The sudden raid by bandits resulted in the acquisition of magic-patterned heavy armor worth tens of thousands of gold coins, along with a batch of brand-new battle armor. The guard team was energized, feeling as though they had just been injected with adrenaline.
Seeing several large carts filled to the brim with food and ores, Kent couldn't help but feel excited. It seemed like he had found a way to accumulate wealth. Although the population issue remained unsolved, having food provided the foundation for expanding the population. The ores were also incredibly useful, as the development of industry or anything else in the future would require a large amount of ores to meet the needs of the territory's growth.
However, in any world, the military is a crucial guarantee for sustaining development. The key question now was how to unleash the full fighting potential of his subordinates. This was a very practical problem that needed to be addressed.
Although Kent had no experience leading an army, he had managed a company and knew that both material incentives and team culture needed to be strengthened to make the team more cohesive and unleash the potential of each member.
The guard team, originally planning to return to the Spear Valley, was assembled by Kent for a brief five-minute meeting. During the meeting, Kent announced an incentive plan. From now on, after reserving part of the battle spoils for territorial development, 50% of the remaining profits would be distributed among the core team members.
Of course, as the core team expanded, more people would be included in the distribution. But this also meant that the battlefield profits would increase as the team grew.
There was no need for Kent to explain the calculations in detail; the guard team's satisfaction began to soar immediately in the system.
Who had ever seen a lord as generous as Kent? No one had.
Kent happily watched the satisfaction points rapidly increase in the system, marveling at the truth of the saying: "Generous rewards lead to satisfaction."
The third option in the team system, Frenzied Combat, required 10,000 satisfaction points, which had already been met. Kent didn't hesitate and activated this ability. This was the third time he had activated a skill, with each activation costing double the satisfaction points of the last.
This was just the cost of activation. To upgrade the ability, the first upgrade would require 20,000 satisfaction points, and heaven knew how astronomical the cost would become as upgrades continued.
But Kent had no hesitation.
After all, increasing the team's strength would significantly improve the chances of survival.
Haka Chak, the leader of the cave tribe, who had been quietly sitting in the corner without trying to escape, waited in fear for the death blow to come. However, instead of a blade, he was greeted by a horsewhip.
Now, he sat proudly atop a horse in front of the cart, guiding the horse with confidence.
Kent's system also rewarded him with continuous satisfaction points as Haka Chak survived.
At this moment, the team, originally planning to return to the territory, altered their course and headed towards the cave tribe's settlement to rescue the several injured and captured human slaves.
Kent wasn't doing this out of mercy, but because those individuals might prove valuable to his territorial ambitions. If they were part of a raiding party, they could provide some information about wealth or trade with foreign tribes. If they were members of a caravan, Kent was very interested in the origin and destination of this set of magic-patterned heavy armor.
Having witnessed how demon flames instantly decimated his army and having enjoyed a delicious fish soup and flatbread like never before, Haka Chak's heart was shaken beyond words.
This was a divine miracle. The arrival of a divine messenger.
This was the most important opportunity of his life—being captured, no, this was clearly a divine test that would bring unprecedented development opportunities to his tribe. His dream of becoming the king of the cave tribe now seemed within reach.
As for the fifty cave tribe soldiers who had died…
Which divine miracle doesn't require some sacrifice?
Haka Chak understood clearly: a true man should be able to endure hardship and not be concerned with the immediate losses. The cave tribe had been oppressed for centuries, and compared to those past humiliations, the divine messenger before him was offering a different kind of opportunity.
A kind of opportunity that no human had ever given him.
The guard team, though small, had three large carts, which were quite conspicuous.
When they were less than five miles from the cave tribe's settlement, wandering scouts spotted them. Cave tribe warriors from various tribes quickly assembled into a hasty but formidable army.
There were over two hundred warriors from the largest tribes and no fewer than thirty from the smaller ones, all coming together to form a force of over a thousand warriors, armed with various wooden weapons, ready for what seemed like a tribal assembly.
Kent's eyes gleamed. If all these scrawny cave warriors were to join his side, how much satisfaction would that bring?
In the future, he definitely needed to encourage population growth in his territory. The more people there were, the more satisfaction points he could earn.
At this moment, Kent had donned the magic-patterned heavy armor and stood atop a cart, resembling a human sculpture at a fountain square. Dry Leaf and Skinny Stick, two archers, rode two horses, one tall and one short, guarding him on each side. The rest, dressed in improved leather or iron armor, rode horses in formation on both sides.
Faced with the dense, dark crowd of cave warriors marching towards them, Haka Chak felt that at this moment, he had already become a king. Standing in front of the cart, on the back of a slow horse, he spread his arms wide and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Tribe members—"
The noisy army showed no sign of slowing down.
In fact, seeing Haka Chak in the distance, countless cave tribe warriors felt immense scorn and insult.
"The human army has captured our companions!" shouted Luchik, the leader of the Whirlpool Tribe, wielding a stone hammer and leading over a hundred warriors. He marched ahead, his steps pounding on the ground, feeling a great sense of satisfaction as though he were a hero leading his tribe into battle.
"Look at that big head, that's Haka Chak from the Green Moss Tribe!" shouted Lurcak, the leader of the Mud Tribe, holding a mace. A few days ago, the Green Moss Tribe had captured several slaves, and the Fishman tribe's emissaries from the Deep Tribe had expressed an interest in trading gold for them, but they needed to wait for Haka Chak's return before discussing the trade. From what they knew of Haka Chak, he would immediately agree to the deal without hesitation.
This situation made him feel uncomfortable.
The current scene provided an opportunity. By rescuing Haka Chak, he might gain the chief's gratitude and receive gold in return. Furthermore, he could potentially form a strong alliance, capturing the human slaves would yield even more gold. This was a guaranteed win.