Don’t Run Away My Lord

44 – The Territory Obtained by Chance (8)

Liana, who always had a smile on her lips, had completely lost it and was staring at the Great Lord and Kaita with a perfectly stiff expression.

It was the first time I had seen such a cold side of Liana, and unknowingly, it sent shivers down my spine.

It felt like a completely different person, not Liana at all.

“Liana.”

“Yes, my Lord~”

In the blink of an eye, Liana responded brightly with a courteous and cute laugh.

“Why did you call me?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I just wanted to call you.”

“What is it?”

Liana returned to the Liana I knew, but the image I saw earlier was still vivid.

What could it have been?

Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.

She had told me that the reason she was expelled from the sect was because of her lascivious body.

Because her breasts kept growing, the other clergy members who saw her couldn’t fully devote themselves to their faith and were driven away.

But was that true?

Until today, I believed her words.

If a female with such a body passes by, it’s only natural for anyone other than a eunuch to have other thoughts.

Liana’s body was truly tempting for any male, and I also enjoyed caressing her breasts.

However, the moment I saw that expression just now, I couldn’t help but think that the reason for her expulsion from the church was not solely due to a physical characteristic.

Come to think of it, Riana seems to have too much greed for money and surprisingly knowledgeable about various things to be called a clergywoman.

As far as I know, among human clergy, the term “saint” refers to women who have the ability to use divine power.

When they manifest divine power at a young age, they are forcibly taken to the Divine University and receive education until they become adults, and then they must live their lives as saints.

Considering it logically, I wonder how many opportunities Riana had to acquire the knowledge she knows during that process.

Perhaps… Riana may not have been a saint to begin with.

Maybe she knew how to use divine power, but chose not to be taken to the Divine University.

If that’s the case, everything makes sense.

But so what?

Whether Riana is a saint or not, it has nothing to do with me.

During my journey here, Riana has faithfully fulfilled her role and has not betrayed my trust.

Even if she deceived me in the past, it’s okay.

She must have personal reasons she wants to hide.

Perhaps she was truly a saint and was expelled because of her promiscuous behavior.

I’m overthinking just because of her stern expression.

“Well then, shall we take a look at the territory, my lord?”

Riana smiled brightly and swayed her hips as she left the bedroom.

As she passed by me, I could smell a pleasant scent, and any trace of doubt that had arisen earlier was completely sealed away and pushed to the other side.

* * * * *

Riding on horses along with Riana and Ulphert, I slowly toured the territory.

It would take a considerable amount of time to go all the way to the border of the territory, so for now, I decided to start by looking at the downtown area of the Lord’s City.

“Anyway, the outskirts are nothing special. There are a few small villages, so we should focus on those places and gradually expand the city.”

With that, Ulpert stepped forward and descended to the downtown area.

According to his explanation, most of the territories, like this one, have the Lord’s City located on a hill, with people gathering around it.

“The territory ends when the Lord’s City is occupied and the Lord is killed. That’s why the Lord’s City is originally built in a defensible highland or near a river.”

“It’s over when the Lord is killed.”

“Yes, my Lord. In fact, the territory belongs to the Lord personally. There is no reason to fight over a territory without a master.”

Upon hearing that, Riana asked.

“What if the Lord’s children or successors are still alive? Is it still over?”

“I have seen cases where they resist until the end, but I have never seen them win, my Lord.”

We entered the downtown area, following the road paved with broken cobblestones.

Just like the first time we came here, there were only a few people wandering ghost-like on the streets.

“But it seems that not all the people of the territory have left, right?”

“They are the elderly who cannot afford to go to other territories or cities to make a living, my Lord.”

“Even if you call it a ghost city, there is no shortage at all.”

“That’s right. If even those old folks die, that’s how it will be.”

Riana clenched her fists under her chest, frustrated with the situation.

“Hmm… In a land where I have nothing, the only people left are the elderly…”

We continued to explore the downtown area.

Blacksmiths, taverns, inns, markets, breweries, weaving mills, and so on.

I don’t know much, but they say it’s common for estates to have everything.

“Wow, what’s that? Look at that, Lord. It looks like a barrack that soldiers use, but why is it so big?”

Where Liana was pointing, there was a building spread out widely above the other low buildings.

“Yes, Lord Sijongjang. It’s the barrack of the Viscount’s private army.”

“How many were there in total?”

“There were about five hundred. Of course, that doesn’t include the guards.”

“That’s a lot…”

I asked as I listened to their conversation.

“Five hundred is a lot, Liana?”

“For a viscount, it’s quite a number. And that’s excluding the guards. It’s truly an estate that thrived on plundering.”

Ulfert awkwardly chuckled at the word “plundering.”

“It’s the circulation of resources and wealth, Lord Sijongjang.”

“Whatever. Anyway, to think that an estate that commanded an army of nearly five hundred soldiers could end up like this in just ten years…”

“When the lord dies, the estate comes to an end. The Great Lord has practically been sentenced to death since the onset of his dementia…”

As soon as the conversation turned to the Great Lord, Ulfert’s voice became gloomy.

Hmm… I thought five hundred was just an average number, but it seems like it’s quite a lot.

The viscount said he was somewhere in the middle of the nobility.

If that’s the case, the soldiers in the estates of other viscounts must be much fewer.

We toured the barracks and finished exploring the city center.

There wasn’t much difference from what we saw in the Duchy of Toussaint, and it was a bit annoying that there were many empty buildings.

“This person is our new lord. Show your respect.”

Ulfred spoke sternly to the old man hiding and watching us, but it was in vain.

The few residents of the territory must have thought that I, the lord, would perhaps scold them, so they quickly entered their homes and slammed the doors shut.

“I apologize, my lord. Please understand. The territory has been in ruins for the past ten years.”

“It’s alright, Captain of the Guards. I can understand.”

Liana stood in front of a certain building, carefully peering inside.

Unlike the other buildings, this one had a front entirely made of large windows, allowing anyone to see inside.

“Captain of the Guards, what kind of place is this?”

“Ah, well… That is…”

Ulfred hesitated for a moment before answering.

“It used to be a brothel.”

“A brothel? Are you talking about a place where women sell their bodies?”

“Yes… It was a relatively prosperous establishment in the territory… Such a place existed…”

Ulfred couldn’t say any more, feeling embarrassed, and Liana showed no particular reaction.

If it was a brothel, it meant a place where human females received money in exchange for s*xual intercourse.

It seemed that such individuals gathered there to do business.

“My lord, a brothel can be profitable.”

Liana turned to face me.

“If we legalize it and impose high taxes, it could be lucrative.”

“Is that so? I’ll keep that in mind.”

I know everything, really.

* * * * *

Riana’s expression, after exploring the city center, was far from pleasant.

If I were to see myself in the mirror, I would probably have a similar expression.

Goda Baronry was a place built on plunder.

But now, it was a deserted territory with not even a single soldier, let alone residents.

There is absolutely no possibility of standing up on our own.

Even if I go around the surrounding territories and engage in the “circulation of resources and wealth,” people will not come back to live in this barren territory just because money is accumulating.

There is no advantage that makes people want to settle down here.

If it continues like this, this territory will simply become a den for bandits.

And I can’t keep tearing apart the surrounding territories forever.

If that’s the case, shouldn’t I just abandon the lordship and take Riana with me?

At the very least, I wanted a normal territory that could sustain itself using the resources within and engage in trade.

“Captain of the guards. Did you see the city center and is there anything special we need to know about the surrounding villages?”

“Nothing in particular. We do some small-scale farming, but even that is not going well.”

So, it means there really is nothing.

Riana, who met my gaze, spoke up.

“My lord. It seems like we should probably…”

“It’s better to give up, right?”

“Yes.”

Ulfert exclaimed in horror at those words.

“Your Grace! What on earth are you talking about?! Are you giving up the territory?!”

“Calm down, Ulfert. That’s not what I mean.”

“Then what do you mean? Are there other meanings to the word ‘give up’ that I don’t know?!”

“Shut up, Captain of the Guard! How dare you speak so loudly to Your Grace!”

Riana scolded Ulfert harshly, and he closed his mouth.

But his eyes trembled with a sense of betrayal.

No, Riana. There’s no need to go that far…

But right now, it is more important to explain to Ulfert than to criticize Riana’s actions.

“Listen carefully, Ulfert. This territory is now a place with no possibility of recovery. You agree with that, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“So I will move the entire Gorda Barony to a more prosperous land.”

“What…? What does that mean…”

“Choose a suitable territory and invade it to seize the land. That will become the new Gorda Barony.”

Ulfert half-opened his mouth and stared at me in a daze.