Accepting Refugees

"My lord, please take us in!"

Seeing Lynn turn back, the middle-aged man immediately fell to his knees.

Lynn had bought slaves from this very fellow before—how was he now begging him?

"Alright, first drink some water, then speak slowly." Lynn said helplessly.

The middle-aged man had already begun: "My lord, the orcs have invaded! Beyond the fortress, it's all orcs now. The fortress took in too many people this year—we have nowhere left to go."

"Do you have food?" Lynn immediately grasped the situation and asked about their circumstances.

"If my lord wants food, we have it, we have it! We brought everything we own." The man spoke quickly, afraid Lynn would turn them away.

"Let me first see your situation." Lynn stood up. Free manpower—he'd take what he could.

Outside the city, though it hadn't snowed yet, the cold wind howled. In this weather, aside from Lynn, Lilim, Eckley, and others with magic or fighting aura, everyone else was bundled up thick.

Before Lynn even reached the city gate, he heard the clamor of a sea of people. His own men seemed to be facing off against those outside.

Since Aninsbei City was originally built for military purposes and needed to be constructed quickly, it was very small—otherwise, it couldn't have been defended.

Thus, only one city gate remained; the other spots had none. His own castle still wasn't finished—just a wooden fort with some bricks layered on the outside, the second and third floors still exposed wood.

Inside the castle, a compartment had three tunnels dug out for escape.

Aninsbei's walls, being Chinese-style, were extremely thick: six meters of earth, two meters of brick, plus a barbican.

Lynn had designed three gates.

Just as he stepped onto the wall, Lynn couldn't hold it together—a sea of people.

Seriously, that many people—were they here to storm the city or what?

Lynn grumbled inwardly as he looked down at the crowd.

Every one of them carried food; they really did have supplies.

His own wall was packed too. Eckley had mobilized everyone—each person held a spear, with seven or eight javelins on their backs, a javelin thrower at their waist. Some wore leather armor, some had none, and a few had even cobbled together wooden armor.

Eckley was shouting at the people below: "Everyone, quiet down!"

"Stay calm!"

"Wait for your representatives to speak with the Grand Commander!"

Gray stood with a few old men. Seeing Lynn on the wall, he immediately led them over.

"Grand Commander, these refugees are the ones who fled fastest, but most are the old, the weak, women, and children. Their men resisted the orcs—fate unknown. Based on observation and the village chief's account, there are also some underage males among them. But there are a few rats in this crowd too."

Rats—slang for thugs, ruffians, scoundrels.

"My lord, please, take us in!" they all said in unison.

At that moment, others also pleaded. Anna glanced at the slave trader, then knelt to beg Lynn: "My lord, please—my mother is in there, she's pregnant. My little sister is only a few years old, and my older sister is pregnant too."

[Magic. Far Gaze] A spell that enhances vision, mostly used for reconnaissance.

Everyone indeed carried food, but it clearly wasn't enough. Some brought more, some less—troublesome.

And there were rats among them, up to no good.

"Taking you in isn't impossible, but I hate disobedience." As Lynn spoke, a magic wand appeared in his hand, aiming at a sneaky, furtive figure below.

The glow of magic drew everyone's eyes, and Lynn's words kindled hope in those begging for shelter.

[Magic. Earth Spike] Earth spikes formed in the air, then shot forward like sharp arrows, directly hitting several rats.

Dozens of meters—the spell's optimal range.

In this world, mages were mid-to-close-range units. The best casting distance was within a hundred meters; beyond that, it was easy to miss, and most spells had a range of about a hundred meters. Past that, only rock-throwing spells were useful.

Like throwing wood spikes, earth spikes, flying swords, fireballs, ice spikes, and so on.

But these were no better than bows and crossbows—except flying swords, which were stronger.

That was a kind of balance in this magical world. If magic were too powerful, why would bows and crossbows still exist?

The sneaky ones in the chaos were struck by the sudden magic. The earth spikes hit them hard on contact, and they immediately clutched their wounds in pain.

Everyone was startled.

"My lord! Why are you doing this!"

Lynn shouted loudly: "Everyone, quiet down!"

He charged up a massive magic fireball into the sky.

The crowd was terrified, at a loss.

This direct display of power—this was what truly marked a noble lord.