Watching Carly's departing figure, the fat man was completely convinced; Carly could actually drink five bowls of milk.
Carly said that anyone who could drink five bowls of milk was a VIP, and the fat man rubbed his butt again. He couldn't be a VIP; he'd better stay here and mow the lawn!
In an unnamed valley to the west of the territory.
The count's servant, Arthur, was resting in a makeshift shed. They had been mining day and night for the past few days, and the warehouse over there was already piled high with ore.
The most pressing issue now is getting these ores back for refining, as this place lacks the necessary facilities.
He rubbed his hands together. The weather was getting colder every day. Whether they should continue mining here or go back and come back next year, they needed to ask the Earl for permission.
He needed to act sooner rather than later, whether it was to transport the ore back or to continue mining; preparations were necessary. Without enough oxcarts or sufficient food and heating supplies, both of these would be difficult to achieve.
"You guys come back to Ziye Territory with me. After I leave, you'll be in charge here. If any problems arise, I'll cut your head off and kick it into that lake to feed the fish." The man assigned to the task trembled.
Arthurs left, taking six or seven men with him as they departed from the valley.
"Elm, you've been so happy these days! You seem to have inexhaustible energy."
The companion found Elm's behavior strange. Ever since that night, Elm had become very odd, always wearing a smile and foolishly carrying ore without seeming tired. Had he been whipped senseless? But he hadn't been hit on the head!
"Hmm," Yumu hummed in response. He actually wanted to say more, but he was too excited to know how to start the conversation.
Ever since Sugi told him that his son was still alive, he had been in a state of ecstasy, and even after so much time had passed, he still couldn't calm down.
But the cedar tree hasn't returned yet, which makes him a little worried again.
"Elm, what are you humming about? Why can't you talk properly now? Huh? Look, that bastard Arthur seems to have left."
Looking in the direction of the sound, Elm saw Ares indeed leading several people out of the valley.
A gust of wind blew by, and Yu Mu tightened his clothes to keep himself a little warmer.
"It must be because the weather is getting colder now, so we should ask the lord what to do?" He couldn't think of any other reason.
"What a vicious bunch of people! We work so hard every day, and all we get is that black bread full of sawdust. When we first came, there were seventy or eighty of us. Now look how many are left? Only fifty or sixty. This isn't a mine; this is a graveyard." His companion became more and more agitated as he spoke.
"Alright, there are still people watching from a distance. Calm down." Elm quickly covered his companion's mouth.
"Waaah!" His companion struggled for a moment, then stopped moving; he had calmed down.
Actually, there's no point in saying all this; he was just letting off steam because of the scene.
There was a reason why Arthas didn't treat them as human beings: they were all slaves.
However, if too many people die, he will not be able to account for it. If this continues, no one will mine anymore, or the amount of ore mined will not be enough to cover the losses.
Now Arthas is a little better.
Knowing that the weather was getting colder, if they didn't address the problem soon, they would all freeze to death in this place.
His companion glanced at the elm tree; it was still looking down, lost in thought.
"Elmwood, how about we run away while he's gone?"