CHAPTER 536: CHAPTER 284: THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT

Djibouti Village.

Even without locating any tasks related to Djibouti Village, motivated by the benefits promised by his Lord, Hudson had led his team to Djibouti Village that very day.

Djibouti Village was a tourist destination, so Hudson’s arrival didn’t attract much attention. Therefore, upon entering the territory, he made a beeline for the Task Center of Djibouti Village to get the latest updates.

As he made his way there, he noticed that the village seemed relatively unaffected, with shops still drawing in tourists through their bustling calls for attention.

The streets were crowded with people, and beast carts came and went.

By comparison, Barnes Village seemed quite desolate.

It was clear that although Hope Village had begun to engage in tourism, its impact on Djibouti Village appeared to be minimal.

Realizing this, Hudson felt a weight sink in his heart.

He knew all too well that if Djibouti Village’s interests remained unharmed, the likelihood of his Lord’s plans coming to fruition was very small.

After all, with Hope Village’s potential, who would go out of their way to cause offense if it didn’t directly harm their own interests?

With these thoughts, Hudson had reached the Task Center.

Inside the Task Center of Djibouti Village, there was an especially large number of mercenaries coming and going.

Many of them were tourists under the guise of completing tasks.

As a village-level vacation territory, Djibouti Village had always been a favorite for novice and intermediate mercenaries, and the tasks issued by the village were always snatched up swiftly by mercenaries from various territories.

So the mercenaries present were those fortunate enough to have secured a task and were ready to embark on it.

However, they hadn’t expected to find such a large gathering of mercenaries upon arriving in Djibouti Village.

Unable to resist, someone spoke up.

"Where are you all planning to go?"

"Which territory’s task is so popular?"

"Or is there some attractive reward?"

"..."

Mercenaries often gathered information when choosing their tasks.

After all, a task that attracted a lot of interest was bound to be a good one.

Of course, good tasks were highly sought after, and not everyone who knew the inside scoop was willing to share, so those inquiring understood it was just a casual query.

If they got an answer, it was cause for joy.

If they learned nothing, they lost nothing.

Used to living on the edge, their skins had grown thick.

"We’re off to vacation in Hope Village."

"Hope Village? Where’s that?"

"It’s another village, with lots of delicious food, said to be even better than the Capital of Gourmet."

"Can a village really compete with the Capital of Gourmet?"

"Don’t know about the rest, but the food truly is delicious. Their cuisine doesn’t have any special effects, but it’s extremely popular in our territory. That’s enough to know how good it is. We’re going to Hope Village to taste it ourselves and have a look around, especially since it’s free."

"Free?"

"Yes, just take on the task, and you can visit Hope Village."

"Aww, we didn’t notice this task before we came."

"Well, Hope Village is a newly risen territory, anyway. You could visit our territory first, and then head there! Taking a trip to two places at once isn’t a bad idea."

"You’re right."

"..."

Mercenaries from other territories were persuaded one after another.

They had a few days off anyway, so visiting a few different places was no issue at all.

Soon after, these mercenaries left the Task Center and began to enjoy themselves in Djibouti Village.

In the midst of the crowd, Hudson had overheard others’ conversations.

Having listened in, he came to understand Djibouti Village’s strategy.

Djibouti Village had never intended to stop its residents from going to Hope Village. On the contrary, they even planned to form an "alliance" with Hope Village to create a tourist haven.

After all, there was no significant conflict between the tourist environments of Djibouti Village and Hope Village, and there was no competition between them.

Most importantly, Djibouti Village had confidence.

Thanks to the tourists coming from all directions, the residents of Djibouti Village were earning a fortune, and to attract customers, the overall prices were not very expensive either.

In such circumstances, even if Hope Village had some allure for the residents of Djibouti Village, it was only a small fraction.

And such a small fraction was for Djibouti Village almost negligible.

Hudson’s heart couldn’t help but sink.

It seemed the task entrusted by the Lord was unlikely to be accomplished.

Just as Hudson was thinking this, a soldier came directly to his side and said, "My lord, our Lord has requested your presence."

Hudson: "..."

—Why would the Lord of Djibouti Village invite him??? Could it be that they had discovered his background?

Feeling apprehensive, Hudson still followed the messenger.

Soon, he met with Viscount Elvan, the Lord of Djibouti Village, in the Lord Mansion.

"I’ve seen Viscount Elvan!" Hudson said respectfully.

Even if he was not a person from Djibouti Village, he still had to show respect to the Lord of the place and certainly couldn’t afford to offend him.

Viscount Elvan responded indifferently, "Speak! What are your Lord’s plans for coming to our territory?"

Viscount Elvan knew Lord Robin’s character very well.

The influence of Hope Village on the surrounding territories had begun long ago, and it had only intensified recently.

Especially according to the information he had received, Barnes Village was the most affected; even with strict prohibitions, countless people wanted to flee.

In such a situation, he didn’t believe Lord Robin, with his petty nature, would be indifferent.

So, when he saw people from Barnes Village entering Hope Village, he immediately realized it was Hudson’s doing.

Rather than letting the other party roam around his territory and create chaos, it was better to clarify things sooner.

Seeing Viscount Elvan get straight to the point, Hudson’s heart skipped a beat. He relayed his own Lord’s plans and then didn’t forget to stir the pot, "The growth of Hope Village will inevitably affect the surrounding territories. We must be prepared early! Our Lord is acting in everyone’s interest."

"Have you seen our territory greatly affected when you came to Djibouti Village?" After hearing Hudson’s words, Viscount Elvan scoffed and retorted.

Hudson had not expected Elvan to ask such a question, and caught off-guard, did not know how to respond.

After all, he had already concluded that the influence was minimal.

He would have had to think of a good excuse early on to lie!

Watching Hudson struggle to respond, Viscount Elvan snorted, "So go back and tell your Lord that Djibouti Village will not get involved in such affairs. If he wants to trouble Hope Village or anything of the sort, he can go ahead by himself. Don’t involve me; I don’t want to attract trouble."

He was too lazy to get involved in such matters. With that time, he would rather sleep soundly in his territory!

Nobody could expect to drag him out of his domain to cause trouble.

Hudson: "..."

Hudson had actually heard long ago that the Lord of Djibouti Village was someone who disliked going out and had never left his territory since he established it. He also wasn’t keen on interacting with other territories, blissfully ignoring affairs beyond his domain.

He had thought it was just a rumor, but now it seemed to be true.

How could there be a Lord like this?

Watching Hudson in a daze, Viscount Elvan furrowed his brow, "Did you hear me clearly?"

"... Yes, clearly," Hudson replied reluctantly.

The operation had ended prematurely before he had a chance to make an effort.

He felt a pang of frustration—his own Lord wouldn’t think Viscount Elvan was challenging, but rather that he had mishandled matters.

Thinking of this possibility, Hudson suddenly shivered.

If Djibouti Village was a no-go and the odds of getting Glasgow Village on board were slim, he needed to find a cooperative territory. That way, he wouldn’t be an easy target for his own Lord’s anger.

While Hudson was contemplating, Viscount Elvan, feeling he had made himself clear, issued a dismissal, "Okay, you can go now."

Hudson snapped back to reality and, seeing Viscount Elvan’s eager demeanor, he immediately left.

After Hudson departed, Viscount Elvan yawned and prepared to rest.

Meanwhile, Hudson hurried off to the next territory.

No matter what, he would try one territory at a time—there had to be one that was dissatisfied with Hope Village.