Chapter 47: How to Make Land (2)
Ding Dong.
[Everyone in the Frontera barony is deeply impressed by the magic-like miracle you have performed. They greatly respect and praise you.]
[For that achievement, you have been awarded a large amount of bonus RP.]
[You have acquired 450 RP.]
[Current RP: 1131]
Yes! Lloyd clenched his fists. The historical reclamation project of the Maritz Wetland.
Lloyd did get the feeling that the sense of excitement and anticipation in the fiefdom was building up as the construction neared its end. There was a change in the way the engineers and people viewed him. Their gaze wasn’t just full of surprise but was mixed with admiration. There was unmistakable respect in the way they looked at him. As a result, Lloyd had naturally come to expect this kind of reward. It is just as I expected. This is perfect.
The reclamation project was a success and he was awarded a whopping amount of RP.
He felt he had become rich overnight. For the first time, I have over a thousand RP.
The mere thought of where he should spend and invest the points excited him.
However, he didn’t allow himself to remain lost in that happy reverie. This wasn’t any time to bask in joy over some temporary rewards. This kind of construction needs a good finish more than anything else. Lloyd lifted his head and looked at the sky. The hot summer was going away. The sky was still clear and bright, but it somehow felt more distant than before. The sunlight that burned his and the soldiers’ backs throughout the construction appeared to have weakened too. This meant one thing, Autumn was approaching.
It will be raining soon.
The region the Frontera barony sat in received a lot of rain during the spring and late autumn. The summer and winter were dry with comparatively less rainfall.
Thanks to the climate, the reclamation happened in a breeze with barely any rain.
Things would change from now on.
Once it was mid-autumn and the winter approached, the whole place would be battered with rain. At that time, the embankment and water drainage system in the reclaimed land would be put to the test. Meanwhile, Lloyd reminded himself that the drainage facility had to be perfectly constructed.
“When it rains, the water must be drained properly. Otherwise, this reclaimed land we worked so hard to build will be submerged once again.”
“Is it because the ground level has lowered?”
“Yup, that’s the answer.” Lloyd nodded his head at Javier’s question.
He went on, “This land was built after we compressed the peat deposits.”
The murky wetland was now completely hard because the heavily drenched water in the strata had been completely drained. In the process, the space between the sand particles narrowed, hardening the overall strata and at the same time, they collapsed. That outcome was only natural.
“The ground settles as much as the water is drained out.”
“By settle, do you mean that it sank down?”
“Yeah, and since the ground level has lowered, the water will easily stagnate when it rains. Thus, it’d be equally difficult for it to be drained.”
“That does not sound good. How about we pour more sand to elevate the ground level?” Javier tilted his head as he spoke.
Lloyd chuckled softly. “No, that method wouldn’t work. Know why? Because the ground here is made up of peat deposits.”
“I am not sure what you mean.”
“Given the peat deposit’s characteristics, the additional layer of earth and its weight would sink the ground again. So it’s in vain even if we add more earth on the top. Similar to how you can go out on tons of blind dates, but you won’t get a girlfriend. It just doesn’t happen like that.”
“What is a blind date?”
“You don’t have to know. Some things just won’t happen even if you try hard.”
“Just like your face, Master Lloyd?”
“Yeah, and just like your insomnia.”
Skillfully parrying the unexpected verbal blow, Lloyd smiled.
“That’s why you need a waterwheel.”
The waterwheel used water to power its movement and the Maritz Wetland was surrounded by two currents of the course river. This meant that the waterwheels could be run all year round since water was easily available just outside the embankment.
“Why do you think I dug several waterways in the reclaimed land?”
“To make sure that the stagnated water will flow to one place?” Javier asked.
“Yeah, exactly. I’m making sure that the water will flow to one area. And I’m going to push the water out using the screw-type of pump waterwheel.”
Lloyd happened to be aware of an excellent model to follow to manage reclaimed land after finishing a reclamation project. It was the reclaimed land of the Netherlands, the Kinderdijk.
Kinderdijk was similar to this place.That wetland used to be made of peat deposits and the Dutch drained the water and built the embankment after working for a long time. Once the consolidation phenomenon took place, the land hardened and became lower at the same time. When that happened, the lowered ground level became flooded with water.
So Dutch people decided to build a windmill to prevent the deluge, making smart use of the country’s geographical features and climate. It was a wise choice because the Gulf Stream that surrounded the land ensured its winter to be warm and snowless and due to the impact of the westerlies, the wind blew hard all year long.
The perfect role model. It’s the best source of reference, except for the windmills.
The Maritz Wetland didn’t require any windmills. The waterwheel, which used the hydropower of the tributary, was enough. Moreover, the Frontera Barony had a talent who could make a traditional screwed-type pump waterwheel, just like most of the fiefdoms.
“Anyway, the waterwheel construction will begin soon. I already placed an order.”
It was true. Lloyd had summoned the talent on day one of the reclamation project. He had prepared a heft down payment for him in advance. He should be here soon. The engineer was scheduled to arrive today, but he was nowhere in sight. Instead, an unwelcome group of visitors arrived.
What is that?
From the South of the Maritz Wetland Lloyd noticed a group of people. There were about twenty people, and everyone rode horses.
The engineer? No, they’re not.
They were neither civil engineer soldiers nor workers. Among the group of people, there was a guy in the front draped with a fancy cape, riding a white horse. Just then, a portion of the story in The Knight of Blood and Iron came to his mind. Viscount Lacona? The South of the Frontera barony was home to Lacona viscounty. The novel mentioned in brief that Viscount Lacona was a man of extreme extravagance.
A cape in this weather? Yeah, it has to be him.
As Lloyd continued thinking, the unwelcome guests drew closer. As soon as they closed in on Lloyd, one of the men tossed a question at him without any sort of introduction.
“Are you in charge of the construction site?” The voice came from a man riding a black horse.
He was dressed simply but based on his muscular build, the sword tucked into his waist, and adept horse riding, Lloyd could ascertain that the man was a knight. Javier stepped forward and said, “Watch your manners. This noble gentleman here is Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of Baron Frontera, the owner of the Frontera fiefdom. Who do you serve, and what business does your master have to come all the way here?”
“Lloyd Frontera? Hmm. We have a business with the baron of the fiefdom. Pray, where is he?”
Javier’s eyebrow twitched and he had all the right to react that way. He had made it plain and evident that the son of the baron was present. The man, who certainly was a knight, paid no manners to this. Moreover, he even spoke without getting off the horse, unilaterally requesting to meet the baron. His manners bordered on brutishness. However, Javier failed to lash out at the man for his impertinence as he failed to grab the chance to do so. That was because Lloyd immediately cut in before Javier could hurl the harsh words that were just at the tip of his tongue.
“Could it be perhaps that you are Leonero Viscount Lacona?”
“Yes, he is. The eldest son of the Frontera barony better mind his manners to the viscount…”
“Hush. Stay out of this lowlife. The nobles are talking here. Are you Viscount Lacona?”
Lloyd ignored the knight and looked at the man draped in a cape. The knight on the black horse instantly grimaced. The same thing happened to the twenty knights behind him. When he saw their changing faces, Lloyd plastered a bigger smile.
“It is a pleasure to meet you. As my knight has introduced me to you already, I am Lloyd Frontera, the eldest son of Baron Frontera. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”
Viscount Lacona stared at Lloyd instead of answering. Lloyd, in turn, locked his gaze without looking away. Silence blared between them as they stood under the fading summer sun. The viscount was the first to break the silence.
“So the rumors are true about Baron Frontera’s eldest son’s eccentric and impudent manners.”
“Have you heard rumors about me?” Lloyd asked.
“Of course I did. I realize that the rumors were indeed true as we speak at this moment.”
“I am honored. My reputation is soaring through the roof.”
“Anyway,” Lloyd went on, “to what pleasure do I owe your visit?”
“I would like to discuss the matter with your father as much as possible.”
“I would like to find out first what your business is as much as possible.”
“Tsk. You always have a response for everything, don’t you.”
“Thank you,” Lloyd said flatly.
“I came to talk about the territory.”
“By territory, what do you mean?”
“This place, the Maritz Wetland.” The viscount spoke, then looked around.
His goatee twitched as he spoke.
“As a vassal to the King, I hold a duty to manage and protect my fiefdom. However, news of misfortune continued to disturb my spirit in recent days. And it pertains to this place, the Maritz Wetland.”
“What news could that be?”
“That the Frontera family is developing the wetland without any prior negotiations whatsoever with me.”
The viscount continued before pausing for a second.
“You would know it, too. That the Maritz Wetland sits in between the territories of the Frontera barony and my viscounty.”
“Yes, of course I do.” Lloyd nodded his head.
It was true. The Maritz Wetland was sandwiched between the barony and the viscounty.
To be more exact, the north of the wetland belonged to the barony, and the southern part belonged to the viscounty.
In a grave, dignified voice, the viscount said, “Therefore, the southern part of this wetland is under my sole right and ownership. Think about it. What is a fiefdom? It is a land entrusted by the great King for governance.”
“Yes, indeed.”
“Thus, whose duty is it to rule over the land?”
“The lord’s.”
“Yes,” the viscount said. “Now we are talking.”
The corners of his lips rose upward in contentment. That got Lloyd to smile bitterly.
He couldn’t hold it. It came out by reflex. Haha, now I know. Lloyd had speculations in the back of his mind. So he wanted to hear the viscount out to confirm his suspicions. Lloyd saw through why the viscount, who was living in the south, had come all the way up to visit the fiefdom.
It was for a simple reason.
The Maritz Wetland was useless for generations. But he must have heard that his neighboring fiefdom is developing the place. He’d have been dazed at first but not after he calculated the potential profits. And he’d have decided to wait until the development was over. Why? He wanted to wait until the apples fell from the tree. That way, he could demand that a portion of the land belongs to them. Classic free-riding tactic. What a vermin. He’s a true pest.
These kinds of pests were everywhere. They were like flies that dived into poop whenever they found opportunities to make a profit.
It was the same case in South Korea. The swindlers that scammed his father and destroyed his family were like this viscount. Not only that, the phishing scammers were just the same bunch. It wasn’t exclusive to crimes. Such people could be easily found in daily life, too.
Those sly bastards who constantly took more than their share. Those players stayed safely hidden for the entire game except when it was time for the final kill.
That’s just how the world is. Conscience? This place is rife with selfish individuals whose self-interests come first before their conscience.
Lloyd thought this world wasn’t much different. The Maritz Wetland he was newly developing…He had expected that he would attract a swarm of dirty flies and the viscount right in front of him was one of the pests.
So obvious and plain.
This whole situation was already foreseen by Lloyd.
He had seen through it ever since he first planned the development. So, in other words, you picked the wrong person to mess with. Lloyd sneered as he stared at the viscount. How puny and dumbfounding. He had shed sweat, blood, and tears to develop this wetland and how dare this viscount try to freeload on him? Lloyd resolved that he had to act extremely ruthlessly to ensure that such a disgusting idea would be completely wiped out from the viscount’s mind. However, the viscount was kept absolutely private to Lloyd’s swirl of thoughts. He simply kept blabbering, his saliva splattering out of his mouth.
“Therefore, it is only right and proper that you give me the southern half of the Maritz Wetland. Why? Because this holy fief has been bestowed by the great King to me, I must fulfill my loyal duty to look after the land. Am I clear?”
Lloyd didn’t respond.
“As such, you must call the baron immediately. Do not make me waste any more of my time.”
Lloyd remained silent still.
“Do you not hear me?”
“I do very well. There is just a pest in my ears that’s buzzing very loudly.”
“Excuse me?”
The viscount grimaced as Lloyd picked his ears and looked around. It was quiet around him.
Was no one there? No, there were a lot of people surrounding him. The twenty knights brought by the viscount, the civil engineers, and the waterwheel engineer who arrived late, were standing around awkwardly. More than a hundred people were gazing at his side.
Everyone remained wordless, their ears ready to catch every word of the conversation.
A huge crowd meant that the game was on. It’s good that people are around because conflicts like these must-have witnesses. He was happy with the spotlight he was in.
Lloyd brightly smiled. He looked up at the viscount, who was still on his horse.
“I heard you, Viscount. Loud and clear. And what you are claiming as well. As I was listening to you, it just dawned on me that you are well-versed in the art of speaking nonsense. Tell me, was there no one to educate you in your formative years?”
“What…?”
“From now on, we shall have a fruitful time wherein I go over your nonsense one by one to legally illustrate that the words you just spewed are more worthless than dried-up wet wipes.”
Lloyd maintained a bright smile as he spoke and with that smile, Lloyd started to barrage the viscount with sharp criticisms, thus beginning the blitz of merciless truth bombs.