RNFB 10

Chapter 10

* * *

‘That little brat… She didn’t notice anything, did she?’

Luden adjusted his glasses, his lips tightening.

‘…It’s probably just my imagination. What could a mere six-year-old possibly know?’

Then he pressed down on the straw stuck to his trouser cuff with his hand. A few light grains of wheat came loose with it, but they too simply crumbled into dust.

‘I’m doing all this for the captain.’

Vasily had changed after becoming the grand duke.

All the freedom and boldness he once displayed while rampaging across the battlefield had disappeared.

“This is such a boring age. …Well, I suppose it can’t be helped now.”

Now, he was simply standing in a grave, slowly dying beneath the hollow crown of being a grand duke.

‘In the end, you’ll thank me.’

So… I won’t forgive anyone who gets in my way.

Even if it’s a six-year-old child.

Luden’s eyes darkened.

* * *

“Mad draaaagon…”

Haniel clung to Vasily’s trouser leg, dragging along behind him.

“Rejected. Something else.”

“Studying a dragon corpse…”

“Rejected.”

“Going to see the mad dragon…”

“Rejected.”

“Paying respects at the dragon’s grave…”

“Rejected!”

“Aw! You said you’d grant all my requests!”

Haniel cried out indignantly. Vasily, who had been walking after leaving the warehouse, let out a sigh.

“What are you even going to do after seeing a bunch of dead dragon corpses?”

“Hoeing!”

“What?”

Oops. Haniel calmly composed herself.

“I told you I’d teach you how to farm in the north!”

“What does that have to do with the mad dragon? …Wait, don’t tell me.”

Vasily, who had been walking along with steady footsteps, suddenly stopped.

Haniel toddled over, closing the distance between them. One of Vasily’s steps was five of Haniel’s, so she kept falling behind.

“You keep going on about farming. Are you saying you want to make use of the mad dragon’s evil energy?”

“Yes!”

Haniel nodded vigorously.

“Because… I heard the north wasn’t this cold when the mad dragon was alive!”

“…”

“It’s because of the hooot magic power the mad dragon had.”

Haniel pointed with her tiny finger toward the distant mountains of the north, specifically toward the peak where the mad dragon’s corpse lay.

What she said was true.

For the past 500 years.

In other words, back when the mad dragon was still alive, the north actually wasn’t this cold.

It was thanks to the heat from the mad dragon’s power, which had radiated warmth comparable to several active volcanoes combined. But the moment the mad dragon died and that energy was sealed away, everything froze over.

Haniel was saying she wanted to reverse that.

“There’s still an incredible amount of heat coming from the corpse, right? What if we let it seep into the earth instead of blocking it?”

A glossy sheen appeared in her pink eyes.

“We can use the corpse itself as an energy source!”

The child waved her arms around, moving her lips like a little chick.

“If we melt the ground? We can farm! If we grow wheat?? We can become bread rich! If word gets out that you can become rich??? People will flock here!”

“…”

“Then the lord can fix up the grand duke’s castle in no time???? And live like a big shot while showing off his bread?!”

“You mean live like a big shot.”

“We’ll be able to make a proper haul!”

“You mean make a proper killing.”

In fact, there wasn’t a single thing wrong with the little girl’s logic.

The reason people didn’t settle in the north was because there was no reliable way to make a living.

Farming? If it was possible, that’d be ideal.

If they could create a stable source of income from it, they might even be able to build a temple in the north. Or secretly hire a priest.

‘The emperor’s face would be priceless.’

Then they could purify the contamination in other regions as well… That would increase the amount of land available for development. More people would move in, and capital would begin circulating. It was the ideal process for developing a territory.

But.

“…I wondered what you were talking about. Hey, brat.”

“Not hey, brat, I’m Haniel… Ngh!”

At that moment, Vasily grabbed Haniel by the side from behind and lifted her straight up.

Haniel’s field of vision suddenly rose as she flailed her short arms and legs.

‘No wonder she keeps talking about bread.’

Vasily frowned at how light the child was, lighter than a feather. Forcing himself to look away from her round head, he jerked his chin toward the front.

“Look over there. What color is the smoke rising from the peak?”

“B-black?”

“Does it look good for your body, or bad?”

“B-bad…?”

“Correct.”

“…”

“Use the mad dragon’s corpse as a heat source to warm the north again? You think I haven’t thought of that?”

“…”

“The problem is the poisonous energy. That crazy dragon bastard doesn’t just spew heat, it also pumps out rotten air as a two-for-one deal. That’s why we have no choice but to seal the whole thing.”

“Then just extract the poisonous energy and purify it!”

“Even Dantalion Klein himself.”

“Hic!”

Suddenly, Haniel’s body trembled.

Vasily loosened his grip. She’d suddenly started hiccupping, so apparently he’d grabbed her side too tightly.

“…couldn’t purify all of it, so he just sealed it up?”

Looking from behind, he could see Haniel’s pale cheeks puffed out in a sulk.

“Get it? That’s a barrel full of rotten sardines. If you open it carelessly, the surrounding area will be devastated. Huh? We’re already dealing with enough contamination, so adding more…”

“That’s what I’m sayinggg.”

Haniel mumbled gloomily. Then she began wildly flailing her arms and legs while dangling in midair.

“Just block the contamination and let the heat flow through! Like a strainer!”

“You seem to think it’s as easy as, poof! Purify! It’s not that simple.”

“I… might be able to do it.”

Haniel muttered something incomprehensible.

Vasily set the child down. Then he spoke firmly.

“Enough. Just look around the village for a while and then leave. Here, I’ll give you those southern goods from earlier… and some of that bread you love so much.”

“Ugh.”

Haniel lightly kicked the ground.

This was the second time today he’d turned her down. He didn’t feel particularly good about it, but it couldn’t be helped.

‘If she had divine power, she’d obviously have been doted on at the temple, and judging by how little magic power I can sense from her, she must have been born weak.’

He’d rather wash Dantalion’s socks than believe a little brat like that.

Besides, if he let her get too close to the mad dragon’s corpse for no reason… there was no telling what effect it might have on her body.

‘Young, and ridiculously weak.’

Ugh, what a nuisance.

In the end, Vasily gave Haniel a quick tour of the village.

There wasn’t much to see in Bethel Village. Many of the early settlers, including the mansion’s servants, had recently left in droves.

Vasily simply stopped by the food storage and stuffed a small bag full of bread for her. It was dry and coarse rye bread, but the little girl’s eyes sparkled and her nostrils flared with delight. She was 100% satisfied, that much was obvious.

The bags of sugar and spices looked too heavy for her, so he left them with Camilla for the time being.

Before he knew it, the sun was setting.

Going out into the mistlands on a night like this would make her easy prey for monsters.

And since he’d already said what he said, he decided to let the child spend one more night at the mansion and send her away the next day.

And so the night passed.

…For someone, it was a very long night.

And then.

The next morning.

“Ah…”

Vasily stood blankly in front of the mansion.

A vicious laugh suddenly escaped him.

“F*ck…”