Game of Thrones: I am Dothraki, not a barbarian

Chapter 187 Artillery Workshop
Barristan rubbed his wrist. "I will not surrender to barbarians, Your Highness."

His gaze fell upon the green dragon, which was circling above his head, emitting a sharp cry.

“Rygod.” Daenerys called softly, and the green dragon flew back and perched at her feet, but its black vertical pupils were fixed on Barristan.

"I never imagined you would name a dragon after Rhaegar. I never thought I'd see you again..."

Barristan's eyes were already moist halfway through his sentence. After a long pause, he composed himself.
"Is the green dragon meant to commemorate the heroic battle fought on the banks of the Green Fork River?"

"You are the first person to accurately pinpoint the origin of the name Lei Ge."

Daenerys smiled. "You once swore allegiance to my father, why not consider continuing your oath?"
But you don't need to jump to conclusions so quickly. I'll allow you to move freely in Pentos.

Look at this city, compare it, is King's Landing better, or Pentos?

"your Highness……"

Barristan said in a deep voice, “Thank you for your generosity. I am loyal to House Targaryen.” His gaze returned to the four dragons. “Seeing them, I feel as if I have returned to that era, the era when the Targaryen dragon riders ruled the skies.”

"Robert Baratheon pardoned you and gave you the opportunity to continue serving as a member of the Kingsguard, and you accepted."

Lahalo reopened his wounds, showing that if you're going to play the bad cop, you have to be prepared to be.

“I accept it,” Barristan admitted, a hint of helplessness in his voice. “It’s a stain on my life and my biggest regret.”

“My father,” Daenerys paused, “people say he’s gone mad.”

A flicker of pain crossed Barristan's eyes.

“King Aerys was a promising monarch in his youth. But as he grew older, he became suspicious and cruel.” He paused. “After the Battle of the Trident, things got even worse.”

Daenerys had never met her father, and now, standing before her was someone who had lived through that history.

"Where is Prince Rhaegar?" Daenerys asked in a low voice. "My brother?"

Barristan's eyes lit up as countless memories flooded back to reality. "Prince Rhaegar was the noblest man I've ever met. He was intelligent, brave, and compassionate. His harp playing was masterful, and his swordsmanship was unmatched! If he could succeed to the throne..."

The old knight said no more; all his unspoken words were ultimately reduced to a sigh.

A look of longing flickered in Daenerys's eyes, and the green dragon Rhaegal seemed to sense her emotions, letting out a low growl.

Just then, Nana squeezed through the crowd, gave Barristan a deep look, and then turned to Laharo. "Commander, Lord Tormo of the Lafors Iron Treasury requests to see you. He has been waiting here for more than ten days."

Lahallo sneered, "Tell Tolmo I'll see him again at the beginning of next month."

The reason Thormo was made to wait was because the artillery workshop that Lahalo had ordered to be built before he went to the Stormlands had already been completed.

...

The artillery workshop was built in the same valley as the gunpowder workshop, far from the crowds, heavily guarded, and highly secretive, but close enough to Gedho to facilitate artillery transport and reinforcement in case of emergency.

As soon as Lahalo entered the heavily guarded valley, he was hit by a strong, acrid smell of charcoal mixed with molten iron. Inside the artillery workshop, a dozen or so workers were busy at work. Lahalo turned to Baqu, "Have Lutos and Corvo of Kohor bring all the blacksmiths to see me."

Baqu waved his hand, and several soldiers immediately ran in all directions to gather the craftsmen.

Before long, more than ten craftsmen stood before Lahallo, led by Lutos, a mechanic who made engineering machinery for Lahallo, and Corvo, a blacksmith who knew how to recast Valyrian steel.

The former was responsible for the molds, and the latter for the smelting.

“Commander-in-Chief, according to your brilliant vision, I have designed a set of iron molds,” Lutos said with a delighted expression, squatting down and spreading a thick stack of blueprints on the ground.

"First, divide the cannon into 6 sections to make a clay cannon model of the same design. Then, divide them into six equal parts and make iron molds for each part. Each iron mold is divided into two halves and the inner surface is polished smooth and flat."

Lajalo listened quietly, nodded, and gestured for Lutos to continue.

"After the iron mold is made, the inner surface is brushed with soot and coal powder. Then the iron mold is tightened, heated, and the clay core is assembled. Finally, molten iron is poured in. After the molten iron solidifies, the iron mold is removed immediately. While the cannon is still red-hot, the burrs are removed and the clay core is removed to obtain an extremely smooth cannon."

Lahalo nodded. Lutos was a mechanic, after all, more knowledgeable than him. He was able to conjure up so much from just a preliminary concept, which showed his rich experience.

Lahalo gave him a thumbs-up and said, "Great! I'll give you a month to make the first iron mold and cast the first twelve-pound cannon."

If we succeed, each person will be rewarded with fifty golden dragons. If we fail, it's alright; this is an unprecedented feat. There's a saying that failure is the mother of success. We can try a few more times; we have plenty of time.

At that moment, Jiku came over and said, "Kao, the crude steel billets from Velvet Iron Ore have arrived."

Lajalo nodded. "Perfect. Corvo, send someone to receive it. Remember, this batch of steel can only be used to make iron molds; no one is allowed to use it for any other purpose."

For the next month, the artillery workshop operated day and night, and Lutos led a group of craftsmen to begin making the first set of iron molds.

However, this unprecedented feat also brought unprecedented difficulties to the craftsmen.

The group painstakingly built a clay cannon, and then used it to create the two halves of each section of the iron mold.

The craftsmen made repeated adjustments to ensure that the joints of each section of the iron mold fit perfectly, preventing molten iron from leaking and ensuring that the cannon body would not be damaged during demolding.

Lahaluo would come to the artillery workshop every few days to check on the progress. Baqu was also sent there by Lahaluo to learn professional knowledge related to artillery.

People from the Summer Islands are born with the ability to shoot arrows, but not necessarily to handle cannons. However, Lahalo believes that since he is shooting anyway, the Cupid, whom the Summer Islands worship, will surely bless him with unparalleled accuracy.

Everything is interconnected; this is called making the best use of everything.

Now, this sergeant major of the Shield of Pentos spends his days wandering around the construction site, and his theoretical knowledge of iron smelting and gunpowder has surpassed that of most soldiers.

Finally, on the twenty-seventh day, the first complete iron mold was completed.

This is a set of molds used to cast twelve-pound cannons. It consists of eight sections, each with two halves, plus a muzzle, breech, and core mold. The inner surface is carefully polished to a smooth, mirror-like finish.

(End of this chapter)