Chapter 61
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Chapter 61: The Law of Hillenbrand!
After Lolth finished her declaration, the residents of Hillenbrand Town fell into a brief silence.
Then, someone cautiously whispered, as if asking a question.
“Is this… true?”
“Absolutely!”
Upon hearing the whisper, Lolth raised a horn on the stage to respond.
The residents of Hillenbrand Town looked at each other.
Soon after, someone started cheering, and then everyone cheered together.
“Hooray!”
“Yay! Lord… Lord Zhi!”
“Silly, it’s Master Lolth!”
“The Abyssal Demon turns out to be not a bad guy after all!”
Although many people didn’t fully understand everything Lolth had said, they still grasped the main points.
First, a reduction in taxes! And it was a huge reduction!
The nobles used to collect land taxes, head taxes, security taxes, business taxes—finding every possible way to tax the people each year.
The lord collected from the barons, the barons collected from the knights, and the knights even collected from the messengers!
Now, the demon race had promised to only collect taxes once a year, based on income proportion.
Even if the payment was substantial, it was still definitely better than the insatiable nobles from before!
This was a real benefit!
The second point was a bit confusing for everyone, but they probably understood one thing.
It seemed that the new demon race lord who had just arrived would be paying for the construction of many new buildings.
Undoubtedly, she would need to hire people to help with the construction, and she also seemed to plan on employing people to manage the completed buildings.
Just providing food and shelter alone would be enough to entice many idle farmers!
The third point stood in stark contrast to the past nobles.
This demon race lord said she could help deal with monsters!
In the past, the nobles, knights, and superoperators of the Qinma Principality used to send messengers to collect money now and then, but they never pitched in to deal with the monsters in the southern forests or the beasts without magic in the western riverside!
The whole town had depended on the self-organized guard team made up of strong young men and the mayor, who had retired from adventuring twenty years ago, struggling to keep things under control!
Of course, there were some powerful individuals in this town, so there hadn’t been any deadly attacks by monsters on humans.
But the villagers were still troubled by them!
Now, this lord had unexpectedly offered to help with the monster problem as well…
Even if it was just to win people over, this attitude was better than the so-called “lords” of Hillenbrand Town in the past!
Even the mayor, standing in the crowd, quietly put down the short sword hidden in his sleeve, touched his sparse hair, and felt puzzled.
“These demons seem different from what I’ve heard in rumors…”
“Well, anyway, it’s good for Hillenbrand Town!”
At the edge of the crowd, Uncle Maider and the young man Ann stood beside the landlady, still bewildered by Lolth from yesterday, watching the excited crowd and the succubus on the stage with the megaphone.
“Landlady, you are very knowledgeable. What does this succubus plan to do? Win people over?”
“So strange… the demon race shouldn’t be like this.”
The landlady took a puff from her pipe and squinted her eyes.
“You two know nothing about the demon race. The only difference between you and these common folks is that you’ve heard some more colorful rumors,” she said, blowing smoke rings and staring at Lolth. “But… creatures like her are rare in the demon race.”
Of course, Lolth didn’t notice the three figures at the edge of the crowd.
She was very pleased with the effect of her speech!
Although most residents remained wary of her, after the brief moment of joy, their attitude toward the entire demon race would not completely change.
But the fact was, common folk weren’t foolish; as long as their lives were comfortable, everything would be fine!
Of course, Lolth also admitted that her introduction of these new policies wasn’t solely due to her noble character or concern for the people.
She still had a tiny bit of selfishness.
As a former “human,” she had come from a humble background, so she hoped these people would have a good life as well.
Moreover…
Troublesome people were often found in poor and dangerous places!
If these residents weren’t well-fed and clothed, as a compassionate ruler, she would feel even more restless!
Furthermore, reducing taxes and providing job opportunities were also beneficial for herself. In the future, even with Tina and Isabella managing her new projects, they would still need help!
And besides, wars always come to an end someday.
Who knows, someday these two might be exchanged as bargaining chips back to the Holy Alliance and their respective forces.
Therefore, Lolth also needed to nurture some new personnel to help herself.
However, during this time, these two people were definitely still needed for assistance.
Thinking about this, she turned back to look at Isabella and Tina behind her, showing them a friendly smile.
“What do you think? Everyone’s reaction seems good, right?”
Lolth looked at the two of them and thought to herself that even though the people’s reactions were positive, these two should begin to realize she was a good succubus!
Tina’s eyes lit up, immediately praising Lolth.
“Indeed, Master Lolth, you’ve enchanted most of the people so quickly! Your ability to manipulate and utilize people’s hearts is truly exquisite!”
“Oh, stop it…”
Lolth modestly waved her hand, but something felt off.
Why did the elf princess’s praise sound somewhat lacking?
Still, the praise sounded genuine, so Lolth didn’t pay much attention to it.
Isabella, on the other hand, remained cold and detached.
“I hope you’re not deceiving these people…”
She certainly didn’t believe that Lolth cared about the common folk’s well-being.
But Lolth expected this response.
After all, Isabella was a “human noble lady” who had only recently arrived at the Interrogation Department for reeducation. It was normal for her to be narrow-minded.
“Deception is not my style. We succubi value honesty,” Lolth said firmly, looking out at the crowd and raising her horn once more. “Are there any skilled stonemasons or carvers in town? Raise your hand so I can see!”
Soon, five people raised their hands, all sturdy adults.
“Any of you know how to read?”
“Yes!”
A strong reply echoed from below.
“Very well,” Lolth nodded. “Next, I will give you a new Lord’s decree for Hillenbrand Town. It will include what I mentioned earlier, as well as some modifications to the existing decrees. You are responsible for engraving these decrees on a stone, creating a tablet, and placing it in the town square for everyone to see!”
“You five, this is the payment in advance for you!”
Lolth reached into her pocket, retrieved five silver coins, and tossed them with precision in front of the five volunteers.
