Chapter 52. They must unite to sell (2)
“There is a way to avoid giving the land over to people like that. I’ll tell you slowly, so let’s get rid of that nasty bastard first. If possible, at least lose a bit.”
“…what?”
Lloyd entered the office door.
The baron was taken aback by his words.
He was in despair.
It was a disappointing car.
Severe headache in the morning.
I had a vague feeling that something was out of the ordinary.
However, he hadn’t even thought that it was Viscount Lacona’s doing.
That’s why Lord Courno’s message sent by Viscount Lacona was a shock.
To think that the toxic wastewater from the dye workshop was intentionally discharged into the river.
That waste water would cause the entire territory to suffer from headaches.
‘That will continue until I hand over half of the Marez clearing land.’
Half of the Marez clearing.
That was what the Viscount was asking for.
They said they would continue to discharge wastewater until it was handed over.
It was an outright threat.
It was also an unreasonable threat.
However, there was no way to counterattack.
I threatened to file a complaint with the Royal Noble Court, but to no avail.
Rather, I had to listen to ridicule, telling me to do it if I could endure the long time before the verdict was issued.
I was upset.
I felt humiliated.
But there was nothing I could do.
Of course, in addition to filing a complaint with the aristocratic court, there was a way to inform the count of Cremo, the great lord of the province, and ask for ‘fair mediation’.
But that method wasn’t going to be that good either.
‘Because Count Cremo can’t be particularly active in resolving disputes.’
No, there is even a possibility that Viscount Lacona, who has a lot of money, will feed the Count in return.
Rather, there may be worse results than surrender.
In this case, the world is most likely not on the side of the upright, but on the side of those with power and money. Because that’s the dirty law of this world.
‘ha.’
A sigh came out of my mouth.
Things weren’t so good.
This was a no-win fight.
In the end, the baron made a compromise with the cold reality.
He convinced himself that this was for the people of the territory and that there was no way to fight back, so he made a rational decision before suffering greater damage.
That was the moment when he was about to declare surrender to Lord Cournot.
But then Lloyd broke into the office.
“M what. What did that mean? And how do you do this?”
The baron was taken aback.
Viscount blackmail through Lord Cournot.
His troubles in the face of that threat.
It was only a conversation between himself and Lord Cournot, here in the Oval Office.
It was also a story that was coming and going in real time.
There was no way or time for the story to leak out.
However, it was surprising how Lloyd knew the contents of the conversation he and Sir Cournot were sharing.
I wondered if he was secretly eavesdropping on the story outside the door of his office.
But it was hard to see it that way.
Lloyd was out of breath and sweating like rain.
That means you rushed all the way here.
“Whoop whoop. Fortunately, it seems I’m not late. No surprises. It is a fact that I guessed while investigating the cause of the headache from the morning.”
“guesswork?”
“yes. You must have heard the Viscount’s threats right now, right? It is a threat to continue to discharge toxic wastewater from the dye workshop if the Marez clearing is not handed over.”
“….”
Lloyd’s guess perfectly hits the mark.
In front of him, the baron fell silent.
Lloyd’s words continued.
“So I will say it again. Marez You must not hand over even a span of reclaimed land. No, you don’t even have to hand it over.”
“Cleared paper? To Viscount Lacona?”
“yes.”
Lloyd wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.
I took a breath and walked into the center of the office.
Before I knew it, I was standing face to face with Lord Cournot.
He looked into Lord Cournot’s eyes and said.
“Why do you give concessions to beggars who are trying to gulp the land that others have worked hard to develop for free?”
“….”
Was it because of the words of this side?
A faint heat bloomed in Lord Cournot’s eyes.
But Lloyd kept saying whether the other person did or not.
“So there is only one answer to give them back. If you want to get land, you have to sweat and put in effort. Don’t think of sucking blood by clinging to others like a parasite.”
“Are you sure that’s the one you told me to listen to?”
Sir Cournot wrung his lips and asked.
A sneer crept across Lloyd’s lips.
“uh. Fortunately, even a parasite is quick to understand.”
“Are you insulting me now?”
“oh. Keep an eye on it too. clap.”
“You are making a mistake now.”
“ah. You’re the one who’s here to deliver the viscount’s message, and you’re the viscount’s representative, so you want to say that insulting you is insulting the viscount? But what about It’s okay that I’m cursing myself right now.”
“Are you serious?”
“huh.”
“….”
Lloyd’s reply seemed so obvious.
Lord Cournot was at a loss for words.
Lloyd’s smirk insults continued to pound Lord Cournot.
“hey. Aren’t you honestly having a hard time? huh? Are you really okay with a master like that?”
“My lord, of course….”
“He has no conscience. That person won’t have to pay for the maintenance of his conscience for the rest of his life.”
“No I….”
“Can’t you just give up? Loyalty still waning? Then you won’t have to climb a mountain for the rest of your life.”
“Why am I climbing….”
“Your life is going uphill.”
“….”
“how is it. Do you think you’ll change your mind now?”
“No at all. Lloyd Frontera. You continue to make fun of my lord and seriously insult him.”
“Tsk tsk. He changed 360 degrees in the meantime.”
“….”
“So now go back and tell your master clearly. He said he couldn’t pass over the Marez clearing. Not even half of it, not even a handful of soil on an embankment.”
“I guess we are not afraid that we will continue to discharge toxic wastewater.”
“How is that? I am a man who has grown up without a mask all year round, drinking fine dust.”
“What is that….”
“Have you anything else to say? It’s so cheesy. go away.”
Lloyd waved his hand in annoyance.
Lord Cournot’s expression hardened coldly.
“You will definitely regret your actions today.”
“whatever.”
“….”
“what. why. what.”
“….”
“oh my god. Haven’t you gone yet?”
“…Whoa. We’ll see.”
Lord Cournot twitched his jaw muscles and backed away.
He slammed the office door and left.
Only then did the baron suddenly come to his senses.
I grabbed Lloyd’s sleeve.
“How did this happen…Will this be okay?”
“yes? What do you mean, are you okay?”
“It wasn’t enough that I refused the viscount’s request, and I even insulted his messenger a lot, so I’m asking if the next thing will be okay.”
“Yes what.”
Lloyd grinned.
I’m really glad
I feel that the headache is not serious in the morning.
Move diligently to find the cause of the headache.
That’s how I was able to come up with a countermeasure while running to this place.
“You told me earlier. They say there is a way to not hand over the Marez clearing land to them.”
“How? Where do you want to hear it? No, sit down first.”
The Baron put Lloyd in his seat.
When Lloyd and Baron Xaviel sat across the table, the atmosphere in the cluttered office finally calmed down.
The baron’s mind also calmed down.
“okay. Seeing you say that, it seems like there must be a sure way. Is that right?”
“yes.”
Lloyd nodded.
“Now, let’s install a water supply.”
“what?”
The baron tilted his head.
water supply.
I wanted something like that.
“Tell me more.”
“Well, to put it simply, I’m talking about a way to make clean water from afar flow directly to the manor through the installed pipe.”
“Clear water from afar?”
“yes.”
Lloyd nodded.
A wrinkle formed between the baron’s brows.
“Draw water. I’ve never heard of anything like that anywhere.”
“I thought about it before.”
“you?”
“yes.”
Lloyd nodded again.
To say that I had thought about it before was a lie.
Classical water supply system.
It was a technology that the Roman Empire of his world implemented in B.C.
Rome early introduced the technology of bringing clean water to the city from distant water sources and was able to thrive without a shortage of domestic water.
Lloyd intended to use this opportunity to introduce the water supply system.
Of course, I didn’t forget to put an iron plate on his face for him.
“Sometimes I thought about it. Isn’t it often difficult to depend on rivers for water for life?”
“Hmm, that’s right.”
“yes. Even if rivers dry up due to drought or turbid currents come down due to floods, it becomes difficult to use water. That’s why. He said that it would be great if we selected a water intake that would provide a stable supply of water throughout the year and drew water from there.”
“Wow, that’s definitely a great idea. But-”
The Baron tilted his head.
“Is there any way to make it?”
“yes. Because I have been thinking hard and fiercely before.”
Not me, of course, but many ancient civil engineers.
Lloyd answered, blatantly omitting the afterword.
However, even with that answer, the baron’s expression did not brighten.
It was because no matter how great a water supply system was made, the problem that was bothering everyone right now would not be solved for a while.
“okay. Your idea is really great. also bold But still I’m worried It will take quite a long time to complete that waterworks, right?”
“yes.”
“Then, where should our territory get clean water in the meantime?”
How to get water right away.
That was the part the baron was worried about.
No matter how good the waterworks are, they are useless until they are all built.
In other words, until the water system is complete, shouldn’t we live with headaches by drinking river water mixed with low-toxic wastewater?
But the baron’s worries were in vain.
It was because Lloyd had already thought about the same problem enough.
In addition, Lloyd had already made up an answer.
“There is a solution to that too.”
“What if there is a solution?”
“Do you remember Hamang among the summons I signed?”
“Ah, it’s a pet that grows enormously when it drinks water, but is it a pink baby hippopotamus that’s usually breathtakingly round and cute and has barely visible fluff on its side?”
“…Unexpectedly, you are very detailed.”
“Hmmmm! It’s a bit cute in my opinion.”
“….”
“Anyway, did you intend to use that summoned beast?”
“yes.”
Lloyd nodded.
“I will fetch a lot of water with a net. Let’s fill the temporary reservoir with that water.”
“indeed. If water is brought in from time to time like that, there will seldom be a shortage of water while the waterworks are being built.”
“yes. So, before we start, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Please. What was it?”
“In the name of the lord, please issue a proclamation to the lord.”
“A proclamation?”
“yes.”
Lloyd’s explanation continued.
“Then listen for a moment…therefore…This and that and this and that…blah blah…Blah blah…I did.”
“Hmm, indeed.”
Lloyd eagerly explained, and the Baron nodded.
Meanwhile, the concern on the baron’s face faded. has disappeared. Little by little the confidence that I could do it bloomed.
A dispute that was so unfavorable that I thought there was no way to win.
The hope of turning it over neatly and feeding it heavily even to the taffy was emerging.
♣
That afternoon, the people of Frontera came across the lord’s proclamation.
The content of the proclamation was concise.
A headache that everyone suffers from.
The cause of the headache was clear.
“what? So, the reason why our heads hurt like they were breaking in the morning was because of what Viscount Lacona had done?
“Because it is.”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Where? It is the proclamation that the lord announced earlier.”
farmers and farmers.
The woodcutter and the shepherd boy.
The woman and the grandmothers next door.
The contents of the proclamation quickly spread among the villagers.
“Well, there is a dye workshop, right? They released poison from it into the river.”
“Oh my God. by mistake?”
“no. On purpose.”
“Egg mom is crazy. What are all those things?”
“So it is. Besides, they say that the viscount even made strange demands of our lord.”
“request? what request?”
“You know the Marez clearing, right?”
“know. My son is a member of the Corps of Engineers.”
“They told me to pass half of the clearing.”
“Who is that viscount or what?”
“yes.”
“What kind of nonsense are you talking about? That’s the land my son made with so much sweat and shoveling! Give it away for free? This is very, very late!”
“Tell me so.”
The villagers swelled as if they were about to explode.
Someone clenched their fists in anger and denounced the Viscount.
Another person vomited in anger, saying, “Why do we have to suffer?”
Maybe that was it, I don’t know.
The next morning, when news spread that the lord’s son, Lloyd Frontera, would begin construction to overcome the poisonous discharge.
It was the first time in history that most of the local residents with labor force volunteered or participated in the construction.
