328

Episode 328: What do you think? Am I right? (2)

With just the runestones I've acquired so far, I've laid the foundation to become the strongest in the North.

I really did use it for various purposes. I made farmland, traded with the magic tower, made a mana gathering sect… … I just used everything that involved magic.

I've already used up all the Rune Stones because I've been using them recklessly, but in other words, I had enough Rune Stones to develop my territory.

But there were more runestones than what I had obtained back then! And I even found a fairy blessing that was just as valuable as the runestones.

Everyone was dumbfounded by the unbelievable situation.

"Gyaaaah!"

Belinda realized the situation belatedly and screamed in excitement. She couldn't confirm if there were really that many runestones, but the mere sight of the fairy's blessing was enough to make her happy.

The reason she was so happy was none other than Claude.

'Commander, you little punk! You won't bother me about money anymore!'

All the major tasks of the territory are ordered by Jisel, so he has no choice but to carry them out unconditionally.

But not everything in the realm goes according to Jiselle's orders. There are countless small tasks.

Jiselle couldn't worry about such trivial matters. So everyone did their best in their respective tasks.

But to do the work, you need money. And the one who gives that money is the governor, Claude.

He never delegated financial management authority to anyone else.

'I told you every day that I didn't have any money, right? Let's just wait and see!'

Belinda is the head housekeeper of the castle. Naturally, she needs money to manage the servants and run the castle.

Although there is a family slush fund that is managed with the authority of the head of the household, it cannot be used for official purposes. So, he had no choice but to express his regrets to Claude every day.

Belinda is not the only one expressing regret.

Gillian, who boasts a strong heart that can stand alone against an army of thousands, Vanessa, who performs miracles that turn the world upside down, Galvarik, the great blacksmith, Fiote, who creates miracles like a goddess, and Lumina, who is at one with nature and is detached from worldly affairs.

When everyone went to get their money, they had no choice but to bow down to Claude.

And that kid knew how to use his powers so well.

"Now my suffering is over! Money is overflowing!"

Belinda's cry made everyone else look relieved.

Because I've been treated so fatally by Claude so far.

Of course, he is still the governor and will be executing the funds, but he will no longer be so strict and lethal about lack of money.

Then Belinda will really blow holes all over her body.

People began to cut down the trees around them and erect fences with joyful expressions. They watched cautiously from a distance, fearing that they might step on the flowers.

Gillian, who was supervising the construction site, said to Giselle.

"The workers who were repairing the fortress have also arrived."

"Okay? Then let's move on to the next location. Everyone, get ready."

"All right."

In this way, Jiselle moved, gradually securing territory.

It didn't take long for the workers to overflow. Queen Greggs' territory was so vast that there weren't many monsters.

Even the occasional wandering monsters were pushed back with overwhelming numbers, so they were reduced to minced meat in no time.

For them, who had already overcome a great hurdle, there was nothing difficult. After moving for a while, the pioneer party finally arrived at their destination, the Runestone production site.

People were not as surprised when they saw the runestone as they were when they discovered the fairy's blessing. They just stood there with their mouths open, speechless.

Only Jiselle spoke with a leisurely smile.

"What do you think? Am I right?"

Since confirming the location of the production site was a priority, the surrounding area was still quite dark due to the dense trees.

Even in such a dark forest, the production site was shining brightly.

"Lu, there are so many rune stones… … ."

"There were a lot last time too. This is almost double that amount. No, maybe three times?"

"You're crazy! All I can say is you're crazy."

Runestones, which were hard to find and expensive to buy outside, were strewn all over the place.

Even the knights who had already followed Giselle and obtained the runestone were surprised.

The wizards just shivered. To them, the runestone was their greatest treasure.

"I understand why this forest is abnormal."

"It's just a report of magic power, here."

"No wonder everything is so weird."

Others may not have known, but the wizards felt a strong, tingling sensation of magical power. With so much magical power concentrated in a certain area, it was only natural that strange phenomena would occur.

"Waaaaaaaaaah!"

People cheered belatedly, because they had achieved this unbelievable result.

Of course, these runestones are not theirs, but everyone knows that when the lord shoots, he shoots again.

Indeed, Giselle did not betray their expectations.

He is not meticulous or scrupulously calculating when it comes to giving. The only time he is tight-fisted is when he is making a deal.

Jiselle said something like, 'If I earned this much, I should give this much, right?'

"Thanks to you, I was able to come this far. If you have worked hard for the territory, you deserve to be rewarded. When I return, I will pay you three years' worth of salary as an additional allowance."

"Wow!"

"As expected, the Lord is the best at showing off his money!"

"thank you!"

Everyone was busy throwing down their weapons and cheering.

But Belinda's face turned pale.

"Ahh! Then it'll cost a lot of money again and the governor will start making jokes!"

We have brought in over 4,000 troops. It will cost an unimaginable amount of money to pay their three-year salaries.

If Claude keeps joking, it will be harder to get money again.

But what can I do? That is the charm of the young master.

The workers who arrived late were also overjoyed at the promise of three times the extra pay. Meanwhile, Belinda's wrinkles grew another.

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Alfoy grumbled to himself at the sight.

'That guy is definitely obsessed with 3. He gives back 3 times as much when he receives it, and he gives back 3 times as much when he gives back.'

The soldiers and laborers threw themselves into their work with excitement. And as always, Gillian stepped forward and gave a warning.

"Don't touch even a single crumb. If you do, you will be dealt with according to military law."

Some of the wizards and mercenary knights looked slightly disappointed. However, the knights who had been in the forest before said that they had already experienced it, and they did not react much and just focused on their work.

But at some point, Gordon was dragged into a corner and started getting beaten by the knights.

"Ouch! I was just trying to get an early bonus! Ouch! Stop hitting me!"

It seems that he had been caught after secretly hiding it in the groin area. After that, Alpoy, Ascon, and several wizards were dragged away with ropes.

Although there was chaos on one side, the runestone mining operation went smoothly overall.

For now, we'll just load up the carts and haul them out like we used to, but soon, a defensive wall will be built here and it will function as proper territory.

Looking at the people moving busily, Jiselle finally let out a sigh of relief.

"We finally have this place."

In the past, it was something that was impossible to even dare to challenge. All you could do was just make a path and go dig up the rune stones.

Although I haven't taken over the entire Demon Forest yet, I have secured a small territory.

Now, Ferdium will secure enormous food and create jobs here.

"Now is the real beginning."

I got various resources including runestones and fairy flowers. Two of them are so valuable that they have lost some of their luster, but I also got a lot of herbs and wood.

These will all become the foundation for growing the territory. Jisel is now at a level where he cannot be defeated by any noble of the Duke's faction in terms of wealth alone.

And that power will surely become the driving force to continue fighting the Duke.

The rumor that Jiselle had once again succeeded in pioneering the Forest of Demons quickly spread throughout Perdium.

"Oh my! Our Grand Prince has done something great again! I knew it! I knew it!"

"Don't forget that you agreed to lend us this. It's free, right? It's free, right?"

Homer, the governor of Ferdium, and Albert, the treasurer, came to visit and flattered Giselle, reaffirming their promise.

The people of Ferdium were all gathered together and busy praising Giselle.

"As expected, he is our Grand Prince!"

"I never thought I would see the day when the Demon Forest would be pushed aside like this… … It really was true that the Archduke was the strongest in the North."

"The 100 Circle Wizard came with you too? Is such a great person following our Grand Prince?"

Everyone was so excited that they were talking only about Giselle. As the workers who were working on the project started to season it and brag, the rumors grew even more uncontrollable.

Accordingly, Giselle's fame rose to unprecedented heights.

Jiselle stationed a few administrators there and entrusted them with the remaining small tasks necessary to carry out the development.

The hardest part is that you have already solved it. Simply securing the territory and erecting a defense wall is something that even managers can do.

He had also left the business of using the land for farming to Ferdium, so he would take care of it. He planned to receive only a portion of the produce produced there.

Now that we had secured the necessary resources, it was time to prepare for the next step.

Jiselle said with a satisfied smile.

"Now we return to the territory."

* * *

The Duke's brain, Raoul, known as the 'crippled demon', received a new report. It was about the investigation into Fenris.

The first thing he ordered to be investigated was information on the key figures of the Fenris domain.

Raul values information about people. He believes that he can manipulate people the way he wants only by knowing their tendencies and abilities.

Although they were busy dealing with the pro-Prince faction, they couldn't just leave Fenris, who had emerged as the strongest in the North, alone.

We had to prepare in advance so that we could quickly sweep away any civil war that broke out.

"Hmm… … You figured it out faster than I thought."

One of the staff members bowed his head at Raoul's words.

"Yes, it wasn't hard to find out because they didn't really hide information about the main characters. Some of them were already famous among the people of Yeongji."

"Really? Was it very different from the information Harold gave you?"

The Duke's house already had a report that Harold had researched and submitted, but it was too old information. Also, Harold, who had strong pride, might not have released really important information that he had kept in his hands.

That's why Raul also ordered a reinvestigation.

The staff nodded vigorously as if Raoul's idea was correct.

"Yes. After all, quite a bit of time has passed, and Earl Fenris has recruited new people, so there have been quite a few differences. However… … ."

"however?"

"Oh, no. I think you should read it yourself first."

Raoul opened the first page of the report with an indifferent expression.

"Gillian, the White Lion of Fenris… … ."

From the first chapter, a plausible person's name appeared.

He also knows the news. He is the one who caught Desmond's ankle at Stonehaven Fortress.

A title is something that implies what kind of person he is. It was naturally expected that he would be a very skilled and brave person who would be nicknamed the White Lion.

Indeed, his activities were described in detail in the report.

"Wow… … So you're saying that he was as skilled as Baron Yija? Close enough to be the best swordsman in the North?"

"As far as I can tell, yes. Since Jurgen was killed by Amelia, we can't make a direct comparison, but judging from Baron Hutton's skills, I don't think he's that bad."

"Yes, yes. Baron Hutton was a great knight."

In that case, we can estimate the power of this Gillian to be at the level of the Northern First Sword and deal with him.

If you know their abilities, it becomes easier to respond. You can just send someone who can definitely kill them.

"He was a former mercenary… … He was active in a foreign country. I heard he was quite an excellent mercenary back then… … Hmm, Earl Fenris has found a good person."

In addition, the report included information about when Gillian had been following Giselle and what she had done. It included her job, her personality, and even what kind of food she liked.

There was almost no doubt that that part was quite famous.

At this point, we can say that we have a rough idea of the character Gillian.

Raoul handed over the report with a satisfied expression.

And then his face suddenly distorted when he saw what was written in the next chapter.

[The bribery king of the north, the gambling addict, the storm investigator, the lie that always opens his mouth, the missing truth, the money chaser, the loser's gambler, the gangster and the sworn brother, the lifelong slave… ]

There were so many strange nicknames. Raoul rubbed his eyes several times and looked at the name.

[General Claude.]

"...."

Raoul remained silent for a long time. The aide watched him anxiously.

Now, the place called the strongest in the North is the Fenris Territory. Is the general of a place that is truly called a great territory given this nickname?

Raoul, who came to his senses late, frowned and asked.

"What is this? Is this the nickname given to the commander-in-chief of the Great Territory? Did you know some street thug?"

"Oh, no. The general is certain."

"Are you sure? A person with such a nickname holds the position of General?"

"That's for sure! All the people of the land are shouting that."

"What kind of nonsense is that?"

When Raoul glared at him coldly, the staff member shouted as if he was being treated unfairly.

"There's something fishy about those kids over there!"