Declared Dead, Exiled, and Betrayed— Now I Walk Away, but I'll Save One Who Cared - Chapter 30

Lax, are you truly certain about this?

“Of course. However, I have severed all ties with my birth family, so please do not expect any connections from that side.”

『Very well. Then, I formally approve the engagement between you, Lax, and Lady Shifa of the Riofendarl Viscountcy. Furthermore, I request that your wedding be held next year. I will send the High Priest from the Royal Capital’s temple.』

“Thank you. I am deeply honored by your generosity.”

Mm.

And just like that.

Shifa and I were officially engaged, with our wedding scheduled for next year.

As expected, the one I was speaking to was His Majesty, the King.

Not only had he helped expose and dismantle the duke’s schemes, but now he had personally approved our engagement and even arranged for the High Priest of the Royal Capital to officiate the wedding.

With such strong royal backing, it was highly unlikely that any noble would dare interfere with our engagement.

Even if someone tried to force an arranged marriage on me, they’d be up against His Majesty’s direct approval, making refusal incontestable—

Only an absolute fool would continue pressing the issue.

After all the hardships we endured, I finally had a taste of peace—

And it turned out to be pretty damn enjoyable.

Maybe my good deeds had finally paid off.

Ahaha…

But that didn’t mean I could relax just yet.

There was still much to be done.

While most of the damage from the Stampede had been repaired, we now had the ongoing responsibility of defeating lower-floor bosses regularly.

If possible, I also wanted to explore the deeper floors, gradually squeezing the dungeon dry.

Surely, the dungeon itself would be crying out, “Stop, please!”

Too bad.

I’d wring out every valuable drop item, then either offer them to the Royal Family or sell them to strengthen the viscountcy.

Of course, I couldn’t handle everything alone.

So, I opened an adventurer training academy, with Michelle as the head instructor.

As for Claire, she tried to slip away, making halfhearted excuses—

So I tied her up and forced her to demonstrate magic repeatedly.

A teacher, a training dummy, and a target, all in one—

Annoying as she is, she’s proving quite useful.

I even managed to sneak in a few extra spells aimed at her…

I’m sure she didn’t notice.

We also needed to enhance the quality of locally produced weapons and magic tools.

With future battles looming, we’d require more equipment than ever.

Which is why I was now visiting the city’s Industrial Guild.

“Thank you for taking the time to see us, Lady Shifa. Lord Lax.”

For some reason, Shifa was here too.

“Thank you for meeting with us.”

“And what brings you here today?”

The guildmaster was a rough-looking, broad-shouldered man who wasted no time on pleasantries—

He went straight to business.

Not that I minded.

I had no plans to play mind games or haggle underhandedly, but…

Something about his presence made me feel like I was being cornered by a bandit leader.

“I assume you’ve heard that we plan to expand dungeon exploration efforts. To that end, we need to increase the production of weapons, armor, and magic tools.”

“We are aware. However, we cannot simply increase production overnight. Skilled craftsmen take years to train, and we are already working at full capacity.”

That was expected.

Craftsmanship was not something that could be rushed.

Typically, apprentices spent years doing menial work before being allowed to handle actual crafting.

They observed, experimented, failed, and repeated the process until their master recognized them as competent.

Of course, apprentices could make basic items even during training.

And if those were good enough, they could even be sold.

But still—

It was a long process.

However, today’s request wasn’t about training new craftsmen.

“There are several closed workshops, aren’t there? Couldn’t we reopen some of them?”

This was also part of Shifa’s governance training.

She had specifically asked to come along, wanting to gain experience in her future role as a viscountess.

One of the closed workshops had belonged to a master craftsman who had sustained injuries during the Stampede and had been forced to shut down.

I was sure he had apprentices under him.

“That place, huh…”

“He was a bit eccentric, but his production rate was high. Isn’t there some way to bring the workshop back?”

I added my voice as the guildmaster hesitated.

The former workshop had been notorious for its unusual products.

Personally, I had found them fascinating.

They were weapons and tools that absorbed magic power.

Depending on the magic absorbed, they could:

• • Become sharper

• • Strengthen durability

• • Stabilize the user’s emotions

• • And various other effects

Honestly, they were incredibly intriguing.

The only drawback was that they drained the wielder’s magic.

For individuals with low magic power, they were practically unusable.

Most adventurers weren’t highly magical.

Those who were usually became knights or joined the Royal Mage Corps.

Because of that, the workshop’s sales suffered, which may have contributed to its closure.

But still…

I couldn’t just let it go to waste.

But things were different now.

The Royal Capital was sending knights.

Not just to arrest the duke—

But to uncover the mysteries of the dungeon itself.

Lord Riofendarl had offered significant tributes to His Majesty, not just to secure support for his viscountcy—

But to propose a greater plan:

The strategic utilization of the dungeon.

Investigations into other dungeons had revealed something unique about ours—

No other dungeon had frequent and direct communication with an intelligent entity like the “Administrator” we had encountered.

That made this dungeon a special asset for the Riofendarl Viscountcy.

Using this advantage, we had negotiated successfully—

As a result, the kingdom was sending a knight order unit under the guise of training exercises.

Which meant—

We now had reliable clients who could properly utilize the special weapons from that closed-down workshop.

Later, we managed to track down the workshop’s former master craftsman, Doran.

After speaking with him, I healed his injured arm—

And the man broke down in tears.

He had been lost, unsure how to support his wife, children, and numerous apprentices.

“Lord Lax, I’m going to do this! I swear it!”

“Good. The city will only continue to grow. More people will come, and more work will follow.”

Doran’s enthusiasm was burning like wildfire.

And from that day forward, he would go on to craft countless weapons and tools.

Many of them would become highly sought after by magic users.

His apprentices thrived, and even the surrounding workshops began to prosper.

As more people arrived, more jobs were created.

And wealth flowed through the city.

One day, all of these craftsmen would likely become Shifa’s strongest allies and supporters.

Because the future Viscountess was building their future alongside them.