"My Lord, I have a question..." Hanske, the head of the statistical department, stood up. "If we are to build a city wall over twenty miles long, a river embankment nearly a hundred miles in length, and a seaport, while also clearing the magical beasts from the Blackmire Swamp in our territory as you've described, this will be a project of enormous consumption and long duration. How much manpower and material resources will the family commit to this? How will these resources be allocated?"
This seaport plan has profound implications for our family's growth and strength. Regarding the investment of all necessary resources, both manpower and material, the family is resolute. We will spare no effort, committing everything we have to support this construction and development. No matter how long it takes, we will complete this strategic deployment. Now, would
At the back of the hall, Master Siroba and the dark-skinned Sangen stood up.
Perhaps because of his busy work, or perhaps because Lady Tristity pitied Master Siroba's situation and assigned him two handmaidens, Master Siroba was well looked after. His complexion looked good, and he no longer had the panicked, uneasy feeling he'd had when he first met Lorist. Although still a bit reserved, he was now calm and composed even under the curious gaze of the many people in the hall.
As for Sangen, this talent promoted by Lady Tristity from the first batch of two thousand slave laborers from the Kemaies family had already earned Lorist's trust through a series of construction projects: defensive works and wall residential zones for the Fengley Plains' farming villages and central towns. This was the first time both he and Master Siroba were attending a
"We must thank Master Siroba and Mr. Sangen," Lorist continued. "Under the protection of the guard battalion, they spent over half a year meticulously surveying the Blackmire Swamp on our territory and the area around the Blademount Range's estuary. During this time, they encountered life-threatening dangers on several occasions. But their efforts have provided us with the steps and methods to realize this strategic plan for our family's future.
Starting today, we will establish a construction engineering department. Master Siroba will head it, with Mr. Sangen as his deputy, responsible for all engineering and construction projects within this seaport plan. All family departments are to cooperate with their construction plans." Lorist gestured for Master Siroba and Sangen to sit. Now that everyone in the hall had been introduced to them, there was no need for them to keep standing.
Lorist pointed at the map again with his wooden stick. "We plan to spend five years gaining control of this Blackmire Swamp, laying a solid foundation for the implementation of this strategic objective. This year, we will advance on three fronts simultaneously. Everyone, look. The first front runs from Oniog Hill to Turtleshell Mountain. The key point here is to complete the initial construction of the Oniog Hill fortress-castle, prepare the foundation for the twenty-mile-long city wall extending to Turtleshell Mountain, clear the surrounding area of Turtleshell Mountain, and establish a guard garrison."
The second route runs through the middle of this Blackmire Swamp. We'll use the method of laying roads and filling in earth and stone to build a road leading to this highland hill area by the coast.
The third route is here, at the Blademount Range. We'll quarry stone and dig earth here, filling in all the gullies and swamps between the Blademount Range's highlands and the hills along the Blue Cang River's estuary. We'll fill in the shallow reef area stretching dozens of meters offshore and connect it with the great bay. This will be the place where our family fleet sets sail for the open seas."
Lorist shook his head with a bitter smile. "This plan demands a virtually incalculable amount of manpower, resources, and every asset our family can muster. But as long as we take that first step and press on with unwavering resolve, the day will come when it's realized. Whether it takes ten years or twenty, we will accomplish this strategic objective. Once we possess this sea port, we will possess a brilliant tomorrow!"
"Old Dad
Old Dad Balek rose to his feet and declared with iron resolve, "Rest assured, my Lord. I will complete this task. I too look forward to the day when our family fleet, with the Banner of the Furious Bear flying high, sets sail upon the waves..."
Lorist laughed. "Where there's a will, there's a way. That day will come. As long as we work hard, no goal is beyond our reach."
Lorist's gaze returned to the map. "Everyone now understands the family's future strategy, and you're all familiar with the three-pronged plan for developing this Blackmire Swamp. For security, the Chariot Battalion will serve as the main force for sweeping the swamp of magical beasts — the Iron-Spined Bay Crocodiles. The rest of the family's armed forces will contribute all swordsmen and Family Knights at the Silver rank or above, organized into squads to escort and protect the Chariot Battalion.
As for the manpower arrangements across the three routes — the roads in the fertile Happy Plains of our territory are now essentially complete. I've decided that those thirty-odd thousand captives, minus those assigned to mining and labor duties, will all be put toward the development of the Blackmire Swamp..."
"Wait, my Lord, there's a key matter you've forgotten." Steward Codan, who oversaw personnel, stood up.
"What is it?" Lorist asked.
"Lord, when you first addressed those thirty-odd thousand captives, you promised them freedom after three years of labor. By this May, their three-year terms will be up, and we'll have to release them…" Steward Codan said.
"Uh…" Lorist slapped his palm to his forehead. "My apologies, I did forget. Thank you for the reminder. So these captives have only two months of service left?"
"Yes, my Lord. Perhaps we could extend it by another year or two…" Steward Codan suggested.
"There's no need. A promise made must be kept. This is a matter of noble honor and a family's integrity — we cannot go back on our word. Have those thirty-odd thousand captives finish tidying up the roads they were responsible for, and give them more leisure time for the rest of their stay," Lorist said.
"But my Lord, some of the captives have had their relatives relocated here by us, and others have expressed a desire to remain in our family's territory. They even hope to bring their families over. Among them, some who have awakened
"Then here's what we'll do: those willing to stay, let them stay; those whose families are already here, send them home. For those who want to bring relatives here, register their information and see if we can help. The Happy Plains are now stable, and we should treat these captives equally — provide housing where housing is needed, distribute farmland where farmland is due, help those with crafts find work, and offer loans to those who want to open shops or workshops. We must not look down on them simply because they were once our captives. Understood?" Lorist decided.
"My Lord, what about those who want to join our family's armed forces?"
"As long as they meet our recruitment age requirements and have awakened Combat Force, we'll take them. Those at Iron rank can go through three months of training at the boot camp and then be assigned to different branches based on their specialties…"
"My Lord, I was just about to report this to you — from last year to now, over five thousand soldiers in the boot camp who were previously eliminated for not having awakened Combat Force have done so after more than half a year of cultivation. They're now requesting to join the active forces…" Beruniek stood up.
Lorist knew that while he had required every active Family Knight to be at Iron rank in Combat Force, three-quarters of the nearly fifty thousand men across sixteen camps had not yet met that standard. Most were still at Bronze rank. So he had each unit commander organize fixed daily cultivation and training for these Bronze-rank soldiers, so they could advance to Iron rank as quickly as possible.
When the family's armed forces were reorganized, over ten thousand soldiers around the age of twenty who had not yet awakened Combat Force had been discharged. They were all assigned to the boot camp to undergo training for Combat Force awakening. Who would have thought that in just over half a year, so many soldiers would have awakened their Combat Force.
After some consideration, Lorist felt that there was little point in keeping these soldiers who had awakened Combat Force in the boot camp any longer. It would be better to assign them to active units.
"I'll tell you what," said Lorist. "The chariot battalions play a major role in developing the Blackmud Marshes, so let's add two more chariot battalions. That makes five in total — fifteen thousand men. We'll form them into a single chariot corps. Golden Knight Mons Malek, hand over your duties overseeing the patrol squadrons in the seven central towns of Fengley Plains to someone else. You'll take command of the chariot corps as its corps commander. Dolles will serve as your deputy."
Malek, expressionless as ever, rose to his feet. "Yes, my Lord."
Dolles also stood up. He knew that at his rank of Silver Three Stars, he was already having trouble keeping the veterans in check across three chariot battalions. Pride in their accomplishments, constant griping and grumbling — it was more than he could handle. Adding two more battalions would be even worse. Lorist bringing over Malek, known as "Iron Face," to serve as corps commander likely meant he had caught wind of these problems and wanted to tighten discipline in the chariot battalions.
So Dolles felt no sense of loss. Instead, he said with genuine sincerity, "My Lord. I will do everything in my power to assist Knight Malek in managing the chariot corps."
Lorist nodded. "This will be the family's first formal corps. I have high expectations for both of you."
"Rest assured, my Lord." Malek and Dolles snapped to attention and saluted.
Lorist turned to Beruniek. "If the number of soldiers recruited from among the prisoners reaches two battalions' worth, assign one battalion each to the Ironclad Lancers and the Heavy Infantry. However, they must complete three months of basic training at the boot camp first — only after they have learned our family's regulations and military discipline should they be assigned to active units."
"Understood, my Lord," Beruniek replied.
Bodenfinger and Ross also rose to their feet. "Thank you, my Lord."
"You two shouldn't be idle either. Pull a batch of veterans from the troops to serve as instructors at the new recruit camp, assisting Knight Beruniek in completing the recruits' basic training. Especially you, Boge — the ten-man squad coordinated assault formation training your heavy infantry has been running is proving very effective, and I'm quite satisfied. But you need to train even more, identify any shortcomings, and improve upon them."
"Yes, my Lord. We'll do our best," Bodenfinger replied.
"...on the journey toward our future and destiny," Lorist said.
"My Lord, why not conscript labor from the settlers of Fengleyuan? Out of five hundred thousand settlers, we could easily conscript a hundred thousand free laborers — all we'd need to do is feed them..." Telman stood up. He felt that having members of his knights' order participate in such development work was deeply embarrassing.
Lorist's expression turned grim. He swept his gaze across everyone in the hall, then fixed his eyes on Telman. "I want everyone to understand one fundamental truth. In the Norton Family, our armed forces are not the lord's instruments for oppressing the settlers, nor are they elevated masters superior to the common folk. They should be the protectors of the territory. The settlers' most trusted — and even more importantly, the builders of the territory. They are the lord's most precious and most relied-upon force. Whether facing mountains of blades or seas of fire, charging into the fray or holding the line, they should be the most steadfast executors.
Would doing manual labor to contribute to the prosperity of the family territory really be beneath your dignity? At this moment, I want every Family Knight and every common soldier alike to be a builder of the territory. Decades from now, you will be able to point proudly at the bustling cities and the prosperous farmlands and tell your children and grandchildren: it was you who turned a barren wasteland into what it is today; it was you who shed blood and sweat to transform the Black Clay Swamp into a paradise on earth...
As your lord, I will stand at the very forefront among you. I will work just like an ordinary family soldier, making my own contribution to our family's tomorrow..."
"My Lord, stop — I was wrong. I will become the finest territory builder there is," Telman said, sitting down in shame.
"In truth, Telman has a point. Many people think the same way — why not conscript the settlers for labor?" Lorist paused for a moment, then continued. "It's not that we refuse to conscript the settlers. Rather, the settlers of Fengleyuan have only just begun to settle down, and they simply can't withstand that kind of upheaval. We of the Norton Family cannot afford to think only of the short term. As everyone knows, we have just repelled the beast tide. Next, we need to distribute land and reclaim the wastelands, turning Fengleyuan into the family's granary and supply base.
Next year we will begin levying taxes on these settled subjects, so this year we would rather endure some hardship ourselves to ensure a peaceful life for those who have followed us to the family's territory. Furthermore, aside from criminals and prisoners of war, the Norton Family will not conscript any of our settlers for labor. We can instead hire them during the agricultural off-season to contribute to development projects by paying them wages. We will absolutely not consume the goodwill and manpower of our territory's population under the pretense of mandatory labor service. This is my resolve as a lord..."
The great hall fell silent for a moment, then erupted into enthusiastic applause.
"My Lord, thank you for your benevolence." Family Knights from commoner backgrounds, like Xiangbodefenge, stood up one after another and bowed in respect to Lorist.
"Very well. The general policy has been decided. Now let me address some personnel arrangements within the family. The seven central towns in Fengleyuan will establish administrative departments, which will fall under the newly formed Family Administrative Council. The head of the Administrative Council will be Knight Shrade, and the deputy head will be
"Mr. Kamora, please stand up," said Lorist.
The former Baron Kamora, now serving as deputy head of the personnel department, stood up.
"I am appointing Mr. Kamora as the head of the new Family Department of Armaments. From today onward, the family's civil administration and military affairs will be separated. All weapons and equipment, provisions and supplies, and even the pay and rations for our family's soldiers will be managed, stored, and distributed by the Department of Armaments. Everyone knows that Master Xi has forged a type of steel armor superior to the standard equipment of the White Lion Legion. Therefore, Mr. Kamora's first priority upon taking charge of the department will be to upgrade the equipment for each battalion of the family's armed forces. Please be patient; your turn will come soon," Lorist said with a smile.
"Meeting adjourned. Department heads and battalion commanders, please remain behind. Everyone else, take a rest day tomorrow. The day after tomorrow, we march to the Black Mud Swamp to begin the great development project. I hope that in the process of building and developing our family's territory, we will all work together with one heart and score new merits for the family."
"Yes, My Lord!"…
…(To be continued.)