A broad smile appeared on Harrison’s face.
"Your Majesty, the beastman army’s mobilization this year has been exceptionally large, which has created more chaos, so our plan has gone extremely smoothly.
At present, the population we’ve seized has already exceeded 12,000. The total population of Dawn City has surpassed the 20,000 mark.
According to our estimates, by the end of December, we should be able to seize at least another 20,000.
If the Months of Deep Winter unfold as usual like last year, it’s very likely that our population this year will break through the 50,000 barrier."
Li De’s heart stirred.
50,000 people.
Fifty thousand might only constitute a small city outside Glory.
Taming Kap, the Level 18 beastman king, probably wouldn’t even take two months.
With sufficient faith energy, he could do whatever he wanted.
And how much productivity could a population of 50,000 bring? How many magically talented individuals might be among them?
Although this was just Harrison’s preliminary estimate, Li De could hardly contain his excitement.
He had been bogged down by the population issue for too long. Now, he finally saw a glimmer of hope.
"Can we be certain? Fifty thousand people is well beyond our initial estimate of thirty thousand. Can our logistics and security operations keep up?"
If Harrison’s estimates were accurate, Dawn City would gain an additional 40,000 people.
That was no small number, handling all the necessities of life for tens of thousands would place an enormous burden on Dawn City, which had fewer than ten thousand residents until now.
A city isn’t just about population, it also requires supporting infrastructure. Where will they live? How will work be assigned? How will land be distributed? All of it needed to be considered.
Otherwise, Li De wouldn’t have spent a year preparing for the Months of Deep Winter. He had wanted to ensure the city could absorb a large influx of people without collapsing.
But originally, they had only estimated that the Months of Deep Winter might bring in 20,000, maybe 30,000 at most. Now it had doubled, clearly exceeding the initial plan.
At this moment, Niko picked up the thread of conversation, brimming with confidence.
“Lord Kachar, there’s no problem. We’ve prepared a wide range of contingency plans, 50,000 is still a conservative estimate.
Even with 60,000, Dawn City can fully accommodate them.
After all, this is a city built by your own hands.”
As she said this, Niko’s big, dark eyes were filled with an indescribable reverence.
Only after joining City Hall had she come to understand how Dawn City had grown step by step into what it was today.
All of it was created by the great man before her, with overwhelming strength, a broad vision, and far-reaching insight, he had grown a city that initially had zero humans into what it was now.
One could say that everything Dawn City possessed today was forged by this handsome man.
Without him, none of this would exist.
At that thought, Niko couldn’t help but sneak a few more glances at Li De. That breathtakingly handsome face made her cheeks flush faintly.
Li De nodded in satisfaction after hearing her words. A year of hard work hadn’t been in vain.
“Very good. Since that’s the case, proceed according to City Hall’s contingency plans.”
Let professionals handle professional matters. What he needed to do now was determine the overall direction, not get involved in every single task. Otherwise, with so many forces under his command, how would he find time to do anything else?
Population acquisition was a meticulous and systematic task. The experience gained from last year’s operations was already enough for the vampires to carry it out effectively.
He remained in Dawn City primarily to deal with any unexpected incidents that might occur during the process. If nothing went wrong, all the better, he’d enjoy the leisure.
“Niko, how is the evangelism work of the Dawn Order progressing?”
After finishing the topic of population, Li De shifted his focus to the Dawn Order.
The importance of the Dawn Order in his mind had risen sharply, especially after researching the divine spell Soul Assimilation.
That ability was utterly domineering. Unfortunately, the lack of sufficient faith energy left him powerless, forced to watch with longing.
He could only lament not having trained his waist when he was younger.
Now, with a large influx of new population entering Dawn City, it was the perfect opportunity for the Dawn Order to make a move. He was in desperate need of new believers.
He was simply too poor. His faith energy reserves were always tight, he didn’t even have the tiniest surplus on hand.
“Big Sis is currently outside personally evangelizing. But right now, these newcomers have only just arrived in Dawn City. They’re still in a state of panic and uncertainty. It’ll take a bit of time before results show.”
When Niko spoke about this, she was full of confidence. After all, the Dawn Order had always been under her management. Though she didn’t believe in Li De, that didn’t stop her from designing the proselytizing strategies.
In Niko’s view, people were all essentially the same. The only difference between believers and non-believers was that the former had a god to believe in.
And gods... were merely lifeforms with greater power.
Her jumpy, unconventional thinking meant she was incapable of having religious faith, because the foundation of belief was trust.
Trust in the greatness of the deity.
But Niko only thought about how to study and understand how the deity became powerful in the first place. This was completely contrary to belief itself. That’s why she showed no trace of religious devotion.
“You can add some comforting slogans to the Dawn Order’s messaging, tailor them to calm the hearts of the people in these situations. Feel free to design a few.” Li De nodded and didn’t rush her, if you wanted fruit, you had to sow the seed first.