Bright moonlight spilled across the sandy beach. After another day steeped in killing, Lynn led his exhausted team back to the fishing village harbor town.
By the time he returned to his residence, he was already utterly spent.
The side quest had been completed, and more importantly, the ghouls within his territory had been completely wiped out.
He could finally get a good night's sleep and recover his energy and strength.
Before going to bed, he sorted through the arrangements ahead.
Tomorrow, he would hire a group of residents to transport the grain back to the city from the stranded ships. However, how to deal with the three grounded ships themselves would require careful consideration.
Leaving them in shallow waters would only be a matter of time before someone with ill intent discovered them.
As for the Flint family, in order to honor his promise, Lynn would need to dispatch one hundred soldiers from the Xiao Cavalry Regiment to help clear out the remaining ghouls at Widow's Watch Harbor.
This concerned his reputation. Becoming a noble who kept his word was extremely important in the early stages.
However, regarding the Countess and Vane's proposal to borrow Valyrian steel weapons, Lynn had flatly refused.
The relationship between the two families was nowhere near that close.
What truly gave Lynn a headache was the new mission issued by the system.
Main Quest: Escort Arya Stark back to the North.Reward: Magical Beast Cub (Gold).
Side Quest: Territory soldiers kill and eliminate 50 ghouls.Reward: Random Points Exchange Card (Blue).
The side quest was manageable. Sending the Xiao Cavalry Regiment to Widow's Watch would likely complete it directly, and the reward could only be considered average.
But the main quest—going to find Arya and bring her back to the Kingdom of the North—was downright absurd. The Riverlands were ablaze with war. How was he supposed to lead troops through a war zone?
Finding Arya's whereabouts alone would be a problem.
It might even be that the moment his forces set out, they would be mistaken for spoils of war and wiped out by someone else's cavalry.
And that wasn't all.
The planning and development of the Bite Bay Three Sisters Islands also required manpower to oversee—constructing barracks and brewing workshops, recruiting workers, building standardized residential housing…
On top of that, he still needed to arrange people to be on standby to receive Dany Tully at any time.
It was maddening.
In the past, Lynn had only read in novels about how heroic and imposing a lord could be, how dazzling the noble aura appeared.
Only now that it had fallen on his shoulders did he realize there was a basketful of messy affairs—none of which could be ignored.
At present, excluding the unofficially recognized Three Sisters Islands, his territory in the North was less than twenty square kilometers, with fewer than five hundred households—about the size of a small town in his previous life.
And yet troubles came one after another.
Lynn still had about thirty points left in the system. He was considering whether to recharge another twenty dragon coins to draw an Elite Profession Card. Without a steward to help, managing everything really was infuriating.
Thinking of dragon coins—
Lynn's eyelids, which were almost closed, suddenly twitched. He snapped his eyes open.
Right now, there happened to be a capable administrator from a great noble family within his territory. Lady Flint was clearly someone who managed affairs at Widow's Watch. If he didn't properly build a relationship and solve a batch of problems in advance, it would be a waste of having sent troops to help her.
With that thought, Lynn immediately rolled out of bed, dragged his weary body up, and headed toward the guest rooms in the rear courtyard of the manor.
The light inside was still on.
Lynn lightly knocked on the door.
"Who is it?"
A gentle woman's voice sounded from within.
"Madam, it's me, Lynn. Is it convenient to discuss something?"
The sitting room was a spacious and elegant small chamber. From inside came the soft rustling sound of someone getting dressed. It seemed the woman had already undressed and was about to sleep when he arrived at this exact moment.
The lord's manor was not large. For security reasons related to Lynn's own residence, the Flint family guards had not been allowed into the rear courtyard. Logically, Vane, as the Countess's personal guard, should have been by her side—but there was no sign of her movement.
Lynn felt a slight sense of doubt.
He turned his head and looked around. Thanks to the moonlight, the garden was not too dark. A few small insects chirped among the flowers and grass. Everything around was quiet.
Creak—
The door slowly opened.
Lynn turned his head and saw the Countess wearing a white, Ximian-style strapless long dress. A flesh-colored gauze shawl draped lightly over her shoulders. Her fair legs, set off by delicate lace, appeared even more long and shapely. The understated elegance unique to a mature woman seemed to flow naturally from her.
At this moment, her slender, jade-like hands rested on the handle behind the door. Her large eyes, filled with unspoken meaning, gazed at Lynn.
Disturbing someone's sleep so late made Lynn feel somewhat apologetic.
But thinking that this lady would be leaving tomorrow, and for the sake of his own development, he could only steel himself.
"Sorry to disturb you, Madam," Lynn said apologetically.
The Countess's beautiful eyes flickered. She extended her hand in a welcoming gesture and said, "My lord, what brings you here?"
Entering the room, Lynn discreetly glanced around and confirmed that the fiery little pepper Vane truly was not there, which surprised him slightly.
He didn't think too much about it. Walking to the table, he smiled at Lady Flint and said, "There are indeed a few matters I'd like to discuss with you."
Lynn explained his plans—how he would send two ships to escort her back to Widow's Watch, ensure her safe return, and then recruit a group of craftsmen and sailors there to bring back to his own territory.
He wasn't sure whether the Xiao Cavalry Regiment was capable of negotiating business matters.
So he planned to settle everything in advance with the mistress of Widow's Watch. When the time came, she could directly arrange for the people he needed to board the ships, while the Xiao Cavalry Regiment would only need to escort them back.
Lady Flint smiled faintly. "My lord, you came to visit in the dead of night just for this?"
Lynn nodded, then shook his head.
"There's one more thing. Your lands are fertile—there must be many agricultural workers and farming tools. I need those as well."
The woman cast him a meaningful glance, nodded, and asked, "That's no problem. I can arrange all of that for you. Do you have anything else?"
Seeing her agree so readily, Lynn felt a surge of joy. But after hearing the rest of her words, he froze. Was there really nothing else?
Should there be something else?
Lynn pondered for a moment.
Aside from these items that could conveniently be brought back, anything else would be more cost-effective to purchase in nearby White Harbor. Although Lord Eel of White Harbor constantly sent people to collect taxes, leaving a poor impression, that had nothing to do with business.
He thought again.
Then Lynn cursed himself for his terrible memory—hadn't he still had an unfinished side quest from earlier?
Form an alliance with another lord.Reward: Random Points Exchange Card (Green).
Seeing the sudden look of realization and the bright smile on the young, handsome Lynn's face, Lady Flint—standing just a breath away—also revealed a faint smile. Her eyes shimmered like autumn water, rippling softly.
Lynn smiled apologetically. "Madam."
"Yes?"
"Can we form an alliance?"
…
The seductive moonlight slipped behind a cloud and never emerged again.
Lynn returned to his room and happily threw himself into bed. Solving a pile of troublesome matters in one go, and even gaining an alliance with the Flint family while completing a lingering side quest, he felt a little carried away.
Satisfied, he closed his eyes and prepared to sleep.
In his half-dreaming state, the image of Lady Flint's graceful, curvaceous figure and her silk-like, alluring gaze surfaced in his mind. He opened his eyes once more.
In the darkness, Lynn's puzzled murmur sounded softly:
"Did I… miss something?"
Tomorrow's Monday—asking for some votes. Yes, even charity will do.
...
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Here are a few fan-fic titles that I've recently uploaded on my Patreon:
"Game of Thrones: Dragon Prince"
"Game of Thrones: Political Life"
"Game of Thrones: Holy Flame"
"The Game of Thrones Upgrade System"
"Game of Thrones: Lannister Kingdom"
"Game of Thrones: Godzilla vs. Dragons"
"Game of Thrones: Ruler of the Deep Seas "
"Game of Thrones The Glory of a Knight"
"Game of Thrones: The Most Powerful Dragon Queen"
" Game of Thrones: From the Elden Lord to the Young Wolf"
"Game of Thrones: Rise of a Lord with the Army-Building System"
(End Chapter)