Rise of the Werewolves: A New Dominion

"Chieftain, you might not be fully aware of the sources of our tribe's savings!" Lothar said, casting a glance at his nephew with a hint of condescension.

If the tribe had money, the Silvermane Tribe wouldn't be the size it is now.

Making money isn't easy, especially when you have over two thousand tribespeople to support.

Truly, he was still just a child, so naive!

Did he really think managing a tribe was that simple?

"The tribe's main savings come from mining veins and the sale of magical beast hides, but both are hard to come by."

"Moreover, every year we need to purchase a batch of grain for emergencies, and almost all of our annual savings are depleted."

"So, in fact, the current savings are what we've barely managed to set aside this year!" Lothar explained.

He knew that without being in charge, one couldn't understand the value of every piece of firewood and every grain of rice.

Managing an orc tribe was no easy task.

The boy would have to learn that the hard way.

Lothar smiled faintly to himself, knowing that with his father around, any attempt at seizing power was impossible. However, he was also well aware that his nephew was just a young adult, and in managing the tribe, he would inevitably rely on him.

Thus, he appeared quite composed!

Since he couldn't advance further, maintaining his say in the tribe was also a good option.

Corvinus nodded.

It was indeed challenging for an orc tribe to save money. Magical beast hides were valuable, but the populations of magical beasts on the plains were dwindling. All tribes hunted magical beasts, which meant their reproduction couldn't keep up with the hunting, making the beasts a rare sight.

Unless one ventured near the Blackwind Mountains, where the magical beast resources were abundant but also fraught with danger.

He recalled that many years ago, a large tribe had sent legendary warriors to hunt in the Blackwind Mountains, only to anger the legendary beasts within, leading to a pursuit by the beasts that caused significant losses to the tribes along the way, even crippling the large tribe.

In the end, the royal court had to send a host of legendary warriors to drive the beasts back into the mountains.

This also deterred the orcs from overhunting in the Blackwind Mountains.

Thus, obtaining magical beast hides had become difficult, and most tribes resorted to domesticating their own magical beast populations.

However, it was clear that the Silvermane Tribe did not have such capabilities, as maintaining their war wolf pack was already a heavy burden.

As for mining veins, the Silvermane Tribe was not particularly strong, so they only had a few small ones.

Especially since ordinary iron ore was worthless; it was the rare byproducts that were valuable, with some fetching a high price.

But clearly, they were hard to come by, much like gold panning in his previous life—without luck, one might as well be panning for nothing.

Corvinus knew that the tribe needed a sustainable source of income.

But discussing this now was unrealistic, as they were on the brink of not being able to afford food.

"Here's what we'll do, Uncle, use all our savings to buy grain and store it," Corvinus said after some thought.

As the saying goes, "He who has grain has the world," no matter what, they couldn't afford to run out of food.

"Buy all the grain?"

"Leave some gold for emergencies?" Lothar frowned.

"No need, grain is the most urgent matter for the tribe right now, and according to what you've said, grain prices are increasing daily. The sooner we buy, the more we can get," Corvinus said firmly.

Although burning one's boats was not a wise decision, with the tribe's meager savings, even if they kept some, what could they really do with it?

It was better to use it all to buy grain and have some peace of mind.

"I understand!" Lothar nodded.

Although his nephew's decision seemed hasty, one had to admit that with grain prices skyrocketing, buying early would allow them to purchase more.

"Uncle, Fifth Uncle, Captains, now that I've just taken office, there are many things I don't understand, so I'll rely on you all to continue to worry and take care of things," Corvinus said, looking around.

"As for the rest, we'll discuss it after I've learned more about the tribe's specific situation," he added.

He had just taken office and couldn't make drastic changes, and the Silvermane Tribe didn't need them either. The most important thing now was to stabilize the tribe's people, and everything else could wait.

"Yes!"

Seeing that Corvinus was essentially dismissing them, the four of them rose, bowed, and left the council hall.

"Haha, boy, you truly are my grandson. It's good, with you in control of the tribe, I don't have to worry about the Silvermane I built falling into decline," Barnat said, beaming after the others had left.

His grandson's performance had been beyond expectations, as if he were a natural ruler, with his aura, confidence, and strategy all clearly on display.

He had originally worried that his grandson, just having come of age, wouldn't be able to outmaneuver his two sons, but now it seemed his sons might not be a match for his grandson after all.

"It's because Grandfather is by my side, giving me such confidence!" Corvinus flattered.

He had no choice; he was indeed reliant on his grandfather, whose strength was a force to be reckoned with. Without his grandfather's presence, he might not be able to command even his uncles and the two commanders.

So until his strength was overwhelming and he fully controlled the tribe, he had to rely on his grandfather.

"Alright, don't be modest. I have faith in you, so go ahead and do what you need to do. I'll have a word with your second uncle and fifth uncle," Barnat said, understanding his grandson's concerns, as strength was highly revered among orcs.

A chieftain without strength was likely to face insubordination.

...

The news of Corvinus's ascension to chieftain quickly spread throughout the Silvermane Tribe.

For the average tribespeople, the death of the previous chieftain was a cause for panic, but the ascension of a new chieftain also served as a strong reassurance.

The next day, early morning!

In the Silvermane Tribe's planting fields!

Corvinus was there, with dozens of werewolf tribespeople responsible for the cultivation respectfully watching Corvinus and his party.

Corvinus was not alone; his second uncle, Lothar, was with him.

Lothar was puzzled; he hadn't even had breakfast yet when Corvinus had summoned him here.

What was the purpose of coming to the fields so early in the morning?

"Your name is Kevos, right?" Corvinus asked with a smile, looking at a middle-aged werewolf in charge of cultivation.

"Yes, Chief... No, Chieftain!" Kevos replied, flustered, his gaze on Corvinus a bit unsettled.

Corvinus didn't mind and continued with a smile, "There's no need to be nervous. I've come to ask about the task I assigned you over a month ago. How's it going?"

Lothar, standing by, was curious about what task could have been given over a month ago.

As for Kevos, he had some recollection; the man seemed to be one of the managers of the cultivation fields.

Seeing Corvinus's smile, Kevos instantly became less flustered, "Chieftain, we've made some progress. Please follow me!"