I walked down the mountain path and headed toward the village.
It was a picturesque village, resembling a scene from a painting, with its idyllic landscape exuding beauty.
I approached cautiously, just in case the villagers might be hostile toward outsiders.
After all, there are cases where people shoot arrows at strangers as soon as they spot them.
Fortunately, it didn’t seem to be the case here.
As I reached the entrance of the village, there was no particular sign of hostility.
Some villagers seemed to notice me, but they acted as if they were ignoring me.
“So, they’re neither friendly nor hostile… well, that’s not so bad,” I muttered to myself.
I spotted a woman passing by and decided to ask her a question.
“Excuse me, but may I ask which village this is?”
“Eek!”
Instead of answering, the woman quickly ran away.
I tried asking a few more people, but the result was the same.
As time passed, it seemed the villagers were retreating to their homes and not coming out.
They were eyeing me with suspicion.
“This isn’t looking good… I need information. Gathering info from the village is usually the way to go. Wait, no. The tavern is usually the liveliest place in the village, right? There must be someone there who’ll talk.”
I found what looked like a tavern in the center of the village and entered.
However, there were no lights on, and the counter was empty.
It didn’t look like a place that was open for business.
Could today be a day off?
No, it didn’t seem like that.
The dust on the tables and the cobwebs suggested that the place hadn’t been operating for a while.
“Another dead end? This is getting frustrating. Why is this place so lifeless? Usually, when outsiders show up, they’re curious and ask all sorts of questions.”
At that moment, as I sat down at a table and let out a sigh, someone suddenly approached and sat across from me.
“It’s because everyone’s tired,” the person said.
“Hmm? Who are you…?”
An elderly man with graying hair glanced at me and continued.
“This village has been suffering from a severe drought, so there’s nothing to eat… when we see an outsider, we think, ‘Oh, maybe there’s someone who’ll take food from us.’ But we don’t have anything to offer.”
“I see… May I ask, who are you?”
“I’m Kyle, the village chief of the humble Ludin Village.”
“Ah, Chief Kyle, I see. I’m Victor.”
“Victor?”
Kyle raised an eyebrow.
“That’s the same name as the hero who was recently exiled from the Empire, isn’t it?”
I was slightly surprised.
Even in this rural village, news of the hero’s exile had spread.
It seems that being a hero is a matter of global interest.
Still, revealing that I was a hero wouldn’t really help me here.
I decided to play it off.
“Haha, really?”
“…Well, anyway, I’d like to ask the reason you’ve come here. As the village chief, I can’t just let a potentially dangerous person stay in the village.”
“Actually, I’ve recently lost my job and I’m looking for a new one. If possible, I’d like to work here… By any chance, do you have any connections with people living in the ? If so, perhaps you could write me a letter of recommendation?”
“Heh, heh, heh… Unfortunately, as a commoner, I don’t have any connections with the Count Bollanschefort family, who live in the castle.”
“I see… In that case, I suppose I’ll have to try going there myself.”
“What? You’re planning to go to the Count’s residence?”
“Yes. Well, I need a job.”
“You’d be better off not going. There’s a wicked woman living in the Bollanschefort family.”
“A wicked woman?”
“The Count’s daughter, Scarlett Bollanschefort… she’s a truly wicked witch. Even though our village is starving, she hasn’t done a thing to help. She’s one of the worst villains you could encounter. She won’t show any kindness to an outsider.”
“I see…”
A cruel noblewoman, huh?
It’s a familiar story.
In this land of Leive, it’s actually more difficult to find a noble with good character.
If you’re picky about food, you won’t get hired anywhere.
It would be stranger to expect someone like me, who’s useless, to get hired at a company with good benefits.
“Understood, Chief. Thank you for the information.”
“Oh? So you’re still planning to try and get a job at the castle, even after hearing all this?”
“Yes. I have nowhere else to go.”
“Judging by your lack of knowledge about this country, you must not be from here?”
“You caught me. Honestly, I don’t even know what country this is.”
“Hahaha. Well then, as a parting gift, let me tell you one more thing. This is Ludin Village, located in the border region of the Grimoire Kingdom, under the Bollanschefort family’s rule.”
“Thank you for the kind information. Goodbye.”
I got up from the table and left the tavern.
My next destination was the large castle that could be seen from anywhere in the village.
It’s said that Count Scarlett Bollanschefort’s daughter lives there.
If things go well, she might become my employer.
“A new beginning in life, huh? Well… no matter how cruel the employer might be, it’s better than starving to death.”
As I walked toward the castle, I could feel the gazes of many people on my back.
The villagers of Ludin were clearly keeping a close eye on me.
The reason was still unclear, though.
Originally, Ludin Village was a prosperous rural village, far removed from poverty.
Under the generous and capable Count Serge Bollanschefort, the villagers lived in peace.
However, the tragedy began when Serge fell ill and returned to his family’s estate.
At that very time, the Empire began demanding a bounty for the newly selected hero.
What is a “bounty,” you ask?
It was essentially a tax collected by the Empire, a powerful nation, from other kingdoms.
“We support the hero, so you should contribute to the funds,” was the reason behind the bounty.
The problem was the amount.
The Empire had always demanded massive sums as bounties from surrounding nations, and the bounty imposed on the Grimoire Kingdom was particularly enormous.
The Grimoire Kingdom had once been a powerful state, known as the “Empire of the East.”
It had been a major rival to the Renal Empire.
That was before… the incident.
We’ll set aside what the incident was, but since that event, the Grimoire Kingdom had lost its position and fallen into decline.
Though still the second-most powerful nation on the Leive continent, this fact only served to irritate the Renal Empire.
From the Empire’s perspective, they had no use for neighboring nations that threatened their dominance.
So, Emperor Carlos issued a destructive command a year ago.
“A new hero has been chosen! A new hero needs a new army! To fund this expedition, an enormous amount of money is required! It goes without saying that the entire Leive continent is kept peaceful thanks to our Empire! As a sign of gratitude, every nation must contribute 1 million gold! Ah! And Grimoire Kingdom is an exception! Surely such a powerful kingdom can afford to contribute 100 million gold! Pay up! If not, it means you have no intention of supporting the hero, and we will consider it a betrayal of humanity! I will order the army to invade Grimoire Kingdom!!”
It was a divine command.
One that could not be defied.
As a result, from that day forward, the Grimoire Kingdom began imposing excessive taxes across the entire nation to raise the 100 million gold.
They squeezed their citizens dry, ruthlessly and thoroughly.
Ludin Village, once prosperous, became one of the victims.
The generous lord was gone, and an unyielding official sent by the central government took over the administration.
This official, in order to gain favor from the central government, collected exorbitant taxes and took credit for it.
He even took all the food from the villagers, leaving them with nothing to eat, making life unbearably difficult for the helpless peasants.
As starvation spread and the villagers’ grievances grew,
Village Chief Kyle sent a petition to Count Serge and the central government to report the dire situation.
His efforts paid off, and the official was removed.
Serge’s daughter was appointed as the new lord.
Until that point, the villagers had been hopeful.
Though Serge could no longer serve as lord due to his illness, they believed that his daughter would be just as capable, as she was the daughter of such a respected figure.
However, their hopes were dashed.
Serge’s daughter had already earned a reputation as a wicked woman in the capital, known for her evil deeds and expulsion from the academy.
With the power of the Count behind her, she had managed to avoid punishment, despite having been imprisoned several times.
Upon assuming her position as lord, her actions were horrific.
Her first act of governance was to distribute poisonous plants to the starving people, causing many to die.
When the villagers expressed their horror, she coldly replied, “You said you were hungry, didn’t you?”
After that incident, the villagers abandoned all hope for the new lord and fell into despair.
Was all hope lost?
Not yet.
The most renowned fortune teller in the village had made a prophecy:
“An outsider who descends from the mountain will reform the wicked woman and bring prosperity to Ludin Village.”
Everyone thought the prophecy was merely a comforting lie, meant to prevent the villagers from resorting to mass suicide in their despair.
That was until Victor Evans descended from the mountain…
“Could that person be the one from the prophecy?”
“I don’t know.”
“Prophecies don’t always come true.”
“But that person… he seems so dignified.”
“He is handsome, too.”
“Chief Kyle, what was your impression after meeting him?”
As Victor entered the castle, the villagers, watching him from afar, asked Village Chief Kyle about his encounter.
Kyle whispered quietly:
“That person is definitely the one from the prophecy. No, he must be. We can’t endure much longer… if a savior doesn’t appear soon, we will starve to death. I can only hope that Victor is the savior.”
With all their hopes resting on him, Victor Evans finally met Lady Scarlett Bollanschefort, the new lord.