Damon couldn't stop the thrill rising in his chest, even though he knew this feeling and thought could almost be called treason. Still, he couldn't help but feel excited.
People like Lord Gregory were blocking the way, and the entire Plumera Kingdom's court had been corrupted by their power. If he wanted to rise and take revenge in such a dark and rotten place, he had to build his own army.
Without soldiers, the dream of revenge might never be possible.
Even though he had bad memories of joining the army when he was young, it was because there were villains blocking his path. But now, the young girl in front of him, who was even younger than him, handed him the power to train troops.
He could even make his own rules to build the kind of loyal army he had always imagined. He would never let the current army's corruption and flattery ruin his soldiers.
When he was a child, his admiration for the military came from his father. But after joining the army himself, he buried that dream in a dark corner of his heart.
Now, with just a few simple words from the girl, that forgotten dream came back to life.
Damon couldn't help but lower his head more, his voice slightly hoarse but filled with excitement.
"I will not fail you."
Seeing that Damon truly understood her intentions, Elara straightened up with satisfaction.
"Oh right, tomorrow when you go out to find people, start at the East District. A large group of healthy but jobless refugees will be driven out there."
East District… Damon's excited mind immediately thought of the princess's villa where they had just been.
The group of refugees who weren't sick had been there. The princess had said they couldn't eat for free and had to be driven away.
He had thought she really meant to drive them away. But honestly, in a world like this where people freeze to death on the streets, the fact she gave shelter to the sick was already a great kindness.
For the healthy ones, even if they were refugees, she really had no duty to feed them for free.
But now, hearing her calm voice, Damon suddenly understood the full plan.
At the villa in the East District, when she said those words, she didn't actually mean to abandon them. She just needed them to leave the villa, and then tomorrow, he could bring them back under the reason of recruiting workers.
This way, they could make sure those people were healthy and uninfected, and at the same time give a chance to those who were willing to work hard to survive.
After realizing this, Damon looked at the noble young girl in front of him, her head barely reaching his chest. A strange emotion quietly rose in his heart.
She wasn't a cold and cruel person, and she wasn't some shallow girl who only cared about handsome men.
On the contrary, she was incredibly smart. She had thought through everything, and even when standing at the top, she was still willing to look down and care for the suffering people at the bottom.
Even for those dirty refugees chased away like rats, she still gave them a path to live.
Such a person, clearly born noble and kind-hearted, how could she possibly be the so-called cruel demon people feared?
Damon stared at her thin back for a long time, unable to look away. Then he saw her take a few steps before turning back to glance at him through the light veil.
"One more thing, I'm opening a business estate here. So aside from recruiting strong young men as guards, anyone with useful skills like embroidery, sewing, weaving, or farming can come. Of course, people who can read and write are even better.
There's no age limit. Also, let them know, as long as they do their job well, I don't mind if they bring their families too. As long as they can follow the rules."
In her clear and calm voice, Damon slowly lowered his head again. His posture and tone were filled with complete loyalty.
"Yes, I will remember it."
After arranging a leader for her first base and making a rough plan for its future, Elara walked around the White Merchant Manor two more times. When she felt the timing was right, she brought Mathias into the returning carriage.
"Princess, Damon's records."
Inside the carriage, without the tall and muscular Damon, there was much more space for Elara and Mathias to sit comfortably.
Uno stood at the curtain with a bundle of bamboo slips and a thin piece of parchment. It contained records taken from the prison about Damon and his family's past "crimes" and the ownership paper that came with his demotion to slave status.
Elara, although already using Damon, would never give him a chance to betray her. These records and his slave contract still needed to be verified and kept in her possession. But the bamboo slips… they were ridiculously heavy and bulky, taking up too much space.
Elara watched Uno place the heavy bamboo slips on the seat Damon had just vacated, creating a small pile almost half the height of an arm… She let out a low hiss.
[System 92, the paper-making skill—wasn't it part of the rewards?]
[Yes yes, Master! Once the Francis brothers settle the rebellion, you'll see the next mission reward. Paper-making is among the upcoming rewards—should be soon.]
Good… Though Elara knew the basics of papermaking, she wasn't a professional. It wasn't like she could suddenly invent a working process in this ancient world. Especially since many plants and trees here looked and were named differently from Earth. It was better to wait for the reward from System 92—it would be faster and more efficient.
Elara picked up the bamboo slips and started reading. Although there were many slips, the information recorded was sparse. The records about Damon's life mostly matched what she had already heard from a few scholars.
Most of it focused on the "crime" of his family secretly storing and trading military bows, and included a vague summary of the case.
But even though the case had a conclusion written on it, there were no detailed evidences or deductions. Just a sloppy and rough judgment result.
Elara clicked her tongue softly, tossed the bamboo aside, picked up the parchment with Damon's slave contract, looked it over, then put it into her pocket and turned to her side.
Mathias still sat quietly beside her. From the moment they met yesterday, he had only done what she instructed, and if she didn't speak, he stayed calm and silent.
However, his lowered eyes no longer looked as blank and emotionless as before.
There were faint thoughts flickering in his deep green eyes. Unfortunately, his face remained unreadable, making it hard to tell what he was thinking.
Elara looked at him for a few seconds. "Mathias."
His eyelashes trembled, and his seated posture turned slightly toward her. He bowed and said, "Princess."
"Raise your head and look at me."
His emotionless green eyes slowly lifted to meet hers.
Elara stared at him for a moment, then leaned in slightly and asked, "Mathias, do you think anything I said or did today was wrong?"
Mathias's eyes trembled slightly as he looked at the delicate girl in front of him.
Her behavior today… did have many unreasonable parts… Whether it was publicly whipping Captain Yang at the execution ground to save Damon, or her behavior from the Princess Manor to the White Merchant Manor…
If he hadn't seen it himself, he would never have believed that the same girl who once used tools to whip him for fun could speak so calmly and act so decisively.
He didn't know if this noble girl had suddenly thought of some new game or if something had piqued her interest, causing this major change in attitude. And he wasn't sure how long this new interest would last...
Still… unreasonable didn't mean wrong.
Compared to her past actions… at least today, nobody died.
Under Elara's gaze, Mathias slowly shook his head.
"Nothing was wrong, Princess."
"Good." Elara nodded. She confirmed that Mathias didn't develop any wild or negative suspicions about her. His eyes were still calm and quiet, so she was satisfied and looked away.
As her future chief assistant in training, Mathias needed to gradually understand everything about her. He must quickly adapt and subconsciously accept her subtle changes.
He couldn't let her new behavior spark doubts. He especially couldn't overreact or make wild guesses. Otherwise, the Princess Estate might not keep such a talented man for long.
That was also why she had brought him around all day. Besides handling things that needed to be done, she was testing his reactions.
Thankfully, Elara believed her judgment was still accurate. Mathias was smart, with a calm and stable mind. His reaction today was the best she had hoped for...