∼ DAY 146 ∼

"What is it Darkan?" I asked as I cleaned my upper body off from the dirt and stains that I couldn't simply compel away as easily I did with blood.

I had just come out of the verdant jungle after doing some much-needed hunting and relaxation from the managing aspects of getting our new settlement up and running when I was intercepted by Darkan and his two new assistants, Irick and Rykas. I had also checked up on the magical flower to see if there were any changes, but there were unfortunately none that I could perceive.

Pulling out a board with a bunch of parchment attached from the large satchel at his hip, Darkan flipped through to the desired page.

"Master, the tally you requested." He said with an asking expression as he met my gaze.

Nodding for him to go on, he began reading out the numbers on the parchment.

"Of the first settlers, that would be all those who had joined our faction before our migration ended, is at 678 individuals. Most of these were hobgoblins, but now almost all of those have evolved into the third-tier and all possess the gift of your power."

"The secondary introductions to our faction, the labor force supplied by Chief Ruela and Chief Frenn, approximately 5000 and 8000 orcs strong respectively should mostly be newly evolved. And lastly, the recruits that have been brought back from Ebongrave which number in around twenty thousand, of which a little more than five hundred are journeymen craftsmen, and about twenty are masters of their craft."

"In total, the settlement's population should be just shy of thirty-five-thousand monsters, of which only five thousand are combat-ready and assigned as warriors of our faction."

Nodding along, I gave a held-in sigh at the last final number. To me, it was rather unfathomable being the one at the spearhead of that many individuals, and for one moment, it seemed a bit overwhelming. However, that feeling quickly subsided. After all, I and everybody else had gone to great lengths to make preparations for everything to go smoothly.

"How's the housing and food situation looking?" I asked whilst bending down to wrench the wet cloth I was using to pad down my body.

"Food is no problem as we had taken certain precautions in preparations for all the new additions, and with our estimations, the settlement will be self-sustaining well within the schedule we've set. Housing, however, is another story. There had been some small in-fighting due to the lack as we're still hastily setting up temporary lodgings, but not more conflict than expected. Still, the lack of infrastructure and proper precautions usually set in place with such a diverse populous of monsters is threatening the overall order. So the quicker we get up the residential areas, jobs, and recreational places such as taverns, brothels, and so on, the better we can assure the stability of the settlement going forward." Darkan explained.

"Okay good, resources and cost are negligent to us, so don't worry about prioritizing whatever is most important," I met his gaze. "I trust your judgment."

"Thank you, Master." He said with a bow.

I went back to focusing on scrubbing off all the filth I had accumulated as I was expecting the company of a certain individual, but realizing that Darkan hadn't quite left yet and was looking a bit apprehensive, I shot him a question glance, eyebrow raised.

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"What?" I asked.

"There's another thing... Master," He hesitated. "There has been chatter and rumors about the blood rites being circulated lately amongst the newcomers. Unfortunately, I don't believe we can keep the lid on this for much longer."

"I see..." I muttered. "What do you think I should do?"

Taken a bit aback at the sudden council I was seeking in him, Darkan sputtered for a reply before managing to collect himself.

"I believe they need a banner to go under, many of the monsters seem restless and confused about exactly what they are supposed to do, and who to listen to. Revealing the purpose of the Blood Rites and inducting them into the faction as quickly as possible might be the best course of action. Of course, we'll never be able to completely staunch the leakage of this sensitive information to the outside, but Master's gifts are rather... helpful in that regard when used in particular fashions."

"You're right," I agreed.

Using the powers of the Sanguine Plague, I might be able to halt the spreading of the information regarding that I was a Sanctioned Lord and the benefits that my powers had on my followers to some extent. By now, other powerful monsters learning about my powers was inevitable, but at least I could slow it down and be prepared for it. As such, both Mia and I would be needed to extend the gift of the Sanguine Plague beyond the first settlers as quickly as possible.

The only problem was that it was way beyond both Mia and my own capabilities of afflicting more than thirty-five thousand individuals effectively, so there would definitely need to be a screening process of who would benefit the most from the gift.

"So my Lord, when do you suggest we should hold the ceremo-" Rykas, one of the assistants stepped in before suddenly cutting himself off as a large looming shadow appeared behind the three monsters.

Letting out a collective yelp as they turned around to face a certain amazonian ursine maiden, Darkan, Irick, and Rykas scampered aside. Seeing this, I couldn't help but let out a mirthful chuckle.

"It's fine," I tried to assuage the flustered advisors. "Darkan, we'll speak on this later."

Gratefully accepting the dismissal, Darkan and his assistant gave a curt bow and scurried off to do whatever duties they had to do for the evening.

"Ursa, thank you for coming," I greeted with a pleasant smile as I turned my attention towards the towering lady.

She just gave me a short grunt of acknowledgment, looking at the surroundings with curious intensity before letting her eyes rest on my form.

Quickly rinsing off the last bit of grime and water with a towel, I donned a loosely buttoned shirt and joined Ursa in a short walk after gesturing her to follow.

"What you want with Ursa," She asked simply as we walked, her Rathian still having that oddly simplistic way of speech.

"I wanted to speak with you seeing as I had a request regarding your island," I said.

"Request?" She asked.

Instead of answering her immediately, I drew her attention by pointing towards the Jubokko Sapling we were approaching.

"While where the tree was planted is a fine spot for it to grow, it told me that your island is in fact a prime place for it to grow."

Suddenly pausing in her tracks, a new light glinted in Ursa's eyes that was a mix of astonishment and surprise as she did a double-take of me.

"You speak with the tree spirit?" She asked, not hiding her surprise.

Now it was my turn to pause.

"Tree spirit?" I repeated questioningly.

"Yes, tree has a spirit," She explained simply. "But... how you speak with spirit?"

"I've formed a special connection with it as it's grown in my power," I explained. "Then, how come you know it is this... tree spirit?"

"Ursa is shaman, can speak with spirits." She explained.

Remembering that odd class of hers that seemed to be a hybrid of both brawn and magic, I pondered this information as we closed the distance to the tree.

I wasn't entirely sure what she meant about spirits, and whether or not the Jubokko tree just having developed sentience was enough to qualify it as such, but I doubted further questioning of the bear lady would do much good. While Ursa wasn't dumb in the slightest which you could easily tell when looking past her odd way mannerism, it more so that she wasn't all that knowledgeable. Exactly as if she had been alone for most of her life and had to learn everything on her own.

After all, she had probably been here ever since she was a child without outside or civilized interactions.

But even so, that just made it that much more impressive that she had reached the level of power that she had considering how much guidance the enlightened needed for them to progress through the class system as opposed to the more instinctive and natural way of growth the evolution system provided.

"Well, Ursa. What do you say? It is about to evolve very soon, and I doubt I will still be able to move again it once it does," I asked. "Of course, I can offer some payment or service in exchange."

She shook her head.

"Ursa does not mind, Ursa likes spirits. Good company makes Ursa not alone." She explained sagely, touching the trunk of the Jubokko sapling.

Closing her eyes, I could feel her gently send her aura and mana into the tree, swing me with the sheer harmony at which she did so.

Surprisingly, instead of the cheerful greeting or mental nudge that I had been expecting as the Jubokko seemed to love to interact, it was almost like it reluctantly acknowledged Ursa's presence, just sending back the bare minimum of what could qualify as a greeting.

"Thank you, Ursa," I smiled genuinely. "But still... I do have something for you at least..."

Opening her eyes and glancing towards me quizzically, her eyes widened abruptly as saw the two massive tuna-like fish that had been marinated, seasoned, and cooked by my new cooks which I had just pulled out of my [Ring of Holding].

While it may have been a bit shallow to bet on the stereotype that she might like fish as she was leaning towards the bear side of the family tree, it had undoubtedly worked as she was practically salivating upon the sudden appearance of the food.