Moreover, he couldn't deny the land deeds; they were issued by the previous Lord, and he couldn't push the blame onto a dead man. Land deeds represented the spirit of contract and trust—the very cornerstone of governance. If he refused to acknowledge previously issued deeds, then people would not trust any decrees he issued in the future.
Fortunately, the bandits had cleared out a number of problematic claims for him. The town mayor had also repurchased most of the land. By the previous night, Lance had sorted through the deeds in his possession; in effect, most of the small town already belonged to him. As for the few remaining parcels, he just needed to spend a little money to buy them from their owners; they were virtually worthless now anyway.
