"Ppoddong!"
A hole punched through the dirt wall.
Ppoddong stuck its head out through the hole.
It beamed at Lloyd, who was slumped in front of the wall.
Lloyd opened his mouth in disbelief.
"Ppoddong...?"
"Ppoddong!"
"Really, is that you?"
"Ppododong! Ppoddong!"
Ppoddong nodded vigorously.
Recent events flashed through Ppoddong's small, round head.
♣
Just a few days ago, Ppoddong had been terribly bored.
Lloyd spent all day obsessed with the mine development project.
Bangul was also mobilized for the construction, away from home the whole day.
But Ppoddong had nothing to do.
It spent its days rolling around in its room.
It was fun at first, but continuing like that was no way to live.
A bone-chilling boredom.
Finally, it burst out of Lloyd's room.
It wandered around the mansion, sightseeing this way and that.
That's when it ran into a woman tending the flowers in the mansion's flower bed.
Lloyd's mother, the Baroness.
The Baroness was overjoyed to meet it.
And she said something like this.
'I can't thank you enough. Lately, a few rats have been ruining the flower bed, and it's been such a headache. You're related to them, right? If it's possible, could you go ask them to stop? Please tell those little ones on my behalf not to damage the flower bed.'
...That was the request.
Of course, it accepted.
It had nothing better to do anyway.
Excited, it dashed off to the grassy fields after taking the request.
That's when it all began.
Over several days, Ppoddong searched for the rat packs near the mansion.
It finally spotted a group of rats and even met their leader.
There, it made a fairly polite proposal to the rat leader.
'Ppoddong! Ppododong? Ppoddong!'
A proposal not to use the Baroness's flower bed as a playground.
But the rat leader replied like this.
'Squeak! Squeek? Squeak-squeak!'
A reply that it had no idea what Ppoddong was saying.
In other words, Ppoddong didn't know the rats' language, and the rats didn't know Ppoddong's.
A regrettable failure of negotiations.
The start of war(?), too.
Ppoddong declared war on the rat pack.
Every time it spotted the rat group, it charged bravely.
It pinned them with its belly, flicked them with its butt, headbutted them.
Each time, the rats fled in panic.
Today was no different.
Ppoddong chased the rat pack's leader.
But the rat leader was quicker than expected.
It kept escaping just out of reach.
Ppoddong pursued doggedly.
It passed the mansion garden, raced down the approach road, through the village, to the mountain base, and reached the under-construction tunnel.
And somehow, it went past the tunnel into the ant nest.
'Ppoddong?'
It had entered an unfamiliar place.
It had lost the rat leader, too.
It tried to turn back there.
If not for the familiar voice nearby, it would have returned straight to the mansion.
"Hoo! Hup!"
To be precise, it wasn't a voice but breathing sounds.
But that alone let Ppoddong know who it was.
'Ppoddong!'
The one who summoned it to this world.
The one who made its existence possible.
It was Lloyd's breathing.
'Ppoddong! Ppododong!'
Overjoyed, it raised its voice.
But no reply came back.
Lloyd was still somewhere nearby, just gasping roughly.
And each time, the sound of digging with a shovel—scrape, scrape—echoed.
'Ppoddong?'
Ppoddong tilted its head.
And it thought.
Lloyd seemed to be digging nearby.
Then it should go help him.
'Ppododong! Ppoddong!'
It figured out the direction of the sounds.
Not far. Right across from the passage it was in.
That's when it started.
Ppoddong began digging a tunnel.
Toward the direction of Lloyd's sounds, it dug furiously, wiggling its plump butt, sweating from its rice-ball-like paws.
And finally, it emerged here, in front of Lloyd.
"Really, it's you?"
"Ppoddong!"
"...."
It waddled over, rubbing its butt against his cheek in greeting.
The bouncy sensation.
Ppoddong's distinctive musky scent.
Lloyd could feel it for real.
It truly was Ppoddong.
"Ha, how the heck did you get all the way here?"
He said that, but he couldn't be happier.
It was the moment he thought everything was over.
His foggy mind was clearing little by little.
The fist-sized hole Ppoddong had dug.
Air was flowing through it.
'Though my head still feels like it's splitting.'
Hypoxia lingered.
The air from the small hole barely prevented things from worsening.
'Still way better than dying.'
Lloyd wiggled his fingers.
Fortunately, they moved as he intended.
He said to Ppoddong.
"Ppoddong? I've got a favor to ask."
"Ppoddong?"
"Bite my nose, will ya? Wake me right up."
"Ppododong?"
"It's fine. That won't kill me."
"Ppoddong?"
"I'm serious. Hurry."
"Ppoddong!"
Ppoddong, on his shoulder, got into position.
It stood on two legs, placed both paws on his cheek.
Then it chomped firmly on the tip of his nose.
"Ppoddong!"
Chomp!
"...Gah!"
It hurt way more than expected.
His whole body jerked, shuddering violently.
But thanks to it, his mind snapped clear.
"Grrr, th-thanks!"
Lloyd smiled at Ppoddong, who was flashing a thumbs-up from his shoulder.
Then he struggled to his feet.
Practically crawling on his knees, he approached the wall.
He pressed his face to the hole Ppoddong had made.
He gulped down a few breaths of air from beyond.
His condition improved a bit more.
'I need to save that guy, too.'
Lloyd turned.
He crawled to Haviel, not far away.
Haviel was completely passed out.
Fortunately, he was still breathing.
Groaning, he dragged the guy over.
He grabbed his collar and pulled up his upper body.
He pressed his face to the hole.
After a moment, the guy's complexion improved visibly.
'Alright, now let's get out of here.'
He didn't know when another collapse might happen.
If one hit now, they'd definitely die.
Knowing that, Lloyd forced himself up.
He picked up the steel shovel he'd dropped.
The penalty from using mana burst option prevented Asrahan Heart Method.
But he still had some strength left to move, bit by bit.
He stabbed the wall with the shovel.
Crunch.
The shovel tip dug in about a centimeter.
That was enough.
Lloyd leaned forward.
He put his full body weight on the shovel.
Groooan...
The shovel tip sank deeper into the dirt.
Deeper, further in, relentlessly, all the way.
And finally, it pierced through.
Crack!
The shovel, slowly burrowing, suddenly plunged in.
The blade had broken through 30 centimeters of barrier to the other side.
'Got it!'
Lloyd leaned forward harder.
His body became a mass weapon loaded with weight(?).
Boom!
He shoulder-charged the barrier.
Pushed the dirt with his whole body.
Finally, the wall crumbled away.
"Hoo, haa!"
He got buried under the collapsing dirt, but it didn't matter.
Lloyd inhaled deeply.
Far more oxygen than the scant breaths from the small hole filled his lungs.
Vitality surged even more.
"So, can you open your eyes now?"
Lloyd grumbled as he hoisted Haviel onto his back.
Whether because the guy was out cold or because Lloyd was exhausted, he felt much heavier than before.
But Lloyd moved step by step.
'In times like this, keep steps steady. Solid. No wasted energy. Power from waist and legs.'
That was the trick for carrying heavy loads when tired.
Don't just brute-force it.
You'd collapse immediately.
The heavier, the slower.
The harder, the smarter.
Back in Korea, frequenting labor offices at dawn, Lloyd had carried countless cement bags and brick loads like that.
'Compared to hauling tile- and brick-stuffed carts up and down four floors of a villa all day!'
He gritted his teeth.
Focused solely on walking.
Thanks to Ppoddong leading, he didn't worry about the path.
He poured all his mind into stepping forward and checking the ground for the next.
How long had he walked like that?
An unexpected message appeared before his eyes.
Ding-dong.
[Overcoming the limits of your flesh through exceptional technique in an extreme situation.]
[That special experience is greatly influencing [Skill: Asrahan Heart Method].]
[A new skill option has been unlocked.]
[Skill Exclusive Option ③: Power-Saving Mode - Even in extreme exhaustion, Asrahan Heart Method can be maintained faintly. Mana amplification rate fixed at 10% of normal.]
'Whoa? What's this?'
Lloyd blinked.
An unexpected skill option creation.
Its effect was felt immediately in his body.
Whiiiir...
The double circle of mana around his heart.
The circle that had fallen dormant in exhaustion.
It awoke from slumber and began to rotate.
Only about 1/10th of normal speed.
But that was plenty.
For Lloyd now, utterly spent, it poured in strength like rain in drought.
'Mana's absorbing again.'
Asrahan Heart Method activated automatically, unbidden.
It drew in small amounts of mana from around.
Circulated the absorbed mana through the circle, supplying it to his body.
New vitality welled up.
'I can do this. I can get out!'
Strength and speed entered Lloyd's steps.
He walked a long way like that.
Still carrying Haviel, never stopping.
Meanwhile, the surroundings changed.
The number of glowing mushrooms on the ant nest walls gradually decreased.
But the tunnel didn't darken.
Far ahead.
Flickering torchlight illuminated from there.
"There! It's Young Master Lloyd!"
Someone shouted.
Urgent footsteps rushing toward him.
Hands reaching out hastily to support him.
The Baron's were among them.
"You okay? Any injuries?"
A frantic voice grabbing his face with both hands.
Lloyd couldn't help but chuckle.
No energy to reply.
He'd survived.
Relief snapped the thread of tension.
A smile came naturally.
His eyelids drooped.
'Haa. What a brutal day.'
Even in his gositel days, when exhaustion hit rock bottom, he'd slump like this.
Lloyd collapsed into the Baron's arms.
The end of a long, grueling day.
♣
Time passed.
Lloyd slept deeper than everyone expected.
A day passed, two days, and still no waking.
Aside from overworked muscles and ligaments, no major injuries.
No signs of illness.
The territory's doctor said it was just the body resting, the fatigued flesh recovering through sleep. He reassured the Baron and Baroness like that.
The couple stayed often in Lloyd's bedroom.
Guarding his bedside whenever time allowed.
Especially the Baron.
The day before, he'd charged ahead against the beast ants.
To open the path to the underground ant nest, he'd spared no effort.
Even with a broken arm from that fight, even feverish from the aftermath, he refused his sickbed to stay by Lloyd.
The Baroness was no less devoted.
She handled the territory's affairs in his stead.
She visited soldiers injured in the beast ant battle, praised their merits, soothed their wounds.
Meanwhile, heartwarming rumors quietly spread through the territory.
Rumors about Lloyd.
When the beast ants first appeared, this ne'er-do-well young master had evacuated the workers first. He'd stayed at the very back with Haviel for their safety. Not content, he'd stormed the ant nest, repelled the beast ants, and even rescued Knight Haviel.
There were witnesses.
The workers present during the evacuation.
The soldiers who saw Lloyd carrying Haviel during the rescue.
The young master who risked his life to protect the territory folk.
The young master who never abandoned his loyal knight, carrying him out to the end.
The territory's men clenched fists hearing it; maidens felt their hearts flutter; tender-hearted elders reddened their eyes.
Meanwhile, the couple summoned Haviel, who'd woken first.
They asked the young, loyal knight what happened in the ant nest.
As they listened, the couple marveled, sighed, clutched their chests in relief.
Everyone waited like that.
Hoping earnestly.
For their young master to wake.
To rise soon, healthy and whole.
Four days after the incident.
Lloyd opened his eyes.
[Frontera Barony's everyone is deeply moved by your heroic courage and leading by example, sending you praise.]
[As a bonus for this great social achievement, a large amount of RP is specially awarded.]
(End of Chapter 29)
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