Chapter 157

Two days had passed.

During that time, Lloyd had suspended all construction work at the site.

It was the result of taking the Countess’s advice to occasionally take a break.

Thanks to that, the engineers and workers who had been sweating on-site every day enjoyed a well-deserved rest. It also helped them recover their shaken spirits after the previous accident.

“……And with that, as of today, everyone will resume work.”

“Will that really be fine?”

“Well, yes.”

At the breakfast table, Lloyd smiled faintly in response to Count Frontera’s question.

“They’ve rested enough for the past two days.”

“You don’t look like you have.”

“I never really do.”

He gave an awkward smile and poked at his salad with a fork.

The workers might have rested for two days.

But he barely had any rest at all.

“Because people died.”

The rampage of the Undead Mastodons.

The workers who fled in panic.

And the six White Spear Knights who courageously stood their ground to protect everyone.

They had faced hundreds of Mastodons and sacrificed their lives.

Lloyd ensured they were given proper funerals.

But he didn’t build their graves here.

He carefully collected their mangled remains and had them cremated.

He obtained ornate silver urns and placed their ashes inside.

He selected thirty White Spear Knights and granted them special leave.

They were tasked with escorting the urns to the royal capital.

He also sent generous condolence funds and heartfelt letters to the families of the fallen.

He wrote that their sons, husbands, and fathers had shown true courage.
That they had made the most honorable and noble sacrifice to save others.

It might have sounded like a cliché.

But when it came time to write to the grieving families, there were no better words to use.

Because it was all true.

Because he truly felt that way.

Because he sincerely respected them.

That’s why—

He also sent a separate letter to the Queen.

He wrote in detail about the six fallen knights’ deeds—their courage in their final moments, their honorable and noble deaths. He used every word and expression at his disposal to portray it properly.

That way, the Queen would surely take better care of their families.

That was his hope.

Afterward, he visited the workshop of the dwarf craftsman, Cogidus.

He commissioned a memorial monument.

A monument engraved with the names of the six fallen knights.

He did everything he could.

The reason was simple.

‘They deserve at least that much.’

They had willingly given their lives to protect the people of his estate.

Lloyd believed that was the least he could do to honor them.

Perhaps that was why—

He received an unexpected visit.

‘Sir Blanc came to see me last night.’

He recalled the events of the previous evening.

He was returning to his bedroom after putting Javier to sleep as usual when he ran into Sir Blanc, the captain of the White Spear Knights, wandering the mansion courtyard.

The man said he’d been waiting for him.

He had something to say.

—Thank you.

That was the first thing he said.

—We’ve long grown used to death. Our men fall constantly on battlefields. Maybe that’s why we’ve grown numb to it over time.

Under the faint crescent moonlight, Sir Blanc’s eyes glistened.

—But you surprised me. You, and your house, gave our fallen men such a dignified farewell. For that, I thank you. They would be glad to know their deaths weren’t in vain.

—Ah, it was simply what had to be done……

—No one’s ever done that for us before.

—……

—Not even the royal family. Of course, we serve the crown with loyalty, and the royal family has never neglected the funerals or compensation for our fallen. But it always felt… formal. As if we were just a special kind of expendable.

Sir Blanc continued quietly.

—So, thank you. For not treating their deaths as a given. For respecting our honor.

And then—

New messages appeared before Lloyd’s eyes.

[Favorability Unlocked]

[Sir Valeradi Blanc, Captain of the White Spear Knights, is deeply moved by your noble character.]

[Valeradi Blanc, while loyal to the royal family, now sincerely wishes to serve you as an honorable knight.]

[Valeradi Blanc secretly hopes to belong under your command.]

[You can now increase your favorability with Valeradi Blanc and earn RP.]

[A 50 RP bonus has been granted for unlocking favorability.]

[Current RP: 3,290]

[Valeradi Blanc’s favorability toward you has increased by +5.]

[Current relationship with Valeradi Blanc: +52]

[You have earned 45 RP for improving your relationship with this individual.]

[Current RP: 3,335]

‘Whoa.’

He let out a soft gasp.

It wasn’t explicitly stated aloud, but this was practically a declaration of allegiance.

He felt a mix of pride and unease.

‘If Her Majesty the Queen finds out, I’m screwed.’

After all, Sir Blanc was a royal knight.

And now he was harboring feelings of loyalty that went beyond mere respect—for someone other than the crown.

Lloyd quickly gave a reassuring smile and responded carefully.

—I understand your feelings, Sir. Losing your men must have been deeply painful. I’m sure Her Majesty feels the same way I do.

He deliberately mentioned the Queen.

Only then did Sir Blanc look slightly taken aback.

But it was fleeting. The knight soon bowed silently and left the courtyard.

Lloyd recalled that memory as a voice interrupted his thoughts.

“……My lord, I came to show you something.”

“Huh?”

Lloyd turned toward the source of the voice.

“Sir Bayern?”

Sir Bayern entered the dining room.

“What brings you here so early in the morning?”

“As I just told the Count and the young master, I came to show you this.”

He placed something on the table.

It was a freshly severed goat’s head.

Something was embedded in its forehead—a half-burned and torn embroidered sigil.

“During the two-day break, I conducted a small-scale investigation with a few White Spear Knights I trust. And late last night, we discovered this.”

“Last night?”

Count Frontera raised an eyebrow, and Bayern nodded.

“Yes. A White Spear Knight found it buried near the pit where the Mastodon corpses were discovered. It was too late to report immediately, so I came first thing this morning.”

“Hm.”

The Count examined the sigil.

“A Grim Reaper with the head and wings of a black dragon. Peculiar. I’ve never seen this symbol before.”

“Nor have I. But judging from where it was buried and the use of a goat’s head, I suspect it’s a talisman used for preserving undead corpses through magic.”

“Likely so. To keep so many Mastodon bodies from decaying, some magical mechanism would have been required.”

The Count and Sir Bayern discussed the sigil further.

An unfamiliar symbol.

Who could be using it?

Had either of them heard of something similar?

They exchanged ideas and speculations.

Watching them, Lloyd suddenly lost his appetite.

Not because of the severed goat’s head on the breakfast table.

It was grotesque, yes, but he had a strong stomach.

The reason his appetite vanished was different.

The sigil of a Grim Reaper with a dragon’s head and wings—

He recognized it.

‘That… that’s from *The Iron-Blooded Knight*!’

He remembered.

Where?

From one of the novel’s illustrations.

Atop the royal castle in the capital.

The newly raised royal banner.

That same sigil was emblazoned on it.

‘In the novel, it was the one-armed, tyrannical Queen Alicia who adopted that as the new royal symbol—under the advice of one of her close aides. That was when her reign of terror truly began.’

It marked the start of the true Dark Age.

That sigil represented tyranny and the coming of darkness.

‘But why is it showing up here?’

Lloyd swallowed dryly.

A chilling thought crossed his mind.

Could Her Majesty Queen Alicia be behind this?

But he quickly shook his head.

‘No, impossible.’

There was no reason for her to harm his estate.

She would gain nothing from it.

‘If anything, the real suspect would be that close aide who, in the novel, advised the corrupted Alicia to adopt that symbol.’

That seemed far more likely.

Because this Alicia wasn’t like the one in the novel.

She hadn’t lost her arm, nor had she turned into a tyrant.

If he showed her the sigil now, she’d probably just tilt her head and say, “What a strange-looking symbol.”

‘Which means whoever that aide was—the one mentioned in the novel—is the most likely culprit here… but that’s a problem.’

Lloyd frowned.

The aide mentioned in the original novel.

He had no idea who that was.

Because that character had never actually appeared in the story.

‘Their name wasn’t even revealed. They were only vaguely referenced in Alicia’s monologues or thoughts.’

He tried to recall the lines.

Something like, *“Queen Alicia recalled the advice of her newly appointed aide.”*
Or, *“She reflected briefly on her recent meeting with her trusted confidant.”*

That was all the readers ever got.

At the time, fan communities were full of theories.

Some said it was a sycophant who clung to the Queen for power.

Others thought it was a throwaway extra.

Some even speculated it was the true hidden villain.

But no one ever knew.

‘Because by the end of *The Iron-Blooded Knight* Part 1, their identity was never revealed. And Part 2 never got published.’

So the mysterious aide remained a loose end forever.

Lloyd clicked his tongue bitterly.

‘That’s why some authors are hopeless. No sense of responsibility at all.’

If you’re going to write something, at least finish it properly.

Leaving the readers hanging was just cruel.

He cursed the original author under his breath.

‘Still, it’s better than knowing nothing.’

Knowing your enemy, even vaguely, was far better than total ignorance.

At least now, he had a direction to investigate.

‘That’s why I’ve been digging around the site for days—to find some kind of clue.’

So, for now, his goal was clear.

Find out who that aide really was.

Gather clues, keep an ear on the capital’s rumors.

And meanwhile, focus on what needed to be done.

Lloyd spoke up.

“So, Sir Bayern?”

“Yes, my lord?”

“I assume you didn’t bring this goat’s head as part of breakfast?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then please, get it off the table.”

“……Ah.”

The goat’s head, still sticking out its tongue in grim display, sat awkwardly on the breakfast table.

Sir Bayern’s face turned red as he realized his blunder.

At that very moment, a maid entered with dessert cookies—and her piercing scream filled the room.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

♣

After the brief commotion, construction on the Great Sewer resumed.

“Bibeong! Bibibeng!”

Recovered from the explosion’s shock, Bibeong dug enthusiastically.

The pit for the sludge treatment plant grew wider by the minute.

The engineers.

The White Spear Knights and refugee workers.

All of them were working hard again, sweating as if nothing had ever happened.

A day, two days, four, eight.

Through their collective effort and sweat, the sludge treatment plant gradually took form.

Lloyd chose a “gravity thickening” method for its basic structure.

‘Simply put, gravity gathers the sludge downward—like those old rural latrines. It’s simple, since it handles both storage and thickening. No chemicals needed, easy to maintain.’

There were other designs for sludge treatment plants.

But most were unsuitable for this place, lacking modern equipment or machinery.

He had few options to begin with.

So Lloyd designed the thickener tank to fit the local situation.

The wastewater from the Great Sewer would flow into it.

Inside, the sludge would sink to the bottom, while the remaining water and debris would flow out through an outlet.

He also made a large wooden lid to cover the plant’s upper section.

That was for Solitas, the dragon who handled sludge disposal.

‘That way, he can just lift the sludge out magically after opening the lid. Simple and easy.’

He would’ve liked to build something more sophisticated.

But there was no way.

Without precise mechanisms like modern sludge hoppers or discharge valves, this was the best he could do.

‘So I’ll just do what’s possible here.’

He stayed within that line, focusing on steady progress.

And then, one day—

As summer arrived in full force, along with the sweltering heat—

A peculiar letter arrived at House Frontera.

From fifty-nine noble families across the kingdom—
All competing to propose marriage to Lloyd Frontera.