CHAPTER 225: CHAPTER 225: SHAMBLED TOWN

Siderius marched back to Mucktown, the place of which Snow had despised from the bottom of his soul. But that part had disappeared.

The town held no value in his soul anymore. It bore no weight to Snow or Siderius’ mind. Now, it was simply an ordinary town.

Siderius returned to Mucktown with Nadia and a group of miners and builders.

He intended to rebuild the Rocky Pit into an actual respectable mining colony and also took control of Mucktown.

If he didn’t, someone else would have.

The caravan had less people this time but with more carts. These carts held resources, woods, stones, ores, and food. The new group of miners would need a place to stay and food for their belly.

A miner sat at the back of a cart and sighed.

"We escaped the Rocky Pit. And now we return. I wonder if that was the right decision."

"What are you even worried about?"

"Make no mistakes. I do think Lord Snow is different from Germort. But still, that place gave me the creeps till now."

Siderius was riding Red when he heard that. He approached the two miners.

"My lord!" They bowed to him.

"Don’t fret. I just want to say something. We will rebuild the Rocky Pit because it is a valuable mining quarry. It will not be the same as what it was before.

All of you will be paid handsomely for your work. You will have houses, food, and free time to do as you want.

You also have a choice. To resign your position from the Rocky Pit at any time. There are no slaves in my territory.

Everyone is a free man."

The miners stared at Siderius with admiration.

"Is it really true, my lord?"

Siderius laughed. "In the name of my honor, it is true."

The miners nodded and bowed deeply. "We cannot express our gratitude enough."

"It’s alright. Anyway, I doubt anyone would want to resign from the position in Rocky Pit in the future?" Siderius said.

"Why is that, my lord?"

"Because everywhere else will not have the same good conditions as the Rocky Pit will have."

Siderius rode forward to the caravan and stopped by Nadia.

"Talking with your subjects, my lord?" Nadia said.

Siderius nodded. "The volunteers do have some doubts. I just want to make sure their questions are answered."

"You really are a benevolent noble." Nadia mumbled.

Siderius smiled but did not say anything. He didn’t think he was that benevolent. He only did what was best for him. And what was best for him was also what was best for his residents.

Only a fool would rule his domain in hatred. You can be feared and respected but you can’t be hated.

Hatred was the key to many downfalls in the past. It would unite an entire group of people against you.

They arrived at Mucktown within a couple of days.

The place was in shambles. Without a Bailiff to lead the town and his guards to maintain order, crimes rampaged the streets. Commoners band into groups to protect themselves. A few troublemakers formed bandit groups to rob the poor commoners.

Fortunately, the destruction was limited due to the lack of weapons. Siderius had collected all the weapons of the guard and in Germort’s personal storage to bring to Santa Roberto. The weapons that the commoners and bandits used were simply wooden bats and sticks.

The caravan stopped in front of the gate of Mucktown. There were no guards there. As it should be.

Siderius turned to Nadia. "Tell the people to take a break. I will go inside to check first."

"Do you need men with you?" Nadia said.

"No need. No one here can harm me."

Siderius rode Red into Mucktown. The streets were even more dirty than before. All kinds of stuff scattered on the ground. Food, wood pieces, and unidentifiable objects.

Siderius rode to the commoner tavern. He suspected the remaining people should be there.

In front of the tavern were a few men. They had bows and arrows.

When Siderius appeared, they stood up immediately and aimed their arrows at Siderius.

Their bows were poorly crafted. They were made from flimsy sticks and thin wires. Not the same as Siderius’ masterful bow. Those bows would not be able to generate much force and would easily be snapped after a few uses.

"Stop right there!" The male commoner said.

"Lower your bow before you hurt yourself." Siderius jumped down from the horse. His high-quality bear cloak smelled rare and expensive.

The commoners of Mucktown didn’t know much about what happened to Germort. They knew he was killed by a white hair witch but didn’t know it was Snow.

The one who knew were the helpers of Kraus and the miners, who had all gone to Santa Roberto.

"Who are you?!" The commoner didn’t lower his bow and shouted again.

Siderius lowered his hood to reveal his hair. He still covered his face with the scarf.

"White hair..." The commoner dropped his bow. As ignorant as they could be, they knew better than provoking a witch.

"My lord..." They all knelt down on the ground.

"Are all the people of Mucktown inside?" Siderius said.

"No, my lord... Just Gigi and a few families."

"Gigi?"

"Yes, my lord... She’s our temporary leader."

"Is that so? Let me meet her."

"Of course, my lord."

They lead Siderius inside. The tavern was the biggest structure in Mucktown, much bigger than an ordinary house. It also had many bedrooms that could hold five to seven people each.

After the chaos, a few commoners gathered here to protect themselves.

Siderius pushed open the door. The chaotic scene inside was revealed.

People were standing, sitting, talking, splitting into groups. A few laid on the ground with cheap sheets as their mattress.

Siderius saw a girl on the ground with a bloody arm. He approached her and squatted down. There was another young girl with chestnut-colored hair that was tending to the injured girl.

"What happened?" Siderius said.

The girl with chestnut-colored hair didn’t look up. She was washing the bloody arm of the injured girl. "Bandits... They attacked her family... Only she was able to escape."

"You’re doing it wrong. Hand me the cloth." Siderius opened his palm.

"Alright." The girl with chestnut-colored hair handed Siderius the wet cloth. Her eyes widened when she saw Siderius’ white hair.

"You... You are..."