Henry Vander didn't dare to ask more, fearing that Magnus Valorion might change his mind and kill him instead. That would be no fun at all.
"Lord Magnus, is your promise true?" Henry Vander asked cautiously.
"Of course, I'm not one to kill recklessly. Just now, I was merely joking with you. But when do you plan to give me those 20 gold bars?" Magnus replied.
Henry Vander was shocked. How had it become 20 gold bars in such a short time?
Magnus noticed his confusion and cheerfully explained, "There are still 8,000 kilograms of fine rice in the Green River Town granary. Charging you 5 more gold bars isn't excessive, right? You can check the grain prices outside. My price is already very fair."
"No, it's not excessive at all. I'm very grateful that you spared my life. I dare not ask for more," Henry Vander replied with a forced smile.
Outwardly, Henry Vander dared not say anything, but inwardly he was cursing. Fortunately, as long as he was alive, there was hope. In the future, he could still use his power to exploit the common people.
"Listen, I plan to leave with my entourage tomorrow. But before I go, I'll leave some people behind to receive the gold bars you send."
"Uh..." Henry Vander was caught off guard. He hadn't expected Magnus to leave so soon.
"Don't worry, my promise won't change. Tomorrow I'll hand you the town's seal. But if you dare to play any tricks, I'll have to send you to meet Lucius Blackthorn!" Magnus smiled and stared at Henry Vander.
"I wouldn't dare! Rest assured, you'll have it within three days!" Henry Vander, frightened by Magnus' gaze, shivered uncontrollably.
"Alright, enjoy your dinner." With that, Magnus left the cell.
After Magnus left, Henry Vander could no longer hold back and began to devour the porridge.
But soon, the sour and foul taste in his mouth made him nauseous again. Unable to suppress the urge, he vomited all the porridge he had eaten.
Struggling with the suffocating sensation of vomiting, Henry Vander couldn't help but curse Magnus again. But seeing the guards at the cell door, he swallowed his words.
The next day.
Magnus released Henry Vander and his servants from prison and gathered everyone, including many townspeople, at the town hall.
Magnus cheerfully announced, "The matter has been investigated. Henry Vander is not a spy from an enemy tribe. His appointment documents are genuine. Yesterday's incident was a misunderstanding."
"From today, this Henry Vander will be your new town mayor."
The town was in an uproar.
"Lord, you can't leave us! Without you, what will we in Green River Town do?"
"Yes, yes! Lord, we haven't even had a chance to repay your immense kindness. How can you leave?"
The townspeople began to tearfully beg Magnus not to leave them.
…
Magnus waved his hand to quiet the crowd and, feigning a heartbroken look, said, "I must obey my superiors' orders. I have now been demoted to a regular clerk. From now on, all town affairs will be under the new mayor's command."
"Although my time in Green River Town has been short, I have grown deeply attached to you, my people, as if you were my own children."
Despite Magnus' youth, with many people in the crowd old enough to be his grandparents, no one found his words inappropriate.
The townspeople felt honored to have such a dedicated official as Magnus.
However, Magnus' other followers in the town hall were puzzled.
"What is our lord up to? Yesterday he wanted to kill Henry Vander, and now he's handing over power to him?"
"I don't understand. But our lord is always ahead of the game. He must have a plan we don't see."
Magnus waved his hand to signal everyone to stop discussing and continued sincerely, "My fellow townspeople, rest assured. Although I'm no longer your mayor, I will stand guard one last time for your future peace and stability!"
"Immediately, I will lead the Green River Town garrison to eliminate the nearby bandits. Once that is done, I will step down."
Everyone was immersed in the sorrow of Magnus leaving Green River Town, not paying attention to whether there were bandits nearby.
Even if they realized it, since Magnus said there were bandits, it must be true.
Meanwhile, Henry Vander was overjoyed. Just yesterday, he was rotting in a filthy prison cell. Today, he regained power. The difference between heaven and hell was no more than this.
As promised, Henry Vander received the mayor's seal of authority. Magnus left with most of the town's guards and several hundred soldiers, marching out of the city gates in grand fashion.
However, Magnus left some people behind in the town to monitor Henry Vander and report back to him using pigeons.
Once Magnus and his troops were outside the city, Henry Vander felt a sense of immense relief. Magnus' departure made him feel like a bird soaring in the sky or a fish swimming in the sea.
Henry Vander immediately began to enjoy his power. Since Magnus had taken most of the patrolmen, he quickly assigned his own servants to fill the vacancies.
As Henry Vander was about to go back for a nap, the bunch of keys to the granary poked uncomfortably at his waist.
He then remembered the granary filled with fine grain.
Henry Vander dismissed his servants and, holding the keys, excitedly went to the granary with his secretary, Thomas Blackwood.
Alone in the granary, Henry Vander and Thomas Blackwood could no longer contain their joy, looking at the piles of grain like small hills.
Henry Vander excitedly asked his advisor, "Quick, calculate how much money we can make from this batch of grain!"
Thomas Blackwood pulled out his small silver abacus and began to calculate rapidly. Soon, he had the result.
"Master, based on the current price of 79 taels of silver per dou of coarse grain, we can make at least 200,000 taels of silver from this batch!"
Henry Vander's face twitched with excitement as he instructed, "Quickly arrange for someone to discreetly sell this fine grain. We'll make a fortune, and there will be rewards for you too..."
Unbeknownst to Henry Vander and Thomas Blackwood, their conversation was overheard by a young man, Ethan Thompson.
Outside the city.
"Where are we going to suppress bandits?" a soldier in Magnus' troop asked.
Yes, where to suppress bandits?
This was indeed a question!
Because Magnus distributed grain to those who participated in labor, many people came to Green River Town to work for a meal.
As for the few who remained bandits, Magnus had already dealt with them during his regular training of the town guards.
One could say there were no bandits near Green River Town now.
Where to suppress bandits became a philosophical question akin to "Who am I?", "Where do I come from?", and "Where am I going?"
After leading his troops a considerable distance, Magnus halted his horse and addressed the soldiers.
"Why do wealthy families and high officials, who are already very rich, still exploit and oppress the poor?" Magnus asked the crowd.
"Because they are greedy and have no conscience!"
"No, it's because they keep exploiting the people that they become so rich!"
The crowd buzzed with discussions.
"Alright, let's leave that question to the sociologists. We have a new mission now," Magnus said.
"Bring the flag I ordered to be prepared to the front of the formation!"
A soldier unfurled a silk flag, black with a white skull emblem at the top and crossed red-tipped swords below it.
As the flag fluttered in the autumn wind, it exuded a menacing aura.
"From now on, I am Sinbad once more."
What, Sinbad? Isn't that a character from a novel? What's our lord up to? Many in the troop were even more puzzled.
Those who had once followed Magnus to conquer The Crimson Vultures explained to the others.
After learning that Magnus had once impersonated Sinbad, the leader of a bandit group, they understood his plan.
Noah Sullivan, grinning, rode up to Magnus and confirmed, "Lord, are we really going to be bandits today?"
Magnus then shouted to the crowd, "Brothers, we are now a bandit group from the northern snowfields. I am your leader, Sinbad. Our target is the Blackthorn family in Willowbrook Town. Today, I will lead you to rob the rich and give to the poor."
After his speech, Magnus added a cunning remark:
"Officials and noble families exploit the poor, so I, Sinbad, will extort them and redistribute their wealth to the poor. We are helping to achieve a positive societal cycle!"