Chapter 67: 67 Hearing the Report

Chapter 67: Receiving Reports

Tonight, Mountain Forest Fortress regained its liveliness.

In the kitchens, Mrs. Bandel, who had been honing her culinary skills over the past days along with her helpers, finally had their moment to shine. They poured all their recent thoughts and concerns for the lord into the delicious dishes and bread they prepared.

The newly promoted junior knights, Zhuweit and Sim, entered the inner fortress dining hall with a mix of restraint and pride, joining the lord and many senior knights for dinner.

Ronin obtained detailed information about these two newcomers from David.

Both Zhuweit and Sim were under twenty years old—the former nineteen, the latter eighteen.

Frankly speaking, the probability of activating the seed of combat energy and becoming a professional knight at eighteen or nineteen is quite small, and their future potential is likely very limited.

But then again, Mountain Forest Town now had new superhumans, and who could afford to pick and choose?

During the meal, Ronin first solemnly introduced Redar's identity to everyone, especially with Mackenzie's indirect descriptions, making everyone aware of the red-haired man's capabilities, thus formally establishing Redar's position as commander.

At the same time, he also commended Zhuweit and Sim, raising their salaries to thirty copper coins per day, the same level as David.

Thus, apart from Tom, all the superhumans present now had a minimum daily wage of thirty copper coins.

Considering Tom's performance and attitude toward all matters during this period, Ronin generously allowed him to "become permanent" ahead of schedule, restoring his salary to the same level as other junior knights.

Tom was deeply moved by this.

At tonight's banquet, he finally received the lord's recognition and entered the circle of core members of Mountain Forest Town.

The banquet ended pleasantly. Under Bella's care, Ronin took a proper bath, washing away all the dust and fatigue from his journey, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

After half a month apart, Bella's complexion had become much fairer, perhaps because changes in her life had reduced the running around and labor she once endured.

Ronin felt he had contributed significantly, at least improving some people's lives and bringing happiness to a portion of them.

He believed that such people would continue to increase.

In the study, Chakhar and Wilson came to report on their work. Ronin asked Galen to serve each of them a cup of barley tea to quench their thirst.

"Lord, the hundred and two slaves have all been settled. But we must remind you that there are very few vacant houses left in the town."

Chakhar began complaining right away, "I cannot allow those slaves to live in the fortress, even the outer fortress. So, Wilson and I settled them in the homes of the former defense officer Disen and knight Kate."

Disen and Kate were knights arranged by the Saen territory in Mountain Forest Town. After Ronin killed them, their houses naturally belonged to Mountain Forest Fortress.

"But lord, these two houses are quite decent. Honestly, I feel reluctant to let these slaves use them. Unfortunately, there are no other vacant houses in the town."

Wilson agreed with Chakhar's words, "Lord, if more people join Mountain Forest Town later, we should plan for housing construction ahead of time."

Ronin nodded slowly, "Indeed, what you mentioned is exactly what we need to do next."

"The growth of Mountain Forest Town is inevitable. In the future, our population will reach that of a normal baron's territory, or even exceed it. Building enough houses ahead of time is essential."

Ronin did not need to pay the slaves any form of wages or remuneration, but he needed to provide them with clothing, shelter, and food. Building houses was indispensable.

Of course, the housing requirements for slaves did not need to be high, nor did each need a separate room; it just needed to be habitable.

"Let's not discuss the slaves for now. Wilson, how is your village division progressing?" Ronin asked.

Wilson quickly stood up and pulled a piece of parchment from his pocket, "Lord, it's all divided. There are four villages, each with a total population of over 490 people. Apart from the twenty serving you in the fortress, the numbers are roughly similar."

Ronin looked at the parchment. The largest village had 503 people, the smallest 492—the numbers were indeed quite similar.

At the same time, Ronin noticed that the names of village chiefs and group leaders were written behind the villages, clearly already selected.

"Well done, Wilson. But you haven't named these villages?"

Wilson modestly said, "I thought such an important matter should be decided by you, lord.

Additionally, the village chiefs and group leaders I selected after investigation are either those who work hard or those who yield good harvests from farming. If you feel anyone is unsuitable, I can reselect."

"I trust your work."

Ronin had no time to investigate each farmer individually. Village chiefs and group leaders were just workers; as long as they performed well, it was fine.

"Let the village chiefs and group leaders be as you've written. As for the village names..."

Ronin was interested in naming things and picked up a pen to write four village names on the blank space of the parchment.

The village with the most people would be called Prosperous Village; the smallest, Diligent Village, with 492 people.

He handed the parchment back to Wilson, "Tomorrow afternoon, gather these village chiefs and group leaders in the outer fortress hall for a meeting."

He then looked at Chakhar, "Although you are the fortress steward, the expenditures for these village chiefs and group leaders come from the fortress accounts. While their administrative affairs are handled by Wilson, matters involving outcomes and assessments need your supervision."

His trust in Wilson's work attitude was one thing; having someone supervise was another.

He knew Chakhar had capabilities—fortress accounts, resources, etc., all needed his management, and outward expenditures also required his understanding.

This arrangement might make Chakhar busier, but who wasn’t busy? Ronin, as the lord of Mountain Forest Town, was also quite busy.

"The hundred slaves bought this time will be divided into construction teams, ironwood teams, logging teams, and dung collection teams."

"The construction team consists of carpenter, mason, and ten men and ten women, responsible for building shelters. Initial requirements are not high; designate a mountainous area near the farm region far from the town center for construction."

"The ironwood team is to assist carpenter Uncle William in developing black ironwood, requiring fifteen robust men and two women for logistics. Have the construction team first build a few houses on the west side as a temporary base for the ironwood workshop."

"The logging team consists of ten men and five women, responsible for providing the lumber needed by the construction team and later building roads south out of Mountain Forest Town."

"The dung collection team is responsible for collecting dung and garbage in the town. Later, I will guide them on how to decompose and ferment this dung into fertilizer. Initially, allocate five men and five women."

Ronin looked at Wilson, who was sweating profusely, quickly recording with a goose quill pen on his palm.

"The remaining slaves will be kept depending on circumstances; any leftovers will be assigned to the four villages for farming. Tomorrow, first group them as I said."

"Alright, alright!"

Wilson recorded while responding—tasks were coming again, and they were big ones.

Chakhar secretly chuckled beside him; fortunately, he wasn't the administrative officer and had much more leisure.

"Chakhar, tomorrow morning I will distribute wages for guards, fortress servants, and administrative officers. Tonight, tally each person's remuneration and give it to me tomorrow morning," Ronin said.

"Uh... alright, lord!" Chakhar quickly maintained a serious attitude.