Chapter 32 Expansion, Negotiation, Situation
The process of receiving the Crescent Moon Collar went very smoothly.
Due to the Baron's extortion, the Crescent Moon Territory has been reduced from 10 villages and 1 town to 4 villages and 1 town, including the No. 3 hideout.
If we count the No. 1 den.
So there are 5 villages in Crescent Moon Territory at this time, but the population of the villages has decreased to varying degrees. Now, compared with the period before the war, it is estimated that only one-third of the population of Crescent Moon Territory is left.
Since the other villages had received funding from the den before, they did not encounter any resistance during the acceptance process. After negotiations, they returned most of the materials that the baron had forcibly requisitioned.
These remaining villages agreed to Rand's conscription and expressed their willingness to pay taxes to the den after the autumn harvest.
Although Rand did not call himself that, all the people in Crescent Territory have actually acknowledged that Rand is the lord of this land.
Of course, it may also be because these ignorant villagers do not understand what is legal principle and what is claim.
Just like when the Kingdom of Lensa attacked, the lords of the baronies changed, and the villagers at the bottom could do nothing and could not understand the meaning of it at all.
All they can see is how much tax there is.
However, Rand can be considered to have stepped onto the chessboard for now, but I don’t know if he has the chance to become a chess player.
Now the land has recognized his right to rule over the current population of 400 households in Crescent Moon Territory.
The losses in Crescent Moon Territory were smaller than expected, which might also be because it was a good size from the beginning. With 400 households, the estimated population was 1,500 to 1,600 people, which was still a pretty good number.
As one of the few literate and numerate people in the hideout, Taran was sent to be the temporary prime minister of the town. However, there would be no one in hideout No. 3, so they could only temporarily govern themselves.
For the first time, Rand felt so deeply the plight of having no one available due to the scarcity of education in that era.
It seems that universal education for believers needs to be added to the agenda. In the future, if you are not good at math and cannot read, you will be kicked out of the sect!
At this time, Ellie and Olenna were sitting on Rand's left and right, helping him process the documents.
At this time, due to the rapid expansion of the hideout's strength, things in all aspects also increased.
Taner was not in the hideout at this time. Due to his excellent riding skills, he had been assigned as a messenger to deliver messages between villages.
At lunchtime, Ellie stretched herself and discovered for the first time that literacy and arithmetic, which she had previously thought were mediocre, could actually be of great use.
Olenna picked out the processed documents one by one and piled them together, then piled the unprocessed documents on the other side. Then she made a cup of leaf juice that could be called tea for herself, Rand, and Ellie.
Rand looked at the graceful Olenna. As a top swordsman, her figure was perfect. When she was quietly processing documents before, there was a contrasting quiet beauty.
A perfect secretary, but unfortunately she can only be used temporarily now.
Lunch was bread, jam, and fried meat.
The bread fermentation technology of this era was appallingly poor, and the bread that was barely fluffy was full of alcohol smell.
The fruit puree was fine as it was very fresh.
The fried meat was quite astringent, probably due to the lack of spices. The taste of the fried meat with only salt was still not edible.
However, over this period of time, Rand has gradually become proficient and can eat it without changing his expression. He secretly swore to himself for the ten thousandth time that he must spend time to develop food processing technology.
Ellie and Olenna used to live a life of luxury, but they were certainly not so picky when they went out on an adventure, and they could still eat the ordinary food in the hideout.
There was no conversation during the meal, and Rand finished all the food skillfully.
Rand looked at Ellie who was wiping her mouth after eating and brought up the old matter again: "How about it, are you planning to cooperate?"
"You are almost in control of this place now. We can actually cooperate now. There is no need to wait for a while." Before, Rand asked to wait for half a year, hoping that she and Olenna would find a complete enough team before cooperating, but now it seems that it is not a bad idea to start directly. The Frost Moon Kingdom does not seem to have any intention of taking over here.
Rand took the handkerchief handed to him by Olena, wiped his mouth, and said, "Are you so anxious?"
Ellie nodded, not trying to hide her anxiety.
Rand glanced at Olenna, who then left the table and took out a piece of parchment from the sacrificial chamber.
"This is the military report collected from the Baron." Rand introduced.
Ellie took it, glanced at it quickly, and her expression became serious: "The King and the eldest prince of the Frost Moon Kingdom died in the battle?"
Rand nodded: "Now the second prince and the third prince have each gathered a group of people to fight against each other. Even if there is no civil war, the domestic situation will be unstable for a long time."
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Ellie felt a little absurd at this moment. She was actually in a mountain valley, discussing national affairs with a cultist's messenger. This messenger seemed to know a lot about the Frost Moon Kingdom.
Scratching her head and thinking carefully about the international situation course her sister forced her to take, Ellie thought for a while and said, "Are you planning to take advantage of this and get the status of a noble?"
"Yes." Rand said, "It is almost impossible to establish a new orthodox sect now, so I plan to join them first."
Ellie rolled her eyes. She realized that Rand really intended to promote his cult of the goddess of abundance. However, the cult's philosophy was indeed worth learning. She had memorized that thin page of doctrine during this period of time.
"So who are you going to support? The second prince? The third prince? Or the fourth prince?" Ellie's good memory allowed her to quickly recall the national conditions of the Frost Moon Kingdom.
Rand blinked and found that Ellie, who he thought was only slightly smarter, was more knowledgeable than he had imagined. It would be a waste of talent to let such a person go on adventures, and he should be used as a staff member.
Now that Ellie is in my hands, it's time to absorb her knowledge.
And Olenna, I really want a secretary like her, reliable, gentle and powerful, so that many things will be much more convenient. Unfortunately, they are currently loyal subjects of the White King.
Rand's knowledge of the Frost Moon Kingdom was limited to some vague memories. This seemed to be the player's first faction mission. A large number of players each chose a faction to join, and then the battle was difficult to determine.
In the end, the winner was the fourth prince who appeared out of nowhere.
At that time, most of the players were unaware of the existence of the Fourth Prince, and the same is true for Rand now. If they didn't know the general trend, no one would pay attention to the Fourth Prince.
The reason is very simple. The fourth prince is an illegitimate child and his maternal influence is almost non-existent.
But Rand was still hesitating whether to bet on the fourth prince. It would be too strange for a powerless illegitimate child to get the throne in the end.
How did he win? His personality? That's ridiculous.
However, Rand was very surprised that Ellie noticed the fourth prince at this time.
(End of this chapter)