Chapter 194: Continuous Achievements Unlocked

Early the next morning, Galier set out with the band of prisoners, escorting them back to Ushan Keep.

Once they arrived, given the presence of eyewitnesses, the crimes Leisen had committed would surely be beyond dispute.

Yet it was entirely foreseeable that attempting to root out the Skeleton Society through Leisen would still prove immensely difficult.

Though Rydal had spent these past few days interrogating Philidon, learning that Leisen had contacted the Society through Viscount Taini of the Purple Thunder Fief,

implicating the Purple Thunder Fief solely on Philidon's confession was highly improbable.

First, the Purple Thunder family possessed an extraordinary status; Viscount Taini himself was a powerful knight, his daughter had married Barrington, and his grandson was the heir to the Haide family.

Second, verbal accusations carried far too little weight; with no other evidence, Viscount Taini could easily claim it was a slanderous fabrication by Philidon, and his absolute denial would suffice.

Unless Leisen could provide evidence that Viscount Taini could not possibly refute.

However, in his communications with the Purple Thunder Fief, Viscount Taini had left nothing substantive in Leisen’s hands.

Even for this assassination of Ronin, the other party had only passed the word verbally through Philidon, and even that verbal message consisted of a single sentence, devoid of any specific details.

Regarding the matter of the Purple Thunder Fief, Ronin had merely given Galier a friendly warning.

As for how Leisen would be tried thereafter, and how the Skeleton Society would be pursued, those were matters for Ushan Keep to consider.

Following Galier's departure, Baron Mars and Baron Talun of Pasture City also took their leave.

Their task had actually concluded the moment Ronin arrived at Marsh Keep; their staying for two extra days was purely out of friendship for the Ironhoof family.

Now that Ronin’s forces had taken over the defenses here, they had no reason to remain any longer.

Having seen off these two groups of guests, Ronin spent most of the next two days or so on patrol, thereby gaining a deeper understanding of this domain.

The Sayan Fief was, in essence, a vast tract of marshland.

It was surrounded on its southern, western, and northern sides by wooded hills of varying heights; aside from a single road in the southwest corner leading to the outside world, there was only the northern path leading to the Black Collar Tribe.

Traveling eastward from Marsh Town offered flat terrain, but the soggy ground, coupled with lakes, rivers, mires of all sizes, and the frequent presence of dangerous creatures, made progress nearly impossible.

Furthermore, even if one managed to cross the marsh to the east, one would only reach the seashore, where no human cities existed.

Thus, over the years, the area where Leisen and his subjects active was likely limited to a hundred square kilometers around Marsh Town.

Marsh Town was situated in the southwestern corner of the entire Sayan Fief, a location that made access to the outside world much more convenient.

The residential areas for the town's subjects were also largely concentrated in this place.

On one hand, the land to the south was relatively dry, making it far more suitable for living compared to the damp, muddy marshland;

on the other hand, the only sixty-seven thousand mu of arable land in Marsh Town was also concentrated in this area, making it convenient for the peasants to work.

When Ronin heard that Marsh Town had nearly seventy thousand mu of cultivated land, he felt a brief flash of joy.

After all, to this day, the cultivated land in Mountain Woods Town had only just surpassed thirty thousand mu; Marsh Town was more than double its size.

But as he recalled the population of Marsh Town and the grain yield per mu in this world, the smile vanished from Ronin's face.

More than sixty thousand mu of arable land sounded like an immense amount, but in reality, even if fully cultivated, the harvested grain would barely sustain Marsh Town’s population of over ten thousand.

The root cause remained the abysmal crop yields.

During the many years Leisen had managed Marsh Town, though he relied on the marshland to run the black water buffalo industry, supplemented by fisheries and hunting so that he never lacked the funds to purchase grain from outside, the shortage of arable land had always persisted.

Furthermore, if Leisen wished to rapidly expand the population of Marsh Town, this problem had to be solved.

Yet he had found no solution, or rather, he had never thought to transform the marshland into tillable fields.

Perhaps to Leisen, rather than turning the marsh into farmland, it was better to simply raise fish and shrimp, which could serve as rations when hungry or be sold for money to exchange for other supplies.

Thus, after many years of inner conflict, he turned his gaze beyond the Sayan Fief, which led to his alliance with Prinster to seize the grain of Mountain Woods Town, and his subjugation of Joffrey to occupy the Black Collar Tribe.

Riding atop the Cloud-Treading Steed, Ronin gazed out over the vast yet flat marshland and could not help but sigh, "Leisen, oh Leisen, you truly did not know what treasures you possessed."

Many areas within this marshland belonged to the category of low-lying bogs.

The surface of such bogs was flat and low, their peat layers were relatively thin, and they were rich in nutrients; extracting the peat from the marsh could serve perfectly as organic fertilizer.

This vast marshland was, to Ronin, like a colossal, natural base for organic fertilizer.

Moreover, once the water was drained from such low-lying bogs, they could become fertile farmland.

Leisen had completely failed to realize this, choosing instead to risk danger by invading the fiefs of other nobles, which was somewhat akin to neglecting the root to chase the tips.

Ronin believed that as long as this organic fertilizer was used rationally, combined with the farming techniques he had taught Wilson and the others, the grain yield of Marsh Town would absolutely improve compared to previous years.

"Before the spring plowing, let Wilson organize the men to extract peat and apply a round of fertilizer to the fields."

Ronin turned his horse around, concluding his patrol of the fief, and returned to Marsh Keep amidst the fading glow of the setting sun.

"My Lord, Wilson has been waiting in the study for a long time."

Chahar the butler had already adapted to the new environment; over the past two days, he had managed Marsh Keep in an orderly fashion, and even the newly recruited servants had begun their training.

"How do you like the new castle?" Ronin asked casually.

Chahar praised it without concealment, "It is more spacious, grander, and sturdier than Mountain Woods Keep! My Lord, perhaps this place is more suited to your status."

A viscount of the Northern Wu Fief ought to have a decent castle to reside in; Mountain Woods Keep was truly somewhat shabby.

"I will consider the matter of relocation."

Ronin understood the butler’s meaning, but many of his artisans and industrial arrangements were in Mountain Woods Town, and in terms of living environment, he still preferred Mountain Woods Keep.

As they spoke, the two arrived at the spacious parlor, where the administrative officer, Wilson, along with his assistant, was already waiting.

"My Lord, you have finally returned!" Wilson and the others hurriedly stood to salute.

Ronin smiled and signaled for them not to be too formal, "You came to find me; is it that the census has been completed?"

"Yes, My Lord!"

Wilson took a stack of parchment sheets from the table into his hands and respectfully offered them to Ronin, "All 9,856 residents of Marsh Town have been registered. Please have a look, My Lord!"

Ronin's eyes lit up; the population of Marsh Town had indeed not disappointed him.

"Well done, everyone!"

As Ronin took the parchment, two lines of text flashed across his vision:

Achievement 'Thriving Population' unlocked, Attribute Points +100, Energy Essence +200

Achievement 'Thriving Population' unlocked, Attribute Points +150, Energy Essence +300