A week had passed, Cadin woke up from a long and refreshing slumber, his hair was messy while he wore his tunic and clothing. His armor and sword rested next to him on a stand.
"What a day" Cadin jumped out of his bed, heading forward to the balcony door.
Opening it, he felt the sun's warm embrace hit his skin.
After stretching for a few seconds, he went downstairs where his advisors were starting to enter inside from the door.
"My lord." They all greeted him one by one, gathering near the table awaiting to announce their reports.
"What are the reports of today, starting with Joken."
Joken stepped forward, placing his hands on the many scattered papers of plans and detailed reports from before.
"Our army has received the armor and weapons you have requested from the other tribes."
Cadin nodded his head.
"Poltan?"
"We have finished the roof for the fenced area my lord, along with this our lumber and fish production has increased greater than our expectations."
The rest finished their reports after, starting to head out with pieces of paper, their orders given and the morning's meeting concluded.
"Joken, before you leave. Need to ask." Joken walked back to the table.
"How are the selected soldiers?"
"The prisoners say that they are learning well, a few more drills and they may be fit enough for combat."
"Excellent, have you mapped out the camps we may take?"
Joken unfurled one of the rolled up papers. Inside it revealed the area surrounding them, now showing parts outside of the forest and places encircled in red.
"These areas may be of use to us. Population gain wise and perhaps resource wise."
"Very well, thank you for your report." Joken nodded his head, walking out the door
Outside he looked at the camp. People walked around with large nets and rods, bringing buckets of fish with them. Guards walked around wearing higher quality metal armor as they walked around the area, spears or swords in hand. In the entrance, a small group of prisoners with horses carrying crates and baskets of items walked inside. Poltan greeted them as they entered, guiding them through the camp to a storage hut.
While he looked aroumd further, his pride slowly turned to weariness. Noticing that there weren't as much people as he wanted for each section of the camp.
'Even with advancements, the population is not enough. Need more people, more prisoners.' Cadin thought to himself. He walked back inside, off to grab his weapons and equipment.
Upstairs, he saw a familiar sight.
The demon materialized from the smoke cloud, his feet landed on the ground without a sound.
"I like what you have done with the place. Creating things from your old world. I suppose giving you a portion of your memory back was a good idea." The demon seemed amused, crossing it's arms with a bloodshot bright red grin on it's face.
"Though i shall remind you. Conquering more territory by force does not invite good company. With this i shall ask. What shall be done with those camp leaders, especially the one that has provided you with this camp?"
"Can you not simply influence them to align with me?"
The demon sighed, "There is only so much i can do, i simply influence but i do not keep them influenced. That and a little conflict is fun to witness. I may sway them to our cause, but it is you that shall keep them under our thumb, something for you to acknowledge and rectify. For conquering is not simply gaining more land, but holding it as well. If you hold their minds, then they shall serve you continously." It explained, circling around Cadin.
"Then i shall speak to those leaders, or perhaps kill them then." The demon laughed at his response, dropping his arms down.
"The choice is yours, you have made staggering progress. And now you have the chance to expand it further. The leaders may be with you or against you. Kill or manipulate? That is the question. Good luck my candidate of conquest." The demon dissapeared, leaving Cadin stuck in thought, realizing the new problem he faces.
He walked back downstairs, armor donned and sword in hand.
Through the door, he thought on what must happen next. Now with the camp's self reliance assured. Only the leaders and people concern him. Focusing on what is the higher priority now.
While he walked through the camp, he found Joken, speaking to some of the soldiers.
"Joken." He grabbed his attention, walking to Cadin.
"Yes my lord?"
"Draft a letter to send to the camp leader, we will start our conquest on the marked camps. Speak of our intentions and see if they agree or not. I will head to the other camp."
"Yes my lord." Joken ran past him, heading inside the house to get more paper and the quill.
Cadin exited through the gate, walking to the horses as a few prisoners tended to them under the enclosure's roof. Inside it, large baskets filled with hay and water hung, strapped to the fences while a few horses ate from them. Some carried buckets and crates hanging from poles on their backs while others simply had a saddle.
He mounted a white fur coated steed, hanging his sword on the saddle's carrier. The prisoners continued tending to the rest.
Opening the fence's gate Cadin headed out, the way through the forest heading to the path for the camp was already finished.
The horse sped through the open road, galloping for a few minutes without stopping for a breath.
Cadin arrived the camp, promptly dismounting and tying the horse's lead to a nearby pole before heading inside.
The camp was filled with soldiers and the ten prisoners, in the middle of training with a makeshift training ground in the middle of the camp.
Only four camps contained beds for resting while the rest carried crares of food, tables and papers, or racks and stands.