Return to the Territory, New Quest

Nol Calendar, April 7, 6120.

A caravan loaded with food, cloth, and all kinds of daily necessities slowly headed out of the city, guarded by over a hundred Barbarians clad in armor and built like young bulls.

At the center of the caravan, three fine white warhorses pulled a luxurious carriage. Its doors, on either side, were carved with intricate patterns that exuded elegance and nobility.

The carriage was spacious enough to fit several people lying down to sleep.

What drew the most attention was the flag issued by the Noble Elders' Council, flying above the carriage—a silver crescent moon.

Only nobles with a title of Count or higher were permitted to use the Silver Moon Kingdom's exclusive noble flag.

It was a mark of prestige, and a rare one.

Loren reclined against the carriage's soft cotton cushions, gazing out at the street through the glass window, his eyes filled with anticipation.

After successfully recruiting the Barbarians yesterday afternoon, the five members of the Merchant Guild of the Violet Thorn quickly procured everything he wanted: armor for every Barbarian and a large supply of daily necessities.

After spending the night resting at the Jasmine Flower Merchant Guild, he didn't linger in the city. He left at once, taking his troops and supplies with him.

Gray Eagle Territory was waiting for its lord to return.

Outside the glass window, the sights of this great northern city passed before his deep, dark eyes as the carriage rolled along.

Decker City's streets, with a history of three hundred years, were old and rugged. Religious reliefs decorated the towering buildings with their pointed roofs, lending them an air of solemnity and holiness.

At the crossroads stood a bronze statue of an air knight riding a griffin into battle, its powerful form full of energy.

His gaze shifted to the pedestrians on either side.

The streets were filled almost entirely with adventurers wearing leather or metal armor. There were few commoners.

City guards in sturdy armor patrolled the streets, occasionally stopping to inspect a shop.

Some adventurers returning from outside the city carried Magic Beasts in their hands, excitedly talking among themselves. When merchants spotted the beasts, their eyes lit up, and they hurried out of their shops to ask about the price.

Others were covered in blood, their faces grim and their hands empty.

Some were even carrying companions who had lost an arm or a leg, their faces stricken with grief.

The beggars on either side of the street looked at the adventurers carrying captured Magic Beasts with numb, frightened, pleading eyes, hoping to beg a few coins or some food from them.

But the adventurers hurried past without sparing the beggars a thought. Only a few young women, unable to bear the sight of particularly young beggars, would take out a few Pukes and place them in front of them.

Nobles, adventurers, beggars, merchants, city guards.

As Loren watched the scenes unfold, he found himself strangely stunned.

It felt as if this familiar yet unfamiliar world had only just now opened its doors to him.

Clip-clop—

Iron-shod hooves struck the flagstones with a crisp sound. Guarded by Barbarians at the front and rear, the caravan rolled along the long street and slowly passed through the towering city gates.

The moment Loren saw Decker City's walls, he lifted his head.

As the largest city in the North, Decker City had walls of piled stone more than forty meters high—an insurmountable divide in this world.

Arrow Towers stood at regular intervals along the top of the walls, each rising more than ten meters above them.

The vicious siege crossbows in their firing slits glinted coldly, ready at any moment to hunt down an invading enemy.

Even more eye-catching were the enormous Magic Beasts in the sky—griffins.

These terrifying creatures, with the wings of hunting falcons and the bodies of lions, were soaring with their wings spread wide, casting shadow after shadow across the ground and blotting out the sun.

Air cavalry had always been a blade in war. Decker City's Griffin Legion and the Gold Knights were the main reason the city had stood for hundreds of years.

It was hard to imagine what kind of force could possibly conquer such a majestic city.

The sight filled Loren with longing.

One day, Gray Eagle Territory would be even more magnificent than this city!

The caravan passed through the gates, leaving the city walls behind.

But they hadn't gone far when a breeze brushed past. The wind should have been pleasant, yet it made Loren frown.

The smell of blood—an overpowering stench of blood.

As if sensing something, Loren abruptly turned to look back at the city walls.

He saw that the outside of the walls, like a natural chasm, was coated in a thick layer of blood, so thick it had already turned black.

The gouges on the walls, as if made by the claws and teeth of beasts, were packed together in horrifying numbers, like a blade had carved into a wooden board hundreds of thousands of times.

The sight struck him with overwhelming force.

Bloody Polluters.

Those terrifying monsters hidden in dimensional planes attacked human cities whenever the Bloody Day came.

As the largest city in the North, Decker City endured pressure from the Bloody Polluters' attacks every month that outsiders couldn't begin to imagine.

The soldiers in their sturdy armor, the towering Arrow Towers, the flying griffins—everything was prepared for those terrifying creatures.

"Fiana, you fought in the war against the Lizardman Empire.

"Compared to the Lizardmen attacking a city, which is more terrifying—them or the Bloody Polluters?"

Loren looked at the cold, composed girl beside him.

The Lizardman Empire bordered the Silver Moon Kingdom. A few years ago, the two sides had fought an unprecedented war, in which Loren's parents had died.

"The Lizardmen."

Fiana's eyes narrowed slightly. Memories she had buried rose to the surface, and her voice dropped.

"Fighting the Lizardmen is about defending the Silver Moon Kingdom's interests. Fighting the Bloody Polluters is about survival.

"There's no comparison."

She said nothing more.

Those memories weren't worth dwelling on.

Loren watched the girl's expression, thoughtful. He sensed her emotions and didn't press her further.

His gaze shifted to the towering Barbarian Chieftain, Yas Frost, at the head of the group.

"I'm putting this army in your hands. Can you get them trained within half a month?"

Once Fiana had calmed down, she shook her head.

"I'm not good at training an army, and these Barbarians have sworn allegiance to you.

"Even though I'm Platinum-grade, the Barbarians' nature means they won't simply obey my orders.

"Their pride is carved into their bones. These savage warriors fear no death; only someone who truly wins them over can make them obey."

Loren understood.

The Barbarians' strength was beyond question, but figuring out how best to use them would take some effort.

The caravan traveled at about ten kilometers per hour—not particularly fast.

The people of the Nol Main Plane were far stronger than people on Earth, so this pace could only be considered average.

After they left Decker City, vast stretches of wasteland came into view.

The Endless Wasteland was a harsh place to live.

What drew so many Pioneer Lords to cultivate lands here was the abundance of rare mineral deposits hidden beneath the soil.

These were indispensable resources. Weapons were forged, armor was cast, and even daily life depended on goods made of gold, silver, copper, and iron.

That was why every empire and tribe fought to claim this land.

The desolate scenery didn't last.

A little over ten minutes later, fields appeared beside a small river, with green crops blooming in pure white flowers.

Even from afar, the sight lifted one's spirits, as though standing amid a sea of flowers.

"Are those Blue Heart Fruits?"

Loren asked the only girl beside him he could really talk to.

Fiana, her face cool and distant, hadn't wanted to indulge such a pointless question. But seeing the curiosity in his eyes, she couldn't help replying.

"As a lord, you should start learning the knowledge every lord needs.

"Because the Bloody Polluters exist, the main food crop of the Nol Main Plane is the Blue Heart Fruit.

"Its roots grow about a meter beneath the ground, and it needs a great deal of water to cultivate. Before it ripens, it can keep growing even if its flowers and leaves are cut away.

"That's why the Bloody Polluters can attack human cities every month without causing a complete crop failure."

Now that his curiosity was satisfied, Loren smiled and said nothing more.

His predecessor had been a typical nobleman's son, well versed in subjects that required artistic sensibility, such as appreciating elven paintings. But he knew next to nothing about the things farmers needed to understand.

The rest of the journey passed in silence.

The area within about a hundred kilometers of Decker City was under the city's actual control. They often saw troops patrolling and caravans hauling large quantities of goods along the roads.

There were plenty of territories and villages built along rivers, and seas of Blue Heart Fruit blossoms appeared from time to time.

But once the group left Decker City's controlled lands, they could immediately feel the surrounding environment growing harsher.

The roads became increasingly difficult to travel, and a number of bandits appeared nearby, eyeing the caravan.

Most of them had enough sense to retreat as soon as they saw over a hundred Barbarians built like young bulls.

No one wanted to provoke the Highland Barbarians—unless they were ready to die fighting.

And this was a nobleman's caravan, no less.

Loren had originally planned to have the Barbarians kill the bandits to gain experience. But those bandits were slippery: they kept their distance, always retreating whenever his men advanced, and showed no interest in fighting.

The Barbarians hadn't even gotten close before the bandits ran. After it happened several times, Loren lost interest in chasing them.

He sent the Barbarian Chieftain and a dozen Barbarians to scout the surrounding area, then urged the caravan to pick up the pace toward his territory.

Ordinary human bandits might not dare attack Loren's caravan, but other races didn't share their reservations.

Besides humans, the Endless Wasteland was home to a great many other races.

The most numerous were the beastmen, a general term for all intelligent beings with animal features rather than a single race.

Gnolls, kobolds, Ratkin, Boarmen, werewolves, and tigerfolk—all of them were beastmen.

Tribes of all sizes were scattered across the Endless Wasteland.

These savage races usually lived by hunting. When the Bloody Day came, they would return to their territories or hide in some bottomless cave to take shelter.

And if outsiders dared to trespass on their lands, they didn't mind playing the part of hunters and bandits.

After leaving the main human roads, the vast caravan traveled across the wasteland, making it an easy target.

And so, trouble soon arose.

After the caravan passed a small stream, Barbarian Chieftain Yas approached with a grave expression to report that large numbers of kobolds had appeared nearby—at least two hundred.

What's more, there seemed to be a Bloodline Mage among them.

Hearing this, Loren immediately went on alert.

Kobolds weren't particularly frightening, but even the clumsiest Spellcaster couldn't be underestimated.

Just as he was about to make arrangements, the system prompt suddenly rang out.

"Ding~ Quest triggered: Kobolds' Watchful Eyes.

Across the Endless Wasteland, beastman tribes of all sizes make their homes. Kobolds are one of them. These greedy yet cowardly creatures become bloodthirsty and murderous when their numbers reach a certain size.

Defeat the kobolds within three hours.

Quest reward: The allegiance of the kobold Bloodline Mage."