After leaving Lake Town, the main road northeast passes through two territories.
The first is Pasture City, ruled by the Ironhoof Viscount Clan.
Pasture City is famous for horse breeding. At least half of the horses in Wushan Territory, whether common mounts or warhorses, are sourced from Pasture City.
As an ancient family that existed even before the Orland Empire was divided, the Ironhoof Clan holds significant status in Wushan Territory.
Ronin had previously planned to stop by Pasture City to purchase supplies, but that was no longer necessary.
The second territory they passed through was Swamp Town, ruled by Baron Reisen of the Sain Clan.
His predecessor hadn't known much about this family, only that the current baron of the Sain Clan was supposedly an Advanced Peak Knight.
As the closest noble territory to Mountain Forest Town, Sain Territory could be considered Ronin's neighbor, and he planned to find some time to pay them a visit.
North of Sain Territory, the landscape gave way to rolling hills.
The hills weren't high, one or two hundred meters at most, and their slopes weren't steep. The issue was their sheer number, stretching out in a vast, rolling expanse. This was what made Mountain Forest Town so remote and difficult to access.
Ronin took out his map. It only had a crude sketch of Mountain Forest Town's location; using it for precise navigation was obviously impossible.
Fortunately, a well-trodden path through the woods pointed them in the right direction.
"It's noon. Everyone, let's rest here for now."
Ronin had Chahar tell everyone to take a break, while he himself stood on the narrow forest path.
"My lord, the road into the mountains looks rough," Macken noted.
"That's to be expected."
Ronin sighed and crouched by the side of the road. "But there are wheel tracks here, too. Clearly, carriages come out of Mountain Forest Town. If they can get out, we can get in."
Mountain Forest Town had no Lord, but the presence of wheel tracks on the road indicated that, aside from the annual tax collection visit from Wushan Castle, the people inside had contact with the outside world.
This was only natural.
Mountain Forest Town couldn't possibly produce all the necessities for survival; some things had to be bought from the outside.
"Once we're settled in Mountain Forest Town, I'll form a hunting party if everything goes smoothly. We'll see if we can hunt some Magical Beasts."
"If we can get some Magic Beast Hides, Elron and I will learn how to make Magic Scrolls."
He currently had three vials of the special "ink" for making Magic Scrolls that Pedro had left behind. If not for the lack of Magic Beast Hide, he and Elron would have already started practicing.
Forming a hunting party was a decision Ronin had made after careful consideration.
After all, one must live off the land. Being so close to the Demon Beast Mountain Range, they had to capitalize on its Magical Beasts.
The materials from Magical Beasts could be sold for a profit, and the creation of Magic Scrolls would be a natural offshoot industry.
Of course, this all depended on things going smoothly; they would have to wait until everything settled down.
"I would be honored to serve you, my lord!" the Mage replied respectfully to Ronin's proposal.
For the past two days, Elron had been the most idle of the group.
Unlike Macken, who was busy with his sword and combat practice, and unlike the Guards who had their drills, Elron had nothing to do in his free time but refine his Mana. He was the most idle and, consequently, the most bored.
With nothing else to do, Elron could only flip through the books in the carriage to broaden his horizons.
"You don't need to worry about being idle. Once we reach the territory, I doubt anyone will have a moment to spare."
Ronin was itching to get started. After all, it was his own territory—the mountains, the water, the people, they were all his. To not manage it well would be a terrible waste.
After a simple lunch, Ronin led the party back on the road.
The mountain road was riddled with potholes, and in some places, water had carved deep gullies, making passage extremely difficult for the carriages.
For comfort's sake, Ronin stopped riding in the carriage and opted to ride a horse instead.
'To get rich, first build roads!'
It was a golden rule, but as he looked at the endless rolling hills—not high, but numerous—he knew that building a road would be a massive undertaking.
'Building a smooth, wide road out from Mountain Forest Town will be very difficult to accomplish in a short time.'
Ronin sighed. He could only take it one step at a time. For now, just ensuring the carriages could pass through would be enough.
"Elron, do you think there's any Magic or any Combat Skills that can cleave mountains?"
"Absolutely!"
Elron was certain. "Mages draw upon the Heaven and Earth Elements to cast Magic, and these elements are vast and boundless. As long as a Mage is powerful enough and can channel a sufficient amount, I'm sure the resulting power would be enough to cleave a mountain!"
"That makes sense."
Ronin turned to Macken. "You have the Earth Attribute. Do you think there's a Combat Skill that could cleave a mountain?"
Combat Skills utilized a Knight's own Fighting Qi and were generally weaker than Magic in terms of raw power, but Macken still gave an affirmative answer.
"It's definitely possible, but it would probably be more difficult than with Magic."
Ronin nodded. "Then I'll be counting on you to build the road from Mountain Forest Town to the outside world."
Macken hesitated. "Er… If that is what you require, my lord, I will do my best!"
"Heh."
As the party entered the forest, the weather grew less scorching. The cool mountain breeze was especially pleasant during their breaks.
However, it grew chilly late at night. Without a large enough campfire, they would likely have caught a cold.
Fortunately, if there was one thing they weren't short on here, it was wood.
The road was rough, and it took Ronin and his party more than a full day of travel before they finally crested a small hill and saw a town in the distance.
Ronin glanced at a huge boulder by the side of the road ahead. Painted on it in clear, red letters was the name of the town before them—Mountain Forest Town!
"We've finally arrived!" he said, overjoyed.
They had set out on the fourth, and now, at noon on the thirteenth, after ten days of travel, they were about to reach their destination.
Hearing Ronin's voice, the Guards also began to cheer.
At the start of their journey, many of them had doubted whether they would ever reach Mountain Forest Town safely. Now, with the town right before their eyes, they knew they had made it!
For them, most of whom had never left Wushan City in their lives, this journey was both a challenge and an achievement. It would be a story to tell the younger generations for years to come.
"Chahar, we'll break for lunch here!"
Ronin ordered with a smile, "Make sure everyone eats their fill and gets a good rest. This afternoon, we enter the town!"
"Yes, Master." Chahar briskly went to make the arrangements.
Ronin swung himself off his horse. David took the reins and stood aside. Ever since the young man had become a Basic Level Knight, Ronin had kept him by his side.
'The terrain of Mountain Forest Town is actually quite good. It's not the precarious mountain town I was imagining.'
Ronin stood in the middle of the road, gazing at the distant town.
From his vantage point on the slope, he could see that Mountain Forest Town was situated on a plain nestled between the mountains. While there were slopes within the town itself, they were low and much gentler than the peaks they had crossed on their journey—a classic feature of a hilly region.
'I remember Holwart saying that to the east and north, past the forests of Mountain Forest Town, lies the sea.'
The sea was a resource in itself. If he could extend his territory to the coastline, that would be an incredible boon.
Averting his gaze, Ronin walked over to the landmark—the large boulder. He patted it twice. The thing wasn't light; it had to weigh at least several hundred pounds.
"Macken, I have a task for you."
Macken stepped forward. "My lord, please give your order."
Ronin pointed at the large boulder. "Once we're settled and have some time, I want you to move this landmark for me."
"No problem!"
Macken sized up the stone. He'd probably need a wagon to move it.
"My lord, where would you like me to move it?"
Ronin mused for a moment. "Just follow this road and move it about fifteen miles south."
"Oh, and if moving it is too much trouble, just smash this rock and put up a new marker about fifteen miles out."
Hearing this, the nearby Elron laughed. "Congratulations, my lord. Your territory has just grown larger!"
"Haha, I knew you'd understand what I meant immediately!"
Judging from the journey here, there was still a great deal of undeveloped land in the area. Who knew if Earl Wiggin might send a Pioneer Knight over to snatch up the territory.
By moving the territorial marker farther out first, anyone who came later would have to dispute the claim with Ronin.
"Macken, Elron, David—you are all Transcendents. Your powers of observation are sharper than an ordinary person's. Keep a close watch on our surroundings during the break and report anything unusual immediately."
Even though they had arrived in his own territory, the memory of the assassination attempt by one of the Guards kept Ronin from relaxing his vigilance.
He couldn't be sure whether he would be greeted by his subjects… or his enemies.