Lord of Rot

「The next morning.」

Steven and Agnes bid a hasty farewell to their unconscious "captives."

Their speeding carriage brushed against the leaves by the roadside, scattering dewdrops.

The "captives" they spoke of were no simple matter, but that had nothing to do with Leech. He had too much on his plate to worry about anything else.

However, the incident also served as a wake-up call for Leech. His territory was very close to Burning City. If a conflict were to erupt, Iron Valley would undoubtedly bear the brunt of it.

He also needed to keep a careful eye on the situation at Three-fork River. ’Could Hawke Wood, who’s been lying low his whole life, be planning to make a show of force for once? Or is he looking for a new master before the Duke of Shining Sun falls?’

Leech could only speculate.

The *Porcupine* carried the nobles away from Pigtail Bay. Onboard, the ladies were still chatting cheerfully. It seemed their trip to Porcupine Territory had left a good impression on them.

Leech stood on the dock, watching the ship depart.

Having seen off the most important group of guests, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He had spared no expense, giving each of them an exquisitely crafted handkerchief. He didn’t expect them to sing his praises, only that they would feel indebted and refrain from speaking ill of him in the future.

He spent a while longer tidying up.

The contingent from Green Forest Castle arrived at the main gate. It would still take them more than half a month to return to Waterfall Land.

That morning, Leech had prepared a number of local specialties from Porcupine Territory for them to take back. It wasn’t the size of the gift, but the thought that counted.

"This is far enough,"

Bode turned and said to Leech, "If you need anything, feel free to write to me at any time."

Leech replied bluntly, "No need to write. I need something right now."

"Ahem," Bode coughed dryly. "Writing is better. I have to get on the road."

He quickly turned to flee, vaulting onto his horse’s back.

Pretending he hadn’t heard Leech was the best way to handle the situation.

Stacy had also changed into light leather armor and trousers. Her golden hair was tied back in a simple ponytail, and a longsword hung at her waist.

’Leech had always maintained his opinion: the charm Stacy exuded as a Saint Knight in her armor was unlike that of any other woman he knew.’

She looked at Leech and said, "I fondly remember the time I beat you until you cried."

"Next time we meet, I won’t hold back. I’ll be the one making you cry," Leech retorted.

Stacy replied earnestly, "I’ll use my full strength, too!"

The two locked eyes, a murderous glint seemingly in their gazes.

In the distance, Lady Water Hyacinth watched them nervously. Meanwhile, Bode, on horseback, wore a wicked grin, as if he were genuinely hoping they would fight again.

The next moment, Leech and Stacy broke into simultaneous smiles.

"I can help you anytime," Stacy said. "Including right now."

Leech nodded. "If I ever need help, I’ll be sure to call on you first, Knight Stacy."

"Remember your words!" Stacy stressed, then turned and got back into her carriage.

From a distance, Lady Water Hyacinth lifted her skirts and gave Leech a small nod. Then she turned to Stacy and said, "Help me up."

An arm shot out, grabbed Lady Water Hyacinth by the wrist, and yanked her into the carriage.

SLAM! The carriage door shut, and Lady Water Hyacinth’s complaint could be heard from within: "You’re hurting me!"

As the sound of hooves faded into the distance, Leech averted his gaze.

’The troublesome birthday banquet is finally over. Now I can pack up and get ready to head to Iron Valley to oversee its development.’

Surprisingly, Becky Simon, who he had expected to cause some trouble, had been unexpectedly well-behaved.

She had acted as if she were merely attending a normal banquet—dressed appropriately and not overtly exuding her charm, just like any other ordinary noble lady.

Leech had expected her to make some kind of move, like relentlessly trying to seduce him, but nothing of the sort had happened. It was as if she had only attended the banquet out of obligation.

It made all his mental preparations for naught.

Thinking about it now, he concluded there was only one possible explanation.

’Becky Simon must have realized that, with two territories to my name, I’m no longer that minor Baron from before. No one can ignore my rise, and I’m not someone she can afford to provoke anymore.’

...

Leech flipped through the files submitted by the young noblemen.

’Utterly average.’

He only gave them that much credit because they could read and write.

In fact, aside from being less skilled at bragging over drinks than Kro Camel, they were about the same in every other respect.

Suddenly having twelve Kro Camels on his hands reminded Leech of when he had first met Kro last year. Back then, his daily thoughts weren’t on how to best utilize him, but on how to convince him to leave.

If Kro hadn’t, by a strange twist of fate, distinguished himself in the operation to take down Wado Eighteen, Leech would never have allowed him to return.

Now, Kro was at least somewhat useful, teaching literacy at the night school and sharing his knowledge of the outside world.

But the night school didn’t need this many noble teachers.

This was far from what Leech had envisioned; he had to find a way to make these men useful.

’At least they have the drive to succeed, unlike Kro, who’s such a slacker.’

’I’ll know what they’re made of once we get to Iron Valley and put them to the test.’

「Two days later.」

Leech had been keeping a close eye on the calendar.

His appointment with Lady Jie Lin was drawing near, and he couldn’t just let Iron Valley develop untamed. And so, the *Iron Valley* set off from Pigtail Bay, bound for its rightful destination.

It was fully loaded with craftsmen, the city hall’s first batch of experienced apprentices, the twelve young noblemen, the first shipment of Scale Armor, and Pitz with her menagerie of animal friends.

——Iron Valley!

The several days of bumpy sea travel were as tedious as one might expect. The one point of interest was that Leech had brought the Horse-headed Eagle, Rocket, with him.

"Lower the sails! We’re hugging the coast!" shouted Lang, the Captain of the *Iron Valley*.

From the deck, one could see a majestic castle perched atop the cliffs on shore.

The sheer, steep cliffs stood like a colossal wall, holding back the sea and guarding the continent.

"SCREEE—!"

Rocket circled the *Iron Valley*. The people on board had grown accustomed to the sight and, aside from the occasional praise for its divine beauty, didn’t say much else.

Still, someone would cry out in alarm each time Rocket flew by. The creature loved playing minor pranks, and the wind from its powerful wingbeats was strong enough to knock a slender child off their feet.

Everyone knew they were coming to Iron Valley to take on the duty of pioneers, and they all felt the pressure. If they did well, rewards and honor would surely follow. But they were all afraid of failure.

Captain Lang said, "My lord, the water is deep along the Iron Valley coast as well, suitable for mooring small to medium-sized ships."

"How does it compare to Pigtail Bay?"

"It’s not quite as good as Pigtail Bay, but building two or three docks should be no problem."

Being able to build docks was good enough. The most important thing was to connect Iron Valley to the sea. This era’s maritime technology was primitive, which presented a perfect opportunity for growth.

People boarded the lowered longboats and made their way to shore in successive trips.

THUD!

THUD!

The deck vibrated as two armadillos, each the size of a hog and clad in scaly armor, crawled out from the ship’s hold.

Leech had spent a total of eight bloodline herbs, but in the end, only these two armadillos had successfully undergone atavism and grown to such a size.

The other six had only grown slightly larger, failing to awaken any special abilities from their bloodlines. They were just ordinary armadillos.

The herbs had been a complete waste.

It took one longboat to carry each armadillo. Fortunately, they curled into balls when frightened instead of running amok, so the entire transport process was very smooth. It was like transporting two immobile, armored spheres.

Once ashore, Leech immediately began assigning tasks. "Cooks, prepare a meal! Everyone else, set up temporary shelters! Masons, start by planning the construction of the docks!"

The twelve young noblemen were to act as supervisors, leading the work teams. They were responsible for giving orders, not for rolling up their sleeves and doing the actual labor.

Finally, he turned to Pitz. "You can get those two started. We need to get up to that castle..."

He pointed to the top of the steep cliff, then gestured toward the two armored spheres. "They need to dig a path for us."

If there was no road, they would dig one on the spot.

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