Cadin stood atop the camp's tower, where he had killed the archer two weeks prior. A warm breeze hit him as he viewed out at the open land in front of him. The camp below remained the same, with a few stakes and more wooden planks, a path now connected the camp to other ones conquered and even through the forest.
Joken climbed up the ladder behind him, a bow and quiver on his back recently taken.
"My lord, the soldiers and the horses are ready, those people that sought shelter have now been trained for combat, the rest were transferred to different camps to maintain." He announced, Cadin did not turn to face him, still watching the mesmerizing view of an open landscape.
'Good, what of the horses and the people we requested to keep. Are the orders on time?"
"Yes they have, the lumber from the horses managed to reach the bowmakers in time and we can supply our soldier with them. I must say my lord, these are rather interesting weapons. I only have seen a few in the forest, more of a rarity with higher ranking members. But now, it just feels commonplace. Something from rare to common, under your leadership." Joken replied.
"I'm amused by your statement, but there are more issues we still have. Mainly our weapons, swords."
"What of them my lord? The leader you were under has provided access to them for metal trade."
"Indeed, but we need more than what is provided without offering extra."
"I see..." The two silently stood in the tower's interior, thinking and watching as the sunny sky shone on the land.
"Perhaps we can find our own mines. If that is possible. But since we are under your guidance, it should be easy my lord."
Cadin chuckled, "We shall see Joken. We shall see. For now though, it is best to manage what we have gained and attack later on."
"Very well my lord. I shall return to the new main camp." After reporting, Joken climbed back down, leaving Cadin at the top.
'We may conquer that camp, but either the others will turn against us, we lose more men, or that demon hasn't corrupted them.'
"Well you are right, i have not corrupted them fully." Cadin turned quick to where the voice spoke.
On the table at his side, the demon sat while looking at him. Putting a leg up on the table where it sat, still flashing a long red smile.
"So, do you know when it can be possible?
"Judging from your past actions, i cannot really tell. But the minds are slowly weakening for my influence to corrupt them. If you value your position, and value what you have gained. Then it is best to stray away from trying to take them over with force. They are well known and the corruption is not strong enough despite the days passing. The time will come though when they shall be corrupted enough to start following you. Maybe they will even start leaving their camps to join yours." The demon chuckled to itself.
"Very well," Cadin turned to the land outside again. "The gains managed to bring us outside the forest."
"Indeed, it was a good choice to make you my candidate. My influence expands to more people, and you are slowly gaining more land and power by the day. May you continue gaining more in this world. I shall head back now and continue spreading my influence, best of luck." The demon vanished in a blink of an eye, leaving a small cloud of black smoke, rapidly dissipating into nothingness as if nothing was even there.
Cadin stared off, pondering the demon's words.
'If I cannot attack them, what can be done?' He gazed off farther into the land, lost in thought.
While thinking to himself in silence, a thought suddenly clicked in his head.
'They have found a mine to get their iron, given the knowledge i can still remember from before. Then it should be easy to start mining. Issue is, where..." With the thought still floating in his head, Cadin quickly jumped down, sensing a rush of thoughts to what can be done. Locations, scouts, the horses.
Down on the ground, soldiers and civilians walked around already at work in finishing their tasks of the day for supper, exiting out of small wooden huts while a large wall provided protection against outside threats.
Near the entrance, Cadin's horse rested with a lead tied to a short pole hammered into the ground.
'I need to head back to that new camp and speak to the advisors." He quickly untied the lead, hoisting himself back on the gray furred steed.
He left the camp with great speed, heading down the newly made path with short fences on both sides and a few lines of rocks providing a route from one camp to the other.
Time flew by and Cadin stopped his horse just next to the larger camp's entrance, jumping off he tied the lead to the fence next to him.
The camp itself was the largest of what they took, repurposed into a secondary stronghold of Cadin's growing line of camps and peoples under him.
Stakes stood a short distance away from the tall walls, tightly packed with one another to make passing through more difficult.
Inside, men and women walked around on the pathway, Cadin's newly trained soldiers turned garrisons.
He walked around, seeing the fletchers at work in small open wooden huts, the horse handlers tending to their steeds behind the fence and other civilians continuing their way of life as if little had changed. Farming in small plots of land to bringing different resources on their backs from boxes of weapons to lumber and iron.
Nearing the end of the pathway, towards the last section of the camp, a large wooden building stood just in front, clearly visible to anyone that entered the area with a few guards standing around it's entrance.
Cadin opened the door to his new building of operations, leaving the noisy outside and into the silent inside.