Chapter 79: Phield VS Ashina

"My people, good morning. I am your lord, Baron Phield."

Standing on the platform, Phield waved to the crowd.

"Good morning!"

"Greetings, my lord!"

Many voices answered back. Some slaves even waved enthusiastically, bright smiles on their faces. Phield recognized at a glance that most of those responding were slaves who had joined the guard.

Finally, some real reactions, Phield thought. Last time it felt like I was giving a speech to a pile of wood.

His gaze swept across the crowd, firm and bright. "I’ll keep this brief. I promised before that anyone who earned one gold coin for me would be released from slavery and restored as a free citizen. As of today, six people have achieved that. They all come from my guard."

Phield pointed directly at Sam and the others.

"Damn, are they beasts or what? How did they earn it so fast?"

"They’ve been killing rotting corpses nonstop. I heard each one is worth a silver coin."

"I’m so jealous..."

Phield raised both hands and pressed them downward, signaling for silence.

"As long as everyone works together and follows my orders, you will gain gold, food, and freedom. We’re not just here to survive—we’re here to live better!"

Sam, Ben, and the others felt their blood boil with excitement, fists clenched tight. Ever since becoming slaves, their hearts had long gone numb. Slaves had no chance to turn their fate around; the only hope was to work themselves to death and pray for heaven afterward.

Yet now, they were being given a chance to reclaim freedom.

"It feels like a dream." Sam lifted his chin proudly. "From now on, I’m no longer a slave. I’m going to marry, have children, and build my own mud house."

"What are your plans after this?" Ben asked, pulling a gold coin from his pocket. He still had three silver coins left, though there was nowhere to spend money in the territory yet.

"Keep serving as a soldier, of course," Sam replied matter-of-factly. "You don’t get meat to eat anywhere else."

"...That’s a very straightforward reason." Ben’s lips twitched. "Why do I feel like becoming a free citizen won’t actually change much from before?"

"That’s because our lord is too kind. You’ve never been to the pitch-black mines, or forced to fight like a pet for someone’s amusement. Honestly, the life of a slave guard here is already similar to that of free citizens outside—maybe even more comfortable. How many free citizens get to eat dried meat every day?"

Sam clearly had stories behind him. "Policies may change, but no matter what, following the lord’s arrangements won’t be wrong."

"I didn’t expect you to think like that." Ben looked shocked. "You’re right."

"I hereby pardon your slave status. From this day forward, you are lawful residents of this land." Phield smiled, destroyed their slave contracts, and accepted the six gold coins.

As expected, money generated more money. The original forty silver coins had grown into one gold coin each—and along the way, they had solved a great deal of trouble for him.

"We still wish to serve in the guard," Ben and the others said in unison.

"Of course. But now, you will be soldiers—proper members of the army." Phield called out their names and continued, "Your monthly salary will temporarily be set at three silver coins. In addition, each rotting corpse you kill will still earn you one silver coin."

Compared to before, they now had a fixed salary.

"Yes, my lord!" The group was overjoyed.

"He really pardoned them..." The crowd murmured in disbelief.

No official stepped forward with some obscure law, no tedious arguments to confiscate the coins and force them back into slavery. The pardon was carried out cleanly and decisively.

The remaining slaves saw hope. Their spirits ignited, as if they could rush straight into the fields and plow twice as hard.

"Very good. You may all return to work. I look forward to the day you become even wealthier."

The crowd hurried back to their posts.

"Heh... go on and create value," Phield muttered with a faint smile, toying with the gold coins in his hand.

"My lord, are you truly setting them free just like that?" Kaor nearly felt like stabbing out his own eyes; he could hardly tolerate what he saw as Phield’s "wastefulness." "Their previous待遇 was already generous enough, and this will put pressure on our finances."

"Money only has meaning when it flows. Piled in my warehouse, it’s nothing but cold precious metal."

Phield flicked the coin between his fingers. "See? Proof right here—silver turns into gold. Then we use that gold to buy more slaves, and they become even more gold."

"But..."

The steward felt slightly dizzy, unable to pinpoint exactly what was wrong.

Phield didn’t bother explaining further. Instead, he cast the Winged Beast Empathy spell and summoned his Black Crow.

However, as the Black Crow flew past the window of his room, Phield frowned.

"Hm? Who’s in my room? A maid?"

He ordered the Black Crow to hover and take a quiet look.

There sat the wolf-eared girl, grinning mischievously on his pillow. Her soft wolf tail swayed proudly behind her.

"Sniff sniff~ The lord’s bed has a faint, fresh fragrance. The lord really loves cleanliness... it smells so nice."

She licked her elegant nails and said with smug delight, "That damn Rosalia—using her body scent to mark the territory whenever she pleases. I can’t lose to her. Hmph, hmph, hmph. This place must be marked with my scent too."

What the hell...?

So Rosalia had been sneaking into his room to sleep, using the excuse that "the bed is the softest." Was that just a lie?

Her real intention was to claim ownership over his bed?

And now you two are dragging me into your nonsense too!

"No... I have to strike back. These two mischievous women are getting bolder by the day."

Phield strode upstairs and pushed open the door.

Ashina’s senses were sharp. By the time he entered, she was already pretending to tidy the desk. The bed was neatly made—though still faintly warm.

"My lord, what is it?" Ashina asked with an innocent, slightly dazed expression.

"Good, very good. So you’ve been secretly dividing up ownership of my bed behind my back? Exploitative capital preying on agriculture to complete primitive accumulation—I absolutely cannot allow this!"

Ashina blinked, utterly confused. "What are you talking about? I... I don’t understand."

"That’s fine. I don’t even know what I’m saying either. Now prepare for punishment—battle mode!" Phield shut the door without hesitation.

"H....Hey? N-No... you can’t," the girl stammered, stumbling backward.

"Weren’t you just saying you wanted to mark the territory with your scent?" Phield revealed a terrifying grin. "Come on—let’s fight!"

"How.... could you possibly hear that?!" Ashina stared in shock. Her perception was absurdly sharp—she had once detected Rosalia merely wandering near the Nightfall Domain. Then a thought struck her. "Wait... was it that Black Crow? Did you use my divine mark through it?"