Yara knocked on the door to Ella’s room, where the tailor was hard at work, before entering with a tray of drinks.
“Hi, Ella! The ranger suit is almost done, right? I can’t wait to see the final piece,” she said, giggling as she stepped inside.
“Hi, Yara. Uhm… yes… I hope lord Broken won’t be disappointed with my work,” Ella replied, sighing deeply.
“Come on, you need to be more confident in yourself! Lord Broken has given you this task because he truly acknowledges your skill,” Yara said, giggling again as she set down the tray of drinks.
“Lord Broken mentioned that he’ll be here in a few hours to see the final result and to do the finishing touches himself.”
“What?!” Ella exclaimed in shock. She stopped working immediately, burying her face in her hands. “What should I do… I’m scared. Yara… please help me…”
“What are you so afraid of, huh?” Yara asked, sitting down beside her, looking genuinely puzzled.
Ella lifted her face, revealing a deep blush on her cheeks.
“What’s up with your face? Have you been staying up too late?” Yara asked, concerned.
“No…” Ella replied, her breath noticeably uneven. “I don’t know why, but every time Lord Broken comes into this room, my body goes rigid and I can’t work. It’s like my hands forget how to do their job.”
“What? Why?” Yara said with a giggle. “Are you nervous because Lord Broken is around? Maybe you’re just too enamored with him and get anxious when he’s watching you.”
“No, Yara…” Ella protested, diverting her eyes. “What should I do… I have to finish this quickly, but the lord will be here any moment… I’m so scared.”
“Should I tell Lord Broken to postpone it? Maybe until tomorrow? That way, you’ll have more time to complete it,” Yara suggested.
“No, no, no,” Ella panicked, grabbing Yara’s hands. “Don’t let the Baron know. I’ll work faster, I can finish it on time.”
“Yes… I believe you can,” Yara replied, standing up. “Take your time.”
Ella took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, shaking her head as if to clear it. She refocused on her work. “I have to finish this before the Baron arrives,” she resolved.
That morning, Broken rode through Slumdon Town atop Polly, the graceful four-tailed Fox spirit. As he glided along the city streets, all eyes turned to him. The Baron, clad in his white- and-gold patterned noble outfit and cape, exuded an undeniable charisma that captivated the townspeople.
The residents’ attitudes towards him had noticeably shifted. Having witnessed the tangible improvements he had brought to Slumdon, they now viewed him in a much more positive light. The progress was indeed remarkable.
The main roads of the city were getting better, making it easier for carriages and other forms of transportation to navigate. Traveling through Slumdon Town was becoming more comfortable, and the city itself seemed to be slowly reviving. The significant progress had lifted the spirits and hopes of the townspeople.
He toured the inner parts of the city, paying particular attention to the city wall. He noticed several sections were still un-repaired and covered in cracks. Nevertheless, he knew that progress would continue, and over time, everything would improve.
“The city wall needs to be upgraded,” he said, sighing deeply.
His primary concern was focused on the city’s defenses, aiming to prevent unexpected monster attacks. The number of guards was still too few to cover the entire town, making the reinforcement of the city wall a necessity. At first glance, this might seem like wasting resources, as the marketplace development needed significant attention.
However, he planned to balance the progress between improving the facilities and upgrading the city wall.
This was crucial, especially since he and most of the members of the Ass Guild wouldn’t always be in town. If he couldn’t strengthen the city’s defenses, it would become a greater liability for him.
Yes, he had a massive and powerful golem, but there was only one golem, whereas the town- yes, a town with a sprawling area-needed more comprehensive protection.
He didn’t want any disruptions during this critical period of construction, as that would significantly hinder the progress.
The housing for the residents was nearing completion, and the homes were looking much better. Some were already occupied, while others were in the final stages of finishing work.
The farming fields had started functioning well again after the rains returned. While this Rain Summoning Ritual was scheduled to take place only once a month for now, he felt it was a reasonable interval since the ritual couldn’t be performed too frequently.
The miners had resumed working efficiently, extracting ore from the cave that Broken and Danko had discovered some time ago.
In addition, the progress on the production class workshop was being expedited. Once completed, it would provide enough resources to craft finished products from the raw materials available around Slumdon Town.
The marketplace was a facility receiving special attention for rapid development so that the townspeople could actively start trading again and better serve the needs of adventurers. Meanwhile, Pussycat had already commenced the construction of an inn. She had taken that casual conversation seriously and was now building an inn in Slumdon Town. This venture held great potential as it could accommodate more visitors in the town.
At the same time, RememberMe had started constructing several restaurants, as promised, to complement Pussycat’s inn. Both of them clearly had business acumen running in their veins. There was still a lot of work to be done, but the progress so far had been encouraging. He also felt a sense of pride as the overall score of the town had now improved to an E!
[Overall Score: E – The city has shown significant improvement. The morale of the residents is beginning to rise, and the economy is gradually starting to recover.]
Feeling that he had gathered enough updates on the town’s progress, Broken decided to head back to the House of Slumdon. Today, he would finalize everything related to the equipment crafting. First on his list was finishing the crafting of the Woodland Ranger gear, a collaboration between him and Ella.
The Woodland Ranger set had taken less time to complete since the bulk of the work lay with Ella, allowing him to meet his crafting targets more efficiently. He also planned to finish other items—the greatsword, sword, and pickaxe-within the day.
He was eager to see the final results. Damn, he was absolutely pumped!
The timing couldn’t be better since tomorrow he would meet Marlene and the others to
launch their expedition into the Demon’s World, the Hell!
As Broken reached the House of Slumdon, he strode purposefully towards the room where
Ella was working. Suddenly, Yara came running after him.
“My Lord,” she called out. Broken turned around and waited for her to catch up.
“Yes, Yara. Has Ella finished her part?”
“Uhm… Ella…” Yara hesitated, looking unsure. “She doesn’t seem to be doing well.”
“What? Why?”
“She said she’s feeling stiff and can’t work properly. Something’s wrong with her.”
“Has anything bad happened to her? Is she sick?”
“Let me see,” Broken said decisively as he quickened his pace towards Ella’s workspace.
Yara followed closely as Broken opened the door, revealing Ella standing right in front of it
with a surprised look on her face.
“Ella, are you okay?” he asked with concern.
“My Lord,” Ella exclaimed, startled, causing the ranger suit to slip from her hands and fall to
the floor.
“My Lord, sorry,” Ella hurriedly bent down to pick up the suit, just as Broken also reached for
it.
Their heads accidentally bumped into each other.
“My Lord, sorry,” she repeated, her voice flustered.
Ella tried to retrieve the ranger suit again, but Broken gently held her shoulder. “Let me,” he
said, picking up the ranger suit from the floor.
“Take it easy,” he continued, observing Ella’s flushed face. “Yara said you were feeling
unwell. Are you okay?”
Ella’s face turned an even deeper shade of red. She backed away slowly and sank into a chair,
looking parched and breathless.
“Ella, are you okay?” Yara said.
At that moment, Freya entered the room, taking in the scene. “Why can’t you ever let the
women here work in peace, Broken? Look at Ella, her face is bright red.”
“I didn’t do anything!” Broken protested at Freya’s teasing.
Despite the commotion, it seemed Ella had managed to finish her work on time. He knew he
had to finalize everything immediately.