Raising the Grand Duke of the North as a Farmer Behind Dad’s Back - Chapter 5

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 5
Ch. 2 North Bertus
Whoosh—plunk!
“Wow.”
‘A footprint sticker!’
I gazed delightedly at the sticker that had fallen into my palm.
The glimmering sticker vanished into my Sticker Book with a soft pop.
‘So arriving in the north gets me a footprint sticker!’
Up until now it had only been thumbs-up stickers!
‘Could it be because the requester is the God of Travel……?’
It seemed the shape of the sticker varied depending on which god sent the errand, though the Divine Power contained within remained the same.
‘Hmm, when I studied scripture, they taught me that the supreme Goddess of Fate commands many lesser deities beneath her.’
Since it was too difficult for the goddess to manage the complex mortal realm alone, she had divided her power into twelve and created lesser gods to govern the laws of the world.
Of course, the chief deity of the temple was the goddess I had met in Heaven myself.
‘Whoever you are, please bless Hani with lots and lots of Divine Power going forward! Thank you in advance!’
Prayer complete!
‘Now then, about this…….’
I rustled a piece of paper out of my bag.
My new home—shouldn’t I learn about the north?
~Today’s frontier, tomorrow’s hub! Begin your new life in the NEW Bertus!~
I sat in the public carriage with my nose buried in the northern relocation pamphlet.
□ Blessed by nature! A pristine, healing haven untouched by human hands for 500 years
(*However, monsters have touched it)
□ Record-breaking development potential! Fishing possible, mining possible, logging possible!
(*However, pollution purification required)
□ Ultra-prime transportation hub! One minute to the imperial capital, thirty seconds to the North Spire Warp Portal!
(*Based on a 9th-Circle mage’s speed)
□ Family-oriented fiefdom atmosphere! Community facilities fully equipped, ♡Welcome Kit♡ provided upon move-in (*This part is true)
‘Hmm…… something about the fine print is hard to read.’
Well, there shouldn’t be any major problems!
The Duchy of Bertus.
That land had belonged to the Demon Race for ages until people began settling there about two years ago.
Why? Because……
‘Two years ago, Grand Duke Basilii slew the ancient Light Dragon that had occupied the northern Kartus region for five hundred years!’
The Emperor was overjoyed.
He declared they had reclaimed the “lost north” after five centuries and held a grand victory celebration.
Kartus was reborn under the new name “Bertus,” and Basilii was appointed lord to govern this territory.
Along with the title of Grand Duke.
“Let the hero Basilii receive the castle of Bertus and bear responsibility for the north. The fate of this northern fiefdom rests in your hands.”
Basilii’s reaction to this was as follows.
“Like hell……”
‘What did he say exactly?’
Since my father told me this, I don’t remember the exact wording.
“You’re handing me a wasteland I spent two years tearing apart chasing a dragon’s head—one that’s still not even fully purified, still teeming with monsters? Is that what this is?”
“H-ha ha…… Your Grace appears to have been possessed by the Light Dragon’s phantom! Exorcism!”
“Grand Duke, my foot. Just hand over the gold and silver you promised. Stop wasting my time with this cursed land—ugh!”
In the end, Basilii was thrown into prison for a month under the charge of insulting the royal family.
He only received clemency thanks to a medical certificate stating that remnants of the Light Dragon’s Demonic Energy still lingered in his body, making him highly aggressive and mentally unstable.
‘Though that’s exactly why he’s classified as a Class 0 Dangerous Individual. High risk of going berserk…….’
Actually, the person in this empire with the highest berserk risk is my father…….
In any case, Basilii became the lord of the north.
‘And he did recruit residents for his fiefdom too.’
As you can see, it’s a disaster.
‘Because…….’
I stared intently at one phrase in the pamphlet. The elderly man beside me, Paul, muttered sleepily in the background.
□ Record-breaking development potential! Fishing possible, mining possible, logging possible!
No matter how you look at it.
“There’s nothing about farming…….”
Agriculture was the foundation of this empire.
Yet this suspicious pamphlet had conveniently omitted any mention of farming altogether.
It was only natural.
Why, you ask?
Because it’s the north.
‘Because it’s freezing!!’
Truth be told, the contamination issue was secondary.
‘You can’t grow crops if it’s this cold!’
Or at best, only the most hardy varieties would survive.
Even in my past life, when I’d lived as a noble lady, I’d never heard of—let alone seen—crops grown in the Bertus region.
There was a reason the fiefdom had zero occupancy rates and one hundred percent vacant properties…….
‘Ugh. I’m done starving.’
At the very least, I wanted to be able to feed myself three meals a day.
“So then…….”
I folded the pamphlets briskly.
‘Well, there’s always a way!’
Even if the sky fell, there’d be a hole to crawl through—and the north surely had its own escape route somewhere. I knew that much.
‘But first, I shouldn’t rush in. Better to gauge the atmosphere first!’
The first virtue of an independent person.
In a new place, make friends with the neighbors!
Don’t be reckless and invite territorial hostility; instead, blend in quietly and naturally while keeping a low profile!(…or so Paul had said.)
All right, let’s do this!
‘We should be arriving soon, shouldn’t we?’
I peeked out the carriage window.
That’s when it happened.
“Huh? Huh? Huh?”
The horse whinnied loudly, and the carriage lurched to a halt. People began murmuring.
“What—what is it? Are we here?”
Paul rubbed his eyes and turned to check on me first.
My own eyes went wide as I looked out the window.
“That’s…….”
Then Paul’s alarmed voice followed.
“Hani! Girl—!!!”
A swell—my body lifting into the air.
…….
Huh?
I’m…… flying through the sky?
* * *
The north, the Grand Duchy of Bertus.
Inside a dark chamber.
The man cut an indolent figure.
Whisk, whisk-whisk. He played with a finely honed short sword as though it were a toy.
Hair black as pitch. Eyes red as if stained with blood.
A body tempered by long years of combat radiated an overwhelming pressure all on its own.
Whisk-whisk-whisk, snap!
He tossed the pale short sword into the air, caught it, and spoke coldly.
“Read it again.”
“Sir?”
“Read the letter again.”
Basilii Bertus, lord of these lands.
His low baritone shattered the quiet of a snow-falling day.
“……For the reasons stated above, we are searching for the fugitive and request permission to conduct a search of the northern territories. Respectfully submitted, Dantelion Klein, Commander of the 2nd Holy Knight Order.”
“Pathetic bastard…….”
“How shall we respond?”
“Give it here. I’ll write it myself.”
The man rose abruptly. Then, taking up a pen, he wrote with fluid elegance.
Get out.
“My word.”
The steward pressed his palm to his forehead.
“While certainly direct and blunt, sir, this is hardly the mercenary days. Perhaps a longer, more solemn response would befit your station?”
Basilii raised one dark brow.
“Simple enough.”
Get out of here.
“…….”
“Want me to say it longer?”
Either purify the corruption on my land or get out of here. Now.
The steward lifted his shoulders in a shrug.
“You’ll add one more person to those who believe the Duke of the North has lost his mind, sir. I’d recommend simply ignoring the matter.”
“Fine by me.”
Basilii answered flatly.
It was effectively a sealed territory anyway. The Duke had been in seclusion for two years now.
One unanswered letter hardly mattered.
“Where are you headed, sir?”
“To wring some chicken necks.”
Basilii grabbed his large coat and sword, speaking carelessly. The steward’s eyes gleamed.
“Are there…… any left, sir?”
“Plenty in the Mist District.”
“Ah. Well then, just say you’re going monster hunting. I must confess I’m rather excited…….”
He waved dismissively at Camilla, his former mercenary companion, and stepped outside.
Bitter cold.
The blizzard had eased somewhat, but the air still cut like a knife.
He strode forward, and his gaze settled on the distant Snowy Mountain.
One crimson peak stood out above all the rest, jutting forth with strange prominence, like some grotesque malformation.
“Always getting in the way.”
Basilii muttered darkly, then pressed his horse toward the Mist District at the southern edge of the fiefdom.
This Mist District marked the beginning of the northern Bertus fiefdom.
Because demonic energy still lingered, monsters appeared everywhere except on the few passage routes the priestesses had purified.
‘Running a mercenary band to earn bounties or peddling monster remains—even that’s reaching its limit…….’
Cold, polluted, a place where ordinary creatures couldn’t properly survive.
Two years had passed since he’d settled here.
There were no native inhabitants; the only humans were his fellow mercenaries who’d come with him, and the rest—vagrants, the sick, fugitives, all the refuse society had cast out.
In the early days, a few had immigrated, but as poverty deepened, they’d abandoned the land entirely.
‘If this continues, we’ll either die together, or there’s no choice but to abandon this place.’
The Emperor, of course, had known this too. That’s why he’d shoved him into this cesspool.
Slowly, gently, to rot at his leisure.
The weapon he’d wielded as he pleased had become a blade turned at his own throat in what felt like a single moment.
Then it was.
“……?”
His chiseled jaw tilted at an angle.
What’s this? Some mutation?
“I’ve never seen a monster shaped quite like this before.”
A round, silvery back of the head.
Short, stubby limbs sprawled flat across the ground.
“Wheeze…….”
Some new infant monster?
Just one bite’s worth, this one.
Basilii picked up the unconscious child by the scruff and narrowed his eyes sharply.
A single sticker that had been affixed to the child’s forehead fell away limply.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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