Gamer Reborn

Chapter 634

“You know going to war won’t be the same as the game they had us play all those years ago?” Tom asked Ajax as they were heading towards Lessis.

“I am a lot stronger than I was all those years ago.” Ajax answered, though he had to admit he was a little worried about how he would match up against some of the stronger champions even with Aurexion by his side.

“That’s not what I mean.” Tom shook his head.

While Ajax was gone it was Tom who took on most of the internal ruling of the duchy with Lexi being the main liaison to the outside. During this time he had to make the decision and level the penalty of death only twice. He could have had someone else carry it out but decided it was best not to become too distant from such decisions.

“I know you’re a lot stronger now than I probably realize.” Tom continued. “But I worry about what might happen from all the killing.”

“I’ve already killed others.” Ajax had faced assassins and had no issue killing them, it surprised him considering his views on life from back on Earth but his upbringing in this world meant he had a different view when it came to the sanctity of life. “I might not enjoy it but it wasn’t an issue.”

“That’s because you killed those who fought you.” Tom acknowledged Ajax’s point. “What I’m worried about is what happens after you kill the enemy champion, you have the power to butcher the army they were protecting. Can you do that, and if you can and do how will it affect you? I’ve been in fights where I attacked with intent to kill and let me tell you the two executions I carried out were very different.”

Ajax didn’t have an answer and Tom clearly didn’t expect one, he was doing his best to help his brother be prepared for what he might face in the only way he thought he could help.

Their arrival in Lessis presented them with another problem. While word of Aurexion’s existence had spread, the simple truth was that there was no real space inside the city to accommodate a dragon that was slightly larger than the average house. He could theoretically fit on the main road but doing so would all but block all traffic.

“Aurexion is surely making an impression.” Tom chuckled as he looked towards the guards at the gate. Despite them being aware of their presence all the guards were looking straight up at the dragon flying above the city gates. “I feel like all of today's meetings will not just go faster than usual but better as well.”

Tom’s prediction turned out to be very much correct. While all of the nobles they met with had come from Viscount or Ducal Houses none of them were of the main branch. They were expecting to simply meet with Tom about the attendance of their children in the school, a way to make some connections with the new Ducal House. They weren’t prepared to meet with Ajax and they were very much intimidated even by the brief flashes of Aurexion they saw as he flew above the city.

Ajax got to practice his new social Skills and was pleasantly surprised that Tom had been right. There were a few points of friction when it came to the no preferential treatment stipulations but the nobles quickly backed down from their position in Ajax’s presence. Two out of the six they met with however were reconsidering having their children attend.

“That wasn’t so bad.” Ajax was surprised to find himself say that as they were exiting the building.

“That’s because it only took two hours.” Tom said. “I specifically scheduled a light day today and even this much would usually take at least three hours. I should have you join me more often.”

“If I do that I’ll lose some of the effectiveness I bring with me.” Ajax quickly tried to prevent his inclusion in more such dealings. “It’s important to keep my participation rare to increase the gravity of my attendance when it does happen.”

“That’s a clever excuse.” Tom chuckled

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“It’s backed by logic too.” Ajax laughed with his brother before tensing a little as he felt someone heading towards them at a high speed.

“My Lords!” Warden Greivous didn’t try to mask his presence though he did slow down a lot

“Warden.” Ajax acknowledged his presence with a nod while Tom instinctively straightened up his posture, a small habit that still remained from back when the warden was still his superior as a member of the guard.

“Something the matter, Warden?” Tom asked, slightly concerned.

“Yes and no.” The Warden seemed conflicted. “The presence of a dragon flying overhead has had a marked effect on the city. Almost everyone but the children are filled with anxiety. There was however a marked drop in any and all illegal activities.”

That was an odd upside to Aurexion’s presence. With people on edge Ajax would have expected more fights to break out and the more opportunistic outlaws to take advantage of the distraction but it seems that knowledge that the dragon was Ajax’s bond had long made the rounds and his presence felt like a tighter layer of security.

“Thank you for the report, Warden.” Ajax looked towards the man’s aides that were only now catching up. “But Aurexion’s presence won’t linger for long.” Ajax decided to remain unclear about what he meant by that in the middle of the street but Tom would inform the Warden that Ajax would be heading to war in due time.

“How’s the quarry doing?” Ajax asked his brother once Warden Greivous was dismissed.

“It’s slowly turning into a small city.” Tom said with a sigh. “I swear, taking in that many former slaves did wonders for my experience.”

Ajax was in fact a little surprised to see Tom was three levels higher than he had been when he left, he was close to his next level around that time but the added pressure of dealing with so many displaced people had surely led to some long nights and some strong Skill growth.

“How did they handle the transition?” Ajax was curious about that.

“It was a mixed bag.” Tom said with a faraway look. “Thankfully a large portion saw this for the opportunity you meant it to be. Of the twenty thousand about sixteen were cautiously optimistic that was the case.”

“That many decided to work at the quarry?” Ajax was very surprised about that.

“No, only about thirteen thousand are at the quarry.” Tom shook his head. “The other three thousand were very much fed up with mining even if that was all they had known, thankfully it was the ones that weren’t Skilled at extracting stone and other precious resources from the ground.”

“So then what did they do?” Ajax was curious now.

“Those three thousand and the other four thousand that were more pessimistic about your motives took to joining other villages, cities or even creating villages of their own in our duchy.” Tom explained. “Something we very much need now as the increased food consumption from the influx of people will not be small this Winter and come Death.”

“Won’t some of those villages be more racist?” Ajax asked, seeing as the inhabitants came from slavery if they were left isolated in their new freedom they would surely see humans as the enemy.

“It is an issue we are working on.” Tom acknowledged. “We don’t have a solution quite yet and it isn’t a pressing matter but we are aware of it and we are working on it.”

Ajax had left not long after the end of Death and had been gone for about nine months so the weather was already starting to turn cold. Harvests were already collected but as he talked with his brother more it seemed their new quarry city had been a large drain of productivity. They were drawing in a lot of resources but almost all of the product they made was reinvested in building the city so they weren’t exporting it yet to the rest of the duchy.

The only exception to this was of course the ingredients required for cement. The alchemists Ajax had trained before he left had made lots of it and while it was only good enough for roads most of the cities in the duchy were heading towards being fully paved.

“The deal we worked out with the crown will mean we will start exporting some of our cement to the capital as well as other large cities before we start building better roads between cities but it can’t delay it much longer.” Tom explained. “It’s a good thing cement production isn’t all that affected by the cold weather which means production will keep going strong throughout Winter and Death.”

The two of them didn’t stay in Lessis for more than four hours total. Two to deal with the nobles and another two for Ajax to take a better look at how the city had developed in his absence before they returned to the manor.

“Ajax, what are you doing?” Judy asked her brother as she found him in the kitchen next to the mortified chefs as he was measuring seasonings.

“Working on getting a new Skill.” Ajax answered oblivious to the nervousness of the cooking staff as he was too concentrated on carefully using his regrown hand to measure out precise seasoning amounts.

“What Skill?” Judy asked, she was half sure he was messing with her but Ajax rarely joked about unlocking Skills.

“[Precise Measurements].” Ajax answered. When he and Tom had returned home the rest of his family was still busy and instead of distracting any of them Ajax decided to put the time to good use getting used to his new arm.

“And can’t you do that with your alchemy reagents?” Judy asked.

“No, my [Alchemy] Skill will affect it then.” Ajax answered.

“Won’t your [Cooking] Skill affect this?” Judy asked, she noticed the cooks relax a little and look towards Ajax with more fondness at hearing he also had [Cooking] as a Skill.

“Not as long as I am not cooking.” Ajax responded. “All I am doing is carefully measuring out precise amounts and preparing them to be used.”

Finishing separating exactly three pinches of salt Ajax stood up, cleaned his hands and left the kitchen with his sister. Already his control over his regrown arm was starting to improve but now that his family had most likely finished what they had planned for the day Ajax was planning to spend more time with them.