Belinda postponed all her tasks and stayed by Ghislain’s side. She couldn’t just leave someone who could barely walk by themselves. “I’m fine. I’ll be better soon... cough... ugh!” As expected, Ghislain began coughing up blood while spouting nonsense. Belinda sighed deeply as she wiped the blood from his mouth. “What do you mean you’re getting better? Do you think that potent poison is just going to disappear like that? You’re dying even as we speak!” Despite her constant scolding, Ghislain merely laughed. To others, he looked like a dying man, but he could distinctly feel the energy overflowing within his body. Just as he predicted, it took only two days for his damaged body to fully recover. When Belinda, who had been waiting outside Ghislain’s door since early morning, saw him walking out completely fine, she was shocked. “Huh? You’re really all better? What in the world is going on?” Ghislain shrugged. His body still looked skeletal, but his eyes were vibrant, and his movements were light. There was no denying that he was indeed fine. “I was right after all.” His mana had increased since he drank the poison, and his recovery rate had improved remarkably. Having experienced the benefits, there was no way he could give up on drinking the poison. After that, the poison stored in the warehouse continued to dwindle. It became so obvious that he was the one secretly consuming it. There were multiple occasions when Ghislain was found passed out in the training grounds after drinking the poison. Eventually, rumors started circulating that Ghislain was furious because Claude refused to surrender, and that was why he kept doing this to himself. “Why is the Chief Administrator being so stubborn? Why is he pressuring our lord over something as trivial as a bet?” “Why would someone who was so committed to improving the territory suddenly try to die? It’s all the Chief Administrator’s fault!” “We can’t lose our lord! Never!” The townspeople, somehow managing to find portraits of Claude and Alfoy, started angrily stabbing them with pins. Whether due to the townspeople’s curses or the workload Ghislain kept piling onto him, Claude’s dark circles under his eyes only worsened. Every day, he would come to Ghislain, begging him to stop. “My lord, let’s just call it off! I’ll call it a draw! Have you seen yourself in a mirror lately? Even a skeleton would call you brother!” “Are you scared? Is that why? You think you’re going to lose?” cough! “Oh my god, I’m losing it! You’re the one who's scared, aren’t you? You’re freaking out and this is your way of handling it!” “Who’s scared? Ah, forget it. cough! You came just in time. Here, take a look at this and handle it.” Ghislain handed him a stack of documents, and Claude’s face twisted in frustration. “Damn it... I shouldn’t have come. I’m only letting this slide because I’m leaving soon.” After several instances of coming to Ghislain and ending up with more work instead of results, Claude stopped visiting him altogether. Ghislain, pleased that the nagging had finally stopped, happily began assigning more work to others, just as he had done to Claude. While his subordinates were overwhelmed with tasks and too busy to worry about him, Ghislain’s fainting spells noticeably decreased. “So, I’ve used it all up like this.” Ghislain chuckled to himself as he lifted the last bottle of poison. The Blood Python’s venom had run out within a few days. It had originally been prepared to dilute for military purposes, but he had consumed it all. “Well, it would’ve been difficult to use in the first place, so this was the best use for it. It’s an investment, an investment.” Ghislain tilted the bottle to his lips and drank it all down. His demeanor was completely different from when he had first cautiously swallowed just a few drops. Now, he could drink an entire bottle and feel only a slight tingle on his tongue. No poison would have any effect on him from now on. But this also meant he could no longer use the shortcut of increasing his mana through poison. “This is the end of that.” Ghislain sat down and began slowly circulating his mana. The poison quickly mixed with his mana and spread throughout his body. After a few hours of training in a trance, Ghislain opened his eyes. For a moment, his pupils flashed with a deep crimson light. “Even though I’m done with poison... I kind of miss it.” After absorbing all the poison, his total mana had increased to an incomparable degree. His mana had doubled, maybe even more. “I’m really lucky.” Even though Ghislain was skilled in manipulating mana, amassing a large amount of it would normally take a great deal of time. But because the poison was so potent and harmonized well with his mana, he had been able to speed up the process significantly. ‘There’s hardly any potion out there that could give such effects.’ Ghislain slowly stood up and cut his palm shallowly with a dagger. The long wound on his palm healed instantly, leaving no trace of a scar. Only a few drops of blood remained, indicating that there had been a wound at all. “I like this.” Ghislain clenched his fist a few times, a satisfied smile playing on his lips. Once his poison training was over, Ghislain’s body began to regain its mass rapidly. His skin improved, and his eyes gleamed with energy. Even someone with no knowledge of combat could see the stark difference. “Young master, why do you look so healthy? Are you having that momentary burst of energy before death?” “Why are you always trying to kill me off? I’ve just been eating well.” “Eating well? You’ve been eating poison, and you call that eating well?” Still, seeing the visible improvement in his health, Belinda couldn’t argue much further. “Are you really okay? Should I try it too?” Belinda eyed him curiously, looking him up and down. Ghislain, avoiding her gaze, mumbled, “Don’t worry, I’m done with the poison.” Claude, who had been standing nearby, shook his head in disbelief. “You’re not done, you just can’t drink any more. There’s none left in the warehouse.” He had consumed every last drop of it, and now he was saying he wouldn’t drink it anymore, but it didn’t matter. Still, Claude felt somewhat relieved now that Ghislain wouldn’t be pulling such stunts anymore. Even he, as shameless as he was, couldn’t handle being blamed by the entire territory for Ghislain’s actions. “You’ve been to the warehouse? So, you’ve seen the wheat seeds?” “Of course. They look like they could sprout monsters if planted.” Claude had been startled when he saw the wheat seeds Ghislain had infused with mana. The seeds had grown to the size of a grown man’s thumbnail, each grain emitting a faint blue glow. For mere wheat seeds, they were anything but ordinary. “They’ve grown well. It’s time to move on to the next step.” “Are you really planning on planting those things? There’s only half a month left, what good would it do to plant them now? Stop being so stubborn.” Claude glanced at Ghislain with suspicion. “You’re not planning on raising some kind of monster to get revenge because you think you’ll lose, are you?” Ghislain snorted and stood up. “Prepare for the second phase of the reclamation project. Start recruiting workers.” ‘He really needs to get embarrassed for once to change his attitude. He drank poison because he was too proud to accept losing. Fine, do what you want, but if you fail, it’s on you!’ Claude steeled his resolve once more. As he busied himself recruiting workers, Ghislain summoned the wizards. “Ugh, what is it this time?” Alfoy grumbled, his face twisted in irritation as he arrived. Ever since Ghislain’s “poison-drinking spectacle,” people had been pressuring Alfoy to give up on the bet too. Even his heart felt like it had been stabbed multiple times. Someone must have been cursing him. On top of that, the amount of work was absurd. Ghislain would call the wizards whenever a task was too time-consuming for laborers and have them handle it instead. By now, they couldn’t tell if they were wizards or just laborers anymore. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚 “I need some runestones engraved with magic. It’s not complicated, but I’ll need quite a few.” “What kind of magic?” “Something to keep the surrounding area warm, another to alter the mana flow, and one to maintain consistent humidity... something like that.” None of the spells were difficult. Mana binding would be a problem since it required gathering and anchoring large amounts of mana, which runestones couldn’t handle for long. But altering mana flow was simple and could last almost indefinitely. “You want to waste expensive runestones on such cheap magic? Fine, but what’s the point of all this?” “They’ll be placed in the fields. It’s time to plant the seeds.” Ghislain answered casually, and Alfoy couldn’t help but frown. “You’re still not giving up? But what will happen when you place the runestones in the fields?” “I’ll change the nature of the land.” Sigh... Alfoy let out a dumbfounded laugh and rubbed his face. He couldn’t stand watching someone use magic without understanding it. ‘Maybe I should just stop asking questions. It’s better for my peace of mind.’ In that moment, Alfoy recalled a wise saying from an old sage. ‘How can I achieve inner peace and happiness?’ ‘By not arguing with fools.’ ‘I don’t think that’s true.’ ‘Yes, you’re right.’ Alfoy felt a sudden sense of enlightenment. He closed his eyes and sat down. Mana gently swirled around him, slowly enveloping him. The other wizards, startled, hurriedly stepped back. Ghislain’s face twisted in confusion. “What the hell? Why is he having an epiphany all of a sudden?” Epiphanies could come out of nowhere, sure, but from talking about maintaining temperature? Clearly, he must have been thinking something weird. Moments later, Alfoy opened his eyes, a slight gleam passing through them. It was a small revelation, one that barely raised his level, but he felt more at peace than ever. ‘Yes, there’s no point in arguing with fools. The sage was absolutely right. Just say they’re right and move on. Freedom is almost here; no need to get upset.’ Whatever Ghislain was saying, it was nonsense. There was no point in trying to change the mind of someone who couldn’t even realize they were wrong. He’d fail eventually and calm down on his own. The runestones might be a waste, but it wasn’t his money anyway. Alfoy smiled softly and said, “I’ll prepare the necessary runestones for the size of the field as you requested.” Ghislain frowned, unsettled by Alfoy’s sudden shift in attitude. It was great that the estate’s mage, even a free one, had advanced, but... Given the person involved, he couldn’t bring himself to feel entirely positive about it. But then again, it wasn’t like he could complain about the fact that Alfoy was cooperating now. Ghislain reluctantly nodded. “Uh... sure, do it as quickly as possible.” “Understood.” After assigning the wizards to handle the runestones, Ghislain gathered a hundred mercenaries led by Gillian. Fully armed and mounted, the mercenaries couldn’t hide their excitement. It had been a long time since they’d had a chance to fight, and just thinking about it made them eager. Workers approached and tied large carts to each of the mercenaries’ horses. Each cart was equipped with a steel shovel. One of the mercenaries, feeling uneasy, asked, “What’s with the carts and shovels?” Ghislain answered with an expression that seemed to say, “Isn’t it obvious?” “We’re going to dig, of course.” “Where... exactly are we going?” Ghislain, sitting at the front of the group, grinned. “We’re heading to the Forest of Beasts.”