The Witcher World: The Path to Domination Begins in Velen

Chapter 73 The Corner of Abundance and the Expansion Plan

Erwin's Adam's apple bobbed, and his gaze shifted to the pile of bread rings beside him. "Its function is to produce food indefinitely. I already confirmed this before you came."

Ron turned the Horn of Abundance over to examine it. It was lighter than he had expected and felt slightly cool in his palm. He put the horn back in the box, remained silent for a moment, and then squatted down opposite Erwin.

"Erwin, this thing can indeed solve some problems, but not all of them," he said in a calm and steady voice, each word carrying weight.

"It produces bread rings, not the kind of grains like wheat or oats that can be stored for a long time. This kind of food only has a shelf life of three to seven days, depending on the season."

When a power expands to the point of needing to fight on multiple fronts, the troops led by other generals still rely on the logistical lines. Farmland, taxes, granaries, and transportation are all essential. A rich and prosperous region can replenish resources, but it cannot replace the backbone.

"But it enables your direct subordinates to do things that others cannot."

Erwin's tone gradually returned to normal from its earlier tension, but his fingers were still unconsciously tapping lightly on the wooden box.

"A unit equipped with it can quickly penetrate the battlefield and conduct continuous operations without relying on logistical supplies, something no conventional army can do."

"But that's only if I'm there, if the Corner of Abundance is in my hands, then the mobility advantage exists. If someone else leads them, they're just ordinary cavalry."

This means that in order to unleash the full potential of the troops in the future, I must personally lead the troops. This is not a replicable capability, but a strategic resource tied to me.

Erwin paused for a moment, took off his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on.

"The existence of this item must be known only to the three of us. I will personally oversee the distribution of food, using regular military rations as a cover. Those on the outside will only see one outcome."

Our elite troops can conduct continuous raids without needing resupply. They will assume we have ample supplies or a secret supply line, and they won't guess the truth.

After leaving the treasury, Ron went to the laboratory.

Light shone through the half-open window, and when the door was pushed open, Kayla was sitting at the lab table with her observation log spread out in front of her.

The baby griffin was curled up on the soft cloth, already asleep, its wings folded to its sides, curling itself into a ball, its body rising and falling gently with its breath.

"How long have you been asleep?" Ron stood at the door, not going inside.

"About 15 minutes after you left, it made a fuss for a while, knocked over its food bowl twice, and then lay down and fell asleep."

Kayla put down her pen, turned to look at him, and her gaze lingered on Ron's face for a moment.

"There's been progress on your enhancement potion, but I can't even get my hands on one of the special materials. I can only use a lower-grade substitute. If you mind, you'll have to figure out a way to get it yourself."

"What materials?"

"The heart of a high-ranking vampire." She stood up from her chair, walked up to him, and paused for a moment on his chest with her fingers.

"Of course, I don't mean the truly high-ranking ones. Although the effect might be better, I can't bear to see you die. The term 'high-ranking' is often used to refer to all powerful vampires."

Monsters like Blood Demons, Vampire Women, and Katakhan do possess characteristics that lower-level vampires lack; they have various unique abilities.

They possess abilities such as resisting sunlight, transforming into human form, and becoming invisible, but they are not actually high-level vampires in the true sense; however, they are sufficient as ingredients for potions.

"Okay, I'll think of something."

Ron looked down at her, reached out and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. Kayla turned and walked back to the lab bench, picked up her pen and continued writing in her journal, adding a sentence without looking back.

"Regarding this matter, I suggest you ask Geralt when you have the chance; he's an expert in this area. Go ahead, there's always tomorrow."

Her pen moved across the paper, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Ron walked out of the lab, and the room fell silent again, save for the scratching of the quill and the purring of the little griffin in its sleep.

The following morning, when Erwin entered the hall, Ron had already placed the military expansion plan he had written the night before on the table, with several figures repeatedly altered.

Ron pushed the documents toward Erwin. "The next plan is to expand the standing army to over three thousand men."

Erwin pulled out a chair and sat down, flipping open the notepad. "Understood. Recruitment notices will be posted in every village in Velen. Those who apply will be screened, and Karl will personally set the selection criteria."

He adjusted his glasses. "Besides local residents, refugees are also a good source of manpower, people who have fled from other parts of Temuria or even further east."

To survive countless attacks by monsters and bandits and reach the border of the Pontal River, one must have some skill.

We can provide relevant recruitment regulations, and those selected through the standing army will have their accompanying relatives allowed to settle on the outskirts of the manor, and will be allocated land with tax reductions. This will both expand the manor's population and increase the cultivated area, achieving multiple benefits in one fell swoop.

"What about those who didn't pass the selection?"

"Skilled artisans can be assigned to the workshops. Brom and Yuna are both complaining about a shortage of manpower. It doesn't matter if the workshops don't need them; the manor is growing in size as the population increases."

Carpenters, leatherworkers, and stonemasons were in high demand, while the rest were assigned to clear land on the outskirts of the manor; they were still a source of labor.

Erwin paused. "Ron, there's one more thing. The army will face significant financial pressure after the expansion, even if most of the recruits are new."

However, based on the military pay standard of 1.5 crowns, our monthly expenditure will increase by at least 4,000 crowns. The money is just being consumed without increasing in the basement, and we will eventually run out of money.

When traveling to Novigrad, we should keep an eye out for suitable investment projects and business talent; however, those with business acumen usually prefer to run their own businesses.

It's not just a matter of competence; loyalty also needs to be considered. We can't let the wealth we've worked so hard to build be ruined by an accountant who absconds with the money.

Ron nodded. "The itinerary in Novigrad, add these things to the list, next item is the upgrade of the water-powered forging hammer."

Erwin looked up. He knew about this plan. Before the construction of the hydraulic forging hammer, Ron had drawn up a draft of a four-hammer linkage. At that time, due to tight funds and construction period issues, only a single hammer was built. But now the conditions are different.

Erwin flipped to the project progress record on the notepad and scrolled down the list with his finger.

"Funding is not an issue at the moment, but the construction schedule is fully booked with the hydraulic wire drawing machine. However, we can prepare the materials for the workshop upgrade in advance."

"Once the wire drawing machine is completed, we'll immediately move on to upgrading the forging hammer. As for the timber, we'll have the logging team set off today."

Erwin noted it down, turned to the next page, and paused for a moment on the paper.

"Ron, there's one more thing, about our partner village, Holloton."