City of Brilliant Moon Gets on Track

After a brief conversation, Loren brought his army back to the Lord's Manor.

But when he saw the powerfully built Yas awkwardly holding charcoal to draw a map on paper, he felt a sense of unease no matter how he looked at it.

This guy should be wielding a great axe to smash bulls, not "embroidering" here.

However, besides Yas, even the Kobold mage Sim didn't know how to draw maps.

Barbarians lived in harsh, cold regions, and their perilous environment forged them into skilled individuals, with map-making being just one of their abilities.

Legend had it that every Barbarian tribe possessed an ancient, inherited map marking the surrounding dangerous areas, which each chieftain would update.

Yas's actions at this moment undoubtedly confirmed this legend.

"Lord Loren."

Yas put down the charcoal in his hand, a look of satisfaction on his face. He picked up the yellowish paper with his dark fingers and handed it to Loren.

Loren reached out and took it, his eyelids twitching as he saw the black fingerprints left on both sides of the paper.

Upon clearly seeing the crooked map and the strange markings on it, he couldn't help but sigh, once again feeling the scarcity of talent.

If I had a cartographer, why would I be watching a Barbarian draw here??

What does this cross mean? What does this circle mean?

What is this dog tooth? What does this bull's butt represent?

Seeing Loren remain silent for a long time, Yas proudly turned his head to Sim, who was wearing a black cloak and looked incredibly flamboyant, and boasted.

"You lowly Kobolds, have you seen the masterpiece of the Barbarians? Even with three hundred years, your kind couldn't draw such an accurate map!"

Sim, a literate person like the Barbarians, was stunned by the messy symbols on the paper.

He really thought it was some kind of writing. Annoyed, he couldn't say anything, and finally, he became angry out of shame.

"Hmph, you idiot, if the Kobolds hadn't scouted ahead, could you have searched such a wide area?

My Lord, the Kobolds are the main contributors this time!!"

Yas was furious.

"You idiots who roll around in mud, this was explored by the Barbarians! Without you, the Barbarians could have scouted it clearly!!"

"Bullshit."

Loren put down the map, feeling speechless as he watched the two idiots argue.

Normally, Yas, as the Barbarian Chieftain, was very experienced, spoke little, and was reliable.

But as soon as he got together with Sim, the flamboyant Kobold, his intelligence dropped sharply, and he was always provoked by the Kobold.

The two seemed to be born to clash.

"Shut up, if you two keep arguing, I'll have you clean the horse manure in the stables!"

The two who were bickering immediately stopped, glared at each other, and dared not speak further.

Loren pointed to a circle on the map and asked.

"Yas, what does this symbol mean?"

Yas lowered his head, looked at it, and grinned.

"Lord Loren, this is a forest with edible fruits."

Fruits are represented by circles? Is that how it works?

Loren's mouth twitched. He pointed to a cross and asked.

"What about this one?"

"This is a patch of mud, very difficult to traverse. Don't go this way in the future."

Loren: "..."

"What is this bull's butt?"

"Lord Loren, this is a face."

"Nonsense, I'm asking you what it is?"

"Traces of Boarmen were found here. Boarmen have very fat faces, so I marked it with a face."

After Loren understood the meaning of these symbols, he couldn't help but sigh. He vowed never to let the Barbarians do such a thing again.

"Ariel, have a literate person be specifically responsible for drawing maps."

Whether they can draw well or not, at least don't put circles and crosses on it. Let's have something understandable.

Ariel covered her mouth and chuckled.

Soon, a literate resident whose drawing was not too unsightly was given the glorious job of cartographer.

The newly appointed cartographer spent about two hours re-drawing Yas's "masterpiece," asking for various detailed terrain information in the process.

Finally, a work that could barely be called a map was painstakingly born.

Loren had the first map of the City of Brilliant Moon hung in the hall for easy viewing.

It's a bit ugly, but it's almost the same with the lights off...

By the time everything was finished, the sky had gradually darkened.

Loren was in a good mood.

His first day back in the territory had been relatively orderly.

Internally, City Hall had begun operating, completing a population census, starting repairs on the Arrow Towers, and establishing a plan for territory sanitation. They had also acquired precious Papermaking Technique artisans.

Externally, they had explored an area of several kilometers around, discovering a potential threat and also harvesting over ten Magic Beasts.

That evening, Loren held a bonfire banquet in the manor, awarding all the Magic Beasts to the army and the employees hired by City Hall.

Everyone ate until their mouths were greasy, exclaiming their satisfaction.

Especially the employees who had been lowly slaves the day before were filled with emotion, some even getting teary-eyed with excitement.

They breathed in an unprecedentedly free air, they were respected here, and they ate expensive Magic Beast meat – a life they had only dreamed of.

Compared to their previous lives as slaves, this place was paradise.

Praise Lord Loren!

In an instant, the loyalty of these employees, who had been granted third-class resident status, began to skyrocket. Loren's status in their hearts instantly reached its peak.

When the banquet dispersed, many felt a closer connection to the City of Brilliant Moon.

They already had a faint feeling that this place was their home.

After enjoying a meal of roasted Magic Beast meat, these residents returned to their respective homes and immediately began boasting about the delicious food and wine from the night.

They spoke at length, describing the bonfire party as a rare banquet in the heavens, while also constantly praising their great lord, the leader, for his wisdom and might.

The residents who were not chosen were green with envy.

"Damn it, you guys just got lucky! The great lord will definitely choose us sooner or later!!"

A strong desire arose within them; they too wanted to shed their lowly slave status and obtain the noble third-class resident status.

The despair that had previously filled the lifeless slave residents had largely vanished after a day of intense stimulation.

In its place were residents full of hope for the future and brimming with motivation.

Under Loren's command, the City of Brilliant Moon was gradually getting on track...

Setting sail.