Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: The Adjutant's Whisper
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“Ah, it’s nothing special.”
“What does it say?”
“This temple was apparently a repository for magical data from the Grand Academy, Elkarim. They say it was moved here and sealed for the purpose of studying demons.”
“What kind of academy studies demons?”
“Don’t ask me. That’s what it says.”
“Fair enough.”
“It seems this area was where the Grand Academy of a magical civilization was once located.”
“Hmm.”
Carlyle considered this for a moment.
The magical civilization, Hadiyat?
It was a civilization never even mentioned in the game [Overlord].
‘This is an unexpected variable.’
A civilization from five thousand years ago…
“Young Master.”
“Yes?”
“How about reporting to His Grace the Grand Duke and proceeding with an excavation?”
“An excavation?”
Carlyle frowned at Maranello’s question.
“What do you expect to find inside?”
“It is certainly dangerous, but it could also be an opportunity to advance Decaron’s magical standards by several levels.”
“It’s true our magic is pathetic.”
Pathetic was a kind way of putting it; the Sigmund family’s aptitude for magic was practically nonexistent.
In the family’s history, they had never produced a single mage, and it was no exaggeration to say that their vassals were mostly knights, with almost no mages among them.
Only swordsmanship, and more swordsmanship.
As a family focused solely on martial prowess, it was inevitable that their magical standards would fall behind.
Compared to the Belmark family, renowned for its magic among the twelve families outside the royal line, the Sigmunds were no better than monkeys.
“I’ll mention it to my father.”
“A wise decision, Young Master.”
“Is there anything else to see?”
Carlyle asked Borodin.
“No, Young Master. There is nothing else of note.”
“Then let’s get out of here. I’m feeling a bit suffocated after being stuck in this mine for two days.”
“As you wish, Young Master.”
Carlyle’s party then boarded a cart and headed out of the mine.
* * *
That afternoon.
A force of over five hundred soldiers and the Sigmund family’s Royal Knight Order visited the Firehammer Tribe’s village.
“Unbelievable.”
Grand Duke Guntram looked around, unable to hide his astonishment.
He had never dreamed that a village of dwarves existed in the Merel Mountains.
“You’re here.”
“What happened?”
“I believe it was in the report. Didn’t you come because you received it?”
“That’s true.”
“That’s all there is to it.”
“I see.”
“Ah, and this is…”
Carlyle introduced Borodin to Grand Duke Guntram.
“It is an honor to meet you. I am Borodin, chief of the Firehammer Tribe. I am indebted to your son.”
“I am Guntram van Sigmund, Lord of Decaron.”
“I offer you my boundless gratitude for coming to the aid of our tribe.”
“Think nothing of it.”
“Henceforth, our Firehammer Tribe will cooperate with you fully and serve you for generations to come.”
“Hmm?”
“We have incurred a great debt to your second son, so it is only right that we do so. We dwarves are not a race that forgets a kindness.”
Uncharacteristically, Grand Duke Guntram was utterly bewildered.
He had never imagined he would one day receive thanks from dwarves, and to think the reason was none other than his second son, the world’s most infamous scoundrel…
“I am at a loss, as I do not yet know the full details, but I understand. From this day forward, our Decaron and your Firehammer Tribe will have a friendly relationship and work together.”
Though dazed, Grand Duke Guntram treated Borodin and the Firehammer Tribe with the utmost respect.
After all, being able to cooperate with the dwarves meant the potential for enormous economic and technological advancement.
The dwarves were born artisans.
They were a race possessing outstanding technical skills and labor in nearly every field—metallurgy, alchemy, magic, craftsmanship, architecture, and so on. Receiving their help was nothing short of a tremendous blessing.
“Sir Maranello.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Grand Duke Guntram whispered to Maranello.
“Is all of this truly his doing?”
“Is there any doubt?”
“To be honest… I find it utterly unbelievable.”
“They say a person changes after a near-death experience, do they not?”
“So the saying goes.”
“Perhaps that is the case with Young Master Carlyle.”
“Hmm.”
“Do not doubt him, Your Grace. It is only right that you praise your son for his accomplishments.”
“I understand.”
Grand Duke Guntram trusted Maranello completely, so he accepted Carlyle’s achievements.
Besides, having seen it with his own two eyes, he had no choice but to acknowledge the truth.
“You’ve done well.”
Grand Duke Guntram approached Carlyle and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“I never expected this. You’ve accomplished something remarkable. Thanks to you, Decaron can finally breathe a little easier.”
“It was nothing.”
Carlyle gave a slight nod as if it were no big deal, then showed him a map marked with the locations of the ore veins.
“This is where we are now, and this is the gold mine. And this is where a large deposit of mana coal is located.”
“What are you getting at?”
“I heard the price of mana stones has risen sharply. And that the royal family is demanding more.”
“That is correct.”
“How about replacing the mana stones used for heating with mana coal, and then selling the rest or using it to pay the taxes to the royal family?”
“…!”
“The deposits seem quite substantial. I think it would be good to switch completely to mana coal for heating, not just for us but for export to other territories as well. A rough calculation shows…”
Carlyle picked up a twig and began to list figures in the dirt: Decaron’s mana stone production, the taxes owed to the royal family, the amount of mana stones used for heating each winter, and the estimated deposits and production rate of mana coal.
“As you can see, we can completely replace the mana stones for heating with mana coal. Given the size of the deposits, we could export to other territories and the royal family and still not have to burn mana stones for at least two hundred years. This would save an incredible amount of mana stones consumed every winter… Why are you looking at me like that?”
Carlyle frowned at Grand Duke Guntram.
“You.”
“Yes?”
“Are you truly my son?”
“…”
“If you are not…”
Carlyle’s heart nearly stopped, but he gritted his teeth and decided to be brazen.
“It would be better if I weren’t, wouldn’t it? Then I wouldn’t have to bear the responsibilities and duties of a Sigmund.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Feeling he had gone too far, Grand Duke Guntram apologized to Carlyle.
“If I offended you, I apologize. It’s just that you seem so different, you’re almost a stranger to me.”
“So you don’t like it?”
Carlyle said, his expression turning venomous with a twitch of his lips.
“Should I go back to my old ways?”
“Are you threatening me?”
“Of course not. I’m trying to live a quiet life, but you don’t seem to approve.”
“That’s not it.”
“Then from now on…”
“I will be careful not to say such things again. Is that sufficient?”
“Hmph. We’ll see.”
“…”
Grand Duke Guntram squeezed his eyes shut.
*Twitch…*
The slight tremor at the corner of his eye made it clear he was desperately holding back.
“You have it hard, Your Grace.”
“I always knew having no children was a blessing, but I never imagined it would be to this extent.”
Grand Duke Guntram replied to Maranello’s whisper, his teeth clenched in frustration.
But even a man like Grand Duke Guntram had no choice but to exercise patience in the face of his scoundrel of a second son’s threats.
If Carlyle reverted to his old ways and started wreaking havoc again, Guntram might just become a father who killed his own child with his own hands…
“Should I continue, or not?”
“Continue.”
“Let’s start by rapidly increasing mana coal production. There’s the tax issue, and the royal family must have a reason for increasing its mana stone reserves.”
“Hmm.”
“You never know. This winter could be the harshest in history, and hundreds of thousands could freeze to death.”
“Are you referring to an abnormal climate shift?”
“Yes.”
“And that’s why the royal family is increasing its mana stone reserves?”
“That’s the gist of it. Though I can’t be certain.”
“I will consider it favorably.”
“Yes.”
Grand Duke Guntram did not make a hasty decision, and Carlyle didn’t find that strange.
He was the Lord of Decaron.
He couldn’t simply buy and sell mana stones based on the word of a mere youth.
* * *
“This is too much.”
Alicia was displeased with everything.
She had come to Decaron as part of the Lauren family’s advance party ahead of the victory celebration.
The royal family had stepped in to mediate after the incident where Carlyle was falsely accused, and the verdict was that the Lauren family had to show a gesture of goodwill to the Sigmunds.
It was only because of the royal family’s suggestion—a threat, really—that the Lauren family, bitter rivals and sworn enemies of the Sigmunds, were attending the victory celebration at all.
But upon arriving, she found that the northerners, the Sigmunds, completely ignored her.
It was one thing for Carlyle, the party directly involved in the incident, to do so, but who would have thought that Grand Duke Guntram, the Lord of Decaron and head of the Sigmund family, would refuse to even meet with her and give her the cold shoulder?
Thanks to him, Alicia was forced to remain cooped up in the quarters the Sigmund family had provided.
And that wasn’t all.
The servants, maids, and even the soldiers thoroughly ignored and avoided her and the knights from the Lauren family, treating them as if they were invisible.
They answered questions curtly, avoided eye contact, and on the rare occasion their gazes did meet, they would only glare with eyes full of hostility.
The problem was that Alicia couldn’t even voice her complaints.
For her, Decaron was the heart of enemy territory; one wrong move could literally cost her her head.
Of course, the Sigmunds weren’t fools and wouldn’t neglect her protection, but…
‘Was it a mistake to volunteer to come? I should have stayed away.’
Alicia bitterly regretted her decision to lead the advance party.
‘If only someone would talk to me, I could actually do something.’
Just as Alicia was lamenting her situation, a voice called out.
“My lady.”
“Speak.”
“Sir Jeffrey requests an audience with you.”
“Jeffrey… the Grand Duke’s adjutant?”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Let him in.”
Jeffrey was Grand Duke Guntram’s adjutant, a knight renowned for his formidable martial prowess and strategic mind, despite his young age.
“Welcome, Sir Jeffrey.”
“I greet the young lady of the Lauren family.”
Jeffrey gave Alicia a slight bow.
“So, what brings you here? The northerners all seem to treat me like I have the plague.”
“I have come to deliver a message from His Grace, the Grand Duke.”
“What did the Grand Duke say?”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Please speak. I am listening.”
“Could you please have those around us withdraw for a moment?”
“Very well.”
“You all may leave us for a moment as well.”
Jeffrey dismissed not only the Lauren family’s knights but also the knights and servants of Decaron.
“Now, I will deliver His Grace’s message.”
After checking several times to ensure they were alone, Jeffrey began to speak.
“My lady.”
“Go on.”
“You are welcome, now that you are here, but he asks that you please conduct yourself with restraint.”
“To deliver such a simple message…”
Just then.
*Ssk,* Jeffrey leaned in and whispered in Alicia’s ear.
“This is a message from the Grand Duke, but it is also a message from your brother.”
“My brother…?”
“It is a message from your brother, Young Master Caldor.”
“…!”
“I apologize for being blunt, but I can assure you, my lady, there is nothing you can accomplish here in Decaron.”
“No way.”
Alicia turned to look at Jeffrey, her expression one of disbelief.
‘N-No way. Grand Duke Guntram’s adjutant is one of my brother’s men…’
Alicia felt a jolt, as if she had been struck hard on the back of the head.