Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 10

Kiesler raised his lowered head and looked up at Edar.

At first, he was dumbfounded, his mouth agape, not quite grasping what Edar was saying.

Soon, the meaning dawned on him, and he repeatedly questioned the possibility in his mind.

“Can you really protect us?”

“Yes. Didn’t you see and feel that I disappeared with the pointy-ears [a derogatory term for elves, referring to their pointed ears] and returned alone? What does that tell you? It means they can’t do anything to me, and I’ve been recognized as the master of this land.”

Kiesler knew the elves never seated humans at their table.

He understood their arrogance well, having been a monk before becoming the village chief.

He also knew that their arrogance led them to never see humans as equals.

‘That’s why Lord Anton died. Because a mere monkey tried to sit at the same table as people. But this person… sat in the same place as them? How?’

The knight who fought the elves and almost defeated them, and the knight’s master.

The human who exuded more confidence than anyone else in front of the elves, left with them, and returned with their farewells.

Had there ever been a time when humans were on equal footing with elves?

No, there hadn’t, not even among the entire alien race, beyond the elves.

“······!”

The sunset painted the sky behind Edar’s head.

The intensely burning orange light resembled a halo, and Kiesler was shocked as he gazed at Edar’s face, now partially obscured by the backlight.

A spiritual resonance stirred within him, something he had never felt even when worshiping the wolf god.

Kiesler realized this was the shock of encountering the divine, the experience his old brothers in the monastery had spoken of.

‘How can a human… how can a human possess such dignity….’

The lost faith began to rekindle deep within him.

Fearing that his unsightly appearance would betray his inner turmoil, Kiesler lowered his head.

Edar placed a hand on Kiesler’s shoulder.

“I will protect your lives more fiercely than any human lord ever could. Go. When the morning sun rises, go and convey my will.”

They say Isaac left some behind.

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‘46.’

I looked down at the map spread out on the table and counted.

The map, taken from the mercenary captain’s corpse, was crude and cheap.

It vaguely marked the mountains, rivers, and villages, offering little more than a general sense of location. Was the village over the mountain? Was the river to the east? That was about the extent of its usefulness.

‘The distribution is pretty good.’

But stagnant water is stagnant for a reason.

The experience of countless iterations wasn’t for nothing.

It was enough to overlay the clear memories in my head with the sparse details on the map.

“That’s quite a few,” Griff remarked, squinting and scratching his chin as he studied the markings.

The markings represented the frontier villages within my territory.

Kiesler had pointed them out, and the total came to 46.

“It’s a frontier, so it’s understandable.”

I tapped the map with my index finger, recalling what Kiesler had said.

‘Each one is equal to or larger in scale than Ollimurs?’

The original population of Ollimurs was about a hundred people.

That the same frontier villages numbered about 50 in my territory also meant that the territory’s population was roughly 5,000.

‘Considering that there are countless small territories in the world with less than a thousand people, it’s not a small number. But considering that the territory’s area is comparable to a duchy, it’s far too small.’

Compared to the Duchy of Thredret, there was a difference of hundreds of times.

Of course, Thredret was one of the first areas where humans settled.

There were many cities with more than 10,000 residents, so it was an extreme example.

The history of the Oroko Great Plains’ frontier is, at most, only half a century old.

Before that, humans didn’t even consider crossing the border into the Great Plains.

Because the Council hunted down any humans who crossed into the neutral zone.

The hunting ended just before the dissolution of the neutral zone.

Slaves were needed to develop undeveloped land, and humans were deemed suitable.

‘It was also easy to find slaves in terms of timing. Inland development was over, and the population was saturated. In addition, tyranny was added, so runaways were created and began to give up and cross the border.’

So, the number 5,000 is by no means a small number considering the history of the frontier.

‘But will the guys I’m going to deal with consider that?’

They wouldn’t unless they were crazy.

They were the kind of people who would drool and rush in.

Thredret, who exiled me, or the Council, who screwed me over.

Neither side will leave me alone.

They will reach out with insidious hands in the near future.

That had never not happened in Deus Ex [likely referring to the game series, implying a recurring pattern of conflict].

‘Moreover, this is the Great Plains. Whether it’s heading to humans or alien races, it’s a position like a bridgehead that must be passed through. It’s targeted first.’

I glared at the map.

The Oroko Great Plains was exquisitely located in the center of the map.

Even the territory I obtained was like the entrance to the Walachia Kingdom.

‘I have to increase the population. It’s woefully insufficient right now.’

No matter how much land you have, it’s meaningless if there are no people to manage it.

Land that is not managed is just an opening for those who oppose it.

People have to fill the gaps, and to do that, the population has to increase.

‘Raise my skills to increase my subordinates, and accept as many immigrants as possible. I have to finish preparing before the Great Disaster begins.’

I looked up at the subordinates who were waiting for my words.

————————————

Legionnaire

Harley

Lv. 17

Grade: E

Patrolman

Mason

Lv. 12

Grade: E

Carpenter

Tyler

Lv. 7

Grade: F

————————————

Calliope’s level is 92.

Griff’s level is 59.

The levels of the remaining three subordinates barely add up to 36.

The level shows that not all subordinates are of the same class.

‘Of course. If I could create subordinates of the same level as Calliope every time, I could conquer the world in a month.’

I smiled bitterly inwardly.

“Tyler, you’re a carpenter. You can build a house, right?”

“Of course. What would a carpenter do if he couldn’t build a house?”

Tyler thumped his chest with his fist.

“Harley, if you’re a legionnaire, you’ve built fortifications before.”

“Of course! Just leave it to me!”

Harley cut me off as if he had been waiting for it and shouted, then belatedly blinked.

“Oh, um, sorry.”

I said it was okay and looked at Calliope.

I was going to ask if it was better than thinking of me too difficult.

Calliope was slightly distorting her unchanging expression and looking at Harley.

Harley’s face turned blue at the sight that made my heart cold from the side.

I awkwardly turned my gaze and looked at Griff.

Griff smiled and shrugged.

“Anyway. Basic construction skills such as wooden fences and watchtowers are included in the construction of fortifications, so it would be good to work with Tyler.”

“Yes!”

“And Mason is….”

I didn’t have anything that came to mind when I saw the title of patrolman.

Mason himself scratched his head as if he felt the same way.

“Assist the two of them.”

“Yes.”

“Good. When dawn breaks, the three of you will get wood, and Tyler will lead the construction of the building.”

“Are you building a place for Lord Edar to stay?”

“Yes.”

I was thinking of building the lord’s residence, which would be the center of the territory, first.

There were many houses that the escaped pioneers had vacated today, so I could stay in one of them.

However, the pioneers will soon return, and then they will have to return the house.

It may not be easy to understand that they run away and come back, but that was the reality.

‘There is no option to cross the border again and return inland. Once you become a pioneer, it’s the rule that they don’t accept you.’

The pioneers of the Great Plains are also sacrifices that human forces offer to alien races.

Would they take back a sacrifice that fell from the altar?

They will force them back, hoping that the alien races will not reach out to the inland again.

Because human territories bordering the border were hunted before the frontier began.

No one would want to go back to that time.

So, even if the runaways escape, the only place they can go is a neighboring frontier village.

‘Tomorrow, Kiesler will go around the territory to deliver my proclamation. Those who fled or those who were already settled will start gathering in Ollimurs.’

I recalled that there were not even twenty buildings that could be called buildings in Ollimurs.

Even if only two people came from each village, it was a scale that could not be handled.

‘Before settling down indiscriminately, we must create a lord’s residence that will become the center of the territory, mark the boundaries of the land, and plan the city in advance to reduce confusion.’

I shook my head as I looked at Tyler, who was looking at me with a serious expression.

The connected thoughts were conveying how carefully he was going to work.

“Don’t put in unnecessary effort. Think of it as a temporary house. It will be expanded later when the situation stabilizes, and for now, I will be satisfied with staying there and setting the standard for this land.”

I took charcoal from the extinguished fireplace and briefly drew a blueprint of the lord’s residence on the floor.

Tyler blinked as he looked at the picture.

“Have you ever built one before?”

I couldn’t say that I had built it in countless iterations.

Instead of words, I smiled and nodded.

“And considering the situation here, we have to build it by fitting the wood together as much as possible without using nails. Is that possible?”

“If I have the materials, I can build it by the end of today.”

The three subordinates stood up from their seats.

“We’ll go now.”

“That’s enough. It’s night. Rest today and leave in the morning.”

“No. We’ve rested enough. We are subordinates. We don’t need sleep.”

Tyler shook his head with a firm expression.

“Hmm….”

The thoughts connected to the subordinates conveyed their feelings.

It wasn’t just lip service, they really wanted to work to help me.

‘Do they think they’re useless?’

It must be because I took the risk alone and made a fuss in the Council.

Even Calliope is blaming herself for not being able to assist me.

The three subordinates, who couldn’t even be supporting characters, were eager to prove their usefulness.

“Okay. If you want to, do it.”

I felt a little guilty when I saw them brighten up.

It was because the way of thinking from my previous life was still clear.

I felt like an unscrupulous boss who made them work at night without paying them.

“But it’s dark at night, can you see?”

“I can accompany you.”

Griff gracefully spread out his left hand, and a white sphere appeared on it and emitted light.

“You’ll have to maintain it until the sun rises?”

“Haha, I’m a wizard, even if I’m a scholar. The sphere of light is the most basic of the basics for a wizard.”

I nodded to the guy who smiled confidently, revealing his teeth.

Four subordinates, including Griff, left, and only Calliope and I were left in the house.

I looked down at the map while planning the city.

“Lord Edar.”

Then Calliope called quietly.

One of the things I realized while being together for about ten days was that Calliope had almost no change in expression.

I could roughly know the inside of other subordinates through their expressions, but it was difficult to know the inside of Calliope unless I read her thoughts.

She had a cold expression like ice, whether she was happy or sad.

It looked even colder because her hair and eyes were blue.

“You stay there. Someone has to protect me.”

“I won’t go far.”

Firm stubbornness was read in her voice and thoughts.

‘Subordinates offer blind loyalty, but it’s a bit burdensome.’

I scratched my chin and looked at the leftover jerky.

I tore it off to satisfy my hunger because I couldn’t have dinner late.

“Then go hunting. Preferably something that can get fur. It’s a bit cold at night.”

Cold air was seeping through the gap in the door that was shaking in the night wind.

Calliope nodded as I shrugged my shoulders slightly.

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