“Quest completed.”

“Rewarding 1,000 experience points.”

“Congratulations! You have been promoted.”

Having completed several missions, Richard returned to Boulder Fortress and received his reward in the Boule Chamber, quickly reaching level 4.

Richard: Human Race

Level: 4 (560/8000)

Strength: 9.8

Stamina: 9.9

Agility: 10.1

Spirit: 3.6

Skills: Beast Breathing Method (Grandmaster) – Maxxed, Universal Qi-Attracting Technique (Elementary) – Upgradeable, Attack Technique (Elementary) – Upgradeable

Available Skill Points: 1

Units: Spearmen (30), Archers (20), Griffin Cavalry (6), Swordsman (1), Crusader (1)

After this promotion, Richard’s physical prowess had improved slightly, and at this rate, it wouldn’t be long before he could stand up to knights with only his mortal body.

As for the skill point awarded with the promotion, Richard thought briefly before allocating it to Attack Technique.

Attack Technique (Intermediate): Boosts the attack power of your units by twenty percent.

The intermediate level of Attack Technique boosted the attack power of his units even more, significantly increasing their combat effectiveness.

In addition to the experience reward, there was also a choice between resources or military units.

Richard didn’t lack for either wood or stone, as the human castle’s development was still in its infancy, so he chose the military reward.

“Congratulations! You have received: Imperial Griffin (5), Pikeman (15), Crossbowman (10).”

The soldiers appeared one after another before Richard, and the five Imperial Griffins even nudged the original six griffins aside as they drew near. Richard reached out to stroke the snow-white feathers of the Imperial Griffin, noticing upon closer inspection that these griffins were larger than their predecessors.

They measured nearly four meters in length, almost the size of the giant bears, though not as robust. However, their ability to fly conferred a greater advantage in combat, and any attack from such a height would render most quasi-knight defenders helpless.

Unfortunately, only a few Crusaders had shown up. If there had been a few more knights, Richard would have felt more at ease about the upcoming battles. Still, he thought, greedily, it’s better than nothing.

Having tasted the sweet nectar of victory, Richard returned to the Boule Chamber to accept new missions.

“Eliminate the Man-Eating Demons (50).”

Mission completion rewards:

1. Reward of 3,000 experience points
2. Reward of random resources or troops

“There are always a few terrifying shadows lurking in the jungle. For the safety of your territory, eliminate them.”

This mission seemed a daunting task. Hunter rarely saw any sightings of man-eating demons, and in all the years Richard had been alive, he had only ever seen one lost demon who had wandered into the ironwood forest.

Even then, it had been his father, Sott, who had stepped up to deal with the problem. Man-eating demons generally lived deep within jungles, and it would be difficult to track them down by air like they had done with the pirate ships.

These creatures were not easy to dispatch either. Adult demons stood at around three meters tall, with shoulders as wide as a human’s waist. A grown male demon’s strength was five to six times greater than a human’s, making them as powerful as a peak-level quasi-knight.

In battle, they swung heavy clubs, crushing all those under quasi-knight rank—regardless of whether they wore plate or chainmail armor—to death with a single blow.

In short, this mission was difficult to complete, and even more so to do so easily.

Forget it. Richard would have to put this mission off for now. He would definitely tackle it eventually; aside from the abundance of experience points, the Boule Chamber also didn’t offer an option to abandon missions. One had to complete missions in order to receive new ones.

Richard planned to search for the giants’ trail first. Once the Crusader camp was set up, he would have a dozen or so knights under his command, which would make completing this mission much easier. He couldn’t afford to force the issue right now and waste the lives of ordinary soldiers in a futile battle against the giants.

After spending a few days at Boulder Fortress, Richard had finished delegating basic management tasks and arranging for some experienced administrators to settle in the newly occupied territory. Fortunately, Richard had begun training lower-level officials long ago, so even after annexing the Hunter Territory, there were still enough officials to manage the territory and prevent prolonged chaos.

“Quill, organize your men and prepare to return to Tie Mu City.”

“Yes, sir.”

Quill had finally returned to Boulder Fortress after taking the City Guard out to stabilize the villages and assert their sovereignty. After a few more days, Richard was also ready to return to Tie Mu City, as there were important matters that needed his personal attention postwar.

In Richard’s plans, Boulder Fortress would become a purely military fortress with no permanent civilian residents, as the secret of the System needed to be kept safe. Only soldiers produced by the System would remain there, while Tie Mu City would serve as the administrative and economic center for both territories.

Richard rode at the front of the team, Quill and Ron followed close behind, and two hundred City Guard soldiers marched at the rear. The snow melted along their route, no longer enough to cover the burgeoning signs of spring. Plants began to grow, and life gradually returned to the land.

Farmlands were already being plowed and tended, but whenever the villagers who used to live under Wil’s rule saw Richard’s army approaching, they would shy away. Richard paid them no mind; public favor was something to be slowly built up, and he was confident in his ability to govern more effective than most of the nobles in this world.

As he marched, Richard turned to Quill. “Quill, pass on my orders: Do not trample the farmlands, and anyone who disobeys will be severely punished.”

“Yes, sir.” Sometimes, this quiet officer seemed like a robot programmed to respond with nothing more than “yes, sir.”

After issuing his orders, Richard leaned down and gently stroked his horse’s mane. He murmured into its ear, “If you dare make me look as silly as Old Cao today, I’ll roast you for dinner tonight.”

Fortunately, the horse wasn’t spooked. The team safely crossed the Little Ling River and returned to Hunter territory.

It had been more than ten days since the great battle at the Little Ling River. The signs of war had faded; the river’s ice had melted into flowing water, and the retreating troops had no choice but to take a detour over a stone bridge.

Upon returning to Hunter, the soldiers’ spirits visibly improved. They no longer avoided eye contact with the farmers they passed, and some even waved at them from afar.

Richard paid no mind to these details. Wil had followed Hunter’s governance model to the letter, and in a few years, the House of Wil would become history. The two territories would become indistinguishable.

After crossing into Hunter, the soldiers picked up their pace without any urging from Richard. Arriving home after a campaign always lifted their spirits.

The following noon, the troops arrived at Tie Mu City. After settling the men, Richard returned to the Wooden Iron Castle.

“Sir, Viscount Souter is waiting for you in the garden. He asked that you go see him,” the housekeeper informed Richard as soon as he returned.

“Mm,” Richard acknowledged.

As he walked toward the garden, he could sense the servants’ good moods, likely because Viscount Souter was rewarding them in celebration of their victory.

“Father.”

Richard strolled through the gardens, where Viscount Souter sat on a chair, drinking something, his complexion looking rather pallid.

“Son, you’ve finally returned. I’ve already distributed some of the rewards, but you can discuss the rest with the housekeeper.”

In Richard’s absence, Viscount Souter had to manage the territory. The complex administrative work was pure torture for him; if he were an emperor of old, he’d unquestionably be a lazy monarch who neglected his duties.

“Yes, I’ll take care of it.” Richard knew Viscount Souter’s temper. While the man was capable of leading troops into battle, managing civil administration would make him lose all his hair in stress.

“Richard, what are your plans for the Wil territory?” Viscount Souter asked suddenly in a grave tone, abandoning his usual joking manner.

“I’ve already thought about this.”

“Hm?”

“The House of Wil’s female members have settled down in Tie Mu City. Ron never had a surname, so henceforth he will be known as Hunter Ron, your long-lost bastard.”

Viscount Souter was taken aback.

Meanwhile, strolling through the city, Ron felt an inexplicable burning sensation in his ears. He instinctively covered them, slightly bewildered.