Golden twilight spilled over the mountaintop, painting the scattered wooden houses on the hillside amber.
Matt, the mayor of Fontdmer Town, had zero interest in appreciating this sunset. His rough fingers rubbed together frantically, his knuckles white from the pressure.
He stood on the hillside, eyes glued to the approaching convoy in the distance, his heart sinking like a stone.
What he'd been dreading had finally arrived.
A month and a half ago, Matt got word that Fontdmer Town and all of Shadowpine Ridge had been handed over to the Ividaya family—to Thane Ividaya.
This meant the residents of Fontdmer Town would have to start coughing up taxes.
You gotta understand, ever since the last tax collector got himself killed by bandits, Fontdmer Town hadn't paid a dime in taxes for a full ten years.
Now with this lord showing up, everyone was on edge.
Several hunters had already bolted, but Matt, like the other well-off farmers with tons of farmland, couldn't bear to ditch his property and could only choose to stick around.
Matt and the other wealthy farmers had talked about resisting the new lord's rule.
Matt didn't want to hand over his wealth to this lord for nothing, and was ready to play dirty if he had to.
But when Matt saw the intimidating convoy in front of him—over twenty mounted soldiers packing serious heat—he completely ditched any thoughts of resistance.
Matt led several wealthy farmers in a quick jog to the front of the convoy to welcome the new lord.
No portrait needed—Matt immediately spotted the young man among the guards and quickly ran forward to bow.
Golden curly hair, a tall and solid build, a fair and handsome face.
Without a noble's good diet, you couldn't raise a young man like this.
"Welcome to Fontdmer Town, noble lord,"
Matt's face was all smiles, crow's feet bunching around his eyes, nervously wringing his hands,
"I'm the mayor everyone chose—Matt Pinewood. Please command me however you want."
The other wealthy farmers also quickly bowed, shouting stuff like "Welcome, Baron" and such.
A total mess—clearly unrehearsed.
Thane didn't mind, nodding slightly in response.
His gaze swept over these weathered faces before finally settling back on Matt,
"The trip was exhausting. Quickly get several rooms ready for my men to rest."
"Also find a big place to hold those sixty-three bandit prisoners."
"And get food ready for forty people. Don't worry about those prisoners—let them go hungry tonight."
Thane sat on horseback giving orders to Matt directly, without the slightest politeness.
"Everything's ready to go. Please follow me."
Matt showed no hard feelings on his face, quickly stepping aside to escort Thane into the town.
Fontdmer Town sat on a hillside with steep valleys on both sides, surrounded by a ring of six-foot-tall spiked fences as defensive walls.
Good spot, but not huge—Thane figured that even packed with wooden houses, it could hold maybe four to five hundred people tops.
Called a town in name, it was really more like a big stockade.
The plain below was hemmed in by mountains on all sides. Thane thought it was better suited for building a town, while this hillside should become his castle.
Thane's arrival caught everyone in town's attention.
They were both curious about and scared of Thane, not daring to look straight at him on horseback, only stealing peeks from the corners of their eyes while keeping their heads down and working.
"This is our new lord. Hurry up and bow!"
Only after Matt's loud reminder did the residents frantically stand up and bow to Thane.
Meanwhile, residents in the distance, hearing this, immediately dropped what they were doing and hid to the side.
Seeing this, Matt quickly explained, "Fontdmer Town has never had a noble like you visit. They're all ignorant fools who don't know proper manners. Please don't hold it against them."
Thane understood the situation with borderland folks—most couldn't even read, let alone understand etiquette, so he wasn't ticked off.
However—
"As mayor, didn't you teach them before I got here?"
Thane asked calmly.
"Why should I teach them..."
Matt was about to complain when he saw Thane's ice-cold expression and immediately swallowed his words,
"I'm terribly sorry, noble lord. That was my screw-up."
"Let's keep moving."
Thane didn't push the issue further, but already figured out this mayor's attitude toward him wasn't as respectful as it looked on the surface.
"Yes."
Matt nodded and picked up the pace, leading Thane to a courtyard.
The courtyard had three wooden houses, cleaned pretty well.
But that was just clean—nothing special.
This courtyard wasn't only mixed in with regular folks' houses but looked pretty run-down, like nobody had lived there in ages.
Thane really hadn't expected that after being stuck on the frontier for over a month, the place they'd set up for him here would be such a dump.
Looked like this place really hadn't been under noble control for a long time—even the mayor treated the lord like he was nobody special.
Perfect.
Thane sneered coldly and asked, "This is where I'm staying?"
"I'm terribly sorry. The borderlands can't compare to your family castle. Please cut us some slack."
Matt bowed with a smile, saying, "Please crash here for now. Tomorrow you can personally pick a spot you like to build your manor."
Noble kids really are spoiled—whining even when it's cleaned this well.
Matt sighed to himself. Really hard to please. Life ahead's gonna suck.
Looks like I'll have to sell all the land here and find a chance to get out.
"No need to wait till tomorrow. Whose are those wooden houses on the hilltop?"
Without waiting for Matt's answer, Thane directly ordered, "That spot looks good. I'll live there from now on."
The place Thane pointed to was a flat slope with plenty of space and good distance from other houses.
Not only was it at the highest point of the small town, but it was also surrounded by other houses, like it could overlook the entire territory like a king.
"That won't work..."
Matt instinctively refused, explaining, "That's my house, noble lord."
"Won't work? You're telling me no in my territory?"
Thane's gaze turned to ice. He hadn't expected this Matt to actually say "won't work."
Really didn't respect him at all.
To so brazenly stomp on the lord's authority and dignity.
The guy was asking for it.
Thane suddenly drew his Fine Steel Claymore, pointing it at Matt!
"Who gave you permission to build houses on my land? Have you paid taxes!"
Clang!
Pamin and the guards all drew their swords. Matt was so scared he immediately dropped to his knees!
"This, this..."
Matt suddenly realized—nobles owned the land!
"I'm sorry, lord! I, I'll clear it out for you right away!"
"Too late!"
Thane declared harshly, "Disrespecting the lord, stealing the lord's property, dodging taxes—according to imperial law, how should this be handled?"
"Should be punished by hanging!" Pamin answered loudly.
"Perfect. Execute him at dinner time!"
Hearing this, Matt's legs gave out and he collapsed to the ground, screaming,
"Mercy! Lord!"
"I can pay taxes! I'll give you all my property!"
"Don't kill me!"
...
Thane didn't waste any more words, waving for Pamin to gag Matt.
Then Thane turned his attention to the other wealthy farmers,
"Don't worry. I'm a very reasonable lord. Matt's crimes have nothing to do with you guys."
Thane's voice went back to calm. "As long as you pay your taxes properly, I won't hold past stuff against you."
"Taxes, taxes! We'll definitely pay taxes!"
The other wealthy farmers were already shaking like leaves, quickly nodding in agreement, terrified they'd be the next ones getting the death sentence.
Actually, Thane originally hadn't planned to come down hard right off the bat, but the people of Fontdmer Town were really too used to slacking off, showing way too little respect for him as lord.
Especially this mayor, who actually took over the best spot without even realizing it.
Since that was how it was, Thane wouldn't hold back anymore—execute first, ask questions later.
As for the rest, if they played ball, he'd accept them as his dogs.
"Kralfard, can you do bookkeeping?"
Kralfard, who had been focused on watching the drama unfold, suddenly found himself being questioned by Thane and didn't react right away.
Only when a guard beside him gave him a shove did he snap out of it and answer,
"That's what I'm best at, Baron."
"Then you're in charge of going to these wealthy farmers' homes to collect taxes. Calculate it at 60% of their property."
"Happy to serve you!"
Kralfard replied cheerfully.
After the Beuigclair caravan got confiscated by Thane, Kralfard had been pretty bummed out. Now seeing the wealthy farmers getting their property seized, his mood finally picked up a bit.
Having someone share his misery was wonderful.
So even though the trip was exhausting, Kralfard was totally willing to do this job.
"Pamin, Eliric, each of you pick two men from your teams to follow Kralfard for tax collection."
"Yes, lord!" "No problem!"
Both answered at the same time, quickly assigning four men to form a tax collection squad with Kralfard.
Actually, Thane wasn't in a rush to collect taxes—after all, gold coins couldn't be spent here anyway.
Thane was worried these wealthy farmers, seeing Matt's fate, would agree with their mouths but run off in the night, so he needed to cut through the bull quickly.
Having paid money, these wealthy farmers probably wouldn't bail anymore.
Thane left the wagons and bandit prisoners in the courtyard, arranging for the mercenary team, caravan guards, and two guards to stay and watch them.
He then led Pamin and Eliric straight to the two rows of wooden houses on the hilltop.
Matt's family hadn't figured out what was happening when guards charged into the courtyard.
Matt's household had two sons who tried to fight back with swords, but lacking any real sword skills, they got cut down within two or three exchanges.
Only Matt's wife and one daughter were left, along with three slaves who got captured by the guards.
As for what happened to these five people, they naturally got turned into slaves.
Then Thane directly moved into the main house, while guards used the courtyard kitchen to start cooking and lit a bonfire in the courtyard.
Night fell with bitter cold wind.
The townspeople, who should've been sitting by hearths or lying in warm beds, now surrounded the open space outside the mayor's courtyard, waiting to watch the mayor hanging from the wooden frame get executed.
And Thane, who had given the order, sat at a wooden table by the bonfire, focused on enjoying his dinner.
Seven wealthy farmers stood on either side, heads down, not daring to make a peep.
The scene was dead quiet. Everyone barely dared breathe loudly, only the bonfire crackling and burning in the howling cold wind.
Thane hated waste and carefully ate every scrap of meat on his plate.
He downed his cup of ale in one gulp, then wiped his mouth and signaled for Pamin to read out Matt's crimes one by one.
"Does anyone have objections?"
Thane's gaze swept across them, and the townspeople couldn't help but duck their heads.
Even though Matt was the mayor, he wasn't particularly well-liked. Under the sharp blades, nobody was willing to speak up for Matt.
The town militia had swords, but when the wealthy farmers closely connected to Matt hadn't said a word, who would be willing to step forward?
As for Matt's wife and daughter, they also kept their heads down and said nothing.
In this era, most ordinary women had little say and were used to being controlled.
For them, men were just someone to depend on.
When one was gone, they'd find another to lean on. As long as they could survive, that was enough.
This disappointed Thane, who had wanted to root out Matt's buddies.
Looked like this mayor's popularity wasn't very good.
That made sense though—he could even tick off such a good-natured lord as himself, so how could his popularity be any good?
"Very well. Execute him."
Thane waved his hand, and one of Eliric's men kicked away the stool.
Matt's feet lost support and flailed helplessly in the air. He struggled with everything he had but it was useless, finally hanging his head lifeless.
"Collect the body and count it as one imperial head tax."
"Yes, Baron."
Pamin replied quietly.
Thane stood up and declared loudly:
"I am Thane Ividaya, Baron of Shadowpine Ridge, your ruler!"
"From today on, this land beneath your feet, the sky above your heads—everything belongs to me!"
"The plants on the ground, the beasts in the mountains, the fish and shrimp in the rivers, the birds in the sky—all mine!"
Thane's words weren't the least bit over the top.
This was the way of this world—nobles owned everything.
Even free commoners had no land, only able to get usage rights through leasing, not ownership.
"Your unauthorized farming, fishing, and hunting has already broken lordly law and should result in hanging like Matt!"
"However, given your ignorance, I won't go after your previous screw-ups—only punishing Mayor Matt who let you get away with it."
Thane's booming voice echoed through the night sky like thunder, making everyone's ears ring,
"I am merciful. You can still live in your own houses."
"But you must pay 60% of your property and grain as taxes to make up for your previous screw-ups!"
The scene fell into dead silence again, the sound of flames burning particularly harsh.
"But this way... we'll starve to death..."
"We don't have any extra grain left, sir!"
"Why should you take our stuff?"
"Sixty percent? That's more than half!"
...
With the first person speaking up, others joined in.
The scene became like a bunch of crows, with people squawking and shouting complaints and pushback against Thane's orders. Some even yelled the crazy idea of driving away the lord.
Only the wealthy farmers who had already paid taxes kept their heads down and stayed quiet.
Thane had seen this coming and calmly waved his hand.
These people hadn't paid taxes for years and did have some savings.
Clang!
All of Thane's soldiers drew their swords at the same time, the harsh metallic sound perfectly cutting through everyone's noise.
Eliric hefted his great axe and simply jumped forward,
"Anyone who dares interrupt the lord again gets their head chopped off!"
Clearly, sharp blades and intimidating figures were more convincing than noble titles.
The scene instantly went silent. Some townspeople didn't even dare breathe loudly, afraid of intimate contact between blade and throat.
"I won't keep you here against your will. Those who can't accept this can leave."
After complete silence, Thane spoke again, "But you can't take any belongings, including the clothes on your backs—those are all my property!"
"Otherwise, you'll end up like Mayor Matt, executed for stealing noble property!"
"Also, I'm reminding you that all of the Northern Borderlands has been handed over to various nobles. Other lords won't be more merciful than me. The only place you can run to is the Frozen Mountains."
Thane's reminder left the townspeople in despair. Those who had wanted to flee instantly lost all hope.
The Frozen Mountains were at the northernmost edge of the Northern Borderlands, covered with eternal glaciers and snow where humans simply couldn't survive.
Having said what needed to be said, Thane paid no attention to the townspeople's reactions,
"That's all for tonight. The town militia stay behind. Everyone else can get lost."
The townspeople hadn't recovered from the dramatic change yet and got driven away by the guards in a daze, leaving only about twenty sturdy men outside the courtyard.
"You've been guarding my land and protecting my property—you're different from the others."
Thane's face showed a smile, his voice gentle,
"You only need to hand over 30% of your property. If you don't have enough grain, you don't need to pay that."
This statement made the dejected men's eyes light up instantly!
Nobody had expected such good luck. They immediately knelt and bowed,
"You are the wisest lord! Thank you for your generosity!"
Nothing was scarier than comparing people to each other, but people also loved to compare.
Although losing 30% of their property still hurt, compared to the other townspeople's 60%, this was already a huge blessing.
"Get up."
Thane waved his hand and ordered, "Tonight my guards will keep watch with you. Not only do we need to watch for bandits and wild beasts outside town, but we also need to stop townspeople from running off with their property."
"Don't worry, lord! No matter who tries to escape, we'll catch them and hand them over to you for punishment!"
Having just gotten benefits, the militia readily promised.
"Good. I'm counting on you—don't let me down."
Thane nodded, then turned and left to rest in the wooden house.
He left the remaining stuff to Pamin to handle.
After Pamin had arranged everything and the night watch guards left with the militia, Eliric came over on his own.
"Is this lord really just a bastard when he's this smart?"
"Don't talk about the lord behind his back," Pamin refused to engage with Eliric's question.
Eliric wasn't offended, just shrugged, shouldered his axe, and whistled as he headed back to the side house.
Only Pamin remained standing by the bonfire, staring at the flames deep in thought.
Was Thane really just a bastard?
First killing the mayor to intimidate, then winning over the wealthy farmers, crushing the commoners before turning around to buy off the militia who held the real power.
Decisive, ruthless, careful, thinking everything through.
In just one evening, he had completely flipped Fontdmer Town upside down.
Even legitimate noble children who got proper education might not do better than this.