Chapter 31

Geist, who had even been made to write a pledge under the name of God, was now in a state as if his fangs had been pulled out and a collar placed around his neck.

Geist's subordinates dispersed one by one. It was questionable whether they would gather again under him, even if he vowed to rise again.

Sora turned his back on Geist and approached Lazzette and the others.

"Lazzette, Cole, you both did well. Are you hurt?"

"Yes, everyone is fine."

Sora let out a sigh of relief at Lazzette's answer.

"Explain the situation when we left the village."

Sora turned his gaze to Riru and Sania.

As Riru explained, Sora looked down sadly.

"I see, Zessu..."

Sora turned back to Geist. He thought that it would have been more satisfying to quickly behead him, but he had no intention of doing so.

"We'll look for Zessu later to check on his safety."

After saying that, Sora thought.

Losing the village was a blow, but he had already resigned himself to it. However, losing Zessu was a tremendous loss.

Sora was short of capable people.

Zessu could take care of children, secure food through fishing, and was a well-established adult. He had also given a good impression to the town through the sale of Ogarite.

It wasn't someone he could easily replace.

Sora placed a hand on his hip and pondered, then turned and approached Geist.

"Geist, I have something to talk about."

Geist, called by name, looked up at Sora with an empty gaze. In fact, he was looking at Lazzette behind him.

Sora narrowed his eyes, realizing that Geist still thought Lazzette was the mastermind. He decided not to correct him, as it would make the conversation smoother.

"I'll give you the rights to sell Ogarite."

As Sora spoke, a light returned to Geist's eyes. He had thought the rights would be taken away.

While lowering his opinion of Geist as a greedy person, Sora continued.

"But if you interfere with us again, I won't forgive you. I'll crush you without hesitation."

With that, Sora left with Lazzette and the others.

Geist, watching their backs, slowly stood up and walked towards the church, with Sharina by his side.

Perhaps to avoid getting involved in the commotion, they took a less crowded path. Geist glanced sideways at Sharina.

"Sharina, do you know what Lazzette's purpose is?"

"I don't know what Lazzette is thinking, but I know what Lord Sora is thinking."

By the way, the one who developed Ogarite was supposed to be the heir. Remembering this, Geist asked Sharina about Sora's thoughts.

"He says he wants to create a territory where no one goes hungry. It's impossible."

"Is it really impossible...?"

"Huh?"

Sharina asked back briefly. Geist was looking back at the lord's mansion.

"Either a fool who defies God or a fool like God. Either way, he's not normal."

Sighing, Geist thought he had been collared by a madman beyond his comprehension and retreated to the church.

In any case, if he became the chief bishop, he would be assigned to the capital from the Kleinzelt territory. Then he wouldn't have to deal with Lazzette anymore.

Thinking of this, he suddenly remembered.

"No one died this time."

Sharina, who seemed to be thinking the same thing, laughed carefree.

At the same time, Sora, who had entered his private room, received a bag from Riru.

"I also drew a map."

Riru took out a map from her pocket.

The information on the terrain was quite rough. It was obvious to anyone that it couldn't be used as a proper map.

"Is this a map of the village?"

Sania tilted her head. It was barely recognizable as a map of the village.

Looking at the somewhat embarrassed Riru, Sora nodded in satisfaction.

"The necessary information is written. Well done."

"What is this map exactly?"

When Lazzette asked, Sora spread the map on the table and scattered the contents of the bag Riru had given him.

Various shells appeared from the bag.

"The symbols on the back of the shells correspond to those on the map."

Following Sora's instructions, Lazzette and Cole placed the shells on the map.

Even after placing all the shells, only Sora and Riru understood the meaning of the map.

"I don't understand at all."

Sora and Riru exchanged glances and laughed at Lazzette's dissatisfied face.

"This is a distribution map of several types of shells. And..."

Sora took out a small, milky-white pearl from a drawer in the desk.

"In my hands, it becomes a treasure map."

Holding up the pearl with a confident smile, Sora said to everyone.

"Let's make pearls."

Everyone's eyes widened at Sora's words.

Cole looked at Riru, but she also seemed surprised, as she hadn't been told this much.

"Riru, tell me the characteristics of the shells I asked you to investigate."

Pointing at Riru, Sora seemed unaffected by the shock.

Coming to her senses, Riru picked up a shell nearby and showed its inside.

"The inside of the shell is shiny."

"That's right. Pearls can only be made by certain shells. The characteristic you mentioned is the condition."

Pearls can only be made by shells that have a nacreous layer inside. In most cases, the nacreous layer reflects light and shines. The color of the pearl varies depending on the pigment the shell has, which differs by species.

"The pearl is a swollen nacreous layer. In other words, to make a pearl, you need to cover the core with the nacreous layer."

Shells have a mantle, an organ that produces the shell. By transplanting a piece of the shell as the core along with the mantle, a pearl can be formed.

While small stones can be used as the core, Sora thought that shells were more suitable for shaping.

Riru listened to Sora's explanation with great interest, perhaps her curiosity in biology had been piqued.

"Then why did you investigate the distribution of the shells?"

"To catch live shells efficiently and to find out what they eat."

Sora didn't know the details of what the shells ate or where they reproduced, so he investigated their habitat to apply it to aquaculture.

"If you insert the core into the mantle of the shell, it will become a pearl."

Though he was only vaguely remembering, Sora said confidently to avoid making everyone anxious.

Several tools are needed for pearl cultivation, such as a device to insert the core into the shell. This device was developed by the Japanese, which led to the flourishing of the pearl cultivation industry in Japan.

Sora was concerned about the production of this tool. A shoddy one could damage and kill the shell.

Although he knew it was wishful thinking, he wanted an excellent craftsman.

He had to convince himself to make do with what he could.

"Cole, go around the town's workshops and find someone skilled in craftsmanship. Lazzette, look for land with conditions similar to the distribution map. Riru, get some sleep and get rid of the dark circles under your eyes. Sania, let me touch your ears—"

"No way."

"Right, I guess."

Everyone chuckled at Sora, who hadn't changed even at this point.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door, and tension filled the room. They might have been overheard.

"Excuse me."

The maid who entered to change Sora's clothes immediately lit up when she saw Riru. She felt like she had found a new doll.

The maid looked around the room and beckoned to Lazzette.

"You have a visitor."

Hearing "visitor," Lazzette looked at Sora, thinking another person like Geist had appeared.

"Who is it?"

The maid placed a hand on her cheek, trying to remember.

"The young man you brought before. He told Lord Sora about fishing..."

Lazzette's expression changed, and she rushed out of the room, pushing the maid aside.

Riru and Sania exchanged glances and quickly followed Lazzette.

Cole, left behind, looked at Sora with a troubled expression.

"He's still alive. He's got a strong streak of bad luck."

While muttering under his breath, Sora stood up, looking pleased.

Lazzette was probably having an emotional reunion with Zessu right now.

November 2nd

Typo correction

December 14th correction

April 5th correction