The Greatest Estate Developer - Chapter 36: The True Path to Repentance (1)

“Lord Lloyd, do you still plan to enter that dungeon?”

“Of course.”

Lloyd replied, looking up at the sky.

It was a bright blue sky without a single cloud, so it should have been blazing down on them. But where they stood now, there wasn’t even a trace of sunlight; everything around was swallowed by deep shadows.

‘What a gloomy place.’

He found himself instinctively hunching his shoulders. Flogia Gorge was much narrower and deeper than he had expected, leaving the floor where he stood devoid of any sunlight. In fact, he suspected that it hadn’t seen the sun for thousands of years.

The ground was covered in damp moss and strange, unnamed mushrooms, and even more so near the yawning, ominous entrance of the dungeon.

“But it’s dangerous. As I’ve been telling you for days,” Javier’s voice cut in behind him, each word hitting Lloyd’s ear with Javier’s characteristic cool, sharp tone.

“Lord Lloyd, it’s not too late to turn back. The enemy is a sorcerer.”

“…”

“We should return to the estate, prepare thoroughly for facing such magic, and then come back.”

“…”

“Lord Lloyd?”

“Yes?”

“Are you listening to me?”

“No. I’m ignoring it.”

“…”

Still fixated on the dungeon’s entrance, Lloyd spoke again.

“Are you a parrot? Ever since we left the orc village, you’ve been saying the same thing over and over.”

“When have I ever…”

“When? Every step of the way. ‘Lord Lloyd, it’s dangerous. Lord Lloyd, it’s reckless. Lord Lloyd, it’s too much. Lord Lloyd, wave the white flag!’ Or maybe not that last part, but—”

Lloyd scrunched his nose.

“Honestly, I don’t like your opinion.”

“Why not?”

Javier’s rebuttal came immediately, and Lloyd was quick to counter.

“Because you’re hiding an uncomfortable truth.”

“Excuse me?”

“You can’t deny it, can you?”

At some point, Lloyd had turned to face him, and under Lloyd’s gaze, Javier hesitated.

“Javier? No, Sir Asrahan. Let me ask you something. If I were to take your advice and return to the estate to prepare properly and come back here…”

“Yes?”

“By then, wouldn’t the soldiers trapped inside likely be dead?”

“That’s…”

“Am I right?”

“…Yes, probably.”

Reluctantly, Javier nodded, and a bitter smile appeared on Lloyd’s lips.

“Yes, it’s an uncomfortable truth that we both know. But you’ve made your judgment, haven’t you? That it’s not worth endangering the heir of the estate to save a few soldiers. Right?”

“Lord Lloyd, I—”

“That’s enough. I admit that your reasoning is sound—if we had no way to break through the dungeon’s defense magic.”

“Excuse me?”

Javier’s eyes narrowed. What could he mean by that?

“Are you saying you’ve thought of a way to break through?”

“Yep. I think it’ll work using the Asrahan Technique.”

“The technique?”

“Yeah.”

Lloyd nodded. The events of *Iron-Blooded Knight* resurfaced in his mind.

‘Right. You did use the technique… after becoming a Swordmaster in a few years.’

In the novel, future Javier, with far more experience, came up with a clever way to bypass the defensive magic. He utilized the mana absorption ability of the Asrahan Technique.

Lloyd recalled this breakthrough method invented by future Javier in the book.

“You’ve absorbed mana from the air using the Asrahan Technique, haven’t you?”

“Using it to absorb mana from the air?”

“Of course.”

Javier answered.

“I do it regularly.”

“I thought so. I do it too. It’s good practice, since you can do it anywhere.”

It was true. Lloyd also used the Asrahan Technique whenever he had a spare moment, drawing natural mana from the air and subtly enhancing it, making for excellent practice.

“What feeling do you get when you absorb mana from the air?”

“Well, naturally…”

Javier thought briefly before answering.

“I feel calm.”

“Calm? Why?”

“Because the mana in the air is always consistent.”

“Right?”

“Yes.”

That was also true. Ambient mana was always evenly dispersed. There was almost never a spot where it was clumped together or lacking. So, the amount of mana entering the circle was always constant when absorbing it from the air.

“Exactly. It’s like breathing air, always steady. But what do you think would happen if you used the technique near a hidden magic circle to absorb mana?”

“Pardon? Well, that would mean… ah.”

Javier’s expression changed as he looked at Lloyd with a newfound realization.

“The mana unnaturally condensed by the magic circle would rush in all at once in a concentrated clump.”

“Right. So you get what I’m saying?”

“Yes.”

Lloyd grinned, and Javier quietly swallowed his admiration. It was a simple but ingenious idea that he hadn’t thought of.

‘Lord Lloyd is correct. Magic circles artificially draw in ambient mana, rearranging it to create magical effects. Naturally, that would mean an abnormal concentration of mana near them.’

So, to locate a magic circle, one would activate the Asrahan Technique to absorb the surrounding mana and walk slowly. The concentrated mana from the magic circle would suddenly flow in, allowing them to determine the distance and direction of the circle, even if it were invisible.

Javier looked at Lloyd.

“Lord Lloyd.”

“Yeah?”

“I think this will work.”

“Right?”

Javier nodded, and Lloyd grinned.

“So, are you a little more inclined to charge into the dungeon now?”

“Yes. Then please stay here and wait. I’ll go in alone.”

“No thanks.”

“Why not? It’s dangerous inside.”

“I know.”

Lloyd glanced around.

“But do you feel safe leaving me out here alone?”

“Excuse me?”

“Is there any guarantee this place is safe?”

“That…”

“There isn’t, is there?”

“…”

Javier fell silent, realizing Lloyd was right. There was no way to be sure that the bottom of this gorge only held the single danger of the dark sorcerer’s dungeon. If he left Lloyd alone and went in by himself, he wouldn’t be able to protect him if something unexpected happened.

With a quiet sigh, Javier relented.

“Fine. We’ll go together. But I have one condition.”

“A condition? Let’s hear it.”

“If the situation turns dangerous, you must promise to retreat without hesitation.”

“If it turns dangerous?”

“Yes. I understand your desire to save the soldiers, but your safety is paramount. So—”

Javier’s gaze grew serious.

“If things get bad, retreat without hesitation, even if it means leaving me behind.”

“Huh? Isn’t that a given?”

“…”

“If I’m on the verge of dying, obviously I’d ditch you and run. Why even bring it up?”

“…”

“Are you hurt? A little miffed?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Oh, really? Do you know what kind of face you’re making right now?”

“I don’t, and I don’t care to.”

“There you go. You’re upset.”

“…”

Javier’s eyebrow twitched, but Lloyd just grinned, grabbing his shovel.

The two of them approached the dungeon entrance, heightening their senses and tensing their bodies naturally.

Javier stepped ahead.

“From here on, I’ll go first.”

“Sure, go ahead, robot vacuum.”

“…What’s a robot vacuum?”

“Oh, it’s just a term. It means ‘efficient.’”

“I’m not particularly efficient, though.”

“You know yourself well. But let’s focus—this isn’t the time for jokes.”

“It was you who…”

Javier’s face grew serious, gathering his focus. His steps grew cautious and deliberate as he advanced one step at a time, like a robot vacuum cleaning a floor, all the while sensing the mana in the area through absorption.

Swish, swish.

The sound of Javier’s footsteps echoed faintly at the mouth of the cave, where no wind blew. He continued for a while until he came to a stop.

“Here. Three steps ahead.”

“Be more specific. Do you know what a pocket watch looks like?”

“Yes.”

“Then imagine the watch face as directions. Straight ahead is 12 o’clock, behind is 6 o’clock, and so on.”

Specificity was crucial. Moving based on vague directions like “ahead” or “to the right” could result in disaster, with someone stepping on a trap due to miscommunication. Javier seemed to understand Lloyd’s reasoning and adjusted his instructions.

“One o’clock direction, three steps ahead.”

“Got it.”

Swish, swish.

They continued, with Javier sensing for magic circles and Lloyd staying alert for physical traps.

“Two o’clock, two steps ahead.”

“What about eleven o’clock?”

“Nothing.”

“Then let’s move two steps towards eleven.”

“Understood.”

“Anything detected?”

“Nine o’clock. The front is clear.”

“Alright, keep moving.”

They carried on like this, detecting and avoiding traps. Occasionally, there were dangerous moments because the traps weren’t limited to magic circles.

Click, swoosh!

A faint sound came from the ground, followed by arrows shooting from the wall. The tips gleamed green, coated in poison.

“Not on my watch!”

Clang!

Lloyd intercepted the arrow aimed at Javier’s chest with the blade of his shovel.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. Just keep detecting. You sense the magic circles, I’ll handle the physical traps. Deal?”

“Understood. But…”

“But?”

“Please don’t overextend yourself.”

“Oh, you mean like injuring myself to block the arrows?”

“Precisely. If it comes to that, you can use me as a shield.”

“That was the plan anyway.”

“…”

“You’re so sensitive about the obvious. Let’s go.”

They moved forward with Javier detecting magic traps and Lloyd fending off physical ones.

‘In the novel, Javier handled all of this by himself.’

But that was years later, when he was a Swordmaster. For now, he was only at the Advanced Expert level. Managing both mana detection and physical traps was too much, given the subtlety required.

‘It’s like drinking an entire bowl of ramen soup to get one tiny piece of dried scallion. No, maybe even smaller.’

Such precision was required that Lloyd had to help ensure Javier could focus entirely.

“Let’s keep going, nice and easy. No need to rush.”

The two of them advanced slowly. As they went deeper, their surroundings darkened until no light seeped in from outside. They relied on the glow of a torch and continued for thirty minutes, then an hour, and eventually two, as they detected numerous magic circles and avoided traps.

Throughout, Lloyd mentally rehearsed what he knew from *Iron-Blooded Knight*, knowing that at the end of this trap-laden corridor, there was an unavoidable trap.

‘According to the novel, it should be around here.’

They came to a sharp right turn, where the passageway widened. In the far distance, he saw a spacious area— the dark sorcerer’s lab, deep within the dungeon.

‘There it is.’

In the center of the lab, he spotted the dark sorcerer in a black robe, who stood up suddenly upon seeing them and gestured in their direction.

The inescapable trap was triggered at that moment.

A metal barrier descended from the ceiling with a loud clang, blocking the entire corridor in front of them. The same happened behind them, another thick metal wall sealing their exit.

They were trapped.

And it wasn’t over. The sound of hissing gas filled the air, and a sweet, fragrant scent began to fill the enclosed space—a powerful sleep-inducing gas.

However, Lloyd wasn’t fazed in the least, and neither was Javier.

The two of them, well-versed in such situations, barely even flinched.

“Hey. Doesn’t this seem familiar?”

“Now that you mention it…”

The dark tunnel, the confined space, and the isolation felt a lot like the time they’d been trapped in the ant nest. The familiarity was so uncanny that they found themselves smirking.

And thus, they began handling this situation with the utmost composure.

Moments later, the dark sorcerer’s confidence crumbled, leaving him mentally shattered and in utter disbelief.