FLDI Chapter 35

Chapter 35: New Information, Returning to the City

The appearance of the goblins gave Thor an unexpected surprise, but the surprises didn’t stop there. Upon further investigation, Thor discovered that the elder goblin leader was actually a Level 4 Alchemist.

Just like magical creatures, goblin alchemy also had different levels.

Generally, alchemy was divided into five levels:

A Level 1 Alchemist could craft simple items like black iron armor.

A Level 2 Alchemist could create more complex items, such as bronze armor.

By Level 3, an alchemist could forge magical items—silver armor, for example, was considered a magical creation.

As for Level 4 Alchemists, they were essentially regarded as master alchemists, enjoying an extremely high status even in the entire Tulip Kingdom.

A goblin Level 4 Alchemist, in particular, surpassed human Level 4 alchemists in some respects, potentially even capable of crafting items like magic crystal cannons.

Yes, magic crystal cannons.

Compared to golden armor, magic crystal cannons were far more valuable. 

Typically, a single magic crystal cannon could be priced at over 7,000 gold coins, and in the Northern Province, this price could reach over 10,000 gold coins—or even higher.

Of course, the price wasn’t the most significant thing; it was the power of the magic crystal cannon. With just a few, one could secure an entire territory. Even in the face of a large orc horde attack, magic crystal cannons could offer a solid chance of defense.

In frontier wars, the value of magic crystal cannons was unimaginable.

Take the recent battle against the goblin horde: with just three magic crystal cannons, the entire goblin settlement could have been wiped out without needing much assistance from the peasants.

Of course, crafting magic crystal cannons required not only a Level 4 Alchemist but also extremely rare materials, which Thor didn’t currently possess.

But just because he didn’t have the materials now didn’t mean he wouldn’t have them in the future.

As long as he could gather the necessary components later, he would be able to forge magic crystal cannons.

And once he had them, the security of his territory would reach an unimaginable level.

The prospect left him elated.

Not to mention, as a Level 4 Alchemist, this goblin could craft more than just magic crystal cannons—there were golden armors and various other alchemical creations that would be incredibly valuable for building Thor’s territory.

It was safe to say this development had filled the most significant gap in his territory’s growth.

For the next few days, Thor couldn’t wipe the smile off his face.

And it wasn’t just Thor who was smiling—the peasants were too.

On the day the war ended, Thor had kept his promise, liberating 273 peasants, 27 of whom were directly inducted into the reserve knights’ ranks. The entire population of 2,000 peasants erupted into celebration, and even the loss of over a hundred peasants during the battle didn’t dampen their spirits.

As for the official knights, the trainees, and the reservists, Thor generously distributed the spoils from the recent campaign, ensuring everyone was quite satisfied.

For them, following their lord into battle as a frontier knight had proven to be the most important and fortunate event of their lives.

Under their lord’s leadership, they had gained things they’d never dreamed possible.

Even their knightly training had advanced by leaps and bounds—something they couldn’t have imagined happening even in Castle Dressrosa.

The results left them even more fanatical and devoted to their lord.

In the open space of his camp, Thor, after making all the necessary arrangements, prepared to leave.

“Steve!” he called, looking toward his trusted knight.

“Yes, Master!” Steve immediately stepped forward.

“I’ll leave everything here to you. Make sure nothing happens!” Thor said in a serious tone. “I’ll assign you thirty official knights, one hundred trainee knights, and two hundred reserve knights.”

Thor made his decision after a moment of thought. Compared to his own territory, the importance of this iron mine was far greater, so he decided to leave most of his forces here.

With Steve, a grand knight, along with three hundred knights, he believed the area would be secure.

“Understood!” Steve replied, his voice firm with excitement.

“Do well. I hope you can become like Uncle Michael one day,” Thor said, patting Steve on the shoulder encouragingly.

“I won’t let you down!” Steve’s excitement grew, feeling incredibly honored that his lord would compare him to the renowned Knight Commander Michael.

After securing the iron mine, Thor also assigned some peasants to start mining.

Ideally, goblins—even the timid goblins—were born miners and had no fear of death. Unfortunately, Thor didn’t have the necessary slave contracts. Without being able to purchase those, using peasants was his only option.

This was why he had decided to kill all the timid goblins earlier. Without slave contracts, using them as miners was too risky. If some managed to escape and reveal the existence of the large iron mine, it would cause massive problems.

To ensure security, peasants would have to do for now. He would later see if he could acquire slave contracts and replace them.

After making all these arrangements, Thor, along with Raine and the newly liberated freemen, headed back to his territory.

As before, Thor allotted land to the freedmen.

The moment they received their land, the freemen were overwhelmed with joy.

They were truly free now.

Freed from their status as slaves, they had become freemen.

Once again, they basked in the light of the Goddess of Life.

“May the Goddess of Life bless you!”

“May the Goddess of Life bless you!”

“May the Goddess of Life bless you!”

The cries of more than two hundred voices filled the air. These fervent individuals had now become the first true citizens of Eagle Ridge. Though there had been a few before, now there were more than two hundred.

This influx of freemen breathed new life into the territory.

And now, Eagle Ridge had officially entered a proper stage of development.

From here on, as long as things proceeded smoothly, the territory would experience rapid growth.

Especially since Thor still had the daily intelligence system on his side.

With its help, in just three years—no, maybe even less than one year—Eagle Ridge might surpass the territories of some barons.

(End of Chapter)

Series Navigation

<- PreviousNext ->