Chris

    "I don''t see the problem with it." Hal said, "They want a quieter life and to live outside the City. In return for being sheltered under our banner and our protection, they send us taxes and food. What''s not to like?"

    "What''s not to like is this is how Kingdoms start." I retorted. "When I started this, I only ever envisioned one City. A fortress that would protect us. Not some expansive Kingdom with Villages and Towns and whatnot."

    "I think your vision is thoroughly shot by now, Chris. You can start a project with all the intentions in the world, but with this many people involved, it was bound to get away from you. With the... bastion you provide, people will seek out your lands so that they can feel safe. Especially now." Sam oh so helpfully commented.

    It had taken her a while to get back into leadership meetings after losing her daughter, but after taking a few weeks off from everything, she jumped back into it, albeit gingerly.

    For a second, I was scared she would end up like our Grandmother and spend all her time in the greenhouse muttering about old times.

    "I know that, but this wasn''t what I wanted," I repeated. "I do not want a Kingdom. I do not want an Empire."

    "A Kingdom grown naturally is different from one won through conquering," Vincent said. "Refusing to create it for fear of what it may become is stupid and like trying to hold back the tide."

    I had to contain a surprised look. One, I hadn''t expected the rebuke to come from Vincent of all people, and two, I hadn''t expected him to insult me.

    "I agree with Vincent." Abigail jumped in, "It''ll be a lot more work, but it will help things tremendously. If we can spread people out among Villages, we can sustain a healthy growth of both food and population instead of the densely populated City Center Frostheim has become. With the current growth projections, land availability and prices will become impossible to maintain."

    "If we do this, and that''s a big if, we need to consider how we will protect them. If they''re going to be under my banner, as Hal pointed out, we need to consider this heavily. The Order isn''t large enough to spread so thin. Scouting alone will triple in size to encompass both Settlements, let alone if anyone else wants to try their hand at building a Village." I said.

    "With some on the eve of D-rank, we already have the manpower for that," Hal said, "With every level, we become more proficient and can cover more ground. Not to mention our numbers rise by the day."

    Austin laughed, but as we all turned to look at him, he tried to cover it with a cough, "I don''t understand why this is a surprise? You had to know that this was inevitable, no?"

    "No, I don''t see how this was inevitable," I said firmly.

    "Well, inevitable if you succeeded in creating the City you planned, which, with our thriving population, I''d say you succeeded," Austin said.

    Everyone just looked at him until he explained.

    "You created a population center. Staked your claim in the middle of the wilderness and beat back the threats, creating a safe area for people to live. That was fine before, but now that those same people feel comfortable and aren''t under threat, they will move on to things they want.

    "To them, you are the sole ruler of this City. They all have to contend with your rules. Most are fine with that. Your rules make sense. Some won''t be. They''ll want to create their own or just live with the illusion of control. Even if they stay near you and rely on you for protection, they''ll distance themselves so that they can feel free-er, if that makes sense." He described.

    "You make it sound like we created an HOA." Hal snarked, and we all chuckled.

    "That''s not far from the truth if you think about it. Some people are willing to live in an HOA, those who want to stay in the City, and some people aren''t, those who want to leave." Austin said.

    "But most of that is beside the fact." Austin continued, "Even if you didn''t have this Samuel wanting to do it, you would have others eventually. If you didn''t, you would have those like yourself who want to create their own bastion, as you put it. Think long term here, real long term. What would you do if Josh or Anna wanted to do what you did and create a City? What about one of your own children, should you have them? Expand that to those in the Order you like and trust. What if Elliot suddenly wanted to stake his claim like you had?" Austin said.

    "You''re saying that no matter what I say now, this problem will eventually crop up again and again?" I said.

    "No, I think Vincent nailed it on the head. You are scared of giving up control, and this refusal to see the bigger picture is because of that." Austin said.

    I sighed. He was right. I didn''t want to give up control. I was scared of all the things that I could see happening should I do so. Samuel seemed fine, but what if something happened? What if someone else was picked to run the Village and they didn''t like my rules or tried to get away with things I wouldn''t have tolerated here?

    Where they were choosing to set up was too close to leave them be. If they were further away, letting them go was an option, but not when they were within spitting distance. It was a safety risk. If things went South, maybe not immediately, but down the road, I would have to fight them.

    It reminded me of what my father would say now. Something like ''All who gain power are afraid to lose it.'' The bastard was mocking me from the grave.

    "Alright, fine." I announced. I knew when to throw in the towel and admit when I was wrong. "If all yous are in agreement, I see no issue in this. I''ll get over it."

    I waited for someone to disagree so that I could call a vote, but with everyone against me, I didn''t have to. It was already set.

    "Fine." I sighed. "Now we should discuss his plans, at least. The Dungeon he picked gives out a wide range of rewards, so it isn''t that specialized. The area also isn''t that defensible."

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    We all looked at the map on the table. Samuel already had a spot picked out for his future Village, and now that it was decided we would let him create it, we needed to evaluate his plans.

    "If he brings a suitable with [Purify Meat] or [Eliminate Contaminants], they''ll be able to eat the Dungeon monsters." Hal pointed out.

    Samuel planned to head out after the snow thawed, getting there in time to clear the land and begin planting. Even so, he would need to find a food source unless he wanted to travel back and forth all the time to buy food in Frostheim. At the turn of Winter to Spring, there would be nothing to forage. They would be short on food if they didn''t plan accordingly.

    "They won''t like that very much. Cleansed meat from the Dungeons tastes like the soles of my shoe." Austin chuckled. "I had to resort to it a few times and the experience is not enjoyable."

    He was right. Dungeon monsters tasted like ass, but they were technically edible if they were cleansed by a decent cook or chef. There was a certain madness in them that made eating them without going through the process... ill advised.

    "Will the herd we bought from Travis get here in time? We could split a few off for him to use." Sam asked. "Sheep too, depending on the Reservation"

    I turned to Abigail as I wasn''t sure. She was the one checking in on the teams we had sent out to collect our due.

    "I don''t think so. It takes a while to get here, depending on the weather. It isn''t exactly the easiest to wade through during this time." Abigail answered.

    "This sounds like Samuel''s problem." Austin said, "It''s his plan; he should have a way to feed everyone. Either dried meat to sustain them until the harvest, or a few hunters will do the trick."

    "I can send him with some of our reserve dried rations. That should help. We can also have a few in the Order check in every once in a while until they get on their feet." Abigail said, and I nodded. If we were going to do this, we might as well help.

    With that, that line of discussion was over. My vision of a solitary City went down in flames, and what would no doubt be the first Village of many was approved.

    "On to the next order of business," Abigail announced, "Placement of the Glacial Seed."

    Ashton Seger

    Fort Hope

    His City was a mess when he returned. He''d had to take certain people with him that he didn''t want to and leave others that he wanted to take, all so it didn''t go to shit. Keeping his enemies with him and all that.

    Even so, there was a lot to do.

    With so many refugees and the influx of new people, there had been some unrest that he quelled, but the biggest problem was a lack of food. With the harvest coming in while they were gone, that had luckily been fixed.

    Additionally, bringing the problem people with him had an additional effect. They died. As much as it hurt to be happy at someone''s death, it made everything much easier if those creating problems ceased to be able to do so. Permanently.

    The flip side was that the problem people who survived were stronger for it with new treasures to boot. There was a balance in all things in life. As much as Ashton hated it.

    Noah, his trusted right-hand man, was there to receive him when he returned. The damage was within expectations, and they were set to right the ship once and for all.

    It also helped that he brought word back of the government. Most were happy to hear they were now back under the Canadian banner, but some were unhappy. He made a note of those for later. Sending them North would probably be best. Frostheim is barbaric enough for their tastes most likely.

    The first few weeks of his return had him catching up on everything he missed. It helped his Profession to cap out and prepare him for what was to come. His Class was also ready but he held off on evolving.

    Even with the box he brought back sequestered away, he wanted to wait. He couldn''t do so for long, as a few had already evolved and would soon threaten him in strength, but enough that he hoped to make a few advancements before being forced ahead.

    One was the booklet he''d stashed. If he could forge a Core, his mana problems would be solved.

    While there was the worry that those who rushed ahead would soon become strong enough to challenge him, he kept those worries at bay for now. With Noah and Victoria, he felt he had time to spare.

    He''d felt what true power was in the South. He knew what needed to be done if he was to stand among them.

    Noah entered his office then and interrupted his thoughts, "Sir, the Enchanters sent with you have finished. The Demon scanning Formation is ready to be activated."

    Ashton smiled, "Perfect. Do so at once."

    Noah didn''t voice his previous complaints, thankfully. His argument that the Formation would take up most of their share of the Mana Crystals was already denied. This was more important. The Dungeon would still grow without them.

    With the amount of Demon incidents, Ashton wanted to know if there were any Summonings around Fort Hope. Spending the Mana Crystals to ensure that was worth it. With two already happening so close, there was a Demon Summoner on the loose. That much was fact.

    It didn''t stop at one either. Other than the Demons he''d fought and those that appeared around Ottawa, there were a few others at the Gathering that had run-ins with them. A Settlement in the Southeast and one in the Mountains in the West had also complained of Demon problems.

    It was a recurring issue and one he aimed to stop. The Formation was just the first step.

    "Has the one in Frostheim been created yet?" Ashton asked.

    "No, sir. They want to make sure the Formation does what it''s intended for before they engrave it." Noah said. "I heard the City Lord is checking over it himself."

    Laudable, but annoying. The longer it takes them, the more blind we are.

    "Anything else, Noah?" Ashton asked, knowing that there was more.

    "The path through the forest is under way but we''ve run into difficulties. A Dungeon break has caused Goblins to inhabit the area, making everything harder. Them, in addition to the normal beasts in the area, are slowing things down dramatically." Noah said.

    Annoying. Once the path to Ottawa was finished, they''d be connected to nearly all of Eastern Canada. It was an opportunity they couldn''t pass up.

    "And," Noah started hesitantly, "Lakeshore has begun attacking the Scouts we have near their border. There haven''t been any deaths, but it is a worrying escalation. They poked and prodded while you were gone, but nothing this upfront."

    "Which direction are they attacking in? Are they headed here?" Ashton asked. If they were going to attack Fort Hope, he needed to be ready. There were still things he needed to do.

    "No, sir. It looks like they''re going for the Mine." Noah said.

    Oh. That''s...

    There was a choice to be made. Ashton highly suspected someone inside Lakeshore, or maybe even the Leader, was responsible for the Demon Summoning. He had no evidence, but from what they''d found out about the City and his gut instinct was pointing at Lakeshore being responsible.

    That being the case, he wanted to go bash their faces in for all the people they''d killed, but there was an opportunity here he didn''t want to miss.

    If they attacked the Mine, he could reinforce it and take the opportunity to ask for a larger share. Or, an option he wasn''t that fond of, he could let them.

    If he knew anything about Christopher, the man would not let an attack like that stand. If they attacked the Mine, Lakeshore was as good as gone. Ashton wouldn''t be surprised if the man himself razed it to the ground by his lonesome.

    They wouldn''t gain anything that way, but he also wouldn''t lose anybody assaulting the City. Any plans they drew up would result in casualties if they stormed the walls.

    A siege to starve them out might work, but they weren''t sure how long it would take.

    The plans to assault the City went out the window after the ''test.'' Over half their army died, and they didn''t have the men to do it anymore. Not after losing so many.

    It riled him up that they didn''t participate in the test and were attacking now that Fort Hope had been weakened, but he curbed that anger. It wasn''t useful.

    I need to think this over more.

    "For now, increase patrols in that direction. We need to know more before making a decision."