Chapter 44 : Chapter 44

Chapter 44 - Eclipse

—My Lord. The foundation preparations are complete.

A Messenger Ghoul from Jubel.

The magnate had faithfully executed the Youngest Son’s orders on the land he had purchased.

He had looked into whether there were various problems related to the land, but it was a rather unnecessary task.

Because the land itself was the problem.

That problem was followed by an underline in the letter.

—As you know, my Lord, this is a famous piece of land. I had hoped it would have changed a little after so much time has passed, but it was not the case.

Jubel then added various supplementary explanations about the land.

When he first heard the plan, he thought it was a great money-making scheme.

But that scheme and this land did not match.

Still, he followed it because it was my Lord's decision, but this did not make sense.

The conclusion was this.

—I recommend that you give up the land.

I folded the letter.

The Head Maid stood in front of the room.

Knock, knock—

“My Lord. A guest has arrived. It is the Land General Manager.”

An unannounced visit.

An act of rudeness to anyone, not just a blood relative.

But that man was fair.

He was fair because he committed rudeness to everyone in the world.

That terrifying fairness had now come to visit the Youngest Son.

It was most likely because of the land.

Since there was already a lot of talk about this land, including from Jubel.

“I'll be there now.”

At that response, the Head Maid spoke from outside the door.

“My Lord. The Land General Manager is a man of fiery temper and recklessness. You must anticipate his rudeness.”

“I am well aware.”

Answering, I habitually put my hand into my breast pocket.

It was empty.

“…Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue.

The sun had not yet set.

My eyes stung.

Feeling the absence of my sunglasses, my brow furrowed slightly.

Kwoong—

When I opened the door and came out, the Head Maid greeted me.

Following behind me, she opened her mouth as we walked.

“The Land General Manager is very uncomfortable with the situation of your residence proceeding without him.”

“I know that too.”

“I do not know what kind of land you have chosen, my Lord, but the Land General Manager will be able to find a land that pleases you.”

“He will not recommend the land I have chosen. He wouldn't even put it on the list of candidates in the first place.”

“In that case…”

Why did you choose that place?

She seemed to want to ask this, and the Land General Manager would soon ask the same.

There was a reason, but I had no confidence in making them understand right away.

But I had the confidence to prove it.

I had the confidence to make their jaws drop after it was proven.

As I had done until now.

“Land is all about how you use it. The same goes for the negative energy embedded in the land. If you only use the land as it was meant to be, what could be more inefficient than that?”

Kuuuuung—

The door to the reception room opened.

The door hadn't even fully opened yet.

“……”

A giant with eyebrows shaped like 10:10 was standing with his arms crossed.

His forearms and brachioradialis, exposed by his sleeveless shirt, looked not like human skin but like they were embedded with lumps of rock.

His palms, covered in calluses as if he dug the ground with his bare hands, were huge.

So much so that fanning himself with his hands would be enough to get through the summer.

Drrrrk—

He pushed his chair back and stood up.

He was huge even when sitting, but now that he was standing, I had to crane my neck way back.

The tall man, over two meters, bowed his head slightly.

“A pleasure to meet you for the first time. I am Felson, the Land General Manager.”

“Sit.”

The two sat facing each other.

The Head Maid prepared tea for them.

They were clearly cups of the same size.

But when Felson held it, the teacup looked so small it seemed it would disappear.

The Youngest Son opened the conversation.

“If it's not the land I chose, I have no intention of leaving here.”

“…That is your will, my Lord, so it is not for our Land Department to interfere. However, not knowing what kind of land it is, is very irritat… it is bothersome.”

The rough-bearded man, whose beard connected with his hair, corrected his rough words.

He opened his mouth with words he had censored internally.

“At the very least, please tell me. Where that land is and what was done there. This is also for your sake, my Lord. You must know the importance of land.”

“Yes. I hear that if the negative energy harbored by the land and the system a sorcerer trains in match well, it creates a great synergistic effect.”

“It’s not just a simple synergy effect. It is even more so for the new generation of blood relatives like you, my Lord.”

Drrrrrrk—

The Land General Manager spread out a map of the East that he had brought.

It was enormous, like its owner.

Simply unfolding it filled half the reception room table.

The Land General Manager pointed to various places on the map with a sausage-thick index finger.

“Mujin Plains, the largest plain in the East. This is where the First Son has settled. This place was the stage for numerous wars in the past, and many bones were buried here.”

“Thus, it harbors a negative energy suitable for practicing Bone Sorcery.”

Felson nodded and continued.

“That's not the only reason. The First Son's main undead, the Death Knight. The plains are perfect for the white-boned cavalry riding skeleton horses to be active.”

His index finger moved once more.

“The Marsh of the Demonic Hand, where the Second and Third Daughters have taken root. Due to the humidity and fog, there are very many evil spirits.”

“I know what you want to say.”

“No. There is a very high probability that you do not know, my Lord.”

His huge hand swept across the map of the East.

“Point to it. But before that, you must make a judgment.”

Whether the negative energy of the land matches one's system.

Whether the power of one's private soldiers can be maximized.

Whether there are any other human kingdoms or even small villages nearby.

Whether there are any ethnic minorities who have lived there for a long time.

Whether there is a way to be supplied with goods and procure them.

Whether it is not too close to other blood relatives.

Whether it is a suitable place for defense.

And most importantly.

“Whether there is a dungeon.”

Among the many points of caution, this was the first thing to check.

But for some reason.

“Oh dear. This is a problem.”

The corners of the Youngest Son's mouth drew a deep arc upon hearing the last cautionary point.

“If you exclude that last condition, you can rest assured about all the others.”

“……”

The Youngest Son's pure white index finger pointed to a spot on the map.

It was already marked for easy pointing.

Of course, the skull symbol next to the mark was unsettling, but it was definitely here.

“Dungeon Eclipse. This is the site for my house.”

Dungeon. And house site.

Words of opposite poles that should not be together were coexisting.

The Land General Manager, unable to even let out a hollow laugh at the claim, first let out a sigh.

Haaaa—

It was a long, long sigh.

The sigh was laced with patheticness and frustration, even contempt and disgust.

But the target of that sigh was smiling and enjoying his tea.

It was because he had recently become very rich.

The good fragrance from good tea leaves clears even a sunken mind or mood.

Since the tea here actually had a small buff effect.

The Youngest Son pointed to the teacup.

“Have some. I recently brought it in, and the fragrance is very good.”

“…The Selbion Plains of the West. The region has a volcano, so the land is rich in nutrients, and thanks to that, excellent tea leaves are produced.”

“You know well. You must like tea.”

“No. I just like land.”

Thus, as a land expert, he remonstrated.

“My Lord. There are many eccentrics and madmen in the East. But Eclipse is something even those people don't touch.”

Dungeon. In other words, a demonic realm.

That title is not easily given.

“That place is like the Pantheon without Millesdusk. It's a place where uncontrolled negative energies run rampant like monsters, so the place itself is a curse.”

“That's why I chose it. Because a curse cannot kill me.”

“Haa…”

He spoke the truth, but the Land General Manager's expression became even more grim.

A young blood relative who didn't know the world and was overconfident.

The Land General Manager clenched his teeth and spoke again.

“My Lord. The East was once the domain of demon worshippers, and Eclipse was their holy land.”

“I know.”

“The first Family Head pacified the East and wiped them out, but the demonic power still remains to this day, spewing out a curse-like negative energy. As proof.”

The powerful negative energy rejects the light of the world.

And it carved into the sky that this place was the home of darkness and a land of eternal shadow.

“Eclipse. The moment you enter Eclipse, the sun hides its face from you. The only sunlight you see is the remaining halo after being obscured.”

“I love it.”

“……”

“My sunglasses just broke, so I needed to get new ones. It’ll be convenient until then.”

His beard trembled.

It seemed to be due to anger, frustration, or both.

“…My Lord. You must be vigilant. Eclipse is a treacherous place where even the sun in the sky has a hard time seeing, a place where it doesn't show its face.”

“Didn't you say you were a land expert? I'd believe you if you said you were a poet.”

“……”

He clutched his pants.

If he grabbed something else, he felt like he would break it.

Barely suppressing his harsh words—

“Fuck, my Lord.”

…He couldn't hold back.

Still, he had to say what needed to be said.

“Does that bastard, the Construction General Manager, know this fact too?”

“I haven't announced it yet, but.”

“Even if you announce it, he won't move. He cherishes his subordinates so much, why would he drive them into such a demonic realm?”

“Hmm.”

“No one can enter there. To suppress the negative energy, one must enter the center of Eclipse, and to get there, a normal level of curse resistance is not enough.”

“You talk too much. And you're a coward.”

“…My Lord. This isn't a matter of cowardice. It's a realm of life and death, a matter of whether you live or die.”

You could see him holding back his temper in his muscles.

The hairy pectoral muscles beyond the two or three unbuttoned shirt buttons twitched every time he spoke.

“The matter of life and death. I may not know about land, but I have pondered that matter far more than you.”

“……”

“At the end of that contemplation, I decided. I must go to Eclipse to live.”

“Even so… Even if the Land Development Department completely withdraws from this project. The Construction General Manager will not set foot there.”

“I'll take care of that problem.”

What did he mean he'd take care of it?

In that demonic realm, one would die as soon as they entered with mediocre power.

Unless one was of the Millesdusk bloodline or someone well-known by name, they wouldn't last a day.

The negative energy that entered the lungs with every breath spread like poison, causing illness.

The monsters created by Eclipse's negative energy took on the form of demons and were exceedingly ferocious.

But what did he mean take care of—

“Land General Manager. Let me ask you one thing.”

“…What is it?”

The Youngest Son, who had crossed his legs and placed both hands on his knees.

Unlike the Land General Manager, who was panting as if he had just been in a battle, he was calm.

Moreover, the question he was about to ask required such calmness.

“Let's think about it. Only the advantages, set aside the disadvantages like negative energy, and just think about the advantages.”

“It's meaningless.”

“You said you're a land expert. You said you love land. Then haven't you imagined it at least once? What it would be like if that demonic realm, where not even a single mouse lives, could actually be used?”

“……”

As if the words hit the mark, his head dropped slightly.

But the Youngest Son's head shook gently.

“No? Then I'm disappointed. A man who claims to have tasted all the soil in the East has no greed for the soil he hasn't tasted yet.”

The Youngest Son stood up.

As he was about to leave with his hands behind his back.

“Pantheon.”

A huge hand pointed to a spot on the map of the East.

It was the headquarters of Millesdusk.

The index finger then pointed to Eclipse.

“If you get rid of only the disadvantages, it is a propitious site comparable to the Pantheon of Millesdusk.”

The Pantheon was a case where Millesdusk settled and drew out more of the inherent negative energy.

But Eclipse was a case where the negative energy accumulated in the land due to demon worshippers and their offering rituals was violent.

It meant that one could obtain Pantheon-level negative energy without the need for development.

Furthermore, demonic power was an unexplored field of study even in the East.

Such forbidden knowledge was abundant in Eclipse.

Just looking at the Balum family, they achieved overwhelming prosperity and became affiliated with Millesdusk with the power of Demonization alone.

Everything in this world is about how you use it and what you do with it.

Eclipse was the same.

“A good answer. I will take it into consideration.”

The Youngest Son left the reception room, leaving the silent Land General Manager behind.

The item he had left in safekeeping.

It was time to go check on the toy he had ordered from the lady from the West.

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