This Emperor Is Running a Marriage Scam - Chapter 60

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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 60

 

To go shellfish gathering, I needed to wake up at 6 AM, but when I opened my eyes, it was 8 o’clock.

 

I must have been tired from what happened the day before since it was such a big ordeal.

 

Baron was also fast asleep, having kicked off his blanket in a disheveled state.

 

‘Oh my, Baron must have had a really hard time too.’

 

I pulled the blanket over and tucked Baron in properly.

 

Though it was late, the water wouldn’t be completely high yet, so I should go out front and at least gather some conch shells.

 

It was when I came outside with that thought.

 

“?”

 

The seaside air that should have been refreshing carried an inexplicable acrid smell.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

I looked around. In the distance, several thin streams of smoke were rising from the forest.

 

It seemed there had been a fire in the forest during the night.

 

‘Oh my, did someone light a fire in the forest? They must have mismanaged their campfire.’

 

Thinking that, I hurriedly gathered some conch shells and returned home.

 

I learned that the cause of the fire was different from what I thought when Ben came to get seafood.

 

“Oh, be careful for a while.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“A gate was discovered in that forest over there, so the domain is in complete chaos.”

 

Ben brought surprising news.

 

Last night, a fire broke out in the forest near the lord’s wheat field, so the lord, the feudal knights, and administrators couldn’t sleep a wink while suppressing the fire. But in that process, a gate was discovered.

 

“No monsters have been found yet, but the gate is so large that it wouldn’t be strange if they came bursting out right now.”

 

The shocked lord hastily prohibited access around the gate, began organizing the nearby wheat fields, and mobilized all the feudal knights and militia to arm them as much as possible.

 

Soon they would send an emergency support request to the Royal Court.

 

“If we’re just talking about routes people travel, it’s quite far from here.”

 

After finishing his explanation, Ben gauged the distance between our house and the forest, then spoke with a worried expression.

 

“But monsters probably won’t stick to paths people use, right?”

 

In terms of distance alone, this place was closest to the gate.

 

“I’ll cover the inn costs you need, so how about staying in the city with your brother for a while?”

 

I was very grateful for Ben’s thoughtfulness, but it wasn’t necessary.

 

There were rock moles living around here that ate monsters.

 

Of course, that alone wasn’t enough to be completely at ease, but it was sufficient reason to have the luxury of watching the situation for a while.

 

“Thank you. But I knew monsters were coming out.”

 

“Huh?”

 

I told Ben about what happened yesterday. However, I changed the part about nearly dying to the monster to just watching from afar. The rock mole matter was a secret, after all.

 

“I see. That’s fortunate then.”

 

Ben scratched his head and repeatedly reminded me as he gathered the seafood and left.

 

“Got it? If you feel even a little uneasy, come into the city.”

 

I repeatedly expressed my gratitude to Ben.

 

And before his figure even disappeared, I saw a two-seater open carriage coming toward our house.

 

“Hello, Miss Hailey.”

 

The person who brought the carriage was Linda, a government office employee.

 

“You roughly heard about last night’s news, right? Official notices were posted on the bulletin board, and we’re distributing information to each house.”

 

Linda said our house was the first place she came to.

 

“Miss Hailey was the first to witness and report the monster, right?”

 

She handed me monster-related information, drawing paper, and a pen, requesting a monster sighting statement.

 

“We’re currently searching to see if there are monsters, and we’ll send an emergency support request to the Royal Court.”

 

She said she came to ask me because knowing what kind of monster it was in advance would make response preparations easier.

 

“I understand.”

 

I began drawing the appearance of the monster I remembered on the drawing paper.

 

Then I heard Baron’s voice from behind.

 

“Nuna, what’s going on?”

 

When I turned around, Baron was just coming outside, rubbing his eyes.

 

“Oh, Baron. You see.”

 

After hearing the situation, Baron nodded with an understanding expression.

 

And I quickly completed the drawing and handed it to Linda.

 

“Here you go.”

 

Linda looked at the drawing and nodded as if she understood.

 

“Hmm, it’s a turtle monster.”

 

“It’s a fox.”

 

“….”

 

After a moment of silence, Linda looked closely at the drawing and spoke again.

 

“This part? It’s a turtle shell.”

 

“That’s a fox tail.”

 

Baron, who saw my drawing, let out a deep sigh.

 

“Nuna, let me draw it for you.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Baron drew the monster we saw yesterday next to my drawing.

 

Even though he drew it quickly, it looked exactly like the monster we saw yesterday, which surprised me.

 

It even expressed movement, making it seem alive.

 

“Baron, why are you good at drawing too?”

 

Seeing my expression, Baron giggled.

 

“Is there anything I can’t do?”

 

Linda, who saw Baron’s drawing, also nodded.

 

“Anyone could recognize it with this level of detail. I should add this drawing to the bulletin board notice too. Thank you for cooperating.”

 

* * *

 

After Linda left like that, the next day, Raven’s move was completed.

 

Baron and I, invited to a housewarming feast, enjoyed a luxurious meal with Raven, Kimarise, and Kyle while discussing monsters and gates.

 

The information I received from Linda yesterday didn’t contain anything special.

 

It said to maintain daily life but always watch your surroundings, and if you see a monster, quickly take cover and report it immediately.

 

However, looking at the official notice on the bulletin board, the situation was more serious than expected.

 

The monster I encountered was called a Mantis Sickle Fox. Fortunately, it was a low-grade monster, so safety could be guaranteed once the Royal Knight Order arrived.

 

Then what I had to do from now on was obvious.

 

Like someone’s words about planting an apple tree today even if the world ended tomorrow, even if monsters swept through tomorrow, I had to make soybean paste today.

 

Oh, and I should find time to secretly deliver snacks to the orphanage children too. If I went through the director, he’d embezzle them, so I’d have to do it without him knowing.

 

* * *

 

‘Ugh.’

 

Nelloa was in a state of rising irritation.

 

This time she had used her ability excessively. Because of that, she was bedridden for three days, and her skin became somewhat rough.

 

She even felt like thin wrinkles had formed under her eyes.

 

‘The gate I painstakingly cultivated while suffering serious damage.’

 

Suddenly the area around it burned down, and with the feudal knights and militia making security tight, it became a restricted access zone.

 

That could happen. But it turned out that the person who first reported seeing a monster was Hailey.

 

‘No, if you saw a monster, you should have died. Why didn’t you die and instead reported it?’

 

If she had witnessed a monster, dying would be normal.

 

If a monster had been harming someone and thus hadn’t noticed Hailey, there should have been at least other victims for it to make sense.

 

But there were no victims, and they couldn’t find the monster she claimed to have seen either. Only the gate was strictly controlled.

 

Most frustrating of all was the fact that the signal stone for the gate seed planted on the coastline had exploded again.

 

Seeing that, it was definitely Bloden’s doing. He was certainly somewhere in Snoril Domain.

 

“But why can’t I even catch a glimpse of him?”

 

In this situation, he should have visited the Lord’s Manor by now.

 

‘Ha, if a kidnapping case were in progress, I could at least encounter him using that as an excuse.’

 

All the children involved in the incident were at the orphanage. She didn’t know how many more accomplices there were, but at least all those who had been in the domain were caught and dragged to the capital.

 

After pondering for a moment, Nelloa locked her door to prevent any maids from entering and used her ability.

 

She felt like she was aging a bit, but that must be due to fatigue. She was still in her fresh twenties, so she would recover quickly after a good rest.

 

However, since it hadn’t been long since she recovered from illness, she became exhausted after making just two.

 

Nelloa lay on her bed to rest while thinking about the next location to place the seeds.

 

‘Come to think of it, the location selection seems to have been the problem.’

 

Until now, she had placed them where there were no watching eyes. Coastal rock crevices and secluded areas near the port.

 

So Bloden could have dealt with them and left when no one was watching.

 

As for the port, it seems he hasn’t discovered it yet since she stuck it in such a secluded place.

 

‘He’ll probably secretly deal with the port soon too, so this time I should scatter them in places with many more watching eyes.’

 

Places with some people around. But places where Nelloa scattering seeds wouldn’t catch people’s attention.

 

Even if monsters emerged from gates created that way and caused casualties, it would be less burdensome, and places where the gates wouldn’t be easily discovered.

 

As Nelloa searched for locations, she eventually smiled.

 

She already knew of such a place.

 

Nelloa decided to make and scatter more seeds once her energy returned a bit, then closed her eyes to sleep.

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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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