Wizard Farming Guide

Chapter 18 The Round Table

With the issuance of the royal decree to expand the territory, several members of the royal family, including the third prince, had already led their knights to this location.

In addition, the sons of nobles throughout the kingdom seized the opportunity and, with the support of their families, formed armies and arrived within the duchy's borders.

In a short time, a large number of external forces were stationed inside and outside the Duanlong Fortress.

For the top nobles who were familiar with the kingdom's situation, they were well aware of the reasons why the king issued the decree to expand the kingdom.

In addition to calling on the knights to go to the North to prepare for a new round of war in the North.

More importantly, it is likely to be a defense against the Northern Frost Principality.

In the name of the Expansion Order, the Grand Duke of Northern Frost was unable to refuse entry to the Dragon-Slaying Fortress by various forces.

At the same time, he stationed a large number of soldiers outside and established an independent territory that was not under the control of the Northern Frost Duke, thus constantly weakening his control over the Dragon Fortress.

Faced with such a blatant threat, the Grand Duke did not hold back and directly doubled the tax rate of the fortress.

In the northern wilderness, the knightly orders that venture out to conquer new territories require a continuous supply of resources from within the kingdom, including large quantities of food, ironware, clothing, and other necessities.

This attracted merchant groups from all over the kingdom, who wanted to make a fortune.

When they passed through the Broken Dragon Fortress, they never expected that they would be the ones who were drained dry first.

The long-standing conflicts between the two nobles have become increasingly acute, but they are masked by the Grand Duke's powerful fortress army.

Rhodes knew that his position here was awkward, pleasing neither side.

However, in the past, the preference was still somewhat towards the kingdom's nobles.

But now that he's being treated so well at the city gates, those nobles of the kingdom will probably have quite a few complaints about him.

The issue of his identity is not something he can resolve right now, and Rhodes is temporarily unsure of the Grand Duke's attitude towards him.

After having his subordinates deliver a letter of inquiry to the other party, he didn't pursue the matter further.

He led his troops to an open area outside the fortress and set up camp there.

As is customary, half of the soldiers, squires, and knights are given half a day off to relax in the city, while the other half manage the camp.

After half a day, the returning soldiers took turns resting.

Rhodes himself walked down the street with Lily and two knights as attendants.

He needs to establish supply channels here and sign agreements with relevant chambers of commerce to ensure smooth expansion in the future.

The population of the Northern Frost Duchy is very complex, mainly consisting of three parts: the various barbarian tribes that have submitted, a large number of former soldiers who have settled here, and the pioneering immigrants who have been relocated here.

This makes the urban atmosphere of the duchy quite different from the rest of the kingdom, which is especially evident in Dragon's Lair.

Young women with tanned skin can be seen everywhere on the streets.

They wore furry clothing made of animal skins, and many even boldly wore vests and shorts, exposing the skin of their arms and thighs.

Besides their wildly alluring figures and skin, Rod noticed the streamlined muscles in their limbs.

The women here are generally strong and therefore have a status comparable to that of men.

Is it because of magic? Rhodes guessed that as he continued north, the concentration of magic was gradually increasing.

Although still sparse, the amount of resources at Dragonbreaker Fortress is now twice that of the kingdom's interior.

Rod picked up a fruit from a roadside fruit stand. It was as big as a washbasin, and the large, bright red fruit looked very tempting.

Although food is difficult to grow in the North, there are many strange and unusual plants and fruit trees, and they are cheap.

If this rare, large fruit were sold to a nobleman within the kingdom, it would fetch at least one silver coin.

Lily, who was beside her, asked the merchant about the price, but it only cost 2 copper coins.

Seeing Lily hand the money to the merchant, Rod took a bite of the fruit out of curiosity.

Ugh, it has absolutely no nutritional value and it's so sour. No wonder it's so cheap, and the merchant kept praising how delicious it was. He's being ripped off like a tourist.

Rod's expression remained unchanged. Seeing Lily staring at the fruit with curiosity, he handed it to her.

"Would you like to try some?"

"Oh, is that okay?" Lily happily took it and took a big bite.

As a result, her face instantly scrunched up, looking like she was really annoyed by the sourness.

Are you possessed by white bread?

Rod looked at her speechlessly, never expecting her to take such a big bite.

I got a cup of honey water from a nearby shop, and after she swallowed it with great effort, I put it to her lips.

Looking at the cup handed to her, Lily blinked, then hugged the large fruit tightly with both hands and brought her lips to the cup.

Seeing that Rod was actually willing to feed her, she blushed and began to drink it in small sips.

The large fruit was disdainfully piled in the garbage heap, and the group crossed the street.

After learning about the various specialties of the North, Rhodes arrived at the outside of a tall, three-story stone building.

Thanks to Sword Mausoleum's strategic location at the choke point of shipping, Duke Bert has influence in major cities throughout the kingdom.

The transport guild that stands before us, built on the site of the Broken Dragon Fortress, is one such example.

Although Rhodes had no authority to command them, securing their cooperation under favorable conditions was not a problem.

On the first floor of the Chamber of Commerce, there was a large notice board, and many people gathered in front of it, exclaiming in surprise.

Five days ago, the Third Prince's Griffin Knights defeated the Tiger Chieftain tribe near the Agate River, killing more than ten barbarian warriors.

"The Round Table Council has gained another non-seat knight, Sir Walter, the second son of Count Milo of the Faro River, who arrived at Dragonslayer Fortress yesterday."

"Jonner, the third seat at the Round Table and a knight of the Golden Wheat Family of the Southern Great Plains, has issued a call to action: any knight interested in joining his order should contact him at any time; generous rewards await."

『.』

"It's really lively here." Rhodes exclaimed from the back of the crowd, looking at the information on the notice board.

He looked at the words "Round Table Council" written on it, which was a large alliance formed by the knights who came to explore the land.

We should look out for each other, help each other, and share resources.

Only leaders of recognized and powerful knightly orders are eligible to be invited to become members of the Round Table Council.

Well, Rod isn't inside. Nobody has come to see him yet, and I doubt anyone will.

Ignoring that, Rod discussed his upcoming orders with the person in charge after they arrived.

The harvest of high-quality barley takes two months. During this period, he needs to rely on the Chamber of Commerce to ensure the supply of food for logistics, as well as tools for land reclamation and construction.

"Dark bread at 12 copper coins a pound." Rhodes looked at the price with some doubt.

Compared to the Gold Sword Territory, which costs 4 copper coins per pound, this is three times more expensive. However, grain in the Northern Frost Duchy is already expensive, generally costing 10 copper coins per pound.

This price is actually low considering the increased taxes at the Dragon Fortress.

Buying wheat flour directly is even cheaper; these merchants are losing money to do business.

"This is the price of grain transported from the southern plains. The Grand Duke did not impose additional taxes on the grain and goods of the nobles there."

The person in charge lowered his voice and explained, "Similarly, the same applies to the sugar and spices from Donghai Port, and the timber and bricks from Jinjian Territory."

Rhodes suddenly realized that the increased taxes at the Dragon Fortress were an artificial creation of an industry monopoly.

This large group of pioneering knights could only buy food from the nobles of the southern plains; other noble merchants would only lose money if they participated, and the same applied to other commodities.

It seems that behind the seemingly harmonious relationship among the kingdom's nobles lies a web of hidden problems and mutual distrust.

If we are united, there is absolutely no need to reach such an agreement with the Grand Duke of Northern Frost to gain benefits from our allies.

Then I remembered the grain smuggling route within the kingdom that ran from south to north, connecting the northern barbarians.

Rhodes shook his head. The once mighty kingdom that reigned supreme in the North was now decaying beneath its prosperous surface.

(End of this chapter)