The following morning, Ashveil gathered his soldiers outside the Lord’s Hall.
After discovering the iron mine yesterday, he had spent most of the night considering how to take control of it. Unfortunately, every plan involving a direct attack ended with his ten spearmen getting slaughtered by the two Tier 2 kobolds.
That wasn’t particularly encouraging.
Fortunately, he had another option.
"Listen carefully. I want you to enter the mine, find out how many kobolds are working there, and learn where the two overseers stay. Don’t start any fights, and if someone becomes suspicious, leave immediately."
The Forgotten Kobold nodded enthusiastically.
"Understand, Master!"
Ashveil examined the creature’s forehead, where the faint mark of the Forgotten Dominion remained visible.
"Ria, are you certain the others won’t recognize that mark?"
"Ordinary kobolds shouldn’t understand its significance. Although if one decides to examine him closely, I cannot guarantee anything."
"Wonderful. That’s reassuring."
"My, would you prefer that I lie?"
Ashveil sighed before turning back toward the kobold.
"Just be careful. And remember, no fighting."
"Yes! No fighting!"
The creature struck its chest proudly before hurrying toward the northern forest.
Ashveil watched it disappear among the trees.
"Hopefully, our first intelligence operation doesn’t end with our only kobold getting eaten."
Ria smiled. "Kobolds generally don’t eat their own kind."
"Generally?"
"Would you like me to explain the exceptions?"
"No, thanks."
With the scouting operation underway, Ashveil decided to investigate something else that had been bothering him.
The wagon tracks near the mine.
Someone had clearly been transporting supplies through the northern hills, yet the kobolds appeared to possess neither wagons nor animals capable of pulling them. The wooden supports near the entrance also looked considerably better constructed than their crude equipment.
Perhaps someone else had operated the mine before them.
Or perhaps another Lord was still using it.
Neither possibility was particularly comforting.
Fortunately, Ria had explored part of the eastern forest during her earlier excursions.
When Ashveil asked whether she had encountered any signs of other Lords, she mentioned seeing the rooftops of a settlement beyond the trees. He decided it was worth investigating.
He selected four spearmen to accompany him while the remaining six stayed behind to protect Ashen Hollow.
Before leaving, Rowan approached with a concerned expression.
"My Lord, should we really be sending so many soldiers away? What if monsters attack while you’re gone?"
"That’s why I’m leaving six here. Besides, we’re only investigating another settlement. I don’t intend to start a war."
Ria chuckled.
Ashveil turned toward her.
"What’s so funny?"
"Nothing, little lord. I merely find your confidence amusing."
"Can you please stop making everything sound like a death flag?"
Unfortunately, the succubus appeared to enjoy his irritation far too much.
The journey through the eastern forest took several hours.
Along the way, Ashveil encountered several wild animals and occasionally stopped to examine useful plants. He also noticed a few abandoned trails that appeared to have been used by travelers.
That was promising.
If another settlement existed nearby, perhaps they could establish a trading relationship. Ashen Hollow desperately needed food and construction materials, and Ashveil had already grown tired of staring at an empty inventory.
However, as they approached their destination, Ria suddenly stopped.
"Little lord, something is wrong."
Ashveil immediately became alert.
"What is it?"
"There’s a considerable amount of residual magical energy ahead. I would advise approaching carefully."
He ordered his spearmen to draw their weapons before continuing.
A few minutes later, the trees opened onto a clearing.
What awaited them was hardly the prosperous neighboring territory Ashveil had imagined.
A wooden fence had been broken in several places, one of the watchtowers had collapsed, and several buildings were still smoldering. The ground was covered in scattered weapons and dried blood.
Ashveil stared at the destruction.
"...Well, there goes our chance of making friends."
Nobody laughed.
He couldn’t particularly blame them.
After ordering his soldiers to check for survivors, Ashveil cautiously entered the settlement.
Near a ruined garden, several small creatures with translucent green bodies lay motionless among the plants. Their faint magical glow had disappeared, leaving them looking like pieces of broken glass.
[Verdant Wisp | Tier 1]
[Type: Production Unit]
[Specialization: Herb Cultivation, Magical Plant Gathering]
[Status: Deceased]
Ashveil frowned.
Even the production units had been killed.
Farther inside, they discovered two female elves wearing damaged silver-green armor. Their finely crafted bows lay nearby, surrounded by broken arrows.
[Moonveil Sentinel | Tier 2]
[Race: Elf]
[Status: Deceased]
Two Tier 2 soldiers.
Ashveil looked toward the shattered watchtower, where several arrows remained embedded in the surrounding wood.
Whatever had attacked this territory had been powerful enough to overcome its defenses.
"Ria, could ordinary kobolds have done this?"
"Unlikely. These soldiers were considerably stronger than the creatures we encountered yesterday."
"Then what the hell happened here?"
Ria examined the damaged buildings.
"The attackers were organized. Notice how the defensive positions were destroyed before the storage buildings were opened."
Ashveil followed her gaze.
She was right.
Several barricades had been deliberately dismantled, and most of the valuable supplies appeared to have been removed.
This hadn’t been a random monster attack.
Someone had come here for something.
The group eventually reached the Lord’s Hall, where they discovered the territory’s former owner lying near the entrance.
Ashveil briefly examined the body before stepping inside.
Most of the furniture had been destroyed, but a damaged stone pedestal remained standing near the center of the room. A faint blue light flickered above its surface.
When Ashveil approached, a notification appeared.
[Destroyed Territory Core Detected!]
[Territory Owner: Deceased]
[Basic Territory Information Available]
Curious, he selected the available information.
[Territory Grade: B]
[Territory Established: 19 Days Ago]
[Original Lord: Deceased]
[Former Territory Units: Moonveil Sentinel ×2, Verdant Wisp ×6]
Ashveil froze.
"Nineteen days?"
He examined the information again.
That couldn’t be right.
He had only recently arrived in Eryndor, yet this territory had already existed for nineteen days before its destruction.
"Ria, take a look at this."
The succubus approached and examined the floating screen.
"How interesting."
"Interesting? This guy had nearly three weeks to develop his territory! I thought everyone was transported here at the same time!"
"Apparently not."
Ashveil felt a headache coming on.
He had already considered the possibility of encountering stronger Lords, but he had assumed everyone was starting under roughly the same conditions.
Now he discovered that some people had arrived much earlier.
A Lord with an A-grade or S-grade territory could already possess an enormous army.
Meanwhile, he was struggling to feed ten spearmen.
"What kind of ridiculous competition is this?"
"One in which you appear to be at a considerable disadvantage."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I hadn’t noticed."
Ria looked rather pleased by his sarcastic response.
Before Ashveil could continue complaining, one of the spearmen called out from outside.
"My Lord! We’ve discovered something!"
Behind the ruined settlement stood an overturned wagon surrounded by broken crates. Most of its contents had been stolen, but several documents remained trapped beneath the wooden frame.
Among them was a metal token bearing the image of a balance scale.
[Western Valley Lord’s Market]
[Trade Permit No. 047]
Ashveil raised an eyebrow.
"A Lord’s Market?"
He unfolded another document.
[Western Valley Lord’s Market]
[Seller: Territory No. 047]
[Goods Sold: Moondew Elixir ×5]
[Payment Received: Source Stone ×2]
[Transaction Status: Completed]
Two Source Stones!
Ashveil immediately searched the wagon again, hoping the payment had somehow been overlooked.
Unfortunately, all he found was dust and several broken bottles.
"Those bastards even took the money."
Ria glanced at the receipt.
"Disappointed?"
"Of course I’m disappointed. That’s two Source Stones!"
Fortunately, the document contained something even more useful. A rough map on its reverse showed a route through the western forest toward a valley marked with the same balance-scale symbol.
A functioning marketplace could provide Ashen Hollow with food, construction materials, and equipment that would otherwise take weeks to obtain.
Ashveil carefully stored the map alongside a small wooden token he discovered beneath the wagon seat. The wooden token bore an unfamiliar symbol, although the system provided no information about its purpose.
Just as he finished inspecting the wreckage, Ria crouched beside several deep impressions in the soil.
"Little lord, come here."
Ashveil approached.
"What did you find?"
"Tracks. Whoever attacked this settlement brought several heavily equipped soldiers."
Ashveil examined the marks.
"Another Lord?"
"Possibly. Although I wouldn’t make assumptions without further evidence."
The tracks led away from the settlement toward the eastern forest.
Ashveil looked toward the ruined buildings.
A Grade B territory had been destroyed, its soldiers slaughtered, and its resources stolen. More importantly, the attackers were apparently organized enough to accomplish all of that before disappearing.
And somewhere nearby, an iron mine was being operated by kobolds using equipment that didn’t entirely belong to them.
He wasn’t certain whether the two discoveries were connected.
But he had no intention of ignoring either.
"Alright, everyone. We’re leaving."
The spearmen immediately gathered around him.
Ashveil took one last look at the destroyed Lord’s Hall before turning toward the forest.
He had originally intended to visit a neighboring Lord and perhaps negotiate for some supplies.
Instead, he’d discovered that other Lords had arrived earlier than him, that an organized force was operating somewhere in the region, and that even a Grade B territory could be wiped out without warning.
His future suddenly looked considerably more troublesome.
"Ria, remind me why I wanted to become a Lord again."
"You mentioned something about conquering the world."
"Right. I was an idiot."
The succubus laughed as they disappeared into the forest.