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墨書 Inktalez
As soon as he got up, John ignored Mike and took out a piece of parchment from his pocket, addressing everyone present.
"I, John Stephen, am appointed as a knight by Marquis Duvas. From today onwards, everything in Salty Fish Village belongs to me—farmland, pastures, waters, minerals, trees, and wild beasts, including all of you. Do you understand?"
The villagers stood in stunned silence, unable to respond or voice their thoughts. They could only pray helplessly that their new Lord would not impose further taxes on them. After the recent orc invasion, they had barely any food left. If they were taxed again, they would have no choice but to flee as slaves; even the risk of being hanged if caught was better than starving to death.
John paid no mind to the villagers; he wouldn't change anything since he was a beneficiary of this new order.
"Johnny, take a team and tidy up my residence. Kuiradi, take some people to survey the surroundings. I want to hear about the territory tonight."
"Yes, my Lord!" Johnny and Kuiradi responded immediately.
Now that John had officially become a Lord, those beneath him could no longer casually refer to him as 'boss,' for that would invite ridicule from other nobles.
After giving his orders, John took the opportunity to examine his new residence.
Before him stood a nine-meter-high stone wall, one side of which had already been knocked down—likely by the orcs. Entering through the main gate, he was greeted by a three-story European-style building covering about four hundred square meters; this was his home. On either side of the wall were quarters for soldiers and male servants of the castle.
Behind his residence lay a garden that had fallen into disrepair due to the war. Opposite the garden was a stable for horses, adjacent to which stood a warehouse.
Of course, there was also a cellar beneath John's residence. If he had money, he could expand his living space outward; currently, it was surrounded by lawn, leaving ample room for expansion.
In the evening, seated in the living room on the first floor with lights illuminating the entire space, John quietly listened to Johnny and Kuiradi report their findings.
First was Johnny: "My Lord, there are many areas of your residence that need repairs. The eastern wall has been breached by orcs; additionally, the stable has been burned down and half of the soldiers' quarters have collapsed. Even if we repair them, there won't be enough space for all of us; your residence is missing many essentials."
John understood—essentially it meant spending money on repairs—but he didn't immediately propose a solution; he wanted to hear Kuiradi's insights first.
"My Lord," Kuiradi began, "the territory grant states that it covers approximately X square miles (acres). However, after my investigation, I found that only half of it is currently being cultivated. The village's labor force is clearly insufficient; we need at least two hundred more people to maintain farming."
This meant there was a significant amount of arable land lying fallow!
As someone whose culture valued agriculture deeply, John felt an urgent pang upon hearing so much land was unused.
Kuiradi quickly nodded in agreement. "That's right, my Lord. Furthermore, only one of the two mills in this village is operational; the other has been reduced to ruins after being burned down—another expense."
"Money is money," John thought suddenly with nostalgia for Redman. Initially believing Redman only knew how to charge into battle, he now realized that noble education was not without merit; Redman understood these matters well. Sighing inwardly, John contemplated how overwhelming it all felt.
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