Lord of Rot

Leaving Livestock Village, they traveled a road so wide, straight, and level that Quickblade and the other soldiers’ initial shock had numbed into acceptance.

But the fear that their lord had become a mere figurehead weighed ever more heavily on their minds.

Perhaps the Porcupine Clan’s in-laws, the Crocodile Clan, had arrived. Lieder had always been wary of the ferocious Crocodiles and had staunchly refused Green Forest Castle’s aid. If it was the young Baron Leech, he would likely have had no choice but to hand everything over.

Quickblade took off his helmet and ran a frustrated hand through his white-streaked hair. He enjoyed drinking and fighting, but had no taste for political maneuvering.

’But even if it was the Crocodile Clan, would they really have the audacity to develop a remote place like Porcupine Territory so magnificently?’

After walking for a while longer, they arrived at Maitian Village.

Maitian Village was just as they remembered it—a mess of dilapidated houses, mud, and drafty walls.

’But where were the mud pits?’

’And why was the road here so level?’

’Most importantly, where was the giant cesspit? The massive pit, accumulated over countless years in Porcupine Territory, was so large a man could drown if he fell in. And it was gone!’

’And what were those channels filled with flowing water? Were the villagers using that water to irrigate the fields directly?’

There were no miserable-looking farmers to be seen, toiling to water their crops.

Instead, a few farmers sat in the shade of a tree, laughing and chatting.

”What is this?” Quickblade asked.

”Irrigation canals,” Radish explained, a hint of pride in his voice. He was certain the lord’s invention had stunned the soldiers. Even though they were veterans of Porcupine Territory, their understanding of it was frozen in the past. Seeing the shock on their faces, Radish felt a sense of pride that nearly burst from his chest.

”Irrigation canals?” Quickblade paid no mind to the boy’s expression.

”That’s right. A waterwheel sends water into the canals, which run through all of Maitian Village. Now, no one has to go to the river to haul water for the fields.”

”And what is a waterwheel?” Quickblade asked.

Radish explained, ”It’s a miraculous device invented by the lord. It’s like a wheel with one half in the water...”

He made a few gestures, unsure if Quickblade and the other veterans could understand. ”The waterwheel can scoop water out of the river and deliver it to the canals.”

’A wheel that scoops water? What kind of Magic is this!’

Quickblade and his men were utterly baffled.

”There’s also a water mill, and it uses a waterwheel too,” Radish continued. ”Grain can be processed at the water mill without any manual labor. You just pour the grain in, and it grinds it into fine flour.”

’So it’s true! That waterwheel must be Magic!’

Regardless of their thoughts, they stepped onto the stone-paved road of the main settlement in Porcupine Territory. It, at least, was unchanged from when they had left.

At the castle gate, they saw a smiling Leech Clarence.

The young, handsome lord watched them approach, flanked by a row of male servants and a row of female servants, all dressed in matching uniforms.

’This isn’t what we imagined at all!’

As Quickblade and his soldiers entered the castle, Leech stepped forward with a smile. ”Welcome home!”

”Uncle Quickblade,” Leech said, walking over to the bewildered soldier and warmly grasping his hand. ”Welcome back, all of you. I’ve had rooms prepared. Go rest up, and then we’ll have a feast!”

”Simon!”

”Yes!” The butler nodded. ”Duckfoot, you and the other servants take these gentlemen to change and rest.”

The male servants nodded.

’This...’ Quickblade hesitated. ’We’re still in our armor. If trouble starts, we can fight back immediately. But without our armor and weapons, we’d be lambs to the slaughter.’

”My lord,” Quickblade said, placing his right hand over his heart. He leaned in and spoke quickly in a low voice, ”We belong to Porcupine Territory. We are loyal only to you!”

”I know!”

Leech nodded. ”Which is why you should go and rest. That’s an order!”

”Yes, sir!”

As the soldiers departed, Leech felt something was odd. ’Porcupine Territory has been completely transformed. Quickblade and his men should be happy. Why do they look like they’ve just lost a war?’

”Radish! What did you talk about on the way back?” Leech asked.

”Yes, my lord.” Radish stepped forward and recounted everything that had happened on their journey.

Although Radish was clueless about the specifics of the territory’s development and new technologies, he was able to give a rough summary.

’If it isn’t about the changes to the territory, then it must be because they lost so many comrades on their journey. They left with eighty men and returned with only about forty. It’s only natural for old places to stir up painful memories and put them in a somber mood.’

Butchering pigs, slaughtering chickens, roasting ducks.

Beer, pastries, fruit, and more were laid out across four large tables.

The large tables were actually smaller ones pushed together, creating enough space for all forty men to eat at once.

Quickblade and his men, having changed their clothes as if preparing for the executioner’s block, entered the castle courtyard. They stopped and stared, wide-eyed, at the four long tables laden with food.

It smelled incredible.

Stomachs began to rumble!

’This looks delicious... and so does that!’

”Everyone, take your seats!” Leech said with a smile.

As a lord, perhaps he shouldn’t eat at the same table as his soldiers, in order to maintain a certain level of dignity. But Leech preferred a more personal approach. Especially when he was completely unable to hire any skilled personnel, these veterans returning from the battlefield were a priceless asset.

Besides, they were loyal. They were his father Lieder’s men—his own people.

With Chef Cask, whom Leech himself had trained, leading his apprentices, a feast was prepared: roasted, steamed, and stewed meats; steamed crabs, oysters...

Salads, cakes, pastries—a spread of delicacies you couldn’t find anywhere else, even with money—covered the tables.

In the past, one had to wash down meat with beer. It was often so greasy that you couldn’t eat much without a drink to cut through the fat.

But the cuisine in Porcupine Territory was different.

It was delicious, full of complex flavors: sweet and sour, savory and sweet, umami-sweet, and fragrant spice.

The soldiers busied themselves with devouring everything in sight.

’This is absolutely the kind of delicacy only a lord gets to eat!’

Leech raised his cup, clinking it with Quickblade and his men.

He listened as they spoke of the war.

Lieder had sent them to war. A lord at a place called Giant’s Foot was having a border dispute with East Gorge, and they were sent to join the fight. Ultimately, the castle at Giant’s Foot held, and they received their orders to return home.

The war itself hadn’t lasted long, but the march from East Gorge to Giant’s Foot spanned thousands of miles, which is why they had been gone for so long.

Some men died in battle, while others were gravely wounded or disabled. Quickblade had taken it upon himself to give those men their pay and let them find a new place to live.

Bandits had harassed the weary column, and wild beasts had attacked them. In the end, only thirty-nine men made it back.

’Betty?’ Leech suddenly recalled the female Mercenary trapped in the cavern at the cape. ’Could the war have taken place at her castle? No, something’s not right. The timing doesn’t add up... unless Betty fled the moment the war began.’

’Had that seemingly resigned Mercenary been telling the truth?’

”The lords from Wisdom... they haven’t come?” Quickblade asked, feeling he had phrased the question as delicately as possible.

Leech was puzzled. ”What’s Wisdom? There is only one lord in Porcupine Territory: Lord Leech Clarence!”

He tapped his cup. ”Quickblade, I can’t pretend I didn’t hear what you just said. Drink up!”

”Yes, sir!” Quickblade shot to his feet, his face flushed—whether from drink or excitement, it was hard to tell. ”To Lord Leech!”

”To Lord Leech!” the soldiers roared, rising and lifting their cups.

The feast went on for a long time, with male servants bustling about, refilling the soldiers’ cups.

It wasn’t that Leech distrusted these soldiers, but to avoid any potential... unpleasantness, he hadn’t allowed the female servants to wait on the tables. He had them wait in the kitchen, ready to clean up afterward.

’The reunion between a lord and his loyal veterans shouldn’t be spoiled by some drunken ass-grabbing incident.’

One by one, the old soldiers, stuffed with food and drink, collapsed.

The feast finally drew to a close. Leech shook his head; his body felt heavy, but his mind remained clear.

’He even found that if he shifted most of his consciousness into his other corpses, he felt no trace of intoxication at all.’

’He still had work to do tonight. One man, split into twenty-three. It was the same every night.’