"Wow, Master, we're amazing! We've hunted down such a big deer!" Adelaide's joyful voice reached everyone's ears.
Everyone's faces were full of smiles. Although they had practiced many times, they were still extremely excited when they actually hunted such a large prey.
"You all did a good job. Adelaide, go and tell Cedar and the others to go back and bring the women and children over. We'll wait for them here."
"Yes, Master." Adelaide happily ran towards the group of cedar trees.
While running, he kept muttering, "We're going to have meat again! We're going to have meat again!"
The rest of the people went about their own business without Ed giving them any instructions.
Andrew was chopping a stick, while the others were tending to the deer.
Ed looked at the busy crowd and a sense of accomplishment welled up inside him.
He hoped the territory would improve so that everyone could have enough to eat. And everyone was working hard towards that goal.
Before long, the deer was tied to a wooden stick as thick as an arm.
This deer is very strong; it would be quite difficult for two people to lift it. We're still a bit far from the temporary camp.
"Luckily there are many people, so we can take turns carrying it back," Ed thought with some relief.
The commotion in the distant woods interrupted Ed, who saw Cedar leading a group of people toward him.
In addition to the previous people, there are now more children and women.
They looked no better than the cedar trees. They were barely clothed and skin and bones.
Everyone approached Ed with indifferent expressions.
Ed wanted to say something, but he swallowed the words back.
There's no point in saying anything more, let's go back and talk about it later.
"Let's go!" All the words I wanted to say were summed up in just two words.
Will led the way at the front of the group, while Andrew and Eric carried the deer. The group then retraced their steps.
"My lord, what should we do with these iron ore deposits?"
Before passing the creek containing iron ore, Will, who was leading the way, turned back to Ed and asked him a question.
These iron ore deposits are crucial for the development of the entire territory. They must be protected.
Ed had also thought about it; when he arrived, he didn't have a good solution yet.
But now he already has a preliminary plan in mind.
Let Sugi and the others raise rabbits at the temporary camp for the time being.
Then build a large rabbit hutch in the village, and once the rabbits have multiplied here, move them back to the village.
This way, they can both settle the people from Shanshu and build a temporary camp.
This place can serve as a transit point for future mining operations, a rest area for workers, and even a place for iron smelting.
"Well, Will, I've made up my mind. We'll talk about it when we get back to the temporary camp."
Ed looked up at the sky; he knew he had to hurry.
In the temporary camp
Roderick paced back and forth in the camp as he watched the sky darken.
He would occasionally stand where Ed had gone in and look around.
Seeing that there was still no movement in the distant woods, he began to feel increasingly panicked.
His mind kept replaying the image of Ed in the castle.
"Something's happening over there." One of them noticed the commotion.
Roderick rushed over, his heart finally at ease.
Will's figure came into view in the distance.
"Shushu, you can stay here for now. I'll have someone bring some food over tomorrow."
"Thank you, sir." Sugi looked at the several wooden houses, which were already better than the ones they used to live in in their original village.
Besides, they've had nowhere to stay these past few days. They're lucky if they can find any shelter from the wind and rain.
Their thinking was actually very simple: as long as they could survive, that was enough.
But when simply surviving becomes a luxury.
Ed's appearance was like starlight in the night.
It gave them hope, faint yet real.