Return to Lake of Star Prayer

"Shut up, my business doesn't concern you."

With that, Kazak left in a huff.

The butler beside him rushed to catch up.

Only the utterly bewildered noble youth remained. He couldn't understand why his usually arrogant and overbearing boss, who couldn't tolerate even a speck of dust in his eye, was acting so strangely today.

"Young Master, how should we proceed?" the butler asked, catching up to Kazak's pace.

Kazak, hearing this, said with a false show of bravado, "This time, I'll let that... that Pioneer Knight go. If he dares to steal my things again, I won't let him off."

"Yes, Young Master."

Just as the butler was about to leave, Kazak seemed to remember something and ordered, "Withdraw all the measures deployed in Bagamoio City. Since the goods are gone, there's no benefit in continuing the blockade against the Bashak Merchant Guild."

"I understand, Young Master."

The butler bowed again. Seeing that Kazak had no further orders, he left the manor directly.

Outside the city, Velin, after receiving the slaves he wanted and purchasing some provisions, set off to return to the Lake of Star Prayer.

However, he ordered his subordinates to remain vigilant at all times.

Velin wasn't sure if there would be any trouble, but it was always wise to be prepared.

Meanwhile, Bak, the branch president of the Bashak Merchant Guild, had been waiting for news, eager to see how Kazak, the governor's son, would make his move.

For two consecutive days, everything was calm. There were no noble infights in the central region of Cadro Province, which made Bak wonder if the greedy dog Kazak had changed his surname.

It wasn't until he learned that Kazak had even withdrawn his blockade measures that Bak finally realized the seriousness of the situation.

"That young man... could he be someone even Kazak doesn't dare to offend!"

Bak, realizing his mistake, felt like he had done something he would regret for the rest of his life. He could only hope to salvage his image the next time the other party visited.

On the journey, the peaceful days made Velin feel inexplicably puzzled. According to his deductions, there was something wrong with that half-elf.

However, there were no ambushes or roadblocks.

At night, Velin approached the carriage where the half-elf was being held, carrying a piece of white bread. He tapped the iron cage with his Knight Longsword.

The half-elf girl snapped out of her daze. She looked at the knight who had been bringing her food for the past few days, seemingly the human who had bought her.

"Here."

Velin handed her the white bread and a water flask.

The half-elf girl didn't hesitate. She took the food from Velin's hand and began to eat it in small bites.

"I have no interest in your body, you can rest assured of that," Velin said, looking up at the moon in the sky from his horse. "My territory is in its early stages of construction and requires an architect for planning. If you serve me faithfully for ten years, I can grant you freedom."

"After all, I spent three thousand five hundred Gold Coins to buy you from the slave trader."

The half-elf girl stopped eating and looked at Velin. She said in the common tongue, "My name is Eunice."

Her clear voice reached Velin's ears. He turned his head to look at Eunice, nodded, and then left.

The rest of the journey was uneventful, except for a few groups of reckless bandits, which only added a few dozen bandit slaves to Velin's collection. There were no other incidents.

Six days later, Velin arrived at Ridge Castle again. He received a hundred sets of Leather Armor and three hundred swords from his cousin Brian, retrieved the twenty-three bandit slaves stored in the prison, and then headed towards the Lake of Star Prayer, over three hundred kilometers away.

On June 21st, as the sun set, Velin returned to the Lake of Star Prayer with a team of over five hundred people.

After being away for more than half a month, the surroundings were well managed by Belder.

Of the five thousand acres of farmland that had been cleared, three thousand were planted with beans and potatoes, and the remaining two thousand were planted with a type of root vegetable with a strong reproductive capacity.

Velin dismounted and walked to the edge of the field. Looking at the lush green expanse, his weary heart felt relieved.

Belder, who had received the news, finished his training and hurried to where Velin was.

"My Lord, welcome back."

Velin stepped forward to help Belder, who was kneeling in greeting, and said with relief, "You've worked hard these past half a month."

"It's all thanks to your detailed plan, my Lord. I merely followed it, so it wasn't hard work."

"During my absence, were there any unexpected incidents?" Velin asked Belder as they walked towards the village.

Belder immediately replied, "Within a radius of thirty kilometers, most of the Goblin tribes have migrated, leaving behind large areas of no-man's-land, which has led to an increase in wild beasts."

"Ensure that our vigilance work is done well. We are short-handed at this stage and cannot afford any losses."

"Also, regarding the half-elf girl I brought back, assign her a room and try to satisfy any requests she has. I'm going to rest now."

"Your subordinate understands."

Upon returning to the village, Velin went into his small wooden cabin, preparing to get a good night's sleep.

After Velin left, Belder ordered his men to settle the brought-back slaves and dispatched a squad of soldiers to guard them, lest anyone escape.

Regarding the half-elf girl Eunice, Belder followed Velin's instructions and assigned her a separate wooden house, with two knights standing guard to prevent any unforeseen circumstances.

The next day, Velin glanced at Eunice, who was drawing blueprints, and then turned his attention to handling the affairs of the territory.

First, he selected one hundred and twenty people from the three hundred strong slaves and mixed them with the thirty soldiers of the territory to form an infantry unit of one hundred and fifty men.

The one hundred and twenty slaves who joined the infantry unit still retained their status as slaves.

To shed their slave status, they had to kill three goblin warriors or become a high-level apprentice warrior. There was no other option.

This decree greatly motivated the one hundred and twenty slave soldiers.

Furthermore, Velin also promised other slaves that if they worked diligently for three consecutive years, met their quotas, or killed three goblin warriors during wartime, their slave status would also be pardoned.

As for the ten blacksmiths, fifteen carpenters, and twenty-five masons purchased, Velin had different standards for them to escape their slave status.

Therefore, the hundreds of slaves who had come to the Lake of Star Prayer were filled with hope.

With a goal to strive for, everyone burst forth with unprecedented enthusiasm.

Using the serfs who had already been pardoned as a reference, they chose to believe the young lord's words.

As for the one hundred youths purchased from the Bashak Merchant Guild, Velin planned for Orlando and Hebrew to cultivate them.

Using his own knight squire, Kyle, as an example, those who awakened Battle Qi within half a month would remain to be trained as future members of the knight order. Those who were unqualified would still serve as apprentices to the craftsmen, contributing their value.