Establishing the Stronghold

Early in the morning, Nord arrived at the training ground in the small courtyard to find Ryman and Reed already training. He realized he was still the last one to wake up. No wonder he always ate breakfast alone. It seemed he needed to develop a habit of going to bed and waking up early.

"Ryman, Reed, you're training so early today."

"Lord Nord, this Reed fellow is too lazy. I'll train him well from now on. He's with you all day, so he needs to be capable in battle."

Reed opened his mouth to retort but then remembered that he had indeed lost to Lord Nord. A wave of dejection washed over him, and the wooden sword in his hand moved even faster.

"Don't underestimate me, Ryman, I'm quite capable in battle too."

Nord chuckled, then ignored Reed, who was sulking nearby. This was for the best; Ryman could push him more, which would help this impulsive young man focus. Nord then began his own training for the day, choosing not to spar with Reed again.

After finishing the day's training, Nord called Ryman and the other, preparing to go out and see if the others had arrived. At the same time, the System's message appeared before him.

[After diligent training, your One-Handed Weapon Proficiency has increased by 2 points.]

[Daily Quest: Establish a Stronghold]

[Quest Description: The vast and boundless Amon Mountains are majestic and mysterious. The idea of exploring the mountains has always lingered in your mind. Take the brave first step. The first step is always the hardest. Establish a small stronghold.]

[Quest Reward: EXP ×100, Bread ×10, Gold Thaler ×10]

Looking at the refreshed daily quest, Nord had an idea.

As time passed, the square in front of the courtyard filled with people. Both the previous hunters and the newly joined young men were feeling a surge of excitement, chatting in small groups.

Nord and the two others arrived at the square after their training. Once everyone had gathered, Nord walked to the center of the crowd. Looking at the spirited hunters, Nord slowly began to speak.

"From now on, you are no longer ordinary villagers. Starting today, you are officially part of my guard. The direction my longsword points is the path you shall follow. The brave and skilled among you may be knighted by me. The glory of a Knight depends on your bloody battles!"

The golden morning sun shone on Nord, as if draping him in a sacred cloak. Listening to Nord's promise, everyone's breathing grew heavy. Their eyes, bright and eager, stared at Nord, revealing a yearning for battle, a yearning for glory.

"From this day forward, you will gather for training every morning. For now, the location will be this square. Your daily task now is to patrol the forest with me. Let's set off now."

With that, Nord had them head to the Manor construction site first to get some tools from the villagers building the Manor, then set off for yesterday's Wild Boar Cave.

Yesterday, Nord had considered using the Wild Boar Cave as a Stronghold. It just so happened that a quest for it was issued today. There's no time like the present, so he decided to establish the Stronghold today.

Old Mor, who was experienced, still led the way, but Nord, consulting the map, occasionally offered suggestions to Old Mor. This surprised Old Mor, as he hadn't expected Nord to be so familiar with the forest. Even Ryman would often take detours in the mountains.

Of course, Nord wouldn't tell Old Mor that he was cheating… The map provided by the System clearly showed the terrain of the forest. Gullies, hollows, cliffs, and rivers were all visible, allowing Nord to clearly choose the most direct path. However, the scope was a bit small, currently only showing the tip of the iceberg of the Amon Mountains.

It seemed he needed to find a way to expand the map's area. Before long, they arrived outside the cave. Nord assigned tasks to everyone. Ryman took ten people to cut down trees outside, while Marco took the rest to clear out the cave. Nord, in any case, wouldn't enter until the cave was clean.

Marco had no objections. Hearing Nord's instructions, he led his people into the cave. Ryman also began directing everyone to cut down the large trees outside the cave. Only Nord seemed to have nothing to do.

Looking at the busy crowd, Nord decided to continue studying the map. The Wild Boar Cave was about 15 kilometers due north of Tami Village, roughly a two or three-hour journey, requiring crossing two mountains. To the west of the Wild Boar Cave was a river, which appeared to be the same river that flowed through the village. He hadn't expected this small river to wind its way close to the Wild Boar Cave.

While Nord quietly studied the map, the others worked quickly. Marco led a group and swiftly cleared out the dung from the cave, throwing it into the distant forest. Nord also instructed Marco to light several fires in the cleaned cave. This would not only eliminate the strange smell in the cave but also smoke out any snakes, insects, rats, or ants.

Ryman quickly cleared an open area outside the cave, especially after Marco and his group finished clearing the cave and joined them. Soon, the area outside the cave was filled with felled trees.

Seeing the progress of the work, Nord praised Ryman and Marco. While it was still early, Nord suggested that everyone put in more effort. Using the cut timber, they should build simple fences around the cave entrance and the open area outside it to prevent wild beasts from entering the cave.

Nord walked into the cleaned cave. The fires inside were almost extinguished, and the air no longer carried the unpleasant smell from before. However, the light was still dim. The oxygen inside the cave was plentiful, and he didn't feel any suffocation despite the burning fires. It seemed the cave's ventilation was quite good.

By the light of the burning fires, Nord surveyed the cave again. Its internal structure was roughly semicircular, with irregular stone protrusions on the surrounding walls that could be smoothed out later once they moved in. The ground underfoot was very dry, and no dead poisonous insects were found in the cave. This seemed like good news. He wondered if it was because the cave environment wasn't suitable for snakes, insects, rats, and ants, or because of the wild boars.

Stepping out of the cave, Nord was very satisfied with it. Not only was its location excellent, but the cave's conditions were also superb, making it a perfect choice for a Stronghold.

At the cave entrance, Marco was installing a door. This door was very simple, made of wrist-thick branches bound together in a cross pattern, sharpened at the bottom and inserted into the ground. The branches at the bottom were denser, seemingly to prevent small animals from crawling underneath.

Nord smiled when he saw the door. It was quite a creative door, something that might deter a gentleman but not a scoundrel. Nord didn't interrupt their enthusiasm and went to check on the situation outside.

Ryman was building a protective area using the surrounding trees. He drove sturdy wooden stakes between a circle of trees, inserting branches of varying thicknesses between the stakes and trees, and then connecting them horizontally with thinner branches. A simple fence was already taking shape.

"Ryman, well done. I didn't know you had this skill."

"Lord Nord, everyone here knows how to do this. Poor families in the village who can't afford to build courtyards just use this method to create a fence."

"Is that so? I really didn't know."

Nord gave an awkward laugh, then instructed Ryman that when the time was right, he could take the men back. They would finish for today and continue tomorrow. Ryman nodded in understanding.