Main Quest Unlocked

The villagers gradually recovered from the turmoil, staring fearfully at Reiner, who sat atop his Warhorse after having just killed a man, waiting for what he would do next.

"I! Reiner Moreland! Baron of Morland Castle! I have come here today to demand that you support my rule! Your former master, Baron Lobean Gwen, shamelessly launched a sneak attack on my territory, but his plot has already been crushed by me!"

"Regrettably, he died in an accidental killing on the battlefield. But I must repay in full what he did to my territory. Goer Castle, controlled by the Gwen Family, has now fallen into my hands, and you are now my subjects. I want you to swear allegiance to me, and I want you to personally purge everyone connected to the Gwen Family, so that my territory may remain secure and free of trouble!"

Reiner intended to have these villagers personally eliminate everyone connected to the Gwen Family. That way, the villagers would become enemies with those people as well. Their hands would be stained with the blood of the Gwen Family, and even if the Gwen Family returned someday, they would no longer pose a threat to Reiner.

Faced with villagers who held such blood feuds against them, the Gwen Family would only seek revenge rather than take them back under its command. The villagers understood this as well. They knew that, with blood on their hands, they would surely face retaliation. Thus, they had no choice but to remain utterly loyal to Reiner.

As soon as Reiner said this, the villagers began discussing it among themselves. Some were debating whether his words were true, while others were considering whether they should truly swear loyalty to him.

In short, they remained undecided about pledging allegiance to Reiner, because his claims had not been verified. It was not as though Wandering Knights had never come here before with similar lies, claiming that the Gwen Family had been defeated and so on.

But later, those people had all been proven to be nothing more than down-and-out Wandering Knights. They would simply leave after causing trouble, while the villagers, who had done nothing wrong, were the ones punished instead.

Although the man before them, who had killed the Village Elder, did look rather convincing, and he had several knights and more than a dozen well-equipped soldiers behind him, there was no guarantee that he was not trying to trick them, collect another round of taxes here, and then leave.

Seeing their suspicion, Reiner said nothing more. He merely gave the knights behind him a look, and a Gwen Family banner torn down from Goer Castle was thrown onto the ground.

"This is the Gwen Family's banner! Goer Castle has already been breached by me, and this is the best proof! You are now ruled by me!" Reiner declared.

This time, the villagers finally believed him. When they saw the Gwen Family banner, they were utterly shocked. The Gwen Family had ruled this place for over a century. Their ancestors had all been serfs of the Gwen Family, yet now this man claiming to be Baron Moreland had casually thrown that banner onto the ground. There was no doubt that the Gwen Family had truly been defeated, and this banner was his trophy of war.

The villagers looked at one another, unable to believe that the lofty Gwen Family had been defeated just like that, and that a banner bearing its family crest had been discarded on the ground without the slightest respect.

After a while, the first person knelt down, placing his right hand over his left chest. "Great Baron, I swear loyalty to you! I, my family, and everything in my home belong to you. Whenever you need me, I will appear before you!"

He was a young man, and his physique was much better than that of the other serfs. He was probably a relatively well-off free farmer.

The herd mentality existed among humans as well. After seeing the young man swear loyalty, the others also fell to their knees one after another. Even the ignorant children were pressed to the ground by their parents to show submission to Reiner.

Nearly two hundred people knelt before him. Reiner could not help feeling rather inflated. Although he had been in this world for more than four months, this was the first time so many people had knelt before him in such an orderly manner.

Some children secretly raised their heads to look at the knight on the Warhorse before them. They were curious, but also somewhat admiring. These children, still ignorant of the world, did not understand what nobles meant to them.

"Very good. You are now my subjects! You will pay taxes to me, fulfill military service for me, and obey my laws. In return, I will ensure that you are protected from lawbreakers and that your livelihoods are guaranteed!"

"What is your name?" Reiner asked the free farmer who had been the first to swear loyalty to him.

"**, honored Baron, my name is **!" the young man answered respectfully.

"**?" Reiner's expression beneath his helmet became somewhat strange. "Is your surname Ben?"

Reiner's question left ** stunned for a moment before he replied, "I am only a free farmer, Baron. I have no surname!"

Reiner nodded, thinking, Good thing you don't have a surname. Otherwise, I'd be thinking about forming a counterterrorism unit in my territory.

"Very well. From this day onward, you are the Village Elder of Red Fruit Village. I want you to lead the villagers in clearing out everyone in the village connected to the Gwen Family. You understand what I mean!"

"Yes, Baron. I'll get it done right away!" ** said. Then he turned to the villagers and declared, "Now, it is time to complete the first task assigned by our lord! First, drag out everyone connected to the Gwen Family!"

** seemed quite skilled at borrowing authority to make himself look powerful, and he immediately began directing the villagers on Reiner's behalf.

Before long, with the villagers' help, the supporters of the Gwen Family were dragged out. There were five local gentry in all of Red Fruit Village who had ties to the Gwen Family. They were well dressed and strong of body, clearly living quite comfortably and possessing considerable wealth.

Reiner looked at the members of the Gwen Family faction who had been pushed before him and asked, "Are you certain no one has been overlooked?"

"Yes, Baron! Every one of the Gwen Family's lackeys is here!" ** declared with absolute certainty.

"Very good. Then begin the executions now! You will carry them out!" Reiner said. Half an hour later, the five had become corpses.

Reiner repeated the same process with the other two groups. In this way, all eighteen villages of Goer Castle fell into Reiner's hands.

When all the troops had regrouped with him, the system notification sounded in Reiner's mind once again.

"Ding. It has been detected that the lord has conquered new territory. Main Quest unlocked!"

"Main Quest: Establish an empire belonging to the Moreland Family!"

"Time Requirement: Fifty years"

"Population Requirement: Ten million"

"Status Requirement: The lord must possess the title of Emperor"

"System Requirement: The lord must control over sixty percent of the nation's population, wealth, food, and military"

"Territory Requirement: Five million square kilometers or more"