Chapter 452: Divine Chosen Council(2)

Of all the children in this batch, she was the only one who had managed to kill a Corpse Fiend on her own. She had also been unusually strong since childhood, so she was probably naturally gifted, on top of having grown up in a prosperous household.

"The rest are all boys. Males have a higher awakening rate when it comes to both magic and Aura," Gherlos added.

"Exactly. They can eventually be appointed as officers or village chiefs."

Phield glanced over the list. Tom was the only one who left a particularly deep impression on him. The other boys had never stood out much in their daily lives, but awakening as Magic Knights had changed everything.

"Distribute Magic Potions free of charge according to their needs. As for books on combat techniques and similar subjects, open a reading room in the city hall. Anyone in the territory who possesses magic can read them freely. Of course, the Magic Knights will have to sign a soul contract with me."

"I will take care of it."

Phield tapped the table.

"The second matter is encouraging trade. I want to establish two merchant caravans. My former loyal servant Mick will lead one of them, while the captain of the other will be selected from among the soldiers."

"Mick’s caravan will mainly be responsible for bringing slaves and food into the territory."

"The military caravan will be responsible for purchasing critical military resources: sulfur and saltpeter!"

The moment military resources were mentioned, the women looked confused.

"Military resources? If you mean armor and weapons, the territory’s warehouses are already overflowing with them."

Ashina raised her hand in objection.

"We even have equipment piled up outside because we cannot build enough storage facilities for the residents."

"Not cold weapons. I want to develop gunpowder weapons."

Phield confidently clenched his fist.

"Something capable of completely revolutionizing warfare."

The reason he had not started producing firearms earlier was simple. His industrial foundation had been virtually nonexistent.

Now that the territory finally had a modest steel industry, Phield could not wait any longer to begin preparing gunpowder weapons.

After all, the heretics who had destroyed the Purple Gold Empire had already equipped their armies with artillery on a massive scale.

For some reason, there had been no reports of artillery being used by the Sacred Griffin Empire or the surrounding nations, but Phield was deeply concerned about falling behind technologically.

"C, cannons?"

Charlotte’s pupils trembled as the gloom in her heart resurfaced once again.

"Cannons probably will not come that quickly. The territory’s blacksmiths still only know how to forge farming tools. We need to start by establishing the fundamentals of gunpowder technology."

Phield pondered for a moment before taking the girl’s hand to reassure her.

"Face the thing you once feared. Do not be afraid of it. Conquer it and turn it into something you can use."

"Is gunpowder really that powerful? I have never even heard of it."

Rosalia did not seem particularly impressed.

"Exactly. Ordinary soldiers only need to be capable of sharing the burden."

"Our lord has always had a long term vision. We only need to support him."

Phield himself was not sure whether gunpowder weapons would ultimately prove stronger than magic or Aura.

What was undeniable, however, was that gunpowder weapons would still shine brilliantly and eventually become a mainstream force in warfare.

Training an Aura expert or a powerful mage required decades of effort, talent, and opportunity.

Training a soldier to carry an RPG, on the other hand, would take only a few days.

For a lord, cost and efficiency were what truly mattered.

"Besides, I have a feeling that gunpowder weapons can be combined with Divine Chosen abilities to create even more terrifying Divine Chosen."

Phield remained calm.

"I will personally oversee the rest. Gherlos, you are responsible for supervising the implementation of these orders. I will send the new factory expansion plans to your office later."

"Leave it to me, leave it to me."

Gherlos hurriedly wrote everything down.

"All right. That covers the matters within the territory. Now I will announce the plan for the western campaign."

"I have decided to launch an expedition into Dawnfall Territory and secure access to the sea."

"Rosalia, Ashina, Ophelia, Aikalia, and Firomina will accompany me. For this expedition, we will only deploy the territory’s military equipment and the Corpse Fiend Legion. We will not mobilize the human army."

"Everyone else will remain behind to defend the territory and keep everything running normally."

...

"Wow!"

Three crudely dyed leather balls were tossed back and forth through the air.

A ridiculously dressed clown swayed back and forth on a wooden wheel cart, repeatedly performing movements that made it look as though he were about to fall.

The dangerous performance drew constant cries of excitement from the children gathered around.

Fortunately, the clown never actually fell. After skillfully completing the entire routine, he jumped down from the cart and bowed to the audience.

Thunderous applause erupted from the surrounding children.

Even Clara was completely captivated.

"Thank you for watching! Thank you!"

"That was a wonderful performance. You will definitely be able to perform it on the Divine Descent Festival."

Jenny offered her usual blessing before taking a warm copper coin from her pocket and tossing it into the clay jar beside the clown.

"Thank you, kind lady!"

The clown was so moved that he repeatedly bowed to her.

Jenny waved her hand and turned toward the nearby food street.

She had already watched the clown’s performance seven times.

Or perhaps eight.

It was not that she particularly enjoyed watching it. The territory simply lacked entertainment.

The taverns where men loved to gather and boast about their exploits held no appeal for her.

As for the entertainment that had recently spread through the army, football had become extremely popular, but that sport was not particularly suitable for women either.

So Jenny occasionally went outside the city to sing or wandered around the commercial district.

Those were her greatest pleasures.

"My dear roommate, Miss Frostsnow, what delicious food did you buy this time?"

After walking around for only a short while, Jenny ran into someone she knew.

It was Miss Xinly, a blue sheep demi-human.

Of course, the lord called their race Cocogoats, a word she still had absolutely no idea how to understand.

Since unmarried women without families tended to stick together, they often lived together.

"Barbecue and fruit juice."

Xinly gently shook the skewers in her hand before offering Jenny a grilled mushroom.

It carried a fresh, earthy aroma from the plant itself, with salt sprinkled over the top. The iron griddle had cooked it until the flavor was deeply infused throughout.

"That is not what I meant."

Jenny coughed twice.

Seeing that Xinly was still holding the mushroom out to her, she finally accepted it.

"Next time, I will treat you to some fried meatballs."

"Mm."

Xinly nodded absentmindedly.

"Want to join the archery club? We can go together."

"Archery club?"

Jenny looked confused.

"It is free. The announcement only came out yesterday. The lord wants to improve the residents’ martial spirit and combat skills. All we have to do is stand on the city wall and shoot the Corpse Fiends below. It is really fun."

"Ehh, no way."

The moment Jenny remembered what the Corpse Fiends looked like, she shuddered.

When she first arrived in Nightfall Domain, the Corpse Fiends that attacked her had frightened her unconscious several times.

Now Windrise Town was constantly expanding and expanding.

She had finally reached the point where she could no longer see or hear the Corpse Fiends everywhere.

There was no way she wanted to go looking for trouble.

"If it were the choir, I would be happy to join."

After finishing the grilled skewer, Jenny casually tossed the stick aside.

The patrolling soldiers might scold her or even fine her for littering, but nobody was watching right now, and she had never developed the habit of caring much about it.

Besides, whatever garbage she left behind would mysteriously disappear the next day.

The lord had recruited plenty of "cleaners" to handle the city’s sanitation.

"What a shame."

"By the way, my demi-human sister, come with me."