In a garden abloom with roses, a lonely figure stood quietly in the distance.
Under the cold moonlight, the young woman's long white dress fluttered in the wind.
The shackles on her wrists and ankles made a dull clanking sound.
Sophie?
'Miss Witch might be able to answer my questions.'
With this thought, Lian approached the dazed, silver-haired girl, Sophie.
"Miss Sophie, good evening."
Sophie turned her head slightly and saw Lian, who was dressed in fine clothes.
Not a single ripple disturbed her lifeless eyes. Her delicate face was devoid of emotion, like a puppet with a fixed expression, stripped of all feeling and awareness, merely gazing back mechanically.
It gave one a sense of detachment, as if she was looking at you but not seeing you at all.
Just as Lian was starting to feel the situation become very awkward, the deadpan girl spoke up.
"Do you need something from me?"
"Miss Sophie, I want to..."
Before Lian could finish, he suddenly felt a wave of dizziness wash over him.
Then, he fell straight into Miss Witch's arms.
'Damn it, I've been drugged.'
Lian's eyes rolled back, and he fainted.
When Lian opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on a large, soft bed.
Looking down at the silk pajamas he was wearing, he nervously felt his butt. Thankfully, there was no strange sensation.
'I can't believe I was taught such a harsh lesson on my very first day in this Otherworld.'
'From now on, I'm never drinking anything offered to me again, especially not from someone claiming to be my dad.'
"Lord, I was the one who changed you into your pajamas. You just slept soundly."
The beautiful maid, Anna, pulled open the curtains, letting the glaring sunlight flood into the room.
"Of course, if you have any special... preferences, you can tell me. I will assist you."
Anna said with a smile.
Lian's mouth twitched slightly.
'No, I don't. You're framing me!'
'Wait, what did you call me? Lord?'
"Anna, did you just call me by the wrong title? I'm just Lord Moria's illegitimate child."
"Last night, you were indeed Lord Moria's illegitimate child. But this morning, the Lord sent over the Lord's Seal, along with the Inheritance Document for you to assume the title of Lord. Therefore, you are now the new Lord."
Annie, a maid just as beautiful as Anna, held out a golden tray. On the tray sat the Lord's Seal, the Inheritance Document, and a ring of keys to the Lord's Mansion.
'Become the Lord? Is this why Moria drugged me last night? What the hell is that Old Golden Hair trying to do?'
Full of confusion and astonishment, Lian asked, "Where's my father?"
"Lord Lian, Lord Moria left early this morning with his 33 wives and concubines. You were sleeping soundly at the time."
Anna said with a smile.
'The old lord ran off with 33 wives and concubines?'
'What kind of "the boss skipped town and left us with the debt" plot is this? He'd be damned if he believed Green Shade Territory wasn't in some kind of massive trouble.'
Lian's left eyelid began to twitch uncontrollably. He immediately scrambled out of bed and started to pack, planning to make a run for it. He figured he'd grab any valuable gold and silver trinkets on his way out to compensate himself for the trouble of this whole family reunion farce.
This Lord position was clearly a hot potato, and Old Golden Hair's hasty escape was the best proof.
'He didn't buy any of this "deep father-son bond" crap. It was obvious he was being left behind to be the fall guy.'
"You're leaving?"
Anna asked.
"Yes. I cannot bear the fact that we were separated so soon after I was reunited with my father. I must catch up to him and properly show him my filial piety."
Lian decided to put on an act of a devoted, filial son.
"You won't be able to leave. The ministers and the people from the Imperial Capital Bank have already arrived."
Annie reminded him.
Lian moved to the window and looked down. A dense crowd of people had already surrounded the City Lord's Mansion.
Those guards in blue uniforms didn't belong to Green Shade Territory; they were the Debt Collection Army from the Imperial Capital Bank.
The Imperial Capital Bank was affiliated with the Holy Empire's Royal Family. The third monarch of the Holy Empire was an eccentric genius who disliked politics and only enjoyed business. He not only founded the bank but also established this Debt Collection Army.
They were renowned for being invincible and ever-victorious.
Judging by this scene, if Old Golden Hair didn't owe the Imperial Capital Bank a few hundred million, Lian would eat his hat.
According to the laws of the Holy Empire, any lord who owes more than 30 million gold and fails to repay it within the specified time would not only be stripped of their title but could also be sentenced to life imprisonment, or even sent directly to the guillotine.
'No wonder Old Golden Hair threw me a welcome banquet last night. His goal was to make sure everyone recognized me, his illegitimate child.'
'Now I can't run even if I want to!'
'It seems Old Golden Hair's other children knew his character well and already slipped away. He must have been desperate for a fall guy, which is why he ordered the Witch Sophie to bring me back.'
Lian forced himself to calm down. He looked at Anna and Annie.
"Minister of Finance Omari Hani, Chief of Internal Affairs Karel Dennis, Minister of Foreign Affairs Alex Pool. Find them and bring them here."
"They are right outside the door."
Anna reminded him. She opened the bedroom door, and the pot-bellied Omari Hani, the delicate-faced Karel Dennis, and the petite Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alex Pool, walked in together.
The three of them knelt on one knee and swore their allegiance.
At the same time, the entry above Lian's head changed.
A new entry, [Lord], appeared among his high-grade green tags.
[Lord]: As the Lord of Green Shade Territory, you bear the mission of its revitalization. You must prioritize the territory's material output. With this tag equipped, you automatically gain +10% citizen Loyalty and +10% Persuasiveness. People who enter Green Shade Territory will be more willing to listen to you and trust you.
For every 1% increase in material output, citizen Loyalty toward you increases by 1%, up to 100%. At that point, they will be willing to do anything for you, even overthrow the Empire.
For every 1% decrease in material output, citizen Loyalty toward you decreases by 1%, down to -100%. At that point, they will constantly try to assassinate you. Even if you renounce your title as Lord, they will hunt you to the ends of the earth.
'Holy crap! Isn't this just forcing me to develop the economy?'
'This tag didn't appear before. Does its appearance now, after accepting the three ministers' loyalty, mean I've truly become the Lord?'
'If I had known it was such a trap, I would have jumped out the window instead of meeting these three stooges.'
Because their oath of loyalty was too long-winded, Lian cut them off directly.
"Cut the crap. I need to know the most severe problems Green Shade Territory is facing right now."
"Lord, we have been running a fiscal deficit for three consecutive years and owe the Imperial Capital Bank a loan of 300 million gold coins."
Minister of Finance Omari Hani said with a pained expression.
'Great. That's enough to get me 10 life sentences, or just sent straight to the guillotine.'
Lian pressed a hand to his forehead and continued to listen to the other ministers' reports.
"Lord, the Imperial Capital has been unwilling to dispatch a new Witch to serve in Green Shade Territory. The Ice Witch has already been in service for six years and is Bordering on Loss of Control. We must resolve the Guardian issue as soon as possible, or the safety of Green Shade Territory cannot be guaranteed."
"The Ice Witch's execution has been scheduled for one week from now. If we cannot find a replacement within a week, we will have no choice but to execute her,"
said Chief of Internal Affairs Karel Dennis.
"Lord, a month ago, His Majesty the King summoned an army to conquer the Azure Dragon Court across the ocean. All the other lords have already given their response, but we in Green Shade Territory have failed to reply. The Imperial Capital has already dispatched a Venerable to urge us,"
said Minister of Foreign Affairs Alex Pool.
After listening to the three ministers' reports, Lian suddenly let out a sigh of relief.
Massive debt, a witch about to lose control, and being coerced by the King into a military expedition.
Each and every one was a massive pitfall.
Logically, hearing this news should have given Lian an immense headache.
But Lian wore a relaxed expression, like a death row inmate who had suddenly stopped struggling.
Resolutely walking to the guillotine with a heart that said, 'I'm tired. Let it all burn.'
This made the three ministers, whose hearts were already in their throats, even more anxious. They looked distressed, their minds were fraught with worry, and in their hearts, they were silently cursing old Lord Moria's ancestors for being raised by whores.
They didn't know that Lian had already seen past the surface of things to their essential connections, and had grasped the crux of the problem.