CHAPTER 100: CHAPTER 100: TERRITORY TALENT_1

Walter hurried over from the farm. Farms and the town were always connected. After all, eggs, milk, and grains needed to be transported, and semi-finished products like wool also had to be sent to the town for spinning.

As for the town, they needed to send over essential goods like salt.

He had handled a large delivery of supplies last night. Though he didn’t believe the excuse of a victory feast to celebrate the eradication of bandits, he still recognized the signature.

Initially, he thought this Lord was just fond of grand gestures, celebrating the killing of a few bandits with such fanfare. He had never expected that the Lord, with only thirty recruits, could eradicate over a hundred bandits—such a terrifying feat.

According to the messenger, the street was piled with bodies. It took over a dozen trips with large wagons to remove them all, and even after washing for two hours, the ground was still stained blood-red.

Walter had had dealings with the bandits. His own caravan had been robbed by them several times. Eventually, he had gambled away his entire fortune fighting them.

He tossed and turned all night, unable to fathom why the Lord could win while he himself had lost his entire fortune.

It wasn’t until early this morning that he was summoned.

It had been a while since he had been this way, and his memory was stuck on how it looked when he had left. He had not expected to encounter such surprising scenes along the way.

Everything in the small town was in perfect order, with smiles on the townspeople’s faces, and that long-lost hope appeared in their eyes.

He went down and asked a few people, finding that the situation was indeed as he had heard the day before, perhaps even more exaggerated.

Some people said that the Lord himself had killed over a hundred bandits.

Standing on that familiar street, he only knew the truth when he saw the dark red soil in the cracks between the bricks.

That man had truly eradicated the bandits!

Did this not mean that the road to the outside world was now open? Could he now leave this place?

Thoughts of his family in the city quickened Walter’s steps, and he headed toward that place.

But when he arrived, he found a strange figure standing at the entrance, swaying as if they might collapse at any moment.

However, Walter knew it was best not to interfere in matters that didn’t concern him. He just wanted to get back to his family.

After waiting in the living room for a short while, Walter finally saw the man walk in.

Having run a caravan for many years, he had dealt with all sorts of seasoned traders, growing his business by keenly observing their expressions and words.

When they first met, the young man had seemed somewhat immature. Even though he tried to project maturity and confidence, his behavior couldn’t fool an experienced eye and instead betrayed an underlying timidity.

He could never have imagined that in just a few days, the young man would grow so rapidly, moving with an upright and forceful gait, radiating confidence.

But as soon as their eyes met, Walter felt an immense pressure, as if he were in the presence of a great personage. He promptly stood up to greet him, his demeanor becoming reverent.

"My Lord, good day," Walter said.

"Why did it take you so long?" asked Lance.

"Checking the data took some time," Walter replied.

Walter dared not relax anymore and quickly answered.

Lance looked at him with a faint smile on his face, yet strangely brought up another matter.

"It’s a good thing you warned me about the trouble in town earlier; I had no idea there would be so much~"

Upon hearing this, Walter tensed up, and his complexion turned ugly.

Initially, he had wondered, what could a lone man without any backing possibly do about those old foxes in town, the ones even the mayor had to tolerate?

Who would have guessed the farm owner would fall, and then, a while later, the Ship Boss too? And now, coming here today—amazing! The gambling dens and taverns were all gone!

They claimed bandits were responsible, but how could he not see the machinations behind it all? Could bandits really be so selective as to eliminate only *their* people?

Now that the Lord was bringing this up, wasn’t it a clear warning? If he disobeyed, he’d end up just like them...

For a moment, pressure mounted on Walter. His professional fake smile remained on his face as he forced a grin and said, "I don’t know much about these things; it’s all My Lord’s credit. Those guys who endangered Hamlet deserved a lesson."

Lance observed his reaction, his expression calm. He’d had Susan inquire about Walter’s movements, and everything was crystal clear. Upon returning to town, Walter hadn’t reported in first but had gone off to gather information. What was he up to? Rebellion?

Moreover, this fellow used to be the merchant controlling the town’s economic lifeline. Now, he’d been sent off to manage serfs on the farm—a considerable demotion. Without a firm reminder, he might actually start thinking he was someone important...

Lance, seeing him like this, was quite satisfied. With a wave of his hand, he indicated, "Don’t be so nervous~ Sit down and let’s chat."

Only then did Walter breathe a sigh of relief, knowing the Lord was still quite pleased with him. He had narrowly escaped a disaster.

At the same time, he was relieved that he had honestly managed the farm according to the requirements, without any ulterior motives during this period; otherwise, he would have been among those dead.

"Oh, right! This is the ledger I’ve prepared for this period." Walter quickly handed it over.

Lance took a brief look. He had removed many people from the farm and, at the same time, assigned a new group. Despite these changes, the farm’s regular production had not been affected.

The accounts showed that once currency began to circulate again in Hamlet, food became the hottest commodity. This also helped him recover the bulk of the wages he’d paid out.

As for meat, he consumed most of it. Eggs and milk were primarily supplied to the soldiers. It could be said that he was truly investing real silver to cultivate them.

However, the data indicated that the living standards of residents were improving: meat, eggs, and dairy gradually began to sell.

"You specialize in the grain trade. Tell me, with the current consumption, how many people could the grain from the farm feed for a year?"

"The granary holds enough for only three thousand people. However, although the town was looted, the fields are largely well-preserved, thanks to the former farm owner. Including the crops still in the fields, this supply could feed five thousand people for a year. If consumption were at the previous rate of one meal a day, it could support around seven thousand people."

"That many? But I didn’t see that much land around the town~" Lance had surveyed the fields around Hamlet and found only a small portion around the town’s perimeter. The truly large-scale fields belonged to the farm owner; he naturally hadn’t expected that a town of a thousand people could produce so much grain.

"The fields of Hamlet are famously fertile, yielding at least thirty percent more grain than the surrounding areas."

"Are the lands of Hamlet that impressive?" Lance sensed something was amiss and eagerly asked.

"Of course. Plants that grow here are exceptionally lush. The former farm owner had to make the serfs chop trees and burn grass every year to restrain the expansion of the wilderness plants."

Walter spoke of this with pride, but to Lance’s ears, it sounded different; his expression darkened.