Chapter 513: Take Over Willard

“Is this Willard’s estate?” Mi Gen’s tone was icy; he had no patience for anyone from the Willard family.

“Y-yes, Sir Knight!”

Mi Gen continued, “My lord is Gervas, Earl. By the King’s decree, all of Willard’s assets now belong to my lord!”

“G-Gervas, Earl?!” The middle-aged man’s face turned instantly pale, his speech stammering.

“Do you have any objections?” Mi Gen raised an eyebrow, coldly demanding.

With a thud, the man dropped to his knees.

“Sir Knight, I dare not! I welcome Earl Gervas with open arms!”

At this moment, Gervas stepped forward. “What’s your name? Did you already know I was coming?”

“This is Earl Gervas himself! Answer quickly!” Mi Gen snapped, fearing the man didn’t recognize Gervas’s identity.

The man trembled again and hurried to reply, “Your Grace, Earl Gervas, I am Ronil, the former steward of this estate.”

“I did receive notice three days ago—officials from the Civil Affairs Office came to the estate and said Willard the elder… Willard had been executed for colluding with the beastfolk.”

“And all his assets were granted by His Majesty to you, Earl Gervas!”

“Oh? You’re the estate’s steward—where are the other servants?”

“Your Grace, all the other servants have fled!”

“I alone received orders to ensure no estate property was lost and to deliver it safely into your hands,” Ronil continued.

“Good. Then show me around the estate.”

Gervas wasted no time, directly ordering Ronil to lead the way.

Ronil rose respectfully and opened the main gate, guiding Gervas and his party inside.

I have to admit, Willard still knows how to enjoy life.

This estate was enormous—nearly a thousand square meters—and this was inside Eagle City!

In a city like this, every inch of land was precious, especially in the Eastern Quarter, where land was worth its weight in gold.

With such a vast area, the estate featured a front garden, a back garden, and two side courtyards.

The front garden held a small plaza and various flowerbeds.

The back garden contained a pond and a pavilion.

The left courtyard had ample open space, suitable for the master’s personal training or small gatherings.

The right courtyard served as the servants’ resting area and stables.

Overall, though compact, it had everything—a true urban mansion.

Of course, the interior decoration of the central villa was equally luxurious, matching the standards of noble estates.

Yet Willard’s villa was smaller in scale, unable to rival the vast manors outside the city, often spanning ten thousand square meters or more.

“Excellent! Excellent! You’re Ronil, right? You’ve done well these past days—none of the servants took valuable items from the villa.”

After touring the entire estate, Gervas was thoroughly satisfied.

Though he’d likely spend little time here, owning a grand villa in what amounted to the capital city’s golden district? No one would refuse.

“Your Grace, though the servants fled, they didn’t get far—they’re still within or near Eagle City.”

“They know better than to steal—otherwise, their only fate is the gallows!”

“Fine. Now that I’ve seen the estate, take me to Willard’s other assets.”

“By the way, as Willard’s steward, you must know all his holdings, correct?”

“If you give me a detailed inventory, I may reward you handsomely once I’ve taken possession.”

“Then you won’t have to worry about your future livelihood.”

Ronil’s eyes lit up with overwhelming excitement.

As for whether Ronil, as Willard’s steward, harbored resentment toward Gervas or planned sabotage—

That was impossible.

Not only was Willard condemned for colluding with the beastfolk and executed.

Simply facing a real earl—one word from whom could decide his life or death—was enough to make him serve wholeheartedly.

“Your Grace, upon learning of your arrival, I prepared the inventory these past days…”

Quickly, Ronil retrieved Willard’s asset list from the villa and handed it to Gervas.

Gervas carefully reviewed it and found Willard’s holdings were indeed substantial.

Beyond this estate, Willard owned numerous shops in the Eastern, Southern, and Western Quarters of the city.

Especially in the Southern Quarter—the list noted eight shops along the main streets.

In the Western Quarter, there were over ten shops on the main street and an entire row along side streets.

Outside the city, Willard also owned two estates…

Though called “estates,” that term was inaccurate—they were more accurately farms.

One farm covered a thousand mu of farmland, with dozens of serf households tending crops.

The other farm raised cattle, sheep, chickens, and ducks, also managed by dozens of serf households.

Altogether, these assets were worth at least three thousand gold coins.

Still, this was far below what a title-holding Hou Jue like Willard should possess.

Willard’s original wealth had been far greater.

But Gervas had halved it.

When Willard’s son tried to retaliate against Gervas and indirectly offended Catherine, Willard learned Catherine was the granddaughter of Duke Hernand.

He was forced to surrender half his wealth as compensation to Catherine, narrowly avoiding the wrath of the Hernand family.

Then came the Northern Campaign—Willard spent heavily to secure Gervas’s removal and his own appointment to a key post.

He bribed officials with hundreds of gold coins.

This emptied the estate’s vault, leaving little for Gervas.

Fortunately, Gervas was a content man—three thousand gold coins felt like a windfall, more than enough to satisfy him.

Later, as Gervas toured the city, he found most shops were rented out.

Only three were directly managed by Willard for retail sales.

The goods sold were all products from the outlying farms—hence only shops in the Southern and Western Quarters.

Though these agricultural goods had low individual value, their volume and elimination of middlemen yielded substantial profits.

These three shops brought Willard two hundred gold coins annually in a city of nearly a million people.

That equaled the pure income of two barons.

Hence, Willard had been willing to lower his status and personally handle these “lowly” goods.