The Elder Lands

Chapter 5

“We are bound to protect the land the King has bestowed upon us,” Lucan’s father said. “Of course, there’s no present danger to fear as we are not on the border itself. However, bandits do sometimes come from the Shattered Kingdom and through the eastern forest. With the aid of our neighbors, we always cull them before they become too much of a nuisance.”

“Do they come often?” Lucan asked.

“It’s dependent on the ongoings in the Shattered lands. If the warlords are in conflict, or a significant Outbreak happens, bandits and refugees come in droves. And it isn’t so easy to tell them apart.” His father gave him a meaningful look. “Unfortunately, hearsay has it that another ring of wars has begun in the east. Those fools never miss the chance whenever the Labyrinth lets off.”

“To the south,” Sir Golan continued, “is the fief of Lord Arden. He protects the southern border of this corner of the Kingdom. We are obligated to assist him whenever the tide rises, whether it’s against beast hordes or Wildermen.” He frowned, seemingly troubled.

“Are tidings not so good from this side either, father?” Lucan said.

“No.” His father sighed. “The flow of beasts has slowed to a trickle, and it might just dry up soon.”

“Is that not good?” Lucan said. “A reprieve for the border Lords’ men?”

His father huffed with amusement. “No, son,” he said. “When the flow ceases, the Wildermen come out of their nooks. They raid and steal, and even try to invade sometimes, as you know.”

Lucan nodded. He knew, and he also knew why, from his reading. When the people of the Dead Continent had first come here, escaping calamity and forming the Veti Empire, they’d pushed the Wildermen back all the way to the south, or so the Wildermen claimed. The records of the Empire itself claim that the Wildermen hadn’t had that wide of a presence in these lands. They were supposedly limited to mountains and some of the thickest forests. It was difficult to parse for Lucan, but the Wildermen believed them to be invaders and foreigners, and they wanted it all back. The Kingdoms that had formed after the fall of the Empire believed them to be simple, wild savages.

“If you are to be knighted in a timely manner,” his father said. “You will have to distinguish yourself in battle, likely against the Wildermen.”

“Yes, father.”

“When it comes to our own fief,” his father continued. “There isn’t much to fear for, though we aren’t as prosperous as I hope for us to be. The King already expects us to recruit and lead more men-at-arms in his service.”

Lucan’s father had five men-at-arms. By his words, before being landed, he’d originally had only one man-at-arms–Cordell– along with Thomas as an attendant. Since then, his father had recruited and trained more, though not as many as the King had expected, it seemed. It was no surprise, however, as the land given to his father hadn’t only been a reward, but also a fief upon which he had been expected to raise more men in the King’s service.

“How many does he expect, father?” Lucan said.

“He never did mention a number,” his father said. “But he expressed his disappointment the last time he saw me.”

That left them with little knowledge. His father would have to expand the number of those in his service until the King was appeased, but there was another issue…

“The expenses aren’t little,” his father said. “Just hiring and training five more would strain us. That’s why I’ve been trying to extract as much wealth as possible from the land.” He pointed at the salt lake in the southwest of the map.

It was one of the few legal ways to increase their income in the short term. Lucan’s father couldn’t increase the taxes, as he was no Lord. In a way, he was receiving taxes in the stead of the King from the peasants here. He had no blood right to the land. That left few avenues for additional income.

“My attempts at digging pans haven’t been bearing fruit,” his father said. “The land is too high and tough for any reasonable labor to bear results.”

Lucan eyed the lake. It was fed by a freshwater stream that came from the mountains. The lake had formed in a spot of lowland from both the flow of the stream and a collection of rain. Over many years, it had become saltier than seawater.

Lucan put his finger at the edge of the lake and drew a line to the east. “Can’t we dig a small canal to more reasonable land where we can create pans?”

His father shook his head, with a scowl. “Already attempted, nothing gained. The underlying ground is too rocky. We couldn’t even find a small strip of soft land. Not in a reasonable amount of time. If there was an easy way to achieve this, it would have been achieved. Even if your books make you brighter than most, don’t take us for fools.”

Lucan winced. He didn’t know where he offended his father, but it wasn’t like he was any less sharp under normal circumstances. Perhaps it wasn’t offense, but frustration. It was like a precious mine in his lands that he couldn’t dig up. He could see it every day, but he couldn’t get a hold of it. Lucan understood the frustration.

His father straightened up, wiping the scowl off his face and getting back his bearing. “You should sit,” he said. “It’s about time you pushed your Physique.”

Lucan nodded, obediently taking a seat and calling up his Elder Power.

Race: Human

Level: 1

Vital Orbs: 4

Mind and Body

Physique: Basic 0/1

Spirit: Basic 0/1

Skills (2) 0/100

(Passive) Swordsmanship lv19: Apprentice

“You ought to keep one Orb for Wraith Strike. It won’t be of any use to you now either way.”

“Yes, father,” Lucan said. He eyed his Physique and willed the Vital Orb into it. A shooting pain wracked his body, causing him to spasm, then it was gone as fast as it had come.

Race: Human

Level: 1

Vital Orbs: 3

Mind and Body

Physique: Copper I 0/2

Spirit: Basic 0/1

Skills (2) 0/100

(Passive) Swordsmanship lv19: Apprentice

Lucan scrutinized his Blessing. There was nothing he didn’t know there. He’d been taught what to expect long ago, and what he hadn’t been taught, he’d found in books. Physique represented his strength, stamina, endurance to physical harm, and even his overall health. Even mages raised it sometimes to enhance themselves.

He pushed two more Vital Orbs into his physique. This time there was less pain and more of an odd tingling sensation in his body that left him quickly.

Race: Human

Level: 1

Vital Orbs: 1

Mind and Body

Physique: Copper II 0/3

Spirit: Basic 0/1

Skills (2) 0/100

(Passive) Swordsmanship lv19: Apprentice

There it was, his enhanced strength. With sixteen winters under his belt, Lucan was slightly weaker than a fully grown man, but with this Physique, he would be slightly stronger than one. Of course, the average man didn’t walk around with a Basic Physique. A farmer often had a Copper I Physique, which leveled the ground between them again. Lucan felt grateful. Even if his father’s temper was prickly, he had spent a fortune of the family’s savings to give him a better start. In a way, Lucan was sad that he hadn’t been up to expectations when it came to his Skill slots. He would try his best, regardless.

There was a rap on the study’s door. His father called for the man-at-arms to enter, the latter panting before he spoke. Lucan remembered that this one was often expected to mount a patrol in the northwest of the territory, mostly the road that came from that direction.

“Sir.” The man bowed his head slightly. “Lord Zesh, his son, and their retainers are riding their way here.”

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