Chapter 94

-Camila led the way, revealing plenty of materials suitable for weapons.

-A collection of various junk items were gathered to create weapons. Handing these out, the residents of Rusmaier were able to make up for their lacking offensive power and defeat the beasts.

-Right then.

-A message popped up.

-Ding!

-Your achievement level has greatly increased!

-[Current achievement level: 76%]

-You’ve successfully caused an outcome beyond choices!

-The villagers might suffer damage in this process, so I was prepared for my achievement level to drop.

-However, the system accepted my judgment as correct.

-The villagers who received the weapons successfully eliminated their first beast!

-The morale of the villagers has risen significantly!

-In reality, now that they can handle these beasts more efficiently, the system quickly acknowledged my answer as correct.

-As expected, I didn’t need to intervene.

-How harsh and tough their lives must have been.

-On second thought, perhaps it wasn’t due to lack of information but fear that prevented them from dealing with the beasts.

-Back to the present.

-I saw the villagers fighting off the beasts themselves, and the status window popped up one after another.

-Ding!

-Episode II: ‘Escaping Touch’ has been cleared!

-Your achievement level has exceeded 80%!

-Results unattainable by the original progression!

-You’ve achieved hidden conditions. You will be rewarded for results surpassing choices.

…

…

-REWARD

-Trust level with the residents of the territory greatly increases.

-Rusmaier can now establish its own defense system.

-Residents’ affinity towards Carsein increases.

…

…

-Originally non-existent contents have been added.

-The fact that Rusmaier can eliminate beasts on its own and the increase in trust level were somewhat predictable.

-Though there’s not much to see, there’s no need to raise their affinity through other sub-episodes, which shortens time.

-‘This way… I can proceed with my plan right away.’

-After Carsein completely dominates Rusmaier, Rusmaier will become part of Carsein’s land, not Bargrand Territory. This is a significant change, and time saving is the most meaningful thing for me now.

-Good. I’ll stay here for another day.

-There won’t be any choice popping up to push me out of this situation.

-At that moment.

-“You bastards! Don’t you even greet me when I arrive!”

-Ding!

-A man’s voice echoed behind me, and the status window lit up again.

-Episode III: ‘Proving as a Lord’ is in progress!

-Save Rusmaier from other nobles and prosper it!

-Next episode linkage.

-You must protect Rusmaier as its lord, now that it’s your territory.

-Hmm, this shouldn’t be popping up now.

-If it’s popping up, it means there’s an enemy nearby.

-‘…Impossible.’

-I turned my head towards the source of the voice.

“Black hood there! Who are you to barge into this territory?”

-Immediately, I saw a guy pointing at me.

-‘He appeared here?’

***

-I know his face.

-Not mine, but Carsein’s.

-Hemnan Modrich.

-I remember his name because I saw him at the Memorial.

-He was the one Carsein beat up badly as an example for challenging Arina Bargrand on her coming-of-age day. But why is he appearing now?

-The status window answered my question.

-Ding!

-An enemy is present around you!

-Target: Hemnan Modrich

-‘Ah, so that’s it.’

-Now I’m in Episode III, trying to rebuild Rusmaier as its lord.

-Yet, someone showing hostility towards me at this exact moment would obviously be doing so out of dissatisfaction with the current situation.

-Because Rusmaier is recovering on its own without relying on others, and Bargrand Territory won’t be affected.

-He shows hostility towards me because I’m bringing about these changes.

-Even though I hadn’t taken this branch in the game, I could assume that every time I visited, my affinity slightly dropped because the Modrich family was causing trouble like this.

-‘I knew someday I’d have to confront him under pressure.’

-And if the opponent is someone both I and Carsein know, I can act boldly.

“Get lost! How dare you act so recklessly…!”

-Zzip! Shing!

“Huh?!”

“Hemnan, sir!”

“This bastard! He dared point his sword at Sir Hemnan?!”

“How dare you! How dare you do this to me?!”

-Oh, his hairstyle suits him quite well.

-Since his family are bandits, this should work out fine.

-He cried out, puffing up like a toad.

“Show your face from under that hood and state your name! I need to see what kind of punishment to give!”

-I took off my hood as if waiting for this moment.

“Do I really need to introduce myself? Hemnan Modrich.”

“Yes, you…! Carsein, Bargrand…!”

-They recognized me too.

-Great. No need to wander around like other knights who don’t know who I am.

-“Well, I know you remember me. But you can’t forget this.”

-Ugh!

-When he pressed his sword to my neck, the toad-faced guy paled.

-“You asked how I dared barge into this territory? Do you still say that even though you barged into another person’s territory?”

-“Another person’s territory? This is Rusmaier. What are you talking about?”

-Click.

-“This is my territory certified by the Royal Family. Check the time; the official document arrived long before.”

-“Are you saying Bargrand bought this place?!”

-Hemnan’s eyes widened.

-He knows it’s not fake. After all, it’s approved directly by the Royal Family.

-But, Hemnan said the same thing as those knights.

-Hmm. Wait a moment. Reading it slowly, it says this is your territory, not Bargrand Territory.

-Gradually, his color returned.

-His eyes narrowed, and he grabbed a book.

“The shame of Shatren is vividly remembered by the entire empire. Are you going to be the lord here?”

-He shrugged his shoulders.

-“The Royal Family might have allowed it, but you as a lord? Haha, nonsense! Another territory will be destroyed, huh?”

-He shouted at the residents of Rusmaier.

-“You all know the shame of Shatren. A flourishing territory ruined by one person’s intervention. Still, you’re going to accept this guy as your lord? Think again.”

-It’s clear he’s trying to sow distrust by mentioning the shame of Shatren.

-By questioning my qualifications as a lord, he’s trying to instill doubt and threaten this place.

-This was something I anticipated, and it’s a familiar phrase from the game.

-It’s clear they’ll be swayed to some extent.

-I was planning to ignore them and wait for the options to appear.

-Until now.

“You’re joking! It’s far better than having someone like you manage our village!”

-“And what? Managing? Instead of helping, you never showed up until late every time!”

-“You took tolls from a poor village, and that’s supposed to be help?!”

-“You even injured our people and didn’t even apologize!”

-Ding!

-“Affinity with specific residents has reached a certain level, and you receive assistance!”

-“Comments related to the shame of Shatren do not cause unrest among the residents of Rusmaier!”

-‘…This is turning out this way.’

-While it wasn’t intentional, there was no need to interfere.

-They’re on my side now. Or rather…

-The entire Rusmaier territory is defending me.

-Is it because of affinity?

-This situation isn’t too bad.

-Kian and the three boys along with Diana started shouting, and Hemnan began to panic.

-“These guys! They’re insulting me! You there! Get them out of here immediately!”

-“Yes!”

-Crash!

-“Who gave you permission to move? I’m the lord here.”

-Ugh!

-“Withdraw your soldiers. If you resist, I won’t hold back either.”

-Even though it’s Carsein’s territory, drawing a sword would mean clashing with Bargrand.

-Realizing this, Hemnan clicked his tongue and had to withdraw.

-Seeing that he couldn’t mess with those who already turned their backs, he changed the topic to Rusmaier.

“I understand Rusmaier is now your territory. So, I can speak freely. I want compensation.”

“What compensation?”

“I’ve been managing this territory on behalf of its owner. I came here with knights to deal with those beasts. Despite their sophistry, there are documents proving I managed this place!”

-Hemnan proudly handed over documents to me.

-Luckily, I gained one piece of information I couldn’t get in the game.

-‘So, this guy plundered everything and left nothing behind?’

-Not only the tolls but also the carcasses of the beasts were taken. He even isolated the territory, making it barren.

-Back in the game, it was empty and useless, but now it remained because I arrived quickly.

-This can’t go unnoticed.

-Ding!

-‘Oh?’

-The choice appears just as I hoped.

-Perfect for use.

-“Ahem. So, I should get around 50,000 pesel…”

-I grabbed Hemnan by the collar and dragged him down.

-“Such a scoundrel! What kind of disturbance is this to someone who helped your village?!”

-[1. (Dragging Hemnan down) The compensation should be mine.]

-“If we calculate, I should be the one receiving compensation. So, you should get off your horse.”

-“What?! Kian!”

-“Yes, My Lord!”

-“Melik, Tony, bring them over.”

-The expressions of the three boys brightened instantly.

-Despite the confused villagers, they looked hopeful as they saw the three men being brought over, tied up.

-Contrarily, Hemnan’s expression hardened. Looks like these knights were following his orders.

-No reason for me to hesitate.

-Punch!

-“Ouch!”

-Pressing his stomach, he made a pig sound.

-“What is this? Causing trouble between families!”

-“The knights of Count Modrich committed atrocities in my territory. Demanding tolls and provoking disputes without reason is not a matter of family but a unilateral fault of Count Modrich.”

-“Even if that’s true, I’m not involved! That’s the fault of…!”

-“Knights of Count Modrich, who caused damage to another territory, should compensate, right? Or is that Count Modrich’s law?”

-When I replied similarly, he raised two fingers.

-Huh, huh! Deduct 20,000 pesel. Satisfied?

-Ding!

-20,000 pesel deducted from compensation!

-You can choose additional actions.

-[1. Only that much? Their damage was greater. Deduct more.]

-[2. (Lifting my foot from Hemnan)That’s enough.]

-[3. Deduct compensation in another way.]

-Of course, option 3 is the correct answer.

-Even 50,000 pesel is unreasonable, and 30,000 pesel is still a considerable amount. To avoid exploiting them entirely, I need to deduct some.

-Thinking carefully, hints were provided.

-“How will you explain that these knights were actually bandits raiding Rusmaier? Did Count Modrich hire bandits instead of knights for protection?”

-Hemnan Modrich’s face twisted.

-If the knights are actually bandits, cutting the tail won’t stop the bad news from spreading.

-To prevent such news from spreading, compensation must be ensured. He raised two fingers again.

-“Deduct another 20,000 pesel! By the way, I’m not involved!”

-Ding!

-20,000 pesel deducted, totaling 40,000 pesel deducted!

-“That’s it?”

-Another choice appears.

-I chose option 3 again.

-10,000 pesel isn’t everything.

-My goal is not to deduct compensation but to take more.

-“More? What else is there?”

-“The documents show your history of using this territory. Can you guess?”

-“History of usage…?”

-His mouth slowly opened wide.

-Yes, it’s obvious.

-This territory was used for free, yet the knights charged tolls when the residents tried to use it.

-It’s a contradiction.

-“But that’s the residents’…!”

-Barak, representative of Rusmaier. We follow the lord’s will.”

-Ugh!

-The lord and the residents united to repay Hemnan’s compensation.

-“Alright! Consider the compensation repaid!”

-Under pressure, Hemnan backed down.

-With nothing left for the knights to do, he tried to escape.

-The choice seems to end here, but…

-No matter how I think about it, ending it this way feels wrong.

-I blocked Hemnan’s path again.

-“Hey, where are you going? There’s still something left.”

-“This time, it’s truly over!”

-“Don’t joke. Even combining all the tolls you collected, it’s more than 10,000 pesel.”

-Nonsense! Tolls can’t be that high…!”

-Pressing harder, a pig sound escaped.

-“You claimed to manage this rugged area. Using the only flat terrain for passage and demanding tolls?”

-“Alright! I’ll pay according to your terms!”

-Hemnan, struggling against the pressure, ordered his knights to bring a bag of gold coins.

-Though obtained by extortion, this should suffice for the village’s recovery.

-“This is really the end?”

-No?

-I pointed at the ground.

-Today’s toll for six people. You can’t leave without paying for six people, right?

-A grinding sound came from Hemnan’s teeth.

***

-Since I’m now in charge here, I advised everyone to pay the toll regularly. His face turned red.

-He paid and left. Collecting quite a toll, it surprised even the villagers.

-Ding!

-Modrich family will no longer interfere with Rusmaier!

-The power of the nobles oppressing Rusmaier has been reduced!

-Two conditions for clearing the episode have been met!

-[Two remaining conditions]

-‘Only two left.’

-The situation where Rusmaier is ostracized by the nobles is complex.

-It’s not just due to beast attacks or noble pressure; financial problems are also severe, requiring alternative solutions.

-But,

-There might be no need to execute several sub-episodes to gain trust and increase affinity.

-“What should we do next, young master?”

-Ding!

-Rating of Rusmaier’s reputation rises to B rank!

-Residents follow Carsein’s orders. The difficulty affects performance.

-This territory is already prepared to accept my orders.