Kaelor stood just beyond the town walls, hands buried deep in his coat pockets, eyes fixed on the sprawling valley before him.
Now that he could take it all in properly, he found himself marveling at its size. The valley was vast, easily large enough to house several thousand people, with ample farmland that stretched outward before sloping gently up along the natural hills. Green, gold, and damp brown marked where old terraces still clung to the memory of better days.
It was the season of rain, he could still smell the wetness in the soil from the last downpour. The ground, soft and rich, would be perfect for planting. And indeed, the town had wasted no time. A scattering of people, mostly women and children, were already working the land, helping a dozen men haul thick bundles of rice stalks. The golden-yellow grains swayed gently in the breeze, dangling tantalizingly from the stalks like jewels in the sun.
To Kaelor, it was like watching peasants walk around with gold on their backs, oblivious to the treasure they were carrying.
A single sack of top-grade rice could sell for seventy gold coins, sometimes more. That alone was a highly-paid peasant’s annual salary. Even if the rice grown here wasn’t of the finest quality anymore, it could still fetch ten to twenty gold coins a sack, easily.
And judging by the scale of the field, stretching west from the town like a golden sea, it had once been cultivated for serious production.
Now the land showed signs of neglect. What had once been a prime rice estate had dwindled into something modest, half-wild. The stalks were thinner, the soil patchy in places. It was clear that whoever had originally nurtured this land was long gone.
"This town was founded by a powerful Acranist," Mildred said softly, her voice almost carried away by the wind. She stood beside him, hair and skirt fluttering in the breeze. "They came here to study the devil beasts. They built the walls, started the rice farms... but that was over a century ago. They left and everything else began to wither."
Kaelor exhaled through his nose. "The quality of rice back then must have been incredible."
He fell silent, troubled by what he saw.
The people worked hard. Too hard. But their bodies were thin, their limbs gaunt. Despite the bounty before them, it was obvious, they weren’t eating much of it.
So where was all the rice going?
He doubted they were transporting it themselves. There was no way this ragged group could push carts through beast-ridden forests and survive. They would be easy prey for wolves or bandits.
That left only one explanation.
Kaelor narrowed his eyes, digging through his memories.
A minor noble. So far beneath Kaelor’s former station that he hadn’t even bothered to learn the man’s face back when he was still Duke Leo’s son.
But that was a lifetime ago.
Now, someone like Rick Greene could snuff him out like a candle in the dark and bury the news beneath the weight of a bribe or a whispered threat. And over what?
Rice. It meant gold and power. The Baron could possibly be using it to bolster his forces and grow his territory.
Kaelor’s gut twisted.
The people were already harvesting. Which meant... the Baron’s men would be coming soon to collect.
And if they arrived now, if they saw what Kaelor had done, if word got out about his Dreadclaw warriors, he wouldn’t stand a chance.
His heart pounded, fists tightening inside his pockets.
"This rice... what happens to it?" Kaelor asked, his eyes still locked on the golden stalks swaying in the breeze.
Mildred sighed, her voice tinged with resignation. "They’re Ned’s. He collects the harvest every year and sells it off. In return, he brings back food, enough to keep the people from starving. That’s how he maintains control."
Kaelor’s gaze darkened. ’So Ned is the Baron’s toy.’ A middleman who reaped the rewards of others’ sweat and bent the town beneath his heel, all in the name of service to a distant noble.
’He’s Dangerous,’ Kaelor thought. But not an immediate danger. This was the sixth month of the year, he had half a year before Baron Rick Greene would arrive for the yearly collection. Six months to build his strength. Six months to prepare.
But Ned... he had to be dealt with far sooner.
As Kaelor brooded, his eyes caught movement near the edge of the field. A group of farmers, some barefoot, others with rolled-up sleeves and sweat-darkened tunics, entered the cleared plots. They carried trays filled with newly sprouted rice, fresh from the nursery.
A spark of inspiration flickered in his mind.
Without hesitation, Kaelor stepped off the raised path and into the field. His boots sank slightly into the damp soil, but he didn’t care. He raised a hand and shouted, "Bring those seedlings over here!"
One of the men, startled, looked around and then pointed at his own chest, uncertain.
"Yes, you!" Kaelor called, nodding. "Bring them here!"
His voice carried across the field, drawing glances from other farmers working several plots away. Some froze mid-task. Others murmured quietly to one another as the group with the seedlings hesitated, then slowly obeyed.
With no other choice, the farmers carried the trays of seedlings over and laid them gently before Kaelor. He squatted down, examining the frail, pale-green stalks with a thoughtful gaze.
"My Lord," one of the older farmers spoke up hesitantly, "we need to plant them before—"
"I know," Kaelor cut in calmly.
His mind was already racing ahead. ’System... what happens if I fuse two of these seedlings together?’
[You will obtain a slightly better quality rice at the cost of 2 FP.]
Kaelor frowned. ’Not good enough.’
’What if I fuse a hundred into one?’
[1 low-quality rice seedling + 99 of the same = Starlight Rice!]
Kaelor’s eyes sharpened. ’That’s more like it.’
"I want forty Starlight Rice seedlings."
[200 FP has been deducted.]