It would not have been wrong to call it the impetuousness of youth.
Even so, it had not been a purely impulsive decision.
Carcosa also had considerable potential for growth, and this transaction had clearly shown Jack just how important an exceptional Lord could be.
When Jack announced his decision to become a member of Carcosa, Alex patted him on the shoulder.
His head was already full of all the commerce-related work he planned to dump on Jack.
“Yeah. Let’s do this right. At the very least, I’ll make sure you can live with your head held higher than you did in Hari, so look forward to it.”
“You certainly should. I am a rather expensive hire, after all.”
Jack joked in response to Alex.
[News that Carcosa has resumed its activities has spread widely.]
[News that a vast sum of money has moved from Hari to Carcosa has spread widely.]
[Factions that indulged in illegal entertainment in Hari are growing nervous.]
[Many influential factions are taking an interest in Carcosa’s reconstruction.]
Right on cue, the messages in the system window, which had remained still for some time, began changing rapidly.
[New Title Acquired!]
[Rookie Lord of Carcosa]
[Import prices -5%, export prices +5%, Loyalty +5%]
[50 Coins acquired.]
Now, both within and outside the Domain, the fact that he had become the new Lord of Carcosa was officially recognized everywhere.
Step by step, the foundations for the future were being laid.
“All right. We’re all going to be seeing each other’s faces while we work from now on, so say hello.”
Alex formally introduced Jack to Elizabeth and Hamilton again.
It would have been an exaggeration to say there was no wariness whatsoever, but everyone seemed fairly welcoming.
Hamilton, in particular, looked pleased to have another pair of hands.
Amid the warm atmosphere, Alex reached his office and stopped short.
Beyond the system window that had been busily displaying rewards and notices, the text on the Ominous Compass began to change.
[The Ominous Compass has detected the future.]
[Upon detecting an ominous event, it indicates the direction and time of occurrence.]
[Time Remaining : 360 : 00 : 00]
[The Ominous Compass is currently pointing east.]
As though responding to the ominous message, the roar of a gigantic Magical Beast echoed from the distant port.
“….”
Hearing the cries of Magical Beasts in Carcosa was not particularly unusual in itself.
Jack, hearing it for the first time, went pale, but Elizabeth and Hamilton simply brushed it off as something familiar.
However, because its timing happened to coincide perfectly with the ominous message before him, Alex had a bad feeling about it.
Trying to remain calm, Alex leafed through the calendar and map as he spoke.
“For farming, use wheat and potatoes for double cropping. That’s possible, right?”
“Yes. That was how we used to cultivate the Farmland in the past, so it should be possible.”
“Formally hire the tenant farmers, and from now on, pay the people we employ their salaries in Imperial Coins….”
Another thunderous roar came through the window, cutting Alex off.
Unable to endure the grotesque sound any longer, Jack spoke up.
“Am I the only one hearing that?”
At Jack’s words, Hamilton and Elizabeth looked slightly embarrassed.
It was not that they could not hear it.
It had simply become such an ordinary part of daily life to them that they barely noticed anymore.
It felt as though they had grown accustomed to something they never should have become accustomed to.
Watching the expressions of his two retainers, Alex gave a bitter smile.
“Since it came up, we should talk about the Magical Beasts too.”
The operation that had swept the Magical Beasts from the Farmland away with the torrent had been quite effective.
But there was one thing they had to take into consideration.
The corpses of the Magical Beasts swept downstream had passed through the Old Quarter and the port before flowing out into the sea.
And since the Ominous Compass happened to be pointing east, where the port lay, some kind of chain reaction had almost certainly occurred because of it.
“The port is probably absolute chaos right now.”
[Incursion Risk : Magical Beasts 76%, Barbarians 45%, (Locked)]
Alex checked the status window once more.
This was about the time when a gigantic Magical Beast, provoked by the flood of corpses—or rather, food—would have begun rampaging.
“There’s a high chance the Barbarians and a gigantic Magical Beast have clashed in the waters near the port.”
As Alex pointed to the sea on the map, Jack, who had also been staring intently at it, spoke.
On the map, the Farmland lay to the west, toward the interior. The lord’s castle stood at the center, and beyond it to the east were the Old Quarter and the port.
The fact that the old city district lay near the sea made it obvious that Carcosa’s primary commercial district had once been on the coast rather than inland.
“…Come to think of it, it really is a shame that we can’t use the port.”
Carcosa’s port was positioned so that ships could reach the Eastern Continent across the ocean, or, over shorter distances, quickly travel to the southern reaches of the continent.
If they could make use of that sea, Carcosa would undoubtedly display dazzling growth with each passing day.
“Still… with forces this small, using the port as well would be impossible, wouldn’t it?”
For now, driving the Magical Beasts out of the area would likely be difficult.
Jack murmured regretfully, practically glaring at the map.
Just from the enormous roar they had heard moments ago, he could not even begin to imagine how large the Magical Beast at the port must be.
The conversation had briefly gone off track because of Jack, but Alex nodded and continued.
“For now, let’s keep sending Magical Beast corpses downstream to provoke the ones near the port and let the Barbarians and Magical Beasts fight among themselves.”
Elizabeth and Hamilton nodded without objection.
Jack frowned slightly at the sight.
He admitted that Alex was an exceptional Lord, but the plan did not exactly feel flawless.
“Is it… really all right to keep feeding those Magical Beasts so well…?”
They were not livestock being raised in captivity, and there was no guarantee they would behave as intended.
Despite Jack’s concern, Alex nodded.
“Like you said, we don’t have many troops.”
If the Magical Beasts and Barbarians fought each other and reduced their numbers, Carcosa’s small number of highly capable fighters could simply eliminate whoever remained.
Alex’s plan was simple and clear.
“Even if they end up pushing back toward us, we’ll only be able to deal with them if their numbers are small.”
“…You mean….”
Jack swallowed his next words for a moment.
As far as he knew, only two people here possessed combat ability beyond that of an ordinary soldier: Alex and Elizabeth.
And yet… Alex and Elizabeth… the two of them intended to handle all of that themselves?
‘They’re a Lord and a Knight, though…? They’re going to do that kind of thing… personally?’
Jack gave them a questioning look, but Alex and Elizabeth already seemed brimming with enthusiasm.
“Dame Elizabeth. In that case, we’re cleaning up the Old Quarter this time! Double overtime pay!”
“Leave it to me!”
For some reason, Alex hurriedly straightened up and strode energetically out of the office.
Alex marched out full of energy, and Elizabeth energetically followed after him.
Once the two of them were gone, the office suddenly felt desolate, leaving behind nothing but a mountain of documents.
‘…Who’s supposed to do all that…?’
For a moment, Jack found himself wondering whether he had truly made the right choice.
Still, there was no way they would entrust all of that to someone who had only just transferred over from another Domain.
Jack gave an awkward smile and spoke to Hamilton, who remained behind.
“…He has a plan before he says things like that, right?”
After a brief silence, Jack asked Hamilton the question.
The taciturn Hamilton nodded firmly.
“The Lord always has a plan. Our role is to trust him and provide whatever assistance we can.”
“He does account for the possibility of failure, right?”
This time, even Hamilton could not answer immediately and fell silent for a moment.
“…He tends to think of several dozen possible ways to succeed instead.”
Did that not ultimately mean he never considered the probability of failure?
It was not as though a person could experience the future thousands of times. How could anyone possibly do that….
Jack had unknowingly arrived at the correct answer, but he shook his head, dismissing it as an absurd thought.
“It’s good that you’re so proactive, but handling all this work alone must be difficult. If there’s anything I can help with, please let me know.”
Jack said it cheerfully, naturally assuming all of the work belonged to Hamilton.
Hamilton, however, merely stared at Jack with his usual impassive expression.
‘All of that is your work.’
His gaze seemed to say exactly that, and Jack gulped.
The new life he had imagined was supposed to involve supporting an intelligent Lord so that the Lord could rise to prominence…?
“Do your best.”
Hamilton spoke flatly, patted Jack on the shoulder, and walked straight out of the office.
Left alone at last with nothing but the paperwork for company, Jack belatedly realized something.
If they needed manpower… that meant there was just that much work to do.
No matter how intelligent a Lord might be, there was inevitably a limit to how much he could personally handle….
No matter where he went, one thing apparently remained unchanged: in the end, Jack himself would still have to labor away at the work.
“I’ve been had….”
After closing the office door behind him, Hamilton heard Jack slump heavily to the floor and quickly made his escape.
Seeing a Domain flourish might be satisfying and rewarding, but the instinct to dump an avalanche of work onto someone else was simply human nature.
***
Alex, who had hurried away before the needlessly sharp Jack could grow suspicious, stopped at the entrance to the Old Quarter and sank into thought.
His sudden talk of cleaning up the Old Quarter had partly been because the port was a problem they would eventually have to deal with, but the Ominous Compass had also been bothering him.
For trouble to already be occurring in the east at a time like this made him want to see the situation for himself.
“But how much of it are we supposed to clear?”
Elizabeth asked cautiously as she followed Alex into the Old Quarter.
Most of the sealed-off areas were unfamiliar even to Elizabeth.
Moreover, the Magical Beasts in the Old Quarter were primarily ordinary objects that had become cursed and transformed into Magical Beasts.
The various forms of Magical Beasts known as “Mimics” concealed themselves throughout the area while pretending to be perfectly normal furniture.
“For now, I think clearing enough for us to inspect the port should be enough. …Poke anything that looks a little suspicious.”
Despite the abandoned houses having been neglected for decades, eerily pristine pieces of furniture could be seen here and there.
For now, they were quietly pretending to be furniture, but the slightest touch would make the Mimics reveal their aggression and cause an uproar.
“Let’s at least clear the entrance first… Aagh!”
As Alex walked while prodding nearby objects with the tip of his sword, he touched a white terrace chair, and rows of sharp teeth suddenly burst into view.
Even though he had expected it, he could not help being startled when layer after layer of razor-sharp teeth, interlocked like hunting traps, abruptly appeared across the backrest of an otherwise ordinary chair.
“That’s absolutely disgusting!”
When the Magical Beast appeared, Alex instinctively activated Sanctuary and hurled it far away.
As the Mimic tumbled across the ground from the impact, Alex immediately thrust his sword into the gap between its jaws.
Elizabeth, who had rushed over to help him, delivered finishing blows by practically beating the already dead Magical Beast as black blood poured from it.
“Looks like you’re getting used to real combat now?”
Alex snorted with amusement at Elizabeth’s grin.
She might care a little too much about money, but she unquestionably possessed an innate talent for combat.
The training he had done with her help had definitely paid off.
Mimics continued to open their sharp maws like traps scattered throughout the Old Quarter, but they presented little difficulty for the two of them.
***
Over the next several days, Alex and Elizabeth continued “cleaning” the entrance to the Old Quarter.
While the two of them diligently disposed of Mimics, Jack worked through the accumulated paperwork and organized a small trading caravan.
“I suppose… I should go there myself….”
It would have been a lie to say he had absolutely no intention of escaping the tedious mountain of paperwork, but he had another, genuine reason.
If there was going to be this much work anyway, Jack wanted to produce achievements that would help his career.
Especially when it came to the Bex Merchant Company he had left behind.
He wanted an accomplishment that would put the main house firmly in its place.
“…Does Jack really have to go himself?”
Hamilton had been deeply moved to finally acquire some genuinely competent manpower, but Jack was adamant.
“Yes. Just as the Lord personally goes into the Old Quarter, I also have reasons why I must personally lead the trading caravan.”
Alex was not wandering around simply because he hated administrative work.
And yet, for some reason, his conscience still pricked at him, so he answered with exaggerated conviction.
“Of course. The people in charge are supposed to be on-site themselves, aren’t they?”
There was nothing wrong with Alex’s statement, but if there was one problem, it was that a rapidly growing Domain had far too few people.
“…Anyway, Jack, remember everything I told you and make sure you bring back the things I asked for.”
“…For now… understood.”
Jack looked as though he had plenty to say, but he swallowed it all and departed.
Afterward, Alex and Elizabeth continued cleaning the Old Quarter.
Elizabeth was growing rapidly as well, even awakening a new Skill during that time.
If things continued this way, they might even be able to reclaim part of the Old Quarter while they had the opportunity.
“…?”
The moment Alex thought that far, something suddenly struck him as strange, and he looked around.
It was already the fourth day.
After clearing this much of the Old Quarter’s entrance, they should have begun advancing toward the port by now.
And yet the two of them were still right in front of the Old Quarter, struggling with Mimics.
“Why does it feel like new ones keep appearing near the entrance?”