Chapter 98

"It's vast, but truly a barren wilderness."

The "Hertania Valley" that the Baumaster family received in exchange for a reduction in the settlement payment was extremely expansive.

The nearly rectangular area was mostly barren rock and wasteland where even grass and trees barely grew, and the numerous mountains were all barren rock formations with no vegetation. Additionally, there was a massive fault line running east to west through the center, about a hundred kilometers long, a hundred meters wide, and a hundred meters deep, making it unsuitable for agriculture even if it weren't a monster's territory.

In fact, this Hertania Valley was a part of the Brova Margrave's territory, located near the border with the eastern and southern regions. According to ancient magical civilization texts, it was a dense area of mineral deposits.

The ancient documents also detailed the types and locations of the minerals that could be extracted, and the central fault line seemed to be a mineral deposit of some kind. It was recorded that the fault line itself had been expanded by mining.

For some reason, the ancient magical civilization had abandoned this Hertania Valley, and the subsequent rulers who controlled it consistently failed to effectively utilize this treasure trove.

The Brova Margrave family, along with several other noble families and the royal family, had attempted to open it up in the past but failed.

Each failure resulted in numerous casualties, and the frequent failures led to the current evaluation by the Adventurer's Guild that it was "reckless to enter."

As a result, even the Adventurer's Academy did not disclose any information about it, to prevent young, adventurous adventurers from attempting to enter recklessly. I, too, did not know about the existence of Hertania Valley until I came of age.

Katarina knew about it because she was looking for a place where she could achieve a feat worthy of a noble title.

"Did you know about it, Blantark?"

"Only the name. In the past, many adventurers dreamed of striking it rich by opening it up."

We, who had successfully negotiated a settlement, stood on a ridge overlooking Hertania Valley, aboard Henrik's small magical airship.

"There's no sign of life here."

"Can you see that stone monument over there?"

"Yes."

Blantark pointed to a stone monument with no inscription.

"El, cross that line just a little bit."

"Okay."

As El crossed the stone monument and took a step further, I immediately detected a reaction that seemed to be from a monster.

"El!"

"I know!"

Suddenly, a wolf leaped out from behind a rock and pounced on El. Upon closer inspection, the wolf appeared to be made of stone.

"Is it a Rock Golem?"

Two more wolves leaped out, and the stone wolves that attacked El totaled three. If it were me, I would have been in trouble, but El cut them down one by one, almost as if she were dancing. It seemed that the stone wolves would stop moving if their heads or hearts were cut off.

Three piles of broken rocks formed, and El returned, picking up what looked like magic stones and minerals.

"Ah, what a good sword... I'll have to get it sharpened later."

El sighed, looking at her sword, which had chipped.

"Anyway, that's how it is."

In the past, sacrifices led to the erection of the stone monument to mark the boundary of the territory, and the surrounding area, being mostly barren rock and wasteland, had few visitors. If you stepped even a foot into the boundary line, mysterious stone beasts would attack, and defeating them would yield magic stones and minerals.

"Vell, what are these minerals?"

"Low-quality iron ore."

"Really? It's not worth it!"

Analyzing the minerals revealed low iron content, and the magic stones were of extremely low quality. Yet, just cutting down three of them had damaged El's expensive sword.

"In other words, defeating these things results in a loss, not a profit."

It was unsuitable as a hunting ground for adventurers, and if El had stayed longer in the territory, the number of stone monsters attacking her would have increased to dozens, hundreds, or even thousands.

"If an army were sent to mine the mineral deposits, they would eventually be surrounded by stone monsters. And, outnumbered, they would end up as corpses."

According to Blantark, deeper in the territory, the remains of a defeated army could be found. Recovery was too dangerous, so they were left as they were.

"According to ancient texts, there is a large mithril deposit."

Mithril, essential for high-quality weapons and magical tools, was always in short supply, so its value remained high. A few high-ranking mages, including myself, could manufacture it by adding magic power to silver, but the quantity was very limited. Existing mines were even forcibly extracting low-content ores, which naturally increased the cost.

Our new mithril mine in our territory was so valuable that the kingdom had urged us to start mining as soon as possible, accelerating the operation.

"Either obtain a large mithril deposit or be wiped out. It's a tough choice... By the way, do you have a question?"

"What is it?"

"Why is Karla here?"

The arbitration between the Brova Margrave family and the Baumaster family had concluded, yet Karla had not left our side and had followed us here.

"Because the arbitration between the Breihreider Margrave family and the Brova Margrave family has not concluded."

"Wasn't she a prisoner of the Breihreider Margrave family?"

"Half of her is. The other half is because El convinced her to become a prisoner, so the Baumaster family also has rights."

"The rights and interests are quite serious."

"Ransom is also an important source of income."

It's not possible to split a person in half. However, placing Karla in a male-dominated environment would be dangerous, so she was entrusted to us. Since we were heading to Hertania Valley, she accompanied us, and El was happily talking to her.

For El, who was in love with her, being together was a cause for great joy.

"Elvin, your sword skills are excellent."

"No, compared to Karla's bow, they're nothing special."

El's mustache grew as he was praised by Karla.

"Still, it's impressive that the Brova family agreed."

"Leaving her there would serve no purpose. But bringing her with the Earl might open up possibilities."

"Sure, sure. I'll fall in love with Karla, right?"

"Her brothers are confident. Karla is beautiful, after all."

Indeed, she was as beautiful as Elise and Katarina, if not more so. Her slightly reserved demeanor would likely make her a popular choice for a wife among the men of this country.

"What does the Earl think?"

"She is beautiful, I think..."

She was undoubtedly beautiful, and she reminded me of someone from my student days. I thought it might be dangerous, but I didn't really have romantic feelings for her. I was more impressed by her archery talent and had developed a sense of respect, which prevented such feelings from arising.

"Is that how it is?"

"Also, it wouldn't be fair to El..."

Seeing El's attitude toward Karla, no one in the Baumaster family could miss his feelings. It was clearly a mismatch, but since I had no intention of marrying Karla, I found myself watching from a distance more often.

"Does he understand his position?"

"I think he's putting in more effort because he understands."

"Claus..."

Claus interrupted our conversation. In fact, I knew that Claus was giving El some kind of advice.

While Claus was suspicious, I didn't think he would suggest anything nefarious to El, and El wouldn't accept it. However, the suspicion and unease were hard to shake.

"Are you trying to incite El to create chaos in the Baumaster family?"

"Even if I were to plan such a thing, no one would listen to me in the current situation."

It was always like this, but my sarcastic remarks actually helped Claus. Since he was the executor of the rebellion, it was easier for him to work while being criticized by me.

"Is that so? Then, what about El?"

"It's a simple matter."

To successfully open Hertania Valley and further put the Brova family in a difficult position. If that happened, the Brova family might relax the conditions for Karla's marriage.

"The possibility is high, but will El be told?"

There were other central nobles and powerful eastern nobles who could help the Brova family rebuild after their decline. There were many potential candidates.

"The possibility is high, but the current situation leaves no choice but to rely on that possibility. Moreover, I think there's more potential than expected. After all, Karla followed Vendelin."

The goal is to marry her into our family or its surroundings to gain a stake in the development rights. If that happens, the losses from this conflict could be recovered.

"Having Karla by Vendelin's side might be a strategy to impress other nobles."

"Or has she already become my fiancée?"

"I don't think it's that far, but it does make the Brova family's intentions clear to the surroundings."

The Brova family wants to send Karla to the Baumaster family at all costs. Ideally, to the head of the family, but even a vassal would suffice if the situation worsens.

Especially for El, who is my close friend and is often around, he is a prime target. Indeed, El is currently treated as my favored vassal. I didn't say it, but others think so on their own.

"His eyes seem quite gentle, though..."

Still, El needs to work for the Baumaster family as a vassal in Hertania Valley. To keep his spirits up, he needs to hold