While the beggars ate, Stephany walked over to the river.
"Boss! Please come to eat." Stephany called out. She knew very well how troublesome it was to cross the river, but Nolan didn't eat anything yesterday night and probably all day yesterday. She worried that something might happen to him.
Thud!
Pam!
Thud!
However, Nolan didn't reply. He just continued cutting the tree trunk without paying attention to anything happening around him.
Seeing that she could not reach Nolan, Stephany gave up and returned to the group, worried.
...
Half an hour passed, and the groups finally finished eating.
Kelton appointed himself as the leader of the shovel group. With the shovels in their hands, he led the group to search for a way around the mountain.
Alfred took the lead in the pickaxe group and led the group to mine stones on the hills.
Before leaving, Alfred appointed Nolan as the leader of the axe group.
The axe group took off most of their clothes and only left the linen underwear on them. Each one wrapped his axe in his clothes and threw them on the other side of the river.
Splash!
They all jumped into the river. They sawm to the other side of the river, where they put on their clothes, took their axes and started cutting the trees.
The only ones without work were the women and the children.
Pam!
Thud!
...
Pam!
Thud!
Creaakkk!
Splash!
After another hour, the first tree finally fell.
Nolan had cut the first tree.
The tree fell half into the water.
"Everyone!" Nolan shouted. "Let's clear the tree trunk from the branches, and we all would join forces to place it across the river as a temporary bridge."
"Boss, there is no need for everyone to waste time cutting the tree branches. A few of us would do the job." A beggar suggested.
Nolan nodded. " You, you, and you." Nolan randomly chooses a few beggars.
They stepped out and together with Nolan, started cutting the tree branches off the tree trunk.
The tree was about six to seven meters (19-23 feet) long, so it took them about fifteen minutes to completely clear the tree trunk.
It would have taken less time If the tree was not half in the water. They had to be careful not to fall into the river while cutting the tree branches.
"Everyone. Let's move the tree!" Nolan shouted.
Everyone dropped their axes and gathered near the tree trunk.
Half of the beggars took their clothes off, and with their still-wet underwear, they entered the river again. They tried to move the tree, but the tree had fallen in the middle of the river where the water was two meters (6,5 feet) deep, so they could not do much.
"Stand in the shallow waters and try lifting the tree a bit," Nolan commanded to those in the water. "On my signal, we will push the tree from here, and you will lift it there."
"Boss, it's impossible to lift this huge tree." A beggar complained.
"I am not asking you to lift it and carry it. You just need to lift it a little off the ground so we can push it forward." Nolan said.
"Alright!"
"Let's do this."
The beggars finally agreed with Nolan's suggestion.
They swam to the shallow waters and grabbed the tree.
The others who were not in the water grabbed the end of the tree that was on the ground.
"One...Two...Push!" Nolan gave the signal.
The beggars in the water tried their hardest to lift the tree, and the beggars on the ground, together with Nolan, pushed the tree with all their strength.
The tree moved a bit.
A smile spread across the faces of the beggars.
"It moved!" A beggar shouted.
"Let's continue!" Another beggar said.
"On my signal!" Nolan shouted. "One...Two...Push!"
The tree moved again.
...
"One...Two...Push!" Nolan shouted.
The tree moved, finally touching the ground on the other side of the river. But it was still a little unstable.
"One...Two...Push!"
They pushed one last time and completely stabilized the tree.
"Ahhhhh!"
The beggars let out a tired sigh and fell to the ground, exhausted.
The beggars which were in the water came out. They fell to the ground in exhaustion too.
"Good job, everyone." Nolan, the only one still on his feet, said.
"Boss, we are sorry." A beggar said. "We are sorry that we wanted to betray you."
"Boss, although we are too tired to stand up and bow, please accept our sincere apologies." Another beggar said.
"From now on, we are willing to die for Boss Nolan."
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
Nolan was stunned.
[Ding]
[You completed the quest: Subdue the beggars]
[You received: Exp 15, Basic spearmanship manual, 10 rice bags]
Seeing that he completed this quest, Nolan smiled. Completing this quest meant only one thing, the beggars trust him and accepted him as their boss.
'Those stupidly stubborn beggars finally accepted me as their boss.' Nolan thought.
"Since you are willing to apologize, it means you are ready to turn a new leaf. And, since you are willing to put your trust in me, how can I not forgive you? From today, we are brothers." Nolan shouted.
"Come, let's go to rest and eat," Nolan shouted as he stepped on the tree trunk, which now served as a temporary bridge.
"Boss, you should eat." A beggar said. "We have already eaten."
"Boss, we would rest here for a while and then get back to work. You should enjoy your food." Another beggar said.
Seeing that he could not persuade them to rest, Nolan gave up. "Alright. I will eat as fast as I can, and then come back to join you." He then walked forward.
It was his first time walking on this round temporary bridge, so he almost fell into the river a few times, but in the end, he safely crossed the river.
"Boss!" Stephany called out the moment she saw him.
Nolan walked over to her. Surprisingly, despite her kind and easygoing personality, she sat alone near the extinguished campfire she used in the morning to cook the grain porridge.
"Why are you alone?" Nolan asked, looking around.
Sam and Sem played around as always while the other women were nowhere in sight.
"W-Well, they are working," Stephany spoke. However, she behaved strangely. Her gaze was fixed on the ground as if not daring to look Nolan in the eyes.
Nolan noticed her strange behavior and could only think of one thing. 'She is lying.'
"I am hungry," Nolan said.
"Alright. I will bring you a bowl immediately." Her behavior immediately returned to normal.
She ran to a house and brought a clean, wooden bowl out of it. She filled the bowl with grain porridge and passed it to Nolan.
"Boss, enjoy." She smiled widely.
Nolan was starving, and he realized it only now. He had not eaten anything all day yesterday.
He drank the porridge in one gulp.
"Boss, you should eat regularly," Stephany said as she took the empty bowl, and filed it again. "Previously, I called you to eat. But you didn't reply to me."
Nolan took the bowl with a smile. "Don't worry. I will be fine."
...
Nolan and Stephany chatted for about half an hour.
Then, in the distance, Alfred appeared with his pickaxe group.
"Ohh. It's Uncle Alfred." Stephany pointed at Alfred.
After five minutes, Alfred and the group arrived before Nolan.
"How was it?" Nolan asked. "Did you find any stones?"
"We did." Alfred sat on the ground next to him. "But there is a problem."
"Ohh. What is it?" Nolan asked, surprised.
"We have a problem. We need a horse and a cart to transport the stones here."
"Ahh!" Nolan slapped himself.
'I am still green.' Nolan thought. 'How didn't I think about this?'
"Looks like I have to go back to the city again," Nolan said. "What else do we need?"
"It won't be bad to buy some more tools."
"Ahhh!" Nolan signed. "Postpone the mining of stones. Instead, take the few axes left and try to finish building the bridge."
"Are you going to leave immediately?" Stephany asked.
"No, I am going tommor..."
Before Nolan could finish his sentence, a system message cut him.
[Ding]
[The noble Bonosus Calvus declared a war on your restaurant]
[Ding]
[The quest: Old enemies has changed]
[New quest: War]
[Destroy the Noble family Calvus]
[Time limit: 14 days]
[Penalty upon failure: Death]
[Reward: Exp 20, random banner with special effect]
[Note: The reward may feel lacking, but there is a chance to get a super good banner]
Nolan's expression turned grim. His hands started trembling, and his heartbeat increased.
"I am going immediately," Nolan replied to Stephany's question.
Alfred noticed Nolan's sudden change in behavior. "What happened?" He asked.
"N-Nothing. I will head to the city immediately, so I can return as soon as possible." Just as Nolan said this, without listening to what Alfred or Stephany had to say, he stormed towards the city.