklessly clear the forests of the territory!”
Although Homern had exaggerated the news a bit, it was true that Ghislaine had cleared the forests in the Perdium Territory.
Zvalter had no intention of forgiving it this time.
It was a thought.
No matter how well he worked, he could never tolerate anything that infringed on the authority of the lord and head of the family.
This was crucial for leading the people while protecting the north.
Zvalter was ready to draw his sword, hand already resting on his waist.
Ghislaine smiled slightly and said,
“I must apologize for that. We urgently needed timber. In return, I brought a bit more food.”
The wagon Ghislaine brought was piled high with a tremendous amount of food.
There was so much that the entire troop stationed at the fortress could eat their fill for years.
“I also sent extra food to the territory. The residents should be worry-free about food until next year.”
As Ghislaine spoke leisurely, Zvalter’s eyebrow twitched.
“Do you dare to brush this off with a mere supply of food!”
…But there was simply too much food to scold like that.
However, he also couldn’t just flip his attitude because of a little food. Being watched by many, that would surely diminish his authority.
On the other hand, he couldn’t refuse the food either. Being hungry was truly getting tiresome.
A once-in-a-lifetime crisis.
But who was Zvalter? A seasoned warrior who had fought countless barbarians.
He subtly gestured to Randolf.
Randolf had been with Zvalter for decades. He understood instantly.
With a bright smile, he seized Ghislaine’s hand.
“Oh my, our Grand Duke! What food have you brought us this time? The weather here is quite chilly, isn’t it? Let’s get inside quickly before we catch a cold. Oh, brother. What are you doing? We don’t even need timber, do we? Eating is the best. Isn’t it?”
“Hmm, should we? Well then, shall we let this one slide?”
“Of course, you couldn’t buy this much food even if you sold all the timber. Still, given he’s your son, he gave us a good price.”
“Ahem, fine. I’ll let it go this time, but be careful with your actions next time. Now, let’s head inside.”
With that, the two entered the fortress leisurely.
As Ghislaine shrugged, the knights and soldiers beside him stifled their laughter.
Unfortunately, everyone had been together for so long that the two’s act was ineffective.
Once in the office, Zvalter asked bluntly,
“So, what’s the real deal here? It doesn’t seem like you just came to apologize and give food. Did you happen to find a marriage partner?”
As soon as he saw him, the nagging began. Ghislaine sighed and said,
“That’s not it. I have something important to discuss.”
At Ghislaine’s words, Zvalter and Randolf tensed. Whenever ‘important’ came out of his mouth, something big typically happened.
Zvalter spoke seriously.
“Whatever it is, can’t you just not say it? I really like the peace we have now.”
His voice was filled with sincerity.
Finally, they could live a bit better. He wanted to continue this way without incident.
He had endured too much to desire more. People should know their limits.
Ghislaine neatly ignored her father’s plea, filled with the realizations and simple wishes gained over a lifetime, and opened her mouth.
“We need to change the family’s Mana Circulation Method.”
Zvalter’s expression instantly crumpled.
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