Adelaide stood up slowly, her legs trembling. However, she felt better. She took a deep breath and slowly dressed, donning a sober outfit of rough fabric and leather. She picked up a thin, blunt dagger from her desk and hung it on her hip, before finally leaving the room. She stretched with difficulty, before heading for the main hall.
On the way, she passed a few guards who stared at her for a few moments before sniffing around, continuing their patrol. Adelaide entered the main room, taking a seat behind a desk. She breathed softly, looking at the pile of documents in front of her. She picked up a few papers and read them in a whisper.
"Tax notices... Collection... Collection... Debts..." Adelaide sighed at length, before finally holding her head with her hands, resting her elbows gently on her desk made of dark wood. She looked out slowly into the void, as the situation in her territory worsened.
Donald then entered the room, resting his eyes directly on the Baroness. He approached gently and struck up a conversation.
"My Lord, I have sent the letter as requested. Do you have any further orders for me?"
Adelaide raised her head, her pale complexion disappearing more and more. The system seemed to have eased her illness, though it was still present. She then stared at her butler for a few seconds before nodding.
"Donald, round up 20 soldiers, the most loyal ones. We've got to go and do something."
The butler seemed surprised, but quickly nodded, rushing out of the room, ordering twenty soldiers to get ready. A few minutes later, Adelaide emerged from the room, covered by a heavy cloak, keeping her warm. She approached the castle's main exit. In front of it, 20 rather well-organized soldiers waited quietly, talking to each other, looking confused. Seeing Adelaide approach, they all knelt down and shouted in unison.
"My respects My Lord!"
Adelaide smiled weakly and nodded. She then stared at her soldiers and saw a clear indication of their level. Most were around level 3. Each was equipped with a poorly carved wooden spear and very unsophisticated leather armor.
"Stand up, gentlemen." Adelaide spoke softly, her gentle voice lost in the wind. The soldiers rose quickly and a man stepped forward. The man seemed to have a higher level than the others.
"My Lord, where are we going?" He approached slowly and lowered his head, showing some respect to the woman in front of him.
"Garret, we're going into the forest to hunt monsters. Only small ones, no big ones." Adelaide smiled softly, as she approached the Barony's only warhorse. This horse was incredibly white, like the stars at night. She mounted it with a little help, as she took the reins with both hands.
"I understand. Get ready to leave, we're going hunting!" Garret then ordered a simple order, and the guards divided into two groups of 10. The first group of 10 led the way, while the second group closed it. Adelaide was at the center of this formation, protected by her guards.
They passed in front of the locals, who looked curiously at the convoy. The state of the streets was quite deplorable, muddy and dirty. The villagers' dwellings were precarious, made of wood and animal skins. Their clothes were made of coarse linen, seeming to scratch the skin with every movement. Adelaide looked despondently at the situation in her territory and stared at the ground. After a few minutes, the convoy left the village and headed into the lush forest.
"We are entering a dangerous area. Stay alert and don't leave our sovereign in danger." At Garret's words, the soldiers stood ready, advancing slowly into the forest. After a few moments, a boar emerged from the surrounding treetops.
[Boar Level 4]
The boar had more levels than the soldiers, but as they were in a group, they had a big advantage over it. The boar lunged at the group, coming closer and closer. It was about 50 cm high and weighed several hundred kilos. Garret lunged forward, throwing a spear at the boar. The spear planted itself in the boar's right shoulder, slowing it down. 5 soldiers then rushed forward and quickly finished off the boar.
[Your subordinates have killed a level 4 boar. +200 points! Would you like to open the store?]
Adelaide nodded, as a window appeared in front of her. She quickly explored the store. It contained everything from weapons and armor to knowledge books and rare objects. However, only a few things caught her eye.
[Level 1 Oradium Mine: A rather dark but hard-wearing mineral, this is ideal for medium and heavy armor, offering optimal protection. Creates an oradium mine capable of supplying a dozen towns of 100,000 inhabitants for 1 year. Price: 3,000 points]
[Level 1 adamantite mine: A rather clear but very sharp mineral, this is ideal for weapons, offering good penetration! Creates an adamantite mine capable of supplying a dozen towns with 100,000 inhabitants for 1 year. Price: 3,000 points]
[HeavyFlown seeds: A plant that's soft to the touch and perfect for creating clothing of the right quality! Price: 500 points].
[Wholewheat seeds: A highly nutritious plant, perfect for making bread! Price: 500 points]
[Beginner Blacksmith: Grants you a coin to summon a blacksmith capable of forging low-quality armor and weapons! Price: 1000 points]
[Beginner Tailor: Grants you a coin enabling you to summon a tailor capable of making low-quality clothing! Price: 1000 points]
[Summoning Tablet: Grants you a tablet that can be placed in your territory, summoning inhabitants every day! Price: 5000 points]
[Tips: Summoned creatures will have no idea of their origins. However, be careful with buildings].
"Garret, place the boar in the cart and let's continue our hunt." Adelaide stared at Garret, a subtle gleam crossing her gaze.
"Agreed." Garret nodded and ordered the hunt to continue. For several long hours, his followers hunted most of the beasts in the forest without much difficulty. Already accustomed to confronting these animals, they were no great enemy to the guards.
After a few hours, Adelaide and her troop were able to kill a dozen creatures, earning over 3,000 points for themselves!
"Let's go home, we've hunted enough." Adelaide quickly ordered, as she noticed the apparent fatigue in her men. After thirty minutes of travel, they finally returned to the village. Adelaide left her guards and took Garret to a field near the village. There she met an old man spading the soil. He sniffed when he saw the woman, but stopped his activity.
"What does Mrs Northguard want?" The old man spoke curtly, trying to cut the conversation short. Adelaide then plunged her hand into a large satchel and subtly bought the two packets of seeds from the store. She then took out the two packets and handed them to the old man.
"Plant these in the ground. This one's for clothes, this one's for food." Adelaide smiled softly, tossing the bags to the man. The latter hurriedly took them and opened one, checking its contents. He squinted before nodding.
"If it'll make you happy." The man then immediately set to work, while Adelaide took Garret and left.
"Hmm... I've still got this too."