How a Two-Life Scoundrel Lives - Chapter 84
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 84】
The head of the Loren Family had two children: the eldest was his son Caldor, and the second was Alicia.
However, Caldor and Alicia were half-siblings with different mothers.
While Caldor was born to the legitimate wife, Alicia was born to the second wife.
Because of this, Caldor and Alicia had a very poor relationship from childhood.
Moreover, although Alicia’s mother was the second wife, she wasn’t a commoner but a noblewoman from a powerful noble family, so the legitimate wife and her son Caldor couldn’t treat her carelessly.
This naturally worsened the relationship between the half-siblings, and now that both were adults, they were engaged in a power struggle over the succession of the Loren Family.
This was also the reason why Alicia had volunteered to come to Decaron.
She was determined to claim the heir’s position, even if it meant allying with Decaron if necessary.
But who would have thought that Christan, Grand Duke Guntram’s aide, was a spy planted by Caldor’s side…
But that was only momentary.
“How foolish.”
Alicia sneered at Christan with a cold smile.
“Is it okay for a spy to expose their identity so easily?”
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
Christan smiled as if it were ridiculous.
“The Grand Duke’s trust in me is absolute. Even if you expose me, do you think he would believe it?”
“…”
“You must have been quite desperate. To even consider allying with Decaron. Heh.”
Christan chuckled softly.
“…Insolent bastard.”
Alicia glared at him murderously, but Christan didn’t even blink.
“And if you expose my identity for the purpose of claiming the heir’s position, would the family head be pleased?”
“…”
“So don’t think about gaining anything from Decaron, just stay quiet and return home. Do you understand?”
“You…!”
Alicia trembled with humiliation.
To think that after coming all the way to Decaron, she had been dancing in Caldor’s palm from the beginning…
Moreover, who would have expected that despite being the Young Lady of the Loren Family, she would be mocked by Christan, who was merely a spy?
“When I become the family head… I’ll cut off your head first.”
“That won’t happen, so stop making empty threats. Before threatening me, I suggest you think about your own position and circumstances first.”
“How dare you…!”
“Well then, I’ll be going now.”
Christan leisurely disappeared, leaving behind Alicia who was trembling with rage.
“I’ll get my revenge somehow, somehow…”
Alicia glared at Christan’s retreating figure, grinding her teeth with vengeance.
* * *
Decaron’s Engineer Corps supplied food and water to the dwarves and helped rebuild the village.
No matter how good the dwarves’ skills and labor were, one hand couldn’t be better than ten hands.
When 500 engineers started working together, the village that had been nothing but ruins regained life in an instant.
Meanwhile, Carlisle sat face to face with Grand Duke Guntram to discuss future plans.
“So you’re saying 10 percent of the total profits from the Merel Mountain Range is your share?”
“Too little? Should I raise it to 20 percent?”
“…”
“No? Maybe 25 percent would be better.”
Grand Duke Guntram was left speechless watching Carlisle seriously consider his own share.
To think that someone who was supposedly the second son of House Sigmund would try to do business with Decaron.
“Wasn’t this for Decaron’s sake?”
“That’s right.”
“But you’re demanding your own share?”
“You didn’t think it was free, did you? That would be quite disappointing…”
Carlisle’s face scrunched up with displeasure.
His expression clearly showed genuine annoyance.
“You seem to be mistaken about something – you are a Sigmund.”
“So what?”
“Demanding your own share for work done for Decaron is a bit much.”
“Then do the Sigmunds live by digging up dirt?”
“All a Sigmund needs is a single sword.”
“Ugh.”
Carlisle covered his face as if exhausted.
‘This is driving me crazy. How can I negotiate when we can’t even communicate?’
From Carlisle’s perspective, it was maddening, but it wasn’t because Grand Duke Guntram was being petty.
The reason the negotiation was struggling wasn’t about who gets how much, but because of beliefs based on bloodline.
Grand Duke Guntram believed that a Sigmund should prioritize Decaron over personal greed, and most Sigmunds thought the same way.
So he couldn’t understand Carlisle’s intention to take his own share at all.
“Your Grace. As I mentioned before, didn’t you agree to make deals with the Young Master?”
Maranello, unable to watch any longer, whispered in Grand Duke Guntram’s ear.
“I did.”
“Please think of this as a deal as well.”
“Hmm.”
“You may be disappointed that he wants to take his share as a Sigmund, but you know that generally speaking, it’s a legitimate request, don’t you?”
“That’s… true.”
“Please think of it as dealing with a third party, not a Sigmund.”
“But he’s undeniably a Sigmund, no matter what anyone says.”
“…”
“Alright. I’ll do as you say.”
Seeing Maranello’s expression, Grand Duke Guntram nodded as if he was throwing in the towel.
“Fine. I’ll give you 10 percent of the total profits from the Merel Mountain Range.”
“Thank you.”
“But what are you going to do with all that money?”
“Well.”
Carlisle shrugged his shoulders.
“There will be places to spend it, won’t there? Money is always better the more you have. And I need to prepare for my retirement too. I can’t live off the family forever.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I’ll leave Decaron someday.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to spend my whole life fighting Barbarians and dying. I also don’t want to live being exploited by the Royal Family.”
“Then what about your brothers?”
“They’ll manage on their own. No matter how close we are as brothers, we’re all grown adults – why should I worry about such things? Everyone should live as they want.”
“You really are…”
“Still, while I’m part of the family, I’ll try to fulfill at least the minimum responsibilities and duties, so don’t worry. I know you’ll force me to do it anyway if I don’t.”
“That’s right.”
“Then I’ll formally draft a contract and send it to you soon, so please sign it.”
“I will.”
The baby dragon who had been listening asked Carlisle.
“Is the butler rich now?”
“Not yet. It’ll take at least a year for the money to come in. I’ll become rich in a few years though.”
“Phew. That’s a relief.”
“What is?”
“I was getting nervous thinking the butler was broke.”
“….”
“A butler without money. That’s too horrible.”
The baby dragon shuddered as if the mere thought was disgusting.
* * *
Carlisle’s group headed to Dekaron together with Grand Duke Guntram.
Borodin, the chief of the Ironhammer Tribe, also accompanied Carlisle’s group.
The reason was simple: to examine the Sigmund Family’s Inheritance Swords and repair them if needed.
Inside the carriage.
“By the way, I don’t see Corporal Kudo?”
“Kudo didn’t come.”
“That bastard found it bothersome and just sent us instead.”
Marder and Wilson answered.
“Ah.”
Carlisle nodded.
No wonder he wasn’t visible, so he just skipped out like that.
‘He followed along on his own whim, and now he’s leaving on his own whim too, that guy.’
Of course, it wasn’t particularly problematic behavior, so there was no need to make an issue of it.
“You know what.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“When my leave ends, look around various places in Dekaron with Maranello.”
“Like the day before yesterday?”
“Yeah.”
Carlisle nodded.
“We should see if there are any other resources.”
“Yes, Young Master. Please leave it to me.”
“Please take good care of her.”
Carlisle turned to look at Maranello with his request.
“You must know how precious an Earth Elementalist is, so you’ll need to pay extra attention to her protection.”
“How could there be any question? Please just leave it to this old man.”
Maranello readily nodded and accepted Carlisle’s request.
Though he may have retired as a knight, his patriotism for Dekaron and loyalty to the Sigmund Family remained unchanged.
It was unimaginable that such a Maranello would neglect the security of Evangeline, who was Dekaron’s treasure.
‘The Grand Duke will have to accept my proposal.’
Carlisle was very curious about what decision Grand Duke Guntram would make.
‘He’ll make a good decision on his own. I’ve done what I could. The rest is the Grand Duke’s responsibility.’
The ball had already been passed to Grand Duke Guntram.
Carlisle had already provided the answer sheet for the royal family’s tax increase and the approaching [Winter of Doom].
However, Carlisle only hoped that by accepting his advice, Grand Duke Guntram would prevent the Dekaron soldiers serving in Kuberin from being unreasonably deployed in magic stone mining operations.
Like the recently increased casualties….
Like Gwen, who had unfortunately died in battle just when they were getting close….
“Then what will Corporal Marder and Corporal Wilson do?”
“We’ll have to rejoin Kudo once we reach Dekaron.”
“Things should have calmed down by now, so we’re planning to go to a tavern and drink our fill.”
It was truly a model answer from soldiers on leave.
“By the way, do I really have to attend the Victory Day ceremony?”
“If you really don’t want to, it can’t be helped, but if you’re planning to get something from His Grace the Grand Duke, it would be better to attend.”
“Something to get?”
“You could demand something from His Grace the Grand Duke as a condition for attending the ceremony.”
“Hmm.”
Carlisle thought for a moment and then said.
“Should I ask him to send at least one mage to the unit?”
As soon as those words ended, Marder and Wilson jumped up and shouted.
“Excellent!”
“That’s exactly it!”
The reason Marder and Wilson were so excited was that having a mage or not made a world of difference in the unit’s capabilities.
However, mages weren’t very common in this world either, and while the Sigmund Family was renowned for swordsmanship, they were outsiders when it came to magic.
Moreover, there were no proper magical educational institutions in the Northern Region, so even people with magical talent had no choice but to leave Dekaron and study abroad in other territories.
For example, to the Belmark Family, renowned for magic….
“That’s a good idea, Young Master.”
Maranello also spoke as if he agreed with the thought.
“How about asking him to send a mage to the unit while we’re at it?”
“A mage… not bad. I must have made quite a bit of money, so I should donate to the unit’s operating budget. Replace all the equipment and weapons, and bring in some cannons too.”
“Gasp!”
“C-cannons too?!”
Marder and Wilson were almost on the verge of worshipping Carlisle.
“As expected of a rich family’s son!”
“Please!”
Marder and Wilson’s reaction was natural.
The stronger their allies were, the better their equipment, the more their survival rate would increase exponentially.
“Well, sure. I’ll talk to Father about it. He probably won’t agree to everything, but I should at least discuss it. If that doesn’t work, we could hire a mercenary company.”
“Ohhh!”
Having earned an astronomical amount of money, Carlisle had no intention of going to the battlefield empty-handed.
“By the way, you’ll be commissioned as an officer soon, how do you feel about it?”
“I’m not particularly enthusiastic about it, but I want to try it once.”
Carlisle answered Maranello’s question.
Having talked with Helen about it, he thought it wouldn’t be bad to try it first, and if it really didn’t suit him, he could abandon his officer status and return to being an ordinary soldier.
‘Can I really bear that weight? When someone’s life and death is determined by a single command of mine.’
Carlisle couldn’t be certain.
From what he had observed so far, being a commander wasn’t something just anyone could do.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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