Episode 58
As Baryan was opening
He unfolded it, and when the paper was folded four times, it was larger than Baryan’s torso.
“What, what the heck is this… … .”
It was natural for Baryan to be confused. What he was looking at was Zeno’s water map. It showed rivers and lakes, and Hebron had a red waterway. It was a thick, long river that stretched all the way to the center of Zeno.
“That’s the big picture I’ve drawn. It may not happen right away, but it will happen someday.”
“Hey, are you okay?”
Baryan’s gaze turned to the lower part of the map.
He looked up at me with an expression that was nothing short of astonishment.
At the spot that Baryan pointed out, there was the ‘old site of the Kingdom of Antaria’.
The territory of the kingdom that was destroyed by the plague has been left abandoned to this day.
Although it was not prohibited by national law, since no one returned alive, the lords were reluctant to advance south. As time went by, they no longer paid attention to the land in the south.
“I don’t know either. It was a long time ago when leprosy was rampant. I should send a reconnaissance first to check. So you just have to prepare. If necessary, I might have to divert the waterway.”
“insect!”
Now was the time to really start making money.
Rumors spread like wildfire that a gold mine had been discovered in the wilderness.
Hebron looks like it’s undergoing a major gold mining operation.
The clearing of wastelands and the formation of towns were seen only as a precursor to gold mining.
The pine trees were to be planted at a point more than ten kilometers from Hebron. At the entrance, the planting work was in full swing, and the thick pine leaves were constantly swaying.
It was because of the circular towers erected here and there. There was a large hole in the center of the tower, and wind was constantly blowing out from there.
That was because an ancient magic circle was engraved on it.
Soldiers were stationed around the area where the tunnel was being dug, and only a few workers were mobilized to work on the tunnel.
Although the work on the waterway had not yet begun, a good number of trees had been planted and huts were being erected at regular intervals.
If everything goes according to plan, Hebron’s territory will increase several times over. It will become a territory that is far beyond the scope of the author.
“Thanks to you, I think it will become a neighborhood where people can live quite comfortably. I am grateful.”
“Oh, no! How can you say such things to someone like me?”
The nobles did not bow their heads to the commoners. However, I was ready to bow my head hundreds and thousands of times to my subjects. I was also ready to spit on the neighboring lords who coveted my territory or the great nobles who relied on their high titles to cause trouble.
“Hebron needs more people like you.”
“My lord!”
Many nobles had learned that it was the law of the nobility to treat and ignore commoners. They clearly forgot the old sage’s saying that a single word could repay a debt of thousands of gold.
That was not noble, it was ignorant. A person like Baryan would act as if he would give up his soul if he was treated with even the slightest bit of care.
At that moment, the book I had read,
If even one verse about him was brought up, Hebron would be in danger.
When I beckoned, a boy came running in a hurry. He was dressed in shabby clothes and was a newly purchased slave soldier. He searched through the slaves held by the Serpens Group and even borrowed slaves from other groups for a while through the Group’s connections.
After checking their abilities one by one, I was able to purchase eight magicians and two spiritists. All ten of them were of low skill, but in Hebron, the level of talent did not matter.
“I brought the earth spirit and the water spirit, so the work will be much easier from now on.”
The boy who approached me was fourteen years old.
Although he was too young to be called up for hard labor, the spirits would do the work for him anyway.
“Bernie, you will be living here from now on.”
The boy named Bernie watched me closely.
Unlike other slave soldiers, this child seemed less affected by the Baemincho.
So, although they were less loyal than other slaves, the fact that they would die if they resisted their master remained the same.
“If I work hard… … you will find my parents, right?”
“I promise you in the name of Hebron. Whether you work hard or not, I will find your parents. However, it is entirely up to you whether you will live freely with them or be enslaved in your own place. So work hard. Practice the mana training method I taught you, with all your might.”
Bernie’s parents were also slaves.
Those two also sold off their surplus shares, but they were so far away that it wasn’t easy to even contact them.
Although I was in a situation where I couldn’t even tell if they were alive or dead, I planned to bring Bernie’s parents to Hebron and even give them a house to live in.
“You are mine. I cherish what is mine. So don’t get out of my sight.”
Sophie, a twenty-one-year-old woman who deals with water spirits, was sent to the wizard Batman because she was discovered to have not only an affinity for spirits but also a talent for magic.
‘If you raise them well, they will become treasures. Both Bernie and Sophie.’
Sophie’s talent was beyond imagination, and Batman was delighted to have a student who would make a name for himself.
Thanks to Serpens’s support, the slave army increased to 400. Twenty of them were to be trained as gladiators. They were originally traded for at least 50 gold and up to 100 gold, but Serpens gave them away for 10 gold.
Because I saved his life.
As I approached the mining area, a slave soldier approached me.
All the troops stationed in this area were slave soldiers.
It was a security measure.
“Ready, my lord.”
“Place the workers.”
“insect.”
The truth was bound to come out someday.
If you had mixed seventy percent of lies behind three percent of the truth before that, the hyenas that had been sniffing around would have come running with their drool dripping down their faces.
On one side there was a two-horse carriage drawn by two horses. It was a carriage for transporting goods rather than people, but a temporary wall and roof were made by adding wooden planks.
Instead of completely blocking the view, it looked hastily constructed and dangerous.
“Dimes, take them out.”
The spirit of darkness poured out all the items it had hidden in the dark space into the carriage at once. It was a magic that was completely different from the ‘subspace’ magic that only a few great magicians had mastered; it was a magic that simply hid items in a dark space.
My aura would constantly fade while I was storing things.
‘Okay!’
Looking at the gold ore that filled the wagon, I almost felt as if I had mined it on my own land.
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The top of the serpent was secretly purchased from other territories and was processed as purchased from the Zyleson territories.
Zielson had facilities capable of processing large quantities of various ores.
Gold ore was an unrefined mineral. It had to be melted down to extract the gold, but most of what filled the wagons was nothing more than rocks.
The knight Solon pulled the chariot, and five slave soldiers guarded the chariot.
Some workers helped the carriage. The horses rattled with every step because the nearby roads were not well-maintained, and the carriage made an uneasy sound as if it would break down at any moment.
That was when.
When a “jjejejejejeok” sound was heard from the right side of the carriage, the slave soldier following behind grabbed the worker’s shoulder and shouted.
“Stop the carriage!”
The right side of the carriage split open, sending a torrent of gold ore spilling out.
The sunlight striking the gold ore scattered and danced yellow.
The three workers who were assisting the carriage were frozen in place. This was because they had seen the true nature of the gold ore that they had only heard of through rumors. They seemed to be estimating the amount of gold ore that filled the carriage. One of them even swallowed his saliva.
Solon got out of his chariot and drew his sword.
As he nodded, the slave soldiers gathered the three workers together.
Solon said, aiming his sharp longsword at the workers.
“Have you seen it?”
“Please, save me!”
“I didn’t see anything!”
The workers sensed their predicament. They had seen what they should not have seen. There were no other people in the area, only knights and slaves. It meant that security was tight.
Solon was a young knight. He was not used to killing. He had a good-looking face, so he acted hesitantly quite well.
“There are only three pairs of eyes here that I can’t trust. Is there any reason why I should leave them alone instead of destroying them?”
“I have a wife and children!”
“I live with my mother!”
“I can’t die without even getting married!”
Solon, who had been listening to the workers’ words in silence, raised Aura and answered.
“I will take good care of your family. Don’t blame me.”
Now was the time for me to step forward. All the lines and actions were scripted. I was in charge of not only writing the script, but also directing.
The only one who didn’t follow the script was Syang.
My location was discovered a little early because the guy was crying ‘Meeeeeee’.
“What’s going on?”
“Yes, my lord, I saw what they were loading onto the carriage.”
“Count Hebron, spare us! We didn’t see anything!”
The workers came to me on their knees and pleaded with me.
Syang snorted at them and warned them not to come near.
I looked to the right side of the collapsed carriage and saw a glittering gold ore.
A man with keen observation skills would have noticed the pile of rocks beyond, but the three workers were too busy trying to avoid death that was right up to their necks to pay any attention to reality.
I looked at Solon and shouted.
“Tsk! I told you to be careful about security, so why are you taking things so lightly?”
“I’m sorry, my lord. I’ll make sure that I don’t cause any trouble later.”
The workers became thoughtful.
For a long time, the nobles killed countless commoners to get rid of their troubles. That’s why the commoners always lived in silence. They had to live as if they were dead in order to continue living, however tenuously.
“That’s it. Since there are three people who know about this anyway, why don’t we just catch them and their families and kick them out as soon as the rumor gets out?”
“insect!”
My name was given, and with it the future of the three families was decided. The pale men trembled as they headed toward the carriage.
Solon ordered them to repair the chariot and fill it with the gold ore that had spilled out. He even gave them the opportunity to touch and examine the gold ore.
* * *
That night, the three men were sent to their quarters. The number of guards was no different than usual.
Now accustomed to the life of a free person, Elle could only summon the wind spirit and secretly watch over her.
One of the three men escaped from the quarters. He made contact with the soldier, who returned to Hebron early in the morning across the wilderness.
He stopped at a tavern for a quick meal, then went to the market to buy a bunch of brooches for his daughter. The brooches were from Dior.
That afternoon, Dior’s upper class closed early and crossed the cloud bridge to arrive at Zielson. Dior’s upper class headquarters was located in Zielson, and the headquarters sent carriages and people to Slane several times a day.
Elle, who had been watching the series of events, sent me a message. The message had a blue string tied to its ankle. It meant that the carriage of the Dior convoy that had departed from Hebron had arrived in Srein.
I instructed Sir Solon.
“Transport the relevant people and place them in the tunnel.”
“insect!”
