>>5427483>>5427537"I must consult the king before taking such a decision."
"Very well, you may pass this once with your troops. But next time come back with toll or not at all. We will leave a big one here to receive it. They get really angry when they go hungry."
Under the gaze of the monsters, even one of the "big ones" the monster leader mentioned, a towering abomination over twice the size of a man, who stay a long distance away from your troops, you march back towards home, after dispatching a courier north to warn the division there not to take the road through the toll demanding monsters - they are not to expect immediate support from our logistic lines and are to be fed by the people in Midtown.
The rest of the trip transcurs without much of a hiccup. You arrive back at Stromwall with your four divisions to meet the three (well, two and a half counting the dead), divisions already there, having left troops at Saltsburg and Sefardia building forts.
When you pass through Sefardia, the fort is already looking good - a large palisade with a connection to the city's palisade, an area for the troops to train and barracks for them to sleep, even a tiny workshop with a forge to fix broken weapons.
"Do we have reason to worry?", asks the mayor of Sefardia.
"The monsters built a settlement further north. Send no caravans there, unless you are willing to pay a toll of one wagon of food for every wagon you send in that direction."
"By the gods! That is insane! Trade will all but come to a halt."
"That is what we are trying to prevent. I'll inform the king and we'll see what we are going to do about it."
The trip to Saltsburg is also uneventful.
"Hey, nice to see you again. How's the fight with the monsters."
"General, we barely saw any monsters around lately. Seems like they stopped attacking us. Only the trackers who get near the mountains see any monsters. Seems like they are avoiding this area."
"Very well. Seems like they are capable of peaceful coexistence."
Upon arrival at the capital, you are received with the honors of a hero.
"We collected thirty thousand gold in taxes from Midtown your highness."
"Excellent. Even though it doesn't cover our current expenses, at least the treasury isn't bleeding as fast."
"But there are bad news. The monsters settled the ruined area north to Sefardia and are demanding a toll - one wagon worth of food for every wagon we send through there."
> "We can work with these terms, get the merchants informed of the new rules."> "I am sure we can get a better deal, I'll travel there to negotiate."> "That's utterly insane, get the whole army and go kill them." 