“Sir, the tribe of man-eating demons that plundered Stag Village doesn’t seem inclined to leave. By the looks of it, they’re settling down.”

Inside Barend’s castle, the baron rubbed his temples as he listened to this vexing news.

He had thought the man-eating demons would leave after inflicting sufficient damage upon the village, and that the loss of a few villagers, while unfortunate, would be manageable. The Golden Dragon Kingdom’s population was dense; they could spare a few.

Each year, many refugees from the interior fled to the northern lands to work for the lords there, clearing the wilderness. They had no shortage of people.

But this man-eating demon tribe didn’t seem inclined to leave, and not only that, they planned to settle down.

This was a serious problem; this was about seizing territory, not just a quick raid. It wasn’t something that could be solved by throwing some coin and the lives of a few peasants at it. No wonder Barend was vexed.

“How long will our stores last?” Barend asked grimly, still rubbing his temples.

“If we stop accepting refugees, we should have enough to last over a year.”

That was some good news. Including the Bander family, soldiers, servants, and the villagers who escaped the demons’ clutches, Barend Castle housed nearly five hundred people. The castle’s stores were relatively plentiful, and they ought to be able to hold out for some time yet.

The Bande family’s castle was located on the plains to the west of the northern lands. The Bande family only held a baronial title, and their fief was rather small, encompassing only a few villages. However, their territory had a great location, with fertile soil that led to excellent harvests. Moreover, because the terrain was flat, it was well-suited for travel.

Consequently, many caravans passed through the Bande family’s lands, bringing in a significant yearly income. This income allowed the Bande family to raise a number of quasi-knight trainees and over a hundred professional warriors.

Most importantly, the current generation of Bande family leaders possessed two knights. The current family head, Baron Barend, and his brother had both successfully ascended to knight rank. This strength, compared to most viscount heads, was more than sufficient, and the Bande family could be considered a local overlord among nearby lords.

However, the Bande family was currently trapped within their castle by the orcs, unable to venture outside.

Or to put it more broadly, all the nobles of the Fifth War Zone found themselves in an awkward situation.

The main forces of the great orc tribes were still concentrated around Helburg, but many smaller tribes had already invaded like a swarm of locusts. Although these tribes were small, each one typically included a few hundred orcs led by a single orc warrior chief.

Among these orcs, nearly half were young adult male fighters, which made them roughly equivalent to two hundred quasi-knight trainees. Even the remaining “weakest” members—women, children, and elderly—were no weaker than ordinary human warriors.

The Barend family had two knights, but they lacked advanced knowledge of combat breathing techniques and energy-refinement methods. The knights’ abilities placed them in the lower half of the knight rank, and together, they might not be a match for a single demon warrior, let alone the vast number of quasi-knight demons.

They didn’t dare engage the demons in open battle, and could only watch as the demons pillaged the villages. It was fortunate for them that demons weren’t good at laying siege, or the Barend family might have already been overtaken.

The situation surrounding the Fifth War Zone’s lords fared no better than the Barend family’s. Not every family could afford to maintain their own troops, like Richard did. If any of these lords had dared to leave their castles and engage the enemy proactively, Richard would by now be attending their funerals.

“Have we received any news from our envoys?”

“Baron, it has been less than two days since our messengers departed.”

“I was too impatient.”

It was obvious that no news would arrive within such a short span of time. “Stand by for orders, everyone. Return to your posts. I will go inspect the walls.”

The meeting adjourned swiftly, as there was nothing else the Barend family could do but wait for news from their envoys.

On the other side, after half a night of fighting, Richard ordered his troops to make do with resting within the village.

Baron Barend had no way to know that the man-eating demons vexing him had been thoroughly exterminated by Richard, and by “thoroughly,” it meant not a single one had escaped.

After wiping out the man-eating demons, Richard’s group had also rescued several dozen terrified villagers from a large cellar deep underground. The reason these villagers were still alive was because the man-eating demons had kept them as emergency rations.

These villagers, gripped by extreme terror, wanted nothing more than to follow Richard and his companions in search of safety. However, no matter how long Richard tried to convince them otherwise, they refused to leave. In the end, he could only threaten to drive them away with military power.

Nevertheless, Richard did show them a path to survival—he told them to head toward Hunter’s Dominion. After all, Hunter’s Dominion was large enough to accommodate anyone.

“Ronen, have you found any weaknesses?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Richard and Ronen were seated within a large house in the center of the village, conversing over a meal. The structure’s ceiling was quite high, made from limestone.

The original owner of the house must have been a person of some importance in the village, but it was unclear whether they had died in the man-eating demons’ attack or fled. The structure was large, and the demons had not bothered to make any modifications, moving in directly.

Though Richard was no stranger to hardship, he would never deprive himself if he had the option not to. With the option available, he naturally moved into this most comfortable of houses, where he scavenged for ingredients and cooked a satisfying meal.

“They’re too arrogant,” Ronen said, “scattering everywhere. If the lords of the Fifth War Zone could gather their forces, they’d have a good chance of defeating these demons.”

Four tribes of man-eating demons had infiltrated the Fifth War Zone, which they had spread out like a thin layer of batter to facilitate their plundering. If the lords of the Fifth War Zone could unite their forces, they would be able to assemble a coalition army consisting of six or seven knights, fifty or sixty quasi-knights, and five hundred or more professional warriors.

Such an army, though not as powerful as Richard’s, would have a decisive advantage against any of the demon’s smaller tribes.

The logic was simple, but the implementation was exceptionally difficult.

After all, for smaller noble families, each knight they possessed was akin to a guardian deity. No one dared send their knights away, leaving their castles defenseless. No one was willing to take that risk, and so they could only hope for outside assistance.

“We can track down the other orc tribes with the griffons and eliminate them.”

Ronen knew well the capabilities of griffon reconnaissance; against an enemy like the orcs, who lacked any aerial capabilities, employing griffons would give them a significant advantage, as if they were playing with cheat codes.

“No, we’re going to Barend first.”

“We’ve got to collect our payment before we get down to work, right?” Richard gave Ronen a playful wink, looking every bit the shady merchant.

It wasn’t strange for Richard to act so greedily. The Hunter family had recently taken quite a few ambitious steps, rapidly expanding the Flying Bear Army. An army truly was a bottomless pit of gold, and even the relatively well-off Hunter family found themselves in a pinch, needing to make some quick money to fill the gaps.

“Summon the troops and prepare to depart.”

“Yes sir.”