Earl Stark had been feeling that nothing was going his way lately. He was even beginning to feel overwhelmed.
More than three months had passed since he succeeded Count Samo as the Bunta City Mayor, yet he had not fully accomplished a single thing he wanted to do.
Before coming to Bunta City, he had thought his family was wasting his talents by sending him to serve as its city lord.
In his eyes, Bunta City's problems were child's play. Anyone they sent could have handled them without difficulty-even Baron Billier, who was already in Bunta City and whom he had always regarded as a mere brat.
The only reason he had ultimately come was that Bunta City had become the center of the struggle between the Lampari Kingdom's two major factions.
The Stark Family had paid a heavy price to finally secure the position of city lord, and naturally, they could not afford any mistakes.
Bunta City was only a small city, so having the head of the family, Duke Stark, personally serve as its city lord was out of the question. After considering their options, they had finally chosen Earl Manier Stark.
As Duke Stark's younger brother, he had the duke's absolute trust. His age also made him steady and experienced, so he was naturally someone they could feel confident entrusting with the task.
Before this, Earl Stark had been equally confident in himself. He believed he could fulfill his family's objectives and prove to everyone that making Bunta City a city founded on agriculture was far more important than making it a city centered on commerce.
Yet once he actually took charge of Bunta City, aside from his surprisingly smooth initial move against the Xinfei Merchant Guild, everything else he wanted to do had gone badly.
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