Chapter 767
Episode 189: Blessings Rolling In (Part 1)
August 20, 1803.
About a month had passed since Luet returned to Inse.
From the moment she took up her duties as Steward, she swiftly took control of the family affairs, proving her exceptional capabilities.
[To the 10th Division: We should strengthen our support for the neutral zone contamination areas. Gple has been increasingly reluctant to assist those regions, so we need to step in and win them over ourselves.]
“Steward, most of the areas Gple is hesitant to support offer little benefit. In fact, if we rescue them and then affiliate them with the Huepester Alliance, the reconstruction costs will be even higher.”
[I’m aware. The resources are scarce, and many of these places are practically in ruins. But what matters now is the standing of Runkandel. From a humanitarian perspective, if we cut back on sleep a little, we can save more lives.]
“Understood.”
[Moreover, this is a time when talent is more valuable than anything else, and you never know where the next key person might come from. Someone vital to us could suddenly appear in one of the regions we rescue. Remember, engineers emerged from the areas the 7th Division saved last time. In my era, this happened often.]
Luet was not just the Steward; she was an ancestor who had shaped the Runkandel of today.
Even the previous family heads, who had been the greatest elders before her arrival, were distant descendants compared to her.
Furthermore, after witnessing her administrative skills, Jin had granted her full authority over internal affairs, making her effectively the second-in-command of Runkandel.
[Chief Instructor of Cadets, Lady Tasha.]
[Yes, Steward.]
[The new cadets are all outstanding. Once the team leaders are selected, issue each of them a named sword.]
[We already have some swords picked out.]
[Also, pay special attention to those new cadets who tend to stick together in groups from their previous activities. We must avoid unnecessary factionalism. While competition can fuel fighting spirit, it’s not the right approach for the current situation. Always set goals that require them to fight and win together.]
[Understood.]
[Sir Ballas, how is the Black Blade Society these days?]
[Ha ha ha, there’s no shortage of bloodshed chasing down those embezzlers siphoning reconstruction funds. They’re all small fry, though.]
[Excellent. If corruption arises in Huepester, the Black Blade Society must continue to show that even the smallest offenses are met with severe punishment. But no one innocent should suffer.]
[Don’t worry. For those cases that are ambiguous, we bring them to the Princess of Tikan for verification. However, we do need to strengthen our forces. So, Chief Instructor, if you spot any promising candidates, please send them our way in advance.]
[The Law Enforcement Council has been busy compiling the family’s legal code recently, right? I’ve read it, and Chapter 5 seems overly strict overall. How about easing some of the etiquette standards?]
[Steward, I believe that part should remain uncompromised. No matter how chaotic the times, the legal code must remain a legal code.]
[You have a point.]
[Instead, we’ll add clauses allowing for exceptions under special circumstances.]
[That’s an excellent compromise. Proceed with that. And Chairman of the Residents’ Association, Sir Telrot.]
“Yes, Steward.”
[It’s good that you’re personally visiting to encourage both the original residents and newcomers and preventing disputes before they arise. That’s naturally part of your role. But right now, it would be better to focus more on identifying talented individuals among the rescued.]
“Understood, Steward.”
[First Steward, Petro.]
“Yes, Steward!”
[The family’s financial reports need better organization. Ensure each department cooperates and shares information more closely. As First Steward and the personal steward to the minor family head, that’s your responsibility. Also, there was a missing entry regarding black market sales in the Lutero Federation. Such mistakes can’t happen twice.]
“Apologies. I will correct it immediately.”
[That should cover it for now. Everyone, return to your duties. The next meeting will be at 2 a.m.]
The members of Runkandel were enduring what felt like an endless march through hardship.
Yet, no one voiced complaints.
Luet had a strange power—though she pushed her subordinates relentlessly, she also constantly infused them with energy and vitality.
Two hours after everyone had left to carry out her orders, Jin arrived at the meeting room.
Luet rose from her seat and greeted him with proper respect.
“Steward.”
[You’re here, Minor Family Head.]
“I heard you haven’t slept for days. Are you alright?”
[For a fairy, this is nothing. Thanks to your solid leadership, things are running smoothly. You smell of earth and iron—have you been to the Empire?]
“Yes, I inspected the shipyard construction site. The underground foundation work is complete, and now the internal construction has begun.”
[There must be a shortage of engineers. Even in my era, top-tier construction engineers were rare.]
“That’s true. We’re managing to recruit engineers somehow, but the bigger problem is the absence of a chief construction supervisor and the lack of engineers to build the fleet once the shipyard is finished.”
Digging beneath the Sword Emperor’s domain required immense technical skill.
But that part had been solved quickly through the strength of high-ranking martial artists, various magics, and the power of Manbing.
They literally tore through the earth by force and used Manbing and magic to prevent collapse.
However, the actual internal construction couldn’t proceed that way.
To realize Quall’s blueprints, they needed the world’s best construction engineers.
Quall was temporarily acting as chief supervisor, but his specialty was magical engineering.
No matter how much of a genius centuries ahead of his time, architecture was a different field.
Even the Empire’s top engineers struggled to bring Quall’s designs to life.
“Dr. Quall said that to complete the work perfectly, we need engineers at least as skilled as Gple’s top experts or Bubar. Or a new Contracted Architect might appear.”
[I keep emphasizing the need to recruit talent, but I don’t know how long that will take. And if we need geniuses of that caliber… well, we might have to rely on fate. If we can’t find the right engineers, is completion impossible?]
“Yes, it’s possible. It’ll just take several times more time and resources.”
[Several times more? Our finances are already tight. Wait, you mentioned a Contracted Architect?]
“Did something come to mind?”
[We need to check when and where the last Contracted Architect appeared.]
Luet summoned the scribes and gathered historical records about Contracted individuals stored within the family archives.
[Let’s see… Here it is. The last Contracted Architect was a man named Clap Modal from the Lutero Magic Federation’s Bark Autonomous District in March 1666. He died in 1701. Before him was Kien Salasa in 1603, also from Bark, and before that Harriet Bayer in 1541, likewise Bark Autonomous District.]
“…They’re all from Bark?”
[Bark Autonomous District was formerly the Kingdom of Bark. In my era, it was known as a kingdom especially favored by the Architect God. Ah, now I remember. We even sent knights to obtain a Contracted Architect from Bark Kingdom.]
“If the Architect God still only contracts with people from Bark, they’re probably affiliated with Gple by now.”
[Most likely. But if there’s still a Contracted Architect in Bark, it might be worth trying. We can’t invade like a thousand years ago, of course. We should use the compass to check if a Contracted Architect exists there, gather information via the Seven-Colored Bird, and send someone like Mumei to bring them here.]
It was a risky plan that could easily escalate into a major conflict.
But as Luet said, confirming the existence of a Contracted Architect with the compass was necessary.
Jin immediately flew to Tikan on a Red Owl and returned with the compass.
The compass simply showed a red dot over the region where a Contracted Architect existed.
It didn’t reveal the exact location or any other information.
The compass revealed multiple red dots over Bark Autonomous District.
“…Looks like there are more than five Contracted Architects in Bark alone.”
Since Bark was close to Drakka, it was natural that Gple’s Contracted mages frequented the area.
[I’ll keep monitoring the red dots in Bark while working. I’ll observe the fluctuating numbers…]
Just as Luet finished speaking, someone else entered the meeting room.
“Steward, Minor Family Head.”
“Sir Telrot.”
[What is it, Sir Telrot?]
Telrot, Chairman of the Residents’ Association, cleared his throat, looking somewhat embarrassed.
“There’s a boy among the refugees claiming to be a Contracted Architect. I wanted to verify it before reporting, but it seems we’ll need the help of the Princess of Tikan or the Steward. When asked to demonstrate his power, he just babbled nonsense.”
Jin and Luet exchanged glances, blinking at each other for a few seconds.
[…What exactly did he say?]
“He says he’s a prospective Contracted Architect and needs to undergo some trial to finalize the contract. Anyway, he’s waiting in the hallway.”
Normally, Telrot would have dismissed the boy’s claims as nonsense.
But knowing how desperately they needed a Contracted Architect now, he came to the meeting room first.
[Let him in. We need to meet him.]
At Telrot’s command, the knights waiting outside ushered the boy into the meeting room.
His scruffy appearance was typical of a refugee, and his eyes held that reckless defiance unique to a wayward boy.
He hadn’t backed down or lost his nerve even in front of Telrot.
“Ah, seriously, I’m the prospective client of the god of architecture! You can’t treat me this roughly… Hey! Jin Kyung! You’re really Lord Jin Runcandel, right!?”
The moment the boy saw Jin, his angry expression softened, and his eyes sparkled brightly.
It was the look of someone finally meeting their idol.
Jin paused, trying to place where he’d seen that expression before.
It was the same look Enya had when they first met.