"My lord, why do you look so troubled?" Ashina came over with her bow in her arms, her eyes bright with amusement. "The hardest part was before we got here. Why are you only looking troubled now?"
Field waved a hand. He did not want to spread his anxiety and undermine everyone's already shaky confidence. A teasing look crossed his face, and he reached out to pinch Ashina's wolf ears. "I'm not troubled. I'm just wondering whether I should personally give my hardworking hero a massage."
"H-h-huh?" Ashina's pretty face immediately flushed, and her red eyes trembled as though struck by an earthquake. She stammered, trying to answer, but when she saw Field's expression, like someone teasing a child, she immediately realized he was making fun of her. Her cheeks puffed up in indignation. "You're awful, my lord! And here I was worrying about you. I'm not your friend anymore."
Field patted his aching neck. "Thanks for worrying about me, but it's time we found somewhere to stay. I don't want to spend another second sleeping in that carriage. All that creaking is giving me a headache."
They needed to take over a house. Somewhere sheltered from the wind and rain would be much better, even if the houses here had been corrupted beyond recognition.
After studying the map carefully, Field said, "Let's take the grand winery, Ashina. Its main structure is brick and stone, so it's less likely to have rotted into a pile of rubble."
The grand winery stood southeast of the main building, with broad stretches of fertile farmland used to grow Black Pearl Grapes for winemaking. Of course, those vast vineyards were a thing of the past. Now the fields held nothing but masses of writhing black tentacles and Corpse Ghouls.
Grapevines and trellises were still faintly visible in the fields. In its day, this land had produced the Empire's most famous Black Pearl Grapes Wine.
"The women will clear the fields. Don't leave any filth behind. These wriggling tentacles and lumps of flesh look frightening, but they aren't actually dangerous." Field kicked aside a corrupted lump of flesh covered in seven or eight eyes. "Before the Gray Fog came, these disgusting things were all cute little animals."
"Yes, my lord."
The slaves dragged their feet.
"Finish within two days, and I'll pay you ten copper coins in wages. This land will be our source of food in the future." Field played his trump card: allowing the slaves to possess money.
The slaves' eyes lit up. They deftly killed the Corrupted Creatures with farming tools, and their efficiency immediately increased tenfold.
Seeing their behavior, Perry the butler rolled his eyes. "Only the master would be so kind and generous. If these peasants refuse to work, hanging them would be far simpler."
Just then, the Freemen Field had lured into coming approached him.
"My lord, aren't you being a little unrealistic? The land has already been poisoned. Even if we clear out every monster, we still won't be able to farm it." The villagers voiced their doubts. One stamped his foot hard, and the soft, rotten soil immediately sank, leaving a footprint filled with purple water. "Look, it's like a poisonous swamp. Oh! This damned smell is worse than a widow's crotch after three years without washing."
Hearing this, the slaves cast puzzled looks their way.
My kindness seems to have made some people start pushing their luck.
Field lowered his eyes, his voice devoid of emotion. "That was an order, not a discussion."
The villagers still thought of themselves as loyal to Baron Bull and had yet to adjust. "But what you're doing is pointless."
"Hmm?" Field frowned, his gaze turning hostile.
Wildcat and the other guards immediately drew their blades with a chorus of metallic rasps. Although Connor and his men had borne the brunt of the fighting along the way, the slave guards had still been tempered by combat and acquired a hint of a soldier's deadly air.
The flash of steel brought everyone to their senses. They had actually been questioning their new lord! Cold sweat poured down their backs, and they threw themselves to the ground.
The tense silence lasted half a minute.
Only then did Field wave his hand. It was not that he deliberately wanted to throw his weight around or play feudal lord. He simply had no established power base. Here, so far from any semblance of order, if he could not keep these people under control, he might as well stop being a lord and find somewhere to hang himself.
"You'll clear the fields too. All the land to the east is your responsibility. And the fool who called me unrealistic will receive five lashes." Field gave them a small punishment as a warning. He still needed them to develop the land and farm it.
The villagers were already drenched in sweat. Hearing Field's words, they felt as though they had been pardoned. "Yes, yes, my lord."
Everyone began clearing away the corruption, startling the Corrupted Creatures into a chorus of piercing, unnatural shrieks.
"This is way too Cthulhu." Field sucked in several sharp breaths, his stomach churning. Staying in this Cursed Land for too long could drive a person mad. "We have to kindle the spark of civilization quickly. Let's start with the winery."
Two peasants carrying torches pulled open the winery doors, and a dank, putrid stench hit them in the face. Field nearly brought up last night's dinner. Covering his mouth and nose, he turned his face aside.
"Be careful. I hear a lot of footsteps upstairs." Ashina showed no unusual reaction to the stench. She had lived in even worse conditions during her days as a slave.
"We need to take this big building intact, and there might be flammable materials inside, so we can't use fire."
Ashina nodded obediently. "Leave it to me!"
Holding an iron-rimmed shield in front of his chest, Field drew his longsword. "Ready your halberds! Brace for impact!"
They had received no systematic training, but after days of fighting, the guards had picked up a few things, and a small formation quickly took shape. Field took a deep breath and hammered his sword hilt against his shield. "Hey, hey! Neighbors! We're here from the community to spread some warmth!"
"Roar!" The darkness filled with ghastly howls and shrieks.
Footsteps suddenly thundered like a rapid drumbeat. Monsters with ruined faces and twisted bodies charged out of the ink-black darkness, and the sounds of flesh colliding with steel immediately filled the air.
Ashina and her wolf held back the bulk of the horde. The spear in her hands cut down Corpse Ghouls with ease, while the giant wolf was practically a tank. Even buried beneath so many Corpse Ghouls that it became a ball of bodies, its defenses remained unbroken. If Field had not forbidden the Dragon-Breed Wolf from breathing fire, the fight would already have been over.
"Ah! Goddess above!"
A guard in the front rank impaled a Corpse Ghoul, but the impact sent him staggering. Before he could regain his balance, the next wave of Corpse Ghouls pounced on him. He crashed to the ground in his armor, the fall leaving him thoroughly dazed.
With a low shout, Field stepped half a pace forward and brought his longsword down hard on a Corpse Ghoul's head. This was no anime where turning evil made you stronger. Corpse Ghouls were merely monsters wrapped in human skin. Without armor to protect them, their flesh and bones parted beneath the sharp blade, and the entire head came off.
"Th-thank you, my lord!"
The guard stared in terror, his trousers warm and wet. He had nearly shared a passionate kiss with a monster.
From the look on his face, as though he wanted to drop to his knees and call Field his father, it was clear he had never felt such respect and gratitude toward a noble before.
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