In This Life, I Will Be The Lord - Chapter 154
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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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This Life, I Will Become the Clan Head Episode 154
It’s pitch black.
Several days had passed, and now I had lost all sense of time.
It would be nice if I had a watch on my wrist at times like this.
Thinking that, I tried to lift my arm.
But I had no strength, so even that simple movement took a long time.
I could see that the flesh on the back of my hand had grown thin and the veins stood out prominently.
It was only natural since I had been eating barely enough food and water to keep me breathing.
I turned my head to look at the chair across from me.
Migente Aivan was sleeping deeply with his eyes tightly shut.
He looked so lifeless that you could believe he was a dead person.
I was momentarily frightened and strained my ears to listen.
Fortunately, I could hear very shallow breathing.
Ah, thank goodness.
To be honest, rather than relief that Migente Aivan was safe, it was relief that I wasn’t left alone.
Only the small sound of wind could be heard inside the quiet carriage.
When we were first trapped here, we had many conversations.
But gradually, even having conversations began to feel like a luxury.
Fatigue and hunger came that quickly.
Conversations rapidly decreased and the time spent sleeping increased.
Now, occasionally opening my eyes to stare at the ceiling and confirming that Migente Aivan was still breathing was all I did.
And when thirst reached an unbearable point like now.
Click.
I carefully opened the cap of the water bottle I had tucked under my arm.
And just one sip.
I closed my eyes and swallowed the water, feeling it flow into my body as much as possible.
“Haah.”
It was disappointing.
There was no way such tremendous thirst could be resolved with just this much.
Sometimes it even felt like my throat was burning even more.
At those times, I was seized by the impulse to just give up on everything and gulp down all the water at once.
But I couldn’t do that.
I couldn’t give up here.
If I just endured a little more, if I kept enduring, someone would come to rescue me.
I would be able to leave this dark, narrow space and return to daily life as if nothing had happened.
I could only suppress the impulse with such thoughts.
Instead, I kept sleeping like Migente Aivan.
And I dreamed.
In my dreams, I wasn’t trapped underground.
Instead, I dreamed of peacefully reading books at the manor and walking through the familiar streets of Lombardi City.
Sometimes I also dreamed of my previous life.
I see Peres riding a horse in the distance among countless crowds where shoulders bump against shoulders.
Peres with his expressionless face only looks down at the people who gathered to see him with emotionless eyes.
Then I take a deep breath until my chest swells, and call out that name at the top of my lungs.
‘Peres!’
At that moment, Peres’s red eyes look at me.
During that brief instant, my heart races with anxiety.
Will he recognize me?
And as if to soothe my heart, life fills Peres’s eyes.
He opens his mouth to call my name with that secret smile that only I know.
But the dream always ends there.
I want to hear Peres’s voice.
But I can’t hear it.
“This time I’ll definitely hear it.”
Feeling sleep approaching again, I muttered.
It was the moment I was falling asleep, hoping that in the dream I was about to have, I would hear Peres calling my name.
“Tia!”
Wait, I think someone called my name.
But before I could open my eyes again, deep sleep overtook me once more.
* * *
“How many people would it take to move a mountain.”
Violet muttered blankly while looking at the rescue site where countless people were coming and going.
Lombardy’s power was truly remarkable.
Starting with the soldiers from the central region who arrived on the second day, helping hands gathered one after another.
A hundred mercenaries hired by Pellet Trading Company rolled up their sleeves, and the engineers from Lombardi Construction who had originally come for Aivan’s reconstruction work also lent their hands to prevent further collapses.
And the next day, heavy equipment arrived from the nearby Lombardi Mines.
From then on, the rescue work gained speed.
All day long, dozens of people took turns for hours carrying stones and shoveling dirt.
So the collapsed mountain was gradually disappearing from the top.
They were literally moving a mountain.
However, humans were too powerless in the face of relentlessly flowing time.
It was already the fourth day since the accident occurred.
As the sun grew dim, large torches were set up here and there.
It was to continue working through the night.
But now the people mobilized for the rescue operation began to have doubts one by one.
‘Could Lavinia Angenas still be alive?’
Even though everyone didn’t show it outwardly, Violet already knew that such conversations took place when one or two people sat together during break time.
What was helpful in this situation were the workers who had experienced several collapse accidents in the mines.
“There are many large rocks and the dirt pile is loose, so air should circulate quite far down.”
Those words were the only hope for Violet and the people now.
“What kind of person is Lady Pirenthia.”
Violet said that and steeled her resolve.
Then, Ramona, who had brought steaming tea, spoke to Violet.
“Please have some warm drink, Lady Violet.”
Ramona, one of the first people to rush over upon hearing news of Pirenthia’s accident, was working with others to distribute food to those doing rescue work and care for the injured when they occurred.
“Thank you, Miss Ramona.”
“Lavinia Angenas will be safe. Please stay strong, Lady Violet.”
“Thank you.”
Violet said with a weak smile.
“You must be very close, Lady Violet and Lavinia Angenas.”
“Lady Pirenthia is the reason I work at Pellet Trading Company. She’s the person who allowed me to dream bigger dreams. There are probably many people besides me who owe Lady Pirenthia an unpayable debt. That’s the kind of person Lady Pirenthia is.”
“She must be someone who receives a lot of love.”
Ramona said with a complicated smile.
“People are coming over there! Lombardy! They look like people from Lombardy!”
A soldier working on the higher ground shouted loudly.
Violet quickly handed the tea she was drinking to Ramona and ran toward that direction.
About fifteen people were riding horses toward the accident site.
Among them, about ten were wearing knight uniforms with the Lombardi emblem.
They seemed to have spotted Violet as well and began riding their horses toward her.
Clatter, clatter!
“Whoa, whoa—.”
The only horse carrying two people reared up greatly before coming to a stop.
Then the person riding in the back hurriedly dismounted from the horse.
“Lord Gallahan!”
Violet cried out in surprise.
From Lombardy to this place was a distance that took more than ten days by carriage.
Even riding horses at full speed would take a week.
Yet to arrive here in just four days.
She couldn’t even imagine what kind of journey it must have been.
“…Where is Tia, where is Tia?”
Gallahan, with a pale complexion and visibly exhausted to his limits, asked as soon as he saw Violet.
“Still…”
At Violet’s words, Gallahan staggered slightly.
There was someone who grabbed Gallahan’s shoulder to support him.
It was Cleribane.
“First, please guide us to a place where we can sit, Violet.”
“And some water and food too.”
“Something warm would be even better.”
Giliou and Meylon, who had taken turns carrying the unfamiliar-with-fast-riding Gallahan on the back to reach this place, said while rubbing their stiff eyes.
“I’ll escort you this way.”
Violet guided the Lombardi party to a place where people had lit a campfire and were sitting to rest.
The people had already tactfully cleared the area.
As soon as the twins managed to sit down on chairs, they let out groaning sounds.
They had ridden here, changing horses at every castle they passed.
Eventually, some of the knights who couldn’t obtain new horses had to split up and form a rear guard.
It was a forced march that even Lombardi’s experienced knights had never heard of.
But everyone understood Gallahan’s heart, so they rode and rode again.
“First, let me tell you about the progress so far, Lord Gallahan.”
Violet explained everything that had happened so far in as calm a voice as possible.
She thought she shouldn’t show herself wavering as well.
“So you’re saying that removing that massive rock tomorrow is the key.”
Gallahan said after hearing Violet’s explanation.
“That’s correct. According to the mine technician, once we clear the rock above, the area below will progress quickly.”
“What methods are available?”
“The fastest method would be to use mana bombs used in mines to blow it up, but that was ruled out due to the risk of further ground collapse, leaving two remaining options.”
Violet said, barely moistening her dry lips.
“Even if it takes time, we can gradually chip away at the rock using equipment, or we can use an aura sword to cut it into several pieces and remove them. The latter would be the fastest and safest method, but…”
Violet trailed off.
“The only one who can cut through rock of that size is His Highness the Crown Prince, who is an aura master.”
“His Highness the Crown Prince wouldn’t spare any effort for Lady Pirenthia’s sake, would he, Violet?”
When Cleribane asked with a frown, Violet bit her lower lip and answered.
“Rather, he’s exerting too much effort, which is the problem. He’s already collapsed several times… Even now, like that…”
“His Highness the Crown Prince is here right now?”
Gallahan asked.
Peres was someone with a strong presence.
Even though there were many people, if Peres was here, there was no way he wouldn’t be noticeable like this.
“Yes, over there…”
Violet pointed weakly in one direction.
“That’s… Peres?”
Giliou said as if he couldn’t believe it.
Though it was too dark to see clearly, they could tell it was the back of a man kneeling on the ground.
It was such a small and utterly exhausted-looking figure.
It was impossible to imagine this was Peres, who always radiated a noble and strong aura.
“I’ve tried several times to forcibly stop him and make him rest, but each time, the person trying to stop him gets seriously injured… After three knights were hurt, no one dares to try anymore.”
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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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