Pioneer Wizard's Notebook

After finishing the follow-up arrangements for the battlefield cleanup, Linde arrived at the warehouse where the corpses of the Iceborne Demons were stored.

It's finally time to take stock of the spoils!

I recall the terrifying power of the White Bear King when he unleashed the runes.

Linde's heart raced, and he became excited.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will reap his greatest reward to date.

Upon entering the warehouse, the first thing that came into view was the corpses of more than a hundred ordinary Icefield Demons.

This includes sixty wolf-type Ice Demons; after accounting for losses, their pelts are expected to be enough to make one hundred wolf-skin armors.

These leather armors can be kept or used as goods to exchange for resources with other barons.

Wolf fangs are used to make arrows, and flesh and blood are used to nourish the demon fields.

With the addition of a new batch of rye, Linde no longer needed to worry about food.

Now, with the protection of the Wall Golem, it means he will be eligible to expand the population.

The manor currently has more than two hundred residents, and the allocation of functions among the residents is extremely distorted.

All males aged twelve and above are enlisted in the military.

The remaining women and children were responsible for tasks on the estate, such as building, cooking, weaving, and feeding the livestock.

Previously, the demand for labor was low, and the most troublesome food problem was taken care of by Linde, so they could barely make ends meet.

But in the days that followed, the manor needed to produce a large number of leather armor weapons.

Cutting down trees on the outskirts of the Ice Mist Forest and exploring for iron ore may require miners to extract it in the future.

The construction of the living quarters inside the city walls also had to begin, which meant a significant shortage of workers.

Linde could not, as he had done when building the city walls, halt military training and dedicate soldiers to construction once again.

In the perilous northern ice plains, this would be putting the cart before the horse and courting disaster.

In this icy wasteland, strength is the only reason for survival.

Therefore, if the manor wants to move forward, it must replenish its population from outside to fill the huge labor shortage.

Noting down these requirements, Linde continued to tally the spoils.

Next were the corpses of twelve Icefield Demon Bears.

Including the rangers who hunted in the Ice Mist Forest, they obtained a total of thirteen polar bear pelts.

Excluding damage caused by arrows and crossbows, it is estimated that more than 30 sets of bearskin armor can be made, enough for the current 30 shield and spear soldiers.

This bear skin is much tougher than wolf skin.

Its defensive capabilities far surpass those of chainmail, second only to plate armor.

The only problem is that it's too bulky and not suitable for longbowmen.

Shield-spear soldiers do not have this problem and are a perfect fit.

The flesh and blood are inedible, but they nourish the magic field, making it easier for Linde to cultivate more advanced sunflowers.

Continuing forward, he came to the largest and most prized possession—the corpse of the White Bear King.

Sobo knocked on the warehouse door.

With Lind's permission, the recovered dwarf craftsman entered the interior.

"The King of the White Bears has fallen here, the blood feud has been avenged, and I will keep my oath to Stormrage. From this day forward, Sobo Stormrage will serve you."

Sobo looked up at the massive corpse of the White Bear King, then turned and bowed to Lind.

"It is my honor to accept your allegiance as Lind Senlight, Lord of Blossomlands and Lord of the Sunflower. Welcome you and your clan to this place."

Linde smiled and helped him up, then got down to the important business that had called him there.

Key points regarding the segmentation of materials related to the King of the White Bear.

As a craftsman, Sobo's understanding of extraordinary monsters far surpasses that of Lind, and he introduces the key materials for the Bear King.

"The most valuable materials of the King of the Polar Bear are divided into three parts: the heart containing the bloodline of the Earth Bear, the King of the Bear Rock Skin in the chest that is specialized with the power of the bloodline, and the King of the Bear Claw that cuts rocks with its right forepaw."

Under Sobo's guidance, Lind drew the Wolf King Straight Sword.

Cut off the bear king's claw and cut off the yellowish-brown piece of bear king rock skin.

Without the protection of the rocky skin, the Bear King's still-beating, enormous heart was exposed, radiating a powerful magical aura.

Linde handed the King Bear Rock Skin and King Bear Claw to Sobo.

The dwarven craftsman will study these two materials in the days to come, attempting to forge plate armor and new weapons.

However, according to Sobo, the quality of the Bear King's materials far surpasses that of the Winter Wolf King, and the forging difficulty of the white steel plate armor is several times that of the Knight's Sword.

To ensure the forging is successful, he needs ample time for preliminary preparations.

With no immediate threat near the manor, Linde was in no hurry and did not urge them on.

After sending Sobo away, Linde completely removed the bear king's heart.

Through his Eye of Insight, he could clearly sense the surging power of his inner bloodline and the terrifying runes that were faintly visible in the deepest part of his being.

Linde took out the quartz pillar made by the Ash Furnace Rat, placed the heart inside, and poured in the magic liquid extracted from the High Sunflower.

This will ensure that the bear king's heart remains viable for a long time to come.

This would make it easier for him to study the internal rune structure.

"Keep your heart safe," Lind said, looking at the other quartz column.

Inside, a swarm of unique creatures resembling beetles with steel scales—the Bone-Crushing Steel Lice—was surging.

These creatures have formed a symbiotic relationship with the king of polar bears.

Its sharp mouthparts can secrete strong acid, which melts the bones and bits of meat that the bear king has eaten, and extracts iron from them, recreating a fan-shaped piece of steel on its back.

Thousands upon thousands of bone-crushing lice live on the surface of the bear king's body.

Ultimately, it forms a flexible and mobile suit of steel scales.

Linde was curious about their structural principles, but had no intention of symbioticating them with himself.

Just kidding, the bear king has a protective layer of rock, so he is immune to their bites.

If it were me, with my delicate skin, I'd be gnawed to the bone by the steel lice in no time, becoming nothing more than an extra meal for them.

With all the valuable materials collected, the remaining bear meat can simply be stored in the warehouse.

The northern winter is a natural refrigerator; fish caught in the water are stiff as soon as they come out, so there's no need to worry about food spoiling or rotting.

Move the two quartz pillars to the second-floor laboratory.

Linde couldn't wait to get into research mode.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Lind became increasingly engrossed in the mysteries of the runes within his heart.

Unfortunately, external interference forced him to temporarily halt his research.

Hibbert knocked repeatedly, and he emerged from the room with dark circles under his eyes.

It was noon that day.

Lobby.

An emergency meeting of officials was convened here.

Hilbert said, "My lord, the victory banquet at the manor will be held tomorrow evening. Here is a list of supplies that need to be purchased from the surrounding baronies."

Lind rubbed his tired head and glanced at the list: "Beer, spices, sugar, hmm, a bit pricey, but understandable, no problem."

Hilbert continued, "The next thing is the making of the bearskin armor. The solar winds are hard to soften, so unfortunately the residents of the manor cannot make it. They can't even scrape off the tough bear fur on the surface of the bearskin."

"We need professional leatherworkers, and the necessary tools."

Linde's drowsiness dissipated.

The wolfskin armor is very simple to make; it is made by using the sun's wind to trim and cut the fur.

Thanks to the Icefield Ghost's toughness, it's naturally a piece of leather armor.

However, it seems that the bear skin cannot be replicated, which means that the manor's labor shortage for craftsmen will further increase.

Linde knew that Hilbert had something more important to report, otherwise he wouldn't have forced him to come out.

Sure enough, Hilbert produced a letter reporting the key issues of the meeting.

"My lord, this morning Lady Maria from Riverbank Territory sent a letter requesting assistance, hoping that you could provide military aid on behalf of the Sunflower Family."

River Beach Territory is not far from Flowery Territory. It is located on a river beach in the lower reaches of the Mecca River, hence its name.

This territory belongs to the Pharos family, and Lady Maria is the current head of the Pharos family and the wife of the Riverbank Baron.

Moreover, Mrs. Maria was born into the Sunflower family and was Lind's aunt.