Chapter 3: Sequential Arrangements

As soon as Komer set foot in the Caucasus, he felt an indescribable sense of strangeness—a warmth that was both incredibly familiar and comforting. He thought he would never experience such feelings again, but this time, he did.

Bahomun hadn’t changed much since he left. Over the past few months, it seemed there were more barbarians moving around the docks and streets, but otherwise, everything was similar to when he left. In the distance, the iron forges continued to spew thick smoke. The dedicated path from the warehouses to the docks was always busy, with carts full of dark iron ingots being transported there under the effort of barbarian porters. There, half-orcs and barbarian laborers were eager to load these goods onto ships. Ships of varying sizes were following the signals from the flaggers at the docks, entering their designated positions in order to be loaded.

On the other side, at the dedicated ore dock, animal-drawn carts were struggling to pull heavy loads onto the dock, nearly breaking their shafts. The dirty but familiar cargo holds of the roll-on cargo ships were the best places to store these high-quality iron ores. Bahomun’s iron mines had expanded several times over, and the ore produced not only met the needs of local smelters but also had enough surplus for export.

Not far across the river, two more mines were nearing the final stage of operation. Given Bahomun Port’s current handling capacity, Pube was planning to build two new docks on the south bank of the Catania River specifically for ore exports. Bahomun’s smelting capacity had reached its limit. Expanding further would require more coal, increasing the pressure on the port’s handling capacity. Pube hoped to first increase ore production and export capacity, thereby alleviating the financial strain on the Caucasus as quickly as possible.

Komer arrived in Bahomun quietly, keeping it a secret from everyone except Pube and Mahagumi. He chose Bahomun over Matdan because it was located near barbarian territories and served as the first port for goods entering the Caucasus from the upper reaches of the Catania River. It was economically prosperous with a diverse population. Even if the Inquisition agents set up spies there, it would be difficult for them to detect their presence. Learning from his previous experience, Komer was much more cautious this time. He didn’t want to go through what he had experienced before—at least not yet.

Komer’s plan was to make a brief stop in the Caucasus before heading to Jazair. Given Philip’s frequent activities, he felt it was necessary to put some pressure on Kakiya; otherwise, if the entire court mage group of the Kingdom of Nicosia had to be mobilized to help Homer deal with the Caucasus, it would be extremely difficult to overcome this obstacle.

“Great progress has been made in the Little Greenland Forest. We’ve already found the source of the Nise River—the legendary Nise Lake. Going west about eighty kilometers beyond the lake brings us to the western edge of the Little Greenland Forest, where the Zuke Valley lies. Two adventurers have successfully completed the historic crossing there, but sadly, one of them died after arriving in the Zuke Valley due to miasma, while the other was attacked by magical beasts on his way back to Bruce Fortress after arriving there, suffered serious injuries, and died shortly after returning to Bruce. The Nise Lake isn’t very large, but it’s said that high-level magical beasts appear there frequently—several types of beasts that haven’t been seen on the Blue Continent in many years have shown up there. At least eighteen adventurers have lost their lives to these beasts. Yet this has only heightened the interest of those exploration teams. Especially after learning that someone has crossed the Little Greenland Forest, more teams have joined the effort. I believe we’ll achieve even greater results soon.”

“Enough. I’m not here to listen to your stories about exploring the Little Greenland Forest. What I want to know is whether a detailed map from Bruce Fortress to the Zuke Valley has been drawn yet. Also, can we find a suitable route from Bruce Fortress to the Zuke Valley—one that ordinary people can use, whether by water or land?” Komer interrupted Pube impatiently.

“Boss, drawing a map isn’t a problem, but creating a direct route from the Zuke Valley to Bruce Fortress might be difficult. The area around Nise Lake is a breeding ground for high-level magical beasts, so passing through here makes it easy to be attacked by them. But to avoid it, we might have to take a long detour through the dense forests.” Pube wasn’t angry; he knew his boss was in a bad mood. “Boss, I’m curious—why do we have to open a route from the Zuke Valley to Bruce Fortress? It doesn’t seem to offer much benefit to us.”

“Hmph, the Zuke Valley is a stepping stone for us to gain influence in the kingdom, as well as the bargaining chip in my deal with Kakiya. Do you really think we’d go to such lengths to help the Romanov heirs with these meaningless tasks?” Komer sneered coldly. “I’m no philanthropist. Without any benefit, why should I help her?”
Puber remained calm in the face of Komer’s arrogance. The Zuke Valley was located in the southern part of the Kingdom of Nicosia, adjacent to the Galai region, yet it was directly under the kingdom’s control. The valley was narrow but had very fertile soil, yielding large amounts of rye. Along its edges grew plenty of hop, an essential ingredient for brewing beer. Although the valley wasn’t large, its location was crucial—it served as a vital route for the kingdom to connect with the countries in the central continent. This was likely what Komer valued most. Yet now that the Caucasus was preoccupied with its own problems, Komer still insisted on seizing the Zuke Valley, which Puber found hard to understand.
Seeing Puber silent, Komer knew his confidant might have concerns about his decision. Puber had been skeptical when they first sought a passage through the Little Greenland Forest. Now that he heard Komer truly intended to take control of the Zuke Valley, Puber must be even more worried. This was within Komer’s expectations—after all, facing pressure from Homer in the north, ensuring the safety of the Caucasus and Leon was more important. It’s just that Puber hadn’t linked combating Homer with opening up the Zuke Valley.
Without establishing a passage between the Zuke Valley and the Caucasus, he could never gain enough influence in the kingdom’s political arena. Without sufficient influence, he couldn’t exert greater pressure on the kingdom’s higher authorities. Kakiya’s attitude toward him would also become indifferent. Without her restraint, if the kingdom’s court mages focused entirely on helping Homer resolve the Caucasus issue, things would be irreversible. That’s why Komer had to pay such close attention to what seemed like an unurgent matter.

“Puber, don’t overthink it. I’ll just tell you one thing: I need to obtain a map of the route from the Zuke Valley to Bruce Fortress as soon as possible, even if it’s just a theoretically existing route that can’t be used in practice for now. I want to use this route to go to Jazair and persuade some people to support Kakiya. At the same time, I’ll use this map to influence Kakiya and the imperial authorities, preventing them from supporting Homer to deal with me.” Comer had to explain patiently to Puber. Since he wasn’t in the Caucasus now, he relied heavily on Puber for many things, and some issues needed to be clarified to him.

It was only then that Puber began to faintly understand Comer’s intentions. Once connected with the current crisis, his focus sharpened significantly. “Boss, you want to use the imperial authorities to influence Homer? Will that work?”

“I don’t expect Homer to obey the kingdom’s orders. I just hope the kingdom won’t or will offer as little help as possible to Homer. We still need some time to adjust our strategies. Under these circumstances, if Homer really decides to eliminate us at all costs, we don’t have many chances. So we need to avoid that situation as much as possible. The longer we can delay things, the greater our chances of success.” Comer didn’t want to explain too much; it was enough for Puber to understand the importance of the map from the Zuke Valley to Bruce Fortress.

“When are you going to Jazair?” Puber asked after a silence.

“Well, as soon as possible. Philip won’t give us much time, so I need a detailed map of the route from the Zuke Valley to Bruce Fortress. Just giving them a glimmer of hope will affect their attitude—that’s what I aim to achieve.” Comer said solemnly, “The training of our troops here must be accelerated; there can be no slack. After returning from Jazair, I’ll head to the Cordillera Wasteland. If things really reach their most dangerous stage, I’ll have no choice but to ask the barbarians for reinforcements.”

“Ask the barbarians for reinforcements?” Puber was shocked, but then thought that if things really came to that, the entire foundation would be ruined. Falling into Philip’s hands was not much different from being devastated by the barbarians.

“Yes. You should understand the reasons. I’ll go to Jazair first. Please help me contact the barbarians in the meantime. I’ll discuss this issue with them as soon as I return.” Comer remained calm.

“Boss, is it really that serious? We already have three thousand elite soldiers. If you can bring back all your mage friends, I’m sure the Homers won’t be able to gain any advantage on our territory!” Puber sighed heavily, clearly unwilling to accept it.
“Hmph, what are three thousand soldiers? Homer has several times as many regular troops, plus a knightly order. It’s still uncertain whether Galle will join forces to help Philip. If the royal mage corps gets involved too, how many chances do you think we have? We need to win this battle, and win it decisively. We can’t keep reacting passively to attacks.” Komer said calmly, looking up at the sky.