Chapter 41

Chapter 41Some time later.

The Chasers region is completely under my control.

I look around my newly acquired land now, unable to hide the smile that leaks out. The corners of my mouth are twitching upward.

It’s still a shabby place, but thankfully the barriers I built with the Iron Golem’s core are still intact.

Hagiya, it didn’t collapse when we captured the griffin, so we should be fine for now.

The old building used by the guards is also now mine.

Of course, I’ve rearranged the furniture here and there, and tossed out all the useless stuff.

I have also released all the innocent prisoners held in custody.

In their place, I have placed Grine and his soldiers.

You might think they’d do the same thing as Taigan, but I’m not too worried.

They know full well that if they mess up, I’ll get them.

‘People are so simple, once they experience fear, they learn...’

Grine was listening to me now.

I don’t know why he would ever praise me, even in front of Theo.

It’s safe to say he’s unlikely to betray me now.

On a side note, the prison has been downsized, and the neighboring bandits have been cleared out. It took some capital, but it’s not a big deal.

It was all stolen from Theo and Grine.

‘Theo, I’m just supporting you, but I’m ripping off Grine. I like that.’

On second thought, I’m happy with that.

I look around the building to see if Zitri agrees, and she nods.

“Congratulations. Young Master Nox, it’s almost as if you’ve become a minor patriarch.”

I felt my shoulders slump.

He was only fifteen years old.

I have a land all my own in this strange landmass.

A strange sense of satisfaction washed over me.

‘Not bad,’ I thought, ‘this could be addictive.......’

I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.

A plan to become a full-fledged force in my own right, to step out of the shadow of my family. It all started with getting my hands on the Chasers territory.

And now that I’ve accomplished that.

You could say I’ve accomplished my goal.

“The Chasers is a region of constant trouble. It’s bordered by Tahalin to the east and fringe city-states to the west. This has led to a perception of the region as uninhabitable. ...but that’s only half true.

In other words, it’s half wrong.

Why?

Because it’s going to be one of the key cities in the Inner Lunatic, where a lot of capital is going to come and go.

The reason is extremely simple.

‘Items drop from the beasts around here. And their prices will skyrocket.’

In Inner Lunatic, hunting mid-level and higher beasts has a low chance of dropping accessory materials like Essence and Hearts.

These are used for artifact crafting and alchemy, just like in any other game, and have many uses.

Unfortunately, at the start of Inner Lunatic, these alchemical and artifact-making skills are not yet established.

Elena is just a unique case.

Also, does that mean?

‘In other words, the materials that drop after killing a demon have no value now.’

They’re just being used for research, that’s all.

However, of course, items won’t be cheap forever.

Over time, the technologies will continue to evolve.

Artifacts can be artificially crafted, and alchemy can be used to create better things.

Along the way, blacksmiths and alchemists realize that making armor out of demonic materials can have special effects.

In many ways, it’s all the more reason to hunt demons.

I have the Chasers region under my control.

This demon-infested land is about to experience an unprecedented boom thanks to them. The price of all magic stones and magic materials will skyrocket, and I will benefit financially.

It will be well into the hundreds of millions. {1}

Buy low, sell high.

It was the basics of being a merchant.

‘The more capital I can accumulate, the better off I’ll be when I get to the main storyline in Chapter 3, where the Rivalin family comes into play.’

Plus.

There was one more reason to get the Chasers.

It was an extremely obvious one.

‘After all, the Reinhafers are a third-generation{2} dark family, and Theo is the patriarch of that family.... If you’re going to do anything under his watchful eye, it’s hard to do it in the family manor.

At the very least, I need to get out of his sight.’

Honestly, I don’t want to die with Talia’s sword through my heart.

Even less do I want to be engaged or married.

‘Ha... I’m angry again.’

Of course, situations like this are unavoidable for someone like me who has to play a villain.

But I’m sure there’s a way out, if I can find my hidden memories.

Otherwise, the letter’s sender wouldn’t have written such a meaningful note, urging me to come to terms with the truth, welcoming me back... or anything else.

‘It’s a shame, then, that I can’t develop this land of gold right away.......’

Right now, I have to follow the admissions and curriculum of Eldain Academy, so I can’t give the Chasers area my full attention.

Maybe it’s the Western setting?

It’s only been a few months, I thought.

“Oh, hi....”

“Uh.”

“This must be Talia... the fiancé you told me about.......”

“......Zitri. I thought I told you not to bring that up?”

While Zitri was responding to the question with a strange look on her face, a distraught Talia asked.

“I mean... how have you been...?”

“Uh, okay. And you?”

I ask, thinking I should be polite, and she snaps her fingers.

“Yes...! I’ve been swinging my sword every day, and I’ve been training to become a knight.......”

“...Miss, do you really need to talk about your training?”

Emma cautioned.

It doesn’t matter to me, but I’ve heard that they almost consider me as their fiancée.

I suppose it’s better not to talk about my knightly skills and virtues.

I’m sure they don’t have enough time for small talk.

Talia pondered Emma’s words for a moment, then gave me an “Oops!” look.

“I... I’m almost over the spiders!”

“Really?”

I couldn’t help but ask, forgetting to act.

Apparently so, because in the game, Talia didn’t get over her arachnophobia until the end.

Talia tugs at the hem of her skirt.

“Mmmm... I’m almost over it, really, just a little more.......”

“You haven’t gotten over it yet.”

“No!”

I shake my head, looking at Talia as she screams.

Of course, even at that moment, Zitri somehow manages to look back and forth between me and Talia, a pensive expression on her face.

...Did I do something wrong again?

Meaningless thoughts fill my mind, but I can’t help it.

For now, I just have to pretend not to notice and move on.

As I continue to chat, I see other carriages pulling in. Each with their own personalities.

I realize that many of them are children of high ranking families. As for the commoners, most of them arrive on foot and make their way inside, but about a fifth of them are noblemen of considerable talent.

I followed their procession with my eyes until I spotted a particularly large and gaudy carriage.

And I knew instinctively who it belonged to.

deuleuleuleu....

(Drrrr)

The carriage came to a ghostly halt in front of me.

An unusually gaudy carriage. A woman was getting out of it.

She was dressed in an expensive blue dress with a lot of jewelry.

“Well, well. Who is this, aren’t you Young Master Nox? I didn’t expect the third son of the Rinehafer family to end up at Eldain Academy. How nice to meet you.”

The corners of the girl’s eyes curve charmingly.

She had auburn hair and unusually blue eyes. She’s petite, but her face is quite commanding.

She has gently curved eyebrows and a sharp nose.

She wore light makeup, and her lips and face were lightly red.

A girl who is still a child, but hides a cunning fox within.

Of course, I already know who she is.

Eleanor de Rivalin.

“Eleanor.”

The most powerful woman on the continent. The only daughter of House Rivalin, a star in the merchant world who would go on to shake up the entire business world.

Commonly known as the Fox of Gold.

“Yes, that’s me.”

Incidentally, she and Nox had met as children and.......

-A lowlife like you is a noble, can you get the hell out of here?

“A noble from a lowly merchant family that you ignored.”

Not on good terms with Nox.

Simply put, it was one of Nox’s many bad karmas.

Along with Talia, for the record, the character who helped drive a sword into my heart.

“-Eleanor de Rivalin. I never thought I’d see you like this again.”

Shit.

I wasn’t even mind-controlled at that moment.

Why do I get all these kids around me who want to kill me?

My luck must have been at an all-time peak!

{1} : hundreds of billions of won is like hundreds of mils of USD (june 2023)

of course currency model hasn’t been clearly defined yet

{2} : chaebol/zaibatsu reference, wiki for those that want to read more

{3} : Talia doesn’t use an honorific here