CHAPTER 337: Total Acceptance

Even in front of the unusually tall mountain people, Han Shuo's height of over 190 centimetres exuded a natural intimidation that made him stand out like a crane among a flock of chickens when he walked out of the house. Practicing demonic magic had also given him an evil aura, making him even more attractive.

Smiling slightly as he approached, Han Shuo took out plate after plate of shimmering, roasted, golden meat from his space ring and placed them on the table in front of everyone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, these are some very rare meats from distant lands that I've gone to great lengths to hunt and prepare. Would you care to sample them?" Pulling out all the dishes, Han Shuo smiled as he invited everyone to try a piece.

Jack was pulled to the other side by Dorcas to discuss military budgets. But when he smelled the delicious aroma of roasted meat, something he hadn't tasted in so long, his stomach couldn't control its desire for good food. Jack quickly threw off the pestering Dorcas and came running over.

Dorcas was a fanatic with a fiery thirst for war. His only interest was in slowly refining his training methods to create an even more powerful, explosive force out of the soldiers under his command.

This is why Dorcas was particularly interested in Little Fatty Jack, as he was in charge of the budget. Dorcas used every trick in the book to squeeze more and more money out of Jack for equipment. Jack was a bit scared at first, but after a while he got used to Dorcas. Now he gave as good as he got in these little conversations with Dorcas, leaving him with just what he needed.

"You little brat, hehehe." Han Shuo shook his head when he saw Jack quickly running over, then spoke to the five mountain chiefs in a relaxed manner, "No worries, everyone hurry up and try some, these things are not delicacies you would normally find."

Even Fulkin, who was the only one of the mountain chiefs who knew Han Shuo, felt some fear and trepidation when he saw that Han Shuo was not as aloof and lofty as they had imagined. In fact, he became even more cautious.

Jack was the most familiar with Han Shuo, as he'd been Han Shuo's only friend over the years. So he wasn't as polite as others. He stabbed a fork into a large piece of fragrant, tender meat and chewed on it. As he chewed, he let out a surprised exclamation of praise, "Mmmm, so tasty, what is this meat? It's really so fragrant!"

"It's a Manticore's forelimb, tastes good, doesn't it?" Han Shuo replied with a smile. He pointed at the dishes one by one as he introduced them, "This one is the tail of a Deepwater Venom Python, it's the toughest. That dish over there is the brain of a Harpy, you have to try it to know what it tastes like. And this is ..."

Not to mention the five mountain chiefs, even Faulke, Dorcas and the others were wide-eyed and open-mouthed in amazement as Han Shuo's introduction continued. They couldn't understand how the meat in front of them could have come from such high-ranking magical creatures. Hunting magical creatures of that rank would require a team of experienced, skilled adventurers. If an ordinary person attempted to do so, they would only face death.

"Besides, there are no such creatures around Brettel City. Where on earth did he go to hunt? Ohh, these creatures are not something an ordinary person could hunt, the City Lord is truly an incredible freak!"

No one needed to look at each other to know that everyone in the room felt the same way, giving Han Shuo a strange look.

"What? That is the forelimb of a Manticore!?" Jack jumped in fright, the fork in his hand still holding a large piece of jiggling flesh. He'd once heard that a single blow from a Manticore could tear a human in half. He couldn't help but gasp as he associated that image with the nice piece of meat he was chewing on.

"Indeed, how does it taste?" Han Shuo laughed out loud and stared at Jack.

"The taste is no problem, but when I imagine the scene of the Manticore tearing up people and the ground with its front claws, I'm still scared!" Jack still had some fear, his eyes rolling as he looked at the delicious dish. He seemed to want to eat, but couldn't overcome the pressure in his heart.

Han Shuo glanced at the others and noticed their strange expressions. He laughed amusedly, "What, is it that you don't dare to eat? Hehehe, I hunted these especially to serve you, are you not giving me face?"

Dorcas walked silently towards the harpy dish under Han Shuo's watchful eyes. He picked up a large piece of charred black meat and swallowed it with a heavy expression.

"What's the big deal?" To Han Shuo's surprise, Delia snorted and sulked as she picked up her knife and fork to start on the Deepwater Venom Python. She chose a piece of short rib with some cartilage in it and chewed it carefully.

As she chewed this morsel, Delia's eyebrows began to relax. She began to fidget excitedly with her cutlery, cutting off a larger piece. As she chewed, she praised, "It tastes really good!"

"Hehehe, the Deepwater Venom Python is extremely poisonous, even I don't know if I've prepared it properly. I could be in big trouble if something went wrong," Han Shuo's lips curled as he muttered to himself, watching Delia chewing voraciously with her little mouth.

Delia had thrown her image to the wind as she ate heartily. Her little ears happened to catch Han Shuo's muttering. Her animated actions instantly froze. Her delicate red cheeks paling, she stared at Han Shuo, her voice trembling, "What did you say?"

"Nothing, hehehe! The deep sea venom python is extremely poisonous. If I hadn't prepared it properly, you probably wouldn't be conscious right now" A loud laugh escaped Han Shuo as he explained.

"Damn it! You even scared me!" Delia glared angrily at Han Shuo but didn't pursue the matter. She focused all her attention on the plate of Deepwater Venom Python.

The other four Mountain Chiefs, as well as Faulke, Dick and Chester, had by now reacted, especially little fat Jack, who took off with a whole plate.

Originally, these rare dishes were hard to even catch a glimpse of, let alone taste. However, Han Shuo had brought out quite a large amount of these delicacies. However, there were more than enough people present. With the mountain people's notoriously large appetites, Delia was afraid that the others would eat up the rest of the food while she wasted time talking. So she stopped paying attention to Han Shuo and rejoined the scramble for the food.

After a while, the six dishes were spotless as the madmen had cleaned the entire table. Some were even holding onto their forks as if they hadn't had enough. On the one hand, the food was incredibly delicious, so they ate quickly. But the rare ingredients were also delicacies in their own right, which was an added incentive to devour the food.

When the servants hired by Han Shuo served the food that the chefs had painstakingly prepared, the guests found it dull and tasteless. They now despised the ordinary food.

Their palates sated with food and drink, the group followed Han Shuo to the meeting chamber, leaving the mess for the servants to clean up.

Unlike the antisocial image the five mountain chiefs had expected, Han Shuo always maintained a smile and occasionally cracked a joke. Everyone was now a little less cautious and a little warmer as they sat down. The exotic food had undoubtedly played a large part in this.

Han Shuo sat in the centre, as befitted his position. He smiled and looked at the five mountain chiefs. As he saw them sit down one by one with restrained smiles, he nodded and said, "Do not be nervous. I've invited you here to discuss a matter of mutual benefit. You are all people from Brettel City. Perhaps the former city lord couldn't keep your trust, so you gradually severed your ties with the city."

"This time, His Majesty has given me Brettel City, and I will not let the city bear the brunt of the devastation caused by the Seven Grand Duchies and other bandit groups. Not only Brettel City, but your group's five mines will also be protected. From now on, I hope we can join forces and develop the city."

"Your Lordship, I believe you can bring peace to Brettel City. I, the Chief of Mount Tali, am willing to be at Your Lordship's disposal. I know you will not treat us badly." Fulkin had already made up his mind. He knew that Han Shuo alone could seriously damage Mount Tali. Seeing the impressive array of defences that Brettel City boasted had only solidified his decision.

Han Shuo had already expected Fulkin's goodwill. Upon hearing these words, he said with a smile, "Thank you, Fulkin. The last time Faulke faced the threat of the bandits, your Mount Tali had lent a helping hand. This lord has remembered it in my heart."

"Your lordship is too polite. I despised the former City Lord for ignoring his own citizens. But you are very different from him. As an original member of Brettel City, this is what I should do. Not to mention, since Your Lordship helped us break the siege of Mount Tali last time, Troda will never come back to bother us again. Fulkin was very reasonable. Since he had decided to cooperate with Han Shuo, he spared no effort to build a better relationship.

Seeing Fulkin's attitude, the other four mountain chiefs couldn't help but look at each other. They knew in their hearts that this newly appointed city lord was superior in every way. Their only concern was that Han Shuo would take over their mines. That was the reason they were unwilling to compromise.

The mines were their main source of income and also the basis of their survival. According to what Han Shuo had said, everything around Brettel City belonged to the city lord, did that not mean that their mines also belonged to him?

Han Shuo smiled slightly, he looked at the four mountain chiefs and said, "You four, are you willing to assist me?"

Their four hearts leapt at his words. The three young mountain chiefs didn't speak, their eyes fixed on the eldest, Adleman. Adleman was silent for a while, then bit his tongue and spoke respectfully to Han Shuo, "Your Lordship, we are your people. We certainly want Brettel City to develop, but we do not know how we can help Your Lordship. We hope that you will clarify this for us."

Han Shuo smiled and nodded his head, "Since you already admit that you are citizens of Brettel, this is easy to handle. To be honest, there is nothing lacking in Brettel City at the moment, except for manpower. The merchants deliver a steady stream of materials, and I have enough gold coins to keep the city running. It's just that the problem of the lack of population cannot be solved in a short time".

"I know that there are thirty to forty thousand people around the mines in your mountains. Excluding the miners, this figure includes a large proportion of elderly people, women and children. Their living conditions around the five mines are not ideal. They left Brettel only because of the incompetence of the former mayor. They left because Brettel wasn't safe. But now that Brettel is very safe, if you five are willing, let them come down from the mountain. There are many empty houses in the city and the living conditions are much better for them. What do you think?"

Adleman was genuinely touched that Han Shuo had put the welfare of the pitiful mountain people first. He suddenly kowtowed to Han Shuo and said in a thick voice as tears streamed from his eyes, "I thank the city lord for your good intentions on behalf of all the mountain people. I won't say any more unnecessary words. As long as Your Lordship can guarantee that they will not lack food and clothing, and provide them with a stable living environment, I will do so without a word, even if Your Lordship wants us to hand over the mines."

"Elder, please rise. They are my people too, I should give them a good living environment. The five mines are the basis of your survival, from now on they are still under your control. There's just one thing, even though we have a lot of siege equipment, we don't have enough manpower to operate it. Once the official army of the Seven Grand Duchies invades, I'm afraid that with only three thousand city guards, we won't be able to control the situation, even with a lot of equipment".

"My only request to you is that you join us when we face common enemies and help to stop them. We will provide enough siege weapons. As long as we have enough manpower on the city wall, the seven grand duchies will never dream of breaking our defences. Are you all willing to work with me and fight for the safety of Brettel City and its people?"

By the time they'd finished speaking, there were no more disagreements. Adleman had worked hard all his life to resist the constant plundering of the Seven Grand Duchies and bandit troops, and to provide a better life for the mountain people.

Han Shuo's actions did not contradict his ideals. Adleman no longer had a trace of hesitation about Han Shuo's proposal. He immediately shouted at the three young mountain chiefs, "You three little babies, why are you not with me thanking His Lordship for his mercy?"

By this time, the three young people had no more doubts. Even Fulkin, who had previously pledged his allegiance, knelt before Han Shuo. Each of them vowed to do their utmost to defend the safety of Brettel City.

As he helped each of the mountain chiefs to their feet, Han Shuo said with a smile, "The last time I went to Mount Tali, I saw that your equipment wasn't very good. This time, the bandits have left behind tens of thousands of items. They would take up too much storage space in Brettel City. Why don't you take them and equip yourself?"

The mountain people had worked hard for many years to mine the ore and trade it for food and other necessities to provide for their elders and children. They simply couldn't spare gold coins for weapons and armour. Some had only coarse iron bars of inferior material to use.

Hearing this, the five mountain chieftains remembered the three thousand shiny, armoured city guards with sharp, cold, glittering weapons on their way here. Their faces turned red with embarrassment as they compared this memory to their own shabbily dressed subordinates.

"Thank you, my lord, thank you, my lord!" Fulkin was the first to respond, falling to his knees once more.

As Fulkin willingly bowed his head, the other four mountain chiefs did the same. Each of them was full of excitement and admiration as their eyes gazed at Han Shuo with increasing conviction.

"Haha, everyone please stand up. This is just the beginning. I think with gradual development, the future of Brettel will blossom for the better!" Han Shuo lifted the five mountain chiefs up again, chuckling happily.

"Wuuu, there go hundreds of thousands of gold coins." Only Jack, the Finance Minister, let out a painful sigh. But his cry went unheard amidst the cheering of the crowd.