Chapter 48: It’s a Bit Dangerous Right Now. (2)
“What do you mean the territory is in danger? Why?”
Belinda was flustered by the sudden statement.
The biggest headache regarding money in the territory was somewhat resolved by discovering the Runestone.
Just by using that money wisely, they had laid the foundation to develop as well as any other territory.
“If the Young Master doesn’t just waste money like it’s confetti, what danger could there be? It seems like there’s enough to last a lifetime.”
If the territory was in danger, the biggest risk factor sitting right in front of her was Ghislaine.
He was already someone who caused all sorts of accidents, and now he had enormous wealth, which meant he was quite likely to create even bigger problems.
Him saying the territory was in danger sounded like a warning that he was about to get into trouble, didn’t it?
“Hmm, how should I explain this?”
Ghislaine pondered for a moment before dismissing all the maids and soldiers from the room, leaving only Belinda and Gillian.
If he left it as it was, they would never really understand why he was acting this way in the future.
Until now, they had followed Ghislaine despite not understanding him, but how long could that continue?
At this point, he had to explain at least a little.
If he said he had returned from the future, they would definitely think he was insane, so he planned to explain based on what had happened.
“You think having the Runestone is enough, don’t you?”
Gillian nodded.
“With the Runestone we acquired this time, we can solve the territory’s chronic problems. Isn’t that what you were hoping for, Your Highness?”
“That’s true, but it’s not necessarily all good news.”
“Why isn’t it good news?”
Belinda and Gillian couldn’t comprehend Ghislaine’s meaning.
They had obtained the resources to solve the territory’s problems, so why on earth was that not good?
Ghislaine paused for a moment to gather his thoughts before speaking.
“There are people watching us.”
“Pardon?”
Gillian suspected that Ghislaine was suffering from some kind of delusion.
Who exactly was watching whom?
Just then, Belinda nodded and said, “Is it Young Lady Amelia? Is it because you took her money? Isn’t it a matter of just giving her some compensation and making peace?”
“Is that because you came here? It’s just a matter of giving an appropriate compensation and reconciling, isn’t it?”
Gillian nodded as if he understood.
That’s because they had experience handling assassins when they showed up before.
But Ghislaine shook her head.
“No, it’s much worse. They’ve been watching us for a long time.”
“They’ve been watching us since before?”
“Who could possibly…?”
Before the two could finish their questions, Ghislaine continued.
“This is something my father and the retainers don’t know. Only my younger sibling Elena and I are aware. Someone is targeting our territory.”
Ghislaine explained about Elena being attacked, discovering Digald’s corpse, and even how the bodies of Frank and Digald were removed to prevent a territorial war from happening due to false accusations.
As Ghislaine continued to explain, Belinda and Gillian’s expressions darkened.
Now, it was a bit more understandable why Ghislaine had been acting so frantically.
After sorting his thoughts for a moment, Gillian asked with a puzzled voice.
“But, Your Grace, this territory… I’m sorry, but no matter how I think about it, it has no value worth taking. On the contrary, if we occupy it, we’d have to fight barbarians, so it would be a loss. There’s no reason to weaken it by provoking another territory.”
“True, that was the case until now. But what about now?”
“Of course, now there’s the Runestone…”
As Gillian spoke, he suddenly realized the problem.
Weak military power, a poor territory, and constantly exhausted territory residents. Yet, they had to keep fighting endlessly.
Surely, Perdium was barely worth anything.
But if something of immense value was discovered here…
Then the result was clear.
When someone wants to take something from someone else, there’s only one sure and fast way to do it.
Belinda gulped and answered instead.
“Uh, war?”
She shook her head after saying that.
“No, it can’t be. The Runestone has just been discovered; the enemies wouldn’t know about it, would they?”
It didn’t add up.
If they knew about the Runestone, they would have swept through here already.
Ghislaine nodded.
“Right, they probably weren’t after us because of the Runestone. If they were certain it existed, they would have already invaded. There’s definitely another reason they are targeting this place.”
Ghislaine said with a wry smile.
“But now that the Runestone has been discovered, they’ll surely come for this place soon. I’ve essentially accelerated the war. It was going to happen anyway.”
Gillian wore a serious expression.
Not only was Ghislaine’s ex-fiancé sending assassins, but the existence of an unknown enemy targeting the territory was no small matter.
“Do you have any idea who might be behind this?”
Ghislaine shook his head.
He was confident that the mastermind was Duke Delphine, but there was no evidence to prove it yet.
Since it involved the unknown foreigners, including Aiden from his past life, it wouldn’t do any good to mention it now.
“I’m not sure yet, but as we get more involved, the truth will come out. That’s why I’m trying to prepare as quickly as possible, so keep that in mind.”
Belinda frowned and nodded.
It felt like the holes in Jamal and Philip’s stories were finally clicking into place.
In the past, she would have found it hard to believe, but she had already confirmed Ghislaine’s skills in the Forest of Monsters.
Ghislaine had no reason to lie that much.
Gillian cautiously asked Ghislaine, “Then how about telling the Lord and looking for a way together?”
“No, not yet. I can’t even tell who among the retainers is an enemy and who is an ally. Even Elena’s Guard Knights have betrayed us. There are definitely spies crawling around, even if they aren’t retainers.”
“I guess the news about acquiring the Runestone will spread quickly.”
“Right. We need to sell the Runestone and prepare before the enemies find out.”
Ghislaine shrugged her shoulders and continued, “Plus, Amelia will keep targeting me regardless of the Runestone. She’s more persistent than you’d think.”
“When they find out we secured the Runestone, the enemies will surely make their move.”
“Exactly. So we need to prepare for a potential war. Now you understand why there’s no time to rest, right?”
Gillian furrowed his brows with concern.
“In other territories, it would take two to three months to prepare for war and advance. But building a force to respond in Perdium during that time is practically impossible.”
Ghislaine nodded silently.
If the enemies invade, they would prepare to dominate Perdium’s military power. They’d know their forces like the back of their hands.
The best way to counter them would be to increase the soldiers and change the equipment, but there was little time left to gather money and prepare.
Gillian couldn’t hide his worried expression, knowing full well the circumstances.
“To build a usable military force and equip them, we need at least a year, or a minimum of six months. And that’s just to finish basic training.”
Belinda, who had been quietly listening, interrupted with a pained expression.
“So… you mean a war is going to happen, and we need to prepare for it?”
“Well, to put it simply, yes.”
“Oh, why do you have to say it so long-winded? Then I’ll move with you too.”
“Huh? Belinda, you should rest. You’re still not well, so why would you come along?”
“The territory’s in danger, so we need to prepare together. I’m not really interested in war stuff, but if it’s just about taking down the head, I’m good at that.”
Ghislaine chuckled with a mix of amusement and admiration at Belinda’s confidence.
“Well, just hearing that makes me feel reassured. It’s not wrong, but we can’t rely solely on that. In any case, focus on recovering your health first.”
“Thanks to you, Young Master, I’m feeling much better. At this rate, I think I’ll recover quickly! You’re perfectly fine moving around now, right? Wait, how are you already moving like that? Didn’t you use mana earlier?”
“How can you move like that already? You used mana earlier too.”
“Oh? You’re right?”
As Belinda pointed it out, Ghislaine tilted his head and frowned.
His body felt fine, and without thinking, he was naturally using mana. But now that he thought about it, it was really strange.
He had certainly been injured badly enough that he could scarcely move.
On the first day, he had fainted and couldn’t move at all, and on the second day, he could barely move his body, let alone use mana.
That’s why it was Gillian and Kaor who had butchered the Blood Python’s corpse.
But now, his body was moving naturally, and he was using mana without burden.
He wasn’t in peak condition, but he could move normally.
Logically, it was impossible to recover this much in just three days.
Belinda had a curious expression.
“Could it be related to the Young Master’s Mana Circulation Method? That’s incredible recovery.”
Gillian also looked at Ghislaine with curiosity.
It seemed too quick for the injuries he had.
Ghislaine shook his head.
This wasn’t the effect of the Mana Circulation Method.
While strong mana would obviously influence physical recovery to some extent, he hadn’t gathered enough mana yet for that.
His method was primarily optimized for extreme destruction rather than healing.
“Certainly strange.”
He hadn’t realized it while meeting his father, but this was an injury that should take at least fifteen days to heal.
With cracks in the bones, torn muscles, and a small amount of potent Blood Python poison in his system, recovering this quickly was rather abnormal.
“My muscles seem almost healed already?”
While he couldn’t say he was fully healed enough to fight, his body was only feeling a little sore now.
This was evidence that the bones and muscles were almost fused together.
He could no longer sense the poison’s presence.
“I really don’t know either. For today, I’ll need to rest and check my condition.”
Belinda looked at Ghislaine with a questioning gaze.
Given how many things he had kept hidden, she suspected this just might be another one of those instances.
“Well, alright. If you’re resting too, that’s good. Once you’re feeling better, let’s move together.”
“Yeah, I’ll check my condition and we can move together or do something.”
As Ghislaine was about to leave with Gillian, Belinda suddenly remembered something and asked him.
“Right, you said even basic training takes at least six months. No matter how fast you prepare, isn’t it already too late?”
At her words, Ghislaine made a meaningful expression.
“I have forces that can be prepared right away.”
“What do you mean? Are you gathering mercenaries again?”
Indeed, the only force that could be prepared immediately would be mercenaries.
Ghislaine shook his head with a confident smile.
“Of course, mercenaries will need to be replenished. But there’s also a solid force that no one else can utilize.”
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