212: Government Affairs Processing

Chapter 209: Handling Government Affairs

After a night of rest, Arthur immediately plunged into the complex government affairs of Mist Town.

Currently, he needed to address the cleanup operations targeting the surrounding small factions.

Among these, the primary target was naturally the Black Blood People.

These Beastmen had long threatened Mist Town's trade routes.

If they were not expelled, Arthur would be forced to allocate more forces to protect merchant caravans.

Although he could temporarily alleviate the immediate crisis with the assistance of the Night Outcasts, this was by no means a long-term solution.

Mist Town's own army still required some time to complete its training.

For this reason, he had to join forces with the Night Outcasts to launch a Eliminate campaign against the Black Blood People.

During breakfast, Arthur activated the intelligence system to review information.

【Purple Intelligence (Enhanced)】: Isgrasa has hoarded a considerable amount of wealth in the ancient tomb; personnel can be organized to go and plunder it.

Arthur knew that both the Candy Family and the lich Isgrasa must have accumulated substantial wealth.

This wealth would become a crucial support for the construction of Mist Town.

The only concern was that, since the Plantation had not yet been covered by the power of the earth veins, other dark forces might hear about it and want a share.

To this end, he specifically arranged for Airo and the Lovich siblings to continue leading personnel to the Plantation after a night of rest, transporting everything usable back to the town.

Another piece of intelligence caught his attention.

【Blue Intelligence】: A group of Doppelgangerss has infiltrated Catherine's team; efforts can be made to utilize them well.

Doppelgangerss are creatures similar to shapeshifters; by constantly changing their appearance, they are able to hide and survive in the societies of various races.

Because they can transform into any desired appearance, many organizations specifically cultivate Doppelgangerss for espionage activities.

Arthur noted this down, intending to discuss it in detail with Catherine after she returned.

【Blue Intelligence】 Oak Lake is an important water source for Mist Town, long occupied by a wyvern.

Reclaim Oak Lake, plant oak trees in the lake, and establish an outpost to secure the water source.

【Green Intelligence】 Please transplant Melo to the location of the underground altar.

This way, she will be able to absorb the residual energy underground and grow better.

【Green Intelligence】 There are a large number of reusable building materials in the Plantation; personnel can be arranged to inventory and transport them.

【White Intelligence】 Please handle various government affairs of Mist Town to improve the town's stability.

Following the guidance in the intelligence, Arthur immediately took action after breakfast.

He first had the maid Nora notify Jessica to send a messenger to the Night Outcasts' camp.

He invited their leader to dinner.

Afterward, he found Iron Shovel, preparing to address the “unease among Alien” issue that the latter had mentioned earlier.

Most of Mist Town's Alien came from the Pioneer Group.

The local residents were almost all humans, with only a few Half-elves mixed among them.

As it was sudden, Iron Shovel asked Arthur for some time to gather all the Alien in the town first.

During this interval, Arthur decided to visit Old Hutu.

Since arriving at Qingfeng Valley, he had been constantly entangled in various affairs and simply couldn't spare time to have a proper conversation with Old Hutu.

Furthermore, Old Hutu's mental state was inherently unstable, only becoming exceptionally clear when discussing topics related to medicine and animals.

Precisely for this reason, Arthur accepted Flora's suggestion and arranged for Mountain People to serve as Old Hutu's assistants.

He walked into the house that had been converted into a temporary hospital, carefully observing the situation inside the courtyard.

Accompanying him were Philip and the maid Charlotte.

Today, Philip took over Drax's guard duties.

Arthur specifically let this loyal Orc rest well.

As his personal guard, Drax accompanied him almost every moment.

In several consecutive battles, he fought with all his might.

Especially in the battle at the vineyard, Drax was seriously injured.

After Arthur treated him with divine magic, he immediately plunged into the attack on the ancient tomb, acquiring many new injuries.

Additionally, Arthur knew that because Drax had lived in the arena for a long time, he rarely had contact with the outside world.

He also wanted this guard to get a good look at the land he was fighting for.

Seeing that all the injured were properly cared for, Philip couldn't help but feel emotional.

He diligently committed everything he saw to memory, so that he could report back to Godwin later.

This was something Godwin had repeatedly instructed him to do before their departure.

As one of Arthur's right-hand men, Godwin believed he must understand how Mist Town operated.

Only then could he better cooperate with the lord's decisions.

Since he couldn't go himself, he entrusted Philip with the task of understanding Mist Town.

“My lord, are the medicine reserves still sufficient?”

Philip asked, recalling Godwin's instructions in his mind.

The one who answered him was Irene Moonbrook.

In Arthur's eyes, this Mountain People girl's temperament was as calm as lake water.

“There is still medicine left, but the stock of some types is running low,” she said. “We acquired a lot of medicine before we set off, and it's proving to be of great use now.”

Philip scratched his head, thought for a moment, and asked, “So, do we need to purchase another batch?”

These were all words Godwin had entrusted to him.

Seeing his honest demeanor, Moonbrook couldn't help but smile.

She replied, “I've already had someone draft a procurement list; I'll give it to you shortly.”

Philip nodded, his face red.

Seeing this, Arthur smiled faintly and turned to Moonbrook, asking, “How is the hospital currently? Is it going smoothly?”

“It's going quite smoothly, but new injured people are brought in every day, and we're doing our best to treat them,” Moonbrook replied.

Arthur pondered for a moment, then said, “The Plantation has been completely secured, so there shouldn't be any large-scale battles in the short term.”

“I will try to use divine magic as much as possible to treat the injured, to lighten your burden.”

“If you ask me, without your divine magic, My Lord, there would only be more casualties than there are now.”

Finn Aethel, who was organizing medicines, suddenly spoke, his voice clear with youthful vibrancy.

Arthur recognized this young man; he was the youngest child of the Aethel family.

Because of his strong interest in herbs, he voluntarily applied to help at the temporary hospital.

Besides Finn, Kaelan Rockspine and Rowan Vine, also from the Mountain People, were here.

Rowan Vine had previously been responsible for caring for animals at the temple, and to learn more about animals, he chose to follow Old Hutu.

And Kaelan Rockspine was a leatherworking apprentice.

He helped at the hospital by moving injured people and doing various chores.

It seemed that the entire temporary hospital was quite lacking in professional medical personnel.

“Philip, when you go back, tell Godwin to prioritize therapists when recruiting talent,” Arthur instructed.

“I, I've noted it down, My Lord,” Philip quickly responded.

Just then, Old Hutu suddenly shouted, “We need a bigger space!”

“And we need cleaner, more professional tools!”

“Where is that stingy woman? Tell her to arrange these things for us immediately!”

“Catherine isn't here, sir. I will make all these arrangements for you,” Arthur promised. “Tell me what kind of space you want, and I will coordinate it.”

“I want the largest building in town!” Old Hutu said unceremoniously.

Moonbrook quickly explained from the side, “My Lord, the sir is referring to the Little Finger Merchant Guild's warehouse.”

“It's spacious enough, and it's convenient for the injured to enter and exit.”

Arthur nodded: “I'll arrange it. Tomorrow I'll clear out the warehouse and hand it over for your use.”

“Additionally, my carriage can also be used to transport the injured.”

Moonbrook repeatedly thanked him, but Old Hutu seemed to have forgotten what he had just said, concentrating fully on compounding medicines.

Afterward, Arthur individually visited the injured patients in the ward.

His arrival greatly excited the injured.

During the visit, Philip quietly asked Moonbrook beside him, “Does My Lord come here often?”

Moonbrook nodded and replied, “Yes, His Holiness comes here to check whenever he has free time.”

“He cares deeply for the injured, so these injured people hold him in great reverence—”

At this point, she paused and corrected herself, “No, it should be adoration.”

“Most of the injured don't even show the slightest sadness.”

“Instead, they feel it is an honor to dedicate their lives to My Lord.”

“No wonder they are so excited to see My Lord,” Philip suddenly realized. “Before coming, the sir was still worried about the emotional state of the injured.”

“It seems he was overthinking things,” Moonbrook said to Philip, lowering her voice.

“But this positive state will likely fade as various problems emerge later on.”

“The placement of the injured, their livelihoods after recovery—these are all real issues.”

“I don’t think Lord Godwin’s concerns are unnecessary.”

“Then I—” Philip asked, a hint of hesitation in his voice.

“You should report this matter truthfully to Lord Godwin.”

“If he can come up with a better solution, that would naturally be for the best,” Moonbrook suggested.

Hearing this, Philip asked in confusion, “Then what method are you currently using to deal with the injured?”

Moonbrook then informed the Water Thief guard about the “Injured Care Regulations” formulated by Arthur.

After listening, Philip’s face was full of surprise.

He had never heard of any lord, noble, or dignitary caring for the injured in such a meticulous way.

From wound care to dietary arrangements, and even job placement after recovery, every detail was carefully considered.

In his past experience, veterans and disabled individuals who returned from the battlefield almost always squandered their pensions quickly.

They would eventually die drunk or freeze to death in the streets.

Others would fall into violence and despair, either choosing suicide or becoming criminals.

Although Philip didn't understand finance, he could predict that as battles became more frequent in the future, the number of injured would only increase.

At that point, how much financial resources would be needed to stabilize these people and prevent them from causing trouble?

A shiver ran down his spine at the thought.

After leaving the temporary hospital, Arthur and Philip went to the merchant guild together.

He met Louis and his party, with whom he had dined last night.

Arthur discussed the warehouse matters with them.

After a brief thought, Louis replied, “My Lord, this is easy to handle.”

“There are still quite a few empty houses in town, so we can temporarily move the supplies to those places for storage.”

“However, when more supplies accumulate later, a dedicated warehouse will still be needed.”

“I will arrange for people to build a formal hospital as soon as possible,” Arthur said. “For now, everything must prioritize the needs of the injured.”

“By the way, have you met with the Warthog Merchant Caravan yet?”

Snake Eye replied, “It’s still being coordinated and arranged, My Lord, it should be in the next few days.”

Arthur urged, “Hurry up.”

“We urgently need a safe trade route.”

“Whether it’s the local dark forces of Qingfeng Valley or external enemies.”

“If they want to act against us, cutting off our communication with the outside world will be the most direct method.”

After giving these instructions, Arthur set off for the gathering place of the Alien.

Iron Shovel had gathered almost all the Alien in town.

However, upon seeing Lord Arthur, the scene fell silent, and no Alien dared to speak first.

Seeing this, Arthur, relying on his past work experience, patiently guided them to express their thoughts.

With his efforts, the Alien finally revealed their concerns one by one.

For the Dwarves, their main concern was their faith.

They worried that Arthur, like other human lords, would forbid them from worshipping their own gods.

Arthur immediately promised them, “I will never interfere with your freedom of belief; everyone has the right to uphold their spiritual sustenance.”

“However, Mist Town is currently in ruins and awaiting reconstruction, and all construction needs to proceed step by step. Building an exclusive temple for your gods is not yet feasible.”

“But please believe that once the town stabilizes, I will make proper arrangements for everyone.”

The Dwarves expressed understanding, and after receiving Arthur’s assurance, their unease dissipated considerably.

Subsequently, the Half-elf raised a concern that all the Alien shared—what class of citizens would they be categorized as in Mist Town?

“In Qingfeng Valley,” Arthur replied firmly, “no matter the race, as long as they abide by the law, they will never be excluded.”

“As long as I am here, you will never be second-class citizens.”

“You will have equal rights and status as others.”

The Alien immediately cheered in agreement.

After the cheers subsided, Iron Shovel, on behalf of all the Alien, asked Arthur, “My Lord, for us, the survivors of the Light Feather Mercenary Group.”

“There is one more thing we want to confirm: can we live in peace on this land?”

Arthur quickly weighed his words in his mind.

Iron Shovel had mentioned this to him before, but at the time, he was busy dealing with Plantation matters and hadn't had a chance to properly consider the question.

“I only want to ask you one question: Do you have faith in me?”

Arthur looked at the Alien present and asked.

Almost everyone answered in unison, “Yes!”

“Then are you worried that after I rule Qingfeng Valley, I will slaughter you like the Falcon Family?” Arthur asked again.

This time, the answer was still unanimous: “No!”

“If that’s the case, then you have nothing to worry about,” Arthur’s tone became exceptionally serious and full of power. “I will fight alongside you.”

“Not only for the liberation of Qingfeng Valley, but also for the construction of this land.”

“I can assure you: this place will be a home where you can live in peace.”

“This place will be a land worth fighting for.”

“This place will also be where your descendants can reside.”

The emotions of the Alien were completely stirred.

Iron Shovel seized the opportunity and shouted, “For Arthur!”

The others immediately echoed him.

Even Philip, who was nearby, was infected by this enthusiasm and couldn't help but join the cheering crowd.

After resolving the concerns of the Alien, it was almost noon.

Arthur found Bart and asked about the recent situation of the blacksmith shop.

Bart’s entire family had followed Arthur to the blacksmith shop in town.

He briefly explained the current situation and the missing materials to Arthur.

Arthur had his maid, Charlotte, record this information one by one and hand it to Airo later.

Since the intelligence mentioned that the Plantation had a lot of building materials, perhaps Airo and others could search for them.

Arthur chose to have lunch with Grayson Randel.

This former secretary of Catherine had now been entrusted by Arthur with full responsibility for personnel placement.

“My Lord, the newly arrived Refugees have almost all been settled,” Grayson reported to Arthur.

“They can be assigned to work tomorrow.”

“Currently, there is still ample housing in town, enough to accommodate about a hundred more people.”

“So, Mist Town can only accommodate a maximum of about four hundred people?” Arthur asked.

“That’s about the same as when we first arrived,” Grayson replied. “If we don’t consider accommodation conditions, even if there were two hundred more people, they could temporarily be settled.”

Arthur said with a wry smile, “In the short term, I won’t be able to recruit more people.”

“By the way, among these Refugees, how many can immediately start working?”

Grayson took a document from his wife, Meredith, and after checking it, replied, “According to the information provided by Lord Godwin.”

“He has already selected fifty-seven people from this group of Refugees.”

“Among the remaining one hundred sixty-nine people, there are about thirty-two adult males capable of high-intensity work.”

“There are sixty-four women and children capable of light work.”

“The rest are either too young or too old.”

“Among them, there are about thirty elderly people who can still do some light tasks.”

“Good, arrange the work according to the plan we made earlier,” Arthur nodded and then asked, “How are these people’s spirits?”

“Most people are still in a state of confusion,” Grayson’s wife, Meredith, replied. “However, we are guiding them through the faith of Mother Earth, helping them regain confidence in life.”

“That’s good. I will also start preaching as soon as possible to help everyone rebuild their faith,” Arthur said.

Upon hearing this, the Randels immediately drew a prayer symbol of Mother Earth on their chests.

They said in unison, “May the earth mother bless us.”