Reborn as the Failed Lord with my Resource Gathering System. - Chapter 193

Chapter 193: A Duke’s downfall.
It took quite a long time for Duke Valerie to make up his mind.

He thought of everything.

How the contract would affect him. Was he being scammed? Could he actually do the things written in the contract?

At the end of the day, his head was in such a spiral state that he could barely complete a single thought without biting his lower lip in anger.

Dorian had him backed into a corner; that much was obvious.

Still, regardless of what he signed, as long as he could still get the city all to himself, then he had nothing to worry about.

Besides, the first article spoke of “Jaana City.”

As far as he knew, it could be just one unknown city under him that he barely took notice of.

The people moving from the Red District would need another city to stay in, so it made sense to a certain degree.

After a while, his mind was made up.

“Fine. I’ll sign the contract.”

The fear among the Yins increased.

While they didn’t know exactly what was written in the contract, they assumed it had to be against them, considering what Dorian had told the Duke from the start.

Without saying a single word, Dorian handed the Duke a pen, still smiling as warmly as possible. Valerie barely looked at Dorian’s face.

He had already been embarrassed enough.

Grabbing the pen, he began to sign the contract, his tears occasionally dripping onto the paper.

Soon, he had finished, and was now handing the contract back to Dorian.

“There, I have signed the contract. Now keep your promise and take your people to Jaana City or whatever.”

As Dorian grabbed the contract, he looked at the man with genuine confusion. “What are you talking about? Move to where? They are already here.”

“What?” The Duke could barely hide his confusion.

Then again, the same applied to the Yins soldiers, who were still fighting the urge to believe their savior would betray them so easily.

“I am serious. Did you not read the history of this city? It was called the City of Jaana before being called the Red District. In the official records, Jaana is what is registered. Geez, some Duke you are.”

As Dorian spoke, he wrapped the contract up and tucked it safely into his shirt.

The Duke’s eyes widened in shock. And at this point, everyone was beginning to understand one thing: Dorian had scammed the Duke completely.

While his wives understood this possibility from the start, the others who were just witnessing it for the first time all stared with their jaws dropped.

Emily no longer wanted to yell. Instead, she watched with awe at the sight, blinking several times unknowingly.

Low, painful chuckles left the Duke’s lips at the realization.

“Ah… eh… b-but you still promise to keep the letters a secret, right? Young Lord Dorian still has pity for this old man, right?”

The Duke had a bit of hope in his eyes.

Then came Dorian’s reaction.

Pointing his finger at the Duke, he gawked with disgust, his very words laced with it.

“Why on earth would I listen to the demands of a man such as yourself? We’ve only just met, and you already assume I’d be the same as the other selfish and money-hungry workers you have around you.”

“Eh?”

“Let me tell you how this is going to go.” Dorian kept pointing; only his expression switched to a sadistic smile.

“First, you’ll sleep in jail for your attempted treason. I assume you’ll be there for the next twenty years or so. Then, when you come back, you’ll be in even bigger shock when you find out the great city of the Red District can now rival anything you have ever built. See, do you understand now?”

The Duke lowered his gaze to the ground; his eyes widened in total shock. Dorian was right; the Duke fell for it—hook, line, and sinker.

While his thoughts echoed in his mind, he slightly raised his head to see Dorian discussing with the women behind him.

While some were praising him, the others, especially the fool who had spoken down to him before Dorian arrived, were apologizing to Dorian for having raised their voices at him and not trusting his process.

The entire view angered him. Not to mention the men behind him didn’t seem like they had any intention of fighting for him anymore.

“Dammit. It’s all his fault.”

Dorian looked to the Duke as soon as he heard those words.

“Huh? Did you say something? You’re going to have to be a little bit louder than that.”

“Damn you, Aurelian!!!”

The Duke suddenly shot up from the ground, pulling a blade from the sheath of the nearest soldier before he charged forward with speed.

Before he could even get very far, Maria and Emily had acted.

While Maria slapped her palm against the Duke’s face before slamming him to the ground, Emily aimed her blade at his head, daring him to stand up.

He struggled to free himself, unable to move a single muscle after being pinned to the ground.

Ishtar sighed right after. “Such a unruly man. Sigh, this was disappointing. I expected more from him,” she uttered behind her hand fan.

Seraphina looked at her and chuckled.

Seeing that the Duke had been pinned to the ground, Dorian looked at him. This time, the seriousness on his face was clear.

“Enjoy your next years rotting in jail, Duke Valerie. A man such as yourself deserves nothing more than to rot in suffering and isolation. Take him away.”

“Wait, Dorian! I can make you a bigger deal! I can! Listen to me!”

Soldiers from the Aurelian army moved forward to act.

They took not only the Duke but his army as well, who immediately surrendered their weapons without putting up much of a fight.

At the end, the Duke was gone, and the city was back to what it needed to be.

Before Dorian could revel in the victory, Emily fell to her knees, her face contorted in disappointment—but this time, it was in herself.