The sound was from the artifact that I gave to Lagos so that he can contact me whenever it was urgent.
This was the first time it was ringing after I became the Lord of Elden village.
Lagos, who has a cautious personality wouldn’t have contacted me unless it was a serious issue.
“Lia, I have to go to Elden village. Can you take care of Speranza?”
“Ugh..Yes.”
“Sihyeon, I’ll come with you.”
“Senior, I’ll also come.”
As I stood up to go to Elden village, Andras and Alfred also stood up saying they would come with me.
Speranza insisted saying she would also come with me, but I refused since it might be dangerous, and left her in the care of Lia and Kaneff.
I, Andras, and Alfred rushed to the Elden village.
This signal wasn’t the one indicating an emergency, but the one indicating that a problem had occurred.
Maybe because I’m the Lord of the Elden village, I feel more anxious than before.
As soon as I arrived at the Elden village, the residents who saw me greeted me with the utmost respect.
“I greet the Lord.”
“I greet the Lord.”
It still felt a bit awkward to hear this kind of greeting.
I put on an awkward smile on my face and waved my hands toward the villagers who greeted me.
After finishing my weird greeting, I asked the villager who was closest to me.
“Did something happen in the village? I got a call from Lagos.”
“Ah~! Yes. Probably because of the visitors from other villages. I don’t know the exact situation either. They have been gathered in the vacant lot over there.”
‘Someone came from another village?’
I tilted my head and mumbled at the incomprehensible situation.
“Ummm… I think Lagos should have taken care of everything. Why did he call me?”
Hearing my murmur Andras replied.
“I don’t know. A few things come to my mind. However, I think we should hear from Lagos directly for the exact details.”
“Okay, Let’s go.”
Before going, I turned and thanked the villager who answered my question.
“Thank you for explaining.”
“Oh no, My Lord. It’s an honor to be able to speak with you.”
The villager bowed his head, to the point that his head would touch the ground.
I smiled awkwardly once again and walked towards the vacant lot.
As I walked towards the vacant lot receiving the burdensome greeting from the villagers, I met two known faces in vigilante outfits.
“Wait a sec..!? It’s the Lord.”
“Ah…”
“I…see the Lord..!!!”
“I…graite the Lord!!!”
Looking at Greg and Heron, who tried their best to greet me politely, in a way more awkward than me, a smile formed on my face, relieving the tension until now.
“Hi guys. How is the vigilante work going?”
“Yes, we are doing our best.”
“There are even night patrols.”
“Do your best. By the way I got a call from Lagos and came. Can I meet him if I go to the vacant lot?”
“Dad…. No. Yes, the village chief will be there.”
“Ok, I got it. Thank you.”
Waving my hands to the two, I started walking towards the vacant lot.
As the vacant lot started coming into view, strange tents which had not been there previously caught my eye.
The tents seemed like they were made hastily and gave off a feeling that they might fall at any moment.
“Lord!”
Lagos, who was in front of the vacant lot, found me and came running toward me.
Behind him was Reville.
“I’m sorry, my Lord. You must have been busy. I’m really sorry for making you come here like this…”
Lagos bowed his head to me over and over again.
He seemed to be burdened by the fact that he made me come here.
“I gave you the Artifact so that you can call me if there is a problem. You don’t have to worry too much about it. What’s the problem? Why are there tents in the vacant lot?”
I asked Lagos as I glanced towards the tent.
“They are guests, who came from the neighboring villages.”
“Hmm… Were there any villages nearby? This is my first time hearing about it.”
“I have heard that there were villages nearby, but this was my first time seeing people coming from there.”
“Why did they come here all of a sudden? Looking at the state of the tents, it seems like they have been here for a while.”
“That’s…”
Lagos tried to explain the situation but the words didn’t come out of his mouth easily.
As Lagos was struggling to speak, Demons in shabby-looking clothes came out of the tent one after another.
As soon as they saw me, they came rushing and flocked around me.
“Ohhh!! Is it… Is it Lord Cardis?”
A male demon who appeared to be the leader of the group came forward and asked me with earnest eyes.
“Yes, I’m…. the Lord of Cardis Estate.”
Despite my trembling response, the male Demon seemed to be very moved.
“Ahhh… Finally… Finally… I’m able to meet the great ruler of Cardis.”
He knelt down on the ground and bowed his head.
Soon, following him, the other Demons also fell to their knees.
“I greet the Lord.”
“I greet the Lord.”
“I greet the Lord.”
“……..”
I looked at Lagos and Reville with a puzzled expression on my face.
Reville answered, scratching the back of his head with a complicated look.
Confused by the unexpected answer, I looked at Reville once again.
“Elden Village isn’t the only village in the whole Cardis estate? The territory is much wider than you think.”
“Then, are these people from the two other villages included in the Cadis estate?”
“Yes…”
Andras, who was watching the situation, added
“Usually, a normal estate consists of 4 to 5 villages, so considering the size of the Cardis estate, it is quite natural.”
“Is that so?”
“Ugh. It is the lord’s very basic job to identify the inhabitants of his estate, but…”
Having lived my whole life as an ordinary citizen of Korea, I can’t possibly know the basic duties of a lord….
In addition, because of my father’s death anniversary, I had to leave immediately as soon as I became the Lord.
I never imagined that this kind of problem would be awaiting me as soon as I returned from vacation.
As I recalled the fact that I became the lord once again, I made up my resolve.
I managed my facial expressions and spoke to the people who were still lying down.
“Hey, everyone, get up first. We can’t talk when you are like this.”
“Yes, As the Lord says.”
Hearing my words, they started standing up one after another.
“Looking at the situation, it seems like you came to see me. So, what happened?”
The male demon who seemed to be the representative took a step forward and opened his mouth.
“We come from a village not too far from here. Our village has little interaction with the outside world, so we learned about the new lord only a while ago.”
That would be natural, since even I, the Lord of the estate, didn’t know there were other villages in my territory.
“And we heard rumors about the Elden Village. We heard that, originally, Elden village was also a village that was in a difficult situation, but with the lord’s grace, it turned into a prosperous village in a very short time….”
Definitely, Elden village sure did change a lot.
While I was feeling a little proud about the growth of the Elden Village, the male demon kneeled in front of me once again.
I flinched at his sudden action and took a step back.
“Lord Cardis! Please help our village. Now, the children and the villagers are not even getting enough food to eat once a day. Please help us.”
“Help us, lord!”
“Please…….”
Those behind the male demon also got down on their knees and began to beg.
Some people even started to cry.
‘What the hell is this?’
Even though I felt pity for them, all of this felt a little confusing.
Although I helped the Elden village during its difficult times, what they are seeing now didn’t happen all at once, like casting magic using a magic wand.
It’s something we’ve been working on for quite some time.
If the village of those who came here was in a similar situation to the Elden village in the past… To be honest, even I myself don’t know what to do.
The desperate voices of the demons on their knees kept getting louder, and I didn’t know what to say, so my face became more and more complicated.
At that time, Reville stepped out in front of me and said to the demons.
“The Lord had heard about your situation. Don’t trouble the lord anymore. Back off.”
“But we haven’t heard anything yet. Until we hear the Lord’s answer, we cannot just back down.”
“Yes, That’s right. If we go back like this, we will all die of starvation.”
“Please help us.”
With tears in their eyes, they appealed to us in an even louder voice.
Reville frowned at their behavior and shouted in an even louder voice.
“The Lord is not God! There’s no way he can come up with a satisfactory answer just like that.”
“Uh… But, the Elden village….”
“Do you know how hard the Lord worked for our village to grow like this? It was a grace that is hard to repay even if all the villagers work our entire lives. But you want the same thing in an instant. Do you think it’s possible?”
“……”
“Go back for now. The Lord is definitely a person with outstanding abilities. If you wait a little bit, he will surely come up with an answer that will satisfy you. So, don’t force him anymore.”
“…….Okay, We Understand.”
At Reville’s cry, the male demon and those who followed him slowly got up and backed off.
His face was full of regret and disappointment, but he hurriedly averted his eyes from Reville’s ferocious gaze and returned to the tent.
Fortunately, the commotion got settled without any hassle.
Reville took a deep breath and sighed.
“Whew……”
“Great job.”
Lagos smiled faintly and tapped Reville on the shoulder, then turned to me and asked,
“Lord, it seems difficult to talk here, so, would you like to come with me to my house?”
“I’ll do that. Thank you.”
“No No. I should be the one thanking you for coming to my shabby place.”
Everyone followed Lagos to his house.
Lagos’ house had not changed much from my previous visits.
It felt the same, a place that was cluttered with various documents and books.
Lagos hurriedly cleared his chair and brought hot tea from the kitchen.
I sat on a chair near the table, while Lagos and Andras sat in the chairs next to me.
Alfred sat in a chair a little farther away, while Reville sat roughly by the window and looked at our place.
“Okay… What should we do about these people?”
When I asked a question with a troubled expression, Andras gave an answer as if he was waiting for it.
“First of all, since they say that it is difficult to get a meal. It would be better to give food and daily necessities in moderation and return them. Of course, this is only a short-term solution. To solve the underlying problem… it will not be easy.”
“Hmm……”
It is not difficult to provide food and daily necessities.
Now, the Elden village is rich enough to not have to worry about food.
However, as Andras said, it was only a short-term solution, and it was impossible to support them forever.
“Mmmmm….”
While I was moaning because I couldn’t think of a solution, Reville, who was leaning against the wall, uttered a few words.
“I’m sorry. They’re not the only ones having problems.”
“What?”
“Right now, even in Elden village, a lot of problems are popping here and there.”