"Father, you are looking for me?"
My father looks at me and nods his head.
"Yes. Take a seat."
I nod, sit on the couch in front of his desk, and wait for him. After a few seconds, my father got back with a small stack of paper. He put them on the table and said.
"These papers are the deeds for your new territory."
I take one of the papers and read it while my father continues.
"You shall be the lord of Gerkan City. It is a frontier city next to a dungeon. It is a great city with fertile land and a gold mine to the east."
That is a great starting point for me. I know Gerkan City. It is a dungeon city. What is a dungeon city? A city near a dungeon. What is a dungeon? It is an interdimensional plane that is full of monsters that like to kill all living things. Our world has monsters, but they have consciousness. Some of them can be talked with and are willing to let people go as long as we do not disturb them. Of course, there are the opposite as well.
The monster from the dungeon, on the other hand, did not have that kind of thinking. They only want to destroy. The story says something about Outer Gods, a group of Gods from other worlds who come to this world and try to consume it.
However, with the combination of all Gods and living beings fighting against them, the Outer Gods get killed. Sadly, before they die, the Outer Gods create a rift from their domain that will create a dungeon every now and then.
That is the story, but no one knows what happened because it happened more than one hundred thousand years ago.
Anyway, dungeons become a stable income for a lord of a city. Every monster in the dungeon has a core, and that core can be used as fuel for all the utensils we use. Take the stove, for example. Instead of using gas, the stove uses a monster core to create fire. Most of the magical items in the world use the monster core as fuel.
You can say that a monster core is a natural battery.
Because of this, many adventurers want to make a profit by getting deeper into the dungeon. Sadly, while the profit is high, the danger is also higher than any other job. The average lifespan of adventurers is forty, and only less than ten percent survive to their sixties.
As a lord of Dungeon City, my duty is to inspect the dungeon and lead a group of knights to ensure the dungeon is not overcrowded. If the dungeon is overcrowded, monsters will start to leak into the outside world, and monster waves will occur.
When that happens, hundreds of people will die, and I did not want that as a lord. It will show the world that I am incompetent because I did not inspect the dungeon to know it was overcrowded.
Governing over Dungeon City is an excellent job because it generates a lot of cash but, at the same time, is a dangerous one. You cannot fool around unless you want a dungeon flood.
Anyway, this is good. With this, I can increase my template and have an easy life.
"When do I need to go?"
"Tomorrow. I have already sent a letter to the current governor, who will give you the position of city lord. This will be a hard job but I know you can do it, my son."
I nod and say.
"I will not disappoint you, father."
"Good. Take this scroll. This should be enough for the governor to give you the power over the city."
I take the scroll and nod.
"Once you are there, you are officially a City Lord. If you understand, you can leave the room."
I nod and leave the room. Tomorrow will be the day I start my first day as a lord, and I cannot help but be nervous.
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|3rd POV|
Rahan looks outside of his office and releases a sigh.
"Well… It is nice to have authority, but it is time to go back."
Rahan, the current governor of the Gerkan City, says as he takes his personal belongings.
"You did not need to leave, sir."
Rahan looks to the side and sees his assistant look at him with a sly smile.
"We can let the young lord into a puppet while controlling the city from the background."
Rahan sighs and says.
"You did not know what kind of person Duke Astras is, Harridan."
"What do you mean? This is a perfect opportunity for us! He is a young boy! He did not know anything! We can lure him using beautiful women and all things he wants! It will take a lot of gold but we can still control the entire city!"
Rahan shakes his head and looks at the man next to him.
"I will not get involved in this matter. If the new lord wants to have me in this place, I shall perform my duty, but he doesn't want me here, I shall return to the capital city."
"What is wrong with you, Rahan?! Are you that afraid of Duke Astras?! He is a couple days away from this place!"
Rahan drops his belongings, takes out his knife, and puts it on Harridan's neck. Harridan's face gets pale when he sees the knife on his neck.
"You don't know what kind of monster you are provoking. I have seen that monster on the battlefield, and I did not want that monster to put his sight on me."
Rahan puts away the knife and continues.
"If he asks one of his sons to be a lord of this place, that means he likes this person. He will put spies in this place, and he will know when you try something on his son."
Harridan only glares at Rahan's back and sneers at him. Harridan gets up and says.
"You will regret this, Rahan. I will be the True Ruler of the Gerkan City! Mark my words!"