Chapter 18: Conquest (1)

Led by Hozer and Zip, the Main merchants once again teamed up to win the contract to build the road from Mando to Muscat. The enormous funds required had to be covered by these men, who, in Komer’s eyes, were nothing but greedy scoundrels—the Main merchants. The construction costs, which should have been borne by the lord’s estate, were exchanged by Puber through negotiations for half the rights to exploit the only iron mine in the Mando region. In other words, Komer didn’t need to pay a single gold shield; he only had to hand over the abandoned iron mine in Mando to Hozer and Zip, and he could enjoy half of the mine’s annual profits. The road from Mando to Muscat would be built free of charge by the Main merchants. In Komer’s words, it was a way to exploit the Main merchants to benefit himself.

However, the Main merchants didn’t see it that way. At least they had obtained the rights to exploit the only iron mine in the Mando region. Although this mine wasn’t as large as the Bahomun iron mine, it was a mine that could be put into full production immediately without further investment—just by recruiting enough workers. Plus, there was already a considerable amount of iron ore already mined. In any case, it was a very favorable deal. Of course, they still needed to complete the road from Mando to Muscat as soon as possible to fully utilize the mine’s potential. The Muscat stone mines produced plenty of construction waste, which could serve as excellent material for building this road.

Nephton, who served as the chief administrator of the region alone, became highly enthusiastic. He visited villages to gather information and gave speeches to explain his plans. All of this was accomplished within just a week. At the same time, Nephton also inspected the land conditions across the Mando region. Aside from some mines, much of the area was, like the Caucasus, undeveloped wilderness—covered by primeval forests, swamps, and hills. Most of these areas were located in remote regions, especially those bordering the Caucasus. This gave Nephton the idea of using those slave miners to develop agricultural production in the region, reducing reliance on external supplies.

It can be said that the honest and kind nature of these half-orcs and mortal slaves meant it was unlikely they would rise up in rebellion. They were accustomed to a life under someone’s rule, and although those months had given them a taste of freedom, the idle lifestyle with dwindling food supplies still left them uneasy. The principle that “no work, no food” was deeply ingrained in the minds of these honest people. The situation where, as Komer had initially feared, people would refuse to work or be governed once they enjoyed freedom never occurred. Even those low-ranking officers who had once held positions in Dragoomo’s army accepted various arrangements without hesitation.

This situation forced Komer to admit that the slave miners in these mines must have reached a desperate point before rebelling. He could not imagine the harsh living conditions those slaves endured under Poneski’s rule, but under his own governance, he would never allow such things to happen—this was the foundation for winning the support of those half-orcs and mortal slaves.

Coal mine auctions in the Mando region were also taking place secretly in Ugru. As many as twelve large and medium-sized coal mines were quietly put up for auction, an idea put forward by Puber, who believed this would maximize funding for the Caucasus’ development. However, the enormous scale of investment meant the Caucasus’ relatively limited funds could not cover the development needs of so many mines. Even with the involvement of merchants from Palermo and the Barefoot Society, along with merchants from Main and Susor playing a key role, only six out of the twelve mines found buyers. This made Komer and Puber realize that to accelerate development, they needed to find more ways, especially by establishing closer connections with the outside world.

When Mando finally started operating with as many as 60,000 workers, Komer realized just how enormous the impact would be. It was utterly futile to try to cover it up or hide it. Now, Komer’s only hope rested on Kakiya and Hoffman—two people whose awareness far exceeded his expectations. As construction began on the road from Mando to Muscat, these astute individuals realized that the Leon region was gradually falling into Komer’s control, just as he had planned. The business opportunities that arose were the best chance for the merchants who allied with them. In return for allowing these merchant forces to invest in Mando, they would do everything in their power to help Komer’s Caucasus region become a direct territory of the kingdom and exert influence on the Star Court, urging it to declare the Leon region a territory without an owner since the kingdom and its former lords had lost complete control over it. According to kingdom law, those who first gained actual control of such a territory for three years could then apply to the kingdom for approval to become its new rulers.

By now, Komer no longer cared about such things. Homer had never been friendly, and future relations would likely not be much worse than they were now. What he needed was to produce as much food as possible and establish connections with the outside world. Matdan alone, already under threat from Homer’s naval fleet, could hardly handle the increasing burden of transporting goods, especially once Mando’s mines started operating at full capacity.

Standing on the riverport dock in Bahomun, Puber tapped his lips thoughtfully while gesturing at the busy barbarian workers on the dock. “Boss, it seems Bahomun is about to become the best job site for barbarians. Do you know how many barbarians are living in your territory right now? Let me tell you—there are over 2,000 barbarians just in Bahomun. Most of them work as miners and porters in the mines, and they also work as laborers on the docks, with efficiency no less than that of the half-orc skilled workers. Many other barbarians can’t find work here and have to go to Ugru and Santiago. It’s a shame those places are farther from their homes, but they prefer Bahomun’s living conditions—it’s closer to home. With a quick run, they can get back home in a day. Alas, the mining output of this iron mine has almost reached its peak, so it’s impossible to hire more workers. Otherwise, these barbarians would be the perfect workers.”

“Puber, I have to remind you not to be biased when evaluating different races. Just because you have a barbarian woman as a lover? Your irresponsible support for barbarians will affect how mine owners recruit workers. Be careful—it might provoke the anger of the half-orcs. I’ve already heard of half-orcs reacting to your bias. Also, I must remind you that I have no energy to prepare a second batch of health potions. If you keep spending all your time with that barbarian girl, be careful she drains you dry! By then, even ten bottles of health potions won’t help!” Komer scoffed at Puber’s words. Barbarians were indeed hardworking, but half-orcs were just as good, and most half-orcs had experience working in mines. A skilled worker was far more suitable for mine owners. Puber’s bias would more or less affect those mine owners’ opinions. Komer didn’t want any disputes between barbarians and half-orcs, especially since those barbarians were just temporary laborers making a little money, while half-orcs were his true people.

After staring fiercely at his boss’s impassive face for half a day, Puber finally gritted his teeth and spoke in a low voice, “Is it that damned half-orc bastard reporting to you again?! Boss, can’t you make him stop staring at me? Can’t you send him to do some work that’s more useful for us Caucasians? Do I need that bastard’s approval just because I like women?”

Seeing that his companion was clearly angry, Komer secretly laughed, but pretended to be serious and said, “It’s not Mahagumi who has this preference. It’s the high-ranking administrator of the Caucasus territory who has fallen for a barbarian woman, ignoring all the beautiful half-orc women on Ugru Street. The half-orcs see this as an insult and a challenge from the barbarians, so they’re very angry. Their reactions have reached me. I think your taste in women should be more diverse. Maybe I should find you a beautiful half-orc woman to make your sexual life more fulfilling.”

“Tch! I haven’t seen a single decent woman among those half-orcs. Making me get intimate with those half-orc women who don’t bathe for half a year? That’s worse than sleeping with a female gorilla!” Puber roared rudely, cursing Komer’s spy while venting his anger.

“Alright, you’d better take care of yourself. A ‘wild girlfriend’ may be unique, but you still need to know when to stop. I don’t want to see you return to Cyprus looking like a skeleton—your mother will hunt me down.” Comer changed the subject. “How’s the port expansion project in Mardan coming along?”
With a long sigh, Puber’s expression returned to normal. The joking between friends was over; it was time to discuss business. “Boss, the port expansion isn’t the problem. The issue is that both the ore we export and the food we import are now heavily restricted. And it’s not because of the port. You know, the main reason is Homer’s naval fleet.”