When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist

After being warmly invited by Merikso, though astonished, Brune did not refuse and followed him into the Insula Apartment.

However, he did not stay long. After drinking two cups of hot ginger juice in the security room and meeting Gashkour, who had returned from the workshop, he got up to leave.

The abrupt enthusiasm of Merikso initially wanted to have Brune stay, but upon hearing that he was going to dinner at another Hundred Households Captain's house, he immediately let him go.

Stepping out of the cramped courtyard and onto the main street, Brune continued walking with his head up, as was his habit at the new soldiers' camp.

Despite the approaching New Year Festival, on the rooftops of Insula Apartments in various districts, there were still many country folk repairing and reinforcing the apartments.

They stretched their bodies out of windows, placing boards slanted against the walls, while some rode on beams, laying ancient Elva roofing that was still intact.

These houses only underwent simple repairs, and many places were not stable; even some of the plaster hadn't completely dried.

Due to the tight schedule, Vite's requirement for houses was simply that they be livable, to ensure everyone could reside in them before the snow fell.

For safety's sake, under the spontaneous action of the Ten Households Leaders or citizens, the country folk in the district took up wooden hammers and nails for a final repair before the snowfall.

After soldiers returned to the town, Brune clearly felt that the town had become noticeably livelier compared to the past.

Every Insula entrance had a black-clad new soldier standing there, and Salvation Army soldiers were everywhere in the streets and alleys.

As he walked through the streets, whenever Brune looked up, he saw paper-made triangular flags hanging between the eaves.

Passing by Insula, he could still see women using scraps of cloth to make handkerchiefs, rag dolls, and headscarves in the communal courtyard, while men were tanning rabbit skins into usable leather.

These rabbit skins could be made into leather, and the rabbit fur was perfect for filling clothes and shoes, fetching a good price.

Wild rabbits were rampant on Autumn Dusk Island, so Horn issued an order for each Hundred Households District to select some nimble and experienced hands to catch rabbits in the wild.

Since catching rabbits generally took place from midnight till dawn, which coincided with curfew hours, hunters required a special proof to go out hunting.

Hunters could obtain the fur from the caught rabbits, but most of the meat had to be used first to supply soldiers, with the surplus going to the market.

In the resource-tight Pope Country, food, drink, and housing were all provided freely by Horn, so spending money was not much of a necessity.

In reality, what required spending was rather some handmade tools and meat products.

Horn specially gathered country folk who raised cattle, sheep, chickens, and ducks into hundred-household units, allowing them to reside in village cottages, responsible for raising livestock.

Their wool and milk were also prioritized for the Pope Country's needs, with the surplus allowed onto the market.

This wool, milk, and vegetables, Horn would purchase at cost or at 30% below market price.

The town's residents mostly engaged in infrastructure repair and construction work, some being artisans, while others engaged in literary work.

Horn did not prohibit city residents from conducting small industries and side businesses, as long as they reported to the Hundred Households Captain.

Thus, the exchange of goods between urban and rural areas had long begun, sometimes with citizens going to the countryside to trade, other times with villagers coming to the city to trade.

The common denominator they used for this exchange was the Dinar currency.

Horn did not collect any taxes on this commodity exchange.

As of now, the whole Pope Country is quite awkward.

On one hand, it does not collect taxes, but on the other, they forcibly requisition some labor results; calling it a tax feels strange given Horn freely provides housing, fuel, salt, food, and other essentials.

This exchange between urban and rural areas often involves not the exchange of necessities but of daily goods and luxury items.

Due to food shortages, town residents were too many, and citizens living in districts saw a decline in their living standards compared to before, yet standards had risen in two rural Hundred Households Districts.

When Brune hurried to the gate, Jonar was already impatient.

"Been waiting for you half a day; if you hadn't come sooner, I would have searched for you." Jonar said, standing and rubbing his aching knees.

"Sorry, our Ten Households Leader forcibly dragged me into a chat," Brune said honestly.

Jonar chuckled, "I said, if you return wearing that uniform and he dares trouble you, that would really open one's eyes."

"Forget it, I don't want to stay there any longer." Brune, ultimately afraid his unwillingness to go to the battlefield would be discovered, added, "Are we going directly to your house now?"

"Of course not, let's go to the War Monks' shop."

As soldiers wearing black uniforms were essentially nailed into being Salvation Army War Monks, they could buy meat at low prices.

Near the side of the Prayer Hall was a dedicated shop for War Monks, only serving soldiers of the Salvation War Group.

The prices in these stores are generally ten to twenty percent cheaper than regular grocery stores and small vendors.

Jonar and Brune both came in military uniforms, so the shop owner naturally couldn't stop them.

This shop is not large, about sixty to seventy square meters, with half of the valuable goods behind the counter, and you can only retrieve them with the shop owner.

Most of the goods inside are various herbs, cheap spices, salt, vegetables, tables, chairs, benches, meats, and other agricultural products.

When Jonar went inside the counter to pick out gifts, Brune only picked a dozen eggs outside, costing less than half a Dinar.

As for Jonar, he purchased butter, rabbit meat, oregano, potato root wine, and other miscellaneous items, spending nearly 12 Dinars.

"Why did you buy so many things?" Seeing Jonar having to buy an extra sack to pack the items, Brune couldn't help but ask.

"Nonsense, I have a family of ten." Jonar stuffed a piece of cheese corner into his mouth and spoke indistinctly, "If it weren't for the green...Church, it should be eleven."

Carrying these meats and spices along the street, Brune's usually gloomy mood improved significantly.

After a few turns, Jonar led Brune to Jonar's block, where he lived in the Insula Apartment.

Since the major repairs of the block were completed, citizens finally had time to properly manage their future homes.

Just like this Insula Apartment, the flowerbeds planted with thyme, onions, and ginger, and under the stairs, there's a chicken coop made of wicker cages.

Seven or eight chickens meandered in the yard, pecking at insects and grass seeds.

Against the wall, there was also a large broken jar with brown-black soil inside.

"What is that?" Standing by the door, Brune pointed to the broken jar filled with soil and asked.

Before Jonar could answer, a middle-aged man sharing Jonar's garlic-like nose came out.

"That's worm soil. When His Eminence visited before, he saw we raised quite a few chickens, so he told us to make worm soil to use worms to feed the chickens."

"Papa." Jonar, carrying the bag, walked up to give his father, Old Jonar, a big hug.

After the father and son exchanged pleasantries, Brune handed the eggs to Jonar's father: "It's my first time visiting you, this is a gift for you."

Old Jonar adjusted his crooked felt hat: "Are you a friend of Jonar's from the military camp?"

"Yes, my name is Brune." After twenty days of recruit training, Brune unconsciously corrected his timid way of speaking.

Old Jonar initially wanted to affectionately sling his arm around Brune's shoulder but found he couldn't reach, awkwardly grabbing his arm instead, leading him into the house.

"Little Jonar, your brother is back, there are eggs here, go take them to your mom."

"Has Jonar returned?"

"Jonar, where's your armor? Was it not issued?"

"Jonar, which regiment are you planning to join?"

Following his father, Jonar responded to the neighbors one by one, though his arms were tired from holding the meat and butter, and he hardly got any attention from his father.

Seeing they were about to reach the house, Jonar said in frustration, "If you don't take these, I'll give them to someone else."

Jonar's father glared at him and took the meat, butter, and onions from his hands, then called for the cook in the dining hall: "Make a pot of stew tonight."

Due to a lack of sufficient time and nutrition, most of the dishes in Thousand River Valley mainly consisted of stews and smoked meats.

Combined with their disastrous hygiene awareness, most of the dishes turned out to be yellowish South Asian shapes.

"Hey, hey, this is for you..."

"We all cook together, if our family eats meat, are the others just supposed to watch?" Old Jonar tapped Jonar on the forehead.

"Then why didn't you say earlier? I would have bought inferior meat and more quantity. Using such good meat for stew is a waste."

Jonar mumbled, but when his friend rushed down the stairs towards him, he cheerfully went to greet and hug.

Old Jonar then patted the shoulder of the at-a-loss Brune: "Can you drink?"

"I can drink, but not much, just a little bit."

"Then come have a couple of drinks with me, and also tell me what the military camp is like and how Jonar is doing there."