Chapter 11 Day One, Part 11. Wealthy Village.

Remember! Remember once and for all: Hobbits have no concept of a light snack. That's just a play on words! Only two hours later, we left the table. We didn't have lunch! We just tried different dishes. I still don't understand why we didn't get a debuff, like 'Gluttony Grade I, your agility, and movement speed are reduced'. The table was set in the street, near the headman's house, and the whole village knew within ten minutes that a new Lord had arrived. And that the village had already gone over to me in submission, the headman was made a baron, and the trickster Tim, from whom all the young girls were hidden, became an attractive groom. Everyone tried to bring something delicious to please Tim and me. The rest of the elves, with their calm and less emotional faces, tried not to touch once again. Tim quickly suppressed the shock of turning out to be a thousander, and the whole dinner bragged about how he had famously destroyed an army of goblins and a few hundred ogres. And at the beginning of the dinner, there were only a few dozen. But all the sexually mature girls were around him in every possible way, catching his eyes and slipping him treats.

You can ask me. Why did I need this entire introduction? I came from experience. I could say I am a new lord and want to annex this village to my land. The headman would haggle for everything, knowing that right now I require soldiers and the village's resources. The tax would be five, well, ten percent maximum, and I would have to maintain guards in the settlement and take care of finding and convincing other villages to join me myself. And, so, I interested the headman and gave him the status of a baron, which gave him the ability to make treaties with other settlements within the specified boundaries, establish the police force, and expand it to guards and corporals. It looks like he can only choose one corporal for the settlement. I must not forget to clarify that. I have received a high percentage of taxes, which at least shortly will not lead to a loss of morale, and will attract new villages that do not need to waste time. In the city, which will be built near the castle, I will give him a place for a store, and I will always have fresh fruits and vegetables that do not depend on tribute deliveries, even if they cost some money. We must look to the future. And instead of lengthy negotiations, we now spend the saved time on a feast that will raise the morale of the hobbits. With everything, you have to look for pluses. And there is only one minus — now I can't influence the village directly, but only through the former headman, and then not by order, but through discussions.

After looking at the ten halflings assigned to us, I thought it could be worse. The guys all seemed to be adults, but only a couple of them were in combat. The rest used slingshots only when duck hunting. Tim dressed in the best of the trophy leather armor with a helmet. Galbireth gave him a dagger from his stash that looked like a small sword on a halfling. In general, we created the image of a formidable warrior. I gave on two more leather armors to experienced hobbits. They are more valuable to me now. And I appointed them half-foremen, with the promise, that if they show well, they will become foremen in a week. The headman provided us with food for a light snack. So clearly, we will have enough food for a few days. We said goodbye to the residents and headed to the human village, which is an hour and a half from Apple Valley.

We reached the human village much faster. First, we went straight through the forest, and second, my ability to find secret paths shortened the length of the walk. On the way, we came across five skeletons, which we destroyed as we passed. We didn't look for anything at the place where they stayed because we didn't want to waste time there.

We collected only gold. One hundred and fifteen gold pieces I have distributed among the halflings. Soon there will be a fight with the orcs for the source, additional morale points will not be superfluous. Not so much money, but the halflings were pleased. They just joined the Lord's troops and immediately enriched themselves.

The village turned out to be unpredictably large, with at least thirty households. In this case, they can immediately raise about thirty men and even the same number if they have time to prepare. Of course, I had no intention of fighting with them. I had a different plan for this village. After all, I didn't just take an admixture of human blood. The village was well set up: Cattle mooed, chickens clucked, and in front of our eyes, a couple of children herded several pigs with twigs towards the buildings. Wealthy Village!

As we slowly approached the village to mentally prepare the inhabitants, a crowd of farmers armed with pitchforks, scythes, and flails was already waiting for us. But at the same time, they stood there quite peacefully, hoping for a peaceful resolution to our meeting. One aunt even came to meet us with a baked cake on a towel. Nevertheless, I immediately went to the headman, who stood out from the crowd. He wore a smart shirt, boots, a mace on his belt, and a neat beard on his face. He gave the impression of being quite successful. Even the large belly on which he held his hands did not mar the appearance. Nearby stood a hefty man, broad-shouldered, big-bearded, in chain mail, a helmet, kneepads, and bracers, with a two-handed sword in his hands. For weapons, he had two more throwing axes on his hips, a crossbow on his back and a large axe on his belt.

Next to this, pair were three of our acquaintances from the rogue group. When I was within a couple of steps from them, I tilted my head slightly, making a bow. The headman bowed normally, from the hip.

- I am glad to welcome you to our area, Lord! - The local leader was the first to start the conversation. - I am a local headman. My name is Seraphim, Atokha's son, and this is our governor - Hostmir.

- My name is Lord Gorhestiel Goldbearer and these are my companions, – After introducing the elves and Tim, I immediately went to work since I had little time, and building a castle was quite a lengthy process. In the twenty-one days that my lands are protected from attack by other players, I have a lot to do.

- Seraphim, I'm not going to beat around the bush. I want to rebuild the castle on the other side of the river. And I would appreciate your help in this matter. I would also like your village to join my state.

The old man nodded his head in understanding.

- When our fellow villagers arrived and said that Rotten had died, and a new lord would come to us, I already knew what to expect from you.

And we already had time to discuss everything with our fellow villagers. Of course, we are glad to enter the hands of a true lord and are ready to pay taxes regularly, for example, three percent of our profits, but we are fishermen and farmers and are not ready to fight.

- So, if I do not involve you in military operations—are you ready to join me?

- That's right, dear sir.

Well, we have all been through this before…

- Then, my conditions are as follows: The money tax will be five percent for you in peacetime and fifteen percent in wartime. I will not call upon you for military operations, but for defense, you must be ready to fight, for which every man must have the rank of militias. I think your warlord will be able to bring them up to that level, so you can hold out while I come with help. Furthermore, I shall refrain from calling anyone in my army; however, should your men desire to join me, I shall not disqualify them. And finally, I need boats and people to pilot them today.

The headman stood thoughtfully, looked at the warlord, then looked at his fellow villagers and said meaningfully.

- This all sounds good, and I like all the conditions. But how can you conquer the source on which the castle is to be built with such small troops?

- These are my problems. We will take it today.

- Then let's join you after you conquer the source and start building the castle.

- What? - escaped me involuntarily. This is an old fox… Okay, let's try it this way:

- Well, let you join us after the start of the construction of the castle. But then you won't get any concession on taxes, and the tax will be increased by five percent.

- If you seize the source today, as you said, we agree in this case, and if you can't, then on the older terms.

~ You are offered a task:

Destroy the orc camp and start building the castle within 24 hours.

Reward: The village of Bigslime and the surrounding lands will come under your control. The tax can be up to ten percent without affecting the morale of the inhabitants.

Experience: 500 points, information from the headman.

Penalty for refusal/failure: The maximum tax in the village cannot exceed five percent, and your influence on the village will reduced.

Accept: yes/no? ~