After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World - Chapter 283

Chapter 283: Caveats
A few minutes later they arrived at the Eastern area where the farmvillas were. The other lords had already asked their confidants and other citizens to prepare for departure in a few hours.

The farmvilla area was very cozy with wide roads and larger parks. And because of the large lots, the entire community felt much more open and quaint.

The two men had only seen the area from afar and it felt more comfortable up close.

Soon, they arrived outside her house, a large private villa with a tall fence. They could see plants like bougainvillea from outside, one could tell the gardens inside were well taken care of.

“Let’s go in.” She said with a smile, opening the door to welcome her new allies.

What greeted them was a beautiful garden of various colors and decor. The wonderful mix of scents surrounded them, already immersing them in a better mood.

There were even hanging flower gardens, ponds, and swings.

Kimmy couldn’t help but exclaim. “Now, this is living!”

It was like entering a mini fairyland. “How do you maintain this?”

“Hired a gardener,” She responded vaguely, “One of the NPCs hired by the territory to be exact.” She added, “He also takes care of my private tourist spots.”

“It was mentioned by one of you that private individuals can hire NPCs.” Matthew asked, “How was that arranged?”

“People that hire NPCs pay about 20 gold a month to Level E professionals, and 30 to Level D.”

The two lords nodded. Doubling the hiring fee seemed fair and a new way for the Lords to make money.

This note was added to their mental checklists.

Kimmy gaped at them though. “A month? So expensive?”

“Well, if you choose well, they’re usually worth the price.”

“Oh..”

The group walked slowly, appreciating the scenery, eventually reaching the house. Micheal could see the module, but everything else was very different.

It was the gregarious Kimmy who spoke up. “This is still a custom house?”

Althea pretended to be unsure.

“I’m not sure… all of the houses and the shops looked alike when they appeared.”

This may seem vague, but this was enough of a hint. In particular, the sharp Micheal and Matthew had indeed taken the hint and were already trying to design.

If they knew who the Lord was, they would beg for the blueprints even for a high price!

They hoped their cronies would fulfill their mission to look for this Oslo!

They reached the threshold of the house and entered after taking off their shoes. There was an ante-sala right after the door and they walked deeper to reach the living room proper.

Here, they saw a large animal fur cot with children and babies. There were three babies playing on the ground to be exact, and they were happily nannied by little Maya and (very rarely) little Horus.

“This is Maya, Harold’s daughter. And this is little Horus, adopted into our team.”

The little boy turned his head to them with a smile, but then he saw Matthew and frowned deeply, almost hissing like a wild child.

Althea walked forward and patted the little boy’s head. “He’s… from Vismont before.”

“I… see…” Matthew said, and suddenly he couldn’t look straight into the boy’s eyes.

Beauty-lover-Kimmy sparkled. “They’re so beautifuuullll. Especially the infants! Are they… twins?!” She exclaimed, successfully diffusing the tense atmosphere.

Althea smiled. “The twins are mine.” She said placing smooches on the children’s faces. It was a beautiful sight.

Kimmy exclaimed. “No wonder they’re so cuteeee!”

Matthew froze, looking a bit pale, while Micheal’s eyebrows rose, and his curiosity towards the children rose to a new height.

‘Their children? How would they be like?’ He mused.

Althea didn’t notice these reactions. She simply led them to the verandah and took some ready-made biscuits, cakes, and tea to serve.

As they settled down on the comfortable seats, Althea took a sip of tea before speaking. “You may be wondering why I called you here.”

They nodded, all while taking a bite of the snack and a sip of the wonderful tea.

“The elders and I found quite a few things from the NPCs.”

She paused. “Perhaps because there was no one who claimed lordship, if there was any, the relationship between Alterans and NPCs has always been particularly close.”

The men nodded. They have heard from their people that NPCs always joined in with the locals during the many festivities and were rarely absent during nightlife activities.

Amazingly, they had become true members of the territory, something the other territories had yet to have.

It was amazing, let alone to Matthew and Kimmy who didn’t even have NPCs at all.

“I’m starting with the so-called Protection Period. What do you know about it so far?”

It was Micheal who spoke, “It protects us from much stronger enemies. Giving us some time to grow. ” He said, and Althea nodded.

“The Protection Period… is indeed important in guarding us during our growth period.

“But… what meets us outside is much, much, worse than you could probably imagine.”

The three froze and looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. No matter how triggered though, they waited for her to continue.

Well, mostly.

Kimmy did not have patience in her vocabulary. “What do you mean? Please tell us!”

She first told them about the level differences. “What are the average levels in your territory?”

“Two,” Kimmy said, Matthew nodded.

“Mine also.”

“It is three in ours,” Micheal said, earning admiring gazes from the other two.

“It is four in Altera.” The trio stared at her, eyes wide, especially Kimmy.

“That’s amazing!”

Althea shook her head. “This is nothing. This level is just about the average level of Aborigines in their early adolescence.

“The weakest NPC I had was level 14, and he’s a gardener.”

“What?”

“Level 7 or 8 is probably the minimum level of fighters for aboriginal villages.” She told them, “Once the protection period ends… more people at this level will get to us.

“We have to be prepared.”

Kimmy looked particularly worried. “Would they attack us immediately?”

Althea shook her head. “This is the other thing I hope to mention to you.

“In this Continent, it was expressly forbidden to attack a territory arbitrarily and without warning.” She raised her hand to prevent them from misunderstanding. “But it doesn’t mean there won’t be any attacks.”

“First, a small force could do damage without triggering it.” She said and looked at Matthew. “Which was what happened in Vismont before, where only a few scores of Alternans fought, with Rowan guarding their safeties.”

Matthew nodded. “They basically overthrew a shadow regime without triggering it.”

The others didn’t even have the time to admire Altera’s strength when Althea began to speak again.

“There is a culture here. Something called Territory Wars…”

“What?” Kimmy uttered out. That didn’t sound very good. No, that sounded terrifying.

“From what I heard, territories can issue formal attacks to territories of the same levels. A maximum of twelve times a year was allowed.”

Silence.

She didn’t speak for a while, allowing this information to be absorbed, at least to a certain degree.

“We not only have to deal with mobs—which will also be stronger—but also fellow human beings…” Micheal said, rubbing his temple. “Had the NPCs said anything about the monsters?”

Although he had NPCs, they really didn’t care to tell him much, for now.

“Yes. In villages, level 5 mobs are normal.”

“What?”

“Shit!” Kimmy yelled, rubbing her head. “Level 2 mobs are already a big problem to us!”

“There’s also another important thing I’m telling you alone and not your confidants.”

The three gulped, instinctively knowing the gravitas of what she was about to say.

“In Territory Wars, the Lord token separates from the body. Whoever holds the token until the war ends, should they want to, will be the new Lord.”

There was silence in the room, trying to absorb this information and its various implications.

The three Lords were silent, feeling heavy in their hearts.

They thought they could finally begin to build a stable life… but it seemed that they thought too much.

Just… what kind of world is this?