“Yes, since you are the lord that came and resurrected us like a phoenix, it seemed only fitting that we picked you as the name.” He announced proudly.
I had desired to start more cities for some time. A place that had as much territory as mine could not survive with only one city. Yet, it seemed like the west of Aberis was a notoriously difficult and unlucky place to be. Bandits had ravaged the countryside, and that which wasn’t taken out by Bandits was destroyed by the monsters flooding in from the west.
It was important to build a network of cities along the west not just to consolidate trade, but also to act as a protector for the rest of Aberis. Although it was unclear to me how Alerith had managed to hold out for the last thirty years, it was likely that Lord Reign had made some kind of treaty with Imperial Cloud Meadow to lend him protection. As for the south, it had been the combination of the ghost dungeon that had been restrained by priests that had kept the wilderness at bay.
I once had the chance to build a city with my name already. The Mining Town just out of Alerith would have been named after me. However, the Dungeon dried up and was defeated. The Orichalcum mine was nothing more than an elaborate trap. In the end, I had wiped out the entire city to defeat a group of Knights I now knew were demonic in nature. Perhaps, that was why they converted into miasma so fluidly. At the time, I had thought it was just something I could do. Now, I was realizing for everything I thought I understood, there were two things I didn’t.
Suffice it to say, that the thought of destroying a city that already had my name irked me. I wasn’t trying to be the sentimental type, but this was my second city. If I just gave it up here because of a fear of Bandits, then what was I even doing? The girls seemed to be able to detect my reluctance to announce my plans.
“Master… the plan was to relocate…” Miki began.
“Time for a new plan!” I declared, and then laughed, scratching my head. “Isn’t it fine to be flexible? We never should be too rigid in our plans, right?”
The girls looked at each other. I tried to play it off as a joke, but I had already decided that we were not going to relocate and risk losing this city. That meant I had a new task for everyone. I didn’t think about it too much, but I had already decided.
“This is the spot. Terra, erect a better wall than what they got. It doesn’t have to be like our wall made to withstand high-level monster attacks, but something that will keep the Bandits out. Shao, meet with Raissa. Decide who she feels is qualified to train new troops. We will bring them here and start turning this village into a military.”
“Are you sure about this?” Shao asked uncertainly.
“Of course!” I gave her a thumbs up.
That was… until I changed my mind again.