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MTL - Medieval Empire Soldier-Chapter 142 · The calm before early summer
Light snow fell all over the sky, perhaps the last snow before the early spring.
Walking on the streets with stone pavement, Lailun watched the former residents do some work, the dwarf merchants shouted and sold the farm tools forged in the workshop, and there were gradually more small traders in the market. The new decree issued by the baron , which reflects Lailun's encouraging and tolerant attitude towards business. In the decree, the market entrance tax was cancelled, and the business and trade less than twenty silver coins were not taxed, and the bulk business was subject to progressive taxation, which filled the vacancy in business. , and greatly stimulated the vitality of small-scale business.
Eureka was still wearing a mask to hide her beautiful face, and her slightly complicated eyes kept scanning the situation in the town. The clean and tidy streets impressed her deeply. Even if the holy city of Middenheim was built for thousands of years, The town under the floating earth still hides filth and stench, while Oak Town is full of vitality, showing the side of order and prosperity.
"Krill told me in the letter that you went to the Nord Kingdom not long ago, Miss Eureka, can you tell me what happened in the north recently?" Laylen asked the witch hunter casually: "No All the post roads in DeLing have been damaged, so the speed of the news is very slow, especially since I just returned from Rickland not long ago."
"The situation is very bad, Baron, there are constant disputes in the Nord Kingdom, famine and plague have swept across most of the northern land, and many bankrupt and defeated nobles have openly rebelled. Nordland." Eureka's long silver-white hair fluttered in the cold wind: "Although you, the hero of the empire, the emperor, and the electors defeated the Norsca invasion, the subsequent turmoil has always been It has not disappeared, where the barbarian armies have ravaged, dark and evil heresy beliefs spread, rebellion after wave, and the North is now weak."
"I believe that the Elector Theodoric can handle these things well. However, the Nord army under his command that has lost more than half of it will take too much time to recover. Everything needs to be taken slowly." Laylen nodded. , the baron then asked: "The brass fortress that has been standing in the central mountain range for a long time, is there any sign of change?"
"As far as I know, there is no change. There are too many evil monsters dormant in the central mountain range, and Hawke's patrol team only dares to set up an outpost on the edge of the mountain to monitor the movement." Eureka continued: "Not to mention the current situation. The situation is still tense, and every elector only cares about his own interests. The elector of Hawkerling and the elector of Ostermark have been scolding and accusing each other because of the trade dispute, and the two provinces have even risen to a state of hostility. Before the arrival of the emperor's special envoy, a certain scale of bloodshed had already occurred on the borders of the two provinces, and our emperor's majesty also suffered from it."
The first rule of witch hunters is to control information. Although each witch hunter is directly under the Church of Justice, they will also form a witch hunter guild and a small-scale religious order to share information with each other, and High-level witch hunters are also particularly concerned about the political trends of the empire.
"As soon as the foreign enemy was repelled, the electors fell into endless infighting again." Lallen sighed softly.
Deep in the central mountain range in the north of the empire, there is a brass fortress. This fortress is almost a gathering place and refuge for Chaos forces and sects in the empire. Historically, since the 'Wolf Emperor' Boris ascended the throne hundreds of years ago Since then, the Empire has assembled many troops to destroy the Brass Fortress, but they have all ended in vain, and the troops that went to attack have never returned.
The time for the two of them to talk, they were very close to the Three Rivers Village in the Baron of Draco.
"Is there any new news?" After spending some time briefly sorting out his thoughts, Lallen continued to ask.
"It may be the only events that can be called important." Eureka hesitated for a while, and then said to the baron: "Private news, the daughter of the White Wolf Elector Boris Todbringer, his second A child, Princess Sylina Toddbringer is about to have her coming-of-age ceremony, and it is expected that a grand coming-of-age banquet will be held in early summer, with the nearby provinces and old world nobles and noble ladies. When you received the invitation, it is no surprise that you are also one of the invited guests."
"Daughter of Elector Boris, I remember." Lyron recalled the family tree of the Elector, the daughter of the prestigious Elector, the titular Lady of Mjordenheim, who was indeed an important noble lady.
In the empire, the two most important noble ladies, one is the Grand Earl of Nunn, Emerina, the eldest daughter of the Elector of Wesson, and the other is Selina Todd, the daughter of the Elector of Midden Bollinger.
Rumor has it that the daughter of the Elector of the White Wolf is a mild-mannered young lady. Most people who meet the princess think that the Elector's daughter is beautiful and charming and an active socialite.
Laylen suddenly remembered something, and the baron stared at the witch hunter: "Miss Eureka, you said this is private news? The court of the elector has been infiltrated by the witch hunters guild? Such an important secret can be circulated. come out."
"You misunderstood, Baron, the size of the Witch Hunters Guild is far less than you imagined." Eureka looked sideways at the corner of the village, "My family elders and the elders of His Excellency the Elector's family have some intersections. Come down, it can be called a world friend, so Princess Selina and I are familiar with each other, and I also understand her situation."
Lyren asked in surprise: "What is Miss Eureka's family?"
"My full name is Yurika Ivan Petrovich, a nobleman of Kislev Boye, daughter of Slug Hov Petrovich, born in the Petrovich family of Prag, the eternal city." Eureka's reddish-brown eyes flashed with sadness, but it was fleeting, "It's just some old things, now, I'm just a witch hunter."
The witch hunter suddenly put one hand on the short fire gun tied around her slender waist. She never revealed her life experience to outsiders easily. She was wary of Baron Draco beside her for a while, and her brown-red eyes revealed a hint of coldness. meaning.
"It's no wonder you know the Elector's daughter." Lallen nodded, his tone very sincere, "However, I admire your past experience, from a Kislev nobleman's daughter to an imperial hunter. Witchman, a lot of sad things must have happened along the way."
Kislev, located in the extreme north of the old world, is also the first obstacle encountered by the Chaos warriors in the northern wasteland when they went south. During the fifth Chaos Destruction Expedition two hundred years ago, the human kingdom was almost destroyed.
More than a thousand years ago, the first ice queen led a nomadic people named Cossacks, through the Kurgan steppe, over the roof of the world mountains, to the old world and settled on the land of Kislev , Kislev is specifically located in the northeastern part of the empire, and is sandwiched between the Norsca wasteland and the country south of the Chaos Wasteland. It is also the northernmost order country in the old world, the frontier of destruction and order.
This wretched country is in a real bitter cold, where winter is shrouded all year round, and only a small amount of food crops can be sown during the brief three months of midsummer.
People living in Kislev basically rely on trade and nomads to obtain food. There are countless villages scattered across the huge country, but there are only three settlements in Kislev that can be called cities, namely the city that never falls - Pula. Grid, the ice-free harbor - Errengrad, the city of ice and snow - Kislev.
A sad country shrouded in pain and eternal frost.
".Hmm." Eureka nodded lightly and slowly released the gun in her hand.
Not long after, the two came to the granary outside the village. The charred marks on the dry grass and the residue left behind were all important clues. Lailun also sent soldiers to block off the nearby area in advance.
No one was around, Eureka took off her mask, her expression was very serious, the high-level witch hunter carefully observed the terrain around the remote granary, and after a while, she pointed to the forest east of the village: "Catch the During the process, they must have fled towards the deep forest in the east and hid in the forest farm. The blue light observed by the paladins in your territory should be a prelude to the teleportation of the magic scroll."
She squatted down, took off her gloves, and pinched the scorched black object on the ground with her long fingers. Eureka frowned, and she continued to analyze: "The texture of the residue on the grass is more like the skin, obviously it does not belong to the assassin. "
Lairn squinted his eyes and asked, "Those villagers who disappeared"
"They are already dead, from the moment they were kidnapped." Eureka stood up and clapped her hands, brushed off the charred residue from her fingertips, and put on the leather gloves again, "In the next few days, I will disappear for a while, and it will take a lot of energy to deal with these heretics."
"No problem, after completing the task, I will pay you a lot of copper coins." Lailun nodded, "By the way, if you find their whereabouts in towns or villages, try not to act too much. Regardless of the consequences, I can assure you that the subjects are innocent."
". There are no other orders. I'll leave first, baron." Eureka nodded lightly, put on her mask again, still looking like a stranger, and then led her horse and disappeared into the forest.
Adrian looked at the disappearance of the witch hunter and frowned: "What a strange woman."
"Witch hunters have been in contact with corrupted things for many years. They have seen far more abominable monsters than ordinary people. It is extremely rare to be able to keep their minds from being corrupted." Lailun sighed. Patted Adrian on the shoulder, "Let's go."
"Yes, Baron."
A few days later, an invitation letter from Boris Todbringer, Elector of Midden, was handed to Baron Draco by a white wolf knight, just as the witch hunter said. In the same way, the Elector planned to hold a grand banquet in the White Wolf Castle in Middenheim on the fourth day of prayer in May, and invited Lallen to attend.
As a baron in Middenland, Lallen has no reason to refuse the invitation of the elector, not to mention that the war has subsided, and there are needs everywhere. He participates in some social activities of the noble class, which helps to broaden his network and increase his right to speak. .
At the same time, Emperor Karl Franz sent a second batch of refugees, numbering 1,110.
The emperor's not only sent people, but a Rick-led trade convoy arrived at Oak Town together. The leader of the convoy was even an imperial general. The emperor's trade convoy brought three carts of magic ore, as well as several barrels for use. The fierce kerosene used in the production and development of the workshop is a commodity that Lailen desperately needs, and it is of great value. It is inevitable that the emperor will send an army to **** it.
Magic ore and fierce fire oil have always been listed as strictly controlled treasures in the empire. If you want to sell them, you must sign a special trade document signed by the emperor or the elector himself. , successfully getting Karl Franz to approve the shipping license, and in return, Lallen also exported a large number of unique resources and Lauren Loren wood elves medicines, accessories, handicrafts.
The imperial general who escorted the caravan went to Leyen on purpose, and conveyed some wishes of Emperor Karl Franz to expand the scale of trade.
Because Marienburg was gradually out of control, restricted by the prohibition of the sale of the knight kingdom and other reasons, the goods of elves were very popular, so he needed to buy more wood elves medicines from Lailen.
Lyren smiled politely and did not agree immediately, indicating that he would think about it again, and the imperial general could only return to Rick Land with a disappointed face.
Throughout the winter, the baron's army kept suppressing bandits and cleaning up the Beastmen's war gang. The danger in the Black Forest near the Baron of Draco has been greatly reduced, and many hunters have begun to go deep into the forest to hunt for ten miles.
In the vacant land opened up in the black forest during the slack season, simple residential houses, wooden fences, and wooden sentry towers were gradually built. A batch of refugees were also quickly absorbed and resettled in new villages in the forest. There was smoke from cooking everywhere, and the livestock in the corrals slowly increased.
Lauren also issued a new decree, as long as the local villagers participated in repelling the robbers and rogue knights, all the weapons, armor, and coins found would be owned by the villagers.
After that, those rogue knights who tried to take advantage of the lack of defense of the new villages and had the idea of looting were often discovered by the rangers or militia before they even started. After that, the rogue knights near the baron extinct.
Soon after the arrival of the second batch of refugees, the dwarves of the Stonebreaker clan who had joined the territory of Laeren also made important discoveries.
These gravel clan miners who live underground all the year round and are very familiar with the ore veins, out of their love for mining, the dwarf miners have deployed improvised explosive detonators. It was discovered that they accidentally found a large mine in the southwest of the baronial land, which was rich in iron, tin and other metal deposits, and even a few silver veins.
The baron quickly ordered that the entire mine be mined on a large scale. To this end, Lailun spent a huge sum of about 1,300 gold coins, and specially allocated fifty households to build a village and supporting facilities next to the mine. Dwarf mine facilities, three large cranes built by masons and craftsmen in the territory, and iron smelting furnaces are all available.
The entire gravel clan has invested in mining projects, and it is expected that the baronies will no longer rely on trade to obtain iron materials and achieve self-sufficiency.
The Dwarf Workshop on the River York also ushered in the third round of expansion.
Kag-Vara, a dwarf engineer of the Bronzebeard clan, restored the large hydraulic stamping and forging machinery in the legendary dwarven fortress torrent, more efficiently using the power provided by the large waterwheel, and almost doubled the production efficiency. Although the cost of each machine is high, Lailun still insists on the innovation of the workshops, and gradually bans the water-rolled stamping anvils in the workshops.
Everything is thriving.
And after a long period of preparation, the most important contest to select knights also kicked off.
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