The power of the prototype grenade was extremely satisfying.
There were no raging flames or fire, but its lethality seemed more than sufficient.
Just looking at the countless iron beads embedded in the pit walls was enough to understand.
If this thing exploded in a narrow space, it would inflict tremendous damage.
“Production volume isn’t that high.”
“Because the mana has to be adjusted with precision. If we could mass-produce them, the very tide of war would change.”
“Well, everyone would be scrambling to recruit Nermeia sorcerers then.”
Vargas’s words were correct.
This was still a world where people lived.
There were plenty of individuals more outstanding than me.
There must have been commanders who wanted to make use of explosive potions.
But there were far too many constraints for that.
First of all, recruiting a Nermeia sorcerer itself was extremely difficult.
These guys are impossible to control.
Even Vargas would not have listened to me if it were not for the dried cordyceps pills.
He would have left long ago, saying he was going to find materials for stronger explosive potions, research funds or whatever else.
Of course, that was no longer possible even without the dried cordyceps pills.
He had already realized that procuring materials through enormous capital was far more efficient.
There was no need to struggle through remote mountain regions anymore.
With Dapan Group’s powerful distribution network, anything could be obtained.
“Anyway, make as many as you can.”
“I think I can produce about one per day. I’ve been quite busy lately.”
“What if you reduce the amount of precise smelting work?”
“Even then, making more than three would be difficult. The structure inevitably takes a long time.”
“Understood. I’ll compensate you separately.”
“Hehe! Thank you, Chairman.”
Two grenades a day was not a large number.
Still, because it was a weapon with enormous ripple effect, even a few rounds could change the course of battle.
Moreover, there was still quite a bit of time left.
Opening the waterway to the east would require an enormous amount of civil engineering work.
Then shall we start building the dam now?
I immediately summoned Adam and Shugl.
“It’s considerably better than before.”
The road heading to Lelbrant Barony.
In the past, the carriage had to stop several times a day.
The road was frequently blocked.
But now the road was relatively well paved.
Areas where soil often poured down had stone walls built in advance, and the ground had been firmly compacted.
It’s crude, but still much better than doing nothing at all.
When it rained, it would turn into a muddy mess as usual.
If one compared it to other territories, this place would seem like a fairy in comparison.
I looked out the window while feeling the terrible ride quality of the rattling carriage.
Suddenly, the eastern scenery of Lelbrant Barony came into view.
Marlow Lake entered my sight at once.
It’s much wider than I thought?
I had even drawn up the dam design, but seeing it in person felt completely different.
The map was probably not very accurate.
Well, in a place where even proper scales had not been established, how could distances be clearly marked?
It seemed some adjustment would be necessary.
Of course, it was not a big problem.
Because this construction has to rely on intuition anyway.
After all, most of it would be finished using the powers of the half-god and half-demon.
An error of that degree could be overcome easily.
The carriage was about to cross the gate leading to the castle.
Suddenly, a group rushed out in a flurry.
It looked extremely urgent, as if a battle had broken out.
“All of you, head up to the gate fortress! Lock the gate first!”
“Load the ballista!”
It was not just for show. The situation had actually occurred.
I stuck my body out of the carriage.
But I could not see beyond the roughly four-meter-high fortress wall.
So I asked a soldier who happened to be passing by.
“What is going on?”
“I’m busy as hell, what……”
The soldier who was about to answer irritably stopped short.
The carriage with its subtle luxuriousness and four horses.
A clean suit and fair skin.
What did these signify?
Nine times out of ten, either a high-ranking person or a swindler.
“Uh, where are you from, sir?”
“I came from Perias. My name is Abel Carius.”
“Carius? Uh…… Surely you are not Duke Carius himself?”
“That’s right?”
“Eh?”
The soldier was startled and became flustered.
He did not even think to doubt it.
Well, information that I was coming to Lelbrant Barony must have already been conveyed.
The civil engineering work on Marlow Lake was official business.
He had probably been informed in advance.
“There is no need to be nervous. Just tell me what happened beyond the fortress.”
“Ah, yes! There is a troublesome ogre group near the territory, and it seems they have invaded.”
“Do monsters attack even when it is not winter?”
“Ogres are cunning. They even know that now is harvest season. They have probably figured out that Lelbrant Barony’s harvest is high.”
“I see. It must be tough.”
“It is a common occurrence in our territory. There are many monsters here.”
While listening to the soldier’s story, an old event suddenly came to mind.
The time when the doppelganger Theo had been impersonating Baron Lelbrant.
He had plotted with bandits to siphon off the territory’s wealth.
Anyway, it seemed Lelbrant Barony was struggling quite a bit with monster defense.
This could be troublesome.
If the dam and canal were built, many people would come and go via the waterway.
Not only troop and supply transport, but tourists would also want to take boats.
Of course, the support project for Yates Marquisate would be fine.
Because the Empire’s powerful military would be with us.
But what came after was the problem.
I’ll think about later matters later. For now, shall I see how cunning these ogre bastards really are?
I got out of the carriage and approached the stone stairs of the fortress.
The soldiers shouted for me to step back, but they quickly fell silent.
The friend I had just been talking to had quickly gone up and explained the situation.
Once they knew my identity, there was no reason to stop me.
When the Northern Berserker stepped forward, why would they refuse?
“Grwoooar!”
Boom! Thud!
With a roar, a large rock flew and struck the wall.
A heavy impact transmitted along the outer wall of the fortress.
The ground shook unsteadily.
If the attack continued like this, the fortress might collapse.
Of course, those guys’ stamina was not infinite.
“They really are cunning, just as I heard. They’re practically living siege engines.”
Coincidentally, right as my words ended, one ogre made a running start.
A throw that preserved the speed of its charge!
It was like watching a shot put athlete’s play.
“Grwaaaak!”
Whoosh—!
A rock about one meter in diameter flew through the air.
It truly had the performance of a decent catapult.
But the trajectory of the boulder was peculiar.
It was flying exactly toward where I was standing.
Well then. This works out perfectly.
I had been planning to help anyway.
It was unforgivable for monster bastards to interfere with the great achievement of pioneering the eastern waterway.
I took out Hector Punisher and immediately launched my body.
Shwaa!
Destructive Retribution activated.
A blue flash surged up in an instant.
I swung the enlarged hammer and precisely struck the flying rock.
Then an unexpected result came out.
I had intended to hit the boulder back, but it turned to dust in a single blow.
It might have been natural.
Because Destructive Retribution grinds down every object it touches.
If I had been imitating a baseball player, Beast’s Heart alone would have been sufficient.
Still, the effect was not entirely absent.
“Whoa! He turned the rock into dust! Who the hell is that?”
“I-It’s Duke Carius Your Highness!”
“The Northern Berserker is with us!”
Just by my presence, I could raise the army’s morale to the peak.
Because the achievements I had accumulated so far were truly enormous.
Of course, those ogre bastards knew nothing of my fame.
However, they could not help but be intimidated.
Because the feat I had just shown was that great.
If they were truly cunning bastards, they would retreat right away. I can’t let them do that.
Sure enough, the ogre group began fleeing in a hurry.
That was why they earned the nickname “troublesome.”
I immediately jumped down below the fortress and shouted like thunder.
“All troops, charge!”
Surprisingly, the Lelbrant Barony army joined in.
They let out vigorous battle cries and flung open the castle gates.
“Uwaaaa!”
“Let’s goooo!”
Ogres were monsters with the highest combat power.
Even dealing with one required about two knights who had mastered aura.
There were roughly eight of them.
It was a force comparable to a mercenary band of considerable size.
Yet the soldiers charged bravely.
At the vanguard was me.
Because the Northern Berserker Abel Carius was there.
“Chahat!”
Crack!
I quickly closed the distance and drove Hector Punisher into the back of one’s head.
One ogre collapsed on the spot.
Its skull was caved in, but surprisingly, the ogre was still alive.
Although not to the extent of a troll, it had considerable regenerative power, so death was merely delayed for a moment.
If left like that, it might truly recover.
However, such worry was unnecessary.
“Die! You rotten bastard!”
“You’ve tormented us so terribly all this time, haven’t you?”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The soldiers who rushed in right after beat the fallen ogre to death.
No matter how powerful a monster, it was no match for a group beating.
The creature died instantly.
I pursued the ogre group while swinging Hector Punisher repeatedly.
Swoosh—! Thud! Thud!
“Kuek!”
“Kwoork!”
The ogres fell one after another with screams.
No matter how high their combat power, in front of me they were no different from a herd of rabbits.
After laying out seven of them, I spotted one that had fled far away.
From the distance, it seemed to be one that had escaped early.
Losing one or two did not matter much.
It probably would not even come near Lelbrant Barony anymore.
However, I was the type who did not leave behind future troubles.
“Chahat!”
Whiriririk!
Hector Punisher, thrown with all my strength, flew while imbued with crimson energy.
A gentle parabola was drawn in the air, and soon a chilling sound was heard.
Crack!
The last one also buried its head into the cold ground.
Soon after, I lightly extended my right hand.
Shwoooosh!!
Hector Punisher flew back in an instant and stuck firmly in my grasp.
At that moment, cheers erupted from behind.
“Uwaaaa!”
“Duke Carius Your Highness has wiped out all these rotten things!”
“Hooray!”
“U! U! U! U!”
The soldiers stabbed their weapons into the air and shouted like beasts.
I walked among them and lightly waved my hand.
However, someone suddenly appeared and knelt.
“Zzzzzzeeeeehaaaaa!”
For some reason, it felt like Joseon dynasty subjects whining to the king.
Sure enough, an absurd request came.
“Please look after Lelbrant Barony with mercy!”
Wasn’t this kind of request supposed to be made to the Emperor?
What authority did I have?
When I looked at him with a puzzled expression, the other person raised his head and continued.
“Please accept me as Your Highness’s disciple!”
I roughly understood what he was saying.
He wanted the power to protect the territory from monsters.
But this is too troublesome.
Raising a disciple would take ages.
No, even before that, I had only become stronger with Abel Carius’s original abilities and skills.
I had not achieved anything great on my own.
No matter how desperate the situation, this was a request I could not accept.
While I was making a troubled expression, a majestic voice suddenly came from somewhere.
-That request! I will grant it!