Chapter 13: It Can Start
"I think he destroyed it, am I wrong?" Luke asked calmly.
Callum shook his head and replied, "There was only one Mutant Iron Turtle; the others were normal, small, and weak. The magic bag you gave me before we left the palace is full—there are at least twenty Iron Turtle corpses and one Mutant Iron Turtle corpse inside."
Luke smiled and said, "Well done, Callum, I'm proud of you." He then asked, "What about the fairies? Did they say they would fulfil the agreement?"
Callum immediately shook his head and then cleared his throat with a small cough before beginning to speak:
"I tried to make the agreement as detailed as possible, and during that time, I was able to establish the main part of the agreement. According to what you told me, in the future, it will be possible to create something dozens of times larger and more beautiful than your current mansion. So I told them that there could be areas within the mansion made especially for them, and that my lord, that is, you, would allow it."
When Callum finished speaking, he looked clearly frightened. After all, he was a knight, and under his lord's authority, he had no permission to make agreements with others except in situations where his lord had granted him a rank. He had already surpassed his own rank dozens of times.
In the imperial capital, this could even be considered a crime, and he could lose his head.
"I'm not angry, Callum. I was the one who sent you to the forest. You have far more authority than you think. Be aware of that," Luke said as soon as he realised what was happening.
"They accepted the agreement, Your Majesty. Staying in the same area as a Hiera is an honour for them; I can't even imagine what staying in the same house as a Hiera means to them." Callum said when he heard Luke's words.
Luke smiled again after all these words and then said, "This is good news; we've gained more power than we need. I don't think there will be any trouble as long as we keep an eye on each of them." He then looked at Cain.
The young elf was swaying where he stood and, to be honest, looked quite tired.
"Cain, you can go to your family," Luke said gently.
When the young elf heard these words, he shook his head from side to side and then said, "I have no family, sir."
When Luke heard these words, he realised that he had truly saved a child by chance. After all, he had chosen to send someone he had randomly selected under Kevin's command.
Luke looked at Callum first, and when he saw the strange expression on his face, he turned to Cain and said, "You have one now," then took his hand and led him out of the tent.
When Callum followed him, he said, "Help Kevin. Help everyone line up and stand properly, Callum," and then the young elf boy began walking toward the mansion with Cain.
Cain, to be honest, was still under the influence of the words he had heard just a minute ago. He looked around in astonishment and continued to wonder to himself whether Luke was joking or not.
There was no joke or anything of the sort in Luke's mind. To be honest, servants were needed to clean the mansion and prepare food.
Since Luke's first task was to create a trading area, that is, to develop the village into a town, it was enough to explain that he needed to hire others.
After all, the villagers should not live a monotonous life of daily hunting. Luke's plans were the exact opposite.
Therefore, the size of the manor would change with the development of the shop panel and the unlocking of different types of manors, and Luke would hire servants. He was well aware that many of the women in the village could work as cooks, cleaners, and the like, while the elves could naturally become warriors.
In short, he would initiate internal village trade and then, through the roads he would build towards the Empire's Northern Duchy, Wirgo, spread the name of the trade centre and shift the duchy's relationship centre in this direction.
After all, the region was covered with mutant monsters that were considered premium meat and had commercial value.
It would be completely foolish for the duchy to turn its attention elsewhere.
Cain would be the first member of this worker group.
Elves were a race known for their intelligence, agility, aptitude for magic, and natural beauty. Luke was as certain as his name that Kevin, a successful butler, could teach everything to an elf, especially an elf child eager to learn everything.
Thus, if Kevin ever decided to retire one day, there would be someone ready to take his place.
Cain.
Luke was ready, that is, he was ready with his master plan, his plan to expand everything. Starting tomorrow, everything will begin in full.
After entering the mansion, Luke showed Cain his room and then clearly stated, "From today onward, this room is yours."
Cain was naturally surprised. His room was more beautiful than any place he had ever seen in his life. It was even larger than the elf orphanage where he had once lived. Of course, the mansion created with Atlas's gift wasn't enormous, but it was quite large. Each room could even be used as a large storage space.
For a child like Cain, this was an extraordinary event.
"Mine?" Cain asked.
"Yes. From today onward, your family is me, Kevin, and Callum. As I said, you will receive training from Kevin in the future. You will be trained in reading, writing, cooking, making tea, reviewing and writing reports, drawing sketches, architecture, magic, and many other subjects. Callum will train you in swordplay. You can decide what you want to be in the future, but my heart is set on you becoming my second butler." Atlas replied, then stroked Cain's head.
The young boy's face lit up with a huge smile.