Pioneer Lord: I Have Conquering System

If the bandits hadn’t already killed them, Old Neil would have strung them up on signposts as a warning. As it was, the old Kobold was drenched in sweat.

His status had risen dramatically after he learned Magic and diligently led the slaves in reclaiming the wasteland. He had even moved into the Settler Area not long ago.

But now, a problem had arisen in the Slave District under his management. One wrong move, and all his hard work would be for nothing.

Levi said nothing. He was just exceptionally silent as he set out at the crack of dawn with his Beastman Personal Guard Team, the Jackal Wolfman Scout Squad, and a few Giants pulling carriages. They did not return until sunset the following day.

Every one of them was drenched in blood, as if they had just waded through a sea of it. Their faces were etched with fatigue. Even the energetic Warg Mounts had collapsed on the ground, refusing to even lift their heads.

Meanwhile, the carriages pulled by the Giants were filled to the brim with the heads of bandits, their faces frozen in terror even in death. There were Lizardmen and Leopard-headed People among them—a thousand heads in all.

At the Lord’s command, the Barbarians took these heads to a place not far from High Cliff Castle and stacked them into a skull pyramid. It served as a grim warning to any other bandits with ill intentions.

Countless crows were drawn to the site, fighting to peck the flesh from the skulls.

The heads, their eyes wide open in death, still held the terror of their final moments, accompanied by the shrill caws of a sky full of feasting crows.

A single glance at the scene could trigger one’s most primal fears, sending a chill down the spine.

No one in High Cliff Castle commented on the matter. They simply went about their work in silence, not daring to look up for more than a moment.

Perched on their hill, they could easily see the gruesome monument just by raising their heads.

Old Neil, his heart burning with anxiety, waited and waited, but no summons came from the Lord. Finally, he could only go to the Lord’s hall to offer a humble apology. As it turned out, he barged in on the Lord enjoying a massage from a young Goat-man and a young Rabbit People maiden. Before he could utter a single word, he was kicked out and given a harsh scolding.

Gazing at the door that had been slammed shut with a BANG, the old Kobold actually breathed a sigh of relief. A relaxed smile appeared on his face as he straightened his collar, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked away.

He had already cast the Land Fertility Technique on all of High Cliff Castle’s farmland, so he had nothing to do for the time being. He could only go find a female Kobold he’d recently taken a fancy to and tell her the epic tale of the many hardships he had endured to finally become a foreman in High Cliff Castle.

The effect of the skull pyramid was immediately apparent. A Bandit Corps, about a thousand strong, happened to wander into the area. Seeing the skulls, now picked almost clean by crows with only shreds of flesh remaining, they silently gave this ruthless domain a wide berth and continued south.

Even when they fought Minotaurs, they would at most rout them and be done with it. But this... this was the work of a Demon, one who would stack their heads for all to see after death, leaving them to be battered by the wind and rain, scorched by the sun, and pecked clean by crows. The fear this inspired in them overcame their hunger.

Thanks to the deterrent effect of the skull pyramid, no more foolhardy bandits dared to attack High Cliff Castle. The sudden peace that fell over the land was something the castle’s settlers found a little unsettling.

The tense feeling of an impending storm gradually faded with the passage of quiet days.

The only major event on the horizon was Liya’s arrival, and waiting was always a trying affair.

Fortunately, news came the next day: the party from Bailiu City would arrive early the next morning.

「The next day.」

Early in the morning, the Lord’s hall was full of people.

"Again! Again!"

The Silver Dragon Maiden, her eyes red-rimmed, impatiently slapped Orak’s hand away and shuffled the cards herself.

The game, of course, had been organized by an obsessed Sophia. Her opponents were Levi and the Old Beastman, Orak.

Everyone had woken up bright and early, only to receive news that the arriving party would be delayed. Their carriage wheels had gotten tangled in some weeds, and it had taken time to clear them. They would be late by a few hours, likely not arriving until noon.

And so, with nothing else to do, they started playing cards to kill time.

"Are you sure you want to go again?" 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The Lord tried his best to stifle a laugh, but he just couldn’t hold it back.

To hook this timid Little Silver Dragon with her insatiable love for treasure, Levi had initially gone incredibly easy on her, letting her win about ten Gold Coins. As a result, she now genuinely believed she was a card-playing genius.

She had been pestering him for a game ever since, mainly because everyone else in High Cliff Castle was dirt poor. He was her only option.

Levi kept stringing her along, always claiming he was too busy whenever she asked to play. It wasn’t until a few days ago, when he finally had some free time, that he decided to spring his trap.

He started by letting her win a little, just to make sure she wouldn’t get scared off.

Just as the Little Silver Dragon was hugging a coin purse full of Gold Coins, practically drooling at the thought of her own invincibility...

...what followed was a series of devastating losses that made the Silver Dragon Maiden begin to question her very existence.

Yet she refused to believe it was a matter of skill. ’It’s just bad luck,’ she thought.

As her little coin purse deflated and she watched the glittering Gold Coins slip through her fingers, the whiplash of going from sudden riches to abject poverty was enough to send the Silver Dragon Maiden completely over the edge.

"So sorry. Two jokers and four twos. I win again," the Lord said with a grin, slamming his cards down. His face screamed, ’I’m invincible. Your move.’

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" the Silver Dragon Maiden cried, looking in despair at a hand where her highest card was a nine.

Finally, a thought seemed to strike her. With a rare flash of backbone, she planted her hands on her hips and demanded, "How can your luck be this good? You get the best hand every single time! Are you hiding cards?"

’Took you long enough to figure that out,’ the Lord thought, almost exploding with laughter. ’You’ve already lost the shirt off your back.’

This guilty pleasure from taking advantage of a simpleton was so strong, he felt he should at least buy the Little Silver Dragon a bag of sunflower seeds as compensation.

"Am I that kind of person?" Levi asked. "If you don’t believe me, come search me yourself."

Sitting in the main seat, Levi leaned back and spread his arms, a look of utter innocence on his face.

For the sake of treasure, the suspicious Silver Dragon Maiden became uncharacteristically bold. Not only did she dare to question the Lord for the first time ever, but she actually climbed onto the table, leaped into Levi’s arms, and began searching him all over.

Unfortunately, after a thorough search, she came up with nothing. Dejected, she climbed off the Lord.

Levi chuckled. "You now owe me a grand total of six thousand and five Gold Coins. And, given that you’re so poor you can’t even produce a single copper coin, you’ve agreed to pay off this debt with your labor."

As he spoke, Levi produced a sheet of parchment, its contents already written. "On Dragon Island, your labor is valued at two Gold Coins a month. I, your benevolent Lord, will graciously value your work at two Gold Coins and fifty silver coins a month. That means you’ll have to work for me for two hundred years to clear your debt."

"However, I might not even live that long. So let’s just call it an even one hundred years."

Levi quickly scribbled his name on two copies of the parchment and handed her the quill. "Sign it."

Staring at the contract on the parchment, Sophia bit her lip, her small, fair hands trembling. A Giant Dragon’s lifespan was long, but a hundred years was not an insignificant amount of time, even for them.

By her reckoning, she would reach adulthood in just over sixty years. A hundred years from now, she would be only a few decades shy of her prime.

To put it simply, signing this contract meant she would be working for this human from her youth all the way into her prime!

"Levi, I’ll definitely win the next hand! Let’s play again, I’ll win it all back!"

Sophia clutched at straws, desperately shaking the Lord’s arm. She blinked her silver eyes, putting on her most pitiful expression.

"Sophia, on that point, I must refuse," Levi said, a look of profound righteousness on his face, like a Pope guiding a lost lamb back to the flock. "First of all, what good does it do me to beat you? My lifespan is nothing compared to a Giant Dragon’s. Besides, you’re already in too deep. To save you from yourself, I will not play cards with you again."

"From now on in High Cliff Castle, cards are for recreation only! No gambling!" Levi suddenly announced, issuing a new decree to everyone present.

"Furthermore, to help Sophia kick her card addiction, no one is allowed to play with her!"

As the Lord issued his final command, Sophia felt her world come crashing down. She collapsed to the floor in a heap.

Not only had she failed to make any money, but she had become an indentured dragon. The Silver Dragon Maiden was beyond tears.

She was probably the most indebted Silver Dragon in history.

His wish granted, the Lord walked out of the hall with a stern expression, his hands clasped behind his back. Once he was a safe distance away, he could no longer contain himself and burst into loud laughter.