Chapter 70: Magical Species Delivered to Our Doorstep - People and Hands.
East had considered that those small countries wouldn't last long, but he didn't expect it to be even shorter than he imagined.
Ester picked up the letters representing surrender. The Kingdom of Ramon and the Kingdom of Rivia were still holding on, but the remaining small countries had all sent letters of surrender. It seemed that they had also learned about Ester's ruthless methods of dealing with nobles. In order to show their willingness to surrender, they offered a lot of benefits and listed their own merits.
Easter flipped through the letters one by one, gave a vague "tsk" sound, and threw the last letter onto the desk. Everyone wanted to fool him like a fool.
Instead of reading these insincere letters, we should think more about how to build this country from now on.
Currently, the game is mainly supported by players. Without an economic pillar and lacking the strength to deter others, it faces the threat of monsters, and winter is imminent. To make matters worse, it is also deeply embroiled in the turmoil of war.
East knew that he would gain a great deal after winning the war; otherwise, what were the reasons for all those wars recorded in history? Wasn't it all for profit?
Thinking of this, he asked the system, "How far have the players progressed in their siege?"
"[The current process is going well,]" the system replied first, then explained in more detail, "As expected, the Kingdom of Rivia has betrayed us, joining forces with neighboring smaller nations to launch an attack on the players. Because this was anticipated, the players responded promptly and suffered no losses. Instead, they took the opportunity to expand the battleground. Furthermore, due to the surge in monster numbers, they have to deal with both the player threat and the monsters, creating a situation where they are overwhelmed. I predict that within half a month at most, the players will achieve a great victory."
East listened to the system's explanation while reviewing recent official documents.
After the system finished speaking, he said calmly, "That's good."
His hands didn't stop moving; he quickly finished reading through the thick stack of documents, and the domestic operations were running smoothly.
The Kingdom of Felix is not large in area. It consists of the royal city of Esther, the port of Manhattan, the lord's territories built around it, and the mountains and rivers scattered across the land. This makes up the Kingdom of Felix, which is pitifully small.
This continent is sparsely populated, with a total population of probably less than one billion. Even with other intelligent races included, the number of species on the continent is still quite small.
The total population of the Kingdom of Felix is about 150,000 to 160,000. It seems like a small number, but for a small country like the Kingdom of Felix that is not even considered a major power, having a population of 150,000 to 160,000 is actually quite large.
It's important to understand that even a powerful nation like the Sinclair Empire only has a population of roughly one to two hundred million within its territory. Doesn't the difference between the two seem huge? The problem is, the two are worlds apart. As mentioned before, the entire Kingdom of Felix might not even be comparable to a single viscountcy of the Sinclair Empire, which has hundreds of viscountcies. The difference is self-evident.
The small land area and population are actually a good thing given the current shortage of management personnel. With a small land area and a small population, it is naturally easier to manage. Moreover, all the noble lords who dared to stand out have been wiped out. Under the supervision of the players, no one has dared to cause any major disturbances for the time being, and everyone is quietly focusing on infrastructure construction.
East wasn't a philanthropist. Having read so many books, he knew the saying "a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment." He couldn't let players support a large group of people who only knew how to freeload.
Led by the state, construction projects were launched, including urban redevelopment, factory site selection and construction, and major road paving projects. It is said that "to get rich, build roads first," a wise saying that East naturally knew. After all, in this era, horses still pulled the carts, and the steam age had not yet arrived. Flat and easy-to-travel roads were essential.
As soon as the construction project began, East poured huge sums of money into it. This money, if thrown into water, would make a huge splash, but when thrown into the construction project, it didn't even make a sound. It was like a giant beast that devoured money, only swallowing it up.
Since its inception, the system has been monitoring the flow of funds. Generally speaking, some of the money will inevitably be embezzled, but perhaps because East has been ruthless enough, no one has been found to dare to make any underhanded moves.
East was fairly satisfied with this. He invested so much money to lay a solid foundation, not to benefit others.
Once this war ends, the skilled players trained will be ready to graduate. The players will be responsible for fighting monsters, while the humans will build their own territories. In any case, many players don't like building daily tasks. Once everything is on track, he should be able to relax a bit. Ister thought to himself with a smug smile, the hard work is only temporary, and the good days are yet to come.
"Knock knock~" "Knock knock~"
The regular knocking snapped East out of his reverie, and he called out, "Come in."
"Your Majesty, Finnian has something to tell you." It was Suibian who came in to announce this.
Easter nodded to Suibian, "Please let him in." He also mentally asked the system, "What happened?"
The system replied: 【That's a good thing.】
Hearing that it was good news, Easter didn't press for details. Since it wasn't bad, he was willing to maintain a positive attitude of anticipation and surprise.
Finnian walked in, still with that pure and holy appearance. In fact, you could see his good complexion and spirit; his whole body seemed to be glowing with a faint light.
"Your Majesty, good day." He placed his hand on his heart and bowed slightly in greeting.
"Good day," East replied, casting a questioning glance at Finnian.
“Your Majesty, this is what has happened. Rumors have spread that you are a benevolent ruler, and that in your land all species are treated equally, without any unbalanced class distinctions,” Finney paused, glancing at Ister with admiration in his eyes before lowering them again. “Now there is a goblin tribe, an orc tribe, a small group of rock goblins and dwarves, totaling 535 goblins, 231 orcs, 25 rock goblins, and 14 dwarves. They have asked me to inquire whether they can receive your protection. They want to submit to you; in other words, they want to live in your land.”
East stared in surprise, utterly bewildered, and asked, "What are they after?"
The country is in dire need of rebuilding and is desperately short of manpower. However, the arrival of this batch of goblins and orcs is like a godsend. He has never been so lucky.
“Your Majesty, as I have said, you are a benevolent monarch,” Finnian replied with a smile.
East stared intently at Finnian, searching for any sign that he was lying, but found nothing; the flattery was genuine.
East was completely baffled. "Fenian, do you really want me to keep them?" This was the only explanation he could think of: Fenian wanted to keep those "people," which was why he was praising him against his conscience.
“Your Majesty, what makes you say that? Whether to keep them or not is your decision, and I have no right to interfere.” Finnian smiled at Ister with a holy light radiating from him. “If you have any doubts, the only explanation I can give you for my praise is that you deserve such praise.”
East's lips twitched. "Let's go check the situation first." He had no interest in listening to "Big White Bird's" unfounded praise.
————
[Host, you certainly deserve such praise.]
East thought the system was going to say something, but it turned out to be such a pointless remark. Have these two all been given a brain-depressing buff? Otherwise, how could they say such things against their conscience?
Having spent a considerable amount of time with Easter, the system could roughly read Easter's emotions. It presented him with facts and reason: "Host, I'm serious. Look how well you've done! Building bridges and roads, developing the economy, amending laws, cracking down on crime, establishing orphanages, setting up pension systems… the list goes on and on. Host, don't deny the efforts you've made."
East rose from his chair and walked around the desk. He didn't stop the system's chatter, but only said after the system finished speaking: "This is not about how much I have contributed, but about the unique advantages I have in this position. Whether it's you or the players, you have advantages that others don't have. If we're talking about who has truly contributed more, it's you and the players."
The system completely disagreed with Easter's answer. [Host, while my existence and that of the player have certainly helped you a lot, can you really say that you played absolutely no role in the development process? If the missions could be completed without your presence, then what's the point of the system being bound to the host? The system could easily take matters into its own hands.]
“I’m not denying my role, what I really mean is that you and the players have contributed more,” Easter said matter-of-factly. “I don’t understand why you’re angry? Aren’t you the system?”
[Sorry, host,] the system seemed to take a deep breath. [However, host, I still disagree with you. Host, where have you not contributed? Players play a significant role, but I can see that in your plan, the nation's operation will eventually no longer require the players' presence.]
"The way you're saying it makes it sound like I'm going to discard you after you've served your purpose." Easter didn't argue with the system. He genuinely didn't understand what was wrong with the system today. Why was it so temperamental? Could it be infected with a virus?
[Players are just players, outsiders who don't belong to this world. They're the cheat codes I gave you, host, and guests who will leave sooner or later. Host, you understand this better than anyone else.] The system spoke in a cold, mechanical voice, sounding exactly like it was angry and throwing a tantrum.
The faint smile on Esther's lips faded. "And what about me?"
The system suddenly went silent. Over time, it had almost forgotten that the host was also an outsider, a lonely soul who did not belong to this world, and that he had come to this continent because of his mistake.
【Host, I'm sorry.】The system didn't know what to say. Its code was practically a tangled mess, and it couldn't find a more appropriate response.
Easter touched the gemstone necklace hidden in his collar. "There's no need to apologize to me. It wasn't your fault. Okay, let's stop talking." He chuckled and ended the conversation, seemingly completely unconcerned about his earlier argument with the system.
How did the topic veer off course? I don't know. It's like when couples argue, they can bring up all sorts of trivial things, and before they know it, the conversation has gone astray.
The system was reflecting on itself in the system space. Why did it argue with its host? Its host was so good and worked so hard, how could it have ended up arguing with its host?
He's a system, cold and ruthless, made of data. How could he develop human-like emotions? Strange? Very strange? Could it be a bug?
The system began to check its own data smoothly and efficiently; every piece of code was in its proper place, and there were no problems whatsoever.
The system reviewed his conversation with the host and found that it was understandable. He felt sorry for his host, who had put in just as much effort as others, but the host just denied his own contributions. It was like the host was clearly very outstanding, but he always said that he was just an ordinary person.
————
East, Finnian, and the two little firemen boarded the carriage heading to the workshop. Little did he know, the system was generating a complex mix of emotions in ways he was unaware of.
"They didn't cause any trouble, did they?" Esther wondered. Since the two of them were in the same space, they couldn't just sit in silence the whole way, so he brought up a topic.
Both Suibian and Bu Ru Kao Digua turned their attention to Fenian. They were also curious and wanted to find out more about the situation while they still had some distance to go.
“Your Majesty, they have come to seek refuge with you, not to start a war,” Finnian winked at Ister. “'Stray dogs,' all they want is a home.”
No one expected him to say such harsh words. Finnian was born with an angelic appearance, and from the beginning of their acquaintance, he was always self-disciplined and respectful. People naturally regarded him as a real "angel." The contrast now is quite significant.
"Am I wrong? The situation on the continent is turbulent. To be able to find a corner of protection is already a stroke of luck." Finnian kept smiling, his gaze sweeping over Ister and the players. There was no malice in his eyes, just pure happiness. He thought he was lucky. Otherwise, how could he have met the "god" of his life at the most unfortunate time?
There was silence inside the carriage; the only sound was the carriage moving across the road.
East lifted his eyelids slightly. "I can barely take care of myself, how could I possibly have such great abilities?" He said it lightly and dismissively.
"Whatever" and "Not as perceptive as roasted sweet potato" sensed something was amiss; why did they seem to be at odds? Their gazes lingered between East and Finnian.
The first to speak was Ru Bu Kao Di Gua, who said, "Your Majesty, why are you so modest?"
“What Sweet Potato Bro says is true,” said Suibianla very seriously. “King, you are very good. You have more conscience than most people on this continent.”
East twitched her lips, revealing an expression that was both sarcastic and amused. The beauty mark at the corner of her eye resembled a tear of blood, making her look tragically beautiful and lonely.
Easter remained silent; he wasn't out of his mind and wouldn't do anything to vent his anger on his players.
He lazily rubbed his temples, slowly thinking, "Am I really just exhausted lately? I can't even control my emotions."
He casually climbed onto the carriage seat and walked to East's side.
East looked bewildered. "What's wrong?" He reached out and steadied the swaying Suibian.
"Whatever," she said, stretching out her short, chubby little hands. "Your Majesty, is your head bothering you? I'm a student of Traditional Chinese Medicine and I'm very knowledgeable about medicine. I can give you a massage."
Easter likes to press his temples when he's thinking, upset, or feeling unwell. Which of these is it? It doesn't really matter, but whatever it is, pressing them should make him feel better.
Easter hesitated whether to refuse Suibianla's kindness, sighed, and helped Suibianla sit down. "We're almost there. Let's talk about it after we finish our business."
Suibianla brought her head close to East's, saying, "You can touch my head to relieve stress."
There's an unspoken secret among the players: their king really loves the little tufts on their heads. Not to mention the king, few of the players can resist the wonderful feel of them.
East curled his fingers, looked up, and a smile spread across his face, a faint layer of lazy weariness floating on his lips. "Okay," he rubbed his little pigtails, "I'm fine."
None of those present believed East's words, but they had already reached their destination, and any words they wanted to say could only be left unsaid for the time being.
Finnian got off the carriage first and stood to the side of it, extending his hand.
East did not refuse Finnian's kindness, and put his hand on Finnian's. After getting off the carriage, he withdrew his hand and thanked Finnian softly.
The two little fire-men were quick and agile, jumping directly off the carriage.
Ister only glanced at them briefly, focusing most of his attention on the magical creatures in the open space in front of him.
The workshop area has been expanded, the surrounding trees have been cut down, the road surface has been paved with cement, and two more workshops for forging weapons have been added, closely connected and adjacent to each other, giving it the appearance of a large factory.
Three more houses were added for the workers to live in, and they were just like a copy of the previous one, all located neither too close nor too far from the workshop.
They also built a large canteen, which has two floors. It has no fancy decorations, just cement floors and walls with two large windows. It looks simple and plain. The interior is similar to the canteens from my student days, with food serving windows and tables and chairs for dining. It has everything you need.
Evergreen trees, specially transplanted, line the roads leading to various destinations, and benches are provided for resting under them.
The vacant lot where the magical creatures live is intended to be leveled to build a school. The creatures here are diverse, but they have one thing in common: most of them cannot read.
For Easter, humans are no different from other species; they all need to undergo the baptism of education. It doesn't matter how well they learn, they can't be illiterate or unable to do arithmetic.
From this, it can be seen that this area was designated for magical species.
When Ester first started building this place, he told the magical creatures that they would be the only ones living here. All the necessary facilities would be provided for them, such as parks for strolling and relaxing, shopping malls for trading, hospitals for treating illnesses, schools for teaching, and courts for handling cases and disputes. But for now, it's just a framework, and the actual construction will have to be done gradually.
The magical creatures, whether standing or sitting in the open space, all noticed Esther's arrival and stood up, cautiously observing Esther's expression.
There were quite a few little firemen surrounding the area; some were there on assignment to keep watch, but most were just there to watch the excitement after receiving the news.
East exhaled slowly, stepped forward, and glanced at the small creatures that didn't look too good. Judging from their appearance, they were mostly dirty, some were sickly, and many were missing limbs. Their expressions showed curiosity, but even more so, fear and timidity. Only a very small number of them maintained their dignity, and even that dignity was almost non-existent. If they had any other way out, they wouldn't have come here.
Ister pondered whether to keep them. They would undoubtedly be useful to the developing kingdom of Felix, but judging from their appearance, they probably wouldn't survive the next migration.
The space was vast, and the number of magical creatures was also large, but in front of Ister, they all fell silent, their hearts pounding with anxiety as they waited for an answer.
At this moment, all eyes were on East alone.
Amidst countless hopeful gazes, East felt an unbearable weight on his shoulders. What had he done to deserve this? He couldn't understand where their confidence came from, how they dared to place their bets on him.
Ister faced the magical creatures. "You all want to stay?"
After Easter spoke, they seemed startled and staggered back a few steps, some even falling to the ground in the chaos.
East was exasperated. Was he really that scary? Why did this whole group of magical creatures seem even more cowardly than the ones they had rescued before?
“Yes…yes.” A goblin stepped forward hesitantly. He seemed to have a high reputation among the goblin group. After he spoke, most of the goblins looked at him.
His appearance was more aged than the other goblins; his long, white beard was filthy and matted, obscuring its original color.
Orcs, dwarves, and rock races were not to be outdone. Their representatives also stepped forward one after another. While they maintained their fear and distance when facing Ist, they all spoke clearly, showing obvious respect and adopting a particularly humble posture.
When East saw the dozen or so dwarves, who were just as timid and fearful as the other races, he suddenly thought of Vestan. Looking around, he saw Vestan standing among the players. The stark contrast made him even more certain that Vestan's identity was definitely not ordinary.
The thought only flashed through Esther's mind once before he put it aside. His immediate priority was to settle the magical creatures before him. Given that no schemes or tricks had been exposed, Esther had no reason to refuse the help that had come to him.
Ist's acceptance brought smiles to the faces of these wandering, homeless magical creatures.
Before Ister could react, all the magical creatures swore allegiance to him.
East was stunned and couldn't come to his senses. He hadn't made that request. He hadn't expected them to be so in sync. The stakes they had placed were too high.
“Your Majesty, what I say is true. They only want a place that can accept them, and you are paradise. It is the best they can ask for.” Finnian’s white eyes were indifferent and cold, but when he looked at Ister, they were hot and fiery, much like those “fanatics” who were obsessed with their beliefs.
East shifted his feet slightly, wondering how he hadn't noticed before that this winged creature had some mental issues.
Fanian remained unmoved by Ister's attitude. What god is peaceful, harmless, and kind? Gods are destined to be high above, undisturbed by worldly affairs.
Ister had no idea that Finnian was even more cunning than he imagined; he was organizing the players to settle this group of "wanderers."
Easter was glad he had the foresight to build the "residential buildings" in advance; otherwise, there would have been no time to build them now.
Ister's statement put some reassurance on the still anxious group of magical creatures, who seemed to be able to look forward to their new home and new life.
East sat on a bench. The weather was nice today, with bright sunshine and a gentle breeze. Patches of sunlight filtered through the branches of the evergreen trees, casting shimmering light on East, creating a hazy, otherworldly atmosphere that separated him from the bustling activity in front of him.
Ister is resting here at the request of the players. The players, who have system instructions, are much more familiar with how to settle these magical creatures than Ister himself. Ister's role is dispensable. To the players, Ister is their king, and the king only needs to issue orders and does not need to do things personally.
East tilted his head back, his neck resting on the back of the chair, making it impossible to tell what he was looking at through the layers of branches.
"Your Majesty, as we agreed, I'll give you a head massage." Casual walked over. Even though he could tell that East was a quiet person, he should have chosen to stay away from the hustle and bustle, not been passively driven away.
East blinked his eyes, which were dazzled by the sunlight, and tilted his head casually. A faint smile hung on his face, and his light pink eyes were filled with tenderness. Even the mole at the corner of his eye was tinged with an alluring pink by the sunlight. He didn't look like a human anymore; he was more like a fairy in human form.
"Thanks~" he said lazily, completely unaware of how alluring he looked at that moment.
As if struck by direct sunlight, she hurriedly averted her gaze and remained silent for a long time.
East reached out and touched Suibianla's little pigtails. "What's wrong?"
Startled, she jumped back, her beady eyes darting around, not daring to look at East.
East sat up straight, a question mark slowly appearing above his head; he was genuinely puzzled.
"I...I'm fine," Suibianla almost bit her tongue. "Should we massage it here, or find somewhere else?"
Suppressing his curiosity, Easter replied, "Whatever, it's fine here."
Suibian lowered his eyes, climbed onto the chair, stood next to Easter, raised his hand and put it on Easter's head. Once he got into the zone, he quickly put aside his previous troubled thoughts. So what if he was just distracted by the little king? He wasn't the only one like that. He knew the composition of the game's players, and many of them were there because of the king's good looks.
"Is this force appropriate?" After self-hypnosis, Suibianla regained her composure with Esther. He didn't like men; he was simply distracted by the beauty of things.
Easter comfortably squinted his eyes and slowly replied, "Suitable." He thought to himself, "Professionals really are different; it's so comfortable."
It was as if I was soaking in a hot spring, my whole body was warm and comfortable, and the atmosphere was so comfortable that it made me drowsy.
In a state between sleep and wakefulness, Esther seemed to see an extremely spectacular scene. High above, through layers of white mist, he saw one temple after another, with worshippers spreading from inside the temples to outside. Among them were not only humans, but also various other races, including even the proudest dragons.
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The author's note: ① This allusion comes from Chapter 22 of Wu Jingzi's "The Scholars" from the Qing Dynasty.
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