Thanks to Zenbe’s participation in this war, a large number of the Orc mercenaries took our side. Their number was 3,680 and it was enough to establish a separate unit of their own. So, I appointed Zenbe as the commander of the Orc unit.
And there was more. Many Shikar warriors who opposed the rule of the Kingdom of Robros and wanted their independence were joining us. Also, I heard the news that Braham’s defeated troop of 1,400 soldiers led by the commander Akam were on their way to Kara.
They were still good soldiers who could help Kara for sure.
Bustling. Bustling.
Thousands of people gathered at the military training ground outside the castle. Most of them were sons of concubines in noble families or those who failed to become an heir in their families.
Their age range was from age 16 through age 35.
They looked strong and enthusiastic. Perhaps they had been training their skills for years.
As I stepped on the podium, a young man raised his hand and threw me a question.
“Sir! Are you really granting us the title of high nobility?”
In time of his own country’s crisis, this young man only cared about his own success and everyone looked unpleasant because of him. However, I really liked his attitude. I was not looking for a saint but rather a guy who would risk his life to become rich and successful. Those who came here only for the love of their country could not do the tasks assigned for my special force units. In fact, it was not possible for them to complete difficult tests and training at first.
I stared at him and then asked.
“What is your name?”
“Sir, my name is Nazir and I am from the ninth rank aristocrat family of Yusef.”
The ninth rank aristocrat was one of the lowest titles of nobility. They were like commanders of ten or fifty soldiers in the military.
“Nazir, it is not that people born in noble families must fight in a war. People who fight in war become noble. If you have the courage to fight in a war, you will become noble.”
There was a bright smile on Nazir’s face. Other young men also made hopeful faces. Since they were born in low-rank noble families and might become commoners soon, my message was a great hope for them.
Nazir raised his hand again.
“Sir, what do you want us to do now?”
“Hmm… why don’t you be quiet? Let me talk first.”
Nazir’s face turned red and everyone laughed out loud. Then I started speaking through a megaphone.
“Welcome everyone. I’ve got a lot of things to tell you but we don’t have much time right now so I will keep it short. The reason I’ve invited all of you here is to recruit special force members. Only well-qualified men will be allowed to join and training will be very difficult. But if you complete all the tests and training, you will become a tenth rank aristocrat or an even higher one. So, I hope all of you do your best.”
Suddenly, the whole crowd became noisy. Most young people here were from families lower than tenth rank aristocrats. And they were not the rightful heir of their families. But now, they got a chance to receive the same or even higher title than their father. Apparently, they all looked astonished.
Another young man quickly raised his hand and asked me a question.
“Sir, my name is Bayan and I am from the Jarifa Family. Are you really granting us the title of the tenth rank aristocrat?”
“Only if you guys can pass the test. And if you distinguish yourself on battlefields, you will be granted a higher title of nobility. For those who make huge contributions in this war, even the title of the first rank aristocrat could be granted.”
Everyone looked at me vacantly. In fact, there were only a handful of the first rank aristocrats in Kara and they were all from prestigious families. These young men simply could not believe that they had a chance to become one.
Nazir raised his hand again.
“Sir! Honestly, it is very difficult for us to believe your promise. How could we become the first rank aristocrats?”
“Kara is at war right now. If you win, you will have everything. If you lose, you will lose everything. We have enough titles to grant but we don’t have enough men to fight in the war. I promise you this. If anyone brings me the head of Duke Wastein, I will make him the Emir with a vast territory after the war.”
Obviously, it sounded crazy. Also, I was an outsider so it was difficult for them to believe everything I said. But what I said was actually true.
Kara was totally surrounded by enemies right now. Most states and cities in the Great Desert stayed neutral or took the side of the Kingdom of Robros. And a few days ago, both the Emir of Hussein and the Emir of Alf pledged allegiance to the King of Robros. Their territories were on the east side of Kara and it only took several days to get there.
If winning this war, Kara could have everything.
Nazir got tensed up.
“Sir, please tell us what to do.”
“First, you must pass the test. Exactly one month later, there will be a test. If you pass it, you will become the tenth rank aristocrat immediately.”
“Sir, what kind of a test is it?”
“We’re all gonna ride camels and keep circling around Kara Castle from sunrise to sunset. Anyone who doesn’t get caught by me until the sunset passes the test.”
The width of Kara Castle was 3km and its length was 3.1km. So, the perimeter was 12.2km. Even if we kept circling around the castle for the entire day, we would all be riding camels so it seemed like an easy test for them.
“Sir, are you trying to let all of us pass the test?”
“If you guys can travel 150km a day, you will pass the test. But you should know that I am very fast.”
Everyone opened their eyes wide. It was impossible for a human to travel 150km in one day.
“Sir, that’s impossible!”
“Actually, it’s possible. My soldiers in the past could do it. Besides, you guys are familiar with the area around the castle.”
“But sir….”
“The test will be given a month later. I don’t care how many camels you bring or what strategies you use. If you don’t get caught by me, you pass the test. If you have any questions, you can ask me when I stop by once a day. Then, good luck.”
After ordering dozens of military officers to train these young men, I left the place. Without my presence, they might be negligent of their training but I didn’t care about it.
For these young men, this war was actually the chance to gain both wealth and fame. Also, their lives were on the line. Given their circumstances, lazy and irresponsible ones were useless in battles anyway.
It’s not about the number of people who would pass the test. What I only wanted were soldiers doing their best every time.
* * *
When I walked inside the weapon development factory located in the Palace of Kara, I could see Armida working on the design of a weapon. She was developing a new mana weapon which I requested.
The name of this new weapon was Mana Cannon.
Mana Cannon was a long-range weapon used very effectively during the Era of Destruction. Its maximum range was 1.5km and it could give serious damage to large demons.
However, it was almost completely useless against Mana Swordsmen or Masters because they could dodge shots easily.
“Hey sis, what do you think?”
Armida sighed deeply.
“I think it looks okay but I’m not quite sure that I should make this weapon.”
“How come?”
“I am a Valkyrie. I should not distribute this kind of new weapon in the human world.”
“Actually, it was used in the human world before although it’s not well-known now.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to learn how to make it.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
I sat on the sofa and then asked.
“By the way, when will it be done?”
“It will be done pretty soon because it’s not difficult to make it. But the thing is, we need a large quantity of Essence. Do you think you can get them?”
With a low-grade Essence, Mana Cannon only could make one shot.
Unlike magic grenade launchers of which accuracy was pretty good enough, it was very difficult even for trained soldiers to hit the target accurately with a Mana Cannon. That’s why Mana Cannon was usually made with a medium-grade Essence so it could make up to nine shots. But the problem was the expensive price and rarity of medium grade Essence.
Moreover, there was a shortage of Essence in Kara lately. I used two high-grade Essences when making my Survival Kit #2 and #3. Many Essences were also used in manufacturing magic grenade launchers which I sold to aristocrats and local influentials in Kara.
Razal was doing his best to get as many Essences as possible but it was unlikely for him to get enough amount that we needed. But I had a plan.
“Yeah, we’ve got plenty of them.”
“Where?”
“In most households, there are some items made with Essence. There’s one in our office as well. I bet there are a lot of items made with Essence in houses of rich people and aristocrats. Also, there should be quite plenty of Essence in magic item manufacturing factories.”
Kara was the center of trade and commerce in the continent and also the richest city in the world. Thanks to their wealth, many rich people in Kara could purchase magic items. Not surprisingly, a number of magic item manufacturing factories were built as well.
We could certainly get a lot of Essences from them.
“Do you think they will give their Essences to us?”
“They have no choice. Otherwise, their families will die in the war. They will also lose all their wealth after losing the war. Of course, there could be some resistance so we might have to pay some money to them.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
As she got back to her work, I sat down and took my ledger out of my Subspace Pocket because I had to check the number of other weapons.
’452 pieces… I have 148 pieces at home so the total would be around 600 pieces.’
During the past few weeks, I earned 14,421 riffs of gold while doing consultations for aristocrats and local influentials in Kara. From book sales and consultations, I made 4,521 riffs of gold and the rest of the earnings came from the sales of magic grenade launchers.
But those magic grenade launchers I sold were actually something I must take back later. Although the number of shots that magic grenade launchers could make was very limited and their shooting range was also very short, their accuracy and firepower were great. Thus, it would be a waste if they were kept in households.
At that moment, Uddin came inside the weapon development factory.
“Master, I’ve been looking for you.”
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Sir, we’ve got a problem.”
“What problem?”
“We’re short of copper right now so we can’t produce weapons as much as we want.”
Copper was a very important material in producing arrowheads and crossbows. Although it was possible to produce arrowheads with iron in a pinch, copper was irreplaceable when manufacturing crossbows. The essential part of crossbows had to be made with copper which was easy to cast and didn’t often get rusty like other metals.
I took some coins out of my pockets.
“Use these. Coins are made of copper alloy which is also used for war supplies.”
“So where can we get these coins?”
“Collect all the coins from people in Kara and tell them we will repay later. They probably have a lot of coins in their home. People don’t use cheap coins often.”
“I understand, sir.”
“And melt all those bronze statues in the castle as well as beer mugs made of copper in bars and rich people’s houses.”
“I got it, sir.”
At the moment when Uddin was about to leave, I added one more thing.
“And by the way.”
“Yes?”
“Haven’t the Yosrahim Empire contacted you guys?”
“Not yet, sir.”
“Really?”
“Yes, sir.”
Seriously, the Yosrahim Empire wasn’t capable of understanding the current situation without me? They were not doing anything about what their enemies were doing.
The Kingdom of Robros was the second strongest country in the Prosia Continent and about to grow into an empire. If they kept conquering other countries and expanding their territories, the Yosrahim Empire would be in serious trouble. Therefore, the Yosrahim Empire should support countries invaded by The Kingdom of Robros.
However, they didn’t even contact Kara yet. Even if the Yosrahim Empire and Kara didn’t share borders, it was a very irresponsible and stupid attitude.
They could at least send one or two cavalry units through the portal.
While it could be possible for the Robros army to occupy the portal tower and capture all the cavalry units coming out of the portal, it was very unlikely to happen.
Portal towers were co-owned by the Four Magic Towers. Thus, the Kingdom of Robros could not occupy their towers because the Sage Sam would not turn a blind eye. He was the Governor of the Four Magic Towers and the only 9-Tier Wizard in this world. All wizards and magicians in the continents revered him as their leader.
“Go to the Yosrahim Empire and ask them to send at least Viscount Gordon from the Grand Duke Rupert Family and the Candle Cavalry Unit here in Kara. We’re the ones in trouble so we should ask first.”
The reason why I mentioned Viscount Gordon and the Candle Cavalry Unit was they had never seen my face before. So, they didn’t know my true identity. Viscount Gordon was a low-level Master Swordsman and he joined the Grand Duke Rupert Family this spring. Meanwhile, the Candle Cavalry Unit was never dispatched outside the territory of the Grand Duke Rupert Family.
“Sir, do you think the Yosrahim Empire will help us? I don’t think they’re…”
“If they refuse, you can just bluff. Tell them there are rumors everywhere that the Kingdom of Robros will declare itself as an empire after their conquest of the Great Desert. Then people in the Yosrahim Empire will certainly get concerned.”
I could see a subtle smile on Uddin’s face.
The biggest concern of the Yosrahim Empire was the Kingdom of Robros growing into an empire. If one more empire was built in the Prosia Continent, the influence which the Yosrahim Empire exerted over the entire continent would significantly diminish.
Given their circumstances, the Yosrahim Empire must take action. If not, it would lose its influence over other states and the Kingdom of Robros would eventually become an empire.
“Sir, why don’t we actually spread such a rumor?”
“That’s not a bad move. We should spread the rumor.”
“Yes, sir.”
After he left, I stared at the ceiling in silence.
The Robros army would arrive at Kara four months later because they still had to finish establishing their supply lines and take care of other issues. So, Kara had some time to prepare for war.
And if withstanding the attack of the Robros army four months later, Kara would have a chance to win this war.