Chapter 120
Cock-a-doodle-doo.
Morning had come.
At the sound, Lloyd opened his eyes wide.
“Huaaah.”
He rubbed his eyelids as soon as he got up.
He hurried to wipe away the remnants of last night’s dream.
As usual, he washed his face, ate breakfast, and woke up Javier.
Then Javier quietly stared at him and suddenly asked—
“Did you perhaps cry last night?”
“What?”
“Your eyelids are a little swollen. The whites of your eyes seem slightly bloodshot as well.”
“Oh, this?”
He quickly laughed.
“I tossed and turned. My heart was pounding like crazy last night.”
“Your heart?”
“Yeah. Thinking about what kind of sweet life I’ll be enjoying next.”
It was true.
One night of sentimentality was more than enough.
There were many more days ahead to live.
Especially since today marked the beginning of a financially clean life—completely debt-free.
“Think about it. All my debts are gone. The estate’s running solid. The viscounty sends water taxes in full every month.”
Also true.
Listing it out, the future of the Frontera Estate looked bright.
Favorable conditions were overflowing.
“And about the Marez reclaimed land damaged by the locust swarm? No worries there. Remember the carbonized locust corpses Bangul made with her volcanic eruption? We ground them up and spread them over the fields—total jackpot.”
“You mean… as fertilizer?”
“Yup. The peppers and corn are growing like crazy.”
“Hm. That’s a relief.”
“And the orc tribe seems to be settling in nicely.”
“Indeed. I heard they were very pleased with the abundance of game near their new home by Lake Capua.”
“Yeah, right. And Bibeong is doing his part too.”
That 100-meter-long fantasy creature splashed around in Lake Capua every morning and evening, roaring on schedule.
He was faithfully responding to their requests.
All thanks to the efforts (?) of Bangul, Bibeong’s first love.
“Anyway, nothing to worry about now. Just chill and enjoy life. So I was thinking about throwing a party.” (T/N: Don’t you dare jinx it even though us readers already know what;s going to happen. lol)
“A party?”
“Yeah. Like a celebration for clearing all our debt. Or maybe a ceremony for having survived the monster attacks. We usually have some sort of harvest festival around this time, right? Let’s just roll them all into one.”
“That sounds like a fine idea.”
“…You’re actually complimenting me?”
“Just thought—some days are like that.”
“Is that so.”
“Yes.”
Javier gave a faint smile.
Lately, he had grown far less cold than before.
It was likely thanks to Lloyd finally breaking the zero barrier and raising his affection score into the positives.
“Well, anyway, I was going to suggest that to the Baron.”
He headed to the Baron’s office.
He proposed holding a festival.
As expected, the Baron was an enthusiastic yes-man.
“That sounds like a wonderful idea. And perhaps, once the festival ends, how about we take a family trip?”
“Pardon? A trip?”
“Yes, a trip.”
The Baron chuckled heartily.
“Didn’t we use to go on a family trip every couple of years? But after that incident, we stopped, didn’t we?”
“Ah…”
He was clearly referring to the debt ordeal.
As the Baron continued, it became even more evident.
“That’s why now is the perfect opportunity. We couldn’t even dream of it while drowning in debt, and we’ve just overcome a major crisis.”
The Baron looked genuinely happy.
Lloyd listened for a while longer.
Mostly, it was a flood of premature travel plans like, ‘This region is great to visit during this season.’
“Yes, sounds good. I’m all for it.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. But the planning should—”
“Don’t worry and leave it to your father. Who else is better at planning trips?”
“Haha, is that so?”
“Absolutely.”
The Baron thumped his chest proudly.
A smile naturally formed on Lloyd’s face.
‘A family trip, huh.’
Now that he thought about it—when was the last time he had a family trip?
He couldn’t quite remember.
‘Was it some kind of college retreat? But that wasn’t even with family.’
Thinking back, any fond trip with family came from his childhood.
After he grew older, there were none.
‘And for the past few years, I haven’t even had a trip of any kind.’
It was true.
Ever since arriving in this world, he’d only worked nonstop.
He was too busy resolving the Baron family’s debts.
‘Sure, I went to Cremona and the capital, but that wasn’t a vacation.’
Those were work trips.
Business, not leisure.
They didn’t count.
Even before coming to this world, it was the same.
‘Back then, it was worse. I was rotting away in a gosiwon.’
A trip was a luxury. He couldn’t even afford a brief break on a provincial bus.
Once, he suddenly wanted to see the East Sea.
He didn’t need to do anything there.
Didn’t need to book a room.
He just wanted to breathe—his chest had felt too tight.
He thought he might burst if he stayed in place.
He just wanted to see the ocean.
So he tried to take a bus.
But gave up.
For one simple reason.
He couldn’t afford the round trip fare.
To be precise, if he spent the fare, he wouldn’t have enough left to pay his gosiwon rent.
‘It was miserable.’
Giving up such a humble wish for a few thousand won—what a hopeless walk back that was.
But now, it was different.
The Baron family’s finances were solid.
As long as he didn’t waste or splurge, he could live comfortably and securely for life.
“Then I’ll look forward to it.”
His steps out of the Baron’s office were light.
Even while enjoying the estate festival the following day, he felt the same.
‘So this is what it’s like to really live.’
Delicious food.
A carefree routine with no work.
People smiling kindly whenever he passed.
It felt like living in a heaven made just for him.
That feeling lasted until the third day of the festival.
‘This is nice.’
He had gotten so used to the festival that he sprawled in bed all day.
He read a few books from the study and spent a leisurely, uneventful day.
‘Been a while since I thought about games.’
The free games he used to play back in Korea came to mind.
They were perfect for passing time like this.
‘Maybe I should try learning to hunt.’
A real-life hunting game.
If nothing else, it might help keep the weight off.
He was sprawled on the sofa, thinking such things, when—
Knock, knock, knock.
“Lord Lloyd, are you in?”
Javier’s voice followed the knock.
Lloyd answered without getting up from the sofa.
“Yeah, come in…”
“I believe you should come out right now.”
“…Already here?”
He moved the book off his face.
Then he saw Javier’s expression.
It was tense.
But not in a routine way.
He could recognize it after spending so much time together.
“What’s wrong?”
A prank?
No.
Something had definitely happened.
Sure enough, Javier’s response wasn’t normal.
“I can’t quite define it myself.”
“Then?”
“You’d best come see for yourself.”
“…”
He followed Javier.
They left the mansion and descended into the central village.
The place where the festival had been held for three days.
But now?
‘Something feels off.’
The cheerful sounds of lyres and singing had stopped.
In their place was murmuring—small groups of villagers whispering.
And all their eyes were focused on—
‘Who are they?’
A group of people.
About seventy or eighty in number.
All dressed similarly.
Soldiers? An armed group?
No.
They were uniformly ragged.
Their clothes had once been proper shirts and jackets.
Now they were torn and filthy.
Knees worn through, sleeves ripped, badly patched.
Their exposed skin showed nothing but bones and leather.
Their feet were even worse.
Few had anything resembling proper footwear.
Most had wrapped their feet in rags.
Their soles and toes were cracked, bloodied, and caked in dirt and pus.
‘What the…’
In short, they were in tatters.
Sunken cheeks, haggard faces.
Matt hair and exhausted expressions.
Lloyd walked through the villagers and approached the ragged group.
“Hey, are you residents of our estate?”
No familiar faces.
Still, he asked just in case.
The reply came—
“N-No, young master. Are you… are you the lord of this estate?”
“Not the lord.”
“Oh, then…”
“I’m the lord’s son.”
“Ah.”
A man who seemed to be the leader stepped forward.
He looked just over thirty.
He looked at Lloyd with a pleading expression.
“I’m deeply sorry to ask this, but… please help us, young master.”
“Hmm.”
“Children here are starving to death. We don’t need much. Even livestock feed would be fine. Just a little, just for the children… I beg of you, young master.”
The man bowed deeply, voice trembling.
And the whole group followed suit.
Lloyd couldn’t help but exhale deeply.
“Hoo…”
Who were these people? Where had they come from?
Beggars?
No. There were too many.
Men, women, young and old—far too diverse.
Lloyd spoke.
“We’re more than capable of feeding you, so calm down. Okay? Let’s start with a talk, shall we?”
“A talk…?”
“I’m not going to eat you. You’ll get food.”
“Ah, understood.”
The man rose slowly and approached.
Lloyd ordered the villagers to bring water and light soup for the ragged group.
Then he pulled the man aside.
“Let me ask you directly—who are you people?”
A ragged group suddenly appearing in the middle of a festival.
It was suspicious no matter how he looked at it.
At worst, there could be foreign spies among them.
But the man’s reply was unexpected.
“We are residents of the Sortino Barony. I’m Nicholas from the village of Sorti. My father was the village chief, but after the recent events…”
“Wait. You’re from the Sortino Barony?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Then why are you here? In that state? And what do you mean by recent events?”
Lloyd asked.
It was odd.
‘Sortino Barony is quite a distance south of us, isn’t it?’
So how had their residents ended up here in this condition?
The answer came from Nicholas.
“Monsters attacked our village.”
“…What?”
“There were so many of them. I think they were called Heracleto. Beetle-like, over two meters tall… they swarmed like wasps. Devoured every tree and plant.”
“What…”
“We lost our home in the attack. But we didn’t give up. With our lord’s encouragement, we built huts and tried to farm again. But the heavens turned their backs on us.”
“No way…”
“Yes. That ‘no way’ is exactly what happened. Just five days after the Heracleto attack, another monster horde struck.”
“…”
Lloyd was speechless.
He understood now.
“…Monster domino.”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. Just talking to myself. So what about your lord?”
“He went missing fighting the monsters that came after the Heracleto. Probably…”
“Got eaten.”
“…Yes.”
The man’s face darkened.
“Our lord and his entire family disappeared. We had no choice. We fled, trying to save just our lives. More than half of us died. And today, we finally made it here…”
“You’ve been through a lot.”
“…Khkk.”
At last, the man broke into tears.
Lloyd now understood the full situation.
‘Right. Sortino Barony. It’s far south of us. But to its east?’
There were also the Eastern Mountains.
The Eastern Mountains stretched for hundreds of kilometers.
Dozens of estates bordered them.
And—
‘Most of the estates bordering those mountains probably got hit by this monster domino effect.’
He had known.
But he hadn’t had the resources to help.
He’d assumed the lords of those estates would manage.
Now he realized—
They had nothing.
‘No fantasy beasts to use. No knights at the level of Sword Master. No trained engineers or White Spear Cavalry from the queen.’
Could they have fended off endless waves of monsters?
The answer was no.
“First, get some food in you. Warm up.”
“Truly, thank you, young master. This grace…”
“Don’t talk about grace. It’s a burden. Rest for a few days and then, if possible, move on to another estate.”
He left without waiting for a reply.
Was it because he didn’t want the man clinging to him?
Because he had already forgotten what it was like to be poor?
Neither.
‘There might be more… people like them coming.’
Leaving the now chaotic festival grounds, Lloyd walked toward the Baron’s office.
His steps were hurried.
So was his mind.
He jolted his brain cells back into motion after days of rest.
He carefully calculated what would come next.
‘At least twenty estates probably got destroyed. Where will the refugees go? West? No, there’s another mountain range. South? That’s a foreign country. East? Monsters are still there.’
That left only the north.
And among the northern paths, the only intact estate?
Frontera Barony.
On top of that, the season was entering early winter.
‘No way they can make it to Cremona like this. Which means…’
The refugees would follow the northern route.
And among the viable destinations—
The only one accessible on foot…
‘It’s definitely here. Nowhere else.’
Crack.
A massive flood of refugees was coming.
If he turned them away coldly?
The royal court would surely reprimand him.
‘Damn it. More work. Again.’
When would he ever get to enjoy his sweet rewards?
Carrying rising despair, Lloyd quickened his pace toward the Baron’s office.
And in his mind, a massive emergency urban planning scheme to accommodate the overwhelming influx of refugees had already begun to take shape.