Chapter 62. Reason for erecting the statue (2)
“Whoa. Is this Cremo?”
Lloyd on the hill exhaled.
White breath followed his breath.
As soon as it bloomed, it was quickly scattered by the wind.
Early winter is fast approaching.
Lloyd’s field of vision came full of the city standing tall in the gray seaside landscape.
‘Even cities in this world are worth seeing.’
That was Lloyd’s impression of the trading city of Cremo for the first time.
In fact, I wondered how big the cities of this world would be if they were to grow.
Even so, it would not be comparable to the modern cities of Korea.
I vaguely thought that it would be about the size of a small provincial town.
But it wasn’t.
‘Looking at it, it’s really big.’
Of course, the buildings were not soaring like Seoul or Busan in Korea.
Most of the buildings were 3 or 4 stories, even if they were 2 stories tall.
However, the size of the city itself was very large.
‘It feels just like a medieval version of Busan.’
A vast coast overlooking the hills.
The city was built along the coast.
I saw a group of sailboats busily coming in and out of the pier on the shore.
I felt like a swarm of ants at the sight of the stevedores busily moving on the pier.
Indeed, it was the size and vitality of a central city in a province.
‘And I learned some pretty useful skills along the way.’
Suddenly, Lloyd remembered his journey since leaving the Prontera estate.
♣
“Hey? Xaviel?”
“yes. Please tell me, Mr. Lloyd.”
“Teach me to ride a horse.”
It was around the morning of three days after leaving the Prontera estate.
Meanwhile, Lloyd, who had been rolling around in the wagon, spoke to Xaviel.
It was the way to go anyway.
At this point, I thought it would be okay if I learned to ride a horse.
It was also because he was too bored to doze off in the wagon all day.
‘Besides, it’s cumbersome to have to take the back seat of Xaviel every time I get on a horse.’
In fact, he did not know how to ride a horse.
Kim Soo-ho from South Korea.
Lloyd Frontera, the owner of this body.
Neither knew how to ride a horse at all.
The reason was simple.
‘Because Lloyd chose to drink and play while learning horseback riding.’
However, I had to move quite far like this.
It was a perfect opportunity to learn horseback riding.
“Then teach me how to ride a horse. how is it?”
“All right.”
Xaviel nodded.
Lloyd tilted his head.
“uh? Why are you accepting?”
“Is there any reason why I should decline?”
“No, there is nothing like that. Why are you willing to accept it?”
“….”
“Are you Xaviel? isn’t it? Be honest. Where is our Harviel? Where are you locked up?”
“You don’t want to learn to ride a horse, do you?”
“Tsk. He’s not even a joke.”
“I don’t really want to share jokes with Lloyd-sama.”
“How much?”
“It would be better to peel off the soles of your feet and eat them.”
“Hey.”
Did I hate it that much?
Contrary to what he said, however, Xaviel was smiling faintly.
“Then let’s come over here. Before we start, I will teach you the basics of horseback riding.”
That’s how I was able to learn horseback riding step by step from Xaviel.
Slow and steady movement that continues day after day.
With each passing day, winter came.
As the wind cooled, Lloyd’s riding posture stabilized.
As much as his horse riding became plausible, the trading city of Cremo became closer.
And finally today.
After a 15-day schedule, the group arrived safely in Cremo, breaking through the chilly early winter wind.
“Come on, let’s find a place to rest first.”
went down the hill
went into the city
Like a trading city, the streets were wide and congested.
People from all provinces were busy moving.
Wagons and people mingled.
Traders and customers shouted as they bargained.
The porters were reddened and dripping with sweat.
Cries from all sides and waves of people moving dizzy.
Literally, the Jungang-daero of Cremo City was a scene like Jeonju Bibimbap of chaos and chaos.
Thanks to that, the group went out of their way.
The 20 engineers became dumbfounded by the crowded sight of the big city they encountered for the first time in their lives.
It was the same for Xaviel.
No, his case was worse than that of the Corps of Engineers.
“….”
The pupils of the silver-haired knight searched everywhere without rest.
His ears tried to catch all the sounds around him.
It was Xaviel, who was on the verge of becoming a sword master.
Thanks to this, he was also sensitive enough to suffer from severe insomnia, a condition known as Sword Master Syndrome.
He was suddenly placed in a crowded place he experienced for the first time in his life.
All senses exploded open.
I felt the chaos more clearly than others.
A bitter smile grew thicker on Lloyd’s lips.
“hey.”
“Yes Lloyd.”
“Relax.”
“I am loosening up.”
“Not at all?”
“Really.”
“Then why can’t my pupils stay still?”
“yes?”
“You’re looking all over the place right now. It’s like someone who has just entered a battlefield.”
“….”
Xaviel hesitated.
I?
Are you so nervous?
Lloyd’s words continued.
“I understand that this is the chaos of chaos that I experience for the first time in my life. Let’s be a little more natural, huh? So that’s why it’s so tacky, right?”
“….”
“Why are you so blank? let’s go.”
Took.
I tapped Xaviel on the shoulder.
Xaviel followed after things got a bit complicated.
“Mrs. Lloyd.”
“uh.”
“Is Lloyd-sama okay?”
“me? what?”
“It means that you are not confused even in such a crowded place.”
“uh. It’s okay. What is this mess?”
Lloyd laughed bitterly.
It was true.
Korea, where he lived and experienced.
It was thanks to the fact that the chaos of this place felt insignificant when I recalled the place.
‘Compared to Sindorim Station during rush hour, this is just a quiet park.’
A place where people get stuck in real time and infinite human sandwiches are created.
A place where you can engage in serious daily fighting between the person next to you and your underarm.
A place where you and I become one and experience the nation’s forced bubi-bubi.
Such demonic (?) time and space was Sindorim Station during commute time.
And Lloyd was a fighter of reversal who was tired of experiencing the chaos and chaos of Sindorim Station.
‘Because I had to transfer at Sindorim Station to go to school from home!’
A time in my past that was so hard.
Lloyd took care of the memories as if he was giving himself a medal at the time.
He deftly led the party, who had been half lost in the hustle and bustle of the big city.
“Everyone, don’t be blank and come this way.”
I moved to one side as it was crowded.
Sometimes I asked the locals for directions.
Thanks to that, I was able to find a suitable inn without wandering around for too long.
I simply unpacked my luggage at the inn and washed my body.
After washing, I immediately left the inn.
I took Xaviel and headed to the center of the city.
I moved to the mansion that stood tall there.
It was the residence of Count Cremo, the owner of this city and the great lord of Cremona.
‘And today, it’s also a grateful customer who will buy all the treasures we brought.’
The purpose of coming here is to sell the treasures of the Orcs.
So, you have the cash to use to pay off your debt.
Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult to get into the Count’s mansion.
“I am Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of Baron Frontera. I am here to show you the item you expressed your intention to purchase in a letter.”
He showed me the necklace.
It was a necklace with the mark of the Prontera family engraved on it.
It was also an identification card proving that he was a member of an aristocratic family.
So I passed through the front door of the mansion.
Passing through a vast garden like a playground, we entered the main building of the mansion.
‘It’s amazing.’
It was definitely the size of a large mansion.
It was on a different level from the mansion of Baron Frontera, which only had an assortment of mansions.
Luxurious mansions of top Hollywood stars that you sometimes only see on TV.
Or an antique mansion where traditional European aristocrats stayed.
A mansion just like that unfolded before my eyes.
“The Count is in the drawing room. Please come this way.”
An old man who seemed to be the count’s general butler greeted us at the main entrance.
Lloyd walked through the mansion, guided by the old man.
The senior butler’s request continued.
“The Prontera family. You have come from far away. As such, there must be some things you don’t know about the Count’s current situation, so I’ll give you a special caution.”
“A note?”
Lloyd asked.
The general butler continued walking and said.
“The Count isn’t feeling very comfortable these days. If possible, when you see the Count, please refrain from speaking except those necessary for courtesy and formality.”
“Anything other than necessary?”
“That’s right. You won’t have to get caught in the pod for saying useless things.”
“Are you that uncomfortable?”
“yes.”
“If you can’t excuse me, can you tell me a little bit about the reason?”
Lloyd asked cautiously.
The Count is the most powerful person in this province.
What if you make a mistake in a situation where you meet such a person?
So what if the ugly hair gets stuck?
The damage would be enormous.
I didn’t want to create an unexpected situation.
So, if possible, wouldn’t it be better to be careful?
Fortunately, the general butler seemed to understand the meaning of this side, and he told me the story without hesitation.
“It is because of the recent delay in construction.”
“A delay in construction?”
“It’s because the installation of the offshore statue that the count is promoting is slow.”
“Installing the statue….”
oh i know that
In the first place, the reason why the count bought this treasure was to secure used jewelry to decorate the statue at a lower price than the market price.
“But the installation is sluggish. Any reason?”
“yes. There is no builder willing to take on the project.”
The butler’s explanation continued.
“In the first place, the Count planned to build a huge statue of a mermaid off the coast. To solve a long-standing bane of our city.”
“A long trouble?”
“This is Giga Titan.”
“ah.”
Lloyd nodded.
Giga Titan.
When I heard the name, something immediately came to mind.
‘Giga Titan must have been a giant monster resembling a mantis shrimp.’
It was the contents of the article in the novel Iron Blooded.
Its body length is 90 meters.
The shell that covered the whole body was strong and thick enough to be difficult to penetrate even with the shelling of battleships.
‘Originally, it’s known that it only lives in the deep sea, but that’s right. that’s right. There was an exception in this city.’
the only exception.
It was probably about 10 years ago from now.
A Giga Titan appeared in the peaceful waters of Cremo Harbor.
Two passing merchant ships were sunk at once.
Because of that incident….
“The Count requested a navy from the kingdom. Your Highness also complied with the request immediately after realizing the seriousness of the situation. A naval fleet came to subdue the Giga Titans with dignity.”
The butler’s explanation continued.
“However, all three rounds of subjugation failed. This is because even the Navy did not have the means to properly attack the Giga Titan in the water. Rather, the navy had to withdraw with only the loss of three battleships.”
The old man’s explanation was the same as the contents of the novel in my memory.
Lloyd inwardly nodded.
‘Since then, Giga Titan has abandoned Cremo as its habitat. The Royal Navy watched the situation. The Count had no choice but to choose the uncomfortable coexistence with Giga Titan.’
Fortunately, Giga Titan only appeared three or four times a year.
And it was that they did not raid cities that were on land.
That made the uncomfortable coexistence of the monster and the city at least possible.
The city of Cremo built watchtowers all over the nearby coast.
It was only an outpost to monitor the appearance of Giga Titans.
When the post detected the appearance of Giga Titan, it immediately notified the port with beacon fires and reflectors.
Upon hearing the news, the port issued an evacuation order to all ships offshore.
The ship then turned its bow to the distant sea.
It was because of that alert system.
10 years since the first appearance of Giga Titan.
In the meantime, the number of ships sunk by the monster was few and far between.
‘So it was. The kingdom has completely abandoned its plan to subjugate Giga Titan. One reason. It’s because I calculated that the loss I would suffer in the process of subjugating Giga Titan would be much greater than the loss I would suffer by choosing an uncomfortable coexistence.’
In fact, the calculation was correct.
It was certainly so in the kingdom as a whole.
It would be less damaging to damage one or two merchant ships from time to time than pouring in and replacing naval power to catch that unmanageable monster.
However, the story would have been a little different from the Count of Cremo’s point of view.
“It has already been 10 years since our city and Giga Titan chose an uncomfortable coexistence. In the meantime, our city’s trade volume has decreased by as much as 40 percent.”
The general butler sighed.
Lloyd inwardly nodded.
‘that’s right. After 10 more years from now, this city will decline to the extent that other ports take over its role.’
It was all because of Giga Titan.
Giga Titan was a disaster that could explode at any time even if there was no immediate damage.
From the position of the top, that alone was no different from the risk of losing the merchant ship.
‘So I gradually started using other ports.’
A statue that will probably be erected this time.
It all seemed to be the Count’s own countermeasure against Giga Titan.
So Lloyd tilted his head.
“Then, if I build the statue of the mermaid you mentioned, will I be able to make the Giga Titan retreat?”
“Perhaps.”
The general butler nodded as if it were natural.
“It’s not just superstition. Mermaids are the most powerful race in the sea.”
“Oh, I know that too.”
It was an obvious fact.
This is the worldview in the novel ‘Iron-Blooded Knight’.
The mermaids of this world were indeed powerful.
There were no slender mermaids singing ‘Wonder the Sea’ like in the digging animations.
How about a burly Olympic swimming gold medalist?
They were the owners of physicals that would make them look like children.
Shoulder muscles as wide as the vast Pacific Ocean.
Pectoral muscles capable of repelling even rushing meteorites.
Washboard abs that will make even the washing machine vibrate.
Even earthworm-like tendons full of the whole body.
It could be said that they are literally the best hardcore extreme swimmers in the underwater world trained by swimming all their lives.
If the body of the land was an orc, the body of the sea was like a mermaid.
“By the way, if we build a mermaid statue, can we get their help?”
“You won’t get any help, but you might be able to scare the Giga Titans.”
“Giga Titan?”
“yes. Sometimes mermaids form huge armies to hunt Giga Titans.”
“aha. It means that if you make a statue of such a mermaid and set it up as a statue, Giga Titan will shrink as if it had met its natural enemy.”
“you’re right. Perhaps they feel threatened and will move their habitat elsewhere.”
“Hmm, that statement also has a point.”
Of course, it’s not a solid investment.
But there is a possibility that it will happen.
The Count seemed to judge that that alone was worth erecting a mermaid statue.
“However, there is no constructor to take on the project. That’s a little strange.”
Certainly it was.
It was a project promoted by the count.
It was a project for the prosperity of the city.
It was natural that the pay would be huge.
But there is no constructor willing to take on it.
The answer was given by the general butler with a shallow sigh.
“Because it is a very difficult, esoteric, or almost impossible project.”
“Why?”
“What would it take to build a statue over the sea?”
“Of course you will need solid ground.”
“Yes, that’s right. However, the Count placed some kind of condition on the construction of the foundation.”
“What was the condition?”
“You want to pile up the soil only vertically from the land exposed above the water surface to the seabed.”
“It sucks.”
Lloyd licked his lips.
Foundation work for the erection of the statue.
It was because I realized at once that there was no builder willing to do it.
‘Because the normal landfill method will never be able to satisfy that condition.’
In general, a huge amount of earth and sand must be poured to create land by filling in the sea.
Then, the ground below the water surface takes on the shape of a gentle pyramid.
But the Count tackled that basic point.
Pyramid shape No.
Stack only vertically.
It was such an absurd condition.
However, that condition was a kind of desperate measure.
Lloyd guessed to some extent why the Count had made such a condition.
“Is it to avoid interfering with the operation of ships in and out of the port?”
“Did you guess that?”
“Your roughness.”
The general butler’s eyes widened at this question.
Lloyd smiled quietly.
‘Certainly, the water entering the port here wasn’t wide.’
It reminded me of the topography of the city offshore that I had seen on the way earlier.
It was a half-moon shaped depression.
Compared to the size of the natural harbor, the waterway was not wide.
Perhaps that’s why the count reluctantly imposed such a condition and put the builders in trouble.
‘Even so, it will be difficult if the narrow waterway becomes narrower due to the impact of reclamation. Because the water depth around the landfill will be very shallow.’
A very narrow waterway.
that makes it narrower.
There is a disruption in the operation of the ship.
If you’re unlucky, you’ll even end up with a catastrophe where the ship runs aground.
The statue erected to drive out Giga Titan narrows the waterway, causing merchant ships to avoid this port.
‘Even so, to build a statue in the distant sea, the depth is too deep, so the construction itself would be impossible in the first place.’
A statue to be erected to drive out the Giga Titan.
The intention is to preserve the waterway while building it.
I could feel the Count’s embarrassing worries.
“Then can’t we just put the statue on land? There seemed to be plenty of room for that next to the port.”
“That is difficult.”
When I asked just in case, the butler smiled bitterly.
“The statue must be built on the water unconditionally. Will Giga Titan scare the resting mermaid on land? no. The mermaid must be in the water. At least it should span the water surface. That way, in Giga Titan’s eyes, you’ll look like a ‘real mermaid who will pose a threat to you.’”
“aha.”
That’s why you dared to make a statue on the sea, leaving the comfortable land.
However, the project is not progressing as expected.
I fully understood why the count was uncomfortable.
“Anyway, it’s a situation where no builder is willing to take on the construction for that reason. It’s been going on for several months already. That’s why.”
In front of the reception room we arrived before we knew it.
The general butler stopped in the hallway and turned around.
With meaningful eyes, he asked with strength in his voice.
“Now you will meet the Count. Please refrain from unnecessary remarks at the meeting. Among them, you should never say words such as ‘Giga Titan’, ‘Statue’, ‘Construction’, etc. Please keep this in mind. Keeping this in mind, I’ve answered all the questions you’ve asked so far. You know?”
“Yeah, keep that in mind.”
Lloyd nodded with a serious face.
The butler smiled contentedly and knocked on the door.
“Thank you for understanding. Then.”
with my daughter!
Soon, a clear bell sounded from inside, as if to come in.
The butler opened the door.
He gestured furiously.
Lloyd entered the drawing room under his guidance.
There was a middle-aged man with a stout body in the drawing room.
Luxurious attire and a dignified impression like a bear.
It was the Count of Cremor.
Lloyd bowed his head as soon as he saw the Count.
Recalling what the general butler had just asked him to do, he bowed politely.
“Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of the Frontera family, greets the wise Earl of Cremo to propose an order for a new offshore foundation ‘construction’ law for the construction of a ‘Statue’ to drive out the ‘Giga Titan’.”
