They all call me Great Master

From South Los, one would only have to travel thirty kilometers southwest to behold a town with a population of twenty thousand.

This place is South Town!

A town that was established only after the Seven Years' War had ended.

In other parts of South County, such a population would be enough to be called a small city.

But near South Los, it can only be called a town, and only a town—in fact, it's practically impossible to find such a large gathering of people near South Los.

Unless...

There were no coal and iron mines.

At the end of the Seven Years' War, the young Lisop, who was bravely aggressive in combat, was the first to achieve three remarkable feats and was knighted as a 'Knight' by Baron Bolna, the commander at the time. Later, he saved Baron Bolna in the battle of the Mord River Path with a 'Desperate Assault' that turned the tide of the entire battle, allowing the Southern County Alliance to win. With this merit, he was awarded the title of 'Lord.'

Although it was not hereditary, it was enough to make others envious.

But what was most enviable was the Lord's luck—

Holding the title of Lordship, even if it wasn't hereditary, one still needed to own a piece of land. A manor with 200-300 people was the preference of Lords at that time.

Lisop was no exception; he chose the then-unnamed land of 'South Town' as his domain—located away from 'South Los Avenue', and given that the Southern County Alliance was in its honeymoon phase, the Old Count of South Los did not pay much mind. Once Lisop offered the appropriate gold coins and swore allegiance to the Old Earl, he gained this land.

Such an oath was different from the Lionheart Ceremony.
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The Lionheart Ceremony was much more formal and was a contract in the truest sense, with not only a 'Ceremonial Sword' but also the notion of 'Meritorious Service.'

It was a shared glory and a shared loss.

But an oath?

It was more like a form of employment.

The strongest bond between both parties was 'taxes.'

Anything more?

That would likely be an alliance by marriage.

Beyond that, there was nothing.

In the beginning, no one cared about this obscure land.

It wasn't until after the Seven Years' Battle ended, as Lisop was building a manor and struck coal, followed by iron that people realized just how lucky Lisop was.

It's important to note, the Old Earl's surveyor had inspected that no-name land and even dug down ten meters, but coal was found at eleven meters.

In any case, once this news spread, the reputation of the Old Count of South Los took a hit.

Everyone mocked the Old Earl for his 'blindness.'

And then, the 'fake cheque' incident dealt another blow to the Earl's reputation.

On top of that, during the Seven Years' War, the Old Earl was in charge of logistics and had no 'glorious military achievements,' gradually being overshadowed by the younger Grand Duke of Inner Bay.

Rumors claimed that the Old Earl's death in dejection began with Lord Lisop's actions.

Of course, Marinda was aware of these matters.

Moreover, she knew some secrets.

For example, the role the Old Lion played in these incidents.

However, this lady was very clear that Arthur was not asking about these.

But a more 'practical' question—

"How confident are you?"

Marinda sat up straight, holding her tobacco pipe in her hand again, her expression serious.

But at the sight of Marinda's demeanor, Arthur simply rolled his eyes.

"Why did you suddenly leave the Bell Tower and decide to wait for me beside the carriage?

Don't tell me you just wanted to purely witness the crushing of those young people's hearts!"

Arthur mercilessly exposed the other party.

The young Spirit Medium was certain that Marinda had chosen to reveal herself so candidly, apart from reinforcing the perception of their 'relationship' to outsiders, because she wanted to see Little Lisop's frustration—or rather, that latter reason might be the most important.

He also knew the history of South Town.

After Marinda informed him that entrants from the nobility of South Los would appear in the competition, Arthur had spent the last two days, aside from necessary sleep and preparation, reviewing information about these Nobles.

Especially Lord Lisop.

There was no choice!

He was too noticeable.

Not only because of the coal and iron mines but also his 'wavering' attitude.

The former represented interest, and the latter the favor of the Earl of South Los—from a certain perspective, it was a win-win situation.

He wanted the coal and iron mines.

He also wanted the favor of the Earl of South Los.

Of course, it wasn't easy!

That's why they needed Marinda.

And Marinda, even after being exposed, didn't show a hint of embarrassment. The lady took her cigarette holder, once again lounged carelessly on her chair, and after taking a deep puff from her pipe, she continued.

"What's with that look?

I sense you're up to no good."

"You're mistaken—I'm about to inherit the title of Baron Kemir. How could a baron have no land of his own?

What do you think of South Town?"

Arthur said.

Marinda who was leaning back crossed her legs in the chair completely.

South Town, she coveted it.

Alas, the difficulty was too great.

That's why she had chosen the Bern family's estate.

And her enthusiasm earlier was only to gain more favor from that Mother Tigress!

However, the lady did not outright refuse but instead furrowed her brow, pondering seriously.

About three or four seconds later, the lady finally spoke.

"Impossible!

Lord Count would never allow another 'Lord Lisop' to emerge!

Even though I've always displayed loyalty toward Lord Count, it wouldn't be allowed!"

"Nothing is impossible for a willing heart!"

The young 'Spirit Medium' shook his head and said—

"When a person is faced with two terrible choices, they will always choose the lesser of two evils."

"Sure, so they say.

But can you be certain that neither of those terrible choices will touch Lord Count's nerves?

Keep in mind, if they do, Lord Count is the type to flip the table!"

Marinda emphasized.

Yet, the lady was writing a name on the palm of her other hand with her finger.

Old Lion!

Clearly, the lady's words said no, but her body was exceptionally honest.

She had already begun to think about how to take advantage of the situation.

In the whole of South County, only the Duke of the Inner Bay could overrule the Earl of South Los.

And as it happened, Lord Lisop had numerous connections with the Duke of the Inner Bay, which truly could be exploited!

But how to use it?

Marinda, having a preliminary idea in mind, looked again at Arthur.

The lady wanted to 'hear' Arthur's thoughts.

However, the young 'Spirit Medium' didn't immediately reveal his thoughts and instead changed the subject.

"It won't be necessary, as long as we make good use of it, Lord Count will definitely side with us—a 235 split should be enough."

"Should that be enough?"

Marinda's words were not too certain.

But the word written on her palm was very affirmative—

Not enough!

Other industries, of course, would be no problem.

But the mining industry, definitely not.

South Los, though rich from its extensive coastal and overseas trade, does not have actual mining resources.

And everywhere places all sorts of restrictions and high prices on exporting mineral resources!

Not to mention, the cost of coal South Los imports from other regions to get through the winter is astronomical each year.

One could say that the coal and iron mines of South Town are the final pieces to complete the Earl of South Los's power puzzle.

With this in mind, Marinda was certain that the Earl of South Los would never agree to the previously mentioned profit-sharing ratio.

"Then it's almost settled,"

Arthur said, smiling. He spoke softly—

"Now, all we need to do is invite His Excellency!"