Lord of Rot

”What! Has he gone mad?”

Becky, known as ”Charming,” stared wide-eyed. She never imagined Kolan would be so suicidal as to make a move on someone from Iron Stone City; it was as if he was in a hurry to die.

”Did you find the recipe?”

”No,” her personal maid shook her head. ”Sir Fosak only found a ruby ring.”

”What! A ring?!”

Becky was about to explode with rage.

A jeweled ring... how many Jinri could it possibly be worth?

But the one who said it was Sir Fosak, an old Knight under Baron Spark. You could doubt anyone else, but not him.

’So, a theft was committed, but not completely.’

’How could there be a stupid good-for-nothing like Kolan?’

”And what about that Porcupine?”

She couldn’t be bothered to use Leech’s name. ’In her eyes, if Kolan hadn’t screwed up, she could have crushed Leech’s Little Pill business next month. Why should she have to share the profits with him?’

’Making less money is the same as losing money.’

”He’s already left Iron Stone City with Kolan’s body. Lord Clarence was furious...”

On the surface, Kolan Fosak had betrayed Porcupine Castle and his own honor. It would have been perfectly justified to cut off his head and mount it on a pike. No one would really object to Leech taking the body back for disposal, but most lords would have just unceremoniously buried or discarded the corpse, unwilling to go to the trouble.

The furious Lord Leech Clarence departed from Iron Stone City. However, after a mile or two, his anger inexplicably vanished. He started whistling a relaxed tune, completely at ease.

’Kolan is dead, problem solved. I definitely can’t leave the body behind. What if someone discovers the golden scar on it? Unacceptable! Absolutely unacceptable!’

’This Little Pill business won’t last long.’

’It’s fine if it doesn’t last. The money from the Cape Grotto is enough for Porcupine Territory’s development for now.’

’In the short term, digging for gold is certainly faster and more profitable than running a business. No wonder everyone’s scrambling to go treasure hunting.’

’If I had a gold mine, why would I even bother with commerce? That would be like digging up money directly.’

’The Cape Grotto isn’t a gold mine, but it does have gold in it.’

’Becky’s actions were a wake-up call.’

’Anyway, I’m not that short on cash right now. I’ll gradually reduce the supply of Little Pills. It’s better to save the Life Grass for Livestock Village. With these herbs, breeding is practically a sure thing. Our animal husbandry will develop rapidly.’

He held the ruby ring up over his head. In the sunlight, the gem glittered with magnificent light.

He squinted, looking at the sky through the gem, and the sky turned red.

...

「Green Forest Castle.」

A beautiful young noblewoman, her large eyes like pools of seawater, walked into the castle with a light step, a book clutched in her arms.

”Miss Port,” a maid smiled at her.

She slowed her pace.

She responded with a smiling nod.

”Miss Port!” A male servant couldn’t help but steal another glance.

”Miss Port.” A soldier guarding the castle offered a gentlemanly smile.

”Miss Port?”

The head housekeeper’s bearing was impeccable. The moment she appeared, the maids bowed their heads and scurried away. The manservants froze, chanting internally, ’She can’t see me,’ and the soldier immediately wiped the smile from his face.

But when faced with Miss Port, even the housekeeper’s ice-cold face managed to crack a smile.

”I’m here to see Stacy,” Miss Port said cautiously. ”I’m not interrupting her etiquette lesson, am I?”

”Her lesson has just finished,” the housekeeper said with a gentle shake of her head.

”Thank you.”

Miss Port lifted her skirts and made her way to the small study in Green Forest Castle.

She knocked gently on the door.

”Come in.” The voice from inside sounded annoyed.

Miss Port pushed open the door to find Stacy with her right hand propping up her head and a quill in her left, lost in thought.

”Oh, if it isn’t my beautiful Water Hyacinth,” Stacy said, her face instantly breaking into a smile when she saw who it was.

She beckoned. ”Fami, how about we go boating this afternoon?”

But Fami Port didn’t respond to Stacy’s suggestion, asking instead with a curious look, ”Are you writing a letter?”

Stacy, the ’General,’ writing a letter? ’To Fami Port, that seemed even more fantastic than a Flying Knight on a Winged Horse from one of her books.’

”My cousin,” Stacy said, sounding drained. ”My father and grandfather want me to marry him. We’re in the ’getting to know each other’ phase.”

”Your cousin, ah...” Fami Port’s slender eyebrows knitted together. ”I think you’ve mentioned him before.”

”My aunt’s son. We’re about the same age,” Stacy sighed. ”He’s Baron Porcupine now. If I marry him, I’ll be a Baroness.”

”Congratulations, then,” Fami Port said with a smile. ”To the future Baroness.”

It wasn’t hard for Stacy to become a Baroness. But marrying into another noble family would just make her a vassal of sorts. Only Porcupine Castle was family; the union would make Green Forest Castle even stronger.

”I’m not interested in a crybaby,” Stacy pouted. Then she cleared her throat and declared, ”My man must be a powerful Knight, not some sniveling brat. At the very least, he has to be able to beat me in a fight!”

Fami Port knew her friend’s personality. ”And what if no one can beat you?”

”Wouldn’t that be even better?” Stacy retorted cheerfully.

”But you have to get married eventually,” Fami Port said. ”We rarely get to choose our own marriages.”

She had a clear view of her own situation. Her options were limited, far fewer than Stacy’s.

At least Stacy was destined to be a Baroness. Fami, on the other hand, would likely only be the wife of a Knight, or perhaps some non-inheriting son.

”But I have absolutely no interest in Leech.”

”But you haven’t seen him in over a decade, have you?” Fami Port tried to soothe her. ”Maybe he’s grown into a valiant Knight, skilled with a horse and sword!”

”You can tell what kind of person he is from his writing. He’s definitely the type to talk in some affected, high-pitched voice, like a slick Minstrel,” Stacy said, waving the letter in her hand. ”It’s all ’the sea this’ and ’the beach that.’ When he gets to the castle, I’m going to knock those ideas right out of him. I’ll land a few punches and send him packing, sniveling all the way!”

Stacy shadowboxed a couple of times, then her eyes suddenly lit up. ”Fami, how about you help me write the reply?”

”Huh? Me?!” Fami Port waved her hands frantically. ”No way! That letter is for you!”

”What does it matter? I really can’t write these things. For the last letter, my father sat on the desk with a mace in his hand watching me. It took me half a day to squeeze out a few lines! You have no idea how seriously they’re taking this. If I don’t write back, they’ll kill me,” Stacy said, grabbing Fami Port’s shoulders and shaking her, pleading. ”Please? You’re the one who loves to read and write, aren’t you?”

”But this kind of letter...” Fami Port hesitated. ”It’s a private matter between you and the Baron.”

’How could I interfere with correspondence between a man and a woman?’

”What secret? Every time I finish a letter, I have to show it to Father first, then Grandfather. Sometimes that jerk Bode reads it too,” Stacy sighed. ”They even use a dedicated White Raven for our correspondence. There are no secrets at all!”

”Lord Wisdom is certainly... invested in your marriage,” Fami Port said, unsure how to comfort her friend.

’A private letter being read and analyzed by the entire family before it’s even sent. They probably even ask her to explain what certain sentences mean. The thought was almost enough to make her laugh.’

Fami quietly stuck out her tongue. When she saw that Stacy hadn’t noticed her little expression, she let out a quiet sigh of relief.

’I have to hold back my laughter,’ she thought. ’Otherwise, she’ll definitely tease me relentlessly.’

”But what if...”

”No more ’what ifs’,” Stacy slapped a letter down in front of her. ”This is his last letter. Just read it and write whatever. Oh, and make it sound friendly.”

”F-Fine! Just this once!” Fami Port reluctantly picked up the letter and read its contents.

’Write a secret in the sand for the waves to wash away?’

’A message in a bottle?’

’Watching the sunset together from the deck of a ship?’

For some reason, several images instantly flashed through Fami’s mind. Her sea-blue eyes seemed to gaze at something on the distant horizon.

She found herself quite interested in the letter’s contents. Picking up the quill and dipping it in ink, Fami Port wrote down her own thoughts. ”I heard a Minstrel say the sea is split in two: below are the clear turquoise currents, and above is sprinkled golden sunlight.”

Her pen paused. ”She must be beautiful.”

For some reason, though she had never seen the scenes his words described, she found the idea fascinating—writing a letter, placing it in a bottle, and letting the sea deliver it into the hands of a stranger.

Fami Port wrote a great deal before finally setting down her pen.

”Finished writing?”

Stacy took the paper Fami offered and glanced over it briefly. Then she grabbed Fami’s face and planted a big kiss on her cheek. ”Miss Water Hyacinth, you’re a lifesaver! I’m going to find Grandfather right now! Wait here for me!”

A short while later, Stacy returned with a triumphant grin.

”How did it go?” Fami asked, concerned.

”He was very pleased. Grandfather said he won’t read my letters anymore from now on.” Stacy’s eyes darted around, and she leaned in close to Fami Port to whisper, ”How about you help me write the next one, too?”

”No way!”

”If you don’t agree, I’ll tickle you!”

”Hee hee hee, no, not even if you tickle me.”

”Here I come~”

”Ah! That tickles! Not there, hahahaha, hee hee! I’ll do it! I’ll do it!”