Chapter 147 : Chapter 147
Chapter 147. The Developed Raviedel (2)
Radel discussed the concrete compensation with Ishan Rau.
There were no obstacles in their conversation.
Having studied in the Empire for a long time was an advantage, as it made him relatively free from the common sense and rules of the Lizardmen.
“They seem to think the Tsar Mountain Range belongs to them.”
“In Lizardman lands, the strongest warrior leads the tribe and can make decisions at will. Because of that, unilateral actions sometimes occur.”
Ishan Rau continued speaking with Radel, pointing out the differences between human culture and Lizardman culture.
“I will organize what you said and relay it to the Great Chieftain. Let us talk again later.”
“I appreciate it, Senior.”
Radel politely saw him off.
It was fortunate that an Academy senior he knew had come.
Was this what people called academic ties?
Radel let out a small chuckle and put on his outer garment.
When he went outside, Gusto was waiting.
“Your Highness, are you feeling all right?”
“I am fine. Perfectly fine.”
Thanks to the Troll’s Heart, Radel had recovered well.
The wound that had cut across his chest had long since disappeared.
Relieved, Gusto told him what had happened after Radel lost consciousness.
“So the heretic escaped in the end, and then Senior arrived.”
“Yes. Unfortunately, my lack of skill prevented me from stopping the heretic’s escape.”
It was a bit regrettable, but fortunately there were no casualties among the Lizardmen or the territory’s residents aside from the chieftain.
More importantly, by joining forces to defeat the undead monsters, their relationships had grown even closer.
“The prevailing opinion is that the Lizardmen betrayed by their chieftain are to be pitied. The territory’s residents hope that Your Highness will forgive them.”
“Is that so?”
They had worked together and hunted together with the Lizardmen for a while now, so they must have grown attached.
It also seemed that the Lizardmen felt grateful to the territory’s residents because of this incident.
Good relations between neighbors were a good thing no matter what.
Thinking that, Radel asked Gusto.
“It does seem like the Archbishop’s dream and this incident are connected, does it not?”
“Yes. I believe so as well.”
Gusto agreed with Radel.
Radel felt grateful to the Supreme Deity Order for sending Gusto here.
Sending Gusto, who should have been training with the apprentice holy knights, meant that the temple also thought that dream was no ordinary matter.
“This time was dangerous. I did not expect to be taken out in a single blow.”
“He was a strong opponent. I thought he was around a mid-level executive of the Black Order, but he might be even higher.”
That meant he could have been a high-ranking executive who had directly contracted with an Archdevil.
Such individuals were said to be strong enough to directly borrow an Archdevil’s power.
“Most rely on vile magic or curses…… but seeing him use swordsmanship, I suspect he was originally a swordsman.”
Radel thought the same.
No matter how much an Archdevil taught swordsmanship, there was a limit to how strong someone could become unless they had already wielded a sword to some degree.
If he had been just a little weaker, they might have captured him and extracted information.
“What a shame. I wish we had found out what relationship he had with the chieftain. From what Senior said earlier, it seems the other Lizardmen do not know anything.”
“……Regarding that, there is something I need to give you, Your Highness.”
Lowering his voice, Gusto whispered.
“When I crossed swords with the heretic, something seemed suspicious, so I secretly took this from him.”
Gusto pulled something from his chest and handed it to Radel.
“This. The heretic took it while killing the chieftain.”
What Gusto handed over was a purple key.
Radel knew exactly what it was.
‘The Key of Seal!’
At Gusto’s explanation that he wondered why the heretic would take even the necklace at the moment of killing the chieftain, Radel could not help but be honestly surprised.
No matter that Gusto had the S-rank Trait, Unseen Hand, noticing the key and stealing it in that brief moment showed just how exceptional his awareness was.
“I do not know what this is, but you should be able to find out, Your Highness.”
From Gusto’s words, Radel felt deep trust toward him.
Since it was an item taken from the Black Order, Gusto could have brought it to the temple.
Yet now, the key was shining in Radel’s hand.
“Thank you, Gusto.”
At Radel’s words, Gusto smiled.
As his usually expressionless lips curved upward, his demeanor softened.
However, it was only for a moment, and he soon hardened his expression and spoke.
“This incident was no different from happening because of my lack of skill. I was defeated without being able to protect you, Your Highness. I have felt keenly that I need far more intense training.”
Losing a sword fight to a heretic seemed to have been a shock to him as well, as Gusto’s eyes were resolute.
“There is one more thing I need to convey to you, Your Highness.”
This time, Gusto presented a letter sealed with a stamp engraved with a lily.
When Radel opened it, it contained a message from the Bishop of Marcellent, asking whether it would be acceptable for the apprentice holy knights to train in Radel’s territory.
It was a good proposal for Radel.
If the apprentice holy knights came, it would surely help with the territory’s security.
“Is it really fine to make this the training site for the apprentice holy knights?”
“If you permit it, Your Highness. This place is rich in mana and the terrain is rugged, so everyone will surely like it.”
Everyone would like it?
Hearing that the harsher and rougher a training ground was, the more they liked it, Radel briefly wondered whether it was really right to bring the apprentice holy knights into the territory…….
***
“Where are you taking us, human lord!”
The Lizardmen were climbing the mountain together with Radel.
As collective responsibility for the deeds carried out by the chieftain who had passed away, the Lizardmen’s labor continued.
They had to wake at dawn to work the fields and go out to sea in the afternoon to hunt monsters.
And now, one more task was about to be added.
“It is a very good place for you.”
With a perfectly nonchalant face, Radel began speaking to the Lizardmen.
“Good news? What is it?”
“Are you saying you will reduce our work?”
Radel led them to a rocky mountain.
Ishan Rau was waiting there.
“Huh? That is the Great Chieftain’s son. What brings you here?”
As the Lizardmen looked confused, Radel approached Ishan Rau and asked.
“Is this definitely the place?”
“Yes. I confirmed it with magical tools. The distance is the shortest, and the geology is sound.”
Even as he answered, Ishan Rau felt doubtful.
He wondered whether the Chau tribe, who had lived their entire lives hunting in the Tsar Mountain Range, would really do something like this.
Not long ago, a response had arrived regarding the compensation Radel had requested from the Great Chieftain.
Radel’s request was to open an additional new road through the Tsar Mountain Range together with the Chau tribe.
Hearing that Radel wished to seek the Great Chieftain’s permission since the Tsar Mountain Range was sacred to the Lizardmen, the Great Chieftain had readily granted his approval.
As soon as he received the answer, Radel asked Ishan Rau to find the fastest route connecting the territory and the city.
However, Ishan Rau knew the habits of the Lizardmen well.
They were a race that loved hunting and battle and was far removed from farming or scholarship, and among them, Ishan Rau, who studied magic, was extremely unusual.
There was no way ordinary Lizardman warriors could endure such mind-numbingly boring labor.
‘Cooperating with Lizardmen to carve a road? That is nonsense.’
Yet Radel calmly gathered the Lizardmen and gestured to Pirenzo and Armandy, who had come with him.
Pirenzo, wearing a helmet and work clothes, set down the box he had been carrying on his shoulder.
THUD.
“All right, these are pickaxes. Take one each.”
With natural movements, Radel and Armandy handed out pickaxes to the Lizardmen one by one.
The Lizardmen lined up and received the pickaxes in turn, as if they were taking hoes during farm work.
Since they were already accustomed to such routines, they took them without even realizing anything was strange.
“What are we supposed to do with this?”
“You will carve a road now. You will be miners, in other words.”
“What? Now you want us to dig the ground too?!”
The Lizardmen protested in anger.
Telling great warriors to dig like moles now?
“The Great Chieftain approved this as well. Is that right, Senior?”
“That is…… correct.”
When Ishan Rau nodded, the Lizardmen were flustered.
“No, even if the Great Chieftain approved it, a warrior’s pride……!”
“What is it? Are you scared because you are worried you cannot do it properly?”
Radel shrugged his shoulders.
“You pulled weeds you had never touched in your life, and now you can plant potatoes with your eyes closed. What is there to be afraid of?”
“What do you mean afraid! Warriors of our tribe know no fear!”
The Lizardmen shouted loudly, bristling.
The human lord’s words sounded convincing.
It was true that they were flustered because it was something new.
But compared to farming, this seemed more fitting for warriors.
And the Great Chieftain had given his approval…….
“Watch closely how well we do it, human lord!”
With determined expressions, they raised their pickaxes.
Ishan Rau could not believe it.
The Lizardmen, whom he had expected to resist fiercely, were already holding pickaxes and beginning to dig a tunnel in orderly fashion.
***
“Would you like to look around the territory?”
Starting the next morning, Ishan Rau toured Raviedel under Radel’s guidance.
Radel led him to the fields early in the morning and greeted the Lizardmen, who were planting potatoes with hoes as if it were second nature.
“Hey, human lord. I thought my back was going to snap from swinging a pickaxe yesterday.”
“But it was good exercise, was it not?”
“Well, that was nothing more than light exercise after a meal.”
Standing in line with them to receive a meal, Ishan Rau was shocked to hear that the Lizardmen had reclaimed this vast field themselves.
‘Was this even possible?’
He had a dream of changing Lizardman society, which was centered on warriors.
The Lizardmen were a race with strong bodies and outstanding stamina.
Yet they used that remarkable talent only for hunting and battle, showing no interest in developing culture.
‘Fighting alone cannot allow us to grow into a proper nation. We must change as well.’
Though Ishan Rau had always dreamed of change, he did not know where to begin.
Changing the disposition of the Lizardmen was an incredibly difficult task.
But here, in Radel’s territory, change was happening.
That became a new stimulus for Ishan Rau.
Moreover, when he saw the Lizardmen hunting monsters at sea, Ishan Rau nearly lost consciousness.
Monster byproducts essential for his research were scattered everywhere.
“Sell it all to me. I will buy everything.”
The goodwill he already felt toward Radel’s territory shot straight through the sky at that moment.
“No, I will rent a room in the Lord’s Castle instead. In return, I will make any magical tools you want.”
“Go ahead.”
There was no reason to refuse Ishan Rau’s offer to conduct research here during the vacation.
Radel gladly accepted his proposal.