After my short trip to Dementia, I was finally on track to going back to my territory, but that would only be after another short trip to that unknown village where I received a side quest.
Talk about a real backwater place. There was literally not a single road available. Well, there was a path, but it was basically a single line of mud. It wasn't hard for me to see since it was the only part without dying and withering plants on top of it — all thanks to its unfertile soil.
The village was also a lawless land, so I expect that it was festered with outcasts. This neighbouring part of my territory sure was magnificently wonderful — do note the sarcasm.
<If the land is unfertile, and nothing grows near salt water, it is bound to be abandoned.>
That wasn't their only problem either. It often rained, and every time, especially since they were near the ocean, the water level would rise.
They could have mined something from the Rocky Mountains, but unfortunately, they lacked tools.
In a way, this part of my territory was not bad. The big Lords wouldn't bother taking over this land, evident in how it was left to rot, and this meant that I did not need to defend against invaders . . . for now.
<It's hard and costly to maintain, and there's no gain since the soil here is so poor that even weeds won't grow. Ehehehe. A perfect place for your lair!>
If that's true, then I should do something about it. I need a place for my crops to grow.
Damn. Another problem has been added to my list.
Maybe I should summon an agriculture expert?
There were a lot of things on my mind, but I was too tired to think straight. I haven't had enough sleep since I got here.
"My Lord," Florin called from behind the wagon.
"Hmm?" My eyes suddenly opened wide when I heard a voice coming from behind me.
"Is your territory still far?"
I turned around and saw a lively Florin, who was wide awake. She sure had a great nap. Lucky her.
As for me, I hadn't slept a wink.
"It would have been near if I was traveling by myself." These horses were too slow to my liking. "But since I need you as my farmer, I can't just abandon you."
I also had five chickens, two pigs, a goat, and cattle on the wagon. If I wanted livestock for days ahead, I couldn't abandon those just so I could run to my house. The inventory didn't allow for living things, after all.
Florin let out a relieved sigh. I felt like she must've thought that I might ditch her, so she was happy to hear what I had just said.
"Teeheehee. My Lord saying that he needed Florin brings me so much happiness. Don't worry, my Lord. I will make sure to do my duties very well."
She was really cute, huh? If only she weren't too much in need of affirmation and affection, then she would be perfect. But she wasn't that bad, though.
"You better," I said.
At this point, I've given up, hoping that she would have a little bit of shame for being a piece of baggage. Every time I implied it, she looked like she enjoyed the attention.
"How many hours until we reach our destination?" she asked.
"We're already halfway through," I said, eyes on the road.
"Good to hear. I think I will go back to sleep." Florin yawned, and in just a few seconds, I could hear her snore.
Who was the master between us again?
I wish I could fall asleep that fast.
At our current speed, my other self would probably take control by the evening.
<Seems like it.>
The good news was . . . he seemed to have given up on this world. Who knows? He might even activate [Evil Heart] once he takes over.
<I doubt it after you massacred a lot of players.>
I laughed. Right after, Florin's snores hitched, but she quickly resumed sleeping in dreamland.
Not long later, we were passing through a wide stretch of farmlands with no crops, just cracked, dried muddy ground. The sound and smell of what was left of the livestock traveled through the aftermath of the rain.
Ten or twenty years ago, this must have been a thriving farm. But the ones tending it was long gone, either dead or moved on. What were left of the barns, the shed, and the many huts amounted to no little more than crumbling jutting ruins.
The houses were old huts with windows boarded up and doors broken open like the mouths of graves. Some had small trees growing out of the front door, their branches hanging over the porch.
The nearby field was either dry, muddy, or overtaken by weeds. Through the tangles of hogweed, ivy, darnel, and hawthorn, a straggly remnant of what was once a proud crop of wheat still grew, but they were basically withered. Wild animals had formed their nest in one of the collapsed barns, their musky smell clear even from a distance.
The land around us was almost silent, and only the occasional whisper of the wind that rustled the leaves broke the stillness.
There was no sign of anyone living here, and it looked like it had been abandoned for years. However, in some areas, there were signs of habitation, some old and some fresh.
ραпdα Йᴏνê|(сòm) Piles of stones on the ground under the fallen roof of the barn showed where fireplaces or stoves used to be. There was a dung heap behind the barns, so there must be someone who had been keeping pigs or cattle. There were also fresh tracks around the farmstead, which by far, the only new thing I saw.
It must have been the players or the inhabitants themselves.
The road we followed wound its way across fields of dry mud that had a glue-like consistency. I lost count of how many times the wagon sank into the mud until it caked with it, forcing me to go down and give it an extra push.
Despite the warm sun above us, I still felt cold and wet. My fingers and toes were numb as we trudged onward toward my territory.
"What is this place?" I asked, looking around. Now that I wasn't in such a hurry and could finally appreciate a bit of the surrounding, I found nothing good enough to look at.
"It's all just . . . mud."
<This land is cursed with bad soil where nothing grows~>
Great, and I assumed that it stretched to my lands as well.
The wind howled like an angry banshee as it blew down on the hills that lined the south and western horizon. It was cold enough to freeze skin that was exposed to its touch.
The wind picked up as we traversed through the fields, whipping at my cloak's hem and tugging it out from under me. It tugged at my hair, too, lifting strands into my eyes and pulling others loose.
What a sad, sad area this was, and it was even sadder the closer we approached that unknown small village where Edna was located.
It's time to collect my reward and get the hell out of here.
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