City of Desire [Kingdom Building]

Kaliv Dasir

“…Baron Lockridge will be the head of Baronies, while Harrison Dane will be the head of security for the Baronies,” I stated, and the whole room fell into a dead silence.

I am in the Belrose Keep of Baronies. The keep of Baron Belrose.

Since Lauryl had fallen into the hands of Silver, we have yet to decide on which place we will make the centre of the administration.

Lockridge wanted his territory to be that, and it was in a good position as well, but of course, we will not do that.

We will not give him more power; he should be under our thumb, with no chance to rebel.

That is why we have appointed Dane as head of security. He will be the General of the Baronies. Though, looking at the faces of nobles sitting in front of me, they do not like it one bit.

They have already given me a recommendation for the position since I came here.

All of them have Lockridge as their first choice, which I am sure he pushed for, but the second choice is also nearly the same; it is Lockridge’s general.

That’s not going to happen.

Just like, we are not giving Dane a barony. He wanted one, and we would have given it to him if he had given us the fortress, but not only did he lose that, but also more than half of his army abandoned him for Silver.

The unoccupied baronies are the greatest treasure we have.

People are willing to pay a massive amount of money for the wasteland with a small patch of green. They will pay far more for a fertile territory.

And they are; many have contacted us in the past few days. Offering an incredible amount of money.

“Adviser, I believe General Fairholm is a better choice. He has the trust of all Barons,” said Schafer, Lockridge’s top ally.

Well, not so much; he had sent feelers. If we are looking for someone other than Lockridge to run the barony. He would be willing to take that role; he would also make his barony the administrative capital.

Well, that’s the politics.

“He is good, but Marquess Grimvale believes General Dane is more experienced; he also has the level and aura. He is the best-suited man to oversee the baronies’ security.

Many seemed to want to say something, but didn’t dare to, knowing how futile it is.

If all Barons were present, they might have pressed harder, but only nine of them are present here; the rest are in the Lauryl in Silver’s hands.

He will only hand them over after all the terms are agreed upon.

It had been two days since negotiations began, and despite numerous disagreements, we had reached an agreement on a few key fronts.

“I hope you will support General Dane in his duty to protect the southern baronies from our enemies,” I said, and many affirmed, including Lockridge.

He is angry, but is keeping a smile on his face.

Soon, the Barons walked out, leaving me, Martas, Lockridge, Dane, and General Vesbeil.

“How are things at the border, General Vesbeil?” I asked. The man has authority till the night before he returns to Brimbale with an army of twenty thousand.

Silver would do the same, with his General leaving for Greltheaven with the army.

“Stable. We are patrolling on our side of the marked boundary; they are patrolling on theirs.” He replied. It is another thing, we had agreed on.

Clear boundaries and rules of patrolling. It was one of the biggest things we agreed on with Silver. Most of it was smooth, since there were clear boundaries drawn among the baronies from the beginning.

“Any breach?” I asked. “No, aside from the beasts, which I gave the order to shoot on sight,” he replied.

He isn’t the only one snooping through the avian beasts; we are doing it as well. This is common and serious, but not enough; it would be very serious if his army breached the boundary, which they have yet to do.

“What about the interim Governor, whom he appointed. What do we know about, Lola Monet?” I asked. We have our information, but there are always things we don’t know.

I will be here for a while, and I want to learn more about the enemy’s operations on the other side.

“She is a whore,” spat Dane. “We know the obvious, General,” I replied coolly, and turned to Lockridge. He has some experience with her when she was here last time.

“She is capable and hardworking.” He replied. I am surprised by his praise. He is not the man who praises others easily, much less the enemy.

“She is also very good at getting things done using her beauty and charm,” he replied.

“Do you think she can handle the baronies?” I asked. Last time she was here, she didn’t have complete responsibilities, not to mention the size of the barony.

Then, Lauryl was a small town, with Baronies barely starting to develop their economies.

Now, even if the baronies on their sides are smaller, they are more developed. Not to mention, the threats of monsters and us on the other side.

These are the kind of responsibilities that would make even an experienced administrator shrink.

“Yes,” he replied with gritted teeth. He hates the answer, but still replied truthfully. It made our expressions serious as it is not something we want.

We would have preferred if it were someone weak or incapable.

“Will we be able to turn her?” I asked. We had tried to reach out to his people, but there was no response. Still, it had been only a few months.

“Whores will do anything for money. She had spread her legs for Silver; she will spread them for us if we throw enough money at her,” replied Dane.

I wanted to sigh visibly and shake my head.

Dane was a good general, which was the reason the Prince had chosen him, but time had changed him. He had let his prejudices cloud his mind.

After what Silver did to him, by taking away his fortress, snatching most of his army, he had nothing but hate clouding his mind.

It is why we are going to replace all the officers under him and also most of the army. Unless we okay it, he will not be able to make any move.

“I don’t know, last time I tried, but failed. The baronies also made attempts, but they didn’t work either.” Lockridge stated.

“The ones from Velvet Garden are very loyal to Silver.” Said Vesbeil. “Then why did more than half of them flee when the undead came?” shot back Dane.

“He let them leave, General. If he wished, he could have stopped them,” replied Vesbeil.

We conducted research and found out that Silver had allowed them to leave without any resistance. Just like, he let the people of his city leave; it is why they have returned in droves.

Not only them, but also others.

I hate to admit it, but more people are coming to Silver’s cities than our cities, Light and Dark’s combined.

It was a masterstroke to let people leave before the undead came. Now, they have confidence; they can leave at any time they want; their absolute victory over the undead has also helped.

People are one of Marquess Grimvales’ absolute priorities, but despite his connection, Silver is beating him to it.

It is one of the things that frustrates him the most.

It’s not that people coming to our territories are fewer; they are more than we had estimated, but they are fewer than those going to Silver, which makes it more frustrating.

People are important; without them, there is no economy or army, and we need a lot of them.

Especially now that we have gained the baronies. We control around 65% of it, while 35% is in Silver’s hands. Though not for long, we will try to conquer the rest as soon as we get the opportunity.

“What about their chief of security, Baroness Leila?” I asked. “She is one dangerous woman,” replied Lockridge.

“The whispers are that she had advanced to Lv. 40 after the last battle,” I said. I am not so sure. She is young, and it is hard for mages or archetypes to advance to Lv. 40.

“If she had, then it is bad news for us,” he replied.

No one disputed it; spellblades are dangerous, and this one is exceptionally dangerous. She is experienced and focused, from what we had heard about her.

“How is her relationship with Silver?” I asked; it is common knowledge that it is not a smooth relationship. “Not perfect, but she could work with him,” replied Lockridge.

Once more, it’s not good news. It will serve us well if we could find chinks in the relationship and exploit them.

…

Lain Argis

“You have been very helpful, Argis. I wish you could have stayed longer with me,” said Lord Hardt, with a sigh.

Yesterday, I received the order to report to Grelthaven. Relieving me from my duties here and asking me to report to Greltheaven tomorrow.

They have not mentioned the reason, but what happened the day before yesterday, I am not too surprised by the summons.

“Me too, my lord,” I replied.

I have been working in the city since we conquered it; previously, I worked in the city hall of Greltheaven.

I was a lowly clerk when Lord Silver took the city, but I was able to climb the ranks rapidly, as Lord Silver valued work over connections.

I am going to miss Panar, but I am also happy to be leaving this city.

Even now, after months, whenever I look. I would see her shadows, sometimes, it becomes unbearable.

“Do you know why they had summoned me?” I asked. They didn’t mention the reason. They just asked me to report to the city hall of Greltheaven.

“I can’t tell you much, other than it is a promotion,” he replied. Speaking the exact words as Lady Knox.

I had called her in the morning; she has far more clout than he in the dominion. She knows about the things he didn’t, but even she isn’t willing to tell me.

“Good luck, Argis, and I hope you will remember the city. It is going to need a lot of favors from you,” he said, smiling widely; he seemed sincere.

The man is good, better than I had thought. Much different from Lady Knox.

Her style is strict, but she gives everyone an opportunity. Even forgives mistakes that others would fire or demote people for, but expects them to learn from them.

He, on the other hand, runs the city hall like a business. Everyone has tasks that they have to finish to his satisfaction in the given time.

At first, I didn’t think much of him—just a scion who had gotten the job due to his connection.

I know he’s competent; many of the people at City Hall I know have spoken highly of him. He achieved a great deal while he was chief of trade, but that is trade; this is the role of a Governor of the city.

He is not without flaws, but even Governor Knox has them

“Definitely, my lord,” I replied and walked out of the room, with Tharr and Lorle following behind me. It had been over a month since they arrived, and they are doing well.

I didn’t have any doubts about Lorle; she is from Velvet Garden, and I know from experience how good they are.

If they sent her here, it means she is competent.

Tharr, on the other hand, is a young orc from a small orc tribe. He is barely twenty-two, and his earlier position wasn’t that high before he was sent here.

Which surprised me the most, considering the two assistants sent to Lady Knox were in relatively high positions in the city hall. One, I know very well.

I asked around when I found out that he was coming. The only answer I received was that he had been chosen by Lord Silver himself.

He had done quite well, far better than I had expected. Although there are still flaws, the man is nervous and has a tendency to doubt himself; he will need to address these flaws if he wants to rise further.

“It’s such a regret you are leaving so early, Mr. Argis. We have so much to learn from you,” said Tharr.

“It would have been helpful. If you had stayed a few months more,” added Lorle.

Being an Assistant to the Governor is not an easy position. I could still remember how overwhelming the first few months had been for me and Onaz.

We had made many mistakes, but we have learned from them. Unlike us, they had me.

I taught them as much as I could and have confidence in their ability to provide all the support the Governor needs to do his job best.

“You both are capable. I have full confidence that you will do your jobs well,” I replied.

“You praise us too much, Mr. Argis,” said Tharr, a little embarrassed.

I think his nature is a result of his upbringing. He is from a small tribe and was a non-essential member.

Things are hard for them; they are considered disposable and given the least amount of resources and value, mocked and belittled at every step.

Especially in the frontal tribe, where danger lurks at every turn.

“It is the truth, and I have said many times before, have confidence in yourself, Tharr. You are good, but if you keep doubting yourself, you will become mediocre, instead of the best.” I reminded him sternly for the last time.

“I will not disappoint you, Mr. Argil,” he replied, with more confidence than before.

I didn’t say anything. I just patted his shoulder and nodded at Lorle before stepping into the carriage.

Too excited to wait? Jump 50+ chapters ahead on Patreon and read what others haven’t even reached!