"Mr. Levi, your reputation has spread far and wide across the Wilderness. While this reputation has granted you a brief period of peace, I’ve caught wind that the natives are trying to form a Wilderness Alliance Army, and their objective is self-evident."

A breeze stirred in the Wilderness, blowing Baisitina’s white hair back to reveal her smooth forehead and small, serious face.

Her tone was very serious, but it was an amusing contrast to her youthful face and petite frame.

"I see." Realization dawned on the Lord, and a complex look crossed his face.

Ever since High Cliff Castle had dealt with all the tribes within a fifty-li radius, there had been no sign of the Wilderness Natives for the past half-month.

’He had thought that by flexing High Cliff Castle’s muscles, he’d scared these natives into not provoking him again. It never occurred to him that they were just biding their time to unleash something big.’

"As you know, the Wilderness Natives are always hostile toward outsiders, especially nobles from Debei. After all, if an outsider establishes a foothold in the Wilderness, it will inevitably encroach upon their territory."

"When facing a common enemy, the goals of these natives become completely aligned, so it’s very likely that this Alliance Army will successfully come together."

"And you...?" Levi looked down at Baisitina. ’Surely they didn’t seek me out just to deliver this news?’

They weren’t nearly close enough for that.

"We are a rootless people who have lost our home. Centuries have reduced us to wandering spirits in the Kas Mountain Range. We are unwilling to sink further, to let our descendants become Wilderness Natives without civilization or a calendar. The Feder Remnants wish to join High Cliff Castle and fight for your glory from this day forward."

After Baisitina finished speaking, the nineteen Feder Remnants took a step back in unison and placed their hands over their chests.

Levi was completely taken by surprise. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind.

He had previously been very eager to accept these Feder Remnants to increase the population of High Cliff Castle, which would give it the power to truly control its territory.

But now that they were throwing themselves at him, he couldn’t help but feel there might be a catch.

It felt like it had come too easily, to the point where he felt less inclined to value it.

However, the system’s party-join notification proved that these Feder Remnants were genuinely sincere about joining High Cliff Castle, not some backstabbing spies with ulterior motives.

He knew that the system’s standard for joining his party wasn’t a mere verbal pledge of fealty. One had to be truly and sincerely willing to join Levi to trigger the notification. An oath made with a disloyal heart would never be accepted.

If they were to develop rebellious thoughts in the future, the system would automatically kick them from the party and strip them of any power it had granted.

This was a neat little hidden feature of the system. It meant that High Cliff Castle was destined to be a place free from worries about spies and betrayal.

As for whether the system could take back Levi’s own power?

In reality, the system was already bound to his soul, having become a part of him.

If it were to leave him, the system itself would cease to exist.

Though many thoughts had passed through Levi’s mind, only a few seconds had gone by in reality. He nodded. "High Cliff Castle welcomes you."

The only complication in accepting these Feder Remnants was their heritage. As descendants of the Feder Royal Family, they were naturally at odds with the reigning Debei Royal Family.

But Levi wasn’t concerned about that. The Wilderness was simply too far from the Debei Royal Court. It would be incredibly difficult for the Debei Kingdom to extend its reach into this lawless, chaotic land.

The saying "the heavens are high and the emperor is far away" wasn’t just empty words.

Moreover, with war between the Northern Territory and Southern Territory imminent, they clearly wouldn’t have the spare energy to turn their attention to the Wilderness.

’By the time they do take notice of this place, I’ll probably be a regional power. I won’t have to give a damn about them then.’

Baisitina breathed a sigh of relief. It was precisely because they, as Feder Remnants, were at odds with the current Debei Royal Family that she had been so humble, practically pleading.

Because they didn’t have many choices left.

And this chivalrous Knight before her was now clearly the best choice. If he had refused, her only option would have been to try and contact other Pioneer Lords.

But other Lords all shared the common vices of the nobility: lechery, arrogance, and so on.

Levi led the group of Feder Remnants up the hill. Enemies had suddenly become allies. The Beastman Barbarians, for their part, were quite enthusiastic, greeting the newcomers as if they were old friends.

Though these Beastman Barbarians were utterly disdainful of Goblins and Kobolds, they wouldn’t defy Levi by opposing those he had accepted as companions.

Moreover, these newcomers were human, just like their chief.

The Feder Remnants could only respond awkwardly. Compared to the straightforward Beastmen, they couldn’t accept the change so quickly.

They just looked around curiously, taking in everything about High Cliff Castle. After their survey, their expressions all turned rather peculiar.

The hilltop plateau was divided into four sections. The plot to the north was the residence of a Jackal Wolfman Tribe, and the Jackal Wolfmen were currently holding their young, curiously sizing them up.

In the center were two adjacent wooden houses, surrounded by a wall. This was apparently the core area of High Cliff Castle.

’Wasn’t this supposed to be High Cliff Castle?’

’A "castle" that was just a few scattered wooden houses on a hill?’

"You’ve had a long journey. Eat something first, and we can continue our discussion afterward."

Levi led the way into the simple, newly-built hall and took the seat at its head.

It was just an extremely spacious wooden building, with a long table in the middle large enough to seat thirty or forty people.

There were no other decorations.

Hearing there was more food, Zat followed him in, feigning decorum as he casually pulled out a chair and sat down. Muto followed close behind.

Baisitina took the first seat to Levi’s right, and the other Feder Remnants took their seats as well.

...

"’It’s simple fare, but I hope it’s to your liking." Levi scraped a layer of honey from a jar with a spoon, spread it on a bear paw, then tucked the meat into a piece of bread and took a huge bite.

The honey was something that Hog fellow had specially gone and gotten for him during a patrol. A good thing he was so thick-skinned, or he would’ve been covered in stings.

The bear paw came from a grizzly bear the Barbarians had hunted a few days prior.

Even though he had already eaten breakfast, Levi still couldn’t resist the honey-glazed bear paw.

If this were his past life, a single bite of this would have landed him in prison for at least ten years.

But now, even if he ate bear, tiger, or leopard, no one would dare to give him any trouble.

In contrast to Levi’s rustic way of eating, Baisitina was far more elegant, cutting off a small piece with her knife and fork and eating it in tiny bites.

’Levi even suspected her dainty little mouth couldn’t fit a whole strawberry.’

The elegantly dining Feder Remnants were a stark contrast to Zat and Muto. Those two had grabbed a roasted deer leg each and were tearing into it with huge bites, their mouths and hands dripping with grease.

Levi looked at Baisitina and asked, "Do you still call yourselves a Kingdom?"