Focusing on Territory After Breaking Off the Engagement

Chapter 5: A New Beginning

Entering the reception room,Alencia's figure came into view.

Blue hair andblue eyes. White skin.And red lips.

Even after parting ways with me, she was still beautiful.

“It's been a while, Lady Alencia.”

Alencia pointed to the chair in front of her.

“Sit.”

There was no emotion in her voice.

An indifferent, commanding tone.

What did I expect?

When I heard she had come looking for me,did I think we might get engaged again?

‘No need to be disappointed.’

Though my thoughts were like that, my heart felt empty.

“What brings you all the way here?”

She looked at me without speaking.

I didn't avoid her gaze either.

1 second. 5 seconds. 10 seconds.

There were many times we made eye contact without speaking.

Like now.

“I heard you died.”

How could she say such words without emotion?

It was a remarkable ability.

Hadn't we spent 4 years together?

Weren't we engaged?

“I see. Fortunately, I'm alright now.”

“Yes, you seem alright.”

The conversation broke off again.

This time too, neither of us avoided eye contact.

Eyes met,and a long silence followed.

“What are you going to do now? Do you have a plan?”

A plan…

I had a plan.

Something I had pondered for several days.

And there was something I needed to ask her.

I told the maid to leave.

Of course, Alencia's personal maid, Mari, remained.

“What are you going to talk about that requires sending the maid out?”

“Actually…”

I explained the farming plan.

Of course, I embellished it.

Because I couldn't talk about things like the system or skills.

“So. It's true you resurrected, and you met the Goddess of the Earth when you died? Thanks to that, you became able to farm?”

“That is correct.”

Screech.

Alencia stood up from her chair.

“Your outlandish imagination is still the same. I'm disappointed.”

Outlandish imagination.

During the time I was with her, I had proposed several ideas.

She had received those ideas as outlandish.

In the past and now.

Of course, I understand she might think that.

No matter how much this is another world with gods, saying I died, met a goddess, and became able to farm out of the blue.

Right. It doesn't make sense. Trying to lie weakened the logic.

Even so.

Stubbornness arose.

It seems my personality really changed after dying.

“Disappointed? Did you even have expectations for me?”

Without expectations, there is no disappointment.

To use the word disappointment while having no expectations for me whatsoever.

“…”

Alencia looked at me without speaking.

“You've changed.”

Leaving those words behind, she opened the reception room door.

Watching her retreating back, I bowed my head.

“Please travel safely. I won't see you off separately.”

“Do as you please.”

I stood by the reception room window.

I could see Alencia getting into the carriage.

The coachman whips the horses.

The carriage departs.

Gradually receding, it disappears into the forest.

“Hoo...”

I shook off the feeling tickling my chest with a deep sigh.

Alencia had already abandoned me.

She must have sorted things out long ago.

I alone shouldn't cling to the past.

I need to let go of lingering feelings and move forward.

“I have people to ask for help too. I'm no longer a man who only clings to you.”

Two figures who could help with farming were deleted.

Brilda was erased,and Alencia was additionally erased.

.

.

A few days later, I left South Castle.

And headed south.

The southern coastal region of the Frontier Viscounty.

Towards River Village.

***

River Village.

A place belonging to the Frontier Viscounty.

The sea to the south.

Monster territory to the west.

The Vampiars Duchy to the east.

And my maternal grandfather resided there.

‘It’ll be my first time meeting him.’

I only knew of his existence.

I had never actually visited him.

Because I was busy in my own way.

In the early days after coming to this world, trying to grasp the situation.

And for the recent 4 years, living in the Vampiars Duchy.

Coming out of the forest, the sea came into view.

The village formed in the middle of the forest,and even the river passing west of the village.

I arrived at the entrance of River Village.

And a welcoming party was there.

I recognized my grandfather at a glance.

Because he had the same black hair as me, as my mother.

“Welcome, my grandson.”

“It’s been a long time, Grandfather.”

Just as I did with Brilda, I knelt on one knee and greeted him.

At that moment,

Grab.

Grandfather hugged me.

I also relaxed and let myself be held in my grandfather's embrace.

The southern coast of the Frontier territory.

There, I met someone completely on my side.

After exchanging greetings with the welcoming people, we moved to the village hall.

Grandfather was the Mayor of River City.

River was originally a single city encompassing not just the current East River,

but also the area west of the river.

As the Frontier territory weakened, the western area was lost to monsters.

“So, you have a reason for coming here?”

“Yes, because...”

Just as I did with Alencia.

I told my grandfather as well.

That I died fighting Black Orcs,met the Goddess of the Earth in death,and gained the ability to remove the island's Magi.

Therefore, I said I wanted to farm.

The core was the same as what I told Alencia, but this time, I polished it to be more plausible.

After the long story ended,Grandfather laughed loudly.

“Khahahaha. Hahahahaha!!!”

Why was he laughing?

There was nothing funny in what I said.

“Hahahaha!!! I knew it. There's no way our grandson, who inherited Campbell blood, would pretend to be dead. Of couuurse. Ab-solutely!!!”

My grandfather was an outstanding hunter.

Everyone from Monster Island is a hunter.

The main source of income here is monster byproducts, and to obtain them, one must hunt monsters.

Grandfather wasn't just an outstanding hunter.

He gathered people and formed a professional hunting team.

He caught many monsters, and earned just as much money.

With that money, he built an arrow shaft workshop in River.

Since there were jobs, people naturally gathered.

Grandfather's contribution was significant to River growing to the level of a city.

“You all heard! Don't ever call my grandson a coward again! If I see anyone like that, I'll break their neck!!”

Grandfather made a neck-choking gesture.

It didn't look like a joke.

Because the muscles in his arms rippled fiercely.

“Aigo. Brother Campbell. Who would insult the Young Lord like that?”

“That's right. There's no one like that in River.”

After the small commotion passed, Grandfather spoke again.

“You want to farm?”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

“Brilda must have refused.”

“...Yes”

“Of course, she would. That bitch can't stand seeing you succeed. She probably wants to kill you instead?”

“...”

Grandfather stood up from his seat again.

Then he puffed out his chest muscles.

“Absolutely not while I'm alive. You want to farm? Don't worry. I'll help you.”

.

.

Grandfather liquidated the fortune he had saved up his entire life.

With that money, he bought land.

It was the riverside area of River Village.

Unlike other lands, all the trees had been cut down.

I heard it was to monitor the other side of the river.

“Grandfather, won't it be dangerous?”

“Hahaha!!”

Grandfather slapped my back heartily.

Judging by his expression, it was clearly a sign of affection, but it hurt quite a bit.

“East River is safe. The river protects it, plus...”

He pointed to the bridge connecting East River and West River.

He said there used to be more bridges, but they left only one.

“Monsters cross the bridge. So, we just need to defend the bridge.”

“You deliberately left it for this purpose?”

“That's right. Among hunters, it's a trap called a kill zone.”

Kill Zone.

A method to force monsters' movement paths and gather them in one place.

He said this way, even many monsters could be caught easily.

It was similar to mob hunting in games.

“Have no monsters crossed the river until now?”

“None. As you can see, it's not a small river.”

Listening to Grandfather, it didn't sound bad.

Actually, it was good.

With the river, water can be obtained.

Due to the nature of Monster Island, trees are dense, but here they were all cut down.

If it's even safe from monsters thanks to the river and the bridge.

“It's good. Just perfect.”

“But, how are you going to farm? The people here have no farming experience.”

Having secured the land, another problem arose.

The absence of farmers.

Although my job is Farmer, I'm a farmer in name only.

I have no farming skills, only Land Recovery.

“We'll need to find people, right?”

“The best way is to buy slaves, but… we probably won't have enough money for that.”

Although Grandfather had a lot of money,it was all by commoner standards.

He had already purchased a large plot of land,and needed to buy seeds to plant.

There wasn't enough money to buy slaves for farming on top of that.

“Then how about hiring?”

“Hiring, you say?”

“Yes, there aren't any here, but in the Vampiars Duchy, there should be people with farming experience. We hire those people. Once farming succeeds, we won't lack money afterwards.”

The price of grain on Monster Island is incredibly expensive.

There's no other reason.

It's because everything is imported from the continent.

The price of grain consumed here includes transportation costs and passage tolls from each territory.

Especially, the 30% passage toll from the Kallas Viscounty.

If we farm in River Village, all those costs become profit.

Because transportation costs will be low, and we won't have to pay tolls.

“I'll have to visit the Vampiars Duchy. You stay here and clear the land with the people.”

“Travel safely, Grandfather.”

Grandfather left for the Vampiars Duchy.

And I stayed behind and focused on clearing the farmland.

“Uncle, this must be hard for you?”

My maternal uncle, Miller.

Mother's younger brother.

Uncle originally inherited the arrow shaft workshop.

Then, when I came, he disposed of the workshop.

Now he was helping with farm work under the sun.

Not just Uncle.

Uncle's children. My cousins were all pulling weeds and turning the soil.

“Hahaha. Do you think the workshop job was easy? It's all work done by people.”

Saying that, he slapped my back heartily.

Just like Grandfather.

Is Uncle's cheerful personality because he resembles Grandfather?

Then, was my mother's personality, whom I never met, like this too?

I have never missed the mother here.

Because she had already passed away when I possessed this body.

But meeting my maternal grandfather and uncle made me miss my mother.

“What are you thinking so hard about? I told you it's really okay. And farming on Monster Island was everyone's dream. We need to show that Kallas bastard!”

Uncle made a neck-choking gesture.

The islanders dislike Viscount Kallas.

Because the high tolls he collects make the island people poor.

“Don't worry. I'll definitely succeed in farming.”

“Right! Of course, you should! Our nephew who even met the Goddess of the Earth!”

Pang! Pang!

Uncle slapped my back hard again and focused back on the farm work.

I also continued what I was doing.

I knelt on the ground.

And clasped my hands together.

It wasn't necessary to adopt this posture to use the Land Recovery skill.

But I did it anyway.

Because of the lie I had told.

Unable to explain the system or skills, I used the Goddess of the Earth as an excuse.

Using the Land Recovery skill in a praying pose.

[System]

Contaminated Land (Contamination Level: 98%)

According to investigations, the contamination level in River Village is entirely 100%.

The entire Monster Island must be like this.

Because it has been eroded by Demonic Energyfor hundreds, no, thousands of years.

“Using this much reduces it by 2%?”

Use all mana, recover,and pour it out again, repeating the cycle.

That's how a day passed.

.

.

A day passed, and a week passed.

And a month's time flowed by.

‘Why?’

Throughout the prayers, questions and worries filled my mind.

‘It’s past the time Grandfather should have returned? Why isn't he back?’

Worried, I had mentioned it to Uncle.

He told me not to worry.

Because the Vampiars Duchy is safe from monsters.

Even if he encountered monsters, Grandfather would be fine.

But I asked again why he wasn't back then.

He said he didn't know that.

Anyway, he said there was no need to worry.

He himself had experienced similar situations many times before,

and it was all needless worry.

Like that, another day passed.