Chapter 817 - 548: Special Envoy "Sun" Inspects the Duchy

Chapter 817: Chapter 548: Special Envoy "Sun" Inspects the Duchy

For instance, Sun was much more independent. It spent most of its time hunting on its own and only occasionally treated itself to the food provided by the kitchen.

"Yes, My Lord!"

Ed accepted the order and left. Raylo walked into the Lord’s Mansion and returned to his study.

Several hours later.

Raylo finished dealing with most of the backlogged government affairs and leaned back in his spacious chair.

Outside the window, the afterglow of the setting sun coated the castle in a layer of gold.

In the distant sky, that massive silver figure flickered in and out of the clouds, prompting countless people in Black Stone City to look up and whisper among themselves. A Catastrophe Level Giant Dragon, Silver Moon Blade. The escort to Moonlight, and Guardian of the future Silver Dragon Queen.

Raylo did not even need to do anything. Just having Silver Moon Blade circle the skies above the Black Stone Mountain Range for a few days was enough to keep all surrounding factions awake at night. It was an unspoken deterrence.

Just then, a gentle knock sounded on the study door.

"Come in."

Personal Guard Captain Ed pushed the door open and entered.

"My Lord," Ed bowed in greeting.

"Have a seat." Raylo pointed to the chair across from him and personally poured him a cup of black tea.

Ed pulled a notepad from his breast pocket. "My Lord, regarding the preparations for the Hill Giant Race’s migration, there are some issues that require your intervention," Ed said clearly, flipping open the notepad. "According to the numbers provided by Lord Kado, the number of migrating Hill Giants is around nine hundred. Our preparations have run into some difficulties."

"Speak."

"There are three main points," Ed explained. "First, food. Nine hundred Hill Giants consume an enormous amount of food. Our current grain reserves won’t last long.

"Second, housing. We urgently mobilized all the tarpaulins in the territory and summoned a large number of female workers to make more, but the main difficulty right now is a lack of raw materials.

"Third, laborers. Heading to the Black Stone Mountain Range to build the Hill Giant camp requires a massive workforce, and our manpower is already stretched thin."

Ed frowned, having finished his report in one breath. If any of these three major problems were poorly handled, the arrival of their allies could turn from a good thing into a disaster.

Raylo listened quietly. Sure enough, accepting a migrating race was not as simple as just saying it out loud. He pondered for a moment before looking up.

"As for the food issue, send someone to the Black Stone Mountain Range and have Black King provide a batch of Low Tier Demons and wild beasts. It has been a bit idle lately, so it’s time it made some contributions to the territory.

"We don’t need to permanently provide food for the migrating Hill Giants. We only need to ensure their food supply for the initial period.

"After they settle down, they will still have to solve their own food problems."

Ed’s eyes lit up. Right! They still had a Black Dragon! Black King occupied a vast area in the eastern part of the Black Stone Mountain Range; the "meat" it had hoarded was definitely an astronomical figure!

"As for housing," Raylo continued, "gather all the Mages under Master Balin. Have them use ’Petrification Technique’ and ’Mud into Stone’ to help out at the Valley of the Giant’s Sleep. The Hill Giants themselves are the best workforce. Get them involved and teach them how to build their own homes."

Using Magic for infrastructure—this was the proper way for a Fantasy Lord to operate.

"As for the lack of laborers..." Raylo said. "Ed, go issue a Lord’s Order. State that in order to welcome our allies from the Giant Valley, the Black Stone Territory will host a month-long ’labor competition.’ All subjects participating in the construction of the giants’ new homeland will receive double pay, along with an extra portion of meat for lunch and dinner every day. The hundred families that contribute the most will be granted priority housing selection in the first batch of the new urban district."

Ed looked up, his eyes filled with admiration. With just one Lord’s Order, the problem of insufficient manpower was cleverly transformed into an internal incentive for active citizen participation. Double pay, unlimited meat, and priority housing selection in the new district! Throwing down these three rewards, let alone building housing for giants, even if they asked the subjects to dig through the Black Stone Mountain Range, countless people would probably rush to sign up!

"Yes! Your Lordship is wise!" Ed replied excitedly. The difficult problems that had troubled him for days were practically solved in an instant.

"Go get it done," Raylo waved his hand. "These are our own internal affairs. We can’t let the giants see us as a joke."

"Yes, My Lord!" Ed was about to rise when he seemed to remember something and continued his report. "My Lord, there is a second matter. It is regarding Lord Sun."

"Oh? What news is there from Sun?" Raylo became interested.

A while ago, Sun had volunteered to act as his Special Envoy to inspect the Duchy’s territories. In Sun’s own words, it was "in the name of a Knight, to patrol the four directions on behalf of the sovereign, and spread the Light and justice to every inch of the land." Putting it bluntly, it was just looking for an excuse to go out and roam freely, championing the weak along the way.

"Lord Sun has amassed quite an impressive... military record over this past half-month," Ed said with a smile. "First, it went to the Crying Canyon. The two Barons there had been privately skirmishing for nearly a month over the ownership of the upstream water source. Lord Sun flew directly over the canyon, evaporated a section of the river with a single breath of Dragon Breath, and then snatched the two Barons up into the sky for a ’heart-to-heart.’ In less than ten minutes, the two Barons were crying their eyes out, expressing their willingness to share the water source and making peace for generations to come."

Raylo was speechless. This method of handling things was truly simple, brutal, and filled with a distinct dragon flavor.

"And then?"

"Then, while passing through the Sunset Territory, Lord Sun discovered that Baron Sunset’s only daughter was dispirited, seemingly enchanted by some evil power," Ed said, his expression turning serious. "Inside the girl’s room, it found an altar carved from the skull of an unknown creature, engraved with eerie insignias. Lord Sun instantly purified the altar with Dragon Flame, and the girl subsequently regained her senses. According to her description, she was lured in her dreams by an entity calling itself the ’Abyssal Guide’ and had unknowingly become a believer."

"The Abyssal Sect..." Raylo’s pupils contracted slightly. "Baron Sunset’s daughter? Isn’t she the girl who was lured into eloping by a disguised bandit leader, ended up mixed into Lillian’s caravan, and was ultimately rescued by me? It seems that the heartbroken are the most susceptible to falling into the Abyssal."

The Abyssal Sect was an organization of lunatics who worshipped the Abyssal Evil Deity, dedicated to opening the Gate of the Abyssal in the Prime Material Plane to bring about chaos and destruction.

"I’ll arrange for someone to handle this matter." Raylo put away the parchment. "Is there anything else?"

"There is one final thing." A hint of disgust appeared on Ed’s face. "Lord Sun discovered that a village on the Western Border had been turned into a dead village. All living things in the entire village, whether humans or livestock, had been drained of their blood and turned into monsters resembling living corpses.

"It found the source in the village cellar. A group of guys calling themselves the ’Crimson Bloodline’ were holding a blood sacrifice there. Lord Sun was so enraged that it directly activated the ’Solar Furnace’ Domain, purifying the entire village—along with those monsters and the ’Crimson Bloodline’—so thoroughly that not even a speck of dust was left behind."

"The Crimson Bloodline..." Raylo frowned. If the Abyssal Sect were lunatics, then the Crimson Bloodline was a group of parasites through and through.

They were the descendants of ancient Vampires. By corrupting nobles through the Initial Embrace Ceremony and spreading blood poison to pollute Mortals, they turned them into their own Blood Slaves and servants to expand their race.

...

Night fell.

In the center of Black Stone City, on the Lord’s Square, several massive bonfires burned fiercely. The CRACKLING Flames lit the square as bright as day, reflecting red upon the excited and awestruck faces.

The Knights had taken off their heavy Armor and changed into casual clothes. Sitting in groups of three or five around the bonfires, they talked and laughed loudly, but their eyes couldn’t help but constantly glance toward the edge of the square.

There, a towering "Silver Mountain Range" lay resting quietly.