Chapter 191

“When there is a uniformly distributed load from vehicle traffic near the top of a retaining wall—similar to buildings—these loads increase the earth pressure on the wall. For fixed loads like buildings, the building’s weight is converted into the weight of the backfill soil behind the retaining wall, and the earth pressure is calculated by assuming that much additional soil is present.”

“W-wait a moment…”

Early evening, not long after the sunset had fully faded.

Inside a certain lodging in the desert city of Kandara.

A calm, steady voice echoed under flickering candlelight.

The voice was serious.

At the same time, it was unbearably monotonous.

No change in pitch. Not a trace of emotion.

Only a relentless listing of knowledge.

Before this calm yet all the more merciless lullaby, a woman pleaded.

Please stop.

She felt like she’d collapse if this kept going.

She complained that she was squeezing her eyes shut in frustration and that if she fell asleep like this, she wouldn’t wake until tomorrow.

But the low voice reciting the lullaby showed not a shred of mercy, tolerance, or restraint.

“The influence of roads or railways installed near the top of a retaining wall causes dynamic reactions due to repeated loads, so they cannot be accurately converted into static loads. However, for roads, it is common to design assuming a uniformly distributed surcharge load of 1 tonf/㎡ for DB-24 and DB-18 loads, and 0.7 tonf/㎡ for DB-13.5 loads.”

“…Zzzzz.”

The woman who had resisted—Scheherazade—fell asleep.

A smile bloomed on the lips of the merciless man, Lloyd.

“Good.”

As expected, the best way to put Swordmaster Syndrome patients to sleep was a lullaby.

They were deep-rooted insomniacs to begin with.

Always suffering from sleep deprivation.

So lullabies worked really, really well.

And there was no need to worry about side effects—like reduced effectiveness—from putting them to sleep every day.

‘If anything, it becomes a habit.’

What happens when someone deprived of sleep experiences drifting into deep sleep through a lullaby?

Once they taste that life-changing, honey-sweet sleep?

The experience imprints itself powerfully on their body.

They keep seeking the lullaby.

Their body craves it even more.

They start asking for it.

They believe only that can put them to sleep comfortably.

It becomes a habit—one the body reaches for before the mind does.

‘And Javier has proven that consistently up until now, hehehe.’

Even Javier, despite becoming a Swordmaster and gaining the ability to control his senses, still relied on the lullaby to some extent.

‘So the Sultan’s daughter won’t be any different.’

If even Javier couldn’t quit, there was no way that woman could.

She’d probably sleep soundly without regaining consciousness until tomorrow morning.

Certain of that, Lloyd quietly left Scheherazade’s room.

He returned to his own lodging with light steps.

“Javier? Did you wait long?”

There was no answer.

For some reason, the lodging was completely empty.

Lloyd shrugged.

“Tch. Did he go for a walk or something? If not now, he won’t get a chance to sleep.”

Unfortunately, that meant Javier wouldn’t sleep today.

Because Lloyd had no intention of waiting for him to come back.

He planned to go to bed right now.

“Alright. Let’s sleep quickly.”

Lloyd roughly peeled off only his boots and lay down flat on the bed.

He needed to grab even a moment of sleep.

Because he absolutely had to wake up at midnight.

He had to ride Ggoming, take Hamang, and head to the western mountain range to fetch water.

If he closed his eyes now, he could get at least three or four hours.

As he thought that and shut his eyes, the past few days suddenly surfaced in his mind.

The locals who looked at him with suspicion and coldness.

Thinking he must be the Sultan’s lackey.

That he must be a vile henchman.

Those resentful eyes that glared at him.

He endured those gazes.

Then, every day, he fetched water from the western mountain range.

And he handed it out to the people who resented him, putting on a performance of generosity as much as he could.

‘Let’s do it again tomorrow. Gather people in the morning and distribute water. How many days has it been since I started giving it out? About half a month, maybe. It’s about time their eyes change. It’s about time for a bite. Will that bite come today?’

He didn’t know.

He’d only cast the line.

Whether the fish took the hook depended on the fish.

So he waited.

Scattering the most tempting bait.

Watching the calm surface.

Anticipating the movement beneath it.

Waiting for ripples of change.

So I…

‘……’

His vision dimmed.

His thoughts turned hazy.

His whole body felt like it was floating.

Or sinking into the bed.

Drowsiness washed over him.

His consciousness drifted toward sleep.

His muscles loosened.

His breathing eased.

Then his throat tightened sharply.

Gasp!

“……!”

A hand suddenly grabbed the nape of his neck and forced him down.

Lloyd’s eyes snapped open.

He reflexively tried to move his arms.

But he couldn’t.

Someone had seized them—pressed down on his whole body. Both arms. Even his legs.

“…Grk! Urk! Rk!”

Lloyd struggled, pinned at the neck and limbs.

There were multiple attackers.

He forced himself to identify them.

A dark room with the lights out.

Within that darkness, he caught brief silhouettes.

‘Ten?’

No, more than that.

Five people were pinning him down.

And five or six more stood around them in a circle.

He immediately activated the Asrahan Heart Technique.

Kiiiiiing—!

“Gah?”

“My strength…!”

“Don’t let go!”

He absorbed the Mana of those pressing down on him.

They must have felt a sudden wave of dizziness and weakness.

Panicked voices rang out from men who felt it.

But then—

Thwack!

His head flared hot.

His vision flashed.

A club?

The world spun.

At the same time, the Asrahan Heart Technique released.

The men’s frantic voices came faintly.

“…Huh, huff. What is this?”

“Don’t just stand there, tie him up. Hurry.”

Rustle, rustle. Creak, creak—something being pulled out. The sound of ropes tightening.

His wrists and ankles constricted.

Whether bound or simply cinched tight, it felt suffocating.

Maybe his blood wasn’t circulating properly. His hands and feet went numb almost at once.

A gag was shoved into his mouth too.

“Put this on as well. We don’t know when he’ll come to.”

Something like a sack was pulled over his head, plunging his vision into complete darkness.

“Alright, quickly. Before that silver-haired guard returns.”

Javier.

Where are you?

Lloyd strained to lift his head.

But with the sack over it, he couldn’t see anything.

He belatedly tried the Asrahan Heart Technique again, but with his hands and feet tightly bound, it was meaningless resistance.

Still, Lloyd wasn’t flustered.

He didn’t even activate the Rapid Charge option.

He simply thrashed with all his strength a few times.

Even that was cut short as the ropes bit into his wrists and ankles.

“Have you understood your situation now?”

A question directed at him.

Lloyd nodded.

A satisfied voice came back.

“Resisting now only drains everyone’s energy. Good. You’re quick on the uptake. I like that.”

“……”

“Alright. Move him.”

A large figure hoisted him over a shoulder.

Lloyd didn’t resist.

This was the moment when resistance meant nothing.

Carried like a sack of rice, he focused on the sounds around him and the flow of air.

‘As expected, we’re heading toward the outskirts.’

Footsteps.

Dogs barking in the street.

The direction and scent of the wind.

How long had they moved like that?

He was dropped onto a hard floor.

“Kneel.”

He obeyed.

At last, the stifling sack was removed.

“……”

The spot on his forehead where he’d been struck throbbed painfully.

Frowning, he raised his gaze.

A dim interior.

The vague silhouettes of about twenty people surrounded him.

‘Looks like a scrap warehouse.’

The smell of old, rotting wood.

The musty, pungent stench of dust built up over time.

A few windows had been roughly blocked with planks.

Cobwebs hung here and there from exposed beams along the high ceiling.

The atmosphere was perfect.

‘Phew. This really is a kidnapping scene.’

Lloyd sighed inwardly.

Somehow, it felt exactly like something out of a gangster movie or film noir.

He ended up twisting his mouth into a crooked grin.

The gag came out, and he asked at once.

“Who are you people?”

They only stared.

A heavy silence pressed in like a siege.

After a long while, an answer finally came.

“Perhaps you still don’t understand your situation. You seem to be misunderstanding something. We ask questions. You answer.”

One man stepped forward from the group.

Tall, broad-shouldered.

A sturdily built blond man.

He approached, then dropped to one knee to match Lloyd’s eye level.

Stroking rough stubble, he fixed Lloyd with a cold stare.

“Why are you doing good deeds in our city?”

The man continued.

“Every day, you bring water stored in the stomach of some strange monster and distribute it to people. And you go around boasting about it all day. That’s strange. Charity is something to be grateful for, but your actions look like you clearly want something in return. That’s what it seems like.”

His gaze turned colder. Sharper.

“What do you want? What exactly are you plotting, that you perform such obvious charity like you’re showing it off?”

The eyes on Lloyd were like a detective interrogating a criminal.

Or like someone demanding answers in court.

No—murderous.

The men lined up around them radiated the same killing intent.

They looked ready to do anything without hesitation if he didn’t give the answer they wanted.

Or if he resisted, insisted, and kept his mouth shut.

That was why—

Lloyd answered readily.

“Ah, that’s a truly welcome question.”

As if he’d been waiting for it.

As if he’d been desperately hoping for a chance to answer.

He wet his tongue with saliva—lick, lick.

And without even turning on the blinker—

He slammed the accelerator to the floor.

“I was feeling quite frustrated when you suddenly attacked me just as I was about to fall asleep and dragged me here. You even covered my mouth without warning. So it’s really a relief that you asked me first. Since you seem to have many questions, I suppose I should start by introducing myself. Pleased to meet you. For your information, I am Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of Baron Arcos Frontera of Frontera County in the Magentano Kingdom.”

“Uh, pleased to…”

“First, regarding what you asked: I can tell you doubt my good deeds and are curious about my intentions. I admit my actions were unusual, considering how good people typically try not to reveal their good deeds. So I truly wanted to explain and clarify, and it’s great that this happened.”

“Well, of course…”

“First of all, I am neither the Sultan’s lackey nor his henchman. Of course, you probably won’t believe me easily if I just say that. So I’ll explain step by step, starting with the history of Frontera County and my family’s circumstances. It was a little over two years ago. Back when Frontera County was still a barony, our family incurred a huge debt. It felt like the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing. It was daunting, and my vision went dark. But I couldn’t give up. Just as everyone encounters hardship and misfortune in life, I thought such storms were another test, and I began to see glimpses of strength and hope to live on. So I made a new proposal to the tavern owner in the central village of the territory…”

“Hey, wait a minute…”

“So I installed ondol… blah blah blah… strengthening my resolve that I could do even better… the paved road… chitter chatter… feeling the expectations and enthusiasm my family and the people of the territory place in me, the mine… blah blah blah… shaking off the burden amid the pouring attention and wanting to advance further, in Cremona… blah blah blah… but with the single-minded thought that I couldn’t back down before the crisis facing the King, the Triple Blast… blah blah blah…”

Lloyd’s excessive talking poured out without end.

The expressions of the men around him shifted in real time, growing more bewildered by the second.

This was unexpected.

He was suspected of being the Sultan’s lackey.

A man they’d subdued and dragged here by force.

They intended to interrogate him—what was his purpose in this city, what was he plotting?

They’d expected him to turn stubborn.

To resist and stay silent.

And they’d been ready to resort to harsh methods without hesitation.

Never, even in their dreams, had they imagined they’d be forced to listen to an unfiltered panorama of one man’s life—an endless medley that threatened to wear out their eardrums and blister their cochleas.

Unable to bear it any longer, the blond man shouted.

“S-stop it!”

“…Pardon?”

“Are you trying to mock us?!”

“No. You questioned my intentions and expressed suspicion, so I was giving the most honest and detailed explanation possible to resolve that.”

“But…”

“Anyway, I’m not finished yet. You asked the question, so you should listen to the answer. The exciting part is just starting—where Captain Frontera appears and annihilates the swarm of locusts.”

“……”

“So, it was from the moment I grabbed the lid of the cauldron. A sense of crisis and mission—one I hadn’t even realized I had—surged up from the depths of my heart. That’s how it was. I was…”

Stop.

Please stop, you madman.

The blond man almost wanted to beg.

The others looked just as devastated.

As they listened to Lloyd’s endless, excessively honest explanation, their eyes hollowed out. They nodded along, soullessly, as the story continued.

Meanwhile, Lloyd stole a glance to one side.

Through the gaps in the roughly boarded window in the corner of the warehouse, he met the eyes of Javier, who had been waiting there since earlier.

Lloyd smiled inwardly.

‘Fishing, complete.’

As expected, the rebels had taken the bait.

Now it was time to find and secure the tunnel they’d been frugally using as their hideout.