Chapter 65: Chapter 7: Generous Harvest
The two paths Su Li offered are clear to anyone with a sober mind.
The harsh environment of the Evil Land has forged the resilience of the nomads, who will seize every opportunity to survive tenaciously.
Harry had no thoughts of seeking short-sighted solutions. After listening to Su Li, he immediately struggled to get up, knelt in front of Su Li, and said: "Honorable Lord, I am willing to serve you, using my war axe to slay all enemies against you, whether they be bandits, Beastmen, goblins, or monsters."
Su Li nodded with satisfaction and asked a nearby Knight to untie him. Then, Su Li carefully scrutinized him up and down. His long years of forging had made his arms muscular, and the bulging veins indicated extraordinary strength.
Beneath his fierce gaze, there was little facial hair, clearly showing he was a young man—daring to pick up a war axe and fight a Great Horned Beast, indeed the fearlessness of youth.
Then, Su Li had Schwartz take him away, preparing to assign him to the castle, starting his training from places like the stables and smithy.
From now on, he would be a Knight’s Squire directly under the High-level Attendant Chief Hilude, responsible for helping Su Li clean the stables, trim horse hooves, and in spare time, assist Belos Dragon Hammer in forging tools needed by the serfs on the farm.
However, this matter doesn’t seem so urgent right now.
In this farm, they found over three hundred farming tools, most of which were previously forged by Harry, which were basically sufficient to meet the current farming needs of the territory.
Besides these tools, the soldiers also found four warhorses, twenty cattle and sheep, and grain filling three warehouses. At least one storage room for grain could hold twenty to thirty thousand pounds of food. This aligns well with the usual habits of the nomads in the Evil Land, who typically store only a year and a half’s worth of food; the bolder ones even store only a year and a month’s worth, selling the rest to merchants for immediate gains.
This allowed Su Li to find over 110 Gold Coins in their treasury. Judging by the annual yield of one Gold Coin per farmer, the farm’s accumulation of so much money suggests they had been operating here for possibly two to three years.
Su Li handed the Gold Coins to Avril, telling her to lead two teams of Armed Attendants to send these slaves back to the territory, then have Vandar personally bring a batch of slaves over to continue operating the farm.
Because the greatest wealth within this farm was still their cultivated farmland.
Upon inquiry, Su Li learned that more than sixty people managed over 1,000 acres of farmland, with each person tending to ten acres. The main crop was spring wheat, and in less than a month, it would be harvest time.
This would undoubtedly greatly alleviate the territory’s grain supply pressure.
Hilude, even with anticipation in her eyes, said to Su Li: "Lord, with this batch of grain, we can buy another batch of slaves. If we include this war spoils income, we already have over a thousand Gold Coins, right? We could buy five Elite Knights or two to three hundred serfs."
Su Li couldn’t help but nod. The oppressive presence of that Green Dragon in the forest loomed over him, he didn’t want to back down and planned to engage in a direct battle with that Green Dragon, strengthening his forces was essential.
In this still not highly developed land of the Border Prince’s Territory, he wanted to bolster his strength; the best method was undoubtedly one—stockpiling grain and training soldiers!
There were not yet vast farmlands suitable for forming a large army, training an elite force would not only enhance combat power but also alleviate the grain pressure, which is the best choice.
As for military training, new recruits are not urgent at the moment, as he didn’t have good channels for recruiting, but providing better equipment and armor for the soldiers, he had a decent path.
Therefore, Su Li told Knight Oerstein and Hilude respectively: "Since we have already mobilized the troops, we cannot just fight a battle and return so easily. Have the soldiers quickly assemble; we will divide the troops into two routes."
"Hilude, you, along with Avril, Schwartz, and Stern, form a treasure-hunting party, take our family’s banner, and go to the highest peak of the Gray Mountain Range, plant our flag at the highest point! I believe this journey will be very meaningful and harvest substantial gains."
"My Commander-in-Chief, you lead the main army with me to the Jinke Mine."
Over the past half month, aside from military training, the most important task for Knight Oerstein was to complete the reconnaissance mission of the Gray Mountain Range assigned by Su Li.
This mission was quite normal; with the territory’s choice near the foothills of Hesse, the army naturally needed to patrol and investigate the surrounding terrain and monster distribution.
According to the geographical situation of the Hesse Territory, if there was indeed a monster force that could threaten the safety of the territory, its most likely locations would be the Blood Pine Forest or the northern Gray Mountain Range.
The presence of forest bandits in the Blood Pine Forest was already a well-known fact throughout the territory, so naturally, the territorial army needed to assess the situation of the Gray Mountain Range.
Over the past half month, patrolling Knights have, along with their teams, discovered a hidden monster nest within the Jinke Mine. Inside the mine, there was a large Dogman Tribe.
According to the Knights’ investigations, there might be at least 300 to 500 dogmen inside, including a strong Dogman Leader.
The combat effectiveness of dogmen is generally average, comparable to the Inferior Horned Beast, and among beast herds, they are in the lowest position. Thus, dogmen often fight among themselves to seize the meager scraps barely enough to survive; they will eat wriggling larvae and insects, suck marrow from bones, or consume the carcasses of their fallen kin in conflicts.
Only poorly clad human serfs and bandits would fear being torn apart by these monsters. A trained, armored Attendant can easily handle the assault from two or three dogmen, and notching a few kills against dogmen in a battle doesn’t count for much military merit.
To deal with this Dogman Tribe, Knight Oerstein was unconcerned, only feeling some doubts about their presence upon hearing Su Li’s orders.
"Lord, creatures like dogmen rarely form large groups. Their weak combat strength usually results in them being eaten by stronger monsters passing by in the wild. If such a large tribe exists, it’s likely they have allied with a more powerful monster, becoming the creature’s vassals."
As he spoke, he slightly frowned at Su Li and asked: "Given dogmen’s penchant for strength and violence, they mostly ally with Giant Dragons. Such a large Dogman Tribe active in the Hesse foothills, could there be a Giant Dragon here?"