Lord of Rot

In the study,

”...That bear’s fur would ignite into flames, and its claws scorched the earth where it stepped. It could swat a Soldier in full plate armor into a meat paste, crushing the armor into a flat iron disk with blood squeezing out from the seams. It smashed through several sturdy houses. In the end, Baron Leech and the Warg Slayer arrived. The Warg Slayer’s greatsword was coated in the power of water. When it struck the Blazing Flame Demon Bear, the beast’s hide—tougher than steel—was gashed open, sending up clouds of steam. They successfully defeated the Blazing Flame Demon Bear and skinned this glorious hide. If you wish to share in this glory, and hope to be wrapped in the residual warmth of this bearskin when winter arrives, all it takes is a few Jinri and Silver Moon.”

Leech stopped and looked at the butler standing before his desk. ”What do you think? Should I polish it a bit more?”

”For example, I could say the Blazing Flame Demon Bear could breathe a torrent of fire comparable to a 3rd-circle Magic spell?”

Simon’s forehead beaded with sweat. He never knew Leech had a talent for being a Minstrel.

The bear had just been a little bigger and stronger. Without Jamie Duke, a few more people might have died—maybe a dozen—but they still would have eventually killed or driven it away. And it wasn’t fireproof, much less wreathed in flames. If you went by Leech’s description, everyone in Porcupine Territory combined couldn’t have killed that terrifying... Blazing Flame Demon Bear.

”Pardon me, sir, but what is a 3rd-circle Magic spell?”

”Er,” Leech paused, then said, ”Just some of my own unrefined theories about Magic. It makes the story more exciting.”

Although Magic existed in this world, armies were everything. There had never been a case of a King conquering the world by relying on Magic. Not even dragon riders could conquer a land on their own.

The butler nodded and said, ”I will try to tell this story to potential buyers.”

’Except for the part about the magic,’ he thought to himself.

”It’s based on facts,” Leech emphasized. ”Our bearskin is big enough, and it is indeed crimson.”

He admitted his embellished story was a mix of truth and lies. It was a form of hyperbole, and someone would always be willing to pay for it.

’But it’s *only* a large, crimson bearskin,’ the butler sighed internally. He knew he would have to weave the rest of the tale according to his young lord’s requirements. Buyers wouldn’t just hand over their money after one story; they would ask for more details, and he had to be ready with good answers.

The butler took his leave. Leech picked up his pen and continued adding to the square-shaped characters he had written on the paper last time.

He wrote down some of his knowledge about agriculture. It might not be systematic or complete, but as long as he had a general direction, he was bound to succeed with enough experimentation.

Replacing farm tools required craftsmen and blacksmiths. Building houses also needed craftsmen. Many things were limiting the development of Porcupine Territory.

Besides, Porcupine Territory was too poor. If he just buried his head in the fields to develop the land, even with the help of agricultural knowledge from another world, it would take a long time just to fill everyone’s stomachs. He needed to find other sources of revenue.

’The Eastern Gorge doesn’t have strict restrictions on the sea. Barons with coastal lands can have their own fleets. The sea is no man’s land.’

Land was the private property of lords, but the sea was not. Many lords formed fleets to seize the riches of the ocean. But at sea, anyone could become a pirate, and the only law that mattered was the size of your fleet and your ships.

’Perhaps my father, the previous Baron, also had a dream of great voyages.’

Sailors, Captains, shipwrights, and so on... they were far more expensive than craftsmen and well beyond Leech’s current means.

He could only take it one step at a time. He would consider other matters after Simon brought back the things he needed.

At the end of his plan, he shamelessly wrote: ”Starting with this year’s autumn harvest, this will be a brand new agricultural revolution for this world.”

’I’m probably the only one in this world who understands these square-shaped characters, so I don’t have to worry about the embarrassment of anyone seeing this.’

A man has to have some grand fantasies, or the monotony of life will crush him.

’But first, I have to get through this winter.’

...

A strong-maned horse ambled through the woods, its hooves pressing fallen leaves into the mud and leaving behind horseshoe prints.

Sturdy farmers, armed with homemade bows, pitchforks on their backs, and axes at their waists, guarded the Baron. Their heads swiveled left and right, vigilant for any beast that might charge out at any moment, just like the terrifying, fiery-red giant bear from last night.

After breakfast, Leech had mounted his horse to search for the red dot. Of course, the official reason he gave was that he was searching for the giant red bear, and that if there were any cubs, they needed to be killed preemptively—though he was already certain no cubs existed.

The scent of the giant red bear had not yet dissipated. Other than the chirping birds overhead, there were no other animals in sight. The master of the dense forest was dead, but its lingering scent still kept the smaller beasts at bay.

The farmers’ legs were aching by the time they spotted a cave. Leech dismounted, lit a torch, and entered under the farmers’ protection.

”Look at the tracks! There was only one of those bears here, my lord!” a farmer said with joy, and the others breathed a collective sigh of relief.

They really did not want another face-to-face encounter with that terrifying monster.

The torchlight flickered across Leech’s face.

He stared ahead at a crypt hidden in the darkness. It hadn’t been there a moment ago, but when the red dot in his vision landed on that spot, the crypt had appeared without a sound.

There was no tombstone, just a crypt. It was very inconspicuous.

He turned and said, ”Let’s head back for now.”

Now that he had confirmed the red dot was a crypt, he had no intention of letting these men beside him go in to die. A much better candidate for that task was Jamie, who could perhaps go inside for a thorough exploration.

But on the way back to the castle from the cave, Leech discovered that a yellow dot had appeared in his vision. This yellow dot remained constantly in his sight. If he looked at the ground, the yellow dot turned into a green dot.

’After I discover a red dot, it only turns into a crypt when I’m physically present. Then, a yellow dot appears in my vision. When I look at the ground, the yellow dot turns green, allowing me to build a tombstone, which also makes the crypt appear.’

It dawned on Leech. No wonder the four farmers who died exploring the crypt with the previous Baron Leech had appeared in the golden finger’s crypt in his bedroom.

The only problem was that the crypt had appeared before he transmigrated, and the previous Baron Leech had died because of it.

’So the golden finger wasn’t mine, but the previous Baron Leech’s?’

He wasn’t sure yet.

He might as well think about something more useful.

’If I discover a red-dot crypt a thousand miles away, fill it with things, and then build its tombstone in my castle, will all the items come back with it?’

He just needed to run an experiment tonight to find the answer.