The potato stew was soft, mushy, and piping hot.
Each person received only one bowl, along with a loaf and a half of black bread.
It wasn't that Silas lacked the money; the main reason was that these people had starved for too long.
Letting them eat too much too suddenly could kill them.
Fortunately, there was plenty of hot water, so at least they wouldn't choke on the bread.
Even so, Silas saw several people straining their necks, desperately swallowing the bread, then immediately running forward to beg for more food, only to be cursed at and sent back by gang members who had received orders.
A few minutes later, even the slowest eaters had finished their portions.
Now, facing Silas, they appeared less guarded and showed more gratitude in their expressions.
What Silas didn't know was that he'd actually given them quite a lot.
For these wanderers, there were only two places where they could receive relief.
One was the government-run poorhouse, which required waiting in line for a spot.
Once inside, they had to perform heavy labor, smashing stones, picking useful fibers from hemp rope, and so on.
After working so hard all day, all they received was a bowl of watery vegetable soup and a few slices of bread, nowhere near enough to compensate for the physical labor expended.
Experienced wanderers all knew that going to such places was basically a slow death.
The other place came from the churches.
While the churches wouldn't force people to work, due to organizational limitations, they didn't provide much relief, nor was it available every day.
Not only that, but receiving relief came with faith-based restrictions.
For non-believers of their church, you either converted or went to the back of the line.
Worth mentioning was that among the three major churches, the Evernight Goddess Church conducted relief most frequently, while the Steam Church focused on teaching wanderers skills.
As for the Storm Church, they didn't provide relief to males, because according to their doctrine, men who couldn't support their families were considered useless trash.
"Among you, can anyone read?"
Silas asked the crowd.
People looked at him with bewildered expressions. Only a few raised their hands, including an elderly woman.
Almost forgot, even in Beckland, those who can read are the minority.
Silas thought to himself, then asked, "Anyone with a trade? Anyone who's worked as a laborer?"
This time more hands went up, scattered throughout, about thirty or so people. Silas noticed that those raising their hands were mostly middle-aged and older men, and several had missing fingers.
"Alright, then next..."
After that, he continued questioning them, getting a general understanding of these people's situations.
The workers had become wanderers basically due to old age and disability; factories were unwilling to hire deadweight.
Those few who could read were all bankrupt middle-class folks, and the handful of children were basically orphans, surviving by stealing and begging.
"Good, that's all for now. Go rest."
He said to everyone. "Return to the lodgings we've arranged for you."
The crowd stirred again.
"Respected sir, missionary sir..."
A seemingly clever man boldly asked, "Aren't you going to spread the gospel of the divine to us?"
His words were thick with a rural accent and his vocabulary was crude, but his general meaning was clear: you brought us here, gave us a meal, and now we can just go rest? You don't need us to listen to endless sermons or labor all day?
The treatment Silas was offering was so good it left them at a loss.
"Your bodies are too weak right now."
Silas said flatly.
"Even if I spread the gospel to you, the effect would be poor. Better to let you recuperate first.
That way you can better bask in the Lord's radiance."
Hearing him say this, the crowd's expressions and reactions varied, but eventually they all left under the direction of the Remann Gang members, returning to the temporary lodgings prepared for them.
Silas looked to the side.
"Mr. Anderson."
The gang leader Charles, noticing his gaze, immediately walked over and said respectfully.
In the depths of his eyes, a golden glow flashed briefly.
Not just him; most of the useful people in the gang had already been hypnotized or influenced by Silas, and basically wouldn't go against his will.
Otherwise, tedious work like coordinating crowd movements wouldn't be something they'd willingly do.
"What's the deal with the Zimang Gang you mentioned earlier?"
Silas asked.
"It's like this... those barbaric highlanders got a new boss and added some muscle.
Recently they've started competing with us for territory." Hearing him ask about this, Charles immediately perked up.
"We were caught off guard and lost two streets, and several of our brothers got hurt..."
The Zimang Gang, that's the gang that used to have backing from the Intis ambassador, right?
Silas thought pensively.
Previously, when the Intis ambassador was assassinated by Mr. A and their boss also went missing, the gang had fallen into chaos and been taken advantage of by other gangs who seized a lot of their territory.
The manuscript Silas had sold to the Queen was also grabbed during that time.
Now, with the Zimang Gang making a comeback, it meant Intis forces had regained control of them.
Certain people were trying to take control of the current situation.
"Are you still fighting them now?"
"We fought for a few days. After we withdrew from the territory we'd previously seized, they didn't chase us further."
Charles said.
Taking back the territory they previously owned, then not blindly expanding, quite rational.
Silas thought. However, who told them to interfere with my role-playing?
Especially after the recent digestion feedback, which let him know his current decision to build a flock was correct.
Therefore, those obstructing him seemed to become even more unforgivable.
"Do you know where their headquarters is? Do you have any photos or portraits of their leader or anything like that?"
Silas decided to handle this matter.
With his current strength, even if the Intis ambassador's side had Sequence 5 powerhouses, he could at least give it a shot.
Maybe he could even get more suitable Beyonder souls to herd in the process.
"Right away, I'll go now!"
Charles was overjoyed. He naturally didn't know what Silas was planning, but since this powerful Beyonder was willing to get involved, it was definitely good for their gang.
***
A bit later, Hillston District, in a somewhat aged house.
This was the home of the famous detective Isengard Stanton.
However, at this moment, the house was completely empty, with no sign of the great detective.
If someone were to look into the living room right now, they would discover an extremely bloody scene:
A young man, dismembered, lay by the door, teacups scattered on the carpet, a tray stained with blood.
On the floor of the living room, bloodstains were similarly everywhere, as if a great battle had taken place, but no bodies remained.
The only person standing was Klein, who had been invited to visit Isengard Stanton.
He was extremely tense and on guard, seemingly wary of a mysterious killer who could strike from anywhere.
He was so vigilant, so completely focused, until the police burst through the door and he seemed to wake from a dream...