East Borough, the territory actually controlled by the Remann Gang.
It was another typically calm day, with everyone contentedly going about their business.
"Your Excellency, the Preacher."
"Good morning, Your Excellency!"
"Preacher, sir, what you said yesterday was truly wonderful!"
When people saw Silas, they enthusiastically greeted him one after another, their expressions filled with gratitude and dependence.
They unconsciously followed behind Silas, like lambs following their shepherd, waiting for him to point the way for the flock.
"Yes, hello everyone."
Silas responded with a smile as well.
His connection with the "lambs" grew increasingly close, resonating with them on a soul level.
Just as a shepherd knows his sheep, he could clearly remember each person's name and experiences, and could sense their joys and sorrows, their physical conditions, and their exact locations.
For instance, he could sense that most of the "lambs" had gone to work at the textile factory right now, while the rest were basically concentrated on the nearby streets.
In the school up ahead, many children had gathered. They must be in class...
As life gradually stabilized and Silas's teachings gradually spread, the "lambs" had become more and more devoted to him, following his guidance and accepting his protection.
The "flock" had basically taken shape.
Correspondingly, most of the "Shepherd" potion had been digested, with only some particularly stubborn parts still refusing to integrate into his body.
"The acting itself is fine, so it seems there might be some element I haven't figured out yet..."
Silas mused inwardly.
As he walked forward while thinking, he suddenly noticed more and more footsteps behind him.
When he turned around, he discovered that people were all following behind him, forming a large, impressive crowd.
When their eyes met his, the lambs all showed delighted expressions.
"...Everyone doesn't need to follow me. Please go on with what you were doing."
Silas smiled and waved his hands at them.
The crowd obediently dispersed, as if his hands had parted the sea, instantly leaving the path behind him empty.
Every single one of them, really so cooperative...
Silas felt a surge of emotion.
When he first started forming the flock, people had been both fearful and suspicious of him, barely responding to his words.
It was through his daily efforts, providing food and shelter, treating the sick, improving the environment, offering education and job opportunities, that he had slowly earned these people's trust, leading to the situation today.
These were a group of weak humans.
To kill them, Silas would only need a few seconds, but to protect them and help them slowly live like proper human beings required hundreds of times more effort.
Just like how constructing a building takes months, but blowing it up takes only an instant.
Raising a baby to adulthood requires over ten years of dedication, but killing them only requires a weapon to accomplish easily...
Destruction is easier than creation.
Love, this sort of thing, has always been a luxury.
With such sentiments, he walked into the headquarters of the "Remann Gang."
There were quite a few gang members inside the building, but none of them noticed his presence.
He walked all the way up to the second floor, came to the office of the gang leader Charles, and pushed open the door.
"Your Excellency!"
Charles practically sprang up from his chair, straightened his back, and spoke to him with utmost respect.
He couldn't help it. Silas was too important to him.
From a status perspective, the other party had supported his position in the gang and prevented other nearby gangs from encroaching on his territory.
From a profit perspective, the other party had farsightedly created a safe atmosphere in this area, allowing him to earn double what he used to just by collecting commercial taxes...
"Mm."
Silas nodded indifferently. "Sit."
Only after the other party sat back down did he ask, "How have the factory and street operations been going these past few months?"
"All going well."
Charles quickly answered, taking out a ledger from the safe behind him. He had originally wanted to show it to Silas, but seeing Silas wave his hand and refuse to take it, he temporarily placed it on the desk.
"Thanks to the investment from Miss Hall and the factory's original sales channels, the textile products have all sold out.
As for the neighborhood, new merchants keep moving in, and our property values have risen considerably as a result..."
He gave a detailed introduction, looking somewhat excited, his eyes gleaming.
The feeling of controlling cash flow and directing people was simply too wonderful, far better than commanding a bunch of disobedient street thugs before.
"Your Excellency!"
After finishing his report, Charles couldn't help but say, "I think we can continue expanding our territory.
If we bring the surrounding neighborhoods under our jurisdiction as well, our labor force could double, and the quantity of goods we produce could increase substantially..."
After expanding their sphere of influence, his growing desires could be further satisfied. Money, population, land...
He felt that with the strength of the person before him, this could absolutely be accomplished!
However, Charles was disappointed to see Silas, sitting across from him, calmly shake his head and say, "I don't plan to continue expanding territory."
"...Why?"
Why?
Because I'm not here to play a management game, and I don't want to become an underworld gang emperor.
My original intention was just to act the role! Expanding the territory too much has no particular benefit for me.
Instead, it would make me more conspicuous and easier to discover!
"That's not something you need to know."
Of course, Silas wouldn't tell Charles this, nor was there any need to. This guy had been getting a bit carried away lately. He needed to be properly reined in.
"Yes!"
When Silas glared at him, Charles immediately became obedient.
He'd almost forgotten that the person before him wasn't some good-tempered Beyonder, but a lunatic who would strike and kill at the slightest disagreement.
With his request to expand territory rejected, he was also very sensible and didn't bring up the second issue he'd planned to raise.
He had originally wanted to request that Silas reduce workers' wages, but looking at Silas's attitude, he clearly wouldn't agree.
"...Have there been any unusual occurrences on the streets recently?"
Silas continued questioning.
"Nothing unusual. At most we've caught a few petty thieves..."
Charles answered.
"Has anyone been investigating secretly?"
Silas continued asking.
Like the three major churches, MI9, and the like.
He added mentally.
"?"
Charles shook his head, very confused.
Well, expecting them to notice these things would be asking a bit too much.
Thinking this, after asking about a few more recent situations, Silas left the headquarters and appeared on the main street.
"It's the Preacher!"
"It really is!"
Just then, a group of lively children ran out from a building up ahead.
They looked very spirited, their eyes bright and shining, bouncing around energetically on this cold winter day, white puffs of breath coming from their mouths.
It looked like they had just gotten out of school.
One child noticed Silas and called out, so the rest of the children immediately spotted him too. They cheered and ran over, surrounding him in layers.
"Your Excellency, I ate so much bread this morning!"
"Tom didn't do his homework again and got scolded by the teacher..."
"Yesterday I saw a really pretty big sister..."
The children's mouths chattered away, sharing their recent lives with excessive energy.
"Good, good, good..."
Silas's head started to ache a bit. He could only smile and casually respond, "How pretty was she?"