Second Exploration

The next morning, after breakfast, Lynn inspected all his men in the small square at the center of the castle.

This time, his party had expanded to nine people, including Second Brother, whose sense of smell was exceptionally keen, and eight hardened Horse Bandits who had rested up for a long time.

With more people came a proportional increase in the mounts and supplies they needed to bring.

They still had two horses per person. Aside from essential food and weapons, they also brought an extra set of chainmail and helmets in case of conflict.

Lao Si, Lao Wu, and Lao Liu remained behind at the castle. Lynn left them seven Horse Bandits, which was more than enough to handle ordinary emergencies.

In truth, calling this group of subordinates Horse Bandits was no longer quite appropriate.

After the farming was finished, Lynn planned to convene an internal meeting and reorganize them into the sword and shield that would protect White Bear Territory.

After bidding farewell to the reluctant Yagna, Old Albert, and the others, Lynn headed north once again.

During his previous exploration, he had first traveled north to the edge of the swamp and discovered a great deal of Peat. He had then followed the swamp westward and found a Salt Mine, before finally returning to White Bear Territory in a straight line from the Salt Mine.

The fog of war he had uncovered could roughly be viewed as a triangle.

Lynn's goal this time was the unexplored fog-covered area in the middle of that triangle.

As the temperature rose, the roads through the forest became even harder to traverse.

The once-hard forest ground had turned soft, and sticky marshes of all sizes lay everywhere. One careless step, and a horse could sink into the mud.

But this could not stop Lynn's group from advancing.

Using the map provided by the panel and the experience from their previous expedition, they bypassed every natural trap along the way and pressed steadily northwest toward the Salt Mine.

When they rested at noon, Lynn and Second Brother still supplemented their dried rations with hunted game.

This time, they shot two wild ducks with their bows in the marshland.

The ducks had a strong gamey smell, but getting fresh meat in the wilderness was already a luxury.

Second Brother tore into a plump duck leg and said through a mouthful of meat, "Big Brother, I finally understand why the Territories in the north are so scattered. These forests are far too hard to clear. They simply aren't fit for people to live in."

Second Brother had once followed Lynn around the south of the Northern Kingdom.

That region was far more densely populated than the north. Usually, after riding for two or three hours, they would come across prosperous villages and towns.

It had practically been the perfect playground for Horse Bandits.

Yet at White Bear Territory, the northernmost Territory in the kingdom, even reaching the nearest Shallow Beach Territory required a full day's ride, with nothing but dense, uninhabited forest along the way.

Lynn looked around at the primeval forest surrounding them and said with feeling, "You're right. White Bear Territory and Shallow Beach Territory both developed from the riverbank shallows. No one would want to reclaim farmland in the forest. Cutting down the trees isn't enough—you also have to pull out the roots. That's simply not something human labor can solve."

Even in later generations, clearing primeval forests in such cold regions required heavy machinery such as excavators and tractors.

If they had to remove deeply buried roots by hand, the efficiency would be unbearably poor.

Worse still, these forests could not be burned away.

Beneath the swamps that had accumulated for who knew how many tens of thousands of years lay inexhaustible Peat and coal deposits.

If they accidentally burned through the surface and triggered a forest fire, it might burn until the sky and earth changed color.

Once the north wind blew, the ashes from the forest fire alone could bury all of White Bear Territory.

Fortunately, White Bear Territory still had plenty of uncultivated flat land.

Even without taking land from the forest, supporting another ten or twenty thousand people would be no problem. Shallow Beach Territory to the south had even more land. Lynn estimated that if techniques such as the Heavy Plow and Compost were widely adopted, the two Territories combined could support at least a hundred thousand people.

With a logistical base of a hundred thousand people behind him, Lynn was confident he could crush the entire Marsh Duke Territory.

"Big Brother, if we want to develop that Salt Mine, do we need to build a road through this forest?" Second Brother finally realized there was a road-building problem.

"We do need to build a road, but that's much easier than reclaiming farmland. There's no need to dig out the roots. We can drain and fill small marshes, while large swamps can simply be bypassed."

Lynn had come on this trip with the goal of planning a route. The more fog of war they uncovered, the easier it would be to plan.

That afternoon, they discovered a fairly large Stone Mine beside a stream.

Stone Mines were not uncommon along the Northern Border, so they were not worth much.

But for Lynn's grand road-building plan, this Stone Mine was immensely significant.

A road paved with crushed stone would naturally be far more durable than a dirt road.

Building a gravel road would indeed require more labor at the outset, but later maintenance would be relatively simple.

Moreover, his Gathering skill had long since reached level two, unlocking knowledge related to lime-burning.

By mixing quicklime with straw, thatch, sand, soil, and water, he could produce a cement-like material with fairly decent strength.

Though it was far weaker than cement, it was sufficient for building brick-and-stone walls and houses.

After marking the Stone Mine on the map, Lynn's group continued toward the Salt Mine.

At dusk the next day, they crossed the entire triangular area and once again reached the edge of the massive swamp.

Beneath their feet lay a Peat Mine with astonishing reserves.

The Great Swamp had now returned to vibrant life. The slightest sound could startle flock after flock of waterfowl into flight.

According to the fog of war they had uncovered, Lynn's group was now only five kilometers from the Salt Mine.

"Keep going. We'll camp only after reaching the edge of the Salt Mine."

Glancing at the setting sun that had not yet fully disappeared, Lynn decided to travel a little farther west.

This would undoubtedly bring risks. There was little cover around the Salt Mine, and lighting a fire at night could easily alert any Wild People who might be nearby.

But Lynn had come specifically for the Wild People. He had brought fine weapons and armor, so naturally he had nothing to fear.

After traveling another two kilometers west, the trees beside the road became increasingly sparse, and they could vaguely make out the bare peak of Salt Mountain.

Second Brother rode at the very front of the party as a scout when he suddenly said alertly, "Big Brother, there seem to be people on Salt Mountain?!"

"Are you sure you didn't see wrong?" Lynn raised his right hand, signaling the men behind him to stop and hold their breath.

Second Brother lowered his voice. "No. I saw people. There should be three of them on the mountain."

"Everyone, armor up within ten minutes, then charge over there with me. Remember, try to take them alive. We don't need to capture them all—one or two will do. It doesn't matter if the rest escape."

At Lynn's command, the accompanying Horse Bandits swiftly dismounted and helped one another put on their chainmail.

Ten minutes later, they left two men to guard the baggage and Warhorses, while the rest followed Lynn at top speed toward the Salt Mine.