Settling at Carl Rock

The morning was sunny once again, and the sun's gentle warmth kept everyone busy around the camp in good spirits.

Allen woke to Ymira's gentle call. As he washed, he noticed everyone in camp going about their work in an orderly fashion. He understood then-this was probably why Ymira had come to wake him with dark circles beneath her eyes.

After a quick wash and breakfast, Allen set out north along the river with Artimenner, Klethi, and Alayen. Deshavi and half the cavalry went with them as well. They were heading north on patrol, so their routes happened to coincide.

They traveled together for about two hours before parting ways beside a massive rock. Deshavi's group needed to patrol north for roughly another hour before returning, while Allen and his three companions stayed by the rock to examine their surroundings.

The enormous rock stood on a small island in the river, with the water forming a circle around it. Allen looked toward the western bank and saw a cliff, with rushing water at its foot. On the eastern bank lay a stretch of shallows, where the water was clear and shallow enough to occasionally reveal fish darting through it. Pebbles covered the riverbank, which bordered a vast grassland stretching to the distant hills. A few small oak groves dotted the surroundings. It looked much like the Carl Rock Allen remembered, yet there were many differences.

Compared with Carl Rock in the film, the surrounding landscape was quite different. In the film, there was no grassland nearby, only mostly mountains and forests, and the river did not encircle Carl Rock. In short, none of the surrounding terrain looked the same. This puzzled Allen. Could the film's perspective have been too broad to show what lay at the foot of Carl Rock?

Compared with Carl Rock in the original book, however, it looked very similar. Yet there were no signs of human workmanship here: no flat stone slabs in the river and no steps cut into the great rock. That did not quite match the book's description. If this truly was Carl Rock, Allen could think of only one explanation: Beorn had not yet come to live here.

As Allen remembered it, Gandalf had passed through this area sometime in the few years before the expedition set out, but it was never explicitly stated that this was when he first discovered Beorn.

Gandalf had only said that Beorn, in bear form, had stood on Carl Rock watching the sun sink behind the mountains and roared, "One day, they will perish, and I will return to my homeland."

What did those words mean? They meant Beorn came from the Misty Mountains. Considering how delighted Beorn had been upon learning that the Half-orc king was truly dead, it was not hard to guess that he bore an endless hatred for the Half-orcs.

In the film's version, his story was even more tragic. Beorn himself had said that his people were the mountains' earliest inhabitants, and openly described how his family had been captured by Half-orcs and displayed in cages for their amusement. It was utterly miserable. Allen also remembered the scars covering Beorn's body and the shackles on his wrists in the film. His experiences were not difficult to imagine.

There was also a clear difference between Beorn's personality in the film and in the original book. In the book, he was livelier, ready to talk and laugh, and fond of stories. Although he disliked dwarves for various reasons, he had welcomed the expedition's members because of a good story.

The film's Beorn was different: taciturn and wary, as though still immersed in grief, unable to escape the shadow of his family's tragic fate. That Beorn had chosen to help the dwarves because they shared a common enemy. The distinction was considerable.

In fact, at this very moment, Beorn was leading his family in resisting wave after wave of Half-orc attacks.

He had not yet been driven from his home in the Misty Mountains by the Orcs, so it was only natural that Allen had not encountered him.

Allen felt rather troubled. He had originally hoped to live here for a while under the protection of Beorn's formidable reputation, to avoid being wiped out by Orcs while he was still weak. Since Beorn had not arrived yet, he could only rely on himself. At that thought, Allen turned to Artimenner and asked, "Artimenner, if I wanted to build a village here and later develop it into a town, do you think that would be possible?"

Artimenner was a professional engineer. Even building a castle was well within his capabilities, so planning and building a village posed no problem at all. Hearing Allen's question, he pointed toward the highest nearby hill and said, "My lord, I need to go up there and examine the surrounding terrain before I can give you a better answer."

The four of them then rode for half an hour to reach the hill Artimenner had indicated. After surveying the surroundings, Artimenner pointed toward the Anduin River to the east and said, "My lord, look. This is the highest point for dozens of miles around. We could easily build a castle here with an excellent view. It is also very close to the water. If we extend the walls toward the water source, we won't have to worry about anyone easily cutting off our supply. We could also build a road connecting us to the opposite bank and find a way to gather resources from the mountains."

"Now look over there." Artimenner pointed toward the distant oak forest. "Those trees could provide all the timber we need for our initial houses. Even if we build wooden walls, there should be more than enough. My lord, I already have a preliminary design in mind."

"Never mind those," Allen hastily interrupted. He had no desire to have bears, Maiar, or woodland elves come knocking at his door.

"Look at these small oak groves nearby. They should be enough for our initial needs. Even if they aren't, there are plenty of trees in the mountains across the river. We would have more than enough timber." Allen pointed toward the Misty Mountains, then gestured around them. "Look at this grassland and these hills. We could clear large stretches of farmland. We can absolutely settle here and build a village."

Seeing his companions nod, and Artimenner in particular agree with the proposal, Allen drew a deep breath and opened the simulator. After some hesitation, he relinquished his position as battalion commander in Veluca's Second Legion and summoned all the soldiers and villagers willing to follow him. At the same time, he spent a large sum of denars to buy enough food to feed everyone for a month, along with a large quantity of construction tools.

After a vast flash of white light, more than a hundred soldiers, over three hundred villagers, and those forty-odd unwilling prisoners appeared on the hillside. Large quantities of supplies and construction tools appeared behind the crowd. Allen turned to Artimenner and said, "I believe you can now begin building according to the plans you have in mind, Artimenner."

Artimenner's eyes widened, and he stared openmouthed at the people who had appeared from the white light, along with the great piles of supplies and building equipment. "You... you..." he murmured. At last, he understood what Allen had meant the previous night when he spoke of bringing their fellow Calradians here.

Having already witnessed soldiers being upgraded in the past, Klethi and Alayen were not particularly surprised by this sudden appearance of living people. They knew their leader possessed special abilities. They were simply delighted to have more companions.

Allen paid little attention to how Artimenner, Klethi, and Alayen felt. Instead, he rode before the four hundred or so people. Seeing the obvious confusion in the crowd, he waved his right hand and shouted, "Villagers! Soldiers! Don't panic! Don't panic! Look over here! Look at me!"

The people at the front gradually settled down at the sight of Allen, a man both familiar and somewhat unfamiliar to them, and at the sound of his loud calls. Those at the back could not actually make out what he was shouting, but they quieted down all the same. Perhaps the sight of Allen drenched in blood at dawn had left too powerful an impression. Even now, properly dressed and seated on his horse, he still inspired fear.

Once the crowd had quieted, Allen took a moment to compose himself, then shouted, "Villagers! Soldiers! Don't be alarmed! I have good news for you. We are no longer going to Selenheim. We have come somewhere much farther away. This is Wilderland, far from the war between the Kingdom of the Rhodoks and Swadia. We will no longer wear ourselves out fleeing constant warfare, nor suffer hunger and cold under the nobles' endless exploitation. I promise to do everything in my power to protect your lives. I promise to give you a peaceful, stable place to live. I promise that life will only get better!"

Still overwhelmed by shock, the summoned soldiers and villagers did not fully grasp all the implications of Allen's words. But they heard, and understood, that they could live in peace and stability.

Most of these villagers, who had lived through an age of war, wanted nothing more than a stable place to live. Their limited experience left them with few grand ambitions; simply staying alive was difficult enough. Now a powerful man was promising them a peaceful, stable home, a powerful man was pledging to do everything he could to keep them safe. For a moment, an eerie silence fell over the crowd.

That silence made Allen increasingly anxious beneath his outwardly calm expression. He began to wonder whether he simply had no talent for speeches, and to regret putting all his attribute points into strength and agility instead of investing heavily in charisma. But those doubts and regrets soon vanished.

Some of the villagers had finally understood. Realizing that they no longer had to run desperately for their lives to escape pursuing Swadian soldiers, they began to cheer. Their excitement gradually spread to the others, making them momentarily forget that they had left their familiar homes and lost everything they had not brought with them.

Allen quietly breathed a sigh of relief at the cheering crowd. Then he dismounted, found the elder, and called Artimenner over. The two of them would have to work together to build the village, after all. Allen was only responsible for issuing orders. Letting experts do their work without interference from an amateur was the proper way to handle things.

Yet even now, Allen did not know the elder's name.

Pointing to the somewhat ill-at-ease Artimenner, Allen told the elder, "Respected elder, this is Artimenner. He is an experienced engineer. If we are to settle here and live in peace, his help will be essential in building our home. My preliminary plan is to build a village here. I hope the two of you will communicate closely. If there are any problems you cannot handle, just come to me."

"Ah, this is truly miraculous."

After expressing her amazement at the situation, the elder heard Allen's words and hurriedly replied, "You are too kind. Just call me Carl. Please give me whatever instructions you need to from now on. I will work closely with Mr. Artimenner to get everything done."

Most village elders were seasoned hands at serving nobles. They acted as intermediaries between the nobility and the common people. Carl adapted quite quickly to her change in status. Although she was astonished to have suddenly arrived here in her sleep, the dependable young man before her reassured her. Besides, she clearly understood that, now she was here, some things mattered more than others. She knew her priorities.

Before long, Carl and Artimenner were together discussing which tasks to undertake first. Under Carl's direction, some villagers had already picked up tools and begun felling trees, while others had started leveling the ground. Gradually, the entire hillside filled with people hard at work.

Allen watched these common people from a war-torn age with amazement in his eyes. Their needs were so meager that he could scarcely imagine it, and their determination to survive filled him with admiration.

Once the villagers' work was underway, Allen remembered that more than a hundred soldiers were still waiting for his instructions. He gathered all his squad leaders and ordered them to temporarily set aside their weapons and help the villagers, building shelters for themselves as well.

Once everything was running smoothly, Allen would give them a choice. Those who no longer wanted to serve as soldiers could retire, needing only to answer his call in the gravest emergencies. Most of the time, they could live ordinary lives. Those who wished to remain soldiers would later be placed under Bunduk's command.

The soldiers were highly obedient to Allen and offered no objections. Most were young men from the villages, either second sons or landless drifters.

Indeed, who with a family and land of his own would volunteer to enlist? They had joined the army in hopes of a better life. Although they had now left their families behind, they believed Allen could lead them toward a better future.

As for Allen's personal guard-the nine men who had followed him longest in the simulation-he called them to his side and pointed to Alayen. "You will remain my personal guards. See that man? He is my attendant, and from now on, he will be your captain. His name is Alayen. Remember it."

Standing behind Allen, Alayen pointed at himself in openmouthed surprise and blinked, as though asking, Me? Seeing Allen nod to him, he considered it for a moment, then nodded as well, accepting the responsibility.

After settling matters with Alayen, Allen carefully examined the nine men who remained. The young fellow he had taken the greatest liking to was missing. Clearly, he had died in the final battle. Allen felt saddened, but he understood that, whether in the simulator or in the Middle-earth of this era, it was all too common for a human being to die before reaching the natural end of his life.

By now, Artimenner and Carl had everything here well organized. Allen planned to return to camp, since there were still more than a hundred people there for him to bring over.

Allen was about to call Klethi to return with him, only to find that she was nowhere in sight. She had vanished again. Alayen lightly nudged Allen's arm with the back of his hand, helplessly pointed toward Carl Rock, then spread his hands in a shrug, ╮(╯▽╰)╭.

Allen took a closer look. Sure enough, the girl had already galloped to the foot of Carl Rock and appeared ready to wade across the river. He hurried over to Artimenner and Carl and left a few instructions, telling them he would return to camp first and come back that afternoon. They were to handle matters as they saw fit in the meantime. He also had Alayen stay with the personal guard to protect the villagers from any beasts foolish enough to attack them.

With everything arranged, Allen mounted his horse and rode toward Carl Rock. By then, Deshavi had also returned from patrol with the cavalry. When Allen reached the vicinity of Carl Rock, she and the riders were looking up, watching Klethi climb it.

Allen dismounted and had just led his horse closer when he heard Deshavi shout, "Klethi, come down! My lord will be here any moment. He'll scold you!"

Halfway up the rock, Klethi abruptly stopped, then shouted without looking back, "Let him! I just want to go up and take a look. It's not the first time he's scolded me. It's fine, I'm used to it." With that, she continued climbing.

Hearing this, Allen suddenly felt like an old father dealing with a disobedient daughter. Once, his own daughter, only six or seven years old, had been just like this. When he scolded her, she would pout and stare at him without responding. Once he finished, she went right back to whatever she had been doing. It was the very picture of Say what you like. I'm not listening, and I'm not changing. It often left Allen unsure whether to laugh or cry.

Those memories stirred a trace of warmth in Allen's heart, here in this strange world far from home. The frustration he had felt over Klethi's antics simply melted away.

Deshavi, who had noticed Allen's approach long before, bowed her head in greeting and said, "My lord, you're here. Klethi, she..." Allen smiled, shook his head, and waved a hand. "It's fine, it's fine." Then he looked up to watch Klethi continue climbing Carl Rock. Seeing that he was not angry, Deshavi quietly gave him a brief report on the patrol: everything was normal, and they had found nothing unusual. After that, she said no more.

They watched in silence as Klethi reached the top of Carl Rock.

"Having fun up there?"

Seeing Klethi reach the top, Allen cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted up to her.

In truth, Klethi could not make out what Allen was shouting. She only heard a familiar voice. Looking down, her heart gave a jolt, and she knew she was in trouble. It looked as though a scolding was unavoidable. How did he finish so quickly? she grumbled inwardly.

Then her eyes shifted as an idea came to her. She waved to Allen, pulled a large coil of rope from behind her, and tied it around a firmly lodged boulder. After tugging it to test the knot, she quickly slid down the rope to a ledge halfway up the rock. A few nimble leaps later, she descended the great rock and reached the river island, then waded over to Allen with a sheepish expression.

As she came, she called, "I only wanted to go up and check whether there were any enemies nearby. What if monsters like the ones yesterday rode wolves in and ambushed us, right? If there was danger, I could warn you."

Watching Klethi approach while still making excuses, Allen reached out and vigorously ruffled her hair. "From this far away? Were you going to fly over to warn me?" he asked irritably.

Then Allen stopped, sighed, and said softly, "Make sure you tell me first next time, all right?"

Seeing that Allen did not look angry, Klethi quietly breathed a sigh of relief. Then she stepped aside and whispered to Deshavi with a grin, "Do you know how beautiful the view is up there? Let's go up together next time."

The two of them actually began chatting and laughing.

Watching them, Allen thought helplessly, Jeremus said my temper was getting worse. So why can't I see the slightest sign that either of these two is afraid of me?

"Ladies, ladies, talk on the way. We're in a hurry."

Swinging into the saddle, Allen irritably interrupted their conversation and urged them to head back to camp.