Daily Life Within the Dominion
Here's the second sponsored chapter of this week brought to you by Thomas A. from the USA. Have fun reading!
Lorist traveled with Reidy and Tarkel to check out the development of the Felicitas Settlement, especially the defensive infrastructure that was just constructed within the various villages and towns. By the time they returned to the refinery at Bladedge Mountains, it was already the end of the 7th month.
Within the span of two months, many changes at that valley could be observed. Firstly, Grandmaster Fellin had moved his ballista workshop somewhere nearby the valley. He was currently inspecting a few ballista parts that were made according to Lorist's design and was discussing them with Master Julian quite audibly.
Other than that, a row of water-powered hammering machines of differing sizes and complexity could be sighted near the waterfall by the cliff. It seemed that the people at the refinery had also modified some of the machines to better suit their needs.
When Lorist approached Grandmaster Fellin and Master Julian, they both welcomed him gladly.
Grandmaster Fellin said, "Milord, the elastic steel plate you wanted is already complete. We've already used one to make a ballista to test the steel plate as well as decide on the final design of the prototype."
Master Julian smiled satisfactorily with his mouth wide open, revealing the whites of his teeth.
"Not bad. I'm really satisfied with your progress. Reidy, after this, reward Master Julian and Grandmaster Fellin 100 gold Fordes each. The others who have contributed will receive 10 gold Fordes each." In terms of rewarding skilled workers, Lorist was not one bit stingy at all.
"Thank you, milord. However, you should take a better look first. We discovered that the ballista we made according to your design has two problems," said Fellin.
The ballista Lorist designed was not made wholly out of steel. Apart from the arm, eccentric wheel and the loading mechanism which utilized steel parts, the rest of the ballista was still constructed from wood.
"Oh? What problems are there?" Lorist asked.
"Milord, the elastic steel arm allows the ballista's firing distance to increase to around 320 to 350 meters with a margin of error of 2 meters. During testing, we discovered that using wooden ballista bolts caused the bolt's center of gravity to be a little off, hence increasing the error margin. This is why it's difficult to aim with this new ballista. So, we made an iron ballista bolt and while the distance the iron bolt could be fired was only at around 280 to 300 meters, the error margin is far smaller with it being less than half a meter. The problem is that the iron bolts cost twice as much as the wooden bolts to produce. That's why we need your thoughts on which bolts to use for this ballista in the future," Fellin explained.
"Then, which type of bolt has more power?" Lorist asked.
"Naturally, it's the iron one," Fellin replied.
"Then we'll use iron bolts. I'll have a ballista bolt manufacturing plant set up with Master Julian as its head then," Lorist declared right away.
"The second issue is the rate of wear for the string on the steel ballista, which is far too staggering. The wooden ballistas could fire up to 20 rounds before needing its string to be replaced. However, the vibration caused by the steel arm of this ballista causes much more damage to its string, meaning that it has to be replaced after every seven to eight shots. Even so, we've started working with Master Julian to make a string that combines metal fibers, fur, and cow sinew. We'll be able to see the results in a while," Fellin reported.
"Good. Grandmaster Fellin, Master Julian, I'm assured that the two of you are working on this. I'll be leaving the matter of the new ballista to you and I hope you'll be able to finalize its design soon enough and put it into mass production. It's already the end of the 7th month and I hope that we'll have around 3000 of these ballistas by the 10th month so that we can be better prepared to deal with the magical beast wave," Lorist said as he nodded.
"Milord, we will not disappoint you," said Fellin.
Seeing Grandmaster Fellin order his apprentices and descendants around to conduct the tests, Lorist looked around him and asked Julian, "Why isn't Grandmaster Sid here?"
Julian pointed to the waterfall and said, "Milord, ever since these water-powered hammering machines were built, Grandmaster Sid got obsessed with them. The other machines over there were actually augmented by him. Currently, he's trying to make a water-powered wire-drawing machine so that we can take advantage of the waterfall to make some tight-fitting mail armor."
Lorist laughed out loud and said, "That's great. Grandmaster Sid truly is sharp and quick-witted as seen from his ability to apply the concept to something else so quickly. Reidy, don't forget to reward him with 100 gold Fordes as well and 10 gold Fordes for each of his subordinates."
"Yes, milord."
...
After a round of rewarding his subordinates, Lorist returned to Firmrock Castle while feeling elated about the progress. Following a few days of making out with Telesti, Lorist finally thought of something important and climbed out of his love nest to instruct Reidy to summon Dulles from the carroballista unit to him.
"Milord, did I do something wrong? Why are you decreasing the number of troops in the carroballista unit?" Dulles said desperately. He was incredibly pained that the unit he had poured his sweat and blood into building was going to be downsized.
It was no wonder Dulles would react like that since Lorist had ordered that the 12 small ballistas be transferred to Els's guard division. Apart from that, only the best ballistas from those of the Whitelion Legion's would be kept with the remaining 300 plus ballistas being sold away.
To Dulles, there was no point of the carroballista unit's existence without those ballistas. He was so sad that tears formed at the corner of his eyes as if he was about to cry at any moment.
Lorist on the other hand was surprised at Dulles's overreaction and thought, what the heck is this fellow imagining?
"Dulles... Dulles!" Lorist shouted.
"Ah, milord..." Dulles said as he snapped out of his stupor and paid attention to Lorist.
"After gathering up the ballistas that are to be sold and handing them to Supervisor Spiel, begin recruiting more men. I plan to organize the carroballista unit into a full-fledged division containing five regiments in total with each regiment having 2500 soldiers equipped with 500 carroballistas within three months' time. By the 10th month, these preparations should be completed and you will then receive the new steel ballistas. I've already assigned ten plus family knights some posts within your carroballista division and the equipment for the recruits are mostly in place. Now, I only need your signature to distribute the equipment. This coming winter, the carroballista division will serve as the main force against the magical beast wave, understood? Don't screw this up, alright?"
"Mi-milord... So you're not downsizing my unit but expanding it instead?" Dulles asked, now with an incredibly bright expression on his face in stark contrast to his previous one.
"That's right, you fool. Did you understand what I just said?" Lorist asked as he looked at Dulles with annoyance.
"I-I understand, milord! I will begin work right away," Dulles said as he hurriedly rushed out of the door, before sticking his head into the doorway again to ask, "Milord, are you really going to give us so many new ballistas?"
Lorist nodded and said, "Of course I am. Additionally, these new ones are far better than the defense sentry ballistas you're using now. Otherwise, I wouldn't allow you to sell those away."
"Yahoo!" exclaimed Dulles before he rushed off again.
"That idiot..." Lorist mumbled as he shook his head and continued to browse the documents that had piled up on his table during the months of his absence.
...
During the end of the 8th month, the family dominion fared rather peacefully with one piece of good news coming after another. The potatoes that were planted during the 4th month were just harvested during the 7th month and totaled up to around 35 million kilograms, almost completely replenishing the food stores of the family. The various kinds of millet that were planted during the 5th month would also be ready for harvest on the 9th month. The weather was mostly pleasant for most part of the year, allowing for the crop to grow with abundance. Even though the area of the farmland wasn't that huge and wasn't able to accommodate the food consumption of over 500000 people within the dominion, it was still heartening news.
Other than that, the clearing out of the remaining magical beasts within Felicitas Settlement had completed during the 6th month, with more than 100000 magical beasts becoming the main source of meat for the dominion. According to some reports, magical beast meat with potatoes had already become the staple food of the people of Felicitas Settlement. However, hundreds of family soldiers had either died or gotten injured while hunting the carnivorous magical beasts. Had it not been for the numerous Gold and Silver ranked knights that were helping out, the casualties might have been even worse.
However, Lorist believed that the addition of Dulles's expanded carroballista division will further decrease the casualties of the family soldiers during the extermination of the magical beasts next year. According to Potterfang's report, apart from Josk's mounted archer unit and Pesha's female garrison unit, the other units have been temporarily disbanded so that the soldiers could help out with the construction of the defensive fortifications within the various villages and towns of the settlement.
As the chief supervisor of the mining operations within the dominion, Old Man Balk submitted the most reports and was also the one to bring most of the good news. Currently, the Bladedge Mountains' salt farms were outputting huge amounts of high quality salt. Not only did the production manage to match the consumption of the dominion folk, there was extra left over that could be exported to other areas. Additionally, the green vines within the valley had also started producing lots of green vine glue. However, most of the supply of the glue was being used by the construction operations within Felicitas Settlement. Given the developing state of the dominion, it was foreseeable that the family would require all of the supply within the next five years. They would probably have to import more to accommodate the need.
What pleased Lorist the most was the fact that the factories managed by Balk to produce daily use products for the dominion folk were incredible successes. The reports indicated that up to 50000 people were hired to work in those factories, with the beastskin processing factory having the most workers at roughly 10000 people. With the recent gain in leather and furs from the magical beast wave, the estimated production of beastskin documents that year was as high as 500000 pieces that was worth about 20000 gold Fordes. There was more than enough beastskin documents to satisfy the number required for the administration of the dominion.
When it came to managing the factories, Balk used a competitive model; he set up two of each type of factory with their own unique specialties and allowed them to compete mutually. For example, there were two pottery workshops. One of them produced bowls and plates while the other produced pots and jars, hence eliminating the possibility of monopoly by either firm.
While the daily product factories within the dominion was still young and were only run on a rather small scale, it was quite impressive for them to be able to sate the demand of more than 500000 people. By the time everything stabilized, the factories would be further developed. As long as they can come up with a product unique to them, the dominion would have yet another staple export which they could trade with other areas.
The next reports Lorist read were from the three main administrative departments of the family. Supervisor Kedan from the human resources department submitted a report that expressed his immense satisfaction for one of his managers and even recommended heartily for the manager's promotion.
Lorist smiled when he saw the name written on the report as that manager was in fact Camorra.
After Camorra was rescued from Duke Loggins's water dungeon, he refused Lorist's offer to serve as one of his aides and insisted that he wanted to live the rest of his life as a commoner. However, his talents didn't go wasted for long as he had signed up to be one of the administrative workers when he arrived at the dominion and started his career as one of the lowest ranked administrative officers. It didn't take long for Camorra to show his impeccable performance that even earned him the trust and recommendation of Kedan.
Lorist then wrote a message that authorized Kedan to promote Camorra as he saw fit. In actuality, Lorist had other plans for him. For now, he allowed Camorra to work for his subordinates. But he believed that there would be a time when he would need to rely on Camorra's abilities for something important in the future.
The last report he read was submitted by Charade. Having experienced his failures, Charade got his act back together and spared no effort in the tasks he was given. Within only half a year, he had finished the plans for Firmrock Castle's rear city, the valley city as well as the industrial city located between the Morgan Hills and Bladedge Mountains and even began construction on all the projects. The finer details of relocating the people as well as agricultural and industrial development had also been arranged perfectly.
With the industrial city being the most important equipment production hub of the dominion in the future, everyone related to the production had already been moved to where the city would be built to help out with the construction of the means of production and residences. The valley city at Firmrock Castle on the other hand was planned by Charade to be a hybrid location for agricultural and industrial production, with most of the daily life product factories being located there. Additionally, the family members of the miners working at Morgan Hills were also moved there. Coupled with up to 30000 farmers, the valley city was easily one of the most populated locations within the dominion with a combined citizen count of around 70000.
The main immigrant camp near Firmrock Castle that was packed to the brim before had only around 40000 people left who were family members of the soldiers after the various citizen relocations. The rear city that Charade had planned was to be built on the location of the camp and that project was also the one that progressed the slowest. However, more than 70000 square meters of farmland had already been developed outside the rear city. Charade's plan involved the construction of irrigation routes in the following year so that the rear city would become the main food producer for the family dominion.
...
When Tarkel entered the room, Lorist was reading a report about the mountain barbarians.
Perhaps it was due to the passing of the magical beast wave that caused large numbers of carnivorous magical beasts to be left within the dominion, the barbarians haven't trespassed the family dominion's borders for an attack for the past half year. According to the leader of the Pentasword Mercenary Crew that was stationed there, even though they did detect traces of barbarian activity within the vicinity, they deduced that they were only there to hunt. So far, no signs of any imminent barbarian attack had been discovered.
Lorist humphed softly as he recalled the time last year when the mountain barbarians mounted a large scale attack with roughly 1000 troops with the intention of taking control of the army base that controlled the area where the river could be accessed. The Pentasword Mercenary Crew lost 13 members during that assault, but the smoke signal they made summoned Josk and his mounted archer troops as well as Pajik's garrison company to the scene, causing the barbarians to incur huge losses as a result with half of their numbers culled before the rest were able to escape. Lorist hoped that the barbarians had learned their lesson and thought that he would first focus on wiping out the magical beast wave with the barbarians being next in line.
"Milord, I'm back," Tarkel greeted respectfully.
"Oh, how are things going on your side?" Lorist asked as he put down the report.
When he surveyed the Felicitas Settlement a couple of months ago, Lorist brought someone with him to inspect the isthmus that Tarkel had mentioned where the gigantic magical beasts would be trapped and left with much satisfaction. The reason Tarkel knew about that place was because he had joined Yuriy's light cavalry scouts to make a living and had traveled throughout the family dominion during his service.
"It's already completed. When winter comes, we can begin strengthening of the walls at the front lines. I promise you that once the magical beasts enter the isthmus, they will no longer be able to leave," Tarkel replied.
Lorist stood up, walked to Tarkel's side and patted on his shoulder as he said, "You did well. When the magical beast wave comes this year, we can begin our plan. Whether we succeed will determine whether we can stabilize the family dominion for further development. Tarkel, continue to work hard. When you reach the Silver rank, I will recruit you into the ranks of the Norton Family knights."
"Yes, milord. Thank you for giving me this opportunity," Tarkel said.
Count Kenmays's Visit
First regular chapter of the week! I like how the interaction between the Kenmayses and Nortons are playing out personally.
"Milord, Count Kenmays is here," Reidy reminded as he walked into the room.
"Alright, I'll go receive him," Lorist said as he stood up and headed towards the main gates of the castle.
Count Kenmays had brought around 100 men with him on his excursion to Firmrock Castle this time around with him being seated in an extravagantly-decorated carriage, much unlike half a year back when he only came with ten plus attendants.
It is worth noting that while Lorist was busy settling down the 500000 citizens within the dominion and making all those development plans, the Kenmays Family didn't slack off either. They had also made a plan to develop the eastern Northlands. Ten plus other noble families had also been drawn into the plan whether they agreed or not, with the 7 who had resisted exterminated and the rest who knew what was better for them or didn't have the ability to rebel signing the agreement to cooperate with the plan that effectively handed their territory for the Kenmays Family to manage while they only had to wait for the profit to roll in to support their lavish lifestyle.
To summarize, the Kenmays Family had taken full control of the eastern Northlands, causing even the Second Prince to be unable to do anything about it apart from accepting the reality of the situation, however unwilling he was to do so. Additionally, by pressuring the Second Prince with their wealth, the Kenmays Family got elevated from the status of a viscount to a count by the Second Prince during the noble gathering that had occurred during the 5th month with the reason of that promotion being their contribution to improve the connectivity of the Northlands to the outside world by building the metal suspension bridge. Naturally, with the promotion in rank, the Kenmays Family officially gained control of Count Lopez's dominion as well, thus completing the grasp of control of the Kenmayses on the eastern Northlands.
The radiant Count Kenmays was the first one to get off the carriage, followed by two extravagantly dressed female attendants. The Norton Family's policy of not providing their guests with women to warm their beds caused the count to have to spend 3 lonely nights during his former visit. This time, he had learned his lesson and brought his own female attendants along.
Lorist stepped forward and casually greeted the count. "Hey, why have you come here this time? Based on what I see, you plan to stay here for long?"
Already used to Lorist's antics and noticing Lorist staring at his attendants, Count Kenmays said, "Oh? You're interested in them? Do you want me to present one of them to you as a gift? Tell you what, they have received professional training in the finer arts of pleasure and can absolutely bring you to paradise when you're in bed..."
"Nope, not interested," Lorist said as he turned away from the women. "I was just a little curious... Can your body really handle those two? How long have they tended to you? Why haven't you been sucked dry of your vitality yet?"
The matters of sexuality was a soft spot for all men, Count Kenmays included. Putting his hands to his hips, he said, "Hmph, my body is far tougher than you think. Don't get the wrong impression just because those two look like small little kittens. I can easily do them two to three times in a single night."
"Yeah, boast all you can. Let's go have a real chat in my study," Lorist said as he smirked before he led them inside.
Lorist himself found the relationship between his family and the Kenmayses to be rather weird. Even though they had made peace between one another, the Kenmays Family no doubt lost quite a bit from their interactions with the Norton Family and they should secretly feel hateful of that. And given that the Norton Family profited quite a bit off the Kenmayses, they should also be rather vary of them. The two families should only be friendly on the surface. However, the more Lorist interacted with Count Kenmays, the better friends they became, to the point that they were able to tell one another anything down to the most private matters. Lorist felt that there was no way he could truly hate the count even if their families were to be on hostile terms.
"Every time I walk into here, I feel like I've entered a bandit's lair. Heck, even this castle was taken from me by force," Count Kenmays said as he started to bring up the matters of old.
"Let me state clearly once again that this castle was built within Norton Family grounds. I've only chased away a bunch of bandits who tried to occupy my land and taken control of their lair," Lorist said.
"Fine, this castle was indeed constructed on the lands of the Nortons," Count Kenmays conceded. "But you have to admit that the manpower, resources, funds and the designer of the castle himself were taken from my family, right? Poor old Grandmaster Ciroba... Even now, we don't know his whereabouts."
"Let me warn you upfront, just state what you came here for and don't even think of trying to weasel the location of Grandmaster Ciroba from me. There's no way I will restore his freedom until he has served the family for ten years as penance. He's also incredibly busy on many things right now, so if your family wants a castle to be built, you should look for another designer," Lorist said as he exposed the count's intentions right away.
Count Kenmays shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, personally, I couldn't care less about what the grandmaster is doing right now. However, my old chap back at home wanted me to try to get some information about him and ask you whether we can pay his ransom to have him back at our dominion to help us build some castles. Since you've been so clear about your intentions, I'll give up on it. It's not that I didn't try, I wouldn't have been able to do anything about this anyway."
"Pffft!" Lorist couldn't control his laughter. "Fine. Just tell me what you're up to by traveling so extravagantly with so many people."
"Where else would I go but Gildusk City?" Count Kenmays said as he took out a large bottle of wine from a corner of the study. "Huh, just look. One bottle of fine wine after another. And you said you weren't a bandit... Which one of these were bought by you with your own money? Didn't you get them all from robbery? The wine aside, look at the sofa you're sitting on. This is a prized item of the Mijis Royal Family which Duke Loggins spent more than 1000 gold Fordes to obtain back then at the Royal Capital of Windbury City. Within but a few years, it has already made its way to your study without you having to spend even a single coin on it..."
"If you shut up about the bandit thing, I'll let you take two bottles of wine back with you," Lorist said.
"Really?" exclaimed the count happily.
Lorist merely nodded.
"Fine, I won't mention it from this moment onward," said Count Kenmays as he started to pick the wine from the rack.
"I'm still curious why you're setting out even though it's the 11th month already. Don't tell me you don't plan to stay within your dominion to spend the winter?" Lorist asked.
"Haha, brother, nobles don't 'spend winter' cooped up within their homes. Only commoners do that because they don't have enough food and clothing to endure the cold weather. Nobles like us have to continue living our luxurious lives regardless of the seasons by holding banquets which span night after night, attending balls to recite poems and invite the beautiful and gentle noble ladies to a dance and even have a secret rendezvous with one of them during the cold winter night to get to know each other more 'deeply', if you know what I mean. That's how nobles like us should spend winter...
"And you, my friend, shouldn't be cooped up within this cold and lonely castle of yours. You should come out to see the city. The Second Prince will be holding a grand event during the winter there and all nobles of the Northlands are invited to attend. By that time, the city will no doubt be incredibly merry with beauties all over the place and that's not an opportunity you should miss. If you attend, I bet the Second Prince would be happy as well. He's been wanting to meet the terrifying Raging Bear that shocked the whole of the Northlands," Count Kenmays said as he tried hard to convince Lorist to join him for the festivities in Gildusk City.
"I'm not interested in attending pointless events like that. I'm also really busy during winter, so I don't have time to play games with the rest of you. Also, you don't have to be too courteous to the Second Prince on my behalf. I have a feeling that he doesn't have good intentions about the Norton Family. So, I am very straightforward in my attitude towards him: no matter what he desires from me, I will refuse it. If he asks why I didn't attend the festivities, just tell him that it's because I'm still bearing a grudge for the fact that he abandoned the family after the deat of my elder brother who had served him and tell him that the Norton Family has drawn a clear line to not want to be involved with him any further," Lorist said calmly.
"Whoa, you're really going all out to sever relations with the Second Prince, huh. I really think that there's no need for you to go that far. As long as you be polite on the surface, you will be fine. And if the Second Prince has any unreasonable requests, you can just pretend to be really bothered by it and refuse. As long as you have power, the Second Prince can't do much about you but endure silently," Count Kenmays said as he objected to Lorist's course of action.
"That's far too troublesome. It's better if I let him choose outright whether he wants to be the enemy or ally of the Norton Family. Either way, the Norton Family will always continue the tradition of our ancestors to defend the borders of the empire and will not be interested in the petty power struggles of others. As long as others don't mess with us, it's fine," Lorist said.
"Sigh, your family truly is one of a kind. It's currently a time of chaos where heroes have the opportunity to shine. Doesn't your family have the slightest ambition?" Count Kenmays said as he looked at Lorist.
Lorist shook his head and replied, "No, we don't. The primary objective of the family is to establish a peaceful and stable life for our citizens within the Northlands. We don't have the slightest desire to fight for supremacy and territory and it's not something a small family like us can afford to involve ourselves in. If things don't go well, our family will only head to ruin. I only wish to propagate the glory and honor of the family as that is my main duty as the head of the family. However, your Kenmays Family has deep roots as one of the largest construction merchant families in the old empire. I'm sure you'll have something to gain from all this."
"Haha, you really praise us too much. Our Kenmays Family definitely isn't as sophisticated and deep-rooted as the Norton Family is. To be honest with you, I only wish to stand with the victor. Right now, I'm still deliberating who to side with," said Count Kenmays as he laughed.
Lorist laughed out as well and said, "If you have a good candidate, don't forget to tell me about it. After all, good things must be shared, right? Alright, let's not talk about pointless things like this. Since you've stopped here on your way to Gildusk City, you must have a reason for doing so. Tell it to me right away."
"Well, the Second Prince did ask me to invite you to Gildusk City, but you've already refused it. The other reason I came was to notify you about the green glass and oil glass you ordered, which will be arriving in another half month. My father also asked whether you need any green vine glue. We can sell you 50000 buckets for a low price and if you're lacking in funds, you can trade some metal armor with us for it. We'll definitely give you a great rate for the armor," said Count Kenmays seriously.
Lorist thought solemnly before laughing out loud and saying, "So your family is after my metal armor... How many do you need?"
Count Kenmays lifted three fingers.
"Three thousand? No problem," Lorist said.
"What? No. I want 30000 sets," Count Kenmays corrected.
"Huh? 30000? Putting aside whether you can afford that many, what would you do with all that?" Lorist asked curiously. Even if he sold one set of metal armor at 40 gold Fordes, 30000 would cost more than 1 million gold Fordes. Did the Kenmays Family intend to bankrupt themselves?
Count Kenmays took a deep breath before saying, "I have no choice, friend. My family wouldn't do that either if we had a choice. One of the biggest gains of our family's conquest of the eastern Northlands was a gold mine. Before this, the smaller noble families mined the gold there privately and we've taken over and started proper mining operations. Each year's output is estimated to be around 20000 plus gold Fordes' worth. That's why, you don't have to worry about us not paying back. You can even send someone to audit the mine if you wish."
After a short pause, the count continued, "Do you know how much wealth the Second Prince has siphoned from our family? 120000 gold Fordes. We paid that price so that we would be able to rule over the dominion of Count Lopez legally as well as get promoted to the rank of a count. I've also received reliable intel that the Second Prince intends to form the First Army of the Iblia Kingdom at Duke Loggins's dominion that will number around 56000 soldiers. To avoid being pressured by the Second Prince into giving him more money when the time comes, my family has also decided to form a force numbering 30000 soldiers to make sure that the eastern Northlands will be free from the Second Prince's influence."
Count Kenmays laughed bitterly and said, "The time of war has come and without our own army to rely on, there's no way that our family will be able to survive. The moment the Second Prince makes his move, the eastern Northlands will face assault from both sides. You should know that the iron suspension bridge built by my family is linked to the Wild Husbandry Province that is controlled by Duke Fisablen. In other words, we have also gained another potential enemy as a consequence of building the bridge.
"That's why my family has decided to spare no effort in forming a reliable force and equip it as well as we can regardless of the price so that we can ensure the survival of our family. However, I'm sure you know that the only two iron refineries within the Iblia Kingdom is controlled by the Second Prince, so it's very hard for the equipment that is produced there to make their way into the hands of noble families like us. The Northlands lack metal the most and only you can supply our force with decent equipment right now. No matter what, I really need your help this time, please," pleaded Count Kenmays before he bowed to Lorist sincerely.
Lorist stroked his chin in deep thought for a moment before he said, "I agree to sell your family 30000 sets of armor and weapons. You can negotiate with Knight Charade about the price. You can also use food and other resources to trade for the equipment as well. Also, I can provide around 100 units of military grade ballistas produced in the former empire if you require it."
...
Count Kenmays stayed at Firmrock Castle for five whole days, with each day being round after round of sharp-tongued bargaining with Charade. In the end, the total price was settled at 1.8 million gold Fordes. The agreement stated that the Norton Family must provide the Kenmays Family with 33000 sets of metal armor and weapons including 143 military grade ballistas. The Kenmays Family would pay the Norton Family 500000 gold Fordes in cash with the outstanding balance being paid with food and other resources of equal value. After signing the agreement, Count Kenmays left with his attendants and resumed his journey to Gildusk City.
After sending the count off, Charade let out a breath of relief and said, "Half of the metal armor and weapons of the northbound convoy has already been sold out. It would be great if there's another person who wants to buy them all up. Now that we have the equipment of the Whitelion Legion, the old metal armor is taking up space unnecessarily. We even thought of smelting it down for the metal to be used in other places..."
Lorist laughed out loud as he said, "Don't worry. I'm sure that business will boom after this year passes. Count Kenmays said that the Second Prince plans to form an army of 56000 soldiers next year within the duke's dominion. To ensure their own survival, the various noble families within the Northlands will definitely be desperate to arm themselves so that they don't end up as free lunch on the Second Prince's plate."
Facing the Magical Beast Wave Again
Hi guys, sorry for the long delay for the second regular chapter of the week. Studies for the tests are going quite well, but I still can't wait for the beginnning of June to come when I can pick up speed again!
"Steady... Don't panic. The magical bull herd is incoming. Aim for the ones at the very front and lure them here. Alright, fire!" Lorist said as he flung his hand forward. The three steel ballistas let out three thunderous twangs as the bolts were fired across a distance of 300 meters, piercing deep into their targets' bodies.
Blood splattered all over as the deathly cries of the bulls echoed throughout the gorge. The magical beast wave seemed to have stopped in its tracks all of a sudden as the other bulls around the two collapsed ones looked around to seek out their enemy.
"Reload and keep firing."
After the second volley was shot out, the confused bulls finally noticed that the bolts had flown over from the top of a cliff nearby.
Loud grunts could be heard as the herd of magical bulls rushed towards the cliff with breakneck speed. In a few moments, the originally snow-covered surface of the hill slope had been run over by multitudes of stampeding bulls.
However, the bulls later noticed that the cliff they climbed up was not where the bolts had been fired from. Instead, the cliff where their attackers were was further down the other section of the mountains. Also, it wasn't actually a rock cliff but rather a huge wooden rectangular structure. By that time, the bulls which had low intelligence soon forgot about the 'ants' that had attacked them from the top of the rectangular structure and instead had their attention captured by a bright red cloth that was hung at the top of the wooden structure.
The stark contrast between the crimson cloth and the white snow-covered land instantly captured the attention of all the bulls there.
Angry moos and grunts soon erupted and echoed throughout the mountains. Anyone with common knowledge of bulls knew that they should never be shown the color red as that would cause them to go berserk and rampage around until they obliterate the red cloth altogether.
The bulls on top of the slope started to move. Lowering their heads and positioning their razor-sharp horns, they rushed straight towards the red cloth. However, not one of the bulls realized that the closer they were to the cloth, the steeper the slope got. By the time the bulls reached the ground, they were 2 meters beneath the red cloth they had loathed so deeply.
Some bulls at the front then raised their heads and realized that there was another red cloth not far ahead seemingly there to welcome their arrival. Needless to say, the bulls rushed towards it with abandon with their heads lowered.
That was how roughly 30000 magical bulls were lured to part with the magical beast wave. Upon being teased by red cloths, they lost all sense and rushed straight down the steep slope. By the time the ones at the front regained any semblance of 'reason', there was no way they would be able to make their way back up the steep slope. There was a tall 7 meter snow wall in both directions that completely blocked off their way. And there was no way for the other bulls that were still rushing down from the slope to head back up either as the other bulls behind that were not aware of the situation merely went with the flow and pushed downwards the slope.
When they all snapped out of their frenzied rage, the bulls realized that they were within a gorge that was bordered by tall cliffs in all directions. Those bulls still didn't know that they had fallen into a trap and continued rushing for tens of kilometers before stopping to rest and graze at the algae on the ground to replenish their energy. Thus, the group of magical bulls dispersed into smaller groups and headed their own ways within the gorge with some occasionally stopping to graze at the algae beneath the snow.
This was the Crewe Circular Gorge which was located within the Norton Family dominion. The whole gorge was shaped as if a child had dug a circular ring deep into the ground. While there were a few gaps that could be used to leave the gorge, those very gaps would spell the end of the magical bulls.
A few of the magical bulls headed towards the gaps and finally managed to step onto higher ground. However, what greeted them there were loud twangs of ballistas firing. Within a flash, the bulls were hit squarely by the bolts and killed within an instant.
"Quick, move those carcasses away. More bulls are coming from behind. Get ready!" said Dulles energetically as he ordered his carroballista division to proceed. This gorge was his battlefield, and the magical bulls, his enemy.
A few of the family soldiers stepped forward quickly and tied up the dead bulls in a practiced manner before they gave a signal to prompt the horses tied to the rope to move forward and haul the bulls away to an empty spot not far away. The carcasses that weighed hundreds of kilograms were rather easy to move as the the snow-covered ground decreased the overall friction. After being left at the empty spot, the carcasses of the bulls quickly froze over in the cold weather and would be dealt with at a later time.
A loud boom resounded as the rectangular structure shook, causing snow to slip all over the place. That green-eyed wild bull that rammed into the structure shook its head furiously and paced about in circles as it was a little disorientated from the collision. Regaining its balance, the bull retreated a few steps and readied itself for another charge.
"Good Sol!" Lorist exclaimed as he took control of one of the steel ballistas to aim at the bull. In the end, the green-eyed bull died from a ballista bolt just before it managed to ram into the structure again.
Lorist and the rest were on top of a rectangular structure that was 12 meters wide and 8 meters tall. To avoid letting the bulls ram at the base of the structure, Lorist intentionally decreased the amount of red cloth at the bottom of the structure so that the bulls would be lured to pass through the middle of the two pillars at the side which were the foundations of the structure.
However, somehow, that particular green-eyed bull fixated itself on the left pillar and began to ram into it time and again. The only option available to Lorist and gang was to shoot it dead on the spot. Otherwise, things would've turned out far worse if the structure had collapsed from the bull's incessant ramming. It was fortunate that the ballista fired by Lorist didn't attract the attention of the other bulls that were running towards the red cloth and passing beneath the rectangular structure.
"When this group of green-eyed bulls pass below us, pile up some snow around the pillars and splash some water onto it. We have to better secure the stability of the structure by letting it freeze over so that the frightening situation from before doesn't happen again," Lorist said.
"I think so too," Els said as he leaned on the wall nearby.
To deal with the magical beast wave this year, Lorist had mobilized almost all the forces available to him within the family dominion.
First, Lorist had made preparations to divert the larger herbivorous magical beasts away from the main group such as the various types of magical bulls into the Crewe Circular Gorge. That way, the rest of the magical goats, horses, etc. would be easier to deal with.
Lorist wasn't over ambitious about his plans either. If there was around 1 million magical beasts in the wave this winter, he only hoped that half would remain behind so he could deal with them when spring came at Felicitas Settlement. That way, only 300000 to 400000 beasts would be able to return to the wilderness. Lorist believed that if they repeated this process for a couple of years in succession, they would be able to thin the numbers of the beasts so much that the beast march will no longer occur and cease to be a threat.
To achieve his goals, he ensured that his family knights and soldiers had received proper training. The defensive structures at the second to seventh sectors of the settlement had also been built up properly. Additionally, the second to sixth sectors which would be the first to be engulfed in the beast wave each had a Gold ranked knight stationed at their respective central towns. The towns would also let the weaker magical beasts into the city periodically, effectively turning the winter into a crazed festival of in-town beast hunting.
As for the seventh sector where Wildnorth Town was located, it would not be visited by the magical beast wave, so there was no need to pay extra caution to the preparations there.
As for the sixth sector's central town, Beastguard Town, which was named by Lorist himself, chief Gold ranked knight Potterfang was stationed over there to defend it.
The central town of the fifth sector that was still unnamed was guarded by Gold ranked knight Fiercetiger Loze.
As for the central town of the fourth sector which was also nameless, it was guarded by the silver-haired Belnick.
The third sector's central town was guarded by Gold ranked mercenary Chino Freiyar.
And finally, the second sector's central town was guarded by the Gold ranked knight which had just broken through recently, former Whitelion Legion officer Iron-faced Mons Malek. After the convoy arrived at the Northlands, he was given a vacation by Lorist to focus on his Battle Force training. After one year of hard work, he finally broke through to the Gold rank and became the sixth Gold ranked knight under Lorist's command.
By the time everything was in place, everyone awaited the coming of the magical beast wave with full confidence and anticipation. As for Divine Marksman Josk, he followed Lorist and Els, the head of the guard division, to camp at a small mountainside. They carried out the most difficult part of the whole plan there, which was to lure the magical bulls away from the main wave into the Crewe Circular Gorge.
"This should be the third group to enter the gorge, right? How many bulls are there roughly?" Patt asked.
"There should be around 60000 of them, at least that's what I can see," Els replied.
Lorist said, "That should be about right. After this group enters the gorge, we'll head over to the camp over there for some rest. Have Josk bring someone to replace us for our shifts. Also, don't forget to have someone move the dead bull over there back to the camp. I feel like having some fresh meat after two days of eating nothing but dried food up here."
"Alright, milord."
A temporary camp was set up at a small hill not far away from the slope where the rectangular structure was built. There was a waterfall over there which was the main reason it was chosen to be the campsite as water could be easily obtained there. However, when Lorist and the rest arrived at the camp, a heated battle was occurring. Around 100 winter wolves were surrounding and attacking the camp. Even so, under the fire of Josk's bow as well as four steel ballistas, the wolves didn't fare any better either. Many carcasses of wolves were littered all around the camp.
The temporary camp didn't span a huge area and it was surrounded only by a wooden fence that was five meters tall. At four corners of the camp were four lookout towers which were each equipped with a steel ballista.
Josk laughed bitterly and said, "Milord, it seems that we've neglected to weed out the carnivorous magical beasts around the area. It's fortunate that only a hundred plus wolves attacked us this time. We would've fared much worse if there was more than a thousand."
Within the camp lived around 100 elites of the guard division along with Josk, Els, Patt and Jim. In the coming days, the snowfall was rather heavy, so Lorist instructed his men to construct another 5-meter-tall snow wall surrounding the camp which was completed within three days. After solidifying the walls using the water splashing technique, Lorist led the rest up the other slope and began to lure more beasts away from the main wave again.
Within the span of a little over ten days, Lorist and Josk alternated their shifts and managed to lead 7 groups of huge magical bulls into the gorge. They now numbered around 100000 and the main wave seemed to have passed the area already. The only beasts that remained were the carnivorous ones. Following that, Lorist and the rest were held back at the camp for 7 days as they defended the camp against a few waves of attacks by magical wolves and panthers. Only after having their numbers culled substantially did the carnivorous beasts cease their attacks on the camp, allowing Lorist and his group to finally leave the camp and head to the gorge.
By that time, the gorge had already turned into a huge bull slaughtering center. The bulls that found their way to the gaps at the gorge numbered thousands daily as opposed to the hundreds in the beginning. The carroballista division commanded by Dulles set up multiple defense lines outside the gaps and fired whenever any bull made its way through them. The moment when each bull struggled to regain balance after stepping out of the gap, the ballistas were fired and that bull would fall dead to the ground. The process then repeated as one bull after another squeezed out of the gaps.
The carcasses had already piled up so high that it started to seem like a small hill that was roughly seven to eight storeys high, thus establishing the need for more piles to build up at the empty lot. Dulles had already sent Firmrock Castle an urgent request for an additional thousand plus people and horses to move the carcasses of the bulls away to make more space.
The land around the gorge had long been stained crimson from the blood of the dead bulls. Even so, with the constant influx of bulls into the gorge day after day, the algae within started to run out and some bulls which weren't able to find any were forced to find a way out of the gorge. Some of them even turned back and wanted to leave from the way they came.
While Dulles's whole unit had 2500 ballistas in total, only 400 were situated at the gaps. Lorist had arranged for another 1800 plus ballistas to be placed at both sides of the road which the bulls used to enter the gorge. As a result, the bulls that attempted to exit the gorge through the way they came were completely lacerated by the ballista bolt storm. The carcasses of the bulls only continued to stack up, with their leaking blood forming a small river that flowed downhill.
During the whole winter season, Dulles's newly-expanded carroballista unit had spent the whole time killing bulls at the Crewe Circular Gorge. Within two months time, they had finally exterminated around 170000 of those magical bulls. Everyone in the unit was completely worn out with over a thousand steel ballistas going out of order from overuse.
By the time the last group of bulls collapsed dead on the spot after being shot when they made their way out of the gaps, Dulles, who was seated on a carriage and operating the ballista on it said to Lorist, "Milord, I don't think I want to shoot a bull ever again for the rest of my life. I already feel a little sick after looking at these bulls."
With the coming of spring and the departure of the magical beast wave, one piece of good news came after another. Firstly, the sixth sector's central town, Beastguard Town, was one of the first areas to face the magical beast wave. Thanks to Lorist and the rest's efforts to redirect most of the bulls from the magical beast wave, Potterfang managed to open the town gates more than ten times to let in around 200000 weaker magical goats and deers, causing Beastguard Town to be the town that profited the most from the magical beast wave. Following that, they made large amounts of goat rib traps and managed to get a haul of thousands of carnivorous beasts.
Following that, the fifth to second sectors' central towns also had huge hauls. Most of the herbivorous magical beasts had already been wiped out by them with only less than 300000 of the original million plus magical beasts returning to the wilderness.
Incredibly delighted by the results, Lorist predicted that the magical beast wave would be completely wiped out within another two years. By then, he can finally begin to develop the farmland without any worries.
Patting Dulles on the shoulder, Lorist said, "Alright, let's head out now. Josk's mounted archer division will escort your carroballista division to wipe out the magical beasts that remained within Felicitas Settlement. Fiercetiger Loze's heavy-armored cavalry troops are already waiting for your arrival at the third sector. While there might be some bulls within the settlement, most of the beasts there will be carnivorous ones, so you have to watch out for your own safety. When you return from your mission, I promise that you will have new ballistas waiting to replace your broken ones."
"Yes, milord," Dulles said as he saluted.
Military Reorganization
Here's the first regular chapter of the week, enjoy!
Lorist said, "As long as we come up with adequate countermeasures, the magical beast wave will no longer pose a threat to us."
"I think that the magical beast wave brings some advantages to us too. At the very least, they provide lots of fresh meat. Burp. Apologies, I've had a little too much mutton," said Potterfang.
"I want some vegetables... Even potatoes would do... Don't feed me any more beef... I've been eating beef and drinking beef soup for two whole months now and I already feel like puking the moment I smell it," Els complained.
"I agree with Els, I want some potatoes too," Patt said.
"Haha, the magical beasts didn't even stand a chance against the carroballista division!" exclaimed Dulles excitedly.
Josk said, "I think that the ballista milord designed changed our situation entirely. We wouldn't have been able to defeat the beasts with only courage and passion and no good equipment."
"The creation of the steel ballistas did in fact prepare us well for the coming of the magical beast wave. This truly is a mighty revolution in the field of ballistics. After that, we will start working on more improvements on the current ballistas. Our goals for now are to increase the firing distance, firing rate, accuracy, and strength of the shots," said Grandmaster Fellin.
"I suggest that the ones who contributed a lot to the resistance against the beasts be rewarded 50 kilograms of magical bull meat. What do you guys think?" Charade said.
"The quality of the skin of the bulls are great for making leather products as long as we dry and preserve them well. The skins of lower quality can also be made into beastskins. Additionally, the meat can be dried and preserved or made into sausages. As for the bones, we can use them as soup stock and even burn them to ash to be used as fertilizer. We must use all we can with as little wastage as possible. However, it definitely will be a little hard to clear up so many bull carcasses. Milord, can you please send a few thousand more family soldiers to help out? It's not possible for the current workforce of over 10000 men to deal with all those carcasses within a month..."
Due to the sheer amount of beasts they had killed, Lorist mobilized near 100000 men within the dominion and managed to take care of the matters before the 5th month.
...
On the 10th day of the 5th month, Lorist organized the first meeting of the year at Firmrock Castle with the family knights and officers of the dominion. Like the previous year, Charade was in charge of giving a summarized report about the happenings within the dominion.
"The magical beast wave that came during the winter brought us countless amounts of furs and leather as well as near 15 million kilograms of bull and goat meat. It can be said that the dominion will no longer have any problems with food for the next three years. The most encouraging piece of news is still the fact that the magical beasts will no longer pose any threat to us and will instead be an opportunity for us to gain big hauls."
Everyone applauded as they regained the hope of settling down in a harsh and desolate place like the Northlands based on the harvests and hauls in recent times.
"After enduring a year of hardship, the construction of the defensive facilities at the towns and villages of Felicitas Settlement is finally completed. That's one of the main reasons we were able to survive the magical beast wave. This year, our focus will be on building more roads to make the villages and central towns more interconnected as well as building proper residences so that the people at the settlement can live within warm and safe homes. Not only is this the promise of our lord, it is also his way of rewarding the hard-working citizens who had accompanied the convoy to the dominion despite the things we suffered on the way.
"Other than that, we will also form several departments for the seven sectors of Felicitas Settlement. Each department will have to maintain and improve the living standards of the sector they are put in charge of and contribute to the family in the coming year.
"Even though last year was a tough year, it was also a plentiful one. The factories and workshops set up within the dominion has also made us self-sufficient. I believe that the Norton Family's future will shine under milord's leadership!"
The room once again erupted with applause, ending the meeting on a grand note.
After the meeting, Lorist had six Gold ranked knights and Charade, Yuriy, Terman and a few other knights stay back for another meeting focused on military reorganization matters.
The military distribution of the various powers on Grindia were mainly organized as armies. Each army would have multiple divisions with each division containing a few regiments. A regiment on the other hand would contain a few companies which in turn was made out of a few squads. The various units would also be classified according to the types of soldiers within, such as a longbow regiment, a heavy-armored company and a pike infantry squad, etc.
A squad usually consisted of 80 to 150 people and the squad leader was the most basic commanding officer who was aided by a few vice squad leaders who would each be put in charge of tens of other soldiers.
Lorist was quite dissatisfied with this arrangement as whenever a squad leader and his aides fell on the battlefield, the whole squad would fall into disorder. However, Lorist did not want to overhaul the organization completely and instead divide each squad into smaller teams.
As a solution to that, Lorist devised a new, more discrete organizational structure with ten people for one squad of mixed types of soldiers unlike the former structure which had soldiers of the same training and equipment in the same unit. Each squad would have sword and shield infantry, pikemen and longbowmen so they can better adapt during times of battle.
Lorist hoped that his troops would one day be able to form the 'mandarin duck formation' of the 'Qi Family Troops' he had heard of from his previous life. Even though he wasn't too well-versed in the military tactics of old and didn't understand the specifics, he felt that he could slowly experiment around with trial and error until he found the perfect balance. In the era of cold arms, only with coordination and tactics can a unit be effective in combat as well as survive the chaotic situation of the battlefield.
Potterfang and the other family knights on the other hand felt that Lorist was trying to incorporate the tactics of smaller mercenary groups into the family forces, which was not a completely foreign thing to them. It was a known fact that a small group of elite mercenaries were more effective and versatile than huge numbers of family soldiers.
Above the newly-revamped squads of ten men were companies. Each company would include ten squads, totaling at a member count of 100. Five companies would form a battalion of 500 men and five combat battalions and one logistics battalion would form a brigade of 3000 men. Lorist made it so that a brigade would be a singular, full-functioning unit capable of acting independently.
WIth the aim of completely reorganizing the military of the family, Lorist first disbanded the three garrison divisions. Each of the 80 plus villages within Felicitas Settlement would have a company of garrison soldiers of 100 men formed and each of the central towns of the seven sectors in addition to the industrial city at Bladedge Mountains would have a garrison battalion of 500 men stationed there. Similarly, Maplewoods Bastide and Firmrock Castle each had a battalion of 500 garrison troops stationed there.
These garrison troops were mainly responsible for the security and stability of the towns and the areas surrounding it. The task of restructuring the garrison force was handed to Gold ranked knight Freiyar to be completed within the year.
Lorist then ordered Gold ranked knight Malek to form a patrol company of 100 men at each town that will be responsible for solving civil disputes, maintaining order as well as hygiene of the towns. The members of these patrol companies would be picked from the ranks of the retired family soldiers and the disbanded garrison troops.
Following that, Lorist turned his 'scalpel of reorganization' to Potterfang and Loze's heavy-armored division and requested them to reform their organizational structure into 2 brigades, each numbering 3000 men. The ones to be picked for the brigades must be of Iron ranked Battle Force at the very least ranging from the age of 20 to 25. As for the officers, they can be as old as 35. Lorist stressed that he didn't want to focus on quantity but rather quality.
Dulles's carroballista division was also restructured by Lorist into three brigades of 9000 men. The steel ballistas had replaced the longbow troops as the main ranged attacking force of the family and Lorist didn't intend to change that.
Yuriy's three regiments of light cavalry scouts was changed into a brigade of 3000 men. Apart from the ones who were disqualified based on their age or Battle Force rank, the men who were not included into the light cavalry scouts brigade formed companies of 100 men and were absorbed into the logistics battalions of various other brigades. Lorist felt that every logistics battalion should have one light cavalry scout company, one heavy-armored infantry company, one logistics company as well as two cargo guard companies. Only by having 500 men supporting the main force of 2500 men within a brigade could it function independently.
Josk's mounted archer unit however wasn't affected by the changes. Lorist was already working with Grandmaster Fellin to work on a new riding bow that would eventually replace the longbows used by the mounted archers. Even so, the prototypes so far still weren't able to emulate the strength of the longbow. It was apparent that a proper replacement would only come at a later date.
Terman's knight brigade wasn't touched either, but Lorist still had it reorganized into a brigade of 3000 men according to his new standards, causing Terman to have to recruit a few hundred others to fill in the extra vacancies.
The guard division led by Els on the other hand underwent a huge overhaul. Originally, the division numbered around 5000 soldiers and their duties, according to Els, were all over the place. Some were in charge of escorting the convoy, others were guarding the mines and factories with some even monitoring the laborers. Additionally, Lorist's personal guard was also part of Els's guard division. They were basically something like duct tape, which was used to patch up all sorts of smaller problems.
The guard division was split into two in the end and the first would cease all their activities and only answer to Lorist and Els's orders. The newly-formed guard brigade would take over the duties of securing the warehouses, refineries and other jobs. Lorist also planned to have the other soldiers who were removed from their respective units as a result of the reorganization to join together and form a second guard brigade which would be in charge of monitoring the 30000 plus laborers.
Apart from that, the former-bandit Ovidis's defense company was revamped into the first local defense brigade that would defend Firmrock Castle. Knight Pajik on the other hand was tasked with forming the second local defense brigade to defend Maplewoods Bastide.
Pointing at the map, Lorist said that he wanted to build a new citadel at Hidebull Mound where the mounted archers were stationed so that the two other citadels at the border of the dominion and the Magical Dragon Mountains could be better provided with support. Additionally, it was a strategic location with the river valley and two citadels to its east, the Blackmud Marsh to its north, and the Poplar Coast to its west. As long as Hidebull Mound could be occupied, even if the two mountain citadels were to be taken over, the barbarians still wouldn't be able to launch an attack on the dominion. Also, the magical beast wave had to pass through that area, meaning that attacks could be launched from there if their numbers were small to wipe them out before they even set foot into the Felicitas Settlement.
While the family did plan to build a citadel at that location, it lacked the manpower and funds at that time and was also bogged down by the troublesome folk of Wildnorth Town. The citadel constructed at Hidebull Mound had to be huge; small ones wouldn't be that reliable and sufficient for the purposes of the family. Now that the family had stable foundations and additional resources, the project could be realized and Knight Pajik's second local defense brigade would be able to guard it to ensure the safety of the family dominion.
Finally came Pesha's female garrison unit. They performed exceedingly well during the past two magical beast extermination operations at Felicitas Settlement. Lorist allowed Pesha to expand her unit to 3000 women but also requested her to have her subordinates be well-versed in first aid and medicinal skills so that they can also play the role of a medic unit on the battlefield.
As for the medic squad of the northbound convoy, Lorist disbanded it and tasked Lundmorde to set up medical centers within the various towns and distribute the medics around to manage the centers and tend to the sick and injured.
Lundmorde himself was given two choices. Either he takes up his post as the manager of the medical center at Firmrock Castle or he becomes a medical instructor for the female unit.
Needless to say, Lundmorde happily chose the latter went to report to Pesha for his new post.
Potterfang asked, "Milord, since our forces will mainly be using brigades as the largest unit, we won't have legions and divisions in the future, right?"
Lorist laughed out and said, "How can that be? So far, the military trend right now is for legions to be formed. Even the Kenmays Family formed a legion of 30000 soldiers, not to mention the Second Prince's Iblia Kingdom's First Legion that he recently formed with around 56000 soldiers. My plan is for five brigades of 15000 men be put under a division, with five divisions of 75000 men forming a legion. So far, the point of the reorganization is to cement this new structure into our forces so that future expansions will be much more convenient."
"I see, so that is what you have planned. I understand now. I will definitely train an elite troop of soldiers for the family according to your orders, so please rest assured," Potterfang said.
"But milord, why didn't you give me any tasks?" Belnick asked as he stood up.
"Calm down, I was just going to get to that," Lorist said as he waved his hand. "I plan to set up a new recruit brigade at Maplewoods Bastide for those aged between 20 to 25 with Battle Force beneath the Iron rank. There, they will continue to train until they meet the conditions to join the other units of our forces. In the future, we no longer have to recruit soldiers from our citizens. The men we need can be sourced from this brigade.
"Other than that, every male citizen below the age of 18 will be required to join the recruit brigade to accept training to awaken their Battle Force. This will be optional for female citizens of the same age range. Each course will last three months and those who haven't awakened their Battle Force can attend these courses three times in succession. In the future, the candidates for recruitment will be chosen from these people who pass the course. The main force of the family will be required to have at least Iron ranked Battle Force with the garrison troops having the Bronze rank as the base requirement. When we have enough soldiers in each unit, we can begin expanding. I will leave this recruit brigade for you to manage, Brother Beck."
"Yes, milord," Belnick said as he saluted.
...
Not including the garrison troops of the villages and towns, the family forces had a total of 16 brigades with almost 50000 troops in total. To Lorist, that was only barely satisfactory with the ratio of soldiers to citizens at around 1 to 10, and even then, that ratio was obtained by including the garrison and patrol troops as part of the family forces. Even if Lorist disregarded those two units, the family still had to spend quite a bit on the salary of those soldiers.
While the northbound convoy didn't do much trade on its journey to the Northlands, it was fortunate that they did quite a bit of pillaging, garnering the family up to 3 million gold Fordes in wealth. Given that the equipment of the Whitelion Legion were given to him, Lorist was still able to sustain the current family force.
Now that the various industrial activities within the dominion was owned by the family, it wasn't too hard for Lorist to offer special bonuses to the family soldiers either.
By the time he finished drafting the regulations of the family forces with Charade and the others, it was already near the end of the 6th month. Just when Lorist was about to set out to Maplewoods Bastide for two months of vacation to spend some time with his son, Count Kenmays came to visit.
The reason for the count's visit was to fulfill the agreement they signed the last time. Not only did the count ship away the 33000 sets of metal armor from Firmrock Castle, he also struck a bargain and bought 200000 gold Fordes' worth of salt and 1 million kilograms of smoked magical bull meat from Charade.
Charade was incredibly mad by the time the negotiations concluded as he understood that the count could sell the stuff he bought with 200000 gold Fordes for 600000 gold Fordes simply by reselling them to another party and marking up the price.
However, Lorist felt that there was nothing they could do about it as the suspension bridge was controlled by the Kenmayses and there was no point in keeping the extra meat and salt stored up anyway. Since those were local products of the dominion, Lorist felt that it was a rather good source of revenue despite the slightly low price offered by the count.
Charade on the other hand felt that they absolutely had to find a suitable place to build a port within the dominion as the furs they had could be sold at Morante City for a high price.
Lorist agreed to that suggestion and made a mental note to continue to look into it more when he had more time.
Sid Steel Armor
Here's the second regular chapter of the week. I'll try and see if I can translate an extra chapter this week as well.
At the end of the 7th month, Lorist who was spending his time at Maplewoods Bastide received a letter from Charade. The letter stated that Baron Felim Chalvode had sent a messenger over with a request to purchase 5000 sets of metal armor from the Norton Family. Additionally, Baron Shazin, also known as Knight Hennard, wrote a letter to Lorist that asked to be sponsored 3000 sets of metal armor and other weapons.
As a result, Lorist had no choice but to return to Firmrock Castle. Old Man Gleis's sickness worsened over the months and he could no longer get out of bed. Patt had been spending the past two months staying by his side and serving him.
Taking a look at the map, Lorist thought for a bit before starting to write his reply to Charade. He wrote that he agreed to sell the armor to the Felim Family since he had nothing to lose and stated that they could trade other resources if they didn't have enough money for the purchase. As for Knight Hennard, Lorist wrote him a personal letter to invite him over for a talk.
By the time Knight Hennard arrived at Maplewoods Bastide, Old Man Gleis had just passed away. Before his death, the old man miraculously regained his clarity of mind and grasped onto Lorist's hands as he stated his final wish to Lorist: to be buried within the family's forbidden area so that he may be with the former family leaders even in death.
Lorist nodded, before shaking his head later. Gleis didn't understand the meaning of Lorist's gesture and died without ever finding out.
Patt on the other hand broke down completely. He had lost his parents from a young age and had been raised by Gleis, his grandfather, all his life. Now that his only relative had died, Patt was in incredible pain. He also didn't understand why Lorist refused his grandfather's last wish since Gleis had served the Norton Family for his whole life and even managed to hold the family together during the recent time of crisis by withholding the succession ceremony until Lorist's return to the dominion. It was a given that he should have the honor to be buried in the family's forbidden area.
Lorist explained that he planned to build a new mausoleum for the family on Whitedeer Mound, stating that the place was a gift from the Silvermoon Goddess to the Norton Family as a final resting place for the elders of the family that was unfortunately neglected by those who came before. He also stated that he intended to move the remains of the people buried within the forbidden area to the new mausoleum so that they can truly get their final rest within the embrace of the ground. He also said that Old Butler Gleis would be buried there as one of the treasured members of the Norton Family.
That caused Patt's emotions to change completely and he even said that he wanted to work on the construction of the mausoleum as well. Lorist on the other hand ended up incredibly busy managing the project. He decided to first cremate all the remains of the ancestors within the forbidden area so that their ashes could be buried at Whitedeer Mound and have proper tombstones made for them by hiring stonemasons.
Knight Hennard stayed at the bastide for 12 days and also attended the funeral and cremation of Old Butler Gleis. All that remained was erecting a statue of the butler as a memorial which Lorist was naturally in charge of. However, that didn't have to happen right away. Despite that, Lorist managed to find some time to have a formal discussion with Knight Hennard.
In actuality, Knight Hennard was facing huge amounts of pressure and stress as the threat of the Second Prince's newly formed First Iblia Kingdom Legion of 56000 soldiers that were stationed near his dominion was looming over him. Hennard had no choice but to gather up all his men to defend the place. Even though he had 20000 men who were formerly part of the Northland Army, he tried his best not to engage in conflict with the Second Prince despite the latter's constant aggressive and provocative actions.
During the gathering of the nobles that year during the 5th month, the Second Prince expressed some passionate and bold statements. He said that he wanted to rebuild the former Krissen Empire starting with the Iblia Kingdom and hoped that the other landed nobles would cooperate with him as only when they act as one would they be able to actualize his dream of returning the empire to its former glory. However, he said that there were quite a number of nobles who refused to heed his orders and avoided him as best as they could.
That was why the Second Prince said that he would give them a chance to right their wrongs. As long as they were willing to pledge allegiance to the Second Prince and contribute to the restoration of the empire, the Second Prince said that he wouldn't seek retribution for their past mistakes. Otherwise, the Second Prince threatened that he would bring his First Legion of the Iblia Kingdom to show those rebellious nobles the cost of infringing upon his royal pride and refusing to heed his orders.
That was also one of the reasons Knight Hennard decided to expand his forces and better equip them as well. However, while it wasn't too hard to recruit more soldiers, it was really troublesome and difficult to secure equipment for them. The dominion Hennard's father left him was relatively barren and he could only rely on Cherry Blossom Ridge and Evanson Town to sustain the livelihoods of his 12000 men. Had it not been for the fact that he had pretended to be one of Lorist's men to raid the dominion of Duke Loggins's two years ago, he would've gone bankrupt long ago. This time around, he decided to expand his forces to 15000 people and hoped that he could rely on his connection with Lorist to be sponsored some equipment and weapons.
Lorist was a person who treasured his relationships and he felt sympathy for Hennard and agreed to his request by sponsoring 3000 sets of metal armor and weapons and even told him of a way to generate income before asking him to see Charade for the specifics. He let Hennard be the middleman to sell around 500000 kilograms of salt produced within the Norton Family dominion. If Hennard was successful in his venture, he could earn up to 1 million gold Fordes, which will be enough for him to fund his soldiers for half a year.
After sending off the incredibly grateful Hennard, Lorist began to pick the members for a team to survey the terrain of Hidebull Mound and draw designs for the citadel that was to be built there. Hidebull Mound was mainly formed from granite and it was around 15 kilometers away from the point where the two other mountain ranges intersected. The mound got its name because it was shaped like a bull crouching down on the plains in hiding. For now, Josk and his mounted archer brigade were stationed there.
By the time the designs for the Hidebull Mound's citadel was completed, it was already the 9th month and the mausoleum at Whitedeer Mound was nearing its completion as well. Lorist then conducted a formal cremation ceremony for the Norton Family's ancestors' remains and buried them properly at Whitedeer Mound.
The mausoleum was built at a very scenic and relaxing location. The various trees that were on the mound were cut down and the first Norton Family ancestor was buried at the very top of the mound, with his grave marked by a stone statue of a knight with a drawn bow accompanied by the a stone tablet beneath the statue detailing his founding of the family and contributions to it.
Apart from that statue, many other gravestones could be seen on Whitedeer Mound. The statues honoring the others were not yet complete and would be installed at a later date. Apart from that, the mound was covered with a nice coat of green grass with the mausoleum surrounded by a short fence made with maple wood of the highest quality. Whitedeer Mound itself was also surrounded by a thick, maple forest.
When the night came, white deers appeared on the mound and played around the statues and gravestones. Under the illumination of the silvery moonlight, they added another layer of peacefulness to the pure and mysterious atmosphere of the mausoleum.
Everyone who witnessed that agreed with Lorist that the Whitedeer Mound was indeed the perfect gift from the SIlvermoon Goddess to the Norton Family as a final resting place for the ancestors. The mausoleum was also called the Whitedeer Sanctuary because of that.
After the mausoleum was settled, Lorist received a piece of good news: Grandmaster Sid had successfully made a set of armor that was superior to that of the Whitelion Legion. The messenger said that he had been sent to the bastide to make a report the moment research was completed.
Hence, Lorist went to the refineries at Bladedge Mountains right away with a few others.
Grandmaster Sid's smile was as radiant as a Chrysanthemum flower. Now that he had made a set of armor that was better than the one created by tens of elite blacksmiths back in the Krissen Empire for the impressive Whitelion Legion, he no longer had any lingering regrets.
It was not until Lorist actually saw the armor that he understood that the Whitelion Legion's armor couldn't even compare to it!
The Whitelion Legion's equipment were mostly made of fine iron that was slightly purplish-brown in color as the blacksmiths of the Krissen Empire had infused certain other ingredients into the mix to improve Battle Force transfer. The ideal ratio of ingredients was found only after countless experiments before the metal mix could be cast into their molds, and have the final touches added at the end. The defensive capability of the Whitelion Legion's armor was a whole level superior to that of normal metal armor, as was witnessed during the battle at Firmrock Castle where Duke Loggins's bowmen's arrows did not harm a single Norton soldier that was equipped with the armor of the Whitelion Legion, ultimately resulting in the latter's triumph.
The armor plate made by Grandmaster Sid was silvery white in color which was made using black iron reinforced into steel after being processed using the various water-powered tools.
Lorist inspected the armor and noticed that it had the same three-layer design. The outermost layer was the steel plate itself followed by grey-colored magical bull leather and another tight mesh of steel wire mail in the innermost layer.
"Milord, the unique combination of ingredients for this steel was only discovered after long experimentation by me and it is at least two times stronger than the material of the Whitelion Legion's armor, with it also being able to distribute Battle Force more evenly overall. In our tests, the Whitelion Legion armor breaks from an arrow fired from a longbow 80 meters away whereas our armor can get as close as 60 meters before breaking. If this armor is reinforced with Battle Force, the distance where a longbow would pose a threat would shrink down to 30 or 40 meters.
"The whole set of Whitelion Legion armor weighs around 19 kilograms while ours only weigh 14 kilograms, a staggering 5 kilogram less. That is a lot less burden a soldier has to bear and our armor even covers more area of the body than that of the Whitelion Legion's, providing even better coverage and defense. Not only that, this armor allows for better freedom of movement for our soldiers too..." Grandmaster Sid continued to show off the perks of his steel armor and it seemed that he was extremely satisfied that his creation was able to completely best the Whitelion Legion armor in all areas.
"Find someone to wear and try it," Lorist said.
Excited and intrigued, Els put on the steel armor impatiently. When he was done, Lorist almost fainted. This seems familiar... Wait, isn't this the imperial stromsoldier armor from the Stellar Wars universe?[1] Apart from the helmet and the faulds at the waist which replaced the triangular crotch armor of the stormsoldiers, the rest of the armor seemed remarkably similar. At that moment, Lorist almost suspected that Grandmaster Sid was also transmigrated from his world.
The helmet Grandmaster Sid designed was a pointed, conical type with a neck guard equipped with a visor that could be pushed down to protect the wearer's face, giving the wearer a ferocious impression. Wearing the armor, Els took out his sword and practiced some fighting maneuvers. After getting used to it, he even called a guard or two to spar with him for quite a while before he returned with ragged breaths.
"Locke, this armor set is definitely far lighter and agile than the Whitelion Legion armor. Also, it's form-fitting so it doesn't feel like it bogs down your whole body. I want my guard brigade to be the first to change into these!" Els requested excitedly.
Lorist looked at Grandmaster Sid and asked, "Grandmaster, how many sets of these can you produce within a day?"
"Milord, there are 21 parts required in the construction of this armor. Even though that's 7 parts more than the Whitelion Legion armor, with the aid of the water-powered tools, it isn't too hard for us to make them. Over here, we only focus on the production of the parts which we will ship to the industrial city to be assembled together. Given our slightly lacking manpower, we can only produce and estimated number of tens of sets per day. If you can increase our workforce by a thousand more people and have a few more kilns made to increase production of steel, we would be able to make around 200 sets per day," Grandmaster Sid replied.
"Good. Grandmaster, I will assign another 1000 people to your workforce. Other than that, we will name this armor after you. Let's call it the Sid Steel Armor. This will become the standard equipment for our forces. The only change I require is for the pointed helmet to be flattened into a circular surface and for the Raging Bear insignia of our family to be put onto the breastplate. Is that alright?" Lorist asked.
Upon hearing that the armor would be named after him, Grandmaster Sid widened his mouth in joy as he would be forever remembered in the annals of history for his contribution. "Milord, please be assured that I will definitely make the changes you request so that our forces can wear this armor as soon as possible and ditch the heavy and clumsy Whitelion Legion armor."
"Why do I get the feeling that the grandmaster somehow loathes the armor of the Whitelion Legion?" Els mumbled.
Lorist laughed out loud upon hearing that as he had once heard Ovidis mention that Grandmaster Sid had worked as an apprentice armorer for the Krissen Imperial Forces in his youth. During one of the times he was tasked to repair a set of armor, he had a hunch that he could improve the armor's defense if he made some adjustments. In the end, he secretly conducted some experiments and ruined three sets of armor, causing him to be punished severely and stripped of his job and position in the imperial armory.
After that, he toiled hard and learned from many other masters all over the place and only attained the rank of a grandmaster armorer 20 years later, only to be embroiled into the chaos caused by the power struggle within the empire and being forced to make armor for the bandits of Plate Mountain to ensure his family's safety.
Els was right in that Grandmaster Sid harbored a deep hatred for the armor of the Whitelion Legion. That was why he conducted his research like a crazed madman without pause after the discovery of the black iron mines at Bladedge Mountains and ended up fulfilling his dream of making a set of armor that was far superior to that of the Whitelion Legion.
"Reidy, heed my orders," Lorist instructed. "To award the contribution of Grandmaster Sid for creating the Sid Steel Armor, the family will award him 1000 gold Fordes with 100 gold Fordes for each of his aides. Naturally, get the list of aides from the grandmaster himself. The rest of the people here will all get 10 gold Fordes each."
"Yes, milord."
"Grandmaster Sid, don't forget that the Whitelion Legion's equipment is more than just a set of armor. They also come with shields and other weapons, so you will have to continue to work hard as well."
"Milord, I'll definitely keep that in mind and work on weapons and shields that will fit nicely with the armor I created," said Sid.
Lorist then ordered Shadekampf to have 1000 of the 20000 laborers that were building roads at Felicitas Settlement to be brought over to the refinery before returning to Firmrock Castle with his guards.
...
When Lorist reached the castle, before he even got to take a short rest, Pesha forcefully brought Lundmorde to him to lodge a complaint.
As Lundmorde was familiar with the field of medicine, he was sent to teach Pesha's female garrison members some medicinal knowledge. And during the span of 5 months from the 5th month to the 10th, he had managed to impregnate 7 of the female soldiers there.
The moment Lorist heard about that, his jaw dropped, before he broke out of his stupor and pushed it back in.
What a beast.... Lorist looked at Lundmorde with a gaze of admiration and wondered why he didn't realize how promiscuous Lundmorde truly was during the days at the academy.
Pesha on the other hand was furious as 3 out of the 7 Lundmorde slept with were squad leaders, two of whom were Pesha's aides. There were two others who were rather capable as well and were just about to be promoted. However, they had all bore Lundmorde's child.
Despite that, all 7 of the female soldiers said that they approached Lundmorde willingly and that he didn't force himself on any of them. That's why Pesha couldn't do much no matter how angry she was. In actuality, she couldn't wait to lop Lundmorde's head off with a blade, but with the those 7 women who were pregnant with his child protecting him, Pesha had no choice but to look for Lorist to settle the issue.
After flipping through the regulations of the family forces, Lorist didn't find any ruling regarding that matter either. He then asked, "Where are the 7 female soldiers?"
Pesha replied angrily, "They're at the lobby on the ground floor accusing one another for seducing their lover... This Knight Lundmorde..."
"Go bring them up here. I'll ask them what we should do."
In the end, Lorist's whole office got turned into a noisy marketplace with each of the seven women shouting at the top of their voice, all wanting to become Lundmorde's proper wife and give birth to his child. Lundmorde on the other hand hugged his head meekly in a corner without making a sound.
"Alright!" Lorist shouted as he thumped on the table to stop the argument. "Enough already. How about this? All 7 of you should just get married to him and he'll have seven wives. If anyone makes any more fuss, they will be excluded from this arrangement."
At that moment, Lundmorde looked at the seven women he knocked up and started crying.
Full of sympathy, Lorist looked at him and said, "Knight Lundmorde, as a man, you have to bear the consequences of your actions. Since you've gone and done it, take responsibility. How about this, I'll allow you to have a long vacation so that you can spend quality time with your wives until they give birth to your children."
That was the only solution Lorist could think of for the situation. After Knight Lundmorde left with his wives, Lorist say back down in his chair in a tiredly and started to think.
Pesha was not too satisfied with the arrangement as her force had just lost 7 capable women and she said that Lundmorde got off easy and even got to marry the 7 in one go without receiving any punishment.
"She said he got off easy?" Lorist muttered as he laughed coldly. "No, on the contrary, getting married to seven wives is the biggest punishment he'll get... His 'blessed' days will be filled with fights and arguments... How befitting of a man who can't keep his junk inside his pants..."
[1] Name slightly altered so that this stays copyright safe. But I bet most of you guys can recognize which franchise this is, right?