The Witcher World: The Path to Domination Begins in Velen

A week later, on the morning the waterwheel started turning, the sound of the water flowing at the narrowest point of the river changed.

No longer just the low rumble of rushing through the river, but also mixed in a rhythmic impact sound, the dull thud of heavy objects hitting the anvil, once every few seconds, as steady as a heartbeat.

Ron was summoned by Brom. When Ron arrived, Brom was standing at the entrance of the water-powered blacksmith, his arms crossed over his chest, his beard slightly damp from the spray of water from the waterwheel.

Before him, the waterwheel's blades were slowly turning, propelled by the water flow. The cam on the main shaft rotated with the shaft, lifting the crossbar once with each rotation. The forging hammer at the other end of the crossbar then struck down onto the anvil with a dull thud.

Brom held up one finger. "If we're just making breastplates, we can produce fifteen to twenty-five sets a month, as long as we have enough iron. Helmets are simpler, not picky about materials, thirty to forty sets."

Then he tilted his head and gestured with his chin towards the forging hammer, "Armor plates, these things are produced in quantities of over two thousand pieces a day."

It mainly depends on the mold-changing time. A full set of lamellar armor requires 800 to 1200 pieces. Now, the armor pieces are not the problem; the main issue is in the lamellarization process.

He squatted down and drew a simple diagram on the ground with his hand: a pile of nail plates, a nail weaving platform, and a finished product rack. "Nail weaving is a manual job. No matter how many nail plates you make, if no one weaves them, they will just pile up in the corner and collect dust."

You don't have dedicated armor makers here right now. The leatherworkers and a few skilled soldiers are considered part-time laborers, helping out in their spare time after training. So the actual output is affected by the number of people making armor, and the finished products only reach eight to twelve sets a month at most.

Ron watched the waterwheel spin round and round and asked, "Besides weapons, can it fight anything else?"

"Yes," Brom stood up, dusted off his hands, and mentally reviewed the types of tools.

"It can make farm tools, horseshoes, tool hammers, hoes, anything that requires forging. But as I said before, you need people. If you don't have enough people, it's a waste to keep it running idle."

"What about iron reserves?"

"It's enough for now, but don't get too excited. This hammer will wear out faster than you think once it starts spinning. Right now, we're mainly relying on previous spoils and small-scale purchases to get by."

If the forging hammer is running at full capacity, you need to find a stable supply channel, otherwise the iron will run out before you can finish weaving the armor plates the hammer can produce in a day.

After he finished speaking, he pulled the linkage, turned around and walked into the blacksmith's shop. He leaned against the stone wall, crossed his arms over his chest again, and stood there quietly, as if listening to the forging hammer and the waterwheel working together to complete a piece of music.

That morning, Erwin found Ron by the training field, opened his whiteboard, and began to report on each item.

"The manor's total population is currently 243. Since the land lease policy was introduced, new faces have been continuously coming in. The number of full-time soldiers has increased from 82 to 126, and the number of soldiers who have passed the professional sergeant assessment has increased from 25 to 47."

He turned to the next page and tapped his finger on the paper.

"In addition, regarding the progress of the three buildings, the main structure of the mill has been completed and the millstones are being installed; peat mining is being carried out within a designated area on the edge of the swamp, with a stable weekly output; the first batch of ale from the brewery is fermenting, and the fruit wine will have to wait until the wild fruit harvest season."

Ron mentally reviewed the numbers. He stood at the edge of the training field, watching Miko lead his team in practicing switching from a horizontal formation to a wedge formation. Pete and Cole's squads were positioned on either side, their steps perfectly synchronized.

The system panel in the upper right corner of the field of vision lit up briefly, and after the light flashed, information appeared, with the promotion marks of the twelve soldiers lighting up simultaneously.

Miko, Pete, Cole, and nine other veterans who had been honed in Karl’s rigorous tactics and combat all met the standards of skilled Imperial infantry.

Next to the icon for each promoted individual on the panel, there is now an equipment slot marked for full-body lamellar armor.

Ron looked away and walked through the corridor in the atrium. Brom was squatting by the workbench changing a water valve for a quenching tank. Hearing footsteps, he turned around.

"Is the number of participants confirmed?"

"Twelve people"

Brom stood up, wiped his hands on his apron, and took a freshly woven full-body armor from the shelf and slammed it onto the workbench, the armor plates clanging against each other with a metallic clatter.

"The progress is not keeping up. Give this batch of lamellar armor to these twelve people first, and the rest can wear old armor for now. If you can find a few armor makers, the output can be increased even more."

That afternoon, Karl arrived at the training ground with twelve full suits of lamellar armor and supporting equipment.

Miko was the first to receive the new armor. The plates gleamed with a cold, metallic sheen, and the densely packed plates were a whole level better than the previous breastplate and chainmail combination.

The equipment upgrades include the armor-piercing blunt weapon Calad's Staff, the standard Imperial Saber, the kite shield, and two heavy javelins for each person. The cloak and neck guard remain unchanged, with cotton armor underneath to cushion blunt impacts.

Brom even made a special anvil just to polish the thickness of the overlapping armor plates, something completely unimaginable in the era of pure hand forging.

Pete weighed the javelin he had just received in his hand. It had an ash wood shaft with a heavy broadsword, and the spearhead was forged by Brom himself.

After he finished putting on the armor, he looked down at the area covered by the plates, tapped the shoulder armor to make a slight trembling sound, and then glanced at Cole next to him.

Cole had just received his full set of equipment, from full lamellar armor to standard javelins. He held up the Calads staff with both hands, examined it, and then passed it to the two soldiers behind him.

A few days later at the quarry, Miko was leading a team to complete a routine mission on the transport line in the area. Accompanying him were Hans and a ten-man regular army corps, with Fiona serving as a reconnaissance and support force. The team marched in formation along the road leading to the manor.

A metallic clanging sound suddenly came from the side of the road. Miko raised his hand to stop the queue and signaled Fiona to rush forward and investigate. Fiona quickly returned and, in a low voice, reported the incident.

"There was a conflict at the bend ahead. Seven armed men surrounded an overturned cart, which appeared to be the target of the attack."

Without hesitation, Miko immediately ordered his troops to deploy into battle formation, with shield bearers in front and spearmen and crossbowmen advancing on the flanks, cutting through dense forests and gravel paths straight towards the scene of the incident.

The battle began quickly and ended even faster. The bandits, who were originally looting goods, were completely disorganized when they were suddenly attacked by a regular army that had deployed in formation.

The first volley of crossbow bolts broke up their formation, and after the shield bearers advanced, the spearmen rushed to both sides of the cart and completely dismantled them.

In this operation, Hans was the first to rush across the cart and drag away a merchant who was in danger of being caught by the bandits. Fiona shot down the bandit leader from a high place. A few bandits fled, while most were killed or disarmed.

Only two merchants remained by the cart. The older one leaned against his fallen goods, panting, while the younger one clutched tightly to the torn leather armor on his shoulder, still shaken.

The cart overturned, scattering goods all over the ground. When Miko approached, the old merchant waved his hand to indicate that he was not injured, but his lips were trembling, whether from anger or fear, it was unclear.

"We agreed to pay the commission after delivering the goods to Crow's Nest, but they turned on us as soon as we left the settlement and drew their swords."

The old merchant cursed and shook his head. "If it weren't for you, we would both have been hacked to death by the roadside in a little while."

After listening, Miko didn't offer much comfort, but his calm tone was enough to reassure them, "There's a place in Velen that's safer than Raven's Den. If you want to open a shop, you can follow my men to Calard Manor."

The merchant had barely hesitated when Hans took over the conversation, starting to talk about the estate's market and market policies.

"Our estate has a market where people from nearby villages come to sell their goods. If you go there, no one will rob you. We patrol this road every day. These days, it's not easy to find a place in Velen where you won't be robbed."

On the way to the manor, as the merchant rode his cart past the training ground and the farmland, he saw rows of regular soldiers dressed in purple robes and standard armor standing in neat formation.

The crossbowmen were training at the archery range, and the sound of crossbows firing rang out in unison. Several militiamen were distributing the day's groceries. The manor had replaced the Crow's Nest that they had originally planned to visit.