"It's much larger than I thought it'd be," Arthur said as he rode with a detachment of mounted soldiers and approached Piltash's northern gatehouse.

From the patchwork city walls extending the horizon, Arthur posited that Piltash could easily hold over thirty thousand residents, probably more. He'd be hesitant to enter had the scouts not spent the previous day scouring the city for any hidden forces within. Thankfully, none were discovered.

"The young hero has a good eye." Poe excitedly replied, clapping his hands together. "Many centuries ago, Piltash was the central trading hub between my Hussan family and Bern. Back then, it was unfeasible to trade via naval routes due to the unwillingness of the Helrian tribes to allow us to build docks on their shores.

"Without docks to resupply our ships on the long journey to Bern, we would have to brave a land route through Helrian territory for it to be profitable, but that came with numerous risks. Of course, that changed once the free cities were founded. Their existence allowed us to extend our naval trade routes further, resulting in Piltash losing its status as a trading hub while the port city of Arran took its prior status."

Arthur rolled his eyes at the man's blatant attempt at flattery but was nevertheless thankful for the history lesson. It certainly explained why the old city walls appeared to be one short step from disrepair.

"If the city lost its status, what caused its people to remain?" Arthur asked, curious about what sort of natural resources he had to work with now that he was lord of this land.

"The mines, of course." Poe shrugged and replied as if it was apparent. "The Kingdom of Bern has little access to the iron and coal deposits. Besides Helagaust, only the northeastern territories have deposits, so the city transitioned from trade to production. However, it did little to stem the flow of people emigrating to other Bernish lands, and before the war, Piltash's population was middling at best."

Arthur nodded, noticing a few children curiously gazing at them atop the gatehouse where city guards would typically be found. It was odd, but it reinforced his disappointment as it indicated that the city had truly been abandoned if children could so easily play on the city walls.

He didn't have high hopes for the mine's profitability, either. Due to its size, the Ollerin Empire had access to many such iron mines, so the profits he could make off it were slim.

Unfortunately, the coal mines were even less profitable. Unlike Bern, the majority of Ollerinian lands had mild winters, so coal wasn't exactly a hot commodity. He could only hope to sell the coal in the newly conquered Bernish lands, or else it would be useless to him.

Once they passed through the gatehouse, Piltash's castle came into view in the distance. Its patchwork walls stood imposingly atop a small hill in the city's center, overlooking the whole city. Unfortunately, those same walls appeared to have weathered the ages no better than the exterior walls.

It was a nightmare for any poor soul with OCD, and Arthur would be lying if he claimed such a sight didn't irk him. But, despite that, he set his sights on it and traveled down Piltash's main avenue.

The avenue was vast and seemed to have seen better days as it was marred with the same inconsistent masonry as the walls. Unsurprisingly, the streets were devoid of people, with most buildings tightly boarded up. Yet, for many, the wood used to cover the windows appeared old and rotten, as if they had been erected and left to the elements decades ago.

Further down, another smaller wall extended from the castle and ran parallel to the avenue. It appeared to have been erected somewhat recently, as the white-painted stone lacked the inconsistent masonry seen throughout the city. The wall was only ten feet high but, to his frustration, blocked Arthur from peering inside.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Poe glanced to his side and witnessed Arthur stretching his neck to see over the walls. "That's the lord's garden, young hero. The previous lord's wife was fond of excursions into the countryside, so the lord had it built for her. Unfortunately, there's not much to see unless you have an affinity for such things."

Arthur was surprised by the response as the smaller wall seemed to encompass a massive chunk of land. Dedicating it to a garden seemed too wasteful, even if one's affinity for such things was high.

Arthur tilted his head as a sudden thought popped into his mind. "What happened to the lord of Helagaust?"

"I wasn't here at the time, so I can only comment on what I've heard, but I'm told he fled in the early days of the war. As to where, of that, I am uncertain." Poe replied helplessly.

Arthur could only sigh and hope the previous lord fled to Agelia with the rest. At least in Agelia, they'd be busy fighting against the might of Ollerin's imperial army. But, much like Duke Yor's insistence on killing him to avoid future succession problems in Revan, Arthur couldn't sleep peacefully with the previous lord running about.

Of course, the previous lord had no chance of legally retaking Helagaust as it was now in Ollerinian hands, but he could still prove to be a thorn in Arthur's side if he caused trouble. He hoped the man quietly passed away in the coming Agelian war, which seemed hypocritical given his own situation, but that's just how life was under feudalism.

As the smaller wall came to an end, they came upon an intersection with another wide avenue running east to west. To the east sat another gatehouse leading out of the city, and to the west, a large plaza.

Arthur and his group followed the avenue west and came upon a somewhat out-of-place building in the plaza's center. It consisted of six broad pillars holding up a stone roof, below which stood a podium and altar.

"It's Piltash's temple of Minaan. This one's mainly used for ceremonies, while another temple within the city handled day-to-day worship." Poe explained, shaking his head.

Arthur caught sight of Poe's expression and pushed for an answer. "You seem disappointed."

"So young yet so wise!" Poe exclaimed with flair, causing his jewelry to jingle. "I'm not so brave as to talk ill of a god, but sometimes I wonder if the pitiful people of Bern could have done more without such limitations."

"Innihana doesn't seem all that broken up over it. You still happily trade with them even as they regularly sacrifice people to their god." Arthur commented in a somewhat accusatory tone.

"But..." Poe's face went blank, and he spoke as if there were no truer statement within the world. "The money is innocent, young hero."

Arthur laughed as the man seemed to fit the Innihanan stereotype so perfectly and continued to look around. Elsewhere within the plaza, the buildings at its edge were maintained to a higher standard than the rest he had seen. Some appeared to be high-end shops, while others were clearly the residences of the city's wealthier citizens. However, most were all boarded up, no different from the rest of the city.

Across from the temple, a Victorian-esque gate led to the lord's garden and the castle above it. The gate was left open, likely because the scouts were busy searching the castle, so Arthur let himself inside with his contingent in tow.

An inclined, two-carriage-wide cobblestone road split the garden in two, leading to the menacing-looking castle walls above it on the hill. A few fanciful patios with lounging furniture dotted the garden, surrounded by a multitude of vibrant flowers and trees. The place seemed slightly overgrown, which wasn't surprising considering the lord had left months ago.

After a cursory look, Arthur rode up the cobblestone road to see his new home and entered the castle's gatehouse. The space within the walls was easily large enough to house four or five American football fields, and it seemed as if a small town was walled off within the city.

The cobblestone road was lined with small trees and flowerbeds, breaking off in multiple places and leading to many miscellaneous buildings, but Arthur followed it straight to the manor instead. He'd have time to explore the massive chunk of land later. For now, he wanted to settle in.

The manor's exterior was painted light blue, with things like window sills painted white to break the monotony. He wasn't particularly fond of the color scheme, but there were more important matters to handle now.

Stepping inside, he was greeted by the scent of stale air, but a smile crept upon his lips despite that. The manor, the city, and the territory of Helagaust were all his to do with as he wanted. He was now home.