The Bladewin Family’s Grim Reception
The Bladewin family was stunned by the arrival of these irritating guests.
“So … that man is the monster tamer and demon worshiper?”
“Yes, Lord Bladewin.”
Gain and Andersen stepped forward as their representatives to give Alfred a full account of the situation.
Alfred sighed as he looked out the window at the massive five monster corpses lying there and the man tied up in front of them—Weco.
*Why does it always have to be Robon who ends up in the middle of this kind of mess …*
The Lostwood had already been swarming with monsters, and the recent surge of military funding had drained their treasury dry.
Facing these monstrous beasts in person made him feel dizzy.
“We request support for mana fuel and transportation vehicles.”
“Gain Bladewin. The Bladewin family and the Robon Bladewin—how long has it been since you’ve had to ask for help so easily?”
This reaction was exactly what Gain had expected.
The wall between the two families had thinned a little thanks to Robon and Eryn lately, but it was still thick.
Gain himself didn’t want to ask for help right now either. But he had no choice.
“It’s not a casual request. When we return to the main family, we’ll make sure you receive proper compensation.”
“Compensation decided by our side?”
Gain wasn’t unaware of what that meant.
“If both families agree, it can be done.”
“Tsk.”
“Have you heard any rumors about the small farms being abandoned?”
Alfred’s gaze shifted to Andersen.
The man looked like an ordinary middle-aged fellow—balding excepted.
*Is this the 6th-circle mage I heard about?*
Even if the sudden appearance was suspicious, 6th-circle mages were rare.
Especially in the Mardin Principality, which focused so heavily on swords.
Only two 6th-circle mages existed in the royal court. One had already retired from the front lines, and the other was no longer conducting magical research.
At this age, reaching 6th-circle was a clear sign of exceptional talent.
“Where are you from?”
Alfred asked without answering his own question.
Andersen’s expression remained perfectly calm despite the obvious slight.
“I’m from the Empire.”
“I see.”
Alfred didn’t press for more background. Everyone had their own story, after all.
Besides, he had no idea how many inventions Robon Bladewin would create beside him in the future.
Bad relations were never a good idea.
“I heard about the talk from the farm. The slash-and-burn farmers are disappearing, apparently. We’ve already deployed soldiers to deal with it.”
That part came straight from Eryn, who had been living and farming with the farmers lately.
“That’s exactly because of that demon worshiper and his monsters.”
Alfred had expected it the moment the monsters arrived.
“You mean those guys?”
“Yes.”
“How can you be sure? It could have been some other monster or beast.”
“Investigate the slash-and-burn village. Compare the tracks with these monsters and you’ll know for sure.”
Alfred nodded.
“Good. We’ll provide the support—free of charge. But you must report any information you gather about them. The Bladewin family has suffered far too much direct damage at their hands.”
Alfred’s eyelid twitched faintly. How much damage had those damned monsters caused him this year and last?
He would have loved to scour the entire Valces Mountain Range and wipe them out completely.
“Understood.”
The two men finished their negotiation and headed toward the rest of the group.
BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!
“How is it? Isn’t it amazing?!”
“WHOAAA!!! THIS IS INCREDIBLE!!!”
Wendy was spinning wildly around the grand training field, carrying Selena on her back.
Eryn had borrowed another bike and was driving it with equal excitement. Some of the Bladewin knights who had come after hearing the rumors were now borrowing Derik’s and his subordinates’ bikes to race as well.
“This is the life!! Way better than cars, right?!”
“Thanks to Eryn-nim, I got to ride one too! I’m so grateful!!”
“With this, I could charge straight into enemy lines and escape alone!! How stable is the turning?! How come it feels so steady?!”
The knights assigned to follow Eryn—Gast and Sernia—were also marveling out loud as they raced their Iron Vanguards.
Seeing something and riding it were two completely different worlds.
After actually experiencing it, the true power of these bikes became crystal clear.
The higher the knight’s cultivation, the more they appreciated it.
SCREEEEEEEEEEECH!!!
Eryn braked sharply and executed a perfect ‘G’ turn.
Gast and Sernia drifted smoothly to a stop right behind him.
“What?! What kind of reckless stunt is that?!”
Andersen’s eyes widened as he rushed over and grabbed the three of them.
“Why, why?!”
“This way the tires will wear out instantly and the lifespan will be over before you know it! If you want to show off, buy your own damn bikes!”
“Ah, I’m sorry, Master Andersen.”
“I didn’t realize either. My apologies.”
Gast and Sernia scratched their heads and apologized awkwardly.
Eryn just grinned sheepishly.
“I’ll pay you back.”
“You think money solves everything? We don’t even have stock right now.”
“Exactly! These tires break the moment you make a tiny mistake—do they really last long?”
Jack grinned at the perfect opportunity and asked.
Andersen’s brows furrowed as he looked at him.
*What nonsense is this?*
“If you ride them like this, you’ll need to replace the tires every six months. But if you ride them carefully, a whole year is no problem.”
“S-six months …? You just said they wear out right away!”
“That’s what ‘quickly’ means. I was talking about the Raven Merchant Guild’s front-line commander, remember?”
“Yes! My name is Jack.”
“Why do you want to see our lab director?”
“The lab director …?”
“I’m Andersen, the magic advisor and head of the technology research and development department at RMEL.”
Andersen opened his mouth in disbelief and bowed at a 90-degree angle.
“My goodness! Nice to meet you, Department Head Andersen! I had no idea you were such a distinguished figure!”
“Hello. I’m Selena Kaders, the leader of the Pacific Merchant Guild.”
“Pleased to meet you. I’m the trade representative of the Lordia family, …”
Along with Selena, there was the Lordia family’s trade representative as well.
“I’m Rom Hummel of the Silver Mane Knight Order. This bike is incredibly fascinating …”
Even the knights who had come from Lordia.
In just one day, their view of the Mardin Principality—something they had previously dismissed as a backwater—had completely flipped.
That realization.
*RMEL must be at least a target guild … no, actually, a research facility on the level of a united city. There’s no other way it could produce something as ridiculous as these bikes. If the director teams up with Robon, the Raven Merchant Guild could become a target guild overnight!*
*Robon really does live in a world beyond this one. Just how brilliant is he?*
*These Bladewin knights ride these things around … If our Silver Mane Knight Order fought them … I can only imagine how terrifying it would be.*
Their misconceptions were growing bigger and bigger.
*
“Ah, why is my ear itching? Could it be I’m too tired to sleep?”
“That’s probably someone badmouthing the young master. Hahaha! Looks like the young master has made quite a few enemies.”
“Enemies …”
Penley had thrown out the words as a joke, but it made him think deeply about the meaning of that single word.
He had always believed he lived a normal life, focused only on his research, without harming anyone.
This life and the previous one.
But in the previous life he had died from an unexplained accident. Had someone tried to kill him? If so, was it because of a grudge?
Was there someone in this life who wanted revenge because he had a grudge against him?
*Suddenly I’m thinking about all sorts of weird things.*
He shook his head to clear his mind of these distracting thoughts.
Maybe it was because he was sleepy. He never usually had such strange thoughts.
“Why are you asking?”
“Nothing. Are we here?”
“Yes.”
The southeastern part of Iron Hall.
Basically, Iron Hall was built to protect the Bladewin territory from the Karnas Mountains to the north, with the city itself forming below it.
As you climbed higher, you reached the wealthy nobles and officials; as you descended, you found the poor.
Iron Hall was officially divided into four districts:
Northwest district—**Ironforge**.
Northeast district—**Higher**.
Southwest district—**Steel Mark**.
Southeast district—**Duskrow**.
Ironforge got its name because it was the heart of ironwork, home to most blacksmiths, weapon shops, and armor stores.
Higher was where the upper nobles lived, featuring grand estates and government buildings.
Steel Mark was where most ordinary citizens lived—small workshops, general stores, markets, and the like.
The last district, Duskrow, was exactly where Robon had come now.
Narrow alleys and old, rundown buildings. A poor neighborhood where crime and chaos were frequent and black-market dealings were common.
It was the inevitable result of lacking infrastructure despite rapid industrial growth.
Because of the mines, the Bladewin family’s technicians and miners had everything covered, but the rest of the population worked as simple laborers and the economic gap widened.
Creating jobs was essential for the city’s prosperity.
That was one reason Robon had been thinking about sewer systems.
Large-scale construction needed a lot of manpower.
“… Ugh. Yeah, the stench is really bad.”
The deeper they went, the more disgusting the smell became. The narrow alleys made walking difficult, and the muddy, trash-strewn ground made it slippery and hard to step on.
“But if I stick a rag in my nose, it’s fine.”
Penley had two brown rags stuffed tightly into his nostrils. When had he put those in? If he found something good, he should share it too—don’t keep everything to yourself?
“Why are you asking? You’re not actually planning to do that, are you? Come on, you have some dignity left.”
This kid was deliberately doing this. Deliberately. It was obvious he was teasing him on purpose.
“Hmph. First, let’s look at the sewer system.”
Open trenches ran along both sides of the roads in Iron Hall. As a result, rainwater and surface runoff all flowed into them and eventually out to the external rivers and swamps.
Nature would take care of it, right?
They didn’t even consider that their drinking water all came from there.
It was partly for that reason that Robon had come up with the water purifier.
If anything went wrong, they would all get food poisoning and suffer.
“The drainage system is completely wrong.”
The city’s layout, slope, and existing sewage facilities all needed to be considered before the entire drainage system was redesigned.
Besides, open trenches were hard to maintain and would only lead to the same problems again. A closed system underneath the roads was necessary.
“Penley.”
“Yes?”
“Do you know who designed Iron Hall?”
“Of course! It was Gerad Stokes!”
As expected, he was efficient. Asking a question and getting an immediate, mechanical answer was very satisfying.
“Oh! Anes? Can we meet him?”
“No? We can’t.”
“Why? Is he somewhere else? I’ll go see him. I have a carriage.”
“You can’t ride in the carriage.”
“What? Did you go to the opposite side of the continent to the Hibernia Kingdom?”
“No, he’s dead.”
“… What?”
Robon stared at Penley, stunned.
Penley tilted his head curiously at him.
The silence lasted about five seconds.
Penley quickly averted his gaze.
*This brat did it on purpose!*
“But the young master is still alive. In Iron Hall.”
The pushing and pulling was on an expert level. People really couldn’t be judged by one look.
At first he had thought he was just a talkative guy.
“An architect?”
“Yes. I know where he lives. Shall I guide you?”
“Take me there right now.”