Chapter 309: I’m Going to Trust You and Take this Bet. (3)
“Hey, hey, hurry up. Let’s go.”
“Ugh, this wretched estate. I swear I’ll never step foot in the North again.”
“What a revolting lord and an even more revolting estate.”
The grumbling voices belonged to Max and the troubleshooters, who had been captured during the Cabaldi War.
They had worked in the estate to pay off their debt but found themselves unable to leave easily. Every day, their wages barely covered the cost of their labor, making it nearly impossible to pay off their dues.
Still, they weren’t willing to return the money they had received. After all, the sum given to them by Rosalyn and Mariel was significant enough to make parting with it feel wasteful.
Caught in this dilemma and enduring endless hardships, the war against Desmond broke out.
Max and the troubleshooters were assigned as commanders of the Labor Assault Team, and with that, they finally gained their freedom.
“We’re free!”
“Woohoo!”
Max’s declaration was met with cheers from the troubleshooters. It was truly the end of their ordeal with this forsaken estate.
Today was a special day. As Max and his men washed up and shaved off their scruffy beards, preparing for their departure, Claude came to visit them.
“Wow, so you’re leaving now? You’ve all worked hard.”
“Oh, uh… Chief Overseer, you’re here?”
Max greeted Claude with a half-hearted expression. Though it was Ghislain who had captured them, it was Claude who had sent them to the grueling construction sites.
The way Claude had worked them to the bone made Max seriously consider assassinating him at one point. But the fear of being caught and enslaved for life held him back.
Despite Max’s sour expression, Claude spoke warmly.
“So, what are your plans now that you’re heading back?”
“After all the suffering we’ve been through, I plan to look for some less demanding work for a while.”
Although there was a sharp undertone in his words, Claude shamelessly ignored it.
“Come on now, with your skills, isn’t it a waste to settle for mundane jobs?”
“I’m planning to save up a little more and then retire. I can’t keep doing this forever, can I? I’d like to buy a piece of land and live comfortably.”
“Hm, that’s a respectable plan, though it’s a bit of a pity.”
In truth, Max and the troubleshooters were highly skilled. It was why they had been entrusted with rescuing Ghislain and had taken on the role of leading the Labor Assault Team in Kaor’s stead during the war.
Feigning regret, Claude casually broached another topic.
“Then you’ll need quite a bit of money. Would you be interested in making a fortune in one go?”
“A fortune? How?”
“Well, the lord recently developed something…”
Just as he had done with Alfoi, Claude passionately described the ridiculous product. Max and the troubleshooters couldn’t help but agree with his assessment.
However, the lord’s proven track record made them wary. Though they hadn’t personally witnessed the process of developing the hybrid wheat or cosmetics, they had heard enough rumors to be cautious.
Moreover, they had seen Ghislain fight on the battlefield with their own eyes. It was that terrifying image of him that kept them from even attempting to escape.
And now, they were supposed to make a bet against such a lord? Max immediately shook his head.
“No, we’ll just be on our way. We don’t want to get involved with this estate any longer.”
It was an expected reaction. Claude nodded as if he had anticipated it.
“20,000 gold.”
“…!”
“You’ll each walk away with 20,000 gold if you win.”
The astronomical sum left Max and the troubleshooters wide-eyed. That amount was enough for immediate retirement.
The sheer magnitude of the offer made their hands tremble, but Max didn’t bite right away. He was the seasoned leader of the troubleshooters, a man who had seen and endured too much to act rashly.
“Why… would you make such an offer to us?”
The strange powdered food the lord had created certainly seemed destined to fail. But why would they share such a golden opportunity with outsiders like him?
Sensing Max’s wariness, Claude softened his tone.
“You must’ve resented me a lot during this time.”
“…A little.”
“I didn’t have a choice. The estate was short on manpower, and I had to play the villain. I’ve always felt sorry for you all.”
“Chief Overseer…”
“As a leader of your own small group, surely you understand how difficult it is to guide people.”
Max nodded silently. Claude’s reputation might not have been great, but he had worked tirelessly for the estate’s benefit. Now that it was time to leave, Max could appreciate that, if only slightly.
Claude clasped Max’s hand and continued.
“It’s nothing much. I just wanted to give you all a fair chance to earn a substantial amount of money before you leave. I couldn’t give you such a sum without a valid excuse.”
“Chief Overseer…”
Max and the Troubleshooters felt an unexpected lump in their throats. It was as though their noses were stinging. They had thought Claude was a bad man, but in reality, he turned out to be someone with a deep and thoughtful heart.
Claude didn’t use logic or reason to persuade them. Instead, he appealed to their emotions.
With warm eyes fixed on Max, Claude shifted his gaze slightly into the distance and spoke.
“And besides, this is also for the lord.”
“For the lord?”
“Yes, our lord is undoubtedly an exceptional person. He has overcome countless challenges and achieved so much. But… never failing has become a problem.”
“How… is that a problem?”
“The more success someone experiences without failure, the more arrogant they tend to become. It’s during youth that one should face failure and trials to grow even stronger. If the lord doesn’t face a major loss now, it could spell disaster later.”
“Why now?”
“To be honest, even if this project fails, the lord will only suffer minor embarrassment. But losing a significant amount of money might make him snap back to reality and curb his overconfidence.”
“Hmmm…”
“Think about it. What if another war breaks out and the lord remains as overconfident as he is now? A single mistake could cost him his life. We need to correct his mindset now, while we still can. Losing money is a small price to pay in comparison.”
“Ah…”
Max and the troubleshooters began to understand Claude’s reasoning. It was no longer a secret that Ghislain had drawn the ire of a powerful ducal family.
If the lord became complacent while powerful enemies were lurking, disaster would surely follow.
Max had seen similar cases countless times during his career as a troubleshooter. Overconfidence always led to ruin especially for those with many enemies.
Claude’s logic was sound.
‘He’s a loyalist through and through!’
‘To think we misunderstood him all this time…’
‘Ah, no wonder a man like him is in charge of this massive estate.’
Max and the troubleshooters were moved. Claude, it seemed, was a loyal servant who bore all the blame and criticism alone, thinking only of the lord and the estate.
It was only as they were about to leave that they realized this truth, and they felt a pang of guilt.
Of course, feelings were one thing, but the bet was another. While Claude’s reasoning was solid, Max couldn’t shake off a lingering sense of unease. The intentions might be noble, but what if they lost? That would spell disaster for them.
Noticing Max’s hesitation, Claude smiled knowingly.
“Even the mages from the ‘Tower’ have agreed to participate. They’ve already verified everything. There’s no need to worry.”
“Oooh!”
The troubleshooters let out impressed exclamations. If mages had already conducted tests, there wasn’t much else to say.
Especially since these mages were from the Crimson Flame Tower, once known as the best in the North. Among them was Vanessa, a mage who had reached the 6th Circle.
With mages of such caliber involved, not participating would indeed seem foolish.
This was why Claude had persuaded the mages first. The troubleshooters, with their wealth of worldly experience, were not easily swayed. However, the involvement of renowned and intelligent mages made them more inclined to trust the plan.
Of course, Claude never mentioned that Vanessa was no longer affiliated with the Tower or that she wouldn’t actually be participating in the bet.
“We’ll do it!”
When Max made the bold declaration, the troubleshooters all agreed in unison. Just like that, Claude had tied both the mages and the troubleshooters to the plan.
‘Whew, now it begins. Don’t worry, we’re going to win anyway.’
Despite his confidence, Claude had grown slightly more prudent.
After successfully convincing everyone, he didn’t immediately report to Ghislain. Instead, using his authority as Chief Overseer, he secretly took a small sample of the powdered prototype product. With a resolute expression, he mixed the powder with water and drank it.
“Hmm… the taste isn’t bad.”
After drinking it, he felt a slight heaviness in his stomach, though not to an uncomfortable degree. In fact, it gave him a subtle sense of fullness.
He continued working through the evening.
“Feeling peckish.”
It was only natural to feel hungry after consuming nothing but powdered food mixed with water. He tried eating it again and then took a short nap before resuming his work.
“I’m starving. This stuff is useless after all.”
Hunger gnawed at him. He wanted something delicious something he could chew. The more he thought about it, the hungrier he became.
Deciding to give up on the powder entirely, he indulged in a hearty meal and declared:
“At best, this stuff will keep you from starving to death. But you can’t fight on it. Ha-ha-ha!”
After only one day of testing, Claude gave up. The constant hunger and craving for real food were simply unbearable.
This time, he was certain the lord had failed.
Seeing Claude’s smugness, Wendy cautiously spoke up.
“Still, isn’t it a bit early to make a decision after just one day? You should at least try it for three days…”
“Oh, stop it. I can’t live off this stuff. It’s a failure, a complete failure.”
“…The lord has always yielded unexpected results.”
“Not this time. And even if I lose, I don’t care.”
“…?”
Wendy looked somewhat puzzled. How could he say it didn’t matter even if he lost, despite claiming he wanted freedom so badly?
Was his intention truly to warn the lord about arrogance?
As she stared at him in disbelief, Claude turned his head away.
Looking out the window of his office, he muttered to himself.
“I have nothing left to bet… My life’s already ruined, so there’s nothing else to lose…”
“…”
Claude indeed had nothing to stake. That’s why he had to bring in other people’s lives to wager on his behalf.
Wendy, who had momentarily thought that Claude might have turned over a new leaf, ended up staring at the ceiling of the office instead.
The contracts were signed quickly. The mages and troubleshooters staked their lives on this wager and demanded freedom and money as their reward if they won.
Ghislain, unsurprisingly, readily accepted.
Securing contract extensions for 46 mages and recruiting 10 new troubleshooters? It was an opportunity too good to pass up.
Claude, brimming with confidence, said as he looked at Ghislain:
“I’ll handle the oversight. Just to make sure no one sneaks anything to eat.”
“Go ahead.”
“Keheh, don’t regret this.”
“You, of all people… No, you don’t have anything to regret anyway.”
The rumor that the lord and the Chief Overseer had entered into another bet spread quickly across the estate.
This time, neither Belinda nor close aides like Gillian tried to stop Ghislain. They’d learned by now that it was pointless to intervene after repeated failures to dissuade him in the past.
Besides, they couldn’t deny they were curious. Could Ghislain succeed yet again?
The older residents of the former Fenris territory, who had witnessed several of these wagers, bet on Ghislain’s victory without hesitation.
Not because they had any special insight or knowledge, but simply because Ghislain always won. They believed this time would be no different.
“The Chief Overseer’s challenging him again, huh?”
“Tsk tsk, why does he keep doing this when he always loses?”
“They say this time’s different. Even the mages are participating.”
“Eh, it doesn’t matter. Didn’t the mages participate last time too?”
As Ghislain’s popularity grew, the number of residents openly mocking Claude steadily increased.
Yet Claude was unbothered. This time, he was genuinely confident in his victory or so he claimed.
The real trouble began when the test subjects were selected.
“What is this!”
“Are you telling us to survive on just this powder for an entire month?”
“And then we have to engage in mock combat?”
“How is that even possible!”
The conscripted knights and soldiers were in an uproar every time they were handed the powdered ration.
One of the estate’s few redeeming qualities was that, despite the grueling training, there was always an abundance of food.
In fact, food supplies were so plentiful these days that the residents of Fenris had started experimenting with various sauces and methods to make meals even tastier.
It wasn’t as if Ghislain had actively encouraged this change. It was a natural consequence of having an abundance of resources.
But now, in this era of plentiful food, the conscripts were being forced to subsist solely on water mixed with powder while maintaining their regular training schedule. Frustration was inevitable.
The senior knights among the conscripts, Gordon and Lucas, were the first to explode in outrage.
“I’m not training on this garbage! I’ll lose muscle mass!”
“This is a conspiracy by people jealous of my genius! I won’t stand for it!”
Even the elves shared a similar sentiment. Among the conscripts was none other than Ascon.
“Hey, you bastards! How old do you think I am to be forced to endure this garbage? Fuck! Shit! Fuck you all!”
His tirade of curses was so colorful it was impossible to listen.
The conscripts tried to revolt, but they were immediately subdued by Gillian and the rest of the knights stationed nearby.
The knights who weren’t participating in the experiment were particularly zealous in suppressing the conscripts, fearing they might be forced to take their place.
Amid their frustration, the conscripts cried out:
“This is all the Chief Overseer’s doing, isn’t it?”
“Ugh! What difference does it make who wins the bet? It’s got nothing to do with us!”
“Why does everything always have to be so extreme with him?”
Even if the wager didn’t exist, the experiment would still have happened. But it wouldn’t have been conducted this way.
Ghislain had intended to gradually monitor physical conditions over time since this was an emergency combat ration, not a regular meal.
It was Claude who had pushed things to the extreme in his pursuit of victory in the wager, twisting Ghislain’s original plan to suit his purposes.
As a result, the conscripts’ resentment was naturally directed at Claude. For the next month, they would have to survive on nothing but powder and water.
Despite the torrent of complaints and criticisms, Claude remained unflinching.
‘I’m not the one who’s hungry, anyway.’
Such was the strength of his resolve.
* * *
Thus, the wager began. While the bet-slash-experiment was underway, Ghislain seized the opportunity to pursue a training method he had been pondering for some time.
[Invisible Swordmaster]
It was inspired by the book written by Gordon.