Chapter 160: Sweetness in the Air (3)
Ding dong.
[A new title
A welcoming message floated in front of Lloyd’s eyes, just as he had expected.
Well, I knew this would happen since I completed the first section of the sewage system and the very first sludge treatment.
It was always like this. Even when he reclaimed the Maritz Wetlands and terraced the fields using the retaining walls. The system didn’t award him with any honors or titles just because he completed a construction. It was only after he had used the structures to accomplish something that he was rewarded.
I wonder what this title is about.
He wanted to know what kind of sweet effect it has. Expectant, Lloyd moved his eyes.
[Do you want the red or blue pill?]
[Title Level: Kingdom History]
A long, long time ago. In a remote fiefdom in the east, there lived a petty young master. This young master, who possessed such a foul and warped character, stuck his nose in everyone’s business, even regarding their bathroom habits. People thus then asked, young master, my dear young master, why must we collect our poop and throw it here? The young master enthusiastically waved his hands and said, it’s smelly, so you might as well hurry. They tilted their heads. But a few years later, they realized. They realized that their villages, fiefdoms, and fields no longer held traces of any infectious disease. From the moment the news spread, people from all over the kingdom, most of the residents in the fiefdom no longer disposed of their wastes anywhere they could.
[Compliment Effect: The chances of an infectious disease breaking out in the fiefdom are zero for the time being. Moreover, any infectious disease that starts outside the fiefdom will be stopped and eradicated with 100% certainty.]
[Title Region: Frontera county.]
[Active Period of Title: 50 Years.]
[A title’s powers can be activated for 24 hours in the region for which the compliment was given. Moreover, the time and region can expand or shrink depending on your actions.]
[Monthly CP Earned from the Title: 6]
[Current CP: 218]
Woah.
Lloyd covered his mouth with his hand once he read the compliment title.
This is awesome.
Lloyd had secretly hoped for a good option, but this reward exceeded his expectations by a mile. A zero probability of a disease outbreak. In other words, the title signaled the complete prevention of the cholera outbreak slated to occur in the coming spring.
Now, even if it’s not cholera, it doesn’t matter. Any epidemic will be prevented.
It was mind-blowing to every extent. Actually, Lloyd wasn’t utterly relieved despite the ongoing construction. Nervousness lingered in the corner of his heart because he couldn’t guarantee that the impending epidemic he saw through the Ending Spoiler was cholera.
It’s not like I’m a public health expert or anything. I just presumed that it was cholera based on several circumstantial pieces of evidence.
So, there was a slight possibility that the plague he saw wasn’t cholera, which was why Lloyd planned on using the Ending Spoiler once more after the sewage system construction to check.
Of course I will. My life depends on it.
He couldn’t relax and laze around just because he completed the sewers. As the old saying went, he needed to look before he leaped. Lloyd had to inspect if his work prevented the epidemic from striking the fiefdom in the coming spring. But not anymore. There was no need to.
The possibility of an epidemic is zero. 100% guaranteed prevention of an epidemic. On top of that, it would continue for the next fifty years.
It was perfect. He wouldn’t die next spring from a disease. There wasn’t a reason to use the Ending Spoiler anymore.
And I got to save some CP as a result.
That really pleased Lloyd as well. In any case, he wanted to save as much CP as he could. CP was hard to come by, and the Ending Spoiler required a lot of it.
Unlike RP, it’s hard to save up CP. The former is like a regular wage that comes each time I increase my likeability or accomplish something. The latter is more like a salary that is only paid once a month.
And he merely received 36 CP every month, but what was the price of the Ending Spoiler?
A whopping 80 CP. To just use it once! What about after that? I’d have to spend 160 since the price doubles with each try. And the one after that would cost me 320.
What if he thoughtlessly used the Ending Spoiler right now? Later on, he would need to spend hundreds of CP to just get a glimpse of the future, which would take several months, or worse, years to save.
That would be troublesome.
That would prevent him from using the skill when he needed it most. But now, thanks to the effect of the title he just earned, he avoided wasting his CP and doubling the CP price for the Ending Spoiler. Killing two birds with one stone, Lloyd swelled with satisfaction, so he grinned at Solitas, who morphed back to a human after breathing fire as a dragon.
“Thank you,” said Lloyd. “You took a large weight off my shoulders.”
“Well, no need to thank me.”
“Please, you have been a great help.”
“Have I?”
Phew. Solitas licked his lips, his mouth growing bitter. He was swamped with work as he doubled down on his craftsmanship these days. It was only yesterday that he received a compliment from Corgidus, his teacher, for his ability to chisel wood blocks, albeit telling him it was only narrowly acceptable. His days were quite rewarding. That was why he didn’t think much when Lloyd called him, shoved the outsourcing contract, and brought him to the sludge treatment facility.
He simply thought that he was doing his job, paying back for the crafting lessons. As such, he shifted to his original shape, let out a breath, and turned a couple of tons of bodily waste into ashes. It was only then that Solitas was hit with a pang of bitterness, which was as acute and deep as a shot of espresso. A sense of shame overwhelmed his dragon heart. Solitas couldn’t believe that he was reduced to a human dung cleaner when he was born a proud dragon. From what he heard, there would be even more poop in the future, including from orcs and elves. Solitas was scared particularly with the latter. He had heard their poop had a vile smell as a result of their carnivore diet.
What am I doing with my life?
Solitas felt dismayed to the deepest part of his soul. He felt like he had become an abbreviated piece of nothing in this vast universe. If there was any value in him at the moment, he was nothing but a high-tech, advanced waste burner.
“…”
Solitas wondered if he should call it quits and give up on dating and marriage. Should I go back to the lair? He mused, considering living the life of a bachelor dragon. A healthy and beautiful soul liberated from the considerations and silliness of life. Just like that, Solitas was getting strongly drawn to the powerful epiphany that struck him now. However, just then…
“By the way, oh, how I wish I could travel to the Cordona region on a day like this.”
Lloyd’s voice interrupted his resentful trance. Sensing he was brought back to reality, Solitas furrowed his brows and spoke.
“Cordona?” he asked, “Where is it?”
“Eh? Don’t you know?”
“Of course, I don’t…”
“It’s a popular honeymoon destination that’s been trending these days,” Lloyd said.
“What?”
Honeymoon. The word made Solitas flinch. Dating and marriage. Unaccomplished dreams. Hopes and sorrow, though faint, poked Solitas’s heart, and the word “honeymoon” heightened his fading desires a little more.
“I heard,” Lloyd continued to say, “it is known for its gentle and beautiful landscape all throughout the year. I heard that the ‘Hot Spring Beach’ is especially popular among newlyweds.”
“Hot Spring? Beach?”
“Yes. It’s a unique sandy beach that has a hot spring.”
“What? A sandy beach with a hot spring?” gaped the dragon.
“Yes. That’s what I heard. They said that you can just go anywhere on the beach with a shovel and dig until you take a bath. And once you do, people say spring water will surge from the ground. Then, et voila, there’s a hot spring bath for you and your loved one.”
Gulp. Solitas’s neck bobbed when he imagined it. Lloyd continued to speak, his words flowing out of him like sweet honey.
“There’s more. It’s said that the Cordona region sees a downpour that lasts exactly an hour at midnight due to seasonal wind patterns.”
“Downpour? That does not sound very nice,” said the dragon.
“No, it’s actually very good.”
“How so?”
“Think about it. You go on a dip with your lover in the hot spring water, gazing at the stars in the sky. Then, it starts to pour. Your body is warm in the water. Your shoulders and face are cool from the rain. And your ears are filled with the sweet melody of the ocean waves.”
“Oh? Ah…” gulped Solitas.
“Can you imagine?”
Nod. Solitas found himself clenching his fists, and the resentment and bitterness that overwhelmed his heart were now gone. In its stead, there was only passionate determination, even more intense than before.
I’ll get married and go to the rainy hot spring!
Now, his dream had become more detailed. Solitas became determined to exterminate human poop, orc poop, elf poop, and anything else. He could infinitely incinerate them to achieve his dream. Lloyd’s eyes held a glint of satisfaction as they looked at the dragon.
“Whew,” sighed Lloyd. “I wish I could visit a place like that. Don’t you agree?”
“I do…”
Lloyd succeeded in appeasing the dragon, whose troubled mind needed some calming. Lloyd returned to the manor, his steps light.
It looks like I’ll be able to relax for the time being.
Before he knew it, summer was coming to an end. The sun still beat down the fiefdom with its scorching heat, but Lloyd felt it getting slowly shorter. A few months from now, and the fiefdom would be covered by red fall leaves to give way to snow.
I have enough time.
The construction of the remaining sections took place seamlessly, and the apartment complexes were getting erected without any problem. These two projects would be finished before winter arrived. And now that the predestined epidemic was gone, Lloyd didn’t have much to worry about.
I just need to make a little more money to keep as a sort of pension. It makes me a bit nervous to be dependent on the water bill and the queen’s support. Once I find another source of income, I can live my life as a couch potato.
Lloyd patted himself on the back for the recent bone-breaking work he had finished. And for some reason, he was especially exhausted tonight. Was it because he verified his accomplishment and the outcome of his efforts with his own eyes? Was it because all his pent-up tension was now gone? Exhaustion, which had built inside him over the past few months of hard, self-negating work, came crashing down on him tonight.
Let’s eat, take a bath, and get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow and the day after that as well, if I can.
Lloyd thought about taking a break for the next few days. Such life was something he could only dream of when he was in South Korea, living in a rental room. As such, Lloyd decided to actualize his dream and enjoy every second of his break. But the moment he stepped into the manor, he was confronted with an unexpected spectacle at the main chamber of the first floor.
“Huh?”
Lloyd spotted Count Frontera chatting with a lady he had never seen before. She seemed to be in her early 20s. Decked out in flashy clothes and ornaments, she didn’t appear to be a maid or a peasant. And she sided with a man who seemed to be her guard knight.
A noble?
Not a hair out of place with a knight escorting her. She certainly was a noble.
But what’s a noble lady doing here?
It was around the time Lloyd had that thought that the lady’s gaze traveled to his side. She then put on a courteous smile.
“I presume you are Lloyd Frontera,” she greeted.
Lloyd nodded rather reluctantly.
“Yes, I am. But who are you?” asked Lloyd.
“It is a pleasure to finally come to your acquaintance. My name is Carlotta Cordona of the Cordona family.”
A bad, sinister feeling gripped Lloyd as he quizzed himself about her presence here. Soon, he was confirmed.
“Um, do not be surprised,” said Count Frontera. “I am sure you remember that you received a letter of proposal a few days ago. After receiving my response, Count Cordona sent his daughter here.”
“Excuse me? Why?” Lloyd blurted out in shock, but it was Lady Cordona who answered.
“It appears that my father still has a bit of hope for the marriage offer. That is why he pushed me to come here.”
“…”
Lloyd pieced things together in his head. It appeared that his rejection was returned with one more chance to talk about the marriage. That was why Count Cordona sent his daughter here.
Is this how he appeals? Gosh, the man is quite aggressive.
Just then, Lloyd broke out in a cold sweat. It never occurred to him that anyone would actually send his daughter after getting rejected. Calming his flustered heart, Lloyd turned to Count Frontera.
“Um, did you not send a clear letter of rejection?” asked Lloyd.
“Um, um, you see, I did, but…”
“…”
“I, too, am surprised by this. Hahaha.”
Count Frontera laughed with evident embarrassment on his face. He was sincerely flustered because he, too, never imagined this situation to happen.
Did I express my rejection too vaguely? But I definitely did reject him without a doubt. Or could it be that the letter exuded the immense regrets I had? That could be it.
A pang of guilt poked a corner of his heart. Count Frontera wondered if he should reveal to his son that the culprit was his vague response. Just then, while this internal debate was taking place, Lady Cordona smiled softly and stepped forward.
“Please do not be too troubled,” she said.
“Excuse me?” Lloyd cocked his head to the side. “What do you mean by that?”
“To be frank,” continued Lady Cordona, “I do not intend to go through an arranged marriage. And as I have told you, I came here with a reluctant heart. I could not resist my father’s insistence.”
“Oh…”
“So, please do not be troubled. Do permit me to be indebted to your family by spending a few nights so my father will be satisfied. I will quietly reside during my time here and then return.”
“Do you mean that?” asked Lloyd.
“Yes,” Lady Cordona nodded with confidence. Lloyd clenched his fist in joy in his heart.
Th-thank goodness.
Lloyd was scared that he would have to suddenly deal with the issue of marriage, which he didn’t care for at all. But contrary to his concern for the unexpected storm, the lady was cool and calm, to his relief.
“I see,” said Lloyd, “please make yourself at home for the next few days.”
“Thank you.”
After a formal handshake with the lady, Lloyd returned to his bedroom with a lighter heart and sprawled on the bed.
Dating or whatever. I’m not interested. I want to rest. I’m just going to enjoy my free time and relax.
And so, Lloyd decided that it was time to get a good night’s sleep. He would sleep in the next day too. Just like that, he fell asleep in peace. But when the morning rolled around, the peaceful Frontera manor received four more visits by the ladies of different families.