Mark collected all the rewards for this mission. Then, he opened his panel and checked the situation of his 500 subjects.
With a "whoosh"!
A window instantly popped up in the place where the subject's name was displayed, stating:
"Due to the host completing exploration and a mission, the system is now officially integrating into the local world. Due to the lack of resource collection points, the system will switch to a mission reward mode and a collection mode. The amount of resources will be uniformly determined by the system.
Due to the castle's integration into the world and restricted by the rules, the castle will not produce humanoid creatures on its own. Subjects are automatically classified as 0th-order creatures and cannot receive hero skill bonuses. Spending gold resources can transform them into 1st-order farmers."
Then, the system began to successively pop up several windows, displaying the changes of the system and the usage methods of related buildings!
From now on, all subjects who have sworn allegiance to Mark will automatically be included in the 0th-order soldier sequence, and Mark must spend 3000 gold resources to build all the building sequences for farmers, so that the subjects can have the opportunity to change professions.
The three types of buildings, fortress, headquarters, and castle, only have the functions of increasing protection and enhancing crops. The fortress yields one harvest per year, the headquarters yields two harvests per year, and the castle yields three harvests per year.
Mark, who had initially planned to build an arrow tower, had to reluctantly spend 500 gold to construct a peasant's hut for his people.
Seeing the sudden appearance of buildings and farmland, the Bloodstone Elder almost choked on his black bread.
Bloody Hand quickly patted his back, allowing the old man to catch his breath. Although they were still wearing long-haired rhinoceros hide clothing, the smell on them had faded significantly.
Before entering the castle, at Mark's request, the Rock-born, who had never bathed in their lives, all jumped into the moat, nearly turning the water into mud.
At the same time, Mark also found 10 strong tribesmen to become apprentices at the blacksmith shop. Since the system didn't provide a blacksmith, Bobby Lee had been handling the blacksmith work.
The Rock-born's iron weapons were restricted by the Northerners, so they could only use Obsidian (Dragon Crystal) as weapons. These 10 people were also the craftsmen in the tribe who usually polished Obsidian shards, so they should learn quickly.
Mark collected all their Obsidian weapons. After all, being in The North, they would inevitably encounter White Walkers, so it was better to be prepared.
After arranging everyone, Mark brought Bloody Hand and the Bloodstone Elder to the meeting room on the second floor of the castle.
Mark, shaped by his previous life, strived for perfection in everything. On his first day in this world, he made it his priority to thoroughly inspect the entire castle, inside and out.
He wanted to ensure he had complete control over the castle, and also hoped to glean clues about this world by studying its structure.
After learning about the three major tribes on the island, Mark became somewhat uneasy. Tribes of tens of thousands could mobilize at least a thousand warriors.
Even with the castle, he was still vulnerable to attack. The enemy, with their numerical advantage, could potentially breach its defenses.
Moreover, according to the Bloodstone Elder, those tribes had a long history. If they discovered the castle's existence, they would undoubtedly try to seize it.
In this desolate and barren land, any resource or piece of land could become a pretext for bloodshed.
The natives of Skagos Island averaged around two meters in height. Although their weapons and armor were primitive, their size completely compensated for this deficiency.
In the meeting room, the Bloodstone Elder was like a country bumpkin marveling at the city, constantly looking around. The vast hall was decorated luxuriously, and the solid architectural style made the meeting room appear exceptionally solemn.
In the following period, Mark, with the introduction of the Bloodstone Elder and the others, compiled intelligence on all the clans.
Although the Level 1 Magic Guild hadn't been established yet, the castle still had some basic necessities and stationery. Mark found some blank books and quills in a storage room on the first floor.
Later, he spent about a day recording the castle's structure and functions in a book. Mark used Chinese characters for his notes, which provided maximum security.
He opened the book, dipped the quill in ink, and began to write.
The Stark Clan of Driftwood Hall possessed a massive Wooden Fortress and the largest forest on Skagos Island. Due to the extensive felling of ancient trees,
there was no more timber suitable for shipbuilding on the island. The Stark Clan had always controlled the shipbuilding industry of the entire island.
The Magna Clan of King's Hall was the most populous clan. Their leader, Rope Dan, was the strongest warrior on the entire island, capable of anything from climbing mountains to diving into the sea.
Rumor had it that he was as tall as a giant and could split a person in two with a single swing of his huge battle axe.
It was his ancestors who led their men to kill the Stark Duke, which is why their clan's castle is called "King's Hall."
The Crowl Clan of Abyssal Fortress is the oldest clan on Skagos Island, with the purest bloodline. The clan is full of "Wargs" (skin changers).
Rumor has it that their elders can control unicorns, and the clan raises many man-eating monsters. If you fall into their hands, you'll either be eaten or sacrificed.
When Mark wrote this, he already had a rough plan in mind. First of all, Abyssal Fortress would definitely not merge with the other two clans, so he could deal with them first.
Next would be Driftwood Hall. They posed the greatest threat to Griffin Fortress. With their shipbuilding capabilities, building a few siege ladders would be the easiest thing.
Mark planned to deal with Abyssal Fortress and then use their forces to launch a surprise attack on Driftwood Hall, taking control of the timber resources and minimizing the threat!
Finally, he would combine the forces of both sides and have a decisive battle with King's Hall. These were Mark's initial plans, but unfortunately, his task panel hadn't refreshed yet.
He had a feeling that the reward for this task would be very generous. He was thinking of building the altar to summon angels as soon as possible. The Stark Family shouldn't have fallen yet.
The Boltons still held their Earldom, but Mark guessed the story's beginning wasn't far off. Without angels, they wouldn't stand a chance against the White Walkers and Daenerys' three dragons.
Just then, an eagle's cry echoed from the balcony. Griffin Siwang crashed through the door again, a dead seal in its mouth.
It proudly tried to offer the seal, but Mark stopped it. There were no servants in the castle yet, and Mark didn't want his castle becoming a bloody mess.
Bloodstone Elder and Bloody Hand stared at the griffin in shock, their eyes filled with curiosity and admiration. The griffin's presence was as shocking as seeing a unicorn.
After Mark finished recording the information, Bloodstone Elder pulled the still-dazed Bloody Hand and bid Mark farewell. They were going to assign housing to their clan members.
Seeing stone houses for the first time was unimaginable for the Rock-born, who had always lived in caves.
They now regarded Mark as a god, ready to give their lives at his command.
Before leaving, Bloody Hand-Blackstone cryptically suggested that his three daughters serve Mark in the castle, as his maids!
For a moment, Mark was tempted. But after thinking about Bloody Hand's appearance, he dismissed the idea and turned him down, using castle construction as an excuse.
After the Bloodstone Elder and the others left, Mark went out to the balcony to check on Griffin Siwang. After telling it that it could come inside to sleep after eating, he returned to the conference table to continue writing.
The sky was gradually darkening. The North was already in late autumn, and the weather was turning cold. The freezing rain formed by the biting wind and autumn rain was one of the most terrible disasters on Skagos Island.
Every year at this time, the Rock-born of Skagos Island had to store up food and meat in advance to enter the caves to avoid the winter, just like bears hibernating.
Griffin Fortress, however, was completely unaffected by this climate. It was still sunrise and sunset, with a warm and pleasant climate, which made Mark recall his hometown on Earth.
But fortunately, this castle was isolated overseas; otherwise, Mark estimated he wouldn't survive half a year on Westeros.
Gathering his thoughts, Mark wrote down the plot from his memory in the book, from the War of the Five Kings to the Battle of the Bastards. He wrote down all the information he could remember.
He also marked the things that needed attention, including some subsequent plans and ideas. In Mark's opinion, memories would slowly fade with the passage of time.
Many details that he hadn't paid attention to before could very likely affect his future development. Although the North lacked a fleet, he would definitely clash with Stannis when the latter took control of the North.
Then there was the issue of the Wildlings. Mark also needed to figure out a way to incorporate the several hundred thousand Wildlings beyond the Wall. If he didn't handle it well, they would become hundreds of thousands of White Walkers in the future.
Time passed, and it was already late at night. Griffin Siwang had quietly fallen asleep beside Mark.
It was then that Mark remembered he now had the resources to build a new structure. He hurriedly checked the building list.
Buildings owned: Village Council Hall, Militia Barracks, Blacksmith Shop, Fortress, Peasant Hut.
Building Level: 4.
Resources owned: Gold 2500, Wood 20, Ore 20, Crystal 0, Mercury 0, Gem 0, Sulfur 0.
"Level 1 Magic Guild"
Synopsis: Allows heroes to learn magic, possessing three Level 1 spells. One each of Light and Darkness, and the last either Summoning or Destruction.
Town Level Requirement: 3
Town Resource Requirement: Gold 2000, Wood 5, Ore 5.
Mark didn't hesitate to click the build option. Suddenly, with a "boom," a tower instantly "grew" beside the castle.
A strange energy instantly enveloped the entire castle. Mark went to the balcony and saw that the entrance to the Magic Guild was on the top floor.
He hurried to the top floor. Griffin Siwang woke up as well, shaking himself and following Mark.