“Wele back, Executive,” Dunes greeted, shaking Adam’s forearm as the figures ehe fng aside to see Vonda adorned in her full pte. ‘…’

  “How’s everything?” Adam asked. “No issues with the undead?”

  “Little issues with the undead, but there is currently a small matter.”

  “What kind of small matter?” Adam asked, gng aside to see the few businessfolk who had e to greet the Executives. ‘Where are the others?’

  Fred’s bde cut through the bear, his bde fshing cold with magic as the blood within the creature froze. As the bear dropped beside him, Fred pivoted on his foot, his eyes dartiween the pair of bears before him, his heart thundering within his chest.

  ‘Are you watg, Gee?’

  Another bear dropped behind him, while the tall, wide form of Nobby cut down the beast with ease, while another sshed across his chest, tearing through his shirt, but not through his skin, which felt more like iron than flesh.

  ‘Merl is watg,’ Nobby thought, gripping his axe tighter in hand as the red he coursed through his veins, and he swiped his axe, and as though he were an Iyrman signing the deaths of nearby or distant nobles, he brought death to another bear.

  “Their abilities are impressive,” Korin admitted from beside the statue known as Jonn, the pair watg from a short distance away, ready to charge in to assist at any moment.

  “Yes.”

  “Bear meat is no good.”

  “Yes.”

  “It is good?”

  “No.”

  “You do not talk much,” Korin said, gng aside towards the half elf. “The fae from Aswadasad and the nearby nds talk much, when one is worthy.”

  “…”

  “Am I not worthy?”

  “I’m not good at talking to others,” Jonn admitted.

  Korin raised his brow towards the half fae. “I will not push you.”

  “Thank you.”

  Fred raised his magical bde in victory, panting as his entire body suddenly rushed with an ache. ‘I did it!’ He wao lean on his knees, but he could still feel the gaze from the vilgers and the businessfolk. His thought returo when he first became an adventurer, and how difficult it was for him and a group to face even one bear, but now he could sughter three by himself, with some effort.

  Nobby lifted a bear, hoping his wife had seen him fight well. The pair turo leave as Korin and Jonn escorted the vilgers to take the bears upon the wagons, pulled by the pair’s magical steeds.

  Fred gnced across towards the vilge, where he spotted many familiar and expected faces, before his eyes fell across another set of familiar faces.

  “Greetings, Executives,” Fred called out, unsure if he was meant to be so formal.

  “Greetings, Executives,” Nobby said a moment ter, following Fred’s leads.

  “Well done,” Adam called out, reag out to shake their forearms and patting their shoulders. “What else we expect from reat Fred and Nobby! S! S! Did you see, Chief Merl? Our workers are s, aren’t they?”

  “Yes?” Merl replied, furrowing her brows towards the half elf.

  “Just you wait, in a few years they’ll be Masters, then they’ll be able to fight all kinds of monsters.”

  “Of course,” the Chief replied, letting out a defeated sigh. She wasn’t able to handle Adam’s ridiculous yet, though she no longer doubted Adam’s words.

  “We’ll leave the bears to you to butcher and part out appropriately.” Adam stared out in the distance where Korin and Jonn were o, their eyes towards the woods all about them, cirg around the vilgers who were in the middle of lifting the dead beasts onto the

  “One part to the business, one part to the warriors, and one part to the vilge?”

  “That’s right,” Adam fshed a charming smile towards the older Chief.

  “You fought well,” the younger Merl said, reag out to stroke her husband’s arm gently. “I’ll have your clothes fixed.”

  “Okay,” Nobby replied, turning slightly red from her attention, barely able to handle her beautiful gaze.

  ‘You punk, how you flirt in front of your boss like this?’ Adam thought, though he allowed Nobby his peace. ‘I should probably bring up him to thirty gold a month, but I probably shouldn’t give him the title of Lead for now?’

  Fred settled himself beside Gee, feeling the gazes of all the vilgers and the businessfolk on him. “Did you see?”

  Gee nodded, his eyes firmly glued to Fred, his eyes sparkling.

  “Give it a few years, and you’ll be that strong too,” Fred reassured. “The Executives will train you if you want.”

  Gee squirmed awkwardly, gng towards the Executives who had returned, from the half elf to the trio of Iyrmen who had already revealed what kind of mohey were. ‘…’ The memory of the boy stabbing Adam filled his mind, and he shuffled closer to Fred.

  Fred smiled slightly, reag out to rub the boy’s head, but he decided against it. He sat there in silence, basking iention he was receiving.

  As Jonn and Koriurned, Adam threw them a nod.

  “I thought you would rest,” Korin said, shaking Adam’s forearm.

  “I rested enough in the Iyr, didn’t I?”

  “That is not what I heard?”

  “Oh yeah? What did you hear?”

  “I was informed you worked so much your daughter almost beat you.”

  “How did you hear that?”

  “Yranduncle, Kamrot.”

  “My granduncle?” Adam thought, trying to recall the name.

  “He arrived at the fort st night.”

  “Oh?”

  Korin paused for a moment. ‘Was I allowed to mention that?’ For a moment he could feel a chill within him. ‘No. If I know of it through casual versation, it should be fine? Adam, Dunes, and Sara will protect me if something happens.’

  Adam returned back to the fort to speak with Dunes, his eyes darting around to the Iyrmen before noting a familiar face. ‘Ooooh! Kamrot!’ His eyes fell across the older Iyrman, whose hair was thinning, though it fell down to his shoulders. ‘I should probably go say hello…’

  The old Iyrman stared at the darkening sky, before hearing a set of footsteps. He gowards the half elf. “The stars will e through soon.”

  “Yeah,” Adam replied,

  “I am not as good as Jirot or Jarot when it es to seeing the stars.”

  Adam furrowed his brows. ‘You haven’t evehat much time with them but you know that much?’ “My children are geniuses, after all.”

  Kamrot’s lips formed a small smile. “You really are cousin’s grandson.”

  “Whose grandson?” Adam replied, almost reflexively.

  Kamrot smiled warmly towards the half elf, reag out to rub his head. “I have been tasked with security of the fort.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You do not o thank me. You pay the Iyr enough for such little security.”

  ‘Little security?’ Adam gnced around, noting the handful of Iyrmen about. “I mean, Marmak’s not around, but you’re all still pretty cheap sidering how strong you all are.”

  “It is a fair price,” Kamrot assured.

  “I guess seg the frontier is pretty good for the Iyr too?”

  Kamrot’s lips formed a wider smile. “You are too smart to be cousin’s grandson.”

  “Exactly, exactly,” Adam said, nodding his head, a small smile approag his lips too. “If anyone in the business causes trouble you should remind them who your cousin is, that’ll set them right.”

  “They will not cause trouble. You and Jurot have struck fear within their hearts already.”

  “Well, some of them don’t really know the full extent of it, so you might o tell them anyway. If they do cause you some trouble, I please let Manager Dunes or Manager Amira know, and they deal with it.”

  Kamrot nodded, closing his eyes for a long moment, before opening them once more towards the darkening sky.

  “Alright, I’ll leave you to your stargazing,” Adam said, unsure of how to broach Rirot’s death. He quickly retreated away from the old man. ‘I’ll tell everyoo behave so they don’t trouble the old man. I ’t believe he’s w so quickly after his wife’s death…’

  The children all swarmed Lord Morkarai, who sat around the fire, with Jaygak beside him. The Prince of the Fire Giants regaled them of a tale from his homend. Adam couldn’t spend much time hearing it, catg Dunes’ eyes, and motioning his head to the side.

  The inner se was roughly half of the size of the other two ses, and instead of the estates one could find within the Iyr, there were six buildings total, one following each of the shorter walls, and two along the longer walls. Adam owards the Iyrman tasked with watg over the private se of the fort, who returned a nod, before he led Duo his own private building, noting the ck of dust.

  “Is someone ing this pce?”

  “I it now and again,” Dunes admitted.

  “Oh,” Adam replied, blinking. “Thank you.” He poured the Manager water, before using his magic to cool both cups, and fv them to taste like the mango jui his first life.

  After inf Dunes of a few matters, Adam moved on to what mattered most in most worlds.

  “The Enter…” Adam raised his brows towards Dunes, smirking slightly, “has created quite some ons to be aued off in Red Oak. We’ve takeh us for st month, but this month, the Iyrmen should bring another bde to au off. sidering that Basihanced ons usually go for about three to five thousand, the business should be fine for a while.”

  Dunes bowed his head, cheg the paper Adam slid over to him. His brows raised in arm, noting all the expehe business had gohrough the first month alohere are five Executives.”

  “We have an enter who will tio ent while within the Iyr.”

  Duilted his head. “They will tio ent within the Iyr?”

  “Yes.” Adam smiled ily.

  Dunes furrowed his brows. ‘Are you not the Enter?’

  “Manager Dunes. An enter is going to keep w in the Iyr to provide additional ons to be aued off within Red Oak, for additional ine, should it be required.”

  ‘There’s another enter?’ Dunes slowly nodded his head, deg against asking any more. If Adam was being this vague, and he wasn’t going to reveal more, it robably something to do with the Iyr.

  “Anyway, the Iyrmen are going to go to Red Oak every month or so. It’ll take a week to get there, they’ll spend a few days there, and then they’ll e back. I was thinking, it’s probably a good way of training some of the newbies, and those who want to bee guards. We’ll send a few of our own over with the Iyrmen, and cycle them like the Iyrmen.”

  “Cycle?”

  “Yeah, like…” Adam spun a circle with his finger. “Cycle.” Upon seeing Dunes’ fusion, Adam blinked. ‘Oh. They don’t have cycles in this world, I guess?’ “Basically, split the trainees and the farmers into multiple groups, more than one for sure, two to five, in whatever way it’ll split ly for you. Then as the Iyrmen go out, the first group will go and e back. The month after that, the sed group, then the month after that, the third. Once a full rotation is doart with the first group again. That way every month a group goes out, but not twi a row, and hopefully, they’ll all go the same amount, or we’ll send the group we want to beost experienced multiple times.”

  “Ah,” Dunes said. “I uand.”

  Adam snapped his fingers and poiowards Dunes. “This is why you’re our Manager, Dunes.”

  “When the workers take their holidays, should we send them with a group, and have them return with the group?”

  “That’s a great idea.” Adam nodded his head, fshing a wide smile. “Are y to earn a raise?”

  “If you give any more money, I will be uo meet Lady Arya when I pass, I will be held down by the weight of all that gold.”

  “Make sure you take the holiday too.”

  “The holiday I wish to take will require more than a month.”

  “Oh yeah? Where do you want to go?”

  “I would like to return to the order to visit.”

  “Well…” Adam thought. “I guess that is difficult if you only have a month off? I’ll try and figure out a way so that you take more days off, and… I mean, if you want to go, I’m not going to stop you.”

  “I’ve already itted to your business. If I return now, the Priest ander will beat me. He has already sent word to me in the beginning of the year.”

  “He did? What did he say?”

  “He gratuted me for the marriage once more, and says he will expect word back every season with news. He will not berate me since I have married so retly.”

  “Didn’t Korin and Sara say they wao go back soon?”

  “They have decided to stay for some time, sihe Priest ander will be sure to beat Korin if he returns.”

  “Not Sara?”

  “She is still the daughter of Peysh.”

  “Peysh?”

  “Lords.”

  “ht.”

  Dunes paused for a moment.

  “I guess that makes sense.”

  Dunes tio wait for him to pin about nobles, but after a long enough moment, he returned back to cheg the paper, his eyes sing across the estimates Adam had made for the business. ‘Did he uimate the costs?’ Dunes made some quick calcutions for how much it would cost to feed the figures within the business. ‘If we procure the cheapest food from the vilge, it should suffice.’ His eyes then fell down to the se. ‘Did he double the savings for the children?’

  “I decided against adding my own children in sihey’re being taken care of within the Iyr. Once I move them into the business, then I’ll add them in.”

  “You wish to move them to the business?”

  “I should, right?”

  “Is there a need?”

  “Well, you know… it’s a bit weird to impose so muto the Iyr.”

  “Will their greatfather allow it?”

  “Exactly! If I leave them in the Iyr, he’ll steal them away from me! I ’t allow that, you know?”

  Dunes smiled, sipping the rest of his fvoured water, trying to pace himself. “What is misc?”

  “Well, misc is misc. Basically, if you want to spend more money, as long as you write it down, you go ahead and spend up to the full amount every month. I don’t really mind if you want to spend the full budget every month, that’s up to you. If Korin feels like he needs more spices, that’s part of that budget. We should probably use the for those to head out too…” ‘Damn, that means the budget’s going to disappear real quick. Though, it’s not like it’ll cost a hundred gold for a couple of weeks away, so it should be fine.’

  Dunes gnced down towards the paper. He presumed misc would be used for items Adam hadn’t thought of.

  “Anyway, really, you spend more than that, just write it down. I haven’t figured out aertai budget, so I’d like for you to deal with that, and to think about what kind of eai would be fun for them. Once we’re in Red Oak, I’ll be spending some onchess and stuff, but I’m not really sure what I should buy. Vonda said books and paints, but we ems which aren’t ed, or which won’t wear down too quickly?”

  “Balls are always fun, but there are many things children busy themselves with. The most fun a child has, is with others. Warriors and Wanderers will keep them busy too.”

  Adam blinked. “Dunes, you’re a genius!” ‘It’ll help them with their letters and numbers, and to figure out what kind of fighting style they’d like too.’ “This is why you’re a Manager, Dunes.”

  Dunes wasn’t sure if he should take credit since almost everything was Adam’s idea, most of which he expected Adam to implement anyway. “Perhaps I should ask for a raise.”

  Adam smiled, stifling his chuckle for a moment. “How you ask for a raise after how many magical ons you’ve received?”

  I miss the kids already...

  Thank you for #1 trending! Whoa!