"To you for residence?" Lord Ling looked at Night Three More with some surprise.
"Well, I can offer you monetary compensation." Night Three More touched the money pouch he had just obtained from looting corpses, wearing a somewhat reluctant expression.
"Pfft!"
Seeing his stingy appearance, Lord Ling couldn't help but let out a laugh, but she seemed to feel that it was somewhat impolite and forcefully suppressed it.
"You better keep that to yourself. Don't get me wrong; it's not that I find the amount insufficient or that I'm unwilling to part with this place. But do you truly understand the situation here?"
Night Three More furrowed his brow and shook his head.
Lord Ling wore an expression that seemed to say 'I knew it,' then snatched the spear from the old man's hand and drew on the ground.
"This is Loran City, and this is the so-called abandoned forest, combining to form the Loran Territory."
She first drew a fist-sized circle on the ground, then drew a much larger circle on one side of the circle, about five times its size.
"Looks sizable, doesn't it? But the forest is abandoned for a reason."
Lord Ling divided the large circle into three parts - large, medium, and small - and continued speaking.
"The outer periphery of the forest is fine, but in the middle, there roam an unknown number of goblins. People generally don't venture here. As for the innermost part..."
Pointing at the largest section, Lord Ling's expression turned serious.
"It is the most dangerous Misty Forest."
"Misty Forest?"
"Yes, the Misty Forest is shrouded in a year-round haze that can bewilder the mind. Although it's not poisonous, stepping into it is like losing one's soul in the mist. Even goblins dare not enter."
"Do you still want to stay here?"
Night Three More looked at the drawn circle on the ground, and the Misty Forest occupied two-thirds of it, but he nodded without hesitation.
"Hey, don't you understand good advice? Although Loran City is not a great place, it's much better than staying in the wilderness, isn't it?"
Lord Ling was somewhat angry, considering she had explained for so long.
"Sorry, I just don't like dealing with people." Night Three More shook his head.
Seeing his indifferent demeanor, a thought suddenly crossed Lord Ling's mind:
Could this guy have suffered some psychological trauma?
Yes, that must be it!
A noble who was betrayed and ended up in exile, preferring to stay in the wild rather than interact with people. No wonder he's stingy, cold-blooded, and doesn't understand women's feelings!
Oh well, she can't heal the wounds in his heart; she'll have to take it slow.
"So... since that's the case, I happen to need a forest patrolman here. Are you willing to take on the role?"
Due to the numerous goblins wandering in the abandoned forest, Loran Territory had spent significant manpower, resources, and funds to build a massive stone wall as the first line of defense.
However, despite this effort, Loran City still declined. Now, the entire city had only a few hundred residents. If the land here weren't so barren, it would have been taken over.
A forest patrolman was essentially a warning system to prevent goblin raids.
The stone wall couldn't completely stop goblins from scaling it, but it significantly delayed their attack. Combined with the patrolman's warnings, Loran City would have enough time to prepare for defense.
It was well known that goblins lacked any significant siege capabilities.
Although this job was a tough one, even the city guards received a hefty salary to do it.
With the city guards and his soldiers dead, Lord Ling simply handed over this position to Night Three More.
"I can also provide you with four guards. It's a bit fewer, but you won't need to fight. If things go wrong, just retreat to the city quickly. It's very safe."
Night Three More shook his head.
"No need, I can handle it alone."
"You!"
Thinking of Night Three More's psychological trauma, Lord Ling held back her frustration.
"As you wish. Any other questions?"
"Yes!"
Night Three More raised his hand.
"About the salary, will it be paid?"
Lord Ling's temple veins twitched:
"Yes!"
"I mean,"
Night Three More raised his hand again,
"Do I need to receive the salaries of those soldiers I don't want?"
Lord Ling:...
Finally, under Lord Ling's relentless gold coin assault, Night Three More reluctantly agreed to help her carry the city guard's body back to the city, and in return, he would receive some supplies, a map, and weapons.
However, when they reached the city gate, Night Three More adamantly refused to enter. After obtaining a cart and an ox through deception, he pulled the supplies back to the abandoned forest, leaving behind only a weekly report for safety.
Night Three More didn't avoid entering the city because he didn't want to but because his time was too tight. At least 10 points of soul energy were consumed daily, pressuring him.
He was somewhat afraid that after entering the city, he might develop strange thoughts upon seeing the residents. Thus, he chose to return to the forest early, starting to build his own sanctuary.
Beyond the moss-covered, five-meter-high stone wall, Night Three More first set up two simple tripwire bells at the sole entrance.
Then, he had the old skeleton pull the goblin and soldier corpses from last night to the burial site. Fortunately, he returned in time, and the corpses had not been taken by wild beasts.
Although, it's unlikely that any beast would dare to eat these obviously poisoned corpses, right?
The burial site and the goblin camp from yesterday were both on the outskirts of the forest, saving him quite a bit of trouble, but that was not surprising.
How could the city guards dare to set the trading location deep in the forest? No matter how many coins he had, or how many lives he had, it wouldn't be enough.
After cutting the last Silverleaf Grass into several pieces and stuffing them into the bodies' abdomens, Night Three More buried them in the soil. The magical plant's toxicity lay in its seeds, and when they would sprout, only time could provide the answer.
After completing all of this, Night Three More began to take stock of his possessions.
First and foremost was the crucial soul energy.
Dawn had long passed, and he had already been deducted 11 points of soul energy. However, the city guards and the soldiers he brought compensated him with 5 points. Therefore, he currently had 4 points of soul energy left.
This also confirmed that regardless of whether he was the one who killed them, as long as the corpses were fresh and nearby, they would replenish his soul energy.
Shaking his head, Night Three More realized his goal for today was 7 points, meaning he needed to eliminate 7 individuals, whether human or goblin.
"If only there were a war somewhere."
Shaking off the impractical fantasy, Night Three More continued to inventory the items piled on the ground.
Ten goblins, five humans, contributing a total of five longswords, four sets of leather armor, one set of blood-stained cloth clothing, seven stone spears, fifty-two beast-tooth arrows, five bows, three inferior short knives, one thick stick, and a pair of boots.
The shoes of the four soldiers were removed a bit late and were full of rotten flesh, so Night Three More had to give up on them. Fortunately, the city guard's boots were good, and their size was suitable. He didn't mind cleanliness when he was already undead.
Except for underwear and pants.
In terms of coins, he had a total of 530 gold coins, and there were also two small bags of silver and copper coins. However, they were currently of no use. Perhaps in the future, he could ask Lord Ling to help him buy some missing items.
Finally, there was a cow and the supplies on the cart, mostly dry bread and water.
After some consideration, Night Three More had the old skeleton lead the cow to the side to graze while keeping watch. He then opened the construction panel.