Encounter

Crash! As the straw hut door was pushed open, a group of sallow-faced humans dressed in patched linen clothes ran out from all directions.

"Lord!"

The crowd greeted him with their hands over their chests, all speaking at once.

Ismir took a closer look and found that they were all women and elderly people, with no young or middle-aged laborers among them. His brow furrowed. It was not that he looked down on them, but if these were the only people here, his territory would bear a heavy burden. Women represented the hope of new life, but that would take many years. Ismir silently calculated whether the soldiers under his command could protect these people.

"Elder Ad, may I ask how many people there are here?" Ismir decided to ask old Ad directly.

"Of course, my lord. This old man will tell you everything he knows! There are ninety-seven people here!" Ad said, rubbing his hands.

"What about the men?" Ismir frowned. He had already prepared himself for the worst. Though things would be difficult at first, he could always send these people to live in Lulong Fortress if necessary. As for living expenses... Ismir looked at the obedient Armored Earth Dragon. An earth dragon was worth a fortune.

"The men? You mean the hunting party?" Ad slapped his forehead in sudden realization.

"Yes, yes!" Ismir breathed a sigh of relief. It was not that there were no able-bodied workers; they had all gone hunting. It made sense. Apart from a few small patches of level ground where crops had been planted, every other place was covered by the forest canopy. Without sunlight, crops could not grow. Clearly, the people here survived on Mirkwood's abundant animal resources.

"My lord, the hunting party will not return until tonight. We'll have to