Close the door and beat the dog

Outside the Demon King's City, the Black Earth welcomed the sunlight after a long time.

Standing at the city gate and looking up, besides various spike decorations, one couldn't really tell its original appearance.

It no longer looked like a place where a Demon King would live.

However, this was precisely the effect Caelan wanted; he still quite enjoyed basking in the sun.

“Hmm… not bad.”

He nodded with satisfaction, then grabbed the hoe stuck in the dirt behind him, bent down, and began turning over the soil.

Beside him, several Skeleton Soldiers and Kobolds were doing the same thing.

Planting vegetables certainly wasn't as simple as just scattering seeds. Fertilizer didn't need to be considered for now, and the moat around the castle could provide water, so first, a field with soft soil was needed.

“Ridging” was essential.

Ridging refers to piling up soil on the ground to form long, raised strips and planting crops on top of these soil piles.

If it rained, the rainwater would accumulate in the furrows and then drain out along them, preventing the crops from being submerged for too long and rotting.

At the same time, some of the undrained rainwater accumulating in the furrows could also provide water for the crops on the ridge tops.

Additionally, a sufficiently thick and soft ridge pile could provide an excellent growth environment for the underground parts of the crops.

According to records in the city, the climate in the Demon Race's territory was not good, with very strong dry seasons, cold winters, and rainy seasons. Therefore, besides ridging, building greenhouses and digging irrigation canals later could not be neglected.

While Kobolds were fine, Skeleton Soldiers’ brains were a bit too uncooperative for such complex tasks. He could only let them turn over the soil first; the ridging still had to be done by himself.

It wasn't that he didn't want to use more Kobolds, but the current food reserves were simply not enough to feed them. He could only release the one he had individually recorded to help him out.

After all, it was the early stage of his venture; as the boss, it was fine to be a little tired.

“Speaking of which, I remember reading in a book about magical beasts that move underground like large earthworms. If I could capture one or two to turn the soil…”

Caelan was deep in thought, considering the feasibility of catching more magical beasts as labor, when the Kobold suddenly turned its head, barked, and looked into the distance.

Caelan could feel the Kobold’s hostility.

“Is something coming?”

He immediately put down his hoe, motioned for the Skeleton Soldiers and Kobold to retreat into the castle, and then took the elevator to the top floor of the castle.

Standing on the wide balcony, looking into the distance, before him was the nearly empty Black Earth. In such an environment, the group of Kobolds slowly approaching became particularly conspicuous.

“...How many of these are there?”

Looking at the large mass of uninvited grey-brown guests, Caelan rested his chin in his hand, troubled.

According to the records in the book, Kobolds usually came in groups of three to five, with the largest reaching about twenty, never too many.

The number of these Kobolds was conservatively estimated at three to four hundred, which had already reached the tribal size of another Kobold subspecies, the more socially advanced Hyena-men.

But whatever the reason, these three to four hundred Kobolds were likely not an illusion, and he only had about thirty or forty at most that he could use.

The numbers differed by a factor of ten.

The saying “when ten times the enemy’s strength, surround them” wasn't meant to be applied this way.

If it were yesterday, he would probably have to pack up and flee or pull up the drawbridge and play turtle.

But today…

Caelan stroked his chin and gave orders to the Skeleton Soldiers.

—Close the side doors, open the main gate.

Let them in.

The Demon King's City did not have towering walls like typical castles. After crossing the moat via the drawbridge, one would find the main gate leading directly to the front courtyard of the main hall, as well as side doors on both sides.

Further inside, after a corridor, was the hall where the Previous Demon King resided, which Caelan usually kept closed... mainly fearing that the Previous Demon King’s magic power would overflow and cause some negative effects.

Now, because a sufficiently large space was needed, the large courtyard in front of the main hall was the best area.

The Skeleton Soldiers immediately began to move.

Caelan had previously opened all the castle’s large gates for ventilation and dehumidification, and now they were being closed one by one.

Not long after, the majestic Demon King's City was left with only its main gate wide open. The massive gate was like the teeth of a giant beast, waiting to devour any audacious intruders.

Meanwhile, Caelan moved the Dog Meat of the Kobolds he had killed earlier, which hadn't been fully eaten, to the courtyard, waiting.

Soon, the group of Kobolds arrived in front of the castle.

Kobolds are one of the most widespread Beastmen on the continent, similar in status to Kobolds among Orcs… or what are called Kobolds.

These omnivorous magical beasts are skilled at group hunting, but more often, they scavenge carrion left by other large predators.

They possess a keen sense of smell and are trained by some highly intelligent magical beasts as hunting tools or pets.

It was also because their role was similar to how humans train dogs that they earned the name “Kobold.”

After all, from their appearance, Goblins’ pointed snouts and erect ears actually resemble a fox’s head more, and their sparse brown fur is more like a small ape.

At this moment, the hungry Kobold horde, relying on their keen sense of smell, detected the scent of blood and flesh emanating from the wide-open gate from afar. So, no matter how suspicious this castle was, they charged into the gate without hesitation.

The leading Kobold was clearly more intelligent than the others and did not approach the castle immediately… But even as the leader, at such a time, he could not control the actions of the entire tribe. After much hesitation, he still couldn't resist the craving for blood and flesh and followed the others into the castle’s main gate.

And when the Kobolds actually saw the raw meat laid on the ground and rushed impatiently through the passage beyond the gate, they didn’t notice two Skeleton Soldiers falling from the chandelier.

Their bodies first broke apart from the fall but quickly reassembled, walking unsteadily to the gate and pulling down the switch to close it.

The Kobold leader only noticed the anomaly behind them then, but it was already too late.

The massive gate crashed down, cutting off their retreat.

And at the same time, Caelan, on the second-floor balcony of the courtyard, opened the Illustrated Book.

“What I promised you… the time for you to eat your fill has come.”

Magic-constructed runes appeared, and then, a colossal body formed from the magical array composed of runes, landing heavily in the courtyard.

Boom!

Immediately upon landing, a thick dragon claw crushed several nearby Dog Meat people into a pulp.

The remaining Kobolds, still engrossed in fighting for food, suddenly felt a fear from deep within their bloodline.

A roar followed immediately.

“Roar!!!”