Lord of Rot

As Leech left the forge, he specifically requested that the blacksmiths urgently craft a large cauldron.

A cauldron large enough to stew about three to five people.

The blacksmiths accepted the task, trembling. ’A cauldron to stew three to five people? Is he going to stew people?’

Leech couldn’t be bothered with what the blacksmiths were thinking. ’Without a large cauldron, how am I supposed to boil the cocoons?’

「Pigtail Bay.」

The mercenary Trevor, wrapped in a heavy fur coat, bowed to Leech. "My lord, rest assured. I will complete your mission."

"I don’t need you to kill everything on the island," Leech stressed. "But I do need you to scout every corner of it, including under the coastal reefs and the underwater areas in the shallows. If you find any more giant creatures, you don’t have to kill them. Trap them in that cavern we used before. I need to raise them."

Rather than wiping them out, Leech was more hopeful of finding more Giant Crabs. Ideally, he wanted to raise a whole batch of them.

It wouldn’t matter if they couldn’t find any. In that case, he would just introduce livestock himself, but he worried the results wouldn’t be as good as with the island’s native species.

"Yes. Your order is my direction."

Mercenaries were experts at flattery. Kind words cost neither money nor your life, so they were never stingy with them when facing a major client.

But when facing those far beneath them, they would seamlessly switch to disdain and contempt.

"I’ll be awaiting your good news, Trevor."

For this trip to the High Magic Land island, Leech dispatched a total of ten veteran Soldiers to accompany the four-armed Extraordinary mercenary, Trevor. The ten men weren’t there to supervise; with Trevor’s power, it wouldn’t take much effort for him to kill the whole lot of them.

The veterans were a precaution. Should they run into pirates, it was better than having Trevor look after an entire ship’s crew by himself.

As for weapons, Leech had equipped the ship with fused Alchemy Bombs.

Although Betty was strongly opposed to using fuses on alchemical items, she hadn’t forgotten who she was working for and obediently installed them anyway.

With Trevor’s strength—not much less than Leech’s own—and the ability to throw Alchemy Bombs with all four of his hands, the effect would be no less devastating than cannon fire.

The Porcupine was, without a doubt, the most militarily powerful vessel on the high seas. While other ships had to rely on boarding actions, the Porcupine could just blow them up.

After watching the Porcupine set sail and disappear into the distance, Leech turned and headed back to the castle.

Half a day later, Radish left Porcupine Territory on horseback.

His mission was to find Ram to purchase a Lucky Potion, deliver a letter from Leech, and inquire where he could buy seeds for flowering Extraordinary Magic Potions.

By the time Radish reached Iron Stone City, night had completely fallen. Not wanting to disturb his lord’s friend, he decided to rest for the night and buy the potion in the morning. Besides, his horse needed to be fed and rested.

Leech had given him four days, but Radish planned to complete the mission in just two or three.

Just as he reached the house that Porcupine Territory owned in Iron Stone City, a figure rapidly approached.

"Sir!"

"Fanong Jin?"

"Yes, sir. I am Fanong Jin."

"I’m not a lord," Radish said. "I’m just Lord Leech’s squire. You can call me Radish."

Fanong Jin beamed as he tried to press two Silver Moons into Radish’s hand. "Master Radish," he asked, "how is Chuina faring in Porcupine Territory?"

Radish pushed the money away. "Chuina has earned our lord’s trust and been given important work."

"Is that so? That’s good, that’s good," Fanong Jin said. "I have a message I’d like to pass on to Lord Leech."

"A message?"

...

Leech was supervising the chosen women as they boiled the giant cocoons. The massive cocoons were placed in the large cauldron to cook over a hastily constructed stove.

Once the cocoons had softened, the women began to reel the silk. Leech hardly needed to instruct them; some of the women had worked as weavers in other territories and learned the process very quickly.

The fibers of the giant cocoons were not much thicker than those of ordinary ones, but because the cocoons were so large, they were actually easier to boil.

The pupae inside were crushed.

The moths were the size of calves, so one can imagine how large the pupae inside were. Even Leech didn’t have the stomach to hold a pupa nearly half the size of a person and take a bite.

The cooked pupae gave off a rich, protein-heavy aroma.

The crushed pupae were used as feed for Rocket.

Leech guessed that the pupae’s effects were likely similar to those of the Giant Crabs—both had a body-enhancing effect. So, aside from the portion Rocket ate, the rest of the crushed pupae were given to Pitz, Arkke, and Azure.

Unlike Leech, they weren’t picky eaters. They’d had times where they were so hungry they ate dirt, so what was the big deal about eating insects?

Besides, the crushed pupae didn’t look anything like insects; it just smelled delicious and had the texture of soft meat.

"How do you feel?" Leech asked the two women as they ate.

"My body feels a little warm," Pitz said. "It feels like I’ve gotten much stronger."

Arkke whispered, "Me too!"

Azure tilted its head back. "Meeeow~"

"Keep eating it from now on." He had just set their future meal plan.

Azure was just freeloading; it wasn’t as if the cat would be left out.

If they reeled the silk too quickly, Leech would, at his discretion, give some of the pupae to the Soldiers as a supplemental meal. Any small improvement to their physique was a bonus.

He hadn’t expected Radish to be so fast.

He was back in two and a half days.

Inside the castle.

Radish said, "My lord, I spent all twenty of the Jinri you gave me."

"All of it?"

Leech looked at the heavy sacks Radish handed him, asking again in surprise.

The large deerskin pouch contained five smaller bags and a bottle of Lucky Potion.

"Yes," Radish nodded. "Miss Ramsnor said she happened to have a batch of flowering Extraordinary Magic Potions... This is her letter for you."

He placed the letter in Leech’s hand.

He opened the letter. It read: "I’m guessing you must have drunk a bottle of Lucky Potion before sending someone to buy Magic Potion seeds from me."

Leech couldn’t help but crack a smile at the first sentence. ’Is she saying I got a huge bargain?’

He read on.

"Your squire said you were looking for some seeds of flowering Extraordinary Magic Potions. As it happens, I had just collected a few. I’ve written the type of Magic Potion on each bag."

Leech took out one bag. Sure enough, the name of the Magic Potion was written on it: "Bitter Flower."

The letter provided information about the Bitter Flower.

"Legend has it that Bitter Flower was once known as Smile Flower. A princess, abducted by an evil dragon, spent her days weeping. To make her smile again, the dragon brought her Smile Flowers, but her tears turned them into Bitter Flowers. This is a highly adaptable Extraordinary Magic Potion. Its petals can be used to make potions that cause intense emotional fluctuations. It sells well among the nobility, and while it’s no match for Ji Lan, it doesn’t cause mental damage."

Leech set down the bag of Bitter Flower seeds and continued reading the letter.

"Snake Scale Flower is an Extraordinary Magic Potion that blooms with dense petals resembling a snake’s scales. It’s also not picky about its environment—just don’t sow the seeds in a blizzard. The Snake Scale Flower is quite beautiful, and its roots are an excellent material for taming beasts. Fowl, in particular, are easily attracted and tamed by it."

Leech found the bag of Snake Scale Flower. ’Looks like if I want to grow this flower, I’ll have to protect it to keep fowl from digging it up.’

"I heard you’re making soap? I bet you’ll be needing Miss Long Hair."

A simple introduction, but Leech already knew of Miss Long Hair. To be precise, many perfumes favored by noblewomen were scented with it.

It was a peculiar flower with petals that were denser and longer than its leaves. It gave off a strong fragrance, and its high yield made it a perfect ingredient for perfumes.

"Silver Fern. Although its flowers are small, the entire plant emits a silvery-white light from the moment it breaks through the soil. It is more beautiful than many flowers, but compared to its true purpose, its beauty is just a minor bonus. You may think five Jinri is expensive, but I’m sure you’ll be very satisfied once you learn of its effects."

Leech took out the bag of Silver Fern. ’This one bag costs five Jinri?’

"Silver Fern can be made into an ointment to treat most external wounds, whether from corrosion or simple swelling. It can also be ingested to calm the mind, helping you overcome many external mental disturbances."

’An ingredient for Calmative Agents.’

"The last one is called Placenta. I have some clients who wish to purchase stillborns, and the Placenta plant is the main ingredient."

Leech turned to the next page of the letter.

He knew of the Placenta plant—a very sinister Extraordinary Magic Potion that looked just like its namesake.

"If you’d like to buy a stillborn, you can also place a custom order with me. Stillborns can cause a person to rapidly generate blood. That one client of mine with a blood-craving affliction absolutely adores them."

Leech muttered, "I’m afraid I won’t be having any interest in that."

At the end of the letter, Ram had written emphatically: "Of course, I must stress one more thing. The cultivation of Extraordinary Magic Potions is very demanding on the environment. If your planting fails, it can only mean the environment wasn’t good enough—though I myself don’t currently have a suitable place to grow them either."

Leech put down the letter. ’I have a suitable environment for planting.’

He had been hesitant about where to plant them, but now there was no need to be. He would plant them on the High Magic Land island.

"You’ve done well, Radish," Leech said to his squire, who was waiting at his side.

Although it was clear Ram had pushed these seeds on him, treating him like a sucker to get rid of her dead stock, Leech actually had the perfect environment to grow them. Where others would fail, he had a high probability of success.

"My lord, I have more news to report."

"Oh? Go on."

"Yes," Radish said, looking up. "Fanong Jin told me that a large force of Mercenaries had gathered in Iron Stone City and departed two days ago."

"A large force?"

"Yes. About two thousand men."

Leech frowned. Baron Spark wasn’t the warring type. ’What is he doing with so many mercenaries?’

"Do you know where they went?"

Radish nodded. "They went to Iron Valley."

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