My family runs an adventurer's guild.

Even so, a vast area surrounding the fortress city of Ye-Lantir is still filled with abandoned villages and desolate farms.

So why do the people of Shak village and other villages near the fortress city of Yelantil continue to live here, given how dangerous the border is?

Because the farmers in the interior of the Kingdom of Riyestege are finding it even harder to survive!

—In the heart of the kingdom, far from the borders, the farmers, though spared from war and monsters, were overwhelmed by exorbitant taxes: due to the layers of exploitation and levies by officials and nobles, the annual taxes levied on farmers in the kingdom's interior were at least equivalent to 60% of their harvest, and in many places, the amount levied had even reached 80%! This did not even include the remaining miscellaneous taxes and the private profits that tax officials made.

Under such inhumane exploitation, it was already a miracle that the kingdom's farmers could survive on just one meal a day without starving.

In fact, every year, even in the best of times, many people starve to death in the countryside of the Kingdom of Riyestege.

Many of the lower classes in the Kingdom of Riyestege were forced to sell their children in order to barely make ends meet.

The wealth collected was almost entirely used by the ruling class of the Kingdom of Riyestege for various luxurious pleasures.

The extremely corrupt aristocratic ruling class of the Kingdom of Ri.Estize neglects not only production and water conservancy projects, but also basic public security, allowing bandits and monsters to roam freely. The common people of Ri.Estize, after paying such heavy taxes, must also find ways to scrape together money to hire adventurers to hunt monsters in order to obtain even the most basic level of safety.

In recent years, the Bahars Empire's continuous military invasions have further exacerbated the already dire situation of the people in the Kingdom of Riyestege. Although the fighting between the two sides has been confined to the fortress city of Yelantil and the nearby Kaz Plain, and can be considered a border conflict that has not penetrated deep into the heart of the Kingdom of Riyestege, the burden that such confrontation and attrition place on the two countries is different.

This is because the invading army of the Bahars Empire consisted of fully-fledged, standing regular troops. They were not only better equipped and more powerful, but their campaigns were not constrained by the agricultural production cycle. The Kingdom of Riyestege, on the other hand, lacked a large-scale standing army. To achieve a balanced force, it would have to mobilize hundreds of thousands of ragged peasant soldiers to barely contend with the tens of thousands of Bahars Empire regular troops.

However, in order to disrupt the agricultural production of the Kingdom of Riyestij, the Bahars Empire deliberately chooses to send troops around the time of the autumn harvest every year.

If the Kingdom of Riyestij were to mobilize a large army to repel this attack, regardless of victory or defeat, the loss of too many laborers from the fields would severely impact the autumn harvest, potentially leading to famine the following year. However, if it were to remain indifferent, the professional armies of the Bahars Empire would bypass the fortress city of Yelantil and launch a massive invasion into the heart of the kingdom, committing arson, murder, and looting, inflicting equally immense damage on Riyestij…

Although the empire could not secure a stable occupation due to the barriers of fortified cities, burning, killing, looting, and raiding were absolutely no problem.

Specifically, it can be compared to the Qing army (Later Jin army) at the end of the Ming Dynasty in China, which repeatedly bypassed Shanhaiguan, broke through the Great Wall, and carried out plundering of the Central Plains.

Amidst this continuous loss of resources and decline, the countryside of the Kingdom of Riyestege was in utter desolation.

As a result, many farmers who were exploited to the point of starvation in the mainland were willing to risk war and monsters to come to the border to reclaim wasteland and make a living.

However, while the border offers freely arable land and low taxes, it also harbors enemy troops, bandits, and monsters that can appear at any time. For example, several villages near Shak Village were recently burned and wiped out by invading "Imperial Knights."

Although Shak Village has been fortunate enough to survive until now, no one knows how long this good fortune can last...

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After taking a piece of bread from the kitchen and a glass of freshly squeezed milk from a neighbor, Hans ate a simple breakfast, returned to the bedside, kissed the two women who were still fast asleep, then put on a leather armor, put on a short sword, and walked out of the room feeling refreshed.

Although Hans appointed himself as the garrison commander of Shak village, he didn't actually have much work to do. He usually just wandered around the village, fields, and alleys, occasionally hunting, fishing, or helping the villagers with chores. He would also find people to drink and chat with as a pastime.

It's like getting tired of busy city life and coming to the countryside to rest and recuperate for a while to relieve mental stress.

The Sorcerer King who conquered the fortress city of Ye-Lantir did not levy taxes or impose corvée labor on the surrounding villages. Apart from the Nazarick Kingdom flag hanging on the flagpole at the village entrance, everything in Shak Village seemed unchanged from the past.

The villagers even felt more relaxed this year because they no longer had to pay taxes or serve in the military. They ate more hearty meals and had more smiles on their faces. They even discussed privately whether to take advantage of their extra money this year to go to the city and buy some household items that they couldn't afford before...

In short, after wandering around, Hans found himself with nothing to do.

Want to go fishing? But he accidentally broke his fishing rod the day before yesterday and hasn't had time to make a new one yet.

Should we go hunting? But we haven't even finished eating the wild boar we hunted yesterday! Wouldn't it be a waste to hunt another one?

Or go back to your live-in girlfriend and have sex? Uh, they have work to do during the day too, so let's not bother them.

Ah, perhaps I should leave this little village and go see that fortified city of Yelantil?

While I was offline resting, I heard from other people that the fortress city seemed to be very lively and fun...

Under the bright spring sunshine, Hans lay leisurely on the grass at the entrance of the village, feeling warm all over and his head was spinning from the sun.

Until a sharp arrow shot from afar instantly dispelled all his sleepiness.

Chapter 174, The Outpost (Part 2)

"……call out--"

Just as Hans was lying on the grass, dozing off, an arrow suddenly flew from a distance and landed less than half a step away from him.

Immediately afterward, just as he rolled over and got up, several more arrows flew from a distance. Although most of them missed, one arrow still hit his back. Even though the arrowhead was blocked by his leather armor and only slightly grazed his skin, it still caused Hans a dull ache.

Is this... an enemy attack?

He casually pulled the arrow stuck in his leather armor, then raised his shield and short sword, turned around and looked around. He immediately saw a group of burly men wielding swords and carrying a brightly colored banner, rushing chaotically from the woods outside the village.

There were also several short archers, holding pulley bows, firing arrows in our direction.

Uh, their clothes are a mess, their weapons are not uniform, they look all mixed up... Could they be robbers coming to rob us?

But why does that flag look so familiar?

It looks like... the flag of the Kingdom of Riyestege?

Or rather, the royal coat of arms?

Is there really a robber in this world who uses a national flag to commit robbery? Such patriotism is just too twisted!

Before Hans could even form a thought, alarm bells rang out throughout Shak village, accompanied by a cacophony of barking dogs, crowing roosters, shouts, and screams. Clearly, the villagers had also discovered the invasion and were beginning to organize a resistance.

After all, the enemy that came to attack the village this time only looked to be about twenty people, and it seemed that they could barely defeat them.

However, by the time they realized it, it was already too late.

The adversary in this invasion is far more formidable than it appears.

"...Lightning strike!"

Accompanied by a shout from one of the intruders in black robes, a lightning bolt that violently shook the air rushed forward, piercing through the body of the village chief holding a shield. The two young men who had come out to fight alongside the village chief were also instantly blown away, their bodies charred black as they collapsed to the ground.

The other villagers, who had just stepped out of their houses carrying pitchforks, seemed unable to comprehend what was happening, staring dumbfounded at their companion's tragic state. But in the next moment, several arrows whistled through the air, easily piercing their fragile bodies, which were only covered by cloth.

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At the village entrance, Hans, the only "professional warrior" in Shak Village, was besieged by the enemy.

With his sharp weapons and strong physique, and with the help of several villagers who rushed to the scene, Hans successfully cut down several enemy henchmen, but his own men were either killed or fled. Hans's next opponent was the enemy leader.

This was a man with unruly, deep blue hair like seaweed, wearing chainmail and a necklace and ring imbued with defensive magic. Though tall and slender, he wasn't thin; his physique beneath his clothes was as solid as steel. That physique was forged in real combat, not through muscle training.

His name is Brian, the second-best swordsman in the Kingdom of Riyestej, second only to Warrior Captain Gazef. Because he narrowly lost to Gazef in the arena, he devoted himself to honing his swordsmanship. To cultivate the way of killing, he even joined a mercenary group that was both a soldier and a bandit, serving as a guest elder.

It is worth mentioning that the weapon Brian is currently using is a Japanese sword, which is said to be a divine weapon left behind by the Eight Greed Kings.

Brian casually walked up behind several of his men who were surrounding Hans and confronting him, a long sword slung across his shoulder and a straw dangling from his mouth. He asked casually, "...What's wrong? Got some tough nut to crack?"

"...Yes, Mr. Brian, this guy doesn't look easy to deal with; he might be a soldier from the Kingdom of Nazarick!"

Upon seeing Brian arrive, one of the henchmen couldn't help but reveal a smug smile and hurriedly replied, "...We've already lost three men!"

"...A soldier from the Kingdom of Nazarick? That's an interesting opponent. Could it be that he also crawled out of some tomb?"

Brian, with his blue hair, squinted at Hans, who was covered in blood, and then drew his long sword, grinning, "...Alright, you can all leave now! Let me weigh this guy up."

At the same time, he secretly activated the magic ring and necklace, causing a faint burst of magic to erupt and envelop his entire body.

On the other side, seeing Brian, who seemed quite formidable, approaching with a long sword, Hans quickly braced himself for battle.

However, as a casual player who didn't level up, gain experience, or spend money on equipment, Hans's strength was really too poor.

Brian casually swung his sword, and Hans's short sword snapped in two with a clang. With another swift strike, both of Hans's hands flew into the air, leaving a gaping, gruesome wound on his chest, from which blood gushed forth... He didn't even have time to scream before collapsing to the ground, slowly being swallowed by the pool of blood flowing from his body.

Then, the villagers who had been watching from afar began to scream in fear, no longer having the courage to resist, and scattered and fled... However, most of them did not make it out of the village, either being shot down by arrows or forced back by swords.

Brian, the blue-haired swordsman, showed no intention of condescending to deal with the villagers. Instead, he pulled out a white cloth and began wiping his blade, shaking his head and muttering, "...Tsk tsk! They're not as impressive as they've been described! I thought the legendary 'Demon Army' was incredibly terrifying, but they're nothing special! They took them down easily without even using magic potions! I was even nervous for a while..."

"...Mr. Brian, how can a nobody like him, who doesn't even have a single subordinate, be compared to you, the second-ranked swordsman in the kingdom?"

A mage dressed in black robes walked over and said, "...He should just be a third-rate mercenary temporarily hired by that so-called Sorcerer King, right?"

“…What you said makes sense…” Brian nodded, but then looked surprised. “…Uh, what’s going on?”

—Right in front of them, player Hans's "corpse" suddenly turned into countless spots of light, and then disappeared completely in an instant!

The two men exchanged bewildered glances. However, their men, having just completed the suppression of the entire village, came to Brian for instructions. Therefore, Brian had no choice but to temporarily suppress his doubts and begin issuing orders to deal with the prisoners and spoils of war.

In fact, for these mercenaries who occasionally dabbled in thievery, looting a village, distributing the spoils, and dealing with hostages were already second nature to them. However, this time, Brian had ordered the mercenaries to cut off the heads of all the dead men in the village, preserve them with salt and lime, and then take them back… which caused some of the more unpleasant ones to complain.

"...It's just a matter of bringing back a few more heads, how can you complain about the trouble? We, the [Scattering Death Sword Group], are no longer just a mercenary group that dabbles in thievery, but an imperial army with a royal mandate and a sense of righteousness, ordered to fight the enemy! These heads are all thanks to our contributions!"

Brian pulled a rolled-up letter of appointment from his pocket, explaining with a hint of disdain, "...Who told the [Scattering Death Swords] to accept the offer of amnesty? Although I don't really care about it, the leader is eager to clean up his act and get a noble title..."

Meanwhile, more armed groups like the [Scattering Death Sword Gang], operating as both soldiers and bandits, are carrying out orders from the kingdom and operating in the rural areas surrounding the fortress city of Ye. Lantier, attacking villages, ambushing caravans, and harassing passersby, causing the security situation to deteriorate rapidly...

Chapter 175, Keeping the Enemy Out of the Country's Borders?

"...In short, first of all, the main force of the Kingdom of Riyestege is still gradually assembling and should not be able to be deployed in the short term, meow."

On the other hand, according to the players who were forced to log off and start over, and the cries of refugees who fled from nearby villages to the city, it was some nobleman's idea that the old king on the other side used the method of issuing empty appointment letters to recruit many mercenary groups and bandit groups—in fact, many armed groups were involved in both the legitimate and criminal worlds, doing both jobs on the side...

Then, they threw these armed scum over to harass and sabotage our controlled area, attempting to disrupt our war preparations.

It seems the Kingdom of Riyestege no longer considers the farmers of this land as their own people!

On the inner tower of the fortress city of Ye. Lantil, the cat-like Firi spoke eloquently to Ainz, the Overlord, describing the current battle situation: "...According to incomplete statistics, at least ten villages have been burned down, two caravans have been annihilated, and more than ten players have been killed..."

(Overlord, a panoramic immersive online game jointly launched by the Totoro Town Adventurers' Guild and the Temple of Sleeping God, currently does not have a resurrection mechanism. Every player only has one life, and if they are killed, they can only log off and start over.)

"...To disrupt our preparations for war? So you want to burn down those villages and kill a few players along the way? Are you kidding me?"

Ainz Ooal Gown shook his head. "...Apart from the Great Tomb of Nazarick and this fortress city of Ye-Rantir, I haven't deployed any personnel anywhere else! Killing some players and natives like this is just to enrich the game's storyline."

—For the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the game players who descended from the Golden Dragonflight are less a part of their fighting force and more troublemakers they have to deal with.

Therefore, Ainz Ooal Gown was slow to react to small-scale battles in the suburban villages, allowing players to team up and run various dungeons, fighting back and forth with the bandits and mercenaries gathered by the Kingdom of Riyestej in villages, roads, forests, and grasslands.

In addition, you can take on some quests and hunt down some monsters to showcase the richness and diversity of the Overlord game content.

—Regarding the governance of their "territory," rulers hope for the greatest stability, while game designers hope for the greatest fun...

However, Firi now seems to be asking for a "high-level player to carry him through the grind," hoping to get the Great Tomb of Nazarick to deploy its actual armed forces.

"...But the problem is, the enemy doesn't know the true situation of our army, Ainz-san!"

Phil shrugged. "...They also thought that our army, like theirs, needed to collect supplies and soldiers from nearby villages."

However, this is not the case. The military forces of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, whether living or undead, basically don't need to eat. This is because Ainz Ooal Gown possesses many magical items that allow people to live without food, and he generously distributed them to his subordinates…

Similarly, for Ainz Ooal Gown, even when he needed cannon fodder, he would rather create a reliable group of death knights and skeletons himself than command a trembling, unwilling peasant army that was constantly plotting its escape. Moreover, the Great Tomb of Nazarick regularly spawns waves of low-level undead NPCs, which is more than enough to sustain a prolonged war.

Therefore, from the perspective of sustaining the war, the newly established Kingdom of Nazarick had neither the need for the manpower of these villages nor any interest in their resources. The villages on the outskirts of Nazarick were essentially just background scenery to the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

“...But on the other hand, while the enemy’s unscrupulous harassment and sabotage can’t really affect our military strength, it can still cause us some trouble. As you know, the fortress city of Ye. Lantier cannot be completely self-sufficient in food and needs to import it from outside. If farms and villages far from the city are destroyed, then there will be a risk of food shortages in the city,” Phil continued.

"...Food shortage? We still have some grain reserves, and the trade routes for importing grain from the Empire have been opened." Ainz was unconvinced.

"...It's not just a matter of food. When those players come to this world, besides fighting and killing and playing with women, they also have a great fondness for indulging in all kinds of delicious food. Grains and salted meat can be transported over long distances, but perishable vegetables, fruits and fresh meat can only be purchased locally!"

Phil explained with a wry smile, "...Strictly speaking, the Kingdom of Nazarick is a country that lives off tourism (players)!"

"...That seems to be the case... To entertain the players, we've practically turned this place into a hotel..."

Ainz nodded, speaking in a calm tone, but deep down he couldn't help but feel a pang of bitterness and sorrow.

Because, as a giant skeleton with only bones left, he not only has no chance to have sex, but also has to say goodbye to all delicious food.

—His so-called "human skin" was really just a skin covering the outside; it didn't even have a tongue.

Even if you placed fine wine and delicacies in front of Ainz, the Overlord, he could only smell the aroma...

Therefore, although the Great Tomb of Nazarick has restaurants and bars, and stores many excellent wines, allowing the battle maids, ordinary maids, and guardians like Shalltear to occasionally enjoy a drink as a pastime, Ainz Ooal Gown, the master, cannot enjoy them.

Ugh, why does it feel like my stomach, which no longer exists, is hurting?

This should be considered phantom limb pain, right? Yes, it must be phantom limb pain, right?!

"...In addition, allowing the ragtag army recruited by the Kingdom of Ri. Yestige with empty letters of appointment to burn, kill, and destroy wantonly in the countryside outside the fortress city of Ye. Lantier will also damage our prestige, making other forces look down on us, or even see us as easy prey."

Unaware of Ainz's conflicted feelings, Firi continued to explain, "...Since we left the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the Baharath Empire in the northeast has remained in a wait-and-see state, but has not refused to trade with us."

However, if we cannot quickly prove our strength again, the Bahars Empire, while unlikely to launch a direct military attack, might resort to methods other than war. For example, they might threaten to block trade routes, or send envoys to intimidate us, demanding submission and tribute, and so on. Perhaps, other countries might even send assassins to infiltrate the city, carrying out assassinations and inciting rebellion…”

"...Assassins? Doesn't this provide players with an interesting new storyline?"—The game operator's thinking is clearly different from that of ordinary people.

"...The problem is that this kind of plot is completely uncontrollable! Although neither players nor NPCs are afraid of death—after all, they can be resurrected—what if the assassins are natives who have surrendered to us? For example, the Barreale grandfather and grandson who are making aphrodisiacs for the players... You won't find another apothecary workshop in the city that is as good as them at concocting all kinds of novel aphrodisiacs!"

Firi said to Ainz with a sigh, "...I know you still have some [Resurrection Staffs], but there are certain prerequisites for using these items to resurrect the dead! Not just any victim can be resurrected..."

"...I understand what you mean. In short, we can't condone or encourage the enemy's confidence. We need to teach them a lesson, right?"

Ainz nodded. "...Tell me your suggestion, Firi-senpai."

"...To put it simply, if we continue to passively take hits and let the players fight each other like weaklings, it will only lead to more and more trouble—although this level of damage doesn't hurt us at all, the enemy doesn't know that, and may even boast about it and be very proud of themselves."

As a result, influenced by these false positive news, more and more people will inevitably come to cause us trouble.

If we want to resolve this mess quickly and prevent it from spiraling out of control, the only way is to take the initiative and keep the enemy at bay!