Chapter 193
Hi everyone! The main story of Greatest Estate Developer has officially concluded, but don't worry—Side Stories will be released next week. As promised, I'll also be reposting the earlier chapters starting from Chapter 1, though they won't follow a fixed schedule. Thank you all so much for your amazing support! I hope you'll continue supporting me, especially with my upcoming translation projects.
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“Your Highness, Lloyd Frontera, the special envoy, and his party have arrived.”
“Let them in.”
This was the Magentano Royal Palace.
A dignified voice echoed across the training grounds at the luxurious heart of the palace.
Soon, the doors to the training grounds opened.
“……”
Termes, the rebel leader of the Sultanate, swallowed without realizing it.
He couldn’t collect his thoughts.
He was confused.
By the doors opening before his eyes.
By the vast training grounds unfolding beyond them.
By the red-haired woman standing tall at the center.
Everything felt unreal.
Even his own actions—following Lloyd and dropping to one knee before her—felt like something happening to someone else.
“Lloyd Frontera, son of Arcos Frontera, greets Her Majesty the Queen.”
“D-Damietta Termes of the Sultanate greets Her Majesty the Queen of Magentano.”
Did he stutter?
Did he say it wrong?
He had practiced the greeting dozens of times in his head on the way here, terrified of making a mistake.
But his mouth moved on its own.
He couldn’t even tell whether he’d said it correctly.
Termes simply took deep breaths and tried to calm the shaking in his chest.
And then, he suddenly recalled the past few days.
‘I never thought I’d actually come here.’
Was it five nights ago?
He and his comrades had kidnapped Lloyd Frontera.
Lloyd, who looked like the Sultan’s stooge.
They had dragged him away and interrogated him.
Trying to uncover why he was doing good deeds for the people of Kandara.
Trying to figure out what the Sultan was plotting.
They had steeled themselves and carried out the kidnapping.
‘But I never dreamed I’d receive such an absurd proposal on the spot.’
Lloyd Frontera.
Even while bound and kidnapped, he had proposed something as if he’d been waiting for it.
Hand over the tunnels the rebels used as hideouts. Only then could he build an underground waterway and end the drought.
And if they accepted?
He would grant them asylum in his territory and protect them from the Sultan’s retaliation.
Unbelievable.
Unimaginable.
He had proposed such a thing.
Of course, Termes had scoffed at first.
‘Because I didn’t trust him.’
There was no proof Lloyd wasn’t the Sultan’s pawn.
So Termes didn’t believe him.
How could he trust such a proposal?
How could he prove the sincerity behind it?
He had pressed Lloyd hard.
And Lloyd’s answer had been a masterpiece.
‘Then let’s get an asylum letter from Her Majesty the Queen.’
Of course, Termes thought it was madness.
So did all his comrades.
But then Lloyd had said:
‘If you don’t believe me, then keep suffering through the drought in this city.’
That smirk.
That look as if they were pathetic.
It was that look.
The drought consuming his home flashed before him.
His young son, dying of thirst.
Himself, utterly helpless.
The resentment, despair, and sorrow of that day revived and tore at his heart.
Perhaps that was why.
‘……Fine. I’ll go with you and confirm it. But if there’s even a hint of falsehood, don’t think you’ll survive.’
He had glared at Lloyd as if he would devour him—and accepted the proposal.
And so he set out with Lloyd.
He wasn’t worried Lloyd would harm him.
He trusted his own swordsmanship.
They flew together on that strange, enormous titmouse.
They moved steadily west.
And as the journey went on, the thoughts in his heart began to change.
Crossing the desert, he still felt suspicion.
Crossing the mountain range, curiosity seeped in.
Crossing the border of Magentano, he was inwardly startled.
And today, at last, he was in awe.
Now, standing before Her Majesty the Queen of Magentano—
“Are you the rebel leader of the Sultanate who came with Lloyd Frontera?”
Flinch!
A soft voice snapped Termes back from his thoughts.
His shoulders jolted.
“Y-Yes! That’s right!”
His answer came out louder than he intended.
A faint, bitter smile touched Her Majesty’s lips.
“It’s alright. I have no intention of harming you, so you don’t need to be so nervous.”
I won’t harm you.
Soft, yet firm—words that carried weight and trust.
Only then did the tension in Termes’s shoulders ease, if only slightly.
He dared to lift his head a little and steal a glance at Her Majesty.
‘That woman… is really Her Majesty…’
Alicia Termino Magentano.
Her Majesty the Queen of Magentano, and a Swordmaster.
He had heard countless rumors.
That she reached Swordmaster at a relatively young age.
That she overcame countless political schemes and struggles to seize the throne.
A ruler skilled in both pen and sword.
And that her political talent was exceptional.
‘But I never imagined she would look like this.’
He had expected a magnificent throne.
A dignified figure seated upon it.
A formal welcome.
But reality was different.
Her Majesty was covered in dirt.
Her training clothes were simple.
Her boots and knee guards were smeared with sand and mud.
Her top was no different.
It wasn’t stained with mud, but with sweat.
Her shirt—originally brown—was soaked so thoroughly it looked black.
And the towel around her neck?
The long sword in her hand?
The grip was dark with handprints.
Everything about her looked far closer to a knight who had just finished training than a monarch receiving guests.
Even the place she greeted him was the same.
‘Was she training until just now?’
Behind her, knights were strewn across the vast sandy training grounds.
They groaned, clutching arms, legs, shoulders.
There were at least fifty.
They had likely been beaten down by her sword as part of training.
‘So that’s what a Swordmaster is.’
The Royal Palace knights wouldn’t be weak.
A woman who could knock down fifty of them with a single sword for practice—
She was a monster.
And he had come before such a monster to ask for asylum.
‘Is this really happening?’
Termes took another deep breath.
He still couldn’t grasp it.
Her Majesty’s chuckle flowed toward him.
“Amazing.”
Her gaze shifted.
It moved to Lloyd, kneeling beside Termes.
“Lloyd Frontera, it’s been a while.”
“Your Majesty is too kind. I am also very pleased to see Your Majesty.”
“Really?”
“I swear it’s true. That’s why I came running here with the single-minded desire to see Your Majesty’s face, even from the distant Sultanate.”
“Tsk. To flatter me so openly. According to the natural order, you should be staying in Ahinsa, the capital of the Sultanate, by my order—so why are you here, standing before me?”
“May I explain briefly?”
“Explain in detail.”
“I shall obey.”
Lloyd bowed low and began a long explanation.
He told everything—step by step, in order, in as much detail as possible.
When it finally ended—
A faint crease formed between Her Majesty’s brows.
“……So, to summarize: the Sultanate treated my special envoy poorly, and you signed a construction contract with the Sultan to break through that treatment and force negotiations. And to complete the construction successfully, you needed the cooperation of the rebel leader.”
“That is correct, Your Majesty.”
“And you want me to grant that rebel leader asylum.”
“Your Majesty is too kind.”
“The thanks are premature. I haven’t granted your request yet.”
“However, I, Lloyd Frontera, firmly believe in Your Majesty’s boundless grace.”
“Tsk. How far does your shamelessness go?”
“Your Majesty is too kind.”
“That endlessly kind Majesty.”
Her Majesty couldn’t help but laugh.
She tried to hold it back, but the laughter slipped out.
Lloyd Frontera.
Even now, that absurd man was being absurd.
And she couldn’t help it.
‘Right. If he needs the rebels’ cooperation, the most certain way to prove he isn’t the Sultan’s stooge is to bring them to me.’
But to actually drag the rebel leader of an enemy country all the way here—
Anyone could think up the idea.
The unbelievable part was the execution: turning that idea into reality.
‘Is it boldness… or a lack of fear?’
Or is he the type who doesn’t care about the means as long as he achieves his goal?
Her Majesty’s bitter smile deepened.
“Lloyd Frontera.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You are a truly impudent subject.”
“I apologize, Your Majesty.”
“No. There’s no need. After all, what you did today—seen broadly—was to fulfill the mission I gave you as my special envoy.”
“Your kindness in considering me is too kind.”
“Tsk. Stop with kindness you don’t mean. So all I have to do is grant him asylum, correct?”
“That is correct, Your Majesty.”
Lloyd bowed even lower.
Her Majesty called to her attendants.
She dictated the contents of the permit, and the Royal Household Department prepared the document.
And in barely five minutes—
A formal letter of asylum, bearing Her Majesty’s seal, was placed into Termes’s hands.
“……With this, you and those who follow you will be eligible to become citizens of Magentano at any time.”
“Your Majesty is too kind.”
Termes accepted the permit with trembling hands.
When he first heard Lloyd’s bold words in that warehouse outside Kandara five days ago, he had scoffed.
‘I never thought they would become reality.’
It felt like a dream.
And that feeling continued.
Even after he bowed to Her Majesty and stepped back.
Even when Her Majesty called Lloyd again.
“……Oh, and Lloyd Frontera. Since we’ve met like this, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it, Your Majesty?”
“About the Black Wizard Cannavaro you captured in Namaran.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“It seems his interrogation will be completed soon. Around that time, I may call you to the royal capital to assist.”
“……Me, Your Majesty?”
“That’s right. Do you dislike my summons?”
“Of course not.”
“Right?”
“That’s right.”
“Just looking at how you suddenly came to see me like this, you must always want to meet me. Isn’t that so?”
“O-Of course.”
“Hm. I think the corner of your eye twitched just now.”
“Ah, that’s because I’ve been overworked lately.”
“Flying day and night to see me?”
“That’s right.”
“Then when I call you next time, you’ll fly day and night again, like this time?”
“Of course.”
“Again. The corner of your eye twitched.”
“It’s still because of overwork.”
“I see. Overwork, then.”
“That’s right.”
“Yes. It must be. You wouldn’t be such a hateful, selfish man who only comes to see me when you need me. Right?”
Her Majesty gave him a meaningful smile, laced with faint resentment.
Lloyd hurried out of the training grounds wearing a smile drenched in sweat.
“Hoo.”
After safely escaping Her Majesty’s training grounds, Lloyd finally let out the breath he’d been holding.
Then he looked back at Termes.
“How is it? Do you trust me more now?”
“……”
Termes’s gaze shifted silently.
To the paper in his hand.
A letter of asylum bearing Her Majesty’s seal.
He couldn’t help but laugh.
“Ha. I never thought this would actually happen.”
“You didn’t expect it, did you?”
“Hoo. I didn’t. Truly.”
“Then will you accept my proposal now?”
“Of course. I’ll surrender all the tunnels.”
Termes nodded.
Now there was no reason not to trust the eccentric young master in front of him.
And if any of his comrades still doubted? He was prepared to pack a lunch box and follow them around until he persuaded them.
“Then are we going back to Kandara now?”
“Yes. Like I said when we left.”
“Eleven nights and twelve days.”
“Yes. If the weather stays good, we might even get back a day early.”
“I see.”
“Yes.”
They walked in silence toward the palace exit.
Then Lloyd suddenly chuckled.
“Come to think of it, we haven’t properly introduced ourselves, have we?”
“Hmm?”
“Let’s do it properly. I am Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of Frontera County, loyal to the Magentano royal family.”
“……”
Lloyd extended his hand.
Termes reached out as well.
He shook Lloyd’s hand and said,
“I am Damietta Termes, a prospective asylum seeker bound for Frontera County. I look forward to working with you.”
“Good. Then let’s agree there will be no more kidnapping between us.”
“Of course. You will be the lord of my future residence.”
“Then there’ll be no more hitting me on the forehead with a club in the middle of the night, right?”
“……I truly am sorry about that.”
Termes couldn’t help but smile awkwardly.
And six days later—
Thanks to Ggoming’s diligent flapping, Lloyd returned to the desert city of Kandara with Termes.
Now, to end the long drought—
With the rebels’ active cooperation behind him—
It was time to begin full-scale surveying for the construction of the Qanat.
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