The rainy season always brings an inexplicable mood. In the early morning, wind and rain intertwined, the world shrouded in a gray haze.

  Just moments ago, they were still talking, when the weather suddenly shifted—the rain stopped, and the sun quietly peeked out. The air was filled with the fresh, damp scent of soil and grass after the rain.

  Bran mounted the Nightmare Horse, carrying with him his two female black wolf slaves as he strode away.

  And the Eyebrow-Patterned King Serpent swallowed nearly two hundred slaves whole, storing them inside its enormous body.

  Watching Bran ride off, Draven felt puzzled. Everyone was soaked by the rain, so why had he suddenly come down with a high fever? And Bran—how could he manage to take two female slaves with him?

  Could there be something wrong with his body? Draven shook his head firmly, dismissing the thought. He turned and headed toward the village, planning to do a patrol.

  Passing by the livestock area, Draven stopped in front of Viola's sheep pen. It was a stone enclosure housing only a few wild goats. Viola cherished these goats deeply and wouldn't let anyone touch them casually.

  As Draven pondered how to persuade Viola to ease the restrictions, the chattering of little animals came from the nearby rabbit hutch.

  Viola was busy organizing the female slaves' work and had no time to watch over the rabbits.

  Near the hutch, several four- or five-year-old children—Arnold and his friends—were leading the Riven and Tibbit brothers in playing with the newborn bunnies.

  The children's faces were full of excitement and curiosity as they gently stroked the soft fur, occasionally letting out sharp laughter.

  A faint smile appeared on Draven's lips as he thought,"Once Viola's done with her work and sees you messing with the bunnies again, she'll surely scold you." But for now, he didn't plan to stop the kids.

  "Kids will never learn unless they get a bit of discipline," he mused to himself.

  Since Liliana confessed her feelings to Draven, she rarely played with the children anymore. Naturally, the children split into two groups: one with seven- or eight-year-olds who no longer wanted to take care of the younger four- or five-year-olds.

  The older kids preferred playing horseback battles, while the little ones always caused mischief around the livestock area.

  From time to time, cries and laughter of children echoed through the village. Most often, the older kids chased and played near the village entrance, while near the village edge, Viola frequently drove the younger children away with a stick.

  The little ones were indeed very naughty and destructive. The bunnies were often drowned or buried in the dirt; if not for Viola's strict watch, the livestock economy would have suffered severely.

  After circling the village, Draven found that except for the increasing number of rabbits, nothing else had changed much.

  Taking advantage of the rare good weather, most villagers, including Liliana and Sylvia, had gone into the forest to pick mushrooms.

  Viola told Draven that Sylvia had taken on a special task. Unlike ordinary villagers who only picked the safe, edible mushrooms Draven had taught them to recognize, Sylvia—an elf girl in a cat-person form—wanted to help the Black Flag Tavern find more kinds of edible fungi.

  Stolen story; please report.

  Although a good idea, it brought trouble to Viola's rabbits.

  Apparently, several rabbits had died from mistakenly eating poisonous mushrooms.

  After Bran rode off on the Nightmare Horse, Draven knew he still needed to visit Village No. 3 to switch horses and return Titus. He estimated he wouldn't be back until the afternoon.

  Draven found some rare free time but didn't want to stay inside. He decided to check outside the village and inspect their progress.

  However, upon arriving at the pond, he felt a bit disappointed. The pond itself was decent, with lush aquatic plants and fish swimming out of the grass, their scales glinting silver.

  In recent days, more live fish had been brought from Village No. 3, enriching the pond's stock. But the newly cleared cassava field beside the pond didn't look very promising.

  The cassava cuttings that had taken root were now completely overwhelmed by wild weeds, with barely a hint of fresh green visible.

  Draven stood at the edge of the field, stunned for a few seconds before patting his own head in sudden realization. He had been too busy tilling the soil and clearing land to bother removing the weed seeds in the soil.

  As a result, after a few rounds of rain, the wild grass grew wildly, completely covering the newly planted cassava shoots. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed the land could end up like this.

  "This is why slash-and-burn farming hasn't been completely replaced yet," Draven muttered to himself.

  He began to regret it, thinking he should have just set a fire to clear out these weeds earlier. Frowning, he stared at the patch of land buried under the overgrowth and scratched his head.

  "Ah, whatever. With slaves helping, pulling out these weeds won't be difficult," he sighed softly.

  Just as he was fretting over this neglected land, someone else was rejoicing.

  After encountering a squad sent by the Southern Succubi, Selene once again displayed her awe-inspiring presence.

  She brought only a few attendants and personally traveled to the southern border of her territory. There, she met the leader of the Southern Succubi.

  Selene successfully brought over this tribe of more than a thousand southern warriors under her banner. Though not a large number, these were the elite of the elite.

  They had journeyed thousands of miles, and only the strongest chose to remain. With this elite force joining, the vast territory no longer needed to worry about outsiders coveting it.

  Confident, Selene led her people, ready to push the tribe to new heights.

  Soon after, Selene and the Southern Succubi leader, Freya, headed back to Selene City together.

  Freya's temperament was strikingly different from Selene's cold and commanding aura. Freya was charming and alluring, her every gesture dripping with the unique seductive flair of a succubus.

  She lagged slightly behind, following Selene with great interest, listening attentively as Selene introduced the city's various affairs.

  Occasionally, she would emit a few admiring words in her captivating voice. Freya's eyes sparkled with surprise at the rapid development of the Northern Succubi clan.

  Especially when they reached the plaza, Selene pointed to a vacant lot nearby and said,"I plan to establish a trading company there, belonging to the lord's mansion."

  "The clanspeople you brought can work in the trading company or lead caravans throughout the entire territory."

  A flicker of something unusual passed through Freya's eyes, but she didn't forget to praise the idea as brilliant.

  Selene, full of ambition, had no idea that Freya secretly harbored resentment deep inside.

  Things were far more complicated than Freya had imagined. The Northern Succubi were even stronger than she expected. To seize their lands would not be a matter of days or months.

  As a lord, Selene was willing to move north but would never surrender easily. Fortunately, the opposing side was only a fledgling lord with limited strength.

  Freya carefully concealed her dark thoughts behind a constant smile and incessant flattery. But Freya knew that flattery never truly worked.

  ……

  Meanwhile, in Black Flag Territory, no matter how Liliana acted cute or pleaded, Draven refused to give her a staff of her own. This was still because of Viola's unfinished staff core.

  After assigning work to the female slaves and chasing away the mischievous little rascals tormenting the baby rabbits, Viola finally had time to personally complete the final step of the staff.

  She carefully inscribed the magic array and completed the mana infusion. At last, a formal fiery-red staff appeared in her hands. Just then, Liliana, who had accompanied Sylvia to play in the forest, returned.

  The petite, exquisite fiery-red staff in Viola's hands immediately caught Liliana's attention. Upon learning that the staff was a gift from Draven, the little girl ran to the werewolf leader, pestering him nonstop, demanding one for herself.

  "You're a druid—what use do you have for a staff?"

  Draven helplessly pulled Liliana off like a koala clinging to him.

  It wasn't stinginess; druids simply didn't need staffs. The little girl was purely jealous of Viola and wanted equal treatment.

  Draven wasn't going to indulge her, unless one day she could treat him the way Viola did~~~