Chapter 10
The diary of Iron that had once shown a vision of my territory being invaded.
That very diary was glowing red once again.
“This wasn’t just a one-ti event then? Ah, right. Iron also benefited from the diary, so of course it wouldn’t be one-off.”
Since I had already experienced it once before, I picked up the diary without hesitation.
The mont I held it, a vision spread before my eyes.
This ti, the scene didn’t seem to be as urgent as the last.
The background was my office, where Rudick and I were having a conversation.
But the atmosphere was sinking heavily.
* Ha, food wagons being hijacked. Did I trust the rchants too much?
* Still, the transaction itself was clean. And the rchants were also in chaos since they didn’t know the situation.
* Disgusting.
* Then what happens to us now?
* …This is insane.
A brief silence fell before I opened my mouth again.
* If I had known this would happen, I should’ve at least listened to that lunatic’s words once.
* Lunatic? Ah, you an that man I brought back then?
* Yeah.
* Didn’t he only spout nonsense?
* To my ears, yes. But then again, how could I be sure? At the ti, I thought it was only natural to ignore him, but it kept nagging at .
* What aning does that have now? Stop wasting ti on useless thoughts and think about how we can secure food instead.
---
“Hmm.”
The vision ended with Rudick leaving the office.
I had been tense, expecting sothing dynamic to explode out like before, but I felt a bit let down.
Of course, the content itself was quite aningful, but it was different from the last one.
Back then, the diary had shown the spectacular sight of the castle walls collapsing.
Not that today’s vision was lighthearted either.
“Food wagons, huh.”
The core of the conversation was that food wagons had been hijacked.
Considering our reserves, we would soon have to purchase food from another territory.
If I recalled the way Johnson Territory usually traded, a few knights would carry mana crystals and order the food.
The transport would likely be handled by the rchant guild.
Since large-scale food transport required many workers, it was standard to entrust it to them.
In Johnson Territory, where even pack horses were scarce, taking charge of transporting food was simply unrealistic, and the knights disliked leaving the territory.
Especially now, right after the major incident where the territory was almost plundered while we were out on an expedition.
But apparently, so problem arose during that delivery process.
‘That’s serious.’
If food got stolen just as our reserves were running thin, it would be disastrous.
Even though responsibility would lie with the rchants if the food failed to arrive, the real problem would be finding new supplies again.
‘It’s not like grain is common in this world. If we had to wait until autumn, there’d be an uproar.’
The residents of our territory might even grab their flails and storm the rchants.
It was a joke, but not one I could laugh at, because it could very well beco reality.
‘But as long as we prepare, it won’t be an issue.’
The solution was simple.
When transporting food, we could just provide the escort ourselves.
We could borrow the wagons, pack horses, and workers from the rchants, and have the knights directly guard them. That way, there was no chance of the food wagons being robbed.
There might be complaints, but I could suppress those with the authority of a lord.
Just like I had done when I postponed the suddenly scheduled expedition in favor of the recent defensive battle.
‘If the ones who robbed the wagons were bandits or rcenaries, that’s actually easier to deal with. It’s unthinkable that our knights would lose to re bandits.’
Maybe that was why the latter part of the vision kept lingering in my head.
How should I put it? Sothing felt off.
If the diary’s sole purpose was to warn about the hijacking, there was no need for extra details.
‘The diary…’
The diary that had once shown the collapse of the castle walls.
A mysterious object whose true nature, let alone purpose, I couldn’t understand.
It had even shown Iron his own assassination scene.
Suspicious as it was, the fact remained that this diary had helped .
‘And a lunatic, huh. I really have no idea what’s going on anymore.’
Just what was the diary trying to tell ?
Was it really only to prevent the hijacking of the food wagons?
I needed to check it out for myself.
---
Today was no different from any other.
The territory was still busy with the aftermath of the defensive battle.
The residents were dealing with monster byproducts, a task overseen by Butler Harold.
Peter was also incredibly busy.
Extracting mana crystals from the piles of monster heartstones fell to the alchemy workshop.
On top of that, they also had to brew potions, leaving him with heavy dark circles under his eyes.
Busy as Peter was, I was no exception.
I had to console the residents who lost their families in the recent battle, and also recruit new soldiers to fill the vacancies.
In Johnson Territory, being a soldier was quite a hot profession, so applicants were plentiful. But since too many residents flocked to enlist, that caused its own difficulties.
‘Didn’t I already tell those retired n not to enlist again?’
The people of this territory were far too hot-blooded, and that was a problem.
“Brother, I’m here.”
Rudick, who had been patrolling the area and training the newly recruited soldiers, ca to my office.
He had brought along a middle-aged man I had never seen before.
The man rolled his eyes nervously, cowed by Rudick’s presence. From the first impression, he didn’t look trustworthy at all.
Which was exactly why I could be certain—this was the lunatic the diary had spoken of.
‘He really ca.’
It felt like the inevitable had arrived.
“You said that any guest who ca to the territory must et you personally. This man looks strange, but since you wanted to see him, I brought him here myself.”
“Is that so? Good work.”
After the diary showed its vision, I had given Rudick a subtle instruction.
The only hint from the diary was that Rudick would bring this man to , so all I could do was wait.
Even as I ordered it, I wondered if the man would really co—but here he was.
“Then have your talk. I’m busy.”
“Alright, go on.”
Once Rudick left, I could finally speak with the man alone.
“So, you asked to see ?”
Even on second glance, he looked like a swindler.
Restless eyes, sly tone—everything about him scread fraud.
I wanted to throw him out imdiately, but I restrained myself.
It wouldn’t be too late to judge after hearing him out.
“Hehe, greetings, my lord. My na is Jack Nickel. I’m a Doctor of Otherworld Studies. You may call Dr. Nickel.”
“Doctor of Otherworld Studies? What’s that supposed to be?”
“From monsters to beasts and even plants of the otherworld—it is the study of everything beyond this world. A very special and important field.”
The man, whose manner of speech reeked of charlatan, introduced himself as a Doctor of Otherworld Studies.
Apparently, the discipline encompassed research into everything foreign to this world, from monsters to alien flora and fauna.
‘Everything from monsters to otherworldly plants? That sounds grand enough.’
But in an age without universities—barely even schools—a doctorate?
Who in the world had conferred such a title?
‘Or is it just that anyone who calls himself a doctor becos one?’
He was ridiculous in more ways than one.
“This is really sothing great. You know pepper, right? That was discovered by a Doctor of Otherworld Studies! From now on, Otherworld Studies will be the trend. If a territory wants to prosper, it must research it.”
Sensing suspicion in my gaze, Dr. Nickel’s words began to tumble out faster.
If nothing else, he was quick-witted.
‘Otherworld Studies, huh.’
This land was the Peninsula Kingdom, located on the Ribella Peninsula.
But after the Great Cataclysm, all seafaring trade had been completely severed.
Importing anything from outside was unthinkable.
Until now, re survival had been the priority, so shortages weren’t glaring. But as the world stabilized, the lack of certain goods beca more and more evident.
Dr. Nickel claid that through Otherworld Studies, substitute resources could be discovered to alleviate such inconveniences.
‘Like that so-called new pepper, for example.’
Pepper was sothing never produced in this land and had entirely vanished. But near Burdo Territory, a strange fruit was discovered.
Its seeds had crossed over through a Dinsional Rift, clinging to monsters and beasts, and then taken root in this world.
When the white fruit was dried and finely ground, it gave off an aroma nearly identical to pepper.
Thus, a “new pepper” had been discovered.
“Pepper, huh. I’ve heard of it. Among the wealthy, it trades at quite a high price, doesn’t it?”
“That’s not all. Even the horned ostrich, used as transport in the south—that’s technically a beast from beyond, isn’t it? Burdo Territory has been reaping great benefits from Otherworld Studies.”
“If you are truly a Doctor of Otherworld Studies, then do you have contact with the one who discovered this pepper?”
“Haha, well, let’s just say we’re acquaintances of a sort.”
‘Which really ans he doesn’t know them at all.’
The examples were convincing enough that I almost bought into it, but in the end, Otherworld Studies was still an undefined and groundless discipline.
This man was nothing more than a fraud who pieced together scraps of secondhand knowledge and called himself a doctor.
‘But if even trivial knowledge can help our territory, there’s no harm in listening.’
Perhaps, hemd in by the Forbidden Zones on two sides, our territory was the best suited to benefit from this so-called Otherworld Studies.
“So then, why did you co to our territory?”
“Ah, I was waiting for that question. You see, I have so very valuable information.”
“Valuable information?”
“Yes, information that could very well change the fate of Johnson Territory. Of course, for now it is only a theory, but with your cooperation, my lord, I could produce results.”
“So, you’re saying you want to conduct experints here? To test whether your theory holds true?”
“Yes, exactly!”
Experints, was it?
Johnson Territory was certainly rich in monsters.
Especially in the Monster Mountains and the Forest of Illusions, both Forbidden Zones, where countless beasts and plants from beyond had taken root.
So it wasn’t strange for him to seek out such a remote place for his experints.
But…
‘He’s far too untrustworthy to take at his word.’
From appearance to manner of speech, there wasn’t a single thing about him that didn’t arouse suspicion.
‘Yet the diary showed this man.’
During the defense of the territory, I had greatly benefited from the diary.
Without its warning, I would never have prepared for the monster attack.
So I had resolved that if there was even a slight chance of value, I would take the gamble.
With that in mind, I asked him what exactly he sought to research here.
Truth be told, I was hoping for sothing impressive.
“Horned Rabbits. If we can succeed in breeding them, Johnson Territory will gain imnse profit.”
“Ah, that?”
But the mont Dr. Nickel uttered the words “Horned Rabbit,” my anticipation deflated completely.
Because breeding Horned Rabbits was already a worn-out, laughable notion.
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