Chapter 113
“Lake Capua, halfway up the Eastern Mountains? You’re planning to awaken King Stomah, the ruler of that place?”
The first to break the silence was Baron Arcos Frontera.
His bewildered question pricked at everyone’s eardrums.
Only then did the rest of the office flinch back to their senses.
The Baroness instinctively gripped her handkerchief tightly.
Javier’s blue eyes glinted coldly.
Sir Bayern gulped dryly.
Sir Valeradi Blanc felt his heart race with anticipation.
Baron Frontera’s question continued to ring in everyone’s ears.
“Lake Capua… Isn’t that the place we built the water intake facility because of the Viscount of Lacona?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“But King Stomah—if he’s the one asleep there, isn’t he a massive magical beast?”
“Yes, that’s also true.”
“And you’re planning to awaken such a beast? Do you have a specific purpose in mind?”
“Yes, as I mentioned just earlier.”
“You mentioned earlier?”
“I’m thinking of putting him to work for us.”
“King Stomah? You’re going to wake him up and make him work?”
“Yes.”
“……”
Is that even possible?
No—more importantly, what kind of work would you assign to a magical beast?
The baron, and everyone else, felt stunned and dazed.
None of them could begin to imagine Lloyd’s plan.
Lloyd continued.
“Well, I say ‘work,’ but it’s nothing too grand. I plan to have him roar twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening.”
“Roar?”
“Yes. Think of it as a kind of territorial display.”
“King Stomah’s roar. And what would change if he does that?”
“A great deal, actually.”
“Can you be more specific?”
“Our estate will be completely protected from the Monster Domino Effect.”
“How so?”
“Because all the monsters stampeding in from the western wasteland won’t even dare try to cross the Eastern Mountains.”
“You’re saying, because of King Stomah’s roar?”
“That’s right.”
Lloyd nodded.
Then he pulled out an old booklet from inside his coat.
“This is an old record I found in the archive.”
Rustle, rustle.
Lloyd carefully opened the pages.
A musty moldy smell rose from the aged paper as its contents came into view.
“Look here. About 350 years ago, before our family was granted this territory, there’s a record left behind by the previous lord who governed this region.”
Lloyd pointed to a specific section on the page.
“According to the record, that was when King Stomah first entered the mountain range. No one knows where he came from. Anyway, he was highly active. He knocked down numerous trees and piled them up halfway up the mountainside.”
“Halfway up the mountain? Why?”
The baron asked, and Lloyd smiled.
“They say he built a natural dam. And so, a massive amount of water pooled halfway up the mountain. You can probably guess by now—this is the origin of Lake Capua.”
“……Ah.”
Everyone’s eyes widened.
They had always assumed Lake Capua, nestled in the mountains, had formed naturally.
But it had actually been created by King Stomah?
Everyone leaned in to hear more from Lloyd.
“Well, it’s natural this is the first you’re hearing of it. I only learned of it through this record myself. Anyway, soil eventually piled up on the dam, and trees grew. The landscape gradually transformed into what looked like a perfectly natural mountain lake. Just like it is now. And once King Stomah was satisfied, he entered hibernation—in the center of the lake he created.”
“So you’re saying Lake Capua was made solely to be his dwelling? By King Stomah himself?”
“Yes. But what we need to focus on is what happened afterward.”
Flip, flip.
Lloyd turned the page.
“According to the record, life in this region became more difficult after King Stomah went into hibernation.”
“How so?”
“It’s simple. Occasionally, monsters would cross over the mountains from the east. They’d go wild, devour people—you know the rest. Just like the incidents we still experience once or twice a year in our estate.”
“Ah……”
A flicker of realization lit up in the baron’s eyes.
Hearing Lloyd’s explanation made it all clear.
Even now, Frontera Estate occasionally suffered monster attacks. Most of the damage came from monsters descending from the Eastern Mountains.
It wasn’t just because of the current Monster Domino Effect—it was a regular threat.
But if a powerful magical beast marked its territory at the mountain pass leading to the estate, right at Lake Capua?
The answer was obvious.
“So King Stomah would act as a deterrent against the monsters?”
“Exactly. That’s the idea.”
“And that’s why you plan to awaken King Stomah?”
“Yes. If he just roars twice a day to mark his territory, all the monsters coming from the east will turn tail in fear. He’ll be like a biological barrier.”
“A biological barrier, huh.”
The baron nodded.
Everyone was thinking the same thing.
Lloyd’s idea was on a massive scale, but it made sense.
It might just be worth trying.
“But wouldn’t it be dangerous?”
“Dangerous in what way?”
“The possibility that King Stomah might attack our estate instead.”
There was a hint of concern in the baron’s voice.
“If that terrifying magical beast comes down to our lands, the damage could be immeasurable. Have you prepared a contingency for that possibility?”
“Of course.”
“And what would that be?”
“We just stay still.”
“Stay still?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Just stay still.”
“……”
The baron fell silent.
Lloyd smiled faintly.
“I mean it. According to the record, King Stomah has never once left his habitat. He exhibited extremely territorial behavior. I believe this time will be no different.”
“Still, just in case…”
“Yes, I understand. I know what worries you. But we have Sir Asrahan.”
“What?”
“As you already know, he’s a Swordmaster.”
“……”
Everyone’s eyes turned to Javier.
Perhaps feeling awkward under the attention, Javier cleared his throat quietly.
A teasing smirk played on Lloyd’s lips.
“If King Stomah really does rampage down into our estate, the answer is simple. We have Sir Asrahan, a Swordmaster. And we also have the brave White Spear Soldiers. No matter how powerful the magical beast is, we’ll be able to hunt him without much trouble.”
It was true.
They had already studied King Stomah through records and academic research.
The conclusion was that the current military strength of the Barony could handle it.
“Based on our estimates, King Stomah’s strength is comparable to the Gigatitan we faced in Cremo. So if the goal was purely to hunt him, Sir Asrahan alone would be enough. He could even kill it. Compared to swarms of hundreds of Mastodons or tens of thousands of locusts, this would be easier. It’s just one beast.”
“But you’re not planning to hunt him. You want to put him to work for us?”
“Yes. From our standpoint, this is the best possible option.”
“Hmm, that makes sense.”
The baron nodded.
Now that he heard his son’s reasoning, he could picture it clearly.
When it came to handling King Stomah…
1. If he became a threat to the estate, it wouldn’t be too hard to eliminate him.
2. Meanwhile, he could effectively block far more troublesome monster invasions in advance.
…That was the conclusion.
He wouldn’t be hard to control.
And he would block bigger threats efficiently.
That was the ideal role King Stomah could play for the Barony right now.
“In other words, he’d be like a gigantic guard dog. Chained in our front yard, scaring away other monsters.”
The baroness quietly added her thoughts.
Now that she said it, everyone realized she was right.
It was a perfect summary.
Thanks to that, everyone finally understood Lloyd’s plan.
But that didn’t mean all their doubts were resolved.
“Hmm, I get the general idea. But tell me this.”
The baron tilted his head.
“How do you plan to wake King Stomah and make him follow your intentions?”
“I’m not going to control him.”
“Then what?”
“I’ll give him some exercise.”
Lloyd’s hand reached for the old booklet again.
Flip, flip—he turned to the final page.
“Here, take a look.”
Everyone followed Lloyd’s finger with their eyes.
There, a single line described King Stomah’s behavior:
[Extremely similar to a beaver.]
“……A beaver?”
Everyone tilted their heads in confusion.
Everyone except Sir Blanc.
“A large rodent that lives in rivers and builds dams, correct?”
“Ding ding ding. Exactly. It seems the rest of you aren’t familiar with beavers.”
Lloyd smiled.
“Roughly as Sir Blanc described. Beavers live in rivers or lakes, gathering branches to build dams. They’re obsessed with dam-building. They even pass the habit down through generations. If their dam is damaged, they drop everything and rush to repair it.”
“So you’re saying King Stomah is the same?”
“Yes.”
Lloyd nodded.
Suddenly, he recalled something he had seen on a Korean nature TV program.
‘Was it episode 202 of Animal × Files? It showed a zoo beaver.’
That beaver spent its entire day building dams.
It worked so hard.
But once it finally finished?
The zookeeper destroyed the dam!
Smashed it to pieces!
‘I thought it was just plain cruel—but it wasn’t.’
He remembered what the zookeeper said during the interview.
They had to do it to keep the beaver active and prevent it from losing its wild instincts. If left alone with a complete dam and nothing left to build, the beaver would grow complacent, gain weight, and get sick easily.
So they had to break the dam occasionally to keep the beaver healthy and active.
‘According to multiple academic studies, King Stomah exhibits similar traits to beavers. Then this method should work too.’
Lloyd gave everyone a simplified version of that explanation—leaving out the Animal × Files part, of course.
And once everyone nodded in understanding, he declared with conviction:
“So we’ll use that method.”
“That method?”
“Yes. While King Stomah is asleep, we’ll partially collapse a section of Lake Capua’s perimeter.”
“And then, sensing the damage, King Stomah will wake up to repair the dam?”
“Exactly.”
“Hmm, and once the dam is fully repaired?”
“Then we sneak in again and break it a little more.”
“……”
Isn’t that just pure evil?
Everyone suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for the slumbering King Stomah.
But Lloyd paid no mind to their stares.
‘Now’s not the time to worry about such things.’
The estate was on the verge of being swept away by the Monster Domino.
If tormenting one massive magical beast for a year could guarantee peace and safety for the estate, he’d do it a hundred times over without hesitation.
“Besides, there’s no reason to feel sorry only for King Stomah. We’re not entirely without risk either.”
“Hmm, true. He is a giant magical beast.”
“Yes. And if we miscalculate the demolition range and collapse the dam entirely, we’ll cause a massive flood.”
“A flood?”
“Yes.”
Lloyd’s eyes turned serious.
“That’s how dams work. Even a small structural collapse can trigger a total failure. And if King Stomah starts thrashing violently inside the lake, it could trigger localized tidal waves. The lake’s water might spill over the dam. That would also result in a flood.”
“……”
Everyone fell silent.
No one had considered that kind of disaster before.
‘Well, of course not. They’ve never dealt with a large dam.’
But both of the examples he gave were real, and always potential threats.
‘The first case: the 1985 Stava Dam disaster in Italy. A small crack in the dam’s exterior caused its collapse, releasing 250,000 liters of water at 90 kilometers per hour onto a village.’
And the second case, a lake tsunami, was even worse.
‘The 1963 Vajont Dam disaster in Italy. That was horrifying. There were clay and limestone layers on both sides of the dam. As the dam filled with water, it saturated the rock strata. Over time, the ground weakened, triggering a landslide that dumped 238 million cubic meters of debris into the lake. Instantly. With double the force of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.’
The result was catastrophic.
The massive debris caused a 250-meter high megatsunami in the lake.
It easily surged over the dam.
Every village downstream was swept away.
An estimated 2,500 to 5,000 people died—a disaster of massive proportions.
“But of course, I’ll make sure nothing like that happens. Leave it to me. Surveying and engineering design are perfect for this kind of situation.”
He would intentionally trigger a minor dam collapse to awaken and activate King Stomah.
But he would carefully calculate everything to avoid compromising the dam’s structure.
That included planning how to guide King Stomah’s movement afterward.
“That’s why this operation will only involve me, Sir Asrahan, and the White Spear Soldiers.”
“You mean us?”
Sir Blanc asked.
Lloyd smiled.
“Yes. It’s too dangerous for regular engineers. If King Stomah notices our presence and reacts aggressively, the White Spear Soldiers are capable of responding in combat.”
That wasn’t the case for regular engineers.
If King Stomah rampaged…
There could be massive casualties.
They needed people who could switch from digging to fighting at any moment.
“That’s why I had the White Spear Soldiers reassigned to the engineering corps early on. And I had them participate in shaping the Megalania relief sculpture. Why? To give them time to get used to digging.”
“……”
Lloyd’s calm voice echoed through the office.
Everyone fell silent.
And everyone realized—
They had no idea he had planned even this far ahead.
They had no choice but to follow.
And so began Lloyd’s wicked, cunning plan to awaken and harness the ancient magical beast sleeping beneath the lake.