Wearing black silk for a foreign woman

Chapter 143 Population Growth

In the open space outside the camp, more than a hundred new beastmen gathered together and looked at the people coming out of the camp.

To be more precise, he was looking at Lind.

This is normal because Linde is the son of Mother Earth.

The Earth Mother Goddess is the racial god of the New Beastmen. The so-called racial god is a god who specifically protects a certain race. Of course, this classification is defined by Lind himself. At least in the Holy Empire, there is no systematic and authoritative method to divide different gods.

There was no difference between Chaos Beastmen and New Beastmen. All Beastmen were minions of the Chaos God, and they were not very popular minions, a bit like the traitors on Earth. The New Beastmen were able to get rid of the influence of the evil god and break away from the original chaotic state, and the Mother Earth Goddess played a great role. Without the belief in the Mother Earth Goddess, there would be no New Beastmen.

Five hundred years have passed since the birth of the Earth Mother Goddess, not to mention the Son of God, not even a single God's Chosen has appeared. Now that the Son of Goddess of the Earth Mother Goddess has appeared, how could it not drive these new beasts who devoutly believe in the Earth Mother Goddess crazy?

However, the new beastmen outside the fence looked at Lind with various expressions, not all of which were the excitement of devout believers.

The most common expression among the new beastmen is confusion.

A large number of new beastmen gathered in the open space outside the camp. According to the leader Lu Ge, they were all leaders or shamans of various new beastman tribes, as well as their entourage.

At a glance, all the new beastmen have the same body structure. Their upper bodies are almost identical to humans, except for their ears. Their lower bodies retain the original flavor of beasts, as if to let people who see them know that they are beastmen. Their races can be distinguished by their ears and the beast feet in their lower bodies.

In addition to the cows and deer that Lind had already seen, there were also sheep, horses, bears, wolves, and so on. What they had in common was that they were all mammals and had very large bodies.

It seems that in terms of body size, the new beastmen are generally much larger than humans.

Then their purpose of coming was to form an alliance in order to fight against the most powerful Chaos Beastman King, Lion King Mara, who was in the northernmost part of Ivozhen Island as Fran had mentioned.

And he said he wanted to be the leader himself! ?

Linde was a little nervous and glanced at Ilufa beside him. Ilufa was the lord here, and he was just working under her. Was it appropriate for him to be the leader, bypassing the boss?

Ilfa still had that polite social smile on his face, and no special psychological activity could be seen.

"Oh, there's one more thing." Just as Lind was about to speak, Lu Ge continued, "We have another gift for you this time."

"Humans! Come out! You are home!" After saying that, Lu Ge turned around and shouted to the team behind him. Immediately, a group of humans came out from the new beastman team one after another.

There were about a hundred of these humans, needless to say, they all fled into the forest after the two colonial cities were destroyed. Just now, because they were mixed in with the new beastmen and were generally shorter than the new beastmen, they were not noticed.

Most of these people were wearing crude animal skin clothing, and a few were even wearing simple clothes made from some unknown plant. Their faces looked pale, as if they had been abused.

But if you look closely at the other new beastmen, you will know that this is not the case, because the new beastmen who come here basically have more or less similar situations, looking like they are short of food, and some are even injured.

When these people saw Ilufa, they immediately knelt down and cried to Ilufa as if they had seen a savior. Linde was used to this kind of situation. Every time a refugee came back, the same scene would happen. Ilufa also accepted the refugees' kneeling naturally.

"They all fled to the forest after their cities were breached and were found by the various tribes." Lu Ge explained. "Well, can we go in first? It's not very polite to talk about forming an alliance standing here."

Lu Ge was talking to Lin De, but Lin De was not the lord here and could not make the decision, so Lin De smiled and said, "You should ask Mrs. Gaines, she is the owner here."

"Ah! Sorry! I neglected it!" Lu Ge pretended to realize something, turned his head and looked at Ilufa and said, "Beautiful lady, can we go in and talk?"

"Of course." Illufa smiled and nodded, making a gesture of invitation. "Please invite the guests in."

With that, the militia opened the gate to the camp and let in the unexpected guests.

Since the camp had been built not long ago, there was no decent place to entertain guests, let alone so many guests. Therefore, there was no choice but to arrange them all in the small square in the camp.

It is called a small square, but in fact it is just a piece of processed and leveled land. The grass has been removed and the ground has been compacted. A large stone that was already here is used as a temporary podium.

So many refugees came at once, a hundred in total, doubling the population of the camp. More labor was a good thing, but the surge in population quickly ate up all the food that was left. With almost a hundred more mouths to feed, the food that Fenrir and Schnee's hunting group brought back every day was not enough.

Fortunately, in about ten days, the first batch of crops in the reclaimed farmland will be harvested. Judging from the current situation, the harvest is quite good. These fine seeds selected by the original owner, plus the blessing of the Mother Earth, the yield is obviously much higher than ordinary seeds.

After the first batch of crops was successfully harvested, Lind planned to further expand the cultivated area. Only with sufficient food and enough people to engage in non-agricultural production could the industrial revolution be carried out.

How does the saying go, enough cheap labor.

Let the new beastmen wait for a while, and gather all the new refugees. Ilufa stood on a big rock and announced three new decrees of the camp to the new refugees.

These three new decrees were proposed by Lind, but they have been approved by Ilufa. In addition, under Lind's strong insistence, every time there are new refugees, it is Ilufa who announces them.

The purpose of doing this is, firstly, to make these refugees recognize that their lord is still Ilufa, and secondly, to strengthen their inner sense of security. On this isolated island, if there is no spiritual support, it is too easy to cause trouble.

As in previous times, after the three decrees were announced, there was a commotion among the refugees, especially regarding meat. Some refugees began to look around for work to do.

The new beastmen also had different reactions after hearing these three decrees.

Chapter 144: Alliance or Not

When Ilfa announced these three decrees, Lind was also observing the reactions of the new beastmen to see how they would react to these three decrees.

These new beastmen are different from the new beastmen transformed by Lind. They are all free and have formed their own values, so it is natural that they cannot completely listen to themselves, even if they are the sons of God appointed by the Mother Goddess of the Earth.

Lind observed these new beastmen. Judging from their state, what Lu Ge said should be true. Fran said that the Chaos Beastmen on Aiwozhen Island had set out with their heads as their goal because of the Blood God's oracle. And because of the Chaos Beastmen's rough logistics method of robbing wherever they went, there must be all kinds of bloody storms along the way.

The Chaos Beastmen will fight each other, and naturally they will also attack the new Beastmen along the way, especially the new Beastmen living on the dividing line between the two sides' living areas.

The Chaos Beastmen on the Island of Ivozhen are a group of scattered sand. There is no strongest person who can command all the Chaos Beastmen. The same is true for the New Beastmen, who are even more scattered than the Chaos Beastmen. At least there is the Lion King Mara among the Chaos Beastmen. Among the New Beastmen, there is no individual who can call on all the New Beastmen.

One piece of evidence is that the Chaos Beastmen coalition led by Zekesi just now not only destroyed two human colonial cities, but also destroyed many New Beastmen camps. Until Zekesi was captured, the New Beastmen did not form a coalition or anything, and the final siege was fought by each side, with no unified command at all.

In the Old World, humans were able to defeat the green-skinned Orks and Beastmen, whose individual combat power far exceeded their own, because of their organization.

Luge, the chieftain and shaman of the Sami tribe, is relatively influential among the new beastmen on Ivozhen Island. The evidence is that after the riot caused by Zekesi, he absorbed many new beastmen except Deer into his tribe. Most of the new beastmen are divided into tribes according to race, which is also what Thrall told Lind.

Although the new beastmen except the deer will eventually leave the Sami tribe and establish their own tribes, it at least proves that Lu Ge has a certain appeal.

But whether it is Lu Ge or other new beastmen, their appeal is definitely not enough to form an alliance covering most of the new beastman tribes, so they came to find Linde, the Son of God.

In a short time, Lind realized the purpose of the new beastmen coming here by observing them. Finding allies was secondary, and the most important thing was himself as the son of the Earth Mother Goddess.

Most of the new beastmen had little interest in Ilufa's three decrees and forgot about them after hearing them. They were not criminals exiled to Ivozhen Island and did not need to be bound by these decrees.

When Lind was observing the new beastmen, the new beastmen were also observing Lind. His identity as the Son of God had already spread, which was not surprising. After all, when the Thunder Tribe rescued Ilufa, his identity as the Son of God had already been spread. It was only a matter of time before it spread throughout the entire Ivozhen Island.

The eyes of most of the new beastmen were full of eagerness, which was understandable, but the eyes of many of the new beastmen were full of doubt, as if they did not believe that they were the sons of the Mother Earth.

After thinking about it for a while, Linde understood what was going on. The Earth Mother Goddess had always been the racial god of the New Beastmen, and the New Beastmen were the only believers. Now that a human suddenly appeared and was the son of the Earth Mother Goddess, it was normal for him to be suspected.

However, Lind didn't need to argue or prove anything. Words were pale. He only needed to show the holy marks of the Earth Mother Goddess and then make a random phone call to amplify the breath of the Earth Mother Goddess, and they would have no choice but to believe it.

But the key issue at this time is, how to deal with the relationship with these new beastmen?

The key to the issue is not whether to ally or not.

At this time, Ilufa's three new decrees had been announced, and all the new people who had just been transformed from prisoners to serfs were quickly incorporated into various work teams under the leadership of their predecessors.

Since a hundred people came at once, it was obviously not feasible to simply fill the original working group. Therefore, Lind suggested that some of the old people be selected to serve as leaders of the new working team, so that these newcomers could quickly integrate into the operating rules of the camp through the method of old people leading new people.

The arrangement for the new subjects was thus concluded, and then came the highlight, the alliance with the new beastmen.

Before formally negotiating with the new beastmen, Ilfa specifically called Lind and several important figures in the camp to the lord's tent on the pretext of arranging camp work.

"Time is running out, let's hurry up." Everyone gathered in the tent. Since the new beastmen were waiting outside, time was running out and they couldn't spend too much time. Irufa got straight to the point without any hesitation. "You all heard the purpose of the new beastmen's visit. What do you think of this?"

"Hurry up, don't look at each other, talk if you have something to say! Alisa! You go first!"

"Ah?" Alyssa was stunned. Is there any room for her to get angry about such a thing?

"I think we can form an alliance." Alyssa said nervously. "After all, our enemy is very powerful, and we don't have much time left. We can't defeat them on our own. In this case, forming an alliance is the best option."

"I agree with you, young lady." Winter, who had been promoted to the commander-in-chief of the camp garrison, agreed. "According to the intelligence we have, our potential enemy, the Chaos Beastman Lion King Mara, is very powerful. With just the few people in our camp, it is impossible to resist the enemy's attack."

"Me too." Deputy garrison commander Ram's opinion was very brief, maintaining a high degree of consistency with his leadership.

Since there are only so many people in the camp and not many of them hold positions, there are only a few people who can express their opinions, plus the Chief Combat Sister Shanoya and Linde, the camp construction manager.

There was no new beastman in the management, not because Ilufa was a racist, but because Ilufa had no right to appoint any new beastman. In Ilufa's view, all new beastmen were Lind's people, and appointing any new beastman was equivalent to poaching.

"I... have a different opinion." After everyone else agreed, Shanoya put forward a different opinion. "Sister, the key to the problem now is not whether to form an alliance or not, but something else."

Linde sighed calmly inwardly.

Chapter 145: Promotion to Baron

When Lu Ge revealed his identity as the son of the Mother Goddess of Earth and the purpose of the alliance, Linde realized this problem at the first moment.

The new beastmen came to form an alliance with themselves, the son of the Mother Goddess of Earth, not with the lord of the camp, Ilufa.

It seems to be just an identity issue, but the problem is not that simple.

Linde doesn't like politics, nor does he like political issues. He hates so-called office politics. Just work, why do you have to engage in intrigue and deception, and look at the face of the director of the department, your grandmother's face is like a chicken leg, you are going to jail now!

Lind is not interested in politics. The only related work is the "Yes Minister" series, which he has watched countless times. However, Lind likes to read history, and has learned some political knowledge through osmosis.

This group of new beastmen came to form an alliance with Lind, not with Ilufa. As long as Lind agreed, he could immediately turn the tables and become the master of this camp, the lord, or even the beast king.

But Linde was unwilling to do so. His personality was not suitable for being a leader. Being a leader not only meant holding power, but also responsibility, especially responsibility. If something really happened, the leader would be held accountable, even if it was just a figurehead.

Whoever wants to be the lord can be it. Linde doesn't think that a real man should be under someone else for long.

And what's wrong with being a subordinate, especially when the leader is a mature woman who is very suitable for black stockings...

"Of course, this is an alliance with the Madam, not with me." Without waiting for Shanoya to continue, Lind directly pointed out the problem. "Although I am nominally the son of the Earth Mother Goddess, that was imposed on me by the Earth Mother Goddess. I do not acknowledge this identity."

You've called me mom several times, the people present said inwardly.

"Madam, you are the lord here. Naturally, if we want to form an alliance, it should be with you, not with me. And even if we form an alliance with me, as your subject, I should fight for you."

"According to the vassal law, I should fight for you," Lind emphasized.

The word "vassal law" made everyone suddenly realize.

Yes, there is such a law.

The so-called vassal law is a law implemented within the Holy Empire. It stipulates the obligations and responsibilities that vassals and feudal lords need to fulfill to each other within the Holy Empire. For example, vassals must pay taxes to feudal lords and provide soldiers for combat. The feudal lords must ensure the legitimacy of the vassal's rule and protect the vassal's territory from infringement, etc.

The specific content would vary in different feudal states, such as the amount of taxes to be paid, the length of military service, etc., but it was basically like this: the vassal and the lord each took what they needed, provided each other with what they needed, and jointly maintained this hierarchical pyramid feudal society.

From the perspective of Linde, a time traveler, this system is ridiculous. The existence of local princes in a country and the possession of large armed forces only occurred in troubled times in ancient China, and they would eventually reunify. However, no one in the Holy Empire, from the regent to the common people, thought there was anything wrong with this.

To be honest, Lind wanted to change this situation, but he couldn't do it now because he didn't have the conditions. Now the camp was so big that it only took half an hour to walk from one end to the other. He didn't have the conditions because he wasn't strong enough. If he flipped the table rashly, it would only attract others to attack him. The colonists of the Holy Empire would come again next year.

According to the vassal law, vassals can have private armed forces and their own allies, and they are also obliged to fight for the lord. In this way, the question of who to ally with is easily solved.

As for the fact that Lind is not a vassal now but just a lord, that is not a problem at all.

Ilufa immediately made Lind kneel on one knee, placed his sword on Lind's shoulder, and conferred him the title of Baron, the smallest feudal lord. As for where the fiefdom was and what the title was, he would wait until the war was over.

In fact, if we really want to be serious, Ilufa has no power to appoint Linde as any feudal lord, because Ilufa herself does not have any title, the only title she holds is the Countess, and now she is nominally acting on behalf of her husband. But as I said, special circumstances require special treatment.

As for what happens in the future, that is another question.

After putting the sword back, Linde kissed the back of Ilufa's hand, which was also a pledge of allegiance and part of the ceremony. Originally, he should have kissed the ring, but the ring on Ilufa's hand had nothing to do with the title, so Ilufa asked to kiss it directly with her hand.

The reason why so many procedures are necessary is to make it legitimate. It is not to reassure Ilufa that he will not rebel or anything like that. If it is just to reassure Ilufa, then Linde might as well just accept him as his godson and then lick Ilufa's ass.

After completing the brief process, Lind officially joined the evil feudal ruling class.

The group came out of the tent and met the new beastmen in the center of the camp. When they saw Linde coming, the new beastmen who had been waiting impatiently gathered around, as if they were going to fight.

The new beasts are certainly not here to fight. The reason they suddenly gathered here is for only one purpose: to find out whether you are the son of the Mother Earth.

Linde himself does not acknowledge the identity of the Son of God. At most, he tacitly agrees. Who would find a mother to play with for no reason? But by now, Linde has gotten used to it. If you say it is, then it is.

In order to prove his identity, Lind took off his shirt, revealing the Holy Mark of the Mother Earth on his chest, and with a thought, he activated the power of the Holy Mark. As the green light emanated from the Holy Mark, all the new beastmen exclaimed, scrambled to kneel on the ground, and saluted Lind continuously.

Lind managed to hold back from yelling "No kneeling!"

Among the new beastmen present, those around Lind did not kneel, which was something Lind had repeatedly emphasized, that he hated it when others knelt before him. But among the new beastmen who had just arrived, there was also one who did not kneel.

"See? I told you! He is the son of the Earth Mother Goddess!" Lu Ge, the leader of the coalition army, said excitedly. He stood in front of Lind, facing all the kneeling new beastmen, waving his hands and feet.

"His Royal Highness the Son of God!"

"Lord Leader!"

Led by Lu Ge, the new beastmen shouted in unison, and almost all of them had a place emitting green light, which was the light of the Holy Mark of Mother Earth.

Lind, who was being worshipped by many new beastmen, vaguely felt a force flowing into his body.

Chapter 146 The Essence of Divine Power

Many new beastmen are skeptical about Lind's identity as the Son of God because of Lind's racial identity.

All the believers of Mother Earth are New Beastmen. If there really is a Son of God, he should be a New Beastman. Does it make sense that a human being suddenly appears to be the Son of God of Mother Earth?

Because of this reason, and because only Luge's Sami tribe had actually come into contact with Lind, the other new beastmen would not rashly disturb the Earth Mother Goddess. It cannot be said that there are no people like Lind who talk to the gods anytime and anywhere, but at least it is extremely rare.