It's been a month since Alexis and Leisandra's marriage. As the newlywed husband pruned the plants in his cottage's yard, his thoughts lingered back to the things that happened then. Of course, there had been nothing near that kind of interaction. Instead, his mind lingered in the information that descended upon him after having said those words.
[Congratulations, Host! You have successfully completed the tasks. Welcome to the Loyalty System!]
What's the Loyalty System? Do I just have to be loyal to my wife now? He thought at that time.
[The Loyalty System does rely on loyalty, but it's not just to your wife, but also towards people you are sworn to! Instructions on how to use the system will be sent into the Host's mind.]
As soon as those words were stated, Alexis winced as needles seemed to strike his temples. Leisandra noticed this, which made her panic for a bit, but he soon held up his palm to her, letting her know that he's okay.
After holding a simple ritualistic wedding where they faced each other in the middle of the night, drinking from one bowl held by both their hands, and with the stars aligning and shining upon them, their bond was completed.
Going back to the present, Alexis couldn't help but think that time was going so fast. Upon arriving here in this world, he was presented with a lovely wife who supports him, and he also was able to create the Abundant Herb Garden for sustenance and healing.
He had also already used the two manuals and the other claimable rewards, with the pruner on his hand right now as one of those tools. He was also given the chance to pick a weapon, with the spear being the one he chose. It was simple yet modern, with a shaft made from ashwood as a core coated with high-quality carbon fiber and titanium steel as its head. When Leisandra saw it, she was so amazed with its sharpness and durability. According to her, it was just a tad bit inferior to the spears made by the Aetian Empire east of Habascus.
Speaking of comparisons, the newlyweds discussed things about the outside world. The cottage was in the northern region of the Habascus Forest, the great forest that enveloped the continent of Arfarsia. Running through the region that they were in was the River Styis, which awfully sounded similar to Alexis, and just 10 miles beyond the northern river was Mount Castaverde, a sacred mountain in the eyes of the tribes and clans that are living inside the Habascus Forest.
At the east forest was the aforementioned Aetian Empire. According to Leisandra, they came from beyond the southern sea, though none of the tribes of Habascus can confirm it. Their power was considerably beyond that of the entire forest combined, but they had no desire to completely take over the forest. No one knew why. Despite this, Leisandra reminded Alexis not to be complacent.
Despite there being no "Demon Lord-like" figure inside the forest, it still is a dangerous place, with it being filled with beasts of all kinds. She even said that she found it amazing that he is able to live alone inside this forest.
Well, Alexis isn't surprised, he just landed here.
Besides the beasts, the tribes hold power over the forest. As of now, the most influential tribe in the forest was the Chiefdom of Aediema. They are situated at the isthmus of Arfarsia, which allows them contact with the true nations of the Southern Continent. Even more so, they are connected by blood to some of the nobles of the southern kingdom. Because of their proximity to the route and the protection offered to them by powerful countries, they are able to contact the other tribes to make deals with the foreign kingdoms with profit flowing into their coffers. This allows them to exert influence over the other tribes that are reliant on exports.
He was also informed of the tribe north of where they currently are. The tribe where she was supposed to be dragged into.
If the Aediema has economic influence over the forest, the Horbid holds the crown as the strongest tribe in matters of spirituality and tribal politics. Horbid is the center of worship for all the deities of the forest for its proximity to Mount Castaverde. It is also the tribe that dictates some fundamental actions of other tribes such as judicial and legislating rules.
The man who was chasing after her was the Young Chieftain of Horbid, who forcefully picked her as his spouse. Although he has the choice to refuse, the Young Chieftain was just spoiled enough to force himself to her. When the Head Priestess of the Goddess of The Northern Lights intervened, the entire religion was kicked out of Horbid. It was easy for him, because the religion wasn't really a major one, and it was also declining. The authorities of Horbid were only looking for a reason to be rid of them.
When it happened, every believer of the Goddess scattered or transferred to other religions. No one even batted an eye about the action done to them. Learning of that, Alexis felt sorry not only for Leisandra, but for those who kicked out the religion. As far as he can see in his system, that Goddess definitely exists.
Other than that, both of them just lived a cosy normal life. Little did he know that it was about to get a little bit messier…
[Task "Tend to the Garden" completed! Host has received 10 Resource Points and 10 EXP.]
[Host has reached Level 3! Tenacity has increased.]
"Oh, neat." Alexis' eyebrows lifted as he nodded with satisfaction. He doesn't really concretely know what Tenacity means as the system describes it, but the only thing he's noticing was that he seemed to become much more hardworking than before. Other than that, nothing really did increase. Not his strength, not his stamina, nothing.
As he was about to pack up and return to the cottage to enjoy some fresh tea, a cry came from outside the boundaries of their cottage. "Husband! Husband!" The cry got louder, with much more panic. "Isn't that Leisandra's voice?" Alexis frowned. That kind of distress isn't something that Leisandra does with simple inconveniences.
After rushing to get the spear, Alexis swiftly ran towards where the voice was coming from. After a while, he finally faintly hears the worried voice of his wife. "...okay? Are you hurt? What happened?"
When he finally got to see her, Alexis saw several wounded men and women, children and elderly. They were wearing a somewhat similar attire to what Leisandra had when she first stumbled upon his quaint cottage, but much darker. After getting the Hunter's Manual, he recognized the one Leisandra wore as Bearskin, while these came from wolf pelts.
When Leisandra heard his footsteps, her eyes watered. Rushing towards him, she knelt, held her hands together, and pleaded, "Let's save them, please."
Before he could even open his mouth, another thing happened.
[Urgent Task has been issued! Save the tribesmen. Reward: Simple House Blueprint x1, Basic Tools Blueprint x1, Upgrade Spear Chance x1.]
"Stand up, Leisandra." Alexis reached out and held her shoulders. When she raised her head, Leisandra saw her husband, smiling kindly at her before saying, "How can I leave these people like this?"
Really, how can I? I received requests from you and the system!