Lord of Rot

Leech returned to his room, holding the wondrous, gem-adorned staff.

After closing the door, he eagerly began to channel his Spiritual Power into it.

In total, it consumed twenty of his spiritual units.

The gem suddenly burst into light.

The light was very soft, not glaring at all, but its range was limited. It was like a fluorescent glow in the dark of night.

If a candle had been lit, this faint light would have been negligible.

”And then?”

Leech was bewildered.

He shook the gem-adorned staff, but there was no reaction.

No Fireball Skill, no Wind Blade Skill.

”That’s it?”

’Did I just waste twenty units of Spiritual Energy like that? I’ll need a long night’s sleep to get that back!’

But Leech wasn’t ready to give up.

There was wine on the table, so he poured himself a glass.

The weather was a bit warm, and the wine, which had been sitting out for a while, was lukewarm and didn’t taste very good.

’It would taste better chilled.’

Leech cast a ”Frost Enchantment” spell on the gem-adorned staff, hoping it would react to the Magic. The staff was instantly covered in frost, but Leech didn’t feel his Spiritual Power being drained.

”Energy storage!”

’This useless piece of junk—no, this wondrous object... so that’s how it’s used.’

This meant he could store twenty units of energy in the staff. Combined with his original twenty-six units, his Spiritual Power now effectively totaled forty-six units!

His upper limit of spiritual units had increased.

If he could raise a unit of forty-six Corpse Ghosts, each possessing the vast majority of his own combat skills, Leech was confident he could defeat an enemy force ten times his size.

”This trip wasn’t a waste after all!”

He might have been a bit slow in seizing the prisoners, but that was a calculated move for stability. If he hadn’t been absolutely sure that Wado Eighteen was on the verge of defeat, Leech would have rather passed up the opportunity than commit his troops.

Holding the gem-adorned staff, it felt as if the twenty drained spiritual units were still part of him.

But the moment he let go, a wave of mental fatigue washed over him.

While he had been studying it, the Frost Enchantment on the staff had run its course and dissipated.

KNOCK KNOCK!

There was a knock on the door.

”Who is it?” Leech turned to look at the door.

”It’s me.”

”Lady Jie Lin?”

Surprised, Leech grabbed the staff, stood up, and walked over to open the door.

Dressed in her nightgown, Lady Jie Lin had a pitiable, yet captivating, beauty. Her hair was let down casually, adding to her charm.

The candlelight was intimate, her eyes alluring.

Her gaze fell on the staff in Leech’s hand, and a faint blush colored her cheeks.

”May I come in?” Lady Jie Lin asked.

”Of course.”

Leech stepped aside to let her pass.

He thought to himself, ’This whole castle is yours. Why do you need to ask me for permission to go anywhere?’

Besides, as a man, he wasn’t the one at risk of being taken advantage of.

Lady Jie Lin sat in the chair Leech had just vacated. Seeing the glass of wine on the table, she picked it up and took a sip.

Leech was about to say that he had been drinking from that glass and that she could pour herself a fresh one, but since Lady Jie Lin had already drunk from it, he held his tongue.

”Ever since the Baron died, I have struggled to hold Longship Castle together.” She turned to face Leech, her cheeks slightly flushed, perhaps from the wine. ”I don’t understand. I was the one governing Longship Castle before the Baron died—he had long since washed his hands of it all. And I am the one governing it now that he’s gone. Why won’t they accept me?”

”...”

’Because in this era, bloodline trumps ability.’

’Even someone with the power to slay dragons has to kneel before the King.’

Leech said, ”After this war, there shouldn’t be any new rebel armies until Baron Wado’s heir is born.”

’The Baroness needs to produce an heir. Nothing else matters.’

’The peasants have been scared witless; they won’t dare rebel again, not for a long time. By the time their scars fade and they forget the pain, the Baroness will have given birth to the heir of Longship Castle. Then there will be no need to fear some bastard popping up out of nowhere.’

But Lady Jie Lin suddenly said, ”The Baron and I haven’t shared a bed in many years.”

”...”

Leech looked at Lady Jie Lin, showing no surprise.

’He had already suspected that the chances of her being pregnant with Baron Wado’s child were slim. But if she was smart enough, she would find someone to father a child immediately after announcing her pregnancy, and then actually give birth.’

’This is the only way for her to secure power.’

’A child born to the Baroness would undoubtedly be the heir. A child born to any other woman would only be a bastard. Both the Four Gods Sect and the laws of the kingdom must recognize this fact.’

’As long as it isn’t too outrageous, there’s no way to verify the bloodline. The Wados are all dead; the only way to continue the line is through Jie Lin’s womb.’

Lady Jie Lin looked at Leech. Supporting herself on the table, she stood up and asked, ”Lord Leech, can I bear the heir of Longship Castle for you?”

She untied her clothes and pulled out a small pillow that had been strapped to her waist.

...

Leech opened his eyes.

His arm was numb from being pressed down.

He turned his head and saw Lady Jie Lin lying in the crook of his arm, still asleep.

’What happened last night?’

’Right! He considered himself a man of firm character, one who wouldn’t bat an eye no matter how many beautiful women threw themselves at him.’

’When Lady Jie Lin offered herself to him, Leech decided to test his own weakness.’

’And besides, he had a strong suspicion the late Baron Wado had cavities.’

”Mmm...”

Lady Jie Lin opened her eyes, but she didn’t move, simply gazing at Leech.

”Lady Jie Lin,” Leech had to remind her, ”my arm is going numb.”

”My apologies, Lord Leech.” She smiled and sat up.

A woman’s hair upon waking is never as beautiful as one might imagine. Almost every woman wakes up with messy hair, and if it’s frizzy, it can look like a bird’s nest.

Lady Jie Lin, however, with her face and bearing, turned that messiness into something that could be described as ”wild beauty.”

The bedsheets slipped away.

They didn’t say much more; it wasn’t convenient to do so in the castle. But Leech guessed that this pretense of unfamiliarity was just burying their heads in the sand, because Lady Jie Lin’s voice had been quite loud.

After getting dressed, Leech opened the door, intending to peek out and see if anyone was around.

”Good day, Lord Leech.”

”Ah, good day, Miss Yi Lin.”

Leech froze awkwardly.

’It seems the Baroness has made thorough preparations. With Yi Lin guarding the door, she wasn’t afraid of anyone finding out what happened.’

Still, the thought of the older sister being in the room while the younger sister stood guard right outside the door struck Leech as very strange.

Lady Jie Lin, now also dressed, came out of the room.

”Yi Lin, is breakfast ready?” Lady Jie Lin asked.

”Yes, my lady!” Yi Lin nodded. ”It’s all prepared.”

”Perfect, I’m starving,” Leech said.

Breakfast at Longship Castle was bread and milk, with no greasy foods. Presumably, the women didn’t want to eat too much oily food and ruin their figures.

Leech had expended a lot of energy and ate three pieces of bread in one go.

Away from that bed, they were simply guest and host.

”My lady!”

As they were eating, a Soldier came in.

”What is it?” Lady Jie Lin asked.

”There’s a man outside the castle,” the Soldier replied. ”He says he’s a nobleman from Porcupine Territory, and his name is Kro Camel.”

Lady Jie Lin looked toward Leech.

”Kro? He’s still alive?”

Leech was astonished.

He thought Wado Eighteen’s men had gone crazy and slaughtered Kro. He never expected him to have actually escaped.

You could say Kro had accelerated the internal division of Wado Eighteen’s group. If he hadn’t been there teaching them noble etiquette, that band of rebels would have certainly held together a while longer.

”He’s one of my men,” Leech said.

”Let him in at once!”

Knowing Kro had arrived, Leech didn’t stay to finish his meal. He followed the Soldier out.

The drawbridge was lowered, and Leech almost didn’t recognize the man staggering across.

He couldn’t connect the filthy, ragged man before him with the smooth-talker he once knew.

”My lord!” Kro cried upon seeing Leech.

”Kro, my friend! It’s so good to see you alive!” Leech was being completely sincere.

He ignored the fact that Kro was covered in mud and went to embrace him.

”Sir Kro,” said Yi Lin, who had followed Leech out, ”perhaps you would like to wash up, change into some new clothes, and have a good meal.”

”Yes,” Kro said with a grin. ”My stomach is completely empty.”

The two had met once before in Porcupine Territory. Now, meeting again, they were both smiling. Their circumstances were likely completely different now.

After changing his clothes, Kro went straight to find Leech without eating first.

But Leech had some food and wine brought over anyway, so Kro could eat while they talked. Having survived such an ordeal, Kro surely had a lot to say.

Just as he’d expected, Kro had a torrent of words for him, recounting everything from the moment he left Porcupine Territory and entered Waterfall Land, to his capture, to becoming a guest of honor to Wado Eighteen, and then being hunted by Bor and the others.

Leech already knew all of this; he had seen it clearly through his dead birds. At the time, there was nothing he could do to help.

By the time he arrived, Wado Eighteen had already been hanged by his own men.

”What happened after that? How did you escape? And why did Wado Eighteen die?”

Kro took a large gulp of wine, his expression turning sorrowful. ”Because my good friend died. Pigskin Hat.”

’Pigskin Hat?’

”The peasant who delivered the message,” Kro explained. ”I tried to persuade him to stop following Wado Eighteen, to take some money and start a new life somewhere else. But his simple mind couldn’t think of anything beyond farming. He died in the battle at Hebang Village.”

”After he died, I grew to despise Wado Eighteen and Bor’s group even more. So I started spreading a rumor among the others.”

”What rumor?”

”That Wado Eighteen had sent a secret letter to the Baroness, proposing to marry her and become the Baron of Longship Castle.”

”And they believed that?”

”Heh,” Kro chuckled. ”The funny thing is, when Bor and the others confronted him about it, Wado Eighteen didn’t even deny that he wanted to make the Baroness his woman.”

”...”

”He didn’t die an unjust death,” Leech commented.

”Yes, he got what he deserved,” Kro said. ”There’s one more thing, my lord. The people backing Wado Eighteen were probably that bunch of monkeys from Shanzhang Castle. I saw a messenger from Shanzhang Castle arrive. They were even planning to send some military supplies, but Wado Eighteen arrogantly refused them.”

”Not surprising,” Leech said. ”A lot of nobles were involved in this matter.”

’As long as they weren’t exposed, it had nothing to do with them.’