To the Golda Plateau (1)

Calix glanced sideways at the chief administrator's status window.

'Strict advisor? That means he's a stubborn old coot. If it weren't for his internal affairs stats, I'd replace him right now.'

Calix smacked his lips in regret.

Garod, the chief administrator, had not only solid ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠skills but also a good reputation, with many vassals who respected and supported him.

Getting rid of him recklessly could backfire.

'But the others are different.'

From the moment the vassals entered the grand hall, Calix had analyzed their status windows and conversations, confirming each one's abilities and political factions.

He planned to purge the hostile faction using this assassination and information leak incident, and even sift through the neutrals to separate the wheat from the chaff.

'They haven't really helped me seize power anyway, so I'll pit them in a loyalty contest and keep only the survivors. Heh heh.'

Overall, their abilities were decent, but that also meant none were irreplaceably exceptional.

The vassals shivered at the sight of Calix's cold smile.

It was clear that staying passive would land them under the blade of purge.

"Young Master Calix. I...!"

"Allow me to introduce myself first! I am...!"

"Hey, you! Did you just push me?"

"What? How dare a third-class nobody talk back to a second-class official?"

"Hmph! You're just a development department shit-shoveler. Go dig some dirt."

"You bastard!"

Calix found the scuffle unfolding right before his eyes oddly pleasing.

"Hahaha! Everyone, please calm down. We have plenty of time ahead."

While getting acquainted with the vassals, the day slipped by quickly.

Calix finally lay down in bed late at night.

The unfamiliar sheets enveloped his body in soft comfort.

He truly felt the reality of being pulled into the game world.

"How did this even happen?"

As he slowly traced his memories, the past thirty-odd years of his life flashed through his mind at high speed.

The thrill of starting the game with massive sponsorships.

And the emptiness that followed after grinding for so long to clear Heroes Destiny.

Maybe that's why.

Honestly, he had wanted to enter the game world.

"But that couldn't have been my real wish..."

As he muttered with resentment toward the divine entity that had sent him here, a line from the prologue suddenly came to mind.

"No way... Did it actually grant my wish? When I cleared the game, I said I wanted to go to the Eren Continent—did it take that as my wish?"

It was absurd, but that wasn't the point right now.

"So, if I clear this world, I can make another wish?"

His heart suddenly pounded.

He still half-suspected it was a dream, but sitting idle wouldn't change anything.

"Alright. I'll clear it. This game, this world!"

With his mind made up, the first thing Calix did was open the world map.

"I remember most of a county-sized area, but this place feels unfamiliar for some reason."

He needed to pinpoint exactly where this territory was located.

The moment he manipulated the interface to open the map:

A gasp escaped Calix's lips.

"Hah!"

What unfolded before his eyes was no ordinary map.

It was a treasure map detailing every ruin, dungeon, and landmark in Heroes Destiny.

No matter how long he'd played, Calix couldn't remember everything perfectly.

At best, maybe 10% of it.

But now, he didn't need to.

"This is... jackpot. The second-playthrough perk that no one's seen because nobody's reached the ending—all map markers revealed! And there are even ones I didn't know about? Heh heh heh... Kuhahaha!"

Calix rolled around on the wide bed, basking in joy.

Combining his knowledge of Eren Continent history with this map was basically a cheat code.

"Wait, what year is it now?"

Since Slowly Creeping Death hadn't been phased out yet, it had to be the very early game.

He checked the info tab for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the exact year.

Only then did Calix realize why "Szczecin" had felt unfamiliar.

The main story of Heroes Destiny kicked off in year 294, meaning this territory was fated to vanish within five years.

Come to think of it, he'd vaguely heard of Szczecin somewhere.

It was a place name referring to a pitifully small, rundown backwater—not fitting for a county.

"Hmm, the territory's finances look pretty bad..."

He recalled Russell mentioning they were so strapped they had to dismiss even his personal maids.

That's why he'd had to drink Laila's poison knowingly, despite suspecting it.

The territory he'd barely survived to claim was doomed to disappear in five years? Unacceptable.

Calix first checked the territory info via the status window.

After reviewing the territory status, Calix was speechless.

It felt like poring over the books of a company that went bust during the IMF crisis.

'Should I just siphon off what's left and flee to another country?'

The thought crossed his mind, if only briefly.

But viewing a territory as merely a tax farm would be a grave mistake.

In the era of Heroes Destiny, no matter how talented you were, low status meant nobles ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠skimmed most of the value.

Moreover, the influence and prestige of nobles with territories versus those without were worlds apart.

It was a treasure everyone coveted but could almost never acquire without inheritance by blood.

That was a territory.

"As expected of Heroes Destiny. Crises just keep coming."

Calix shook his head at the relentless madness pushing him onward, but he wasn't disappointed.

"Heh heh, but now I'm on my second playthrough. Not like the first, where I started as a nameless adventurer and charged in blind."

He began meticulously analyzing the given information.

'Farmland taxes are standard compared to other territories. Defense budget spiked temporarily due to compensation for dead knights and soldiers last year—no issue there.'

After digging through records back ten years, Calix pinpointed two problems.

One: Tariffs plummeted after trade with the Madrosa Desert Kingdom beyond the plateau halted.

Two: The crushing interest burden.

"What the hell did they borrow so much for? The annual interest exceeds yearly revenue... This is insane."

Digging deeper yielded only stats—no details.

To save this hard-won territory, he'd need to do some legwork.

'Information, huh... Right, there's that pig bastard locked in the underground dungeon. Squeeze him for intel.'

The next morning, Calix headed to the dungeon early.

As a modern soul, he'd imagined a grim medieval dungeon: dim stone cells with iron bars.

Reality hit before he even entered—a stench assaulted his nose, and crude logs served as bars.

It wasn't even fully underground—more like a half-basement.

No surprise; the lord's castle lacked proper flush toilets, let alone sewage for a dungeon.

Calix held his breath as he walked the corridor.

The burly, bandit-like warden stuck close, rubbing his hands nervously.

The shrunken posture of the massive man was oddly cute.

Calix recalled he was the one who'd cozied up to the corrupt sheriff.

He could fire him outright, but opted for a different approach.

"It's come to light that the sheriff was a traitor. If there are unjustly imprisoned inmates, we should give them a chance to clear their names. What do you think?"

"Q-quite right, heh heh."

"Of course, those who didn't serve full sentences need re-investigation too. I'll leave that to you. Report results to Regent Viscount Russell."

"Of course, my lord!"

He didn't flinch or hesitate at Calix's order to dig up dirt on the suspended sheriff.

Calix confirmed the man's disposition: quick to submit to the strong, as per his status.

'No need to toss a loyal dog. Even if it's shallow loyalty that lasts only while I hold power. Heh heh.'

Calix smirked at the fawning warden.

"I'm not the lord yet. Mind your titles."

"S-sorry! Young Master!"

"But how will you handle the tasks I assigned? Manpower and budget aren't abundant."

The warden's eyes darted before he cautiously asked,

"Extend the prisoners' labor hours?"

"Tsk tsk. Fines from the lightly guilty in this incident should cover it—allocate some. However!"

Calix scanned the warden up and down with a sharp gaze.

"Don't squander the budget or take bribes to add unfit prisoners to the list... Never get caught. Ever."

"N-no way I'd do that!"

"If there've been 'mistakes' so far, just square the books. I won't make an issue of it. But be careful from now on."

"Heh heh, no mistakes so far, and none in the future! Don't worry!"

Calix ignored the obvious lie.

He had no intention of forcing integrity.

This was just a warning to keep it moderate.

Too clean, and they'd be a headache.

Loyal? Fine. Disloyal? Hard to find leverage to axe them.

Now in power, he tasted the same bitterness he'd cursed politicians for back home.

But this was Eren Continent, not Earth.

A world too different for modern ideals.