Gratitude from the Robbers

The battle ended quickly.

When that skeletal figure appeared inside the bathroom door and entered the apartment, its eye sockets glowing with a faint blue soul fire, it didn't even last a few seconds.

It was swarmed by the Swadian Recruits, who picked up their long-handled scythes and quickly beat it into a pile of bones.

It fell at the bathroom door, returning to its skeletal state.

"It feels pretty good to have subordinates help finish the fight." Shen Mu didn't do anything and felt a bit strange.

He took out a match and lit the rough candle, which was clearly homemade from wax and cotton thread. He then placed it in the bathroom, letting the flickering candlelight dispel the darkness within.

Whoosh! The candlelight flickered.

The wisps of gray mist born from the darkness in the bathroom, upon encountering this small, bean-sized candlelight, were instantly dispelled as cleanly as cold butter meeting a hot knife.

It was as if they had encountered an absolute natural enemy!

And that was indeed the case.

The residual memories of Shen Mu's previous body clearly told him that the presence of light and fire could dispel gray mist and darkness.

It could expel the evil rules born from the dead Spiritual Realm.

Forming a temporary safe zone.

This was also why, during the day, after the sun rose, the entire world would return to peace.

"But it's still quite safe now." At least Shen Mu didn't have to worry about the undead monsters that would occasionally be born from the darkness, filled with hatred for the living, and would immediately attack.

The 15 Swadian Recruits were now all sitting in corners or empty spaces.

Each of them had placed their fan-shaped assembled wooden shields by their legs, and their sharp, polished long-handled scythes, capable of both thrusting and slashing, were now leaning against the wall.

But as soon as anything happened, these Swadian Recruits could immediately stand up, grab their weapons, and fight instantly.

After all, on Calradia, a world of constant conflict filled with bandits and robbers, even the most ordinary farmers had received military training.

This was also why, even these young men who had just come from the countryside and were conscripted as recruits, remained calm in the face of danger.

They were just moving corpses and skeletons, clumsy and foolish in their movements.

Could they possibly be worse than those cruel bandits or robbers, or even the lords who frequently massacred and burned villages?

"And then there are the two of you." Shen Mu turned his head and saw the two robbers huddled in a corner.

"My lord, we are bankrupt people from Dhirim. We originally invested in a bakery, but the continuous wars kept the price of grain high. We had no choice but to become robbers."

The two robbers, who had the rags removed from their mouths but were still bound hand and foot, were pleading their innocence and misery.

However, their darting eyes clearly showed anyone observant that this was just their lie.

"Be honest!"

So on either side, three Swadian Recruits stood by, holding the single-handed axes they usually used for chopping firewood, watching the two unforgivable robbers with cold eyes.

That's right, these Swadian Recruits, who were previously farmers and still retained most of their farmer's mindset even after being hired as soldiers, extremely disliked these robbers.

Because every time they went to town to sell crops or buy tools or cloth, the troublesome things they encountered were these robbers!

This also included bandits, highwaymen, or even the groups of forest bandits rampant in the Swadian Kingdom.

In short, they were existences that the commoners and farmers of the Swadian Kingdom extremely disliked and detested.

So, these Swadian Recruits had no good expression when looking at the two robbers they had captured earlier.

"Wait." But Shen Mu's eyes were momentarily blank, as if he had seen something.

A dialogue box from the system in his mind.

Ding! Temporary Task System detected an event!

Task Issued: Handling the Robbers.

Task Description: You captured 2 robbers in the previous battle, but since your current area of activity is not within Calradia, the former laws do not seem to apply to the current situation, and you are in a difficult predicament.

Task Conditions: You can choose to 'Release/Kill' these 2 robbers to handle them in different ways.

Condition Reward ① Release the Robbers: You release these 2 robbers, and your name will spread among the robber circles in Dhirim. People will praise your name, and when you obtain a 'Swadian Stronghold', you will gain the 'Robber Contact Point' building to provide you with fencing services or purchase supplies.

Condition Reward ② Kill the Robbers: You kill these 2 robbers, and your troops will receive a +2 morale boost effect.

"Temporary task?" Shen Mu was slightly stunned, only then realizing that when he had merged all the Mount & Blade games before, he had casually programmed a small application that could detect the protagonist's events and automatically issue temporary tasks.

It seemed that even after transmigrating to this world and activating the Mount & Blade System, this small application had also come along.

However, looking at the rewards on this temporary task, Shen Mu slightly pursed his lips.

"This doesn't seem to require a choice, does it?" Shen Mu immediately made a decision: "Choose to release these two robbers!"

"Thank you for your mercy, my lord! Thank you for your mercy!"

The two robbers immediately looked up in surprise, their faces filled with the joy of surviving a disaster.

There were clear legal regulations on Calradia.

If you encounter robbers or bandits, it is not a crime to kill them, no matter who they are.

Even capturing these robbers or bandits and selling them as goods to slave traders to earn some Denars is a legal transaction and will not trigger any kingdom's laws.

So when these robbers and bandits are captured, they are usually either sold or killed.

Letting them go like this is truly rare!

"Untie their ropes," Shen Mu ordered.

"Understood." The Swadian Recruits who were already standing behind the two robbers nodded, took out their one-handed axes, and after squatting down, used the equally sharp axe blades to directly cut the ropes on the robbers' hands and feet, setting them free.

"We will remember your kindness, Lord Shen Mu!" The two robbers stood up, bowing repeatedly to Shen Mu with excitement.

"It's nothing, you are free," Shen Mu waved, signaling that the two robbers could leave.

This was just part of the mission anyway.

"Lord Shen Mu, please believe us, your kindness will eventually bring our gratitude."

The two robbers didn't say much. After bowing respectfully again, their entire bodies gradually became ethereal.

Shen Mu's face showed a hint of surprise at the sight.

And just like that, the two robbers went from real to illusory. The color drained from their bodies, and they completely disappeared.

Only in Shen Mu's mind did they turn into a dialogue box from the Mount & Blade System.

You have released the robbers.

Because your personnel has not yet reached 30 people, and they are primarily Swadian (70% ratio), a 'Swadian Stronghold' cannot be formed.

Your legendary reputation among 'Robbers' +1 point.

"Need 30 people to form a Swadian Stronghold?" Shen Mu raised an eyebrow slightly.

Turning his head to look at the 15 Swadian Recruits still crowded in the apartment, he felt a bit helpless.

He didn't know how to increase the population.

"Or complete battles and get rewards?" Shen Mu pondered. After all, the 10 Swadian Recruits he had just acquired came this way.

And regarding battles...

Shen Mu looked at the tightly closed apartment door.

"If I think along these lines, it means going outside and fighting those undead creatures?" Shen Mu pursed his lips, but his face also showed some hesitation.