chapter_0068

68 – Bad Guys

68 – Bad Guys

Two weeks had passed since Sharen and that incident.

A lot had happened during that time.

Since it was our first experience, it wasn’t easy for either Sharen or me, but our first encounter ended happily.

I was worried about whether we should keep this a secret, but when I went to the office, Hart recognized it at a glance and shed tears, saying that there would be no worries about the heir of the Crones.

And from that day on, I was squeezed every night.

Starting with Noah, Lana and Azel, and then Sharen again, visited me every night.

It was a happy but exhausting week.

Still, to be honest… I thought it was good to be alive.

I decided I needed to live even harder to maintain this happy life.

I had such trivial thoughts.

As I was about to start my work with those thoughts in mind, I was met with both good news and bad news.

First, the good news was that the territory’s revenue had increased significantly.

Among the treasures obtained through dungeon raids, there were not only simple gold and silver but also magical tools, magical tool materials, and potion ingredients that were worth more than expected.

In particular, the scales of the ice dragon were essential materials for the plague treatment potion, and it was said that the church had bought them all.

Hearing that the territory’s revenue had increased after a long time was good news for me.

Unlike before, when I wished for failure, I now had a lot of money being spent.

Along with the good news, there was also bad news.

That was…

“The southern territories are uniting?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Although it hasn’t been made public yet, it seems certain based on the information our informants have brought.”

It was news that the southern territories close to us were uniting as one.

From what I gathered, the situation was as follows.

Due to the policies of the Crones territory, the migration of free people in the surrounding areas had exploded.

Naturally, the closer they were to our territory, the larger the number of migrants, and to stop this, the territories either increased the wages for free people or oppressed them like the Lion Family.

Then, when Hadem Lion was crushed and fell, they began to implement policies that favored free people to some extent while secretly controlling the nobility through surveillance organizations like the Gestapo.

Since they weren’t openly killing anyone, I couldn’t intervene, and the combination of such surveillance, increased average wages, and the low price of salt we provided, along with the military power of the Crones, created a balance in the south.

However, it seemed that this had exploded due to the recent dungeon incident.

Commoners had begun a rebellion in the name of our family.

“Let’s follow the Crones!”

“We want to live like the Crones!”

The policy of favoring the nobility was being referred to as ‘Cronesism’ in recent discussions.

Something red and radical came to mind, but fortunately, it wasn’t that extreme.

The core content was that the nobility’s wages needed to be raised for the family to ultimately benefit, and it was natural for people to want that.

However, it seemed that the families being rebelled against did not see it that way.

They thought this was my scheme to dominate the south, and they believed that if they didn’t cooperate like the Shira family, they would be invaded like the Lion Family or the Klaus family.

But since they couldn’t handle the Crones family, which had become the strongest in the south, the Ukraine family, represented by the Northern Duke faction, was taking the lead in uniting the other lords.

“What a ridiculous story. Have they found any evidence that we instigated the rebellion?”

“Probably not. That’s why they seem to be acting indirectly rather than making it public.”

If there were evidence of instigation, it would have been a faster method to make it public in the Platinum Council rather than going through such complicated matters.

But the fact that they weren’t doing that meant they probably hadn’t found decisive evidence.

It seemed they were plotting behind the scenes because making it public would only expose their own shortcomings.

“However, my lord, no matter how you look at it, this seems to be a dangerous situation.”

“Yes, that’s right. My lord. Now that they have gathered, if they don’t get what they want, they will resort to force.”

I understood Hart and Noah’s concerns.

Those who had united for their own interests were individually weak, but when they banded together like that, they became formidable.

And the scariest part was that since they were united by greed, they would look for a scapegoat to satisfy their desires.

Naturally, that scapegoat would be us.

“Among them, there will be lords from both the Prince Faction and the Princess Faction. Is there any way we can disrupt their plans through the two of them?”

I didn’t yet know which lords had gathered, but there would surely be members from both factions.

While the Prince Faction might be difficult, I thought Lily could handle the Princess Faction well.

I looked at Lana, and she avoided my gaze and said,

“…The princess said, ‘Those guys aren’t listening to me, I’m sorry, Calix,’ and asked me to convey her apologies.”

“I see.”

This was the problem with feudalism.

It was common to refuse a superior’s orders based on one’s own interests.

Ah! I feel like I need a guillotine.

Thinking about it… a guillotine might be a bit much. I would die too.

“Alright, I understand. Let’s continue gathering information and think of ways to respond.”

“Yes, my lord.”

For now, since they hadn’t acted yet, there was nothing we could do.

From my perspective, wanting to be an ally loved by everyone peacefully, I hoped the problem would be resolved quietly as it was.

But as expected, the world doesn’t go as I wish.

“Did we receive an invitation from the Ukraine family?”

“Yes, my lord.”

After a while, I received an invitation.

It bore the seal of the Ukraine family, along with the seals of the Pennil family, the Is family, and others.

They wanted to hold a meeting with me, and I participated to hear what they had to say.

What I saw there were the lords of a total of six families in the south, starting with the Ukraine family.

As I entered the meeting room filled with 40- to 50-year-old unscrupulous bosses, the phrase ‘bad guys’ immediately came to mind.

How could one’s face become so greedy?

And as soon as the meeting began, the host, the lord of the Ukraine family, Tuel Ukraine, spoke directly to me.

“Don’t hide it, Lord Calix. Choose to either lower the wages of the nobility or pay additional taxes.”

He was a man in his 50s who looked like a ruthless boss from the construction industry, glaring at me.

This guy is asking for trouble…

“I don’t like beating around the bush either, but this is too much.”

“The one being excessive is the Crones, who instigated a rebellion in our territory.”

I was dumbfounded that he was blaming me for his own mismanagement.

The lords of the Pennil family and the Is family, who were sitting next to me like weasels, chimed in.

“How desperate do you think we are to act like this? We held out until now before taking action.”

“Right, if the Crones lower their wages, the Crones family will also increase their profits, and we won’t have any rebellions. How good would that be?”

None of them were particularly strong families individually.

But with six families gathered like this, it wouldn’t be easy for me, no matter how capable I was.

Even if I somehow managed to win, it would be difficult to do so with minimal casualties, unlike Hadem’s Lion family.

They seemed to know that too, which is why they were coming at me so strongly, and I sighed.

“Ha… I understand for now. I will seriously consider your intentions.”

“Oh!”

“Good, you thought well.”

As much as I wanted to lash out, I held back and concluded the meeting for the sake of the future.

On the way back, Azel looked at my face and said,

“My lord, are you alright? Your expression doesn’t look good.”

“I’m fine. Azel, I’m just a bit frustrated.”

While it was good that the Crones family had grown, it also meant that I had to face many more enemies.

Before, I only had to think about Hadem, but now we had to deal with these minor families in the east, west, and south as well.

It would be nice if soldiers could just be produced automatically like in the Three Kingdoms or some kingdom manga, but unfortunately, the world wasn’t that easy.

The loss of soldiers directly impacted the survival of the territory.

To minimize that, a strategist was needed.

“I wonder if a character like Leo will just drop down from the sky?”

“What is Leo, my lord?”

“He’s a very smart person with a weak body. Azel.”

“Oh, someone opposite to me.”

The best strategist character in the World Archive, Leo Arce.

Naturally, this SSR character showcased incredible strategies in the main story, defeating 100,000 with just 10,000.

Like Zhuge Liang from the Three Kingdoms (according to the novel) or Han Xin from the Chu-Han Contention, he was a necessary strategist character when the scale of war increased in the mid to late stages of the World Archive.

Moreover, depending on the story, he might not even appear until the late stages, so if luck was on my side, I could get him for free.

The problem was that since he was also a bard, it was difficult to meet him as he wandered the empire.

If I knew where he lived, I would go to great lengths to find him, but without knowing that…

Sigh… I wish he would just fall from the sky suddenly.

As I was thinking that while riding back to the territory…

“A new future is coming♪ A new hope is coming♪ Ahh♪ Oh beautiful world♪”

In front of me, Leo Arce was singing.

I found an SSR strategist on the street.

Is this good luck?

A word from the author (Author’s note)

Calix cast a spell.

The effect was tremendous.

Thank you for reading today as well!

*ᴗ ᴗ)⁾⁾♡