Chapter 364 - 362: Starlight Mulberry Tree

Chapter 364: Chapter 362: Starlight Mulberry Tree

Over the next few days, Duane went to Long View Town and Sentry Town to scout Viscount Freddy’s troop deployments.

A preliminary look revealed that the viscount had stockpiled his rations and supplies in Long View Town, which belonged to Sharp Stone Territory, and deployed his main forces in Sentry Town, which had originally belonged to Duke Star Sea.

Meanwhile, Duke Eldrin had stationed his forces in the recaptured Lange Valley area.

Both sides had a considerable number of soldiers. It seemed that although the conflict here had been mediated by Duke Blazing Sun, both Freddy and Eldrin were prepared to go to war at a moment’s notice.

A standoff like this would leave their rear areas undefended, which was manageable as long as no external forces interfered.

However, if an outside power were to intervene, it would create a perfect opportunity for them to be exploited.

Of course, Freddy and Eldrin knew this as well.

But both men trusted their own intelligence systems, as well as that of the Akutas Kingdom. Even if another power truly intended to attack the Starfall Islands, they believed they would receive word shortly after the enemy ships left port.

With a voyage of over twenty days, they would have time to withdraw their troops and mount a defense before the enemy arrived.

However, Duane’s method of setting up his plans in advance was not so easy to guard against.

For him, the only thing missing for his conquest of the Starfall Islands was the right opportunity—a moment when the Akutas Kingdom would be unable to send aid, even if he attacked.

Until that moment arrived, all he needed to do was stockpile troops and supplies.

This reconnaissance mission took Duane five days. After he finished, he took Brison to Mountain Village.

As a liaison, it was necessary for Duane to have him meet Lune to build mutual trust between them.

This would also reassure Heir and the others in Mountain Village, letting them know they didn’t need to live in constant fear of trying to escape. As long as they peacefully completed the tasks Lune assigned them, their lives would not be in danger.

This small mountain village didn’t require Selena to invest any effort in developing it; too much traffic would only increase the risk of exposure.

Duane even wished the place could be completely cut off from the rest of the world.

「Black Forest Island」

Although everything continued to run as usual after Duane left, Black Forest Island now had a new mistress.

Natalia was not only beautiful but also hailed from a powerful, great noble family and was a magical genius in her own right...

With so many dazzling qualities, she already inspired awe in many. Combined with her usually cold and proud expression, many people assumed the new mistress was difficult to get along with.

Crucially, this new mistress also liked to wander around the territory, often stopping an official or a rank-and-file worker to ask a few questions. This made many people so nervous they hardly dared to breathe in her presence.

In reality, she was simply trying to gain a detailed understanding of the territory’s various industries, not deliberately looking for trouble.

However, it was precisely this series of actions that put some people, who had grown a little lax in the Lord’s absence, on edge and kept them from getting out of line.

On the eighth day after Duane left Black Forest Island, Natalia summoned all the officials of Black Forest Island for a meeting to promote the Spiritual Soil. Even Haien, who was developing the Southen Plain, was in attendance.

The meeting’s agenda was not complex. Natalia simply announced a few matters that Duane had entrusted to her. Still, it was her first time presiding over a meeting as the mistress of the territory and advancing its development, so it was a good start.

And when the peasants learned from the officials that the Lord was distributing Spiritual Soil for free to help them increase their yields, and that they would be allowed to keep 250 pounds of their early rice harvest per mu, it caused quite a stir.

The peasants were not foolish. Especially when it came to the rations they needed to survive, they could easily work out the numbers.

Keeping 250 pounds of grain for themselves was clearly more than what they had left after paying their rent and taxes in previous years, so they were happy to accept.

However, when the people heard that the Spiritual Soil could increase the yield per mu to 800 pounds, and that they would have to turn over more than 500 pounds of grain, many of them felt their hearts ache.

’If only the 800-pound yield was taxed at the usual rate! We could have kept over 500 pounds for ourselves. Wouldn’t that have been wonderful?’

These peasants were taking the welfare for granted, little knowing that the Mithril for constructing the arrays and the Fel Energy Crystals for converting the Black Soil were all purchased with Gold Coins.

Natalia heard these sentiments. She also knew that even if the Spiritual Soil was effective, there was no way to get a good harvest if the farmers grew lazy and neglected their fields.

To prevent people from receiving Spiritual Soil only to neglect their farming, resulting in substandard yields, she issued a supplementary new rule—

In the absence of natural disasters, if the yield from a field treated with Spiritual Soil was less than 400 pounds, not only would the farmer have to pay taxes according to the old rates, but they would also have to compensate for the cost of the Spiritual Soil at a price of 80 Copper Coins per pound.

At this, everyone became serious.

If they weren’t careful with this early rice harvest, they could very well lose everything.

Natalia’s strict policies caused her reputation in the territory to skyrocket, and she also earned the title "Cold-faced Lady."

Some people secretly wondered, ’If our benevolent Lord knew about this, would he oppose such a punishment?’

Far from opposing it, Duane wholeheartedly approved of Natalia’s new rule.

Some people really would think that a harvest of 250 pounds was enough. ’The rest goes to the Lord,’ they’d think, ’what does it have to do with me?’

Natalia’s new rule closed a loophole he had overlooked.

In early May, Duane returned to Black Forest Island.

Now, besides cargo ships, three warships were docked near the port. Trent and his subordinate, Hao, were training the newly recruited Navy.

This new naval force consisted of a hundred men. A few were locals from Black Forest Island, but most were recruited from the migrants from Silent Shore. They all had a decent foundation.

Duane stood at a distance and watched for a while. The training regimen was varied, including ship handling, balance exercises, rapid firefighting drills, and more. Some men were even practicing diving in the Shallow Water Area.

Silent Shore was a part of Seaside City, and with a professional like Trent leading the training, their efficiency was a cut above what Heck and the others could manage. Duane believed these soldiers would soon master the Basic Skills.

After watching quietly for a while, Duane returned to Forest Castle.

"Karen, where’s your lady?" Natalia was not in the castle at the moment.

The maid, Karen, was tending to the flowers in the courtyard with Jasmine. It was clear at a glance that this was Natalia’s doing.

After all, the gardens at Sea Cliff Castle were planted with numerous flowers.

"My apologies, Lord. The lady went out after lunch, and I don’t know where she has gone."

Natalia had even been visiting the Southen Plain recently. As a maid, Karen didn’t have to accompany her at all times, so she wasn’t aware of her master’s exact whereabouts.

Duane chuckled. "So busy, huh? It’s almost evening, and she’s still not back."

Karen agreed. "The lady has been so busy lately. The time I get to see her each day is very limited."

Just then, Jasmine, who was standing to the side, added, "Lord, the farmer Barry visited the castle this afternoon. He said he had something to report. I wonder if the lady might have gone to see him?"

Hearing this name, Duane was first surprised, then delighted.

For nearly two years, he had expended a great deal of Fertile Soil and Basic Water Energy Essence, yet the mulberry trees in the field had shown no signs of change. Now, in early May, it was the season for mulberry trees to sprout new leaves.

’Barry is visiting now... could it be that the Starlight Mulberry Trees have finally been successfully cultivated?’

"I see," Duane said, and left the castle.

Whether Natalia was at Sangtian or not, he had to go and see for himself.

The setting sun had already dipped below the horizon, and twilight began to blanket the land.

When Duane arrived, he was stunned by the scene before him.

Like a sky full of stars, nearly all the mulberry leaves were shimmering with a faint, silvery glow. They swayed in the wind, a sight of incomparable beauty.

"Duane, you’re back?"

Natalia’s delighted voice came from within the sea of silvery stars.

Soon, a huge dark shadow shot out and circled Duane several times.

Fur Ball was acting just like a dog, unbelievably enthusiastic.

Duane raised his hand and stroked its head. It was a moment before Natalia emerged from Sangtian.

Behind her were Eleanor, as well as the farmers Barry and Constance, who were in charge of managing Sangtian and the Extraction of Water Energy Essence.

"I just got back."

Duane said with a smile, "Jasmine told me Barry had come looking for me, so I came over. I didn’t expect you to be here too."

"It’s so beautiful here, isn’t it?"

Natalia’s face was full of smiles, making Constance and Barry feel as if they were looking at a completely different person.

Duane nodded. "This is my first time seeing the Starlight Mulberry Trees, too. It’s truly breathtaking!"

Once the sky was completely dark, the sight would surely be even more beautiful.

Just then, the farmer Barry couldn’t help but say excitedly, "Lord, I irrigated them with Magic Liquid yesterday, and I noticed something was happening this morning. By the time I returned from my trip to Forest Castle, this place had already transformed into a sea of stars!"

The Starlight Mulberry Trees had been successfully cultivated. The great stone that had been weighing on his family’s hearts could finally be set down.

They no longer had to worry about being blamed by the Lord.