The warm, spring-like manor allowed Lin Yan's people to accomplish more.
At the same time, it made Lin Yan realize that she still lacked enough subordinates. No one could succeed through solo combat.
She needed more people to help her, but such individuals were hard to come by. After all, this was an era where finding literate people was difficult.
Not only that, but she also wanted to recruit more knights. It wasn't that her current knights were inadequate; the knights led by Will had always been diligent, and many had now become second-tier knights.
Will had even advanced to the fourth tier, but because this place was too remote, they hadn't bothered to re-certify their abilities, so they still wore their old badges.
Lin Yan wanted more knights because she intended to conquer the land nearby. Since this was a lawless zone, why shouldn't it belong to her?
Just as Lin Yan was contemplating this matter, Maurice brought back a group of people.
This group was ragged, emaciated, and had frostbite on their hands and feet.
Maurice did not bring them into the manor but instead placed them in the central courtyard. He took out a somewhat dim fire-elemental magic crystal and placed it in the fountain.
"Wash off your filth. Once you're here, as long as you're not lazy, you can survive." After saying this, he walked towards the hall on the first floor.
A male servant immediately opened the door for him, and he then put on a thick cloak and went outside to arrange for these people.
After Maurice returned, he first went to his room and took a bath before seeking out Lin Yan.
The people were quite surprised to be suddenly brought to this place, as they knew they had been brought by a dragon.
Initially, they thought they would become the black dragon's meal, but instead, it had brought them to this manor.
Looking at the fountain, which was flowing again, and the steam rising from the water, they couldn't quite process it.
"Take a bath first. This is Murphys Town, belonging to Madam Angelina Liandeer. Since Lord Maurice brought you here, you will become residents here.
It's winter, so there's no work for you now. When spring comes, we will arrange work for you," the male servant said, knowing what these people wanted to know.
Only then did the group begin to move towards the fountain.
They were too dirty, and the fountain was too exquisite. The noble lords were very strict; not only would they not allow commoners to touch their belongings, but sometimes they would be beaten just for looking.
Without permission, they truly dared not approach, and they even dared not move, for fear of soiling the ground and being beaten again.
These people did not dare to bathe, only lightly washing the skin that was exposed.
Seeing the clean spring water become dirty because of them, they lowered their heads in shame.
The male servant was still not satisfied but knew that bathing here at this moment might not be ideal.
The headmaid brought a lot of clothes. These were all discarded old clothes, some torn, some worn out.
As subordinates of Madam Angelina, they were not allowed to be disrespectful in their appearance.
They then took off their current clothes and put on these new ones.
These clothes were all single layers. Although better than what they were wearing, they weren't very warm.
The old garments were piled up and then burned by a maid using fire magic.
As the fire burned, many fleas and lice, unable to escape in time, crackled as they were consumed.
"Follow me. I'll take you to get something to eat," the male servant said, leading the way.
The group, shivering from the cold, perked up upon hearing that they would be fed.
They were led to a detached building in the furthest corner. As soon as they entered, they felt a warm breeze wash over them, driving away the cold.
Their bodies, numb from the frost, felt the warmth.
The cook had already prepared a pot full of thick soup in a large cauldron.
The male servant had them line up to receive their food.
This warmth and the rich aroma of the food made them feel as if they had come back to life.
After eating, they were taken to another room to shower again, get their heads shaved, and then change into the previous clothes.
However, these clothes seemed to have been treated, and they could smell a pleasant fragrance from them.
"In such cold weather, where did you find these people?" Lin Yan poured a cup of tea for Maurice, who still had moisture on his body. She herself was drinking milk.
"In winter, many people can't survive. You can find quite a few people at this time."
"Is that so?" Lin Yan knew this was true, but the original host was unaware, as she had never experienced such darkness.
The darkest thing she had experienced was simply being betrayed and framed by people she grew up with.
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Maurice. I still need a lot of manpower."
"Your farmland doesn't seem sufficient for these people."
"Who says we can only farm? Besides, I feel this fief is a bit too small, not quite fitting my status. What do you think?" Lin Yan raised an eyebrow at Maurice.
"Indeed. If I were to revert to my true form, I wouldn't even have enough space here. It should be larger," Maurice also felt the place was too small.
Especially since it was so remote, and the only town was one Lin Yan had built herself.
He felt Lin Yan should possess a larger territory and have more people serving her.
"Then what's your target? The forest next to us, or that lawless region?" Maurice thought bigger than Lin Yan.
"Let's take it step by step. How about we first secure the ownership of that lawless zone?" Lin Yan smiled faintly.
"For you, it's as easy as pie. For me, it's even less worth mentioning."
"Leave this matter to me. You don't need to act. You have a more important mission."
Maurice felt a little dejected by Lin Yan's initial statement. He hadn't yet established a relationship with Angelina, so he indeed didn't seem to have the right to be involved.
However, he perked up upon hearing the next sentence. "What mission?"
"The Holy See will definitely not allow me to develop unchecked. So, I'll leave the matter concerning the Holy See to you." Lin Yan had no intention of letting the Holy See know of her capabilities.
After all, if the Holy See discovered her strength, they wouldn't be pleased; instead, they would use all their might to take her life.
The original host had grown up in the Holy See and had some understanding of its hidden powers.
The Holy See was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. On the surface, the most powerful individuals in the Holy See were only the Pope and a few cardinals.
However, in reality, the Holy See possessed some clandestine forces. They were fanatical followers of the Holy See, serving as the sharp edge against heretics.