Don’t Run Away My Lord

42 – The Unexpectedly Acquired Territory (6)

Riana’s expression upon seeing it was priceless.

“It’s money I’ve never seen before…”

“It’s money from five hundred years ago… hahahaha…”

Alright. Let’s just consider Kaita’s money as a souvenir.

For now, let’s count the gold coins that Riana and I have collected so far.

We stacked the gold coins on the table, ten at a time, and counted the numbers.

With this, we realized that we had collected a considerable amount of gold coins.

Kaita was surprised and smacked his lips.

“Wow… You guys are rich?”

“If Eruga and I were to live off it, it would be a lot of money, but it’s not enough for a lord, Kaita.”

“Is that so? Hm… I guess that’s true… It would be better for the three of us to live comfortably with this money rather than being a lord…”

Upon hearing that, Riana smiled brightly with a cute face.

“Why three? This money is the hard-earned money of Erega-nim and me.”

“Yes…?”

“This is the money that Erega-nim and I earned. And I am acting as Erega-nim’s guide, as a condition to make him a lord, Keita-nim. So, it’s true that there isn’t much money left. Keita-nim can’t just take even a single coin from here.”

To be able to say that with a smile… She’s amazing…

Rather than getting angry, how can she laugh like that…

Liana, I’ve felt this before, but she looks different, and she’s quite a scary woman.

“Ah… I understand, Liana-ssi…”

Keita, completely crushed by Liana, couldn’t say anything and lowered his tail.

“Hmm. But really, it’s quite little, Erega-nim.”

Liana, with her arms crossed below her chest, sighed.

“Let’s see… We don’t have any money to enter the territory right now anyway. There are hardly any people in the territory, and they’ve all gone to the lord’s castle, deserters, and mercenaries. The maintenance cost of the lord’s castle…”

Liana looked around the spiderweb-filled bedroom and sighed once again.

“There’s no one, so it’s not needed immediately. Then, for now, let’s separate our salaries from here…”

Liana set aside a few coins.

“hehehe… Alright. Let’s say that. Our money is running low. Now, what should we do?”

“Well… I’m not sure… First, should we correct our titles?”

“Okay. I am the lord. And you?”

“Of course, I am the chamberlain. I take care of all the affairs of the territory and assist the lord.”

Upon hearing this, Keita cautiously raised his hand.

“Then, what should I do, Liana-ssi?”

“Kaita is a magician. In large territories, there is usually one exclusive magician. So, Kaita is a magician.”

Lord, chief vassal, magician. It’s truly a humble beginning.

“And that person is the Grand Lord.”

Liana pointed to the sleeping Count Gorda.

“We can’t drive that person away. It’s better for us to serve and get appropriate advice when they come to their senses.”

“I think the same way.”

“Then, Lord, let’s start with the lordship and take a look at the territory. We need to decide whether to revive this territory or quickly take another one and move.”

“Before that, there’s something I need to do, Liana.”

He grabbed Liana, who was about to get up from her seat.

* * * * *

Riding a horse at full speed, I discovered a group of people walking on the street over there.

They were the former people of the Lordship of Yeongju who were going to bid farewell to the territory and find their own way.

“Wait a minute!”

When Liana, who was riding in front of me, shouted, the people turned around.

“Oh? What’s going on all of a sudden?”

“I have something to say. Please spare me a moment.”

Because my words were so urgent, Liana couldn’t hold back and stuttered, so I spoke first.

“What’s the matter?”

“Since it’s going to get dark soon, I’ll be straightforward. I have inherited the territory from Count Gorda. Is there anyone here who would like to work in the lordship again?”

The humans were shocked by my words and couldn’t say anything, just staring at each other.

No matter how great a lord he may be, even the Count Goda, he is not in his right mind due to dementia. And Riana, Kaita, and I have very little knowledge about managing a territory. Of course, Riana seems to have a general idea, but she is not at the level to delve into the details. So we need someone with experience in managing a territory, but we can’t just bring someone in from anywhere. Besides, if we hire someone recklessly, they might betray us… In the midst of all this, it occurred to me. Those who remained loyal to Count Goda until the end. Those who have worked in the lordship for a long time and know a lot about this Barony of the Count. I thought that if we hire them, they can adequately fill in our shortcomings. After hearing my words, Riana quickly calculated the wages that would be paid when we hire them to the maximum from the gold coins we have and agreed to my proposal. “We can earn more elsewhere before the money runs out.” That was Riana’s reasoning. And that’s why we hurriedly set off to catch up with those who had left the territory in such a hurry. “You inherited the territory? What on earth does that mean?” “I told Count Goda that I wanted to become a lord, and he willingly transferred the failing territory to me.” I showed them the inheritance document from my pocket, and the humans returned their gazes to me, reading it with surprise. “It’s not a transfer, it’s an inheritance…?” “Count Goda took me as his adopted child and immediately made me his heir. There was no coercion in the process. If you still don’t believe it, you can go with me right now and confirm it with Count Goda.” I spoke so confidently that the humans seemed unable to respond. “I can’t give you the overdue salary, but at the very least, you will receive a salary from the moment you are employed under me.”

“But… there is one thing I’m curious about…”

Someone raised their hand.

“It’s all fine. Well, it’s common for the owner of a territory to change. In fact, we would be more than happy to work in the Lordship again if we could. But what can we believe? I’m sorry to say this, but… it seems strange to accept a hopeless viscountcy, and it doesn’t seem like they can pay us on time either.”

“That’s right. I can’t guarantee that.”

Upon hearing this, the humans chuckled as if they found it absurd.

“But why did you chase us all the way here then?”

“We are here to accommodate those who still wish to work in the Goda Viscountcy. To be clear, Lord Goda is known as the Great Lord and will continue to stay in the Lordship.”

Upon hearing this, a few people seemed a bit unsettled.

Not missing a beat, I added.

“When I say I can’t guarantee, it assumes that I alone will manage the territory with a thousand experiences. If all of you, who have much experience, help me, the territory will not fall into ruin or have its salaries cut.”

Liana was skeptical, but I was certain that at least one or two of them, with a little motivation, would not care much about money and would return to the Lordship.

In the human epic, there are those who sacrifice even their lives for things that are of no help in their daily lives.

Although I reluctantly left the Lordship, swept away by the atmosphere and the words of others, if there was still a chance to have a new lord and still have Lord Goda, along with the hope of receiving a salary, at least one person would come back.

I only needed that one person.

There was no need for a hundred or a thousand soldiers.

I could handle it on my own.

Liana could handle the finances. Of course, it may not be very accurate.

But the know-how to run a territory can only be learned from someone with experience.

No, it doesn’t have to be someone with experience.

Even if we had just one soldier who had worked in the viscountcy for a long time and had knowledge of it, it would be a great help to us right now.

One person stepped forward from the crowd.

It was the man I had spoken to at Yeongjuseong, burning incense.

“I roughly understand the situation. But it seems a bit lacking. Would the new lord explain how he plans to manage the territory?”

He wants me to reveal my ambitions.

If that’s the case, it’s easy. I’ve already thought it through.

“I plan to use Goda Barony as a base and slowly devour the surrounding territories. It won’t be enough with just one barony.”

“Like the barony during its heyday, you want to circulate resources and wealth. But how? We have no soldiers, no resources, nothing to work with.”

“You won’t believe it even if I tell you now. Then how about this?”

I proposed to the man in return.

“Once you come to the lordship, I will give you a month’s salary in advance. And if you witness the progress of the plan I have revealed within that month, we will enter into a long-term contract. If you don’t trust me at all during that time, you can simply leave.”

“Hmm… You’re not thinking of taking the money and leaving, are you?”

“If that were the case, you wouldn’t have been listening to me until now.”

The man, feeling a sting, laughed bitterly.

“What do you think? The new lord is telling us to work at Yeongjuseong again. What are your thoughts?”

The man looked at his companions and asked.