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It is true that the number of troops and weapons must be steadily increased. However, no matter how much money Jisel earns and how much territory he develops, how much can he actually increase?

'It's nothing compared to the Duke's forces.'

If you only want to overthrow Earl Desmond, then just increasing your troops and weapons as Galvarik said would be fine. However, the troops operated by the Duke are different from those of other territories.

If you consider the troops of the lords and nobles who follow the Duke, the number easily exceeds hundreds of thousands.

It is impossible to prepare a force of similar size in a short period of time. So what?

'Every single one of us must fight like a hundred against one.'

Four hundred knights should be able to fight at least 40,000 enemies, or 100 times as many. One thousand soldiers should be able to fight more than ten thousand enemies.

However, the one who cannot guarantee victory is the Duke of Delphine.

'To do that, you need to raise your skills to the maximum and have the best equipment.'

This armor and helmet will be engraved with magic that will not only make it lighter, but also provide night vision, increased strength and agility, and environmental adaptation magic including temperature regulation.

The way to activate the magic circle is when the knights breathe mana into the rune stone. If you do this, you can use the equipment semi-permanently.

The same goes for the soldiers. They too will be equipped with weapons made of galvanium and undergo rigorous training to become elite.

'It may seem like a great army to others, but… … no matter how great an army I have, it will still be a minority compared to the Duke's family. In that case, I need to create a strong elite force.'

And it's not just the Duke that you have to deal with.

Galvarik muttered to himself as he looked over the documents.

"Sure, wearing this equipment will make you more powerful… … But is this really equipment made to fight people?"

No matter how I looked at it, it was excessive for dealing with people. It took too much technology and money.

Wearing something like this, it seemed like even a knight alone could easily take on an ogre.

Giselle chuckled at Galvarik's words.

"The enemies we're going to face are so strong. Well, I plan on catching even those that are scarier than humans later on. Anyway, this is really important, so do your job properly."

Galvarik nodded without asking any further questions at the words that seemed to hide something.

'Since so much money has been invested, I guess they're thinking of going on a monster hunt. Are they planning on going to that Demon Forest or something? But it would be cheaper to just use this money to recruit and train troops.'

In terms of efficiency, this was the worst kind of money-slinging.

'Where on earth do these distributions come from?'

Since you're still young, aren't you just being superficial and spending money like that?

Galvarik thought about it as he pleased and asked other questions.

"But why is the color black?"

Oddly enough, all the armor and helmets that Giselle ordered were black.

To make it black, special work must be done so that the armor does not lose its silvery sheen when worn. This costs more money, so it is rarely used except by certain groups.

"It's good for moving and making surprise attacks at night."

"… … Ah, yes. It suits you."

He's been fighting a lot lately, so he really seems to be crazy about fighting.

To increase combat efficiency, they are even thinking of covering the silver armor, the pride of knights, with black armor.

"Oh, and the symbolism isn't bad either. I remember wearing something black during the war and it was pretty effective."

During the Battle of Ferdium, Victor and Count Digald had seizures when the black unit appeared.

Certainly, the black armor might have been less elegant, but it was superior to the silver armor in terms of momentum.

"I see. As we increase our production of galvanium, we will also produce armor and helmets. The wizards will be getting annoyed again."

The wizards had no time to rest, rolling around the construction site every day and being called here and there whenever needed.

It was obvious that they would cause trouble again if they found out that their work had been added.

Jiselle spoke in a tone that seemed to suggest a kind gesture.

"Once the armor and helmets are finished being made, I'll give you the same vacation as before. The mass production of galvanium and the production of weapons are top priorities, so everyone should focus on that."

"Oh! Vacation? I see! Don't worry!"

The only pleasure in this territory is eating until you burst and taking a short rest. Galvarik and the dwarves have adapted perfectly.

"Always fast and sure. You know?"

"I understand… … . I heard you secretly nag a lot."

He had heard that sound so many times that it was almost tiresome. Galvarik grumbled and left.

Jiselle smirked as she watched Galvarik return. Galvanium will greatly increase the power of the territory.

The power of new materials was that great.

I don't know about Galvarik, but Jiselle was thinking of making other weapons using Galvanium.

Once completed, the concept of mobile warfare will change completely.

"Finish it quickly so we can move on to the next thing."

Jiselle smiled with an expectant expression.

* * *

"… … ."

Claude looked at the list of funds requested by the dwarves and remained silent for a long time.

He stared at the request blankly and simply approved it. The dwarves glanced at Claude several times as if they were surprised, then left.

Claude just closed his eyes and drank his tea without any reaction.

Wendy, who rarely spoke to Claude, couldn't help but find him so curious that she asked.

"Why… … did you just stay still?"

If it were normal, I would have caused a huge fuss and had a fight with the lord before he would have given me approval.

The reason for opposing it even though it was useless was to raise the lord's awareness even a little.

The lord was a man who spent money recklessly when he thought it was necessary. This meant that he should think about it at least once before spending.

But this time, they didn't do that, so I couldn't help but wonder.

Claude put down his teacup and answered with a peaceful smile.

"It's easier if you give up."

"… … ."

"What does it matter if this damn estate goes bankrupt or not? It's not even my money."

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"… … ."

If Giselle just pushes through, it's over, but after that, it's Claude's job to calculate and distribute the money and divide up the work.

No matter how much money he earned, the estate's finances were still tight, and every now and then, Claude felt like his head was going crazy from all the oiling.

Even if you don't have money, you have to do whatever the lord tells you to do. It was a truly crazy lord.

Other people were happy because they were paid a lot, but I, an unpaid slave, didn't have any of that. I thought I was going crazy.

"Ah! I wish there was another war! Why isn't Count Desmond here soon? Are you scared?"

If you're going to fail, you might as well fail quickly. Claude was going crazy like that.

Wendy looked at him with a rare look of pity, then changed the subject.

"Still, I think the alloy called Galvanium is amazing. It will increase the soldiers' combat power and make a big difference in people's lives."

"Yeah, I guess so. Now we're going to produce like crazy."

In the meantime, smelters and blacksmith shops have been built all over the territory. However, until now, they have hardly been used except for the bare minimum required to maintain the facilities.

This is because the plan was to start full-scale operation after creating the galvanium.

The blacksmiths also lived a bit more leisurely than the other craftsmen in the territory.

But now that Galvanium has been developed, all the smelters and forges will be busy.

The blacksmiths who first received galvanium from the dwarves were astonished.

"Wow, this is impossible! To create such an alloy!"

"As expected of dwarves!"

"There is a rumor that the lord taught me the technique."

It was truly an incredible alloy. A metal with a strength similar to iron but much lighter – something I had never dreamed of.

The blacksmiths were very excited when the dwarves said they would teach them the skills. Learning these skills was a great honor for a blacksmith.

Although they selected people who were trustworthy, they ultimately had to continue to hire people in order to mass produce.

And not everyone can be perfect. Some blacksmiths had a wicked idea.

'If I just learn this skill and go to another territory, wouldn't I be able to make a lot of money?'

No matter how much they pay, it is worse than selling the technology. In addition, since it is a technology that only they know, they can sell it exclusively in other territories.

People live in the same places all the time. When you have treasure right in front of you, you can't help but become greedy.

It is not difficult to learn a skill that has already been perfected. In a few days, several blacksmiths who have learned a new skill have begun to take notice.

'Now that the territory blockade has been lifted, wouldn't it be possible to escape the territory if we just make a good excuse?'

That idea was shattered as soon as I finished my technical training.

"who are you?"

"You have mastered the important techniques of the spirit world, so we will guard you for the time being."

'What kind of escort is this! It's surveillance!'

Two soldiers were assigned to each blacksmith under the pretext of escorting them. The blacksmiths had no choice but to give up running away. They had to be content with just receiving a high salary.

But the soldiers' obsession was too excessive.

"Hey! Stop following me! This is a bathroom!"

"Why are you watching me eat?"

"If you follow me to the washroom, people will misunderstand!"

It was so annoying that I couldn't even go to the bathroom with peace of mind because they followed me around like leeches. I couldn't even drink to my heart's content with my friends.

"It's too late, should we go home?"

"If you keep doing this and get drunk, it won't be good."

If you were too drunk to speak properly, they would quickly show up and drag you out by force. At night, two new soldiers would come and guard you until daybreak.

It was a little annoying, but not so much that I couldn't stand it. Anyway, it didn't feel bad to have a personal escort around.

But the blacksmiths felt somehow uneasy.

Galvanium is only produced in the large-scale smelting area near the castle. It is produced here and then shipped to each region.

And around this refinery there were several empty, very large, very nice, very nice houses.

"no way...."

Everyone just passed by without thinking much about it. But seeing the guards watching over me gave me an ominous feeling.

And after a while, their premonition came true.

"Honey! When did you buy such a nice house? I'm sorry for harassing you without even knowing how hard it was to save up money. And on top of that, they even gave us a security guard! When did you become so successful?"

"Wow! My dad is the best! This is our house now? It's really big!"

The child's mother said with a happy expression.

"Now that Dad works right next to us, we can get home right away after work. If Dad is busy, we can go and watch."

"Wow! I want to go watch my dad work!"

"… … ."

The blacksmiths who saw the faces of their joyful wives and children, or parents, lowered their heads. They realized that they could never escape now.

After finishing work, I was forcibly taken away, and without my knowledge, I had already moved into a new house.

My family was so happy that it was hard for me as the head of the household to say no.

The blacksmith's wife was so moved that she kept wiping away tears.

"Why did you suffer like an idiot without saying anything! You didn't even know he was that kind of man and got divorced… … No, no! In any case, I told you that there is no one better than your husband."

'No, please… … . I haven't done much work lately… … . Tell her you don't like this house. Tell her you want to go back home.'

Without knowing her husband's feelings, the wife let down her hair and looked at him with a provocative look.

"Just wait a minute. I'll wash up quickly."

"Hey, honey. What do you mean? Washing? Why?"

The blacksmith took a step back in fear.

Similar things happened in the homes of all the blacksmiths who were responsible for producing galvanium.

They could no longer leave the smelter area. Their homes were right next door. Even if they tried to sneak out somewhere to play, their families and soldiers would keep an eye out for them.

'Seriously… … this shit, this territory.'

Some blacksmiths didn't want to go home so they volunteered to work overtime instead of leaving work. This made the production of galvanium even faster.

The galvanium produced in this way was sent to blacksmiths in each region.

It wasn't just those who produced galvanium who had to suffer. Each region's blacksmiths also had to make weapons and tools for the people of the territory as soon as galvanium arrived.

The smelters and blacksmiths that had been almost at a standstill finally began to operate busily. The lights were kept on even at night.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Eww! Why is there so much work to do!"

The sound of hammering and the screams of blacksmiths could be heard throughout the territory.

The first items made were the soldiers' armor and weapons. Blacksmiths from all over the place joined in, and huge quantities were produced every day.

The soldiers who received the new armor looked dumbfounded.

"Full body plate armor? Did I get this wrong?"

"We are light infantry, not knights?"

"How can we wear something like this? We'll get tired of it quickly."

Usually, soldiers wear cloth armor stuffed with cotton. Even wealthy fiefdoms may provide breastplates or leather armor.

Because it was difficult to provide all soldiers with articles or equipment to wear, no matter how much money there was.

And no matter how thin and light it was made, soldiers were not capable of fighting while wearing metal armor.

However, everyone was shocked when they were given this type of armor regardless of their military branch.

"It's good, but… … . No matter how well it's made, it's still quite heavy for us to wear… … ."

The soldier who lifted the armor while muttering was so surprised that he couldn't continue speaking.

The armor was light, but it was too light.