Chapter 324 - 300: An Upright Knight is More Trustworthy

He had been entertaining this idea for a long time and now planned to include the excavation in the first phase of his plans.

Only by digging a gently sloping tunnel from outside Iron Wall Castle straight to the sea at the bottom of the cliff could he fully leverage Iron Valley’s coastal advantage.

Once the path was open, building a dock, watchtowers, and so on would be small matters that would naturally fall into place.

’But this is a huge undertaking. Even though Iron Wall Castle is right next to the cliff, even the lowest part is forty to fifty meters from the sea... A spiral tunnel should work. It would shorten the distance.’

The only problem was the manpower required to dig the tunnel.

’I’ll include it in the plan for now. When I get back to Porcupine Territory this time, I’ll have Betty and Scholar Toma look into it. Maybe they’ll come up with a better method.’

Petroleum Ore was a good find. Perhaps Betty could develop something from it.

It didn’t matter if she couldn’t, because Leech himself possessed an alchemy method for "firewater."

After he finished transcribing various miscellaneous notes, Leech started discussing the training of the local militia with Lacy.

Soldiers trained from the Iron Valley People would also be Porcupine Soldiers.

The equipment issue was easy to solve. Porcupine Territory had a fairly complete production line of water-powered trip-hammers.

"Let’s train an initial batch of 300," Leech said. "Then we’ll increase the numbers depending on the situation. Porcupine Territory still needs Soldiers, so they can’t stay here forever."

...

A raven departed from Monkey Territory, flying toward Longship Castle.

Guy, who had rushed back to Longship Castle with the Extraordinary Corpse Ghost Rabbit without stopping, did not rest. Being already dead, he didn’t feel fatigue.

At the door to Lady Jie Lin’s room, her sister Yi Lin blocked their way.

"And he is?"

"The Rabbit."

Yi Lin frowned slightly. Ever since Guy Marvin began following Baron Porcupine, his behavior had become extremely strange. It wasn’t just the odd smell about him; he had transformed from a smooth-talker into a man of few words.

"Baron Porcupine had you bring him here?"

"He also serves Lord Leech," Guy said. "I need to go in."

"No!" Yi Lin shook her head. "The Lady is already resting. She is very weak."

Guy said, "I bring a message from the Lord."

"Yi Lin, let Sir Guy in," came Lady Jie Lin’s voice from within the room.

Yi Lin decisively opened the door. "Please, come in."

At that moment, Lady Jie Lin was nestled in bed with her large belly. She asked anxiously, "How is he?"

Although she had already heard that Baron Porcupine had stormed the walls and taken Iron Wall Castle, she was still a little worried.

"He won," Guy said, offering no further details. He didn’t mention the existence of the vine-corpses, keeping his answer deliberately vague.

She let out a sigh of relief, gently stroking her belly.

"The Lord had me bring you a message," Guy said. "He will definitely be here when you give birth."

A smile appeared on Lady Jie Lin’s face.

There were no feelings between them, only a child born of a transaction. But now, pregnant, she hoped for more than just a transaction between them.

Judging by Baron Porcupine’s attitude, he didn’t intend to treat it as a mere transaction either, which put her in a good mood.

"But there is bad news," Guy said. "Nils’s unit has been completely wiped out."

In reality, a portion of them had been left in the monastery in Iron Valley, steeping in Magic Antiseptic. But as long as Leech didn’t plan on using them, it was better for them to be considered wiped out.

"Monkey Territory will likely make a move. The Lord hopes you will prepare in advance."

Lady Jie Lin’s expression didn’t change. She said, "I have been preparing all along."

Last year’s incident with the illegitimate child had nearly gotten her thrown out of the castle. The Monkey Clan, one of the masterminds behind it, had earned her hatred long ago.

"Does he need any other help?"

"Iron Valley needs to purchase a shipment of grain."

"Go find Yi Lin."

After a few more brief exchanges, the ailing Lady Jie Lin brought the conversation to a close.

She lay in bed, her mind blank. What she was thinking, no one knew.

Returning to his room, Guy immediately wrote a letter and sent it by raven straight to Shanzhang Castle.

His job now was to stall. This was the only task Leech had given him. To this end, Leech had even tailored a tempting offer that the Monkey Lord Baron, Wells Bill, would find hard to refuse, based on his situation.

...

「Shanzhang Castle.」

"Ugh—!"

Tilting his head back, Wells Bill opened his mouth wide and took a deep breath, forcing himself awake.

"La?" he asked, somewhat surprised to see the figure standing before his bed.

"It’s me, Father," La Bill nodded quickly.

Wells said, "Oh, my apologies. My body is failing me day by day. The time I can remain lucid grows shorter."

His voice was ancient, but his logic was sound, indicating his mind was still perfectly clear.

"I will help you live longer," La said.

He himself didn’t believe Wells could live much longer. Recently, Wells had become constipated. The Alchemist said it was due to an intestinal blockage and recommended bloodletting.

However, La had forcefully stopped it. The last time he helped his father into his wheelchair, he had found him to be unnervingly light.

The skin on his legs was slack, with little flesh left.

Holding him felt like lifting a pile of bones that had yet to fall apart.

There was no blood to let from this body.

"All men must die."

Wells was very calm. "I imagine you’ve brought news. Is it related to Guy?"

"Yes," La nodded. "Guy explained to us why he abandoned the defense of Longship Castle and rushed directly to Iron Valley."

As he spoke, La presented the letter to his father.

"Don’t give it to me," Wells shook his head gently. "My eyes can no longer see clearly. Just tell me what it says."

"Yes, Father," he nodded and said, "Guy says he learned that Baron Porcupine went to Iron Valley to search for a life-extending herb for the Duke."

Wells, whose eyes had been cloudy and dim, struggled to lift his sagging eyelids. This news had indeed captured his attention.

La continued, "And he found it!"

"GASP, GASP, GASP!" Wells panted heavily, trying to calm himself.

Seeing his difficulty breathing, La immediately went over and gently patted his father’s back. He was afraid he might accidentally break the bones in his father’s spine—the fragile feedback he felt terrified him.

"Guy said he has already made contact with Baron Porcupine. He said the man is like the old Porcupine, a greedy, reckless brute."

"Do you believe that?" Wells retorted. "A Baron who has acquired two territories is a reckless brute?"

"But it’s Iron Valley," La said. "We’ve had countless opportunities to take that territory, yet we never once made a move."

His words revealed his stance: he believed Guy!

’Only a fool would want such a godforsaken place.’

"COUGH, COUGH!" Wells began to cough violently. When his breathing eased, he asked, "What do you plan to do?"

La said, "I want to first engage in friendly talks with Baron Porcupine. Perhaps I can acquire a Pill of Immortality for you."

"All men must die. A true wise man recognizes this."

"But I want to try, for you," La said with great earnestness.

"It seems I cannot refuse my son’s filial piety," Wells looked at his son and nodded in agreement. "Remember, a wise man conceals his intentions."

"Yes, Father!"

When La left the room and closed the door, his expression became grim.

’Pill of Immortality? It’s meaningless. It couldn’t possibly exist!’

’If such a magical thing truly existed, Iron Valley should be full of ageless immortals. The reality is the complete opposite. Iron Valley is mostly populated by young people; the elderly have long since died off.’

’To this day, no one in the world has ever achieved eternal life.’

The real reason La had no choice but to side with Guy and speak on his behalf was twofold, and he hadn’t told his father either reason.

First, Guy had stated very clearly in his letter that Nils and those two hundred elite Soldiers were now his own forces.

’That damned succubus-like ability of his... maybe it really does work on men.’ La was terrified of Guy’s power, so after reading the letter, he thought it over and decided to believe it.

Second, La’s own younger brother, Dreden, had found the legendary crown.

It was said that whoever wore the crown could become King.

Since his brother intended to become King, he certainly wouldn’t overlook the great advantage that Monkey Territory represented.

As soon as Dreden became the Baron of Monkey Territory, he would easily gain a powerful domain and a host of strong Warriors.

Right now, La was the one standing in his brother’s path to becoming Baron.

As for why Guy took his troops from Waterfall Land to Iron Valley, it might have been a deliberate display of his friendship with Baron Porcupine, or there could be other reasons. In any case, what La had to do was tie Guy to his side, not push him toward his ambitious younger brother, Dreden.