Chapter 3 Gratitude from the Robbers The battle ended quickly. It was only a few seconds when the skeleton appeared in the bathroom door and came to the apartment, staring at the faint blue soul fire flickering in its eye sockets. The Swadian recruits who swarmed over him picked up their scythes and beat him into a pile of bones in a few strokes. He fell at the door of the toilet and returned to the state of a skeleton. "It feels really good to have subordinates helping me solve battles." Shen Mu didn't do anything, but it felt quite magical. He took out a match and lit the rough homemade candle made of wax and cotton thread. Then he placed it in the toilet, letting the flickering candlelight dispel the darkness in the toilet. 'Wow! ' The candlelight flickered. The wisps of gray mist that emerged from the darkness of the toilet encountered the candle flame that was only the size of a soybean. It was like cold butter meeting a hot knife, and was instantly dispelled by the small light. It was as if they had encountered an absolutely restrained natural enemy! This is true.
The remaining memories of Shen Mu's previous life clearly told him that as long as there was light and fire, the fog and darkness could be dispelled. It will be possible to expel the evil rules born from the dead spiritual world. Form a temporary safety zone. This is also why, during the day, after the sun rises, the whole world returns to peace again. "But it's still quite safe now." At least Shen Mu doesn't have to worry about those undead monsters that would be born from the darkness from time to time, full of hatred for the living, and would directly attack. The 15 Swadian recruits were now sitting in corners or in vacant places. Each of them placed the fan-shaped assembled wooden shields on their backs beside their legs, and the long-handled sickles that were sharpened and could be used for stabbing and chopping were now leaning against the wall. But as long as there is any situation, these Swadian recruits can just stand up, pick up weapons and fight immediately. After all, in the continent of Calradia, a war-torn world full of constant disputes and bandits, even the most ordinary farmers have received military training. This is also the reason why even these young men who have just come out of the countryside and are recruited as new soldiers can remain calm in the face of danger. Just moving corpses and skeletons, their movements clumsy and stupid. Could they be worse than those cruel bandits or robbers, or even the lords who frequently massacred and burned villages? "Then it's you two." Shen Mu turned his head and saw the two robbers huddled in the corner. "Sir, we are bankrupts from Dehrimli. We originally invested in a bakery, but the price of food has remained high due to years of war. We really have no choice but to become robbers." The two robbers, whose hands and feet were still tied but had the rags stuffed in their mouths removed, were expressing their innocence and pity. But the rolling of their eyes clearly showed to careful people that this was just a lie. "be honest!" So on both sides, three Swadian recruits stood by, holding the one-handed axes they usually used to chop firewood, and were looking coldly at the two unforgivable robbers. That’s right, these Swadian recruits were farmers before, and even though they were hired as soldiers now, they still retained most of their peasant thinking and hated these robbers very much. Because every time they went to town to sell their crops or buy some tools or cloth.
The worst thing I encountered was these robbers! These also include bandits, robbers, or groups of outlaws who roam the Kingdom of Swadia in large numbers. In short, they are all existences that are extremely hated and disliked by the civilians or peasants of the Kingdom of Swadia. So these Swadian recruits did not look happy when they saw these two robbers who had been captured before. "Wait." But Shen Mu's eyes were dazed at this time, as if he had seen something. Originating from the mind, the dialog box released by the system. [Ding! The temporary task system detected an event! ] 【Task release: Dealing with the robbers. 】 [Task Introduction: You have captured two robbers in the previous battle, but since your current activity range is not within the Calradia continent, the previous laws do not seem to apply to the current situation, and you are in a difficult situation.] [Task Conditions: You can choose to 'let go/kill' these two robbers to deal with them in different ways.] [Conditional Reward ① Release the robbers: If you release these two robbers, your name will spread around the robber circle in Dehrim, and people will praise your name. When you obtain the 'Swadia Base', you will also get the 'Robber Meeting Point' building, which will provide you with the service of selling stolen goods or purchasing supplies.] [Conditional Reward ② Kill the robbers: If you kill these two robbers, your troops will get a +2 morale increase.] "Temporary tasks?" Shen Mu was stunned for a moment, then he realized that when he integrated all the Mount and Blade games before, he casually compiled a small program that could search for the protagonist's events and issue temporary tasks on its own. It seems that even if I traveled to this world and activated the Mount and Blade system, this small program would come with it. But look at the reward for this temporary task. Shen Mu pursed his lips slightly. "It seems that there is no need to choose, right?" Shen Mu made a decision immediately: "Let these two robbers go!" "Thank you for your kindness, sir! Thank you for your kindness!" The two robbers immediately looked up in surprise, their faces filled with joy at surviving the robbery. There are clear laws and regulations on the continent of Calradia. If you encounter robbers or bandits, no matter who you are, you will not be guilty if you kill them. Even if these robbers or bandits were captured and sold as commodities to slave traders to make a few dinars, it would still be a legal transaction and would not trigger the laws of any kingdom. So when these robbers were captured, they were usually either sold or killed. It's so rare to let go like this! "Untie their ropes." Shen Mu ordered. "Understood." The Swadian recruit who was standing behind the two robbers nodded, took out his one-handed axe, squatted down, and used the axe blade that was also sharpened to directly cut the ropes on the robbers' hands and feet, setting them free. "We will remember your kindness, Lord Shen Mu!" The two robbers stood up and bowed to Shen Mu excitedly. "It's nothing, you are free." Shen Mu waved his hand, signaling the two robbers to leave. This is part of the mission anyway. "Lord Shen Mu, please believe us, your kindness will eventually bring us gratitude." The two robbers didn't say much. After they bowed respectfully once more, their bodies gradually became ethereal.
Shen Mu looked a little surprised. The two robbers just turned from real to unreal, the colors on their bodies disappeared, and they really disappeared completely. Only in Shen Mu's mind did it turn into a dialog box from the Mount and Blade system. 【You let the robber go. 】 [Because your personnel have not yet reached 30 people, and most of them are Swadians (70%), it is impossible to form a 'Swadia Stronghold'. 】 [Your legendary reputation among the "robbers" increases by 1 point.] "It takes 30 people to form a Swadia stronghold?" Shen Mu raised his eyebrows slightly. Turning his head to look at the 15 Swadian recruits still crowded in the apartment, he felt a little helpless. He doesn't know how to increase the population. "Or complete the battle and then get the reward?" Shen Mu pondered. After all, that was how he got the 10 Swadian recruits. And about fighting. Shen Mu looked at the still closed apartment door. "If we think along this line of thought, we should go outside and fight those undead creatures?" Shen Mu pursed his lips, but there was some hesitation on his face. (End of this chapter)