History of the Greatest Territory Design - Episode 57
57fury. devil's contract (2)
The air in the reception room suddenly became cold..
A deep anger appeared in the Viscount's eyes..
Lloyd's expression became more calm as he received those stares..
“Of course?”
I shrugged my shoulders.
I tilted my head.
I shamelessly asked back.
“It seems that the Viscount is still unable to let go of his pride? In fact, you had suspected it before, and after checking it out in your mind, you must have been shocked. But, ‘Was it really you?’ Isn’t that a very contrived question??”
“what…….”
“You look good now. Let's keep going like this.”
Just!
I buried myself on the sofa and raised my hands..
I snapped my fingers in a cheerful gesture..
“look. As expected, the Viscount must have guessed that I did it. It would have been better if I had spoken honestly as soon as I saw your face..”
“……So, I guess you're the one who played a prank on our dye workshop.?”
“yes. I did it.”
“What on earth have you done?.”
“Are you curious about the method??”
“Phew. of course.”
The Viscount sighed heavily, still glaring at Lloyd..
It had to be that way..
dye workshop.
When I think of the recent incident there, I can't help but sigh..
‘My most precious dye workshop…….’
The dye workshop was the goose that laid golden eggs for the Viscount..
Laconata, fabric dyed with specially treated concentrate of Laconata fruit.).
The Laconata fabric made that way was extremely beautiful..
Gorgeous and colorful colors were basic..
The unique deep luster, which is difficult to describe in writing, was exquisite..
It was impossible to even imitate it in other territories..
It was the same even if I used radish or fruit..
The western slope of the Eastern Mountain Range.
The unique color could only be achieved by using radona fruits collected locally..
If you plant the Ladona fruit here somewhere else,?
The unique color and luster did not appear..
It was not possible to transport and use radona fruit..
If so, the fruit deteriorated during transportation..
Likewise, the color of the fabric also changed..
In addition, the Viscounty Territory had special know-how accumulated through producing Laconata for over a hundred years..
Thanks to this, Laconata cloth was able to be treated as a rare specialty product produced only here in the Viscounty of Lacona..
Naturally, it was also the biggest source of income for the Viscounty of Lacona..
It was literally a goose that laid precious golden eggs..
But at some point the goose became strange..
No, he died..
‘that… … It was ridiculous..’
It was a morning about 50 days ago..
He said the dye workshop supervisor came to visit him..
As soon as he saw himself, he immediately started wishing..
I'm sorry.
I committed a mortal sin.
They said the Laconata fabric came out strangely..
They said that when they finished dyeing their hair, the color changed strangely. It was said that the unique luster had completely disappeared..
‘At first I thought it was just that day.’
I thought it was just one day's worth of results that were strange..
There was something wrong with the raw fruit or.
Or maybe there's something wrong with the fabric.
I just thought so..
But it wasn't.
The next day too.
The next day too.
Even after ten days.
As a month goes by.
The original color and luster of Laconata fabric did not return..
The once beautiful color has become dull and dark like never before..
The once beautiful luster became dull and dull..
A waste product that cannot be sold.
It has turned into nothing more than trash..
‘It was from then on..’
The dye workshop is on alert..
The raw material, radona fruit, was completely ground up..
I had to throw away all the concentrate I had stored and make a new one..
Nevertheless, Laconata's color did not return..
I even tried changing the fabric entirely..
But the result was the same.
The lost luster also did not return..
Merchants who had been steadily purchasing natural Laconata turned away..
Even the customers I had been doing business with for quite some time began to cut off one by one..
The source of income for the Viscounty, which had always been reliable, had disappeared..
However, the cause of the situation could not be found until it got to that point..
Why did Laconata lose its color and luster?.
Even after numerous attempts.
No matter how hard you try.
Couldn't figure out the cause.
As a viscount, it was like going crazy and jumping around..
The stress got so bad that I lost a handful of hair every day..
I had a stomach ache, and sore water came up my throat every night..
Nevertheless, all the Viscount could do was to raise doubts without any benefit..
‘Yeah, that guy. Lloyd Frontera. It was all I could do to doubt that guy.!’
In fact, it was just a suspicion without any evidence..
But I couldn't help but doubt.
Because he discharged wastewater from the dye factory without permission..
Because he caused great damage to the Barony of Frontera and even threatened it..
At this point, he thought that the people who would hold the greatest grudge against him would be the Frontera family..
And among them, the most likely suspect(?) was Lloyd..
‘A young but thorough guy.’
The thoroughness and cunning that has already been shown several times.
I thought that with that kind of personality, he would be able to get away with doing something like this. No matter how much I thought about it, the only person I could think of who would do something like this was Lloyd..
What I didn't know was just how the trick was done..
That is why the Viscount gave his permission for Lloyd's unannounced visit and meeting request today..
I wanted to confirm.
What tricks did you do in your dye workshop?.
I just wanted to find out how to do it..
“On a topic so pointless, what on earth have you done to my dye workshop??”
The Viscount gritted his teeth..
I glared at Lloyd..
curse?
Or bad magic?
Otherwise, I couldn't explain it..
Lloyd chuckled..
“Hmm. First of all, I would like to praise you for pointing me out as the cause. You have better reasoning skills than you look. But what should I do with this?.”
he shrugged.
“Strictly speaking, the incident that occurred at Viscount's dye workshop was not something I did intentionally.?”
“What does that mean?.”
It wasn't done on purpose..
What kind of pun are you trying to make again?.
The Viscount’s expression hardened..
Lloyd's smile deepened..
And finally, the cause of the situation that occurred in the dye workshop was revealed..
“Isn’t that something that inevitably happened while building an aqueduct?.”
“aqueduct?”
“yes. It was built in a valley. beautifully.”
“What does that have to do with the work of our dye workshop? Say it right! Don't spin it around like you're teasing me!”
Finally, the Viscount exploded..
He sat down on the edge of the sofa and stretched out his upper body towards Lloyd across the table..
Lloyd leaned back comfortably on the sofa..
“Tsk. You have an impatient personality. Do you know the properties of limestone??”
“……what?”
“Limestone is a type of sedimentary rock made of calcium carbonate..”
“what is that…….”
What kind of nonsense is that?.
Lloyd’s calm explanation continued..
“Many living things, including clams, corals, sponges, plankton, etc., make their skeletons or shells from calcium carbonate. And when they die, that calcium carbonate accumulates at the bottom of the sea. It is deposited over countless periods of time and sticks together tightly. That's limestone.”
“What are you talking about now?.”
“Shh. Let’s listen carefully until the end. In any case, the limestone produced in this way is used as an excellent building material. Like this time when I was building an aqueduct in a valley halfway up a mountain range. And on the other hand, the limestone ground turns the surrounding water into lime water..”
“limewater……?”
“yes. It sounds big, but it's actually simple. The calcium and magnesium ions in limestone are dissolved in water, so the ratio of various minerals is slightly changed..”
“Well, what does that have to do with the dye workshop now?.”
“It matters..”
“why?”
“The water flowing at the bottom of the valley where I built the aqueduct is the headwaters of the Prona River that flows to the Viscount's domain and our domain..”
“what……?”
The viscount's frozen expression turned blank..
It was like someone got punched in the back of the head..
Lloyd's calm explanation continued..
“Do you have any idea now? We worked hard on blasting to build an aqueduct in the valley. The limestone bedrock buried on the slopes of the valley was blasted, dug up, and pulled out. Oh, and in the process, a lot of tools were used to finely chop and process the quarried limestone. Huge amounts of limestone debris and flakes were spread throughout the valley. Countless, like the pebbles and sand at the bottom of the valley. Thanks to you-”
Lloyd's smile the whole time.
That smile slowly became evil.
“This means that the valley water has become slightly closer to lime water than before..”
“then… … no way… … The reason why the color of Laconata in our dye workshop changed…….”
“yes. This is due to a subtle change in the composition of Prona River..”
“what… … does not make sense…….”
“Of course, you probably didn't realize it at all. Because the change is so slight and subtle. It's not like I can taste it. It is unlikely to have a significant impact on people or the environment..”
Lloyd's evil smile deepened..
It was as he said..
Limestone blasting and processing carried out in the valley.
Because of this, it is difficult to say that there were many minerals that flowed into the valley water..
In fact, the impact on people, other living things, and the surrounding environment was also minimal..
A similar example of its effect on the human body was comparable to the radioactivity of potassium contained in the tropical fruit banana..
‘Although bananas contain radioactive isotopes of potassium, you would have to eat at least 100 million bananas a day to be exposed to radiation from eating them. It's similar to that, the changes and effects that will occur in the human body due to the mineral ingredients mixed in Prona River. To die from excessive minerals, would it be enough to drink 100 million liters of river water??’
As such, the impact of limewater inflow was minimal..
Of course, this only applies to people and the environment..
“However, the work at Viscount’s dye workshop will be different. You will probably be using river water during the dyeing and cleaning process. That's probably because the wastewater flowing into our territory was created that way. That's right?”
“…….”
“That's the way it is. It's called chemical action. Oh, I guess you don’t know what chemistry is. In any case, even small changes that have no effect on humans can have a big impact on sensitive tasks such as dyeing..”
“That, like that…….”
“Oh, what should I do with this? My heart is about to break. I also liked the Laconata fabric because it was pretty..”
“…….”
“But now you can't save that Laconata forever. That river will be in that state for at least 10 years. However, there would be no way to bring water from somewhere else and use it. What happens if you make distilled water to remove limescale? In the end, the composition of the water will change again, so the Laconata color will still be in a runaway state..”
“I'm going to file a complaint! I will definitely inform the noble court of this injustice.!”
“Yes, please file a complaint..”
The viscount shouted in annoyance..
Lloyd accepted it with a sly smile..
“Feel free to file a complaint if you wish. So do you think you can win??”
“what?”
“Limewater is not a pollutant in the first place. Of course, it is not a toxic ingredient either..”
“…….”
The Viscount was speechless..
Lloyd's merciless fact violence, no, bombing continued..
“Besides, what should I do with this? The limestone and countless stone fragments scattered in the valley were not sprinkled on purpose. It was inevitably sprinkled during the development process. Do you know that this does not satisfy the ‘intentionality of the act’ that is considered important in the law of the kingdom??”
“intention, intention?”
“yes. The intentionality of the act. This means that the action was not clearly intended to cause harm. Moreover, if you look at this situation more closely, the cause lies with you.?”
“Why do I have it?!”
“The Viscount illegally discharged toxic wastewater into the Prona River, which flows into our territory. So, to overcome that problem, they worked hard to build an aqueduct in the valley. In the process of that act, we had no choice but to blast the limestone for quarrying, the valley water turned into lime water, and the color of the Viscount's precious Laconata cloth changed like a shit-colored monster shouting Good Morning Hellgate. That's right.”
“Heh, heh... … Mmm, what… … that…….”
“Oh my. Do you understand now? But don't cry.”
“Nonsense. Nonsense…….”
The upper body of the viscount was leaning forward as much as possible..
The back of the sofa collapsed helplessly..
I let my body hang down helplessly..
I looked at the ceiling with devastated eyes..
The self-made man finally realized the cause of this situation..
His eyes were already unfocused..
‘I guess I got hit hard by that guy..’
I felt like I got hit in the back with a hammer..
But I couldn't think of a way to escape..
No matter how hard I tried or how hard I thought, there was no solution..
Filed before the noble court?
I thought that was useless too..
‘I can't win. It's just as he said. Because lime water is not toxic at all. Because it's just water. But what can I file a complaint about?.’
Moreover, even if I filed a complaint, even if heaven really helped me and won in court, there seemed to be no answer..
‘It will take at least a year for a ruling to be made..’
During that time, the Laconata fabric will continue to be in the same condition as it is now..
Many business partners will run out..
In other words, you lose your specialty and become a beggar..
‘That devilish guy!’
Lloyd looking here and smiling happily.
I got goosebumps at that sight..
I couldn't even guess how far that guy had planned and calculated this situation..
No, it seemed like even if I struggled here, that guy would have calculated it all in advance and would deal a bigger blow..
‘That guy would be good enough.’
My fingertips naturally trembled..
A feeling of defeat that cannot be escaped.
A feeling of despair that cannot be overcome.
Isn’t this how an ant in ant hell feels?.
Someone told me to calm down and close my eyes when I'm having a hard time in life..
The darkness I saw felt like my future..
‘I can't win. there is no way for this.’
In the end, the Viscount gave up..
No matter how hard I calculated, there was no way to win..
So there was only one option left for him..
“I… … I was wrong.”
The Viscount bowed his head..
He said with a sad face.
“We will immediately stop discharging wastewater into your domain. So please do this. Just this once... … Can you please forgive me??”
“Forgiveness??”
“That's right.”
The Viscount bowed his head even more deeply..
I was grinding my teeth inside, but there was nothing I could do..
But Lloyd got an unexpected answer..
“Hmm. But what should I do with this? River water turned into limewater, there is no way to do that..”
“……what?”
“This means that no matter how much we try to remove the pieces of limestone that have spread across the valley, it will be of no use. Because of the large-scale blasting work, the limestone bedrock was exposed too much..”
“what is that…….”
“It's true. Originally it was a limestone bedrock, lightly covered by a layer of siliceous rock, a clastic sediment. It must have been surrounding the limestone like some kind of membrane. But it was all broken. There is no way now because all the limestone has been exposed..”
“Oh, no, what does that mean? then…….”
“This means that the river will continue to be like this in the future..”
“…….”
The Viscount was at a loss for words..
I thought there would be some solution if I apologized..
That was the last hope he had left..
That hope was about to disappear.
But that was then..
The devil sitting in front of me.
No, Lloyd Frontera smiled meaningfully..
“Well, since you're asking for forgiveness like that, it's not like there's no way to bring back the Viscount's Laconata.?”
“Well, something, that method!”
“Oh my. Please let go of your sleeves.”
“Oh, I'm sorry. I'm in a hurry so stop…….”
“That's it. Because I understand how you feel. So let me make a suggestion..”
“proposal?”
“yes, offer.”
The Viscount bit his lip and looked at Lloyd..
I waited for the proposal he would make..
Lloyd's mouth finally opened..
“The suggestion I would like to make is this. Viscount? The dye workshop and specialty product, Laconata, is precious to you.?”
“Yeah, that's right.”
“You definitely want to revive it and protect it.?”
“Of course that too.”
“great. then-”
Lloyd's smile became happy..
Two months ago, when the wastewater incident first occurred,.
The big picture I had in mind was finally brought out as a proposal..
“If you want to revive that specialty and continue the beautiful tradition, you can also bring water from our territory. Of course, you pay a large water bill every month..”
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