After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

As night deepened, Jenny got up to leave.

Although she believed in the Duke's abilities, she was still very unsettled, especially after learning that the Duke might need her help, which made her even more worried.

Janet dared not think about what would become of the Northern Territory after the Duke's death.

Elena pressed her shoulder, told her to wait a moment, and then went out, returning shortly with a new nightgown.

Then she said something that stunned Janet: "Sleep here tonight."

If it were Elena's room, Jenny would most likely not refuse... but this is the Duke's bed. Even though the Duke usually just laughs it off, not all his subordinates would dare to act so rudely as the two of them.

"Don't worry, I usually clean the Duke's room. Besides, we're mainly here to keep Miss Luna company, aren't we?" Elena said as she took off Jenny's cloak.

Jenny glanced at Luna, who was sleeping soundly, and sighed silently, feeling utterly speechless at the two of them.

What is this, a pajama party?

Carefully pulling the covers over herself, Jenny watched through Luna as Eleanor blew out the oil lamp. As darkness enveloped her, she lay on the unfamiliar bed, feeling a sense of disorientation.

"Maybe I should go back."

Elena chuckled softly, turning to lie on her side. Her crimson eyes gleamed slightly in the moonlight streaming through the glass window. "What, still worried about that knight?"

"Others can misunderstand me, Elena, but are you going to say things like that too?"

"What's wrong with me?"

"Want me to help you recall someone's assertive declaration?" Jenny turned to the side, meeting Eleanor's gaze with a huff.

Elena lowered her eyes, her smile vanished, and the two remained silent for a long time.

Her voice trembled slightly in the darkness, "I'm sorry, I'm a very greedy person."

"No, you did nothing wrong." Jennifer didn't actually feel angry, much less hate anything because of it.

She reached out from under the covers, took a strand of long red hair, and said calmly.

"Sometimes I feel like there's some kind of secret between you two, and you know me so well, it's like we've known each other for a very, very long time..."

Jane had been suspicious since Oswald asked her to hold a blessing ceremony. In terms of status and interpersonal relationships, she had never had any contact with the Duke in the past.

But as soon as Oswald found her, he entrusted her with important responsibilities.

In her interactions with the two men, Jenny often felt something was off; the trust and respect they displayed couldn't have been built up overnight.

Especially Elena, when she has a conflict of opinion with others, she often makes a decision with a cold face, but she is only willing to listen and argue when she is facing herself.

"Perhaps all encounters in this world are reunions after a long separation. Sleep well, Jenny."

……

After resting overnight, Oswald's injuries had healed considerably and were beginning to scab over.

Red, like a lackey, brought over a basin of hot water. Oswald, shirtless, first washed his face, then wrung out a towel until it was half dry, and was about to wipe his body when Red hurriedly stepped forward.

"Sir, please let me help you."

"You're so thoughtful."

Oswald was indeed having some difficulty moving around, so he handed the towel to Red and sat down on the stool to enjoy the service of his knight commander.

Hearing the sounds of Duke Oswald getting up and moving around inside the tent, Stuart cautiously entered after reporting the news.

Seated in the highest position with an imposing air, was none other than the Duke of the Northern Territory, who had vanquished the necromancer. His robust physique was as if carved by a knife and axe, exuding a strong masculine aura. Even though he was covered in wounds, the Duke's complexion had recovered quite well.

Siotte couldn't help but feel a little envious. If only he were the duke of his own territory!

"Your Grace, the provisions you requested have all been prepared."

"Um."

Oswald responded indifferently, and after Red wiped his body clean, he stood up and put on his clothes.

"I've heard there are many disaster victims around here, Otto. Could you please take me to see them?"

What's so interesting about disaster victims...? Sutt was puzzled, but after all, Duke Oswald had helped the Western Territory deal with the necromancer. Let alone watching disaster victims, even if the Duke wanted to watch beautiful women dancing, Sutt would have to send people to find them.

"Yes, Your Grace, I will make the preparations immediately."

Siote bowed and withdrew from the tent. After leaving the tent, he summoned his soldiers to gather the disaster victims.

"Red, go and tell the knights to pack their things; we're going back to the Northern Territory."

"Yes."

When Red found the knights, they were still bragging to the soldiers of the Western Territory.

What's so special about a dragon transformed from a necromancer? They pointed to a giant dragon statue the size of a small mountain in the distance, their faces full of arrogance.

When we followed the Duke to fight the Undying Serpent, the scene was spectacular. The war drums shook the heavens, and the earth trembled with thousands of cavalry. Even tens of thousands of undead soldiers in front of us could not withstand our onslaught.

The undead serpent was larger than a mountain, and its movements were like an earthquake, but under the Duke's leadership, we were all fearless and undaunted...

The soldiers of the Western Territory were stunned, and so was Red.

When did you become so brave? I didn't know that. Besides, wasn't that punitive expedition fought by the cavalry? What did you have to do with it? Even your commander was taken down by the giant python in one move, and I didn't see you charging over there fearlessly.

However, when you're out in the world, you give yourself your own identity.

Reid didn't expose them, but simply walked over, hands on his hips, and shouted, "Alright, what's the point of talking to these child soldiers? They can't even handle a necromancer. Come here, the Duke has ordered you to assemble!"

"yes!"

The knights, their faces flushed, forced themselves to stand tall amidst the soldiers' envious and awe-inspiring gazes, and followed Commander Red away.

Outside the camp, thousands of refugees gathered, looking somewhat uneasy at Oswald standing in front of them.

The person who can command such respect from Captain Sudoku must be an extraordinary nobleman, probably here to force them to sell themselves...

Oswald didn't speak, he just looked at them, meeting their fearful gazes.

He waved his hand, and the knights immediately stepped forward, carrying bags of food to the disaster victims.

Several starving refugees even considered signing indentures and rushing towards the food, but Oswald's imposing presence was too overwhelming; a single glance from him made them shrink back into the ranks.

After completing all this, the knights returned to their ranks. Oswald raised his whip and lashed it into the ground, the air exploding and drawing everyone's attention.

"I am Oswald, your Duke!"

With a loud shout, Scott's legs went weak, and he almost fell to the ground. Where am I? What am I doing? Who? Whose duke?

"Listen up, everyone! I've defeated the necromancer, but your homeland has been destroyed!"

"In order for all of you to survive, I've decided to take you away to a new place to start a new life!"

Oswald gripped his riding crop, took a deep breath, and said, "I don't have any indentures here, and I'm not one of those nobles who don't treat you like human beings."

"See the grain in front of you? Just follow me, and each of you will receive twenty jin (10 kg) for free!"

"When we get to the new place, I'll give each of you an extra 100 jin of grain! Those who want to farm will each get 15 mu of contiguous flat land, rent-free, it's free!"

"For those who want to work, the mines and workshops will offer thirty copper coins per person per month, plus a settlement allowance of one silver coin!"

"If you don't want to be separated, I will build you a new village so that you can live in peace and prosperity for generations to come."

"And I promise you, as long as I, Oswald, have a breath left, I will not let your homes be torn apart or your people displaced!"

"Now, line up to receive your rations, and follow me north!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire room fell silent. The moment Oswald turned around, the disaster victims surged forward, scrambling to receive the food.

Sioux was dumbfounded. He wondered why Duke Oswald hadn't mentioned the reward money after defeating the necromancer. It turned out that he had been eyeing the disaster victims in the Western Territory all along!

He's openly trying to steal someone away...

"Duke Oswald, you can't do this. If Duke Drizzt finds out, it will cause a lot of trouble."

Oswald glanced at Soft, who was blocking his way, and gave a cold smile. He looked up at the sky and said, "Soft, remember this: these refugees died in the battle against the necromancer. I didn't take anything from the Western Territory."

"You don't need to threaten me with Drizzt. I don't even consider him a threat. Tell Drizzt to manage his territory properly from now on. If he causes trouble next time, I won't be sending just fifty knights."

Ultimately, Swift dared not oppose Oswald. Now that things had come to this, he could only send cavalry to inform Duke Trist, who was far away in the royal city, and then silently look at the empty plain.

The thousands of famine victims who received the food followed Oswald with some doubt. They did not know where the duke was taking them, and they only learned after they set off that this duke was not the duke of their Western Territory.

However, having food in their stomachs puts them at ease. The Duke of the Northern Territory was also a kind man, and he even gave his horse to a lame old lady, which put them at ease for a while.

The Northern Territory was an unfamiliar place. At first, the refugees were afraid to approach the Duke, who was walking with them, but the Duke would always take the initiative to talk to them.

Gradually, the refugees lowered their guard and kept asking the Duke to answer their questions about the Northern Territory.

A few days later, as they left the Western Territory, the carriage from the Southwestern Earl's Territory arrived to meet them.

With the carriage, the group's travel speed increased considerably.

Everything was new and exciting. They saw the ruins of war, the city being rebuilt, the peaceful and beautiful countryside, and the ashes of the undead piled up into small mounds.

The workers ground the bones and packed the bone meal into barrels to sell to caravans.

After asking the Duke, the disaster victims learned that bone meal could improve soil fertility, and that the bone meal was destined for the same place as them: Kuogu City, which was reclaiming land and building a new rural area.

What they saw and heard along the way, along with the residents' laughter and joy, made them realize that the Duke's promises would come true, and their new life was truly about to begin.