Chapter 80
Fifteen days had passed.
Lloyd’s party had a smooth journey.
The weather was chilly with the arrival of the new year, but there was no snowfall.
Thanks to that, their steps were light.
Lloyd, the Baron and his wife, Javier, Sir Bayern, and the soldiers who had traveled to Cremo together—everyone enjoyed a rare, peaceful, and uneventful journey.
After fifteen days, they finally returned to the Frontera Barony.
At the same time, Lloyd’s vacation ended.
‘Now that I’m home, it’s time to work!’
The joy and comfort of returning home?
Such things didn’t exist for Lloyd.
There was too much to do.
A mountain of tasks awaited him.
‘I need to finish distributing the ondol heating. I also need to check if the cold winter air is freezing the water pipes. And by now, the firewood reserves of those who have been burning ondol non-stop since early winter must be running low, so I need to start selling bituminous coal.’
That was how he made money.
He needed money to pay off the family’s debts.
He needed to clear the debts so he could comfortably siphon off this land.
Only then could he enjoy a peaceful and comfortable life here for the rest of his days.
It was all part of his grand(?) plan to make that dream a reality.
As soon as he unpacked, Lloyd summoned the barony’s administrator.
“You called for me, Lord Lloyd.”
“Yes, I did. I need a favor.”
“What kind of favor?”
“You can still contact Shylo and Mitrov, right?”
Shylo and Mitrov.
The Skinny and the Fat One.
Two loan sharks who had lent a huge sum to the barony and profited from usury.
The administrator nodded.
“Yes, I can.”
“Then send word to them immediately. Tell them I want to meet.”
“Is there anything else you’d like to convey?”
“No, that’s enough.”
“Understood.”
The administrator left.
As per Lloyd’s instructions, a messenger was sent to Shylo and Mitrov.
That very afternoon, the two loan sharks arrived at the barony.
However, their attitudes were quite different from before.
“Haha, how have you been?”
“Ahem! I trust you’ve been well?”
Shylo and Mitrov were uncharacteristically polite and deferential. They even came bearing gifts—each carrying a basket of flowers and a bottle of wine.
It was an unthinkable sight.
Gone were the arrogant expressions they had once worn, even in front of the Baron.
The reason was simple.
‘They don’t want to die.’
Lloyd smirked.
These two had already experienced the terror of facing the orc warrior Arosh up close during their last visit. They also knew very well that the Frontera Barony was now in a blood pact with the Iron Sand Orc Tribe.
To the orcs, a blood pact meant a precious friendship.
A friend’s enemy was their enemy.
And enemies had to be eliminated.
Naturally, they didn’t want to become enemies of the barony.
Suppressing his amusement, Lloyd welcomed them.
As soon as they sat down, he got straight to the point.
“It’s been a while. I actually called you here to share some good news.”
“Good news, you say?”
“I recently came into a bit of money.”
Shylo and Mitrov exchanged puzzled looks.
It seemed that news from Cremo hadn’t yet reached this region.
Lloyd gave them a meaningful smile.
“Thanks to that, I believe I can repay part of my debt to you both.”
“Repayment?”
“Yes.”
“How much…?”
“About half of the total debt.”
“W-What?”
The loan sharks’ eyes widened in shock.
It was unbelievable.
The debt owed by the Frontera Barony was no small sum.
‘There’s no way they could manage that. How…?’
Shylo and Mitrov both had the same thought. At the same time, they recalled the circumstances under which the Baron had originally borrowed from them.
‘Back then, the Frontera Baron was confident.’
The Baron had come to them, saying he planned to buy some land.
He had said he was just a little short on funds and needed to borrow some to complete the purchase.
Shylo had asked if he was sure.
The interest was steep.
But the Baron had nodded without hesitation.
He had claimed that the land he was buying would skyrocket in value. With that profit, he’d be able to repay the loan in no time.
Then, the Frontera Baron had gone bankrupt.
‘The broker who sold him the land turned out to be a scammer.’
After investigating, they had learned that the scammer had embezzled all of the Baron’s investment and disappeared. Worse still, the land he had “purchased” didn’t actually exist—it was just a fake listing on paper.
He had been completely swindled.
But Shylo and Mitrov weren’t the type to show mercy.
‘He borrowed the money by his own decision, so he must take responsibility for it.’
Money had no sympathy.
Contracts were absolute.
That was the terrifying nature of debt.
And Shylo and Mitrov were well aware of that.
So, they enforced the contract to the letter.
The Baron had taken out a short-term loan at an absurdly high interest rate. Every day, interest compounded and was added to the principal.
The growing interest inflated the principal.
The inflated principal generated even more interest.
Interest accumulated on interest, and the total debt snowballed into an unmanageable figure.
While the Baron struggled to even pay off the interest, the total debt amount had grown to an astronomical sum.
Shylo and Mitrov had believed one thing.
He would never be able to repay it.
The Baron’s financial capabilities were simply insufficient.
So, they had planned to bleed him dry with interest until they could seize his mansion and whatever assets he had left.
‘That’s how we operate. Even if we only take his estate, we’ll have made far more than our original loan.’
They had waited.
Like spiders watching a fly struggle in their web. Like vipers observing a mouse succumb to venom.
They had waited for the Baron to wither away.
But they had been wrong.
Just when they thought the Baron would be squeezed dry, an unexpected card was played.
The delinquent eldest son—whom everyone had written off—had suddenly started stirring up change
And now, that so-called delinquent, Lloyd Frontera, was standing before them, declaring that he could repay half of the total debt in one go.
“Wait, is that… true?”
Shylo asked, still unable to believe it.
Of course, Lloyd simply nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Yes.”
It was absolutely true.
He had secured more than enough to cover half of the total debt.
In fact, even after settling half of it, he would still have some leftover funds.
‘Count Cremo’s help was invaluable.’
Lloyd grinned in satisfaction.
The trade city of Cremo.
A place that had brought him massive profits.
He had sold the secondhand treasures acquired from the orcs to the Count.
That alone had brought in a substantial sum.
On top of that, he had taken on a commission from the Count.
A maritime artificial land construction project.
And he had managed to extract far more payment than originally agreed upon.
All thanks to the deal he struck with the Count on the night before leaving Cremo.
‘So, you’re planning to return to your barony tomorrow?’
‘Yes, I am.’
‘What a shame. I haven’t properly rewarded you for stopping the Gigatitan.’
‘Then how about rewarding me right now?’
‘Is there something specific you’d like?’
‘Yes. Money.’
‘…….’
‘Double the original payment for the artificial land construction.’
‘Tsk. I’ll do 1.5 times.’
‘Didn’t you say you wanted to properly reward my efforts?’
‘1.6 times.’
‘Sigh. I nearly broke my back fighting that Gigatitan.’
‘Hah… 1.7 times. That’s the final offer.’
‘Thank you.’
…Thus, after a constructive and harmonious negotiation, they reached an agreement.
“It’s all in cash. Of course, you’ll want to verify it. Let’s go.”
Lloyd stood up.
He led the still-dazed loan sharks downstairs.
There, alongside the Frontera Baron and the administrator, he opened the vault.
Inside, gold coins and gold bars gleamed.
The two loan sharks’ jaws practically dropped.
And just like that, half of the massive debt weighing down the barony was cleared.
Naturally, the interest burden was also halved.
‘That means half of the water tax revenue from the Viscounty will now go straight into net profit.’
With that calculation in mind, Lloyd lifted his head in satisfaction.
—
The vault was empty again after repaying the debt.
But he was confident he could fill it back up.
To do so, he had to keep moving without any idle time.
From that day on, Lloyd resumed his busy daily routine.
“Here! Catch this!”
“Yes, sir!”
He fastened a tool belt around his waist.
For the first time in a while, he picked up construction tools at the site.
He personally oversaw the final phase of the ondol housing project, which had been steadily supplied to the barony.
At last, the first ondol contract and all subsequent contracts were completed, and the construction was officially finished.
Ding-dong.
[The ondol housing distribution in Frontera has been completed.]
[You have successfully introduced and popularized a new heating system in a region. The residents have quickly adapted to this new and convenient heating method, experiencing great satisfaction.]
[Ondol heating has now become a defining feature of Frontera’s residential culture.]
[The heating system is now recognized in the history of construction on the Lorasia continent as the “Frontera Floor Heating System.”]
[A significant construction milestone has been achieved. A special reward of 400 RP has been granted.]
[Current RP balance: 1,946]
‘Wow.’
A satisfying message appeared before his eyes.
An unexpected achievement reward.
Plus, the earnings from the construction contracts.
A welcome windfall in every way.
But Lloyd didn’t stop.
He neither grinned foolishly at the gains nor indulged in rest.
Instead, he doubled down on catching up with his backlog of work.
‘I was away from the estate for too long because of that unexpected Gigatitan mess.’
There was much to do.
He headed straight for the bitumen mine.
For several days, he visited the site, conducting thorough safety inspections.
Next, he checked on the progress of the rental housing construction at the Marez reclamation area.
Spring was approaching, and soon, the contracted settlers would arrive to move in.
‘So, I need to make sure the houses are well built.’
The settlers.
Most of them had been tenant farmers living stable yet modest lives. Yet, they had decided to take a significant risk.
Instead of working someone else’s land, they had chosen to own their own.
They were willing to take the gamble, even if it meant some hardship.
‘They’re courageous people. They took a huge risk.’
For the poor, taking a risk meant things like this:
Moving to a new home with no safety net.
Quitting a job and starting over in an uncertain field.
Canceling an insurance policy, despite the financial loss, just to cover immediate expenses.
Each of these small choices was a life-or-death gamble for them. Without savings, one failure could mean ruin.
People living in stability would never understand that feeling.
But Lloyd knew it firsthand.
Back in Korea, he had spent his days in a tiny gosiwon, struggling through life.
Every decision, no matter how minor, required serious deliberation. Even choices others took for granted had to be made with absolute determination.
The fear of having no safety net.
The crushing reality where opportunity costs translated directly into survival.
Because he had lived through that, he understood exactly what these settlers were feeling as they moved into the reclamation lands.
‘First, I need to make sure they feel secure. Only then can they focus on their work.’
At the very least, he wanted to ensure they had a comfortable place to rest.
That way, they would be motivated to work harder and develop the land.
A warm, cozy home.
That was the foundation of a successful settlement, Lloyd believed.
And so, he paid extra attention to inspecting the rental housing construction.
But the work didn’t end there.
He thoroughly checked whether the water supply pipes were freezing.
He inspected the condition of the stored coal reserves.
For nearly twenty days, Lloyd had been running around tirelessly.
Only then had he managed to take care of most of the accumulated tasks.
But even after all that, he still couldn’t rest.
“L-Lord Lloyd!”
Lloyd was just stepping out of the storage facility after finishing his coal inspection.
The administrator came rushing toward him in a panic.
With a trembling voice, he cried out urgently.
“A guest—w-we have a guest!”
“A guest?”
“Yes!”
“Then why are you so flustered?”
Lloyd tilted his head.
It was strange.
The administrator was a seasoned professional. And yet, he was stammering and panicking over a simple visitor?
Could it be that an incredibly important guest had arrived?
Lloyd furrowed his brow.
“Who exactly showed up to make you this frantic? And if they’re that important, shouldn’t you be informing the Baron before coming to me?”
He asked irritably.
Truthfully, he had just wrapped up all his tasks and was about to take a well-deserved break. But now, someone was making a fuss and seeking him out personally instead of the Baron. It was honestly annoying.
His sharp tone made the administrator stutter even more.
“T-That is, um… that…”
“That what?”
“A royal envoy has arrived.”
“A royal envoy? What kind?”
“The envoy sent by Her Majesty the Queen.”
“Her Majesty’s envoy?”
“Yes.”
The administrator nodded vigorously.
Then, with a dazed expression as if he himself couldn’t believe it, he added,
“So, the royal envoy… is asking for you, Lord Lloyd.”
“…What?”
A royal envoy had come looking for him?
Lloyd’s eyes widened in shock.
