339 Gemstone Mine

Although Roy didn't sense any danger from him, Commander Hekelis still treated him with great respect, shackled his hands and feet, and locked him in an iron cage, clearly regarding him as an extremely dangerous person.

He was a middle-aged Half-Elf with a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. He sat in the corner of the iron cage with his lips slightly pursed, not uttering a single word.

His clothes were somewhat damp, his sleeves and trouser legs were badly worn, and his pickaxe at his waist was sharpened to a fine point.

He also had a bag hanging from his waist, which looked like it contained some ore.

Commander Hekelis stood outside the iron cage, staring at the Half-Elf, and asked him, "Approximately how many miners are underground?"

"Not counting the Gray Dwarf deep in the mine, there are probably two or three hundred elves," the Half-Elf said in a slightly hoarse voice, his head bowed.

Commander Hekelis was about to ask more questions when his gaze fell on the arm of the middle-aged Half-Elf, which bore a magical rune.

Commander Hekelis looked at the magic rune with some surprise, but said nothing more.

"Are you the regular army of the Silver Moon Elf?" The middle-aged Half-Elf raised his head and stared at Commander Hekelis.

"We are the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment of the Seventeenth Silver Pegasus Legion," Commander Hekelis said casually, then asked, "Are there Gray Dwarf miners down in the mine?"

The middle-aged Half-Elf curled his lip and said, "These Gray Dwarf can no longer be considered mine slaves. They have dug a huge network of tunnels underground. Usually, these Gray Dwarf just hide in the deepest part of the cave. They don't even need to compete with us for the food thrown down from the wellhead. Although they have never been able to leave this place, those Gray Dwarf have formed a relatively independent living circle."

Dwarves prefer to live in mountains with volcanic lava, so living underground in the Pagisto Plateau is obviously not out of the question.

"And you? Which faction do you belong to?" Commander Hekelis asked.

The middle-aged Half-Elf raised his head and said:

"Ever since the mines began to continuously supply Half-Elf slaves, we Half-Elf have united to fight against the Gray Dwarf Bandit and the group of Dark Moon Elf Prisoners."

Commander Hekelis handed the Half-Elf a water pouch and a piece of Breadfruit, and said to him, "Tell me about the prisoners in the well!"

The middle-aged Half-Elf held a fist-sized Breadfruit, first smelling it under his nose, then taking a small bite.

Feeling that there was no problem, he took a big bite and swallowed it whole.

He then pulled out the cork from the water bladder, took a sip of water, and looked quite pleased with himself.

As expected, Commander Hekelis's method was very effective.

The middle-aged Half-Elf had initially given up on speaking, but after eating some Breadfruit, he immediately perked up and said, "These prisoners arrived only a little later than the Gray Dwarf. Initially, they controlled the mine entrance and the distribution of food. Later, as the Half-Elf increased, all of us Half-Elf united and drove away the Dark Moon Elf Prisoners, successfully seizing the mine entrance."

The old Dark Moon Elf was the first to climb up huddled in a corner, basking in the sunlight with his eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to the middle-aged Half-Elf's words.

The third miner to emerge from the mine was a Silver Moon Elf.

He looked somewhat pale, but he was wearing a clean set of clothes and a short dagger at his waist.

He poked his head out of the mine shaft, looked at the longswords resting on the edge of the shaft, and without fear, smiled at the elven cavalryman who was pointing a sword at him and said, "Thank you for rescuing me from the mine."

"Are you Silver Moon Elf?" Commander Hekelis stood by the mine, sizing him up.

"My home is in Buenos City. I came to Padesto City to sell Magic Herbs, but I was framed in the city and sent to this mine by Slave Traders," the Silver Moon Elf said.

"Get him a basin of water..."

Commander Hekelis gave the order to an elven knight.

The elven knight quickly brought over a basin of water and placed a dry towel next to the wooden basin.

The Silver Moon Elf stood beside the wooden tub, carefully washing her face, and then took an apple and a cup of warm fruit tea from the adjutant.

"Are there any other forces besides the Gray Dwarf and prisoners in the mine?" Commander Hekelis asked seriously.

The Silver Moon Elf devoured the apple in a few bites, then, holding the cup of tea, Commander Hekelis said:

"Um... there are also some lone wolves. They never join any side and mine ore alone in the mines. Occasionally, they will bring us ore and exchange it for some food," the Silver Moon Elf explained.

Immediately afterwards, the Half-Elf miners began to crawl out of the mine one after another.

The first Half-Elf to emerge were still in good physical condition. Although their clothes were tattered, they were still able to maintain a semblance of dignity. However, many of the Half-Elf that emerged later were barely clothed, using tattered rags to cover their private parts. Their bodies were almost entirely covered in black mineral dust, and it was unclear how long they hadn't bathed. Their hair and dust had clumped together, forming patches.

The Half-Elf miners who emerged later had to use up their last bit of strength to climb out of the deep mine.

Commander Hekelis had his men find some clothes in the mine and put them on.

One iron cage was simply not enough, so Commander Hekelis had no choice but to keep these Half-Elf in a warehouse in the mine.

Afterwards, the identities of these Half-Elf will be verified. The Half-Elf from the Pattington Plane will be released on the spot, while the Half-Elf from the Elf Continent will be brought back to Padesto City.

However, the prisoners and Gray Dwarf will not be released; they will continue to mine for ore in this mine.

So, the few prisoners and miners who managed to climb out of the mine were taken into custody by Commander Hekelis. Once no more Half-Elf miners climbed out of the mine, he packed them into Wooden Box and sent them back down into the mine by crane.

Before leaving, Commander Hekelis, with a stern face, said to the prisoners and miners:

"From now on, the daily food supply will remain the same as before. When we receive ore, we will put the food in it..."

Elven knights guarded the entrance to the mine, and the prisoners and miners had no choice but to obediently return to the mine.

With the assistance of the Silver Pegasus Legion, Commander Hekelis conquered the mine with little effort.

The Grantham Mine Owners kept a private army, but unfortunately, this army was of no use. Apart from the private army, the mine was occupied by the Grantham Mine Owners's family, as well as some elven servants and maids.

They had lived in this fortress for a long time.

They are currently being held together in a warehouse within the fortress, without any shackles or chains on their bodies.

According to Commander Hekelis ' plan, the Mine Owners and his private army were to be escorted to the Padesto City to be tried in the court.

However, Roy felt the journey was too long, Earl Swynborne might not agree to the decision.

Roy stayed in a room on the top floor of the fortress with the Tenth Reconnaissance Squad Tenth Reconnaissance Squad also had night watch duties.

This time, Langbo did not follow Roy. Instead, Langbo stayed by the mine shaft to help the officers of the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment identify the Half-Elf on Pattington Plane.

Just as Roy had guessed, there were indeed several factions operating underground.

The Gray Dwarf slaves who were the first to enter the mine seem to have broken free from the Mine Owners ' control, because they have found Culture Medium that can cultivate mushrooms underground.

Having solved their food problem, the Gray Dwarf carved out a complex network of mines and retreated deep within them, rarely venturing to the mine exits to compete with the elves for resources...

The Half-Elf elf miners are the most powerful because, for the past ten years or so, the Gransam Mine Owners have been continuously sending Half-Elf - Half-Elf Half-Elf slaves into the mines, resulting in their overwhelming power.

These guys occupied the entrance to the mine and controlled the distribution of food inside.

The Dark Moon Elf Prisoners are a band of bandits. They are the fewest in number, but they are the most formidable in the mines. The prisoners usually hide deep within the mines, only coming to the mine entrance when food is scarce. Occasionally, they will trade ores for food, but more often, these prisoners will rob the Half-Elf miners in the mines.

Now that Commander Hekelis has stormed the mines and rescued the Half-Elf, he has essentially released the miners who actually work in the mines, leaving behind those who don't usually mine.

As a result, Roy believed that the mine would come to a standstill.

Recently, Commander Hekelis has been in a state of distress.

Although he successfully captured a mine, he never even considered how to manage it afterwards.

Earl Swynborne demanded that the mine be operational before the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment could proceed to the next mine...

But now the entire mine is in complete chaos. The Mine Owners, his family, private army, and servants have been locked in a warehouse, while the Half-Elf miners have been released on the spot.

Currently, the mine only contains prisoners, Gray Dwarf, and a few lone wolves with strong survival skills.

In this way, there would be no more miners working in the mines.

In recent days, the daily output of Gemstone Mine has been only one-tenth of what it used to be.

Roy was planning to follow the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment to capture another mine, but after nearly a week, the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment was still trapped in the mine fortress, and Commander Hekelis was unable to escape.

Commander Hekelis led the Silver Pegasus Warrior out to search for other mines...

The Grantham Mine Owners was confined to the warehouse, with two hours of free time each day. Whenever he came out for some fresh air, he would observe the Cavalry Vanguard Regiment in the Mine Owners and look at the piles of rough gemstones stacked in the yard.

These past few days, the pile of gems in the yard hadn't grown any bigger, which made the Grantham Mine Owners think about the problem...

Commander Hekelis sat in his chair and asked his adjutant, "Has the mine's gem production increased today?"

"Not at the moment!" the adjutant replied.

"Any news from Earl Swynborne? I reckon only by throwing the prisoners from Parraram Island in there can the mine's gem production increase," Commander Hekelis said, then scratched his head, saying with a sigh, "I don't want to spend my whole life here as a Mine Owners!"

'Knock knock knock!'

A knock sounded at the door, and an elven knight entered, saying to Commander Hekelis, "Captain, the Grantham mine owner requests an audience!"

Commander Hekelis waved his hand impatiently, then said, "Don't see him. Keep a close eye on him. Make sure he doesn't escape..."

"Yes."

The elven knight turned to leave.

But just as the elven knight reached the door, Commander Hekelis called out to him, "Wait... let him in, I want to hear what he has to say!"

The Grantham mine owner was then brought before Commander Hekelis by the elven knights. The Mine Owners had lost a lot of weight in the past few days, and his eyes were dark...

He entered the room and went straight to Commander Hekelis.

"Commander, may I speak with you alone?" the Grantham mine owner said somewhat obsequiously.

Commander Hekelis sat up straight and glanced at his adjutant.

The adjutant understood and went out, closing the door behind him and standing guard outside.

The Grantham mine owner took a few steps closer and whispered to Commander Hekelis, "Captain, if you would let me leave the Pagisto Plateau, I can give you the most valuable batch of gems I have stored. There are fifteen boxes of these high-grade gems in total."

Commander Hekelis shook his head.

The Grantham mine owner wiped the sweat from his brow. He knew he didn't have much time left, and it was clear that the first condition hadn't impressed the commander.

He considered his trump card, gritted his teeth, and said, "I still have several chests of Superior Quality Magic Weapons hidden in Castleton City. I can give these chests of Superior Quality Magic Weapons to you."

Commander Hekelis shook his head again and said:

"I sit in this position representing the entire Hekelis Family. I don't think those gems and magical weapons are of any use to me!"

The Grantham mine owner's face grew even uglier. He secretly glanced at Commander Hekelis, unable to think of anything else he could do to impress the captain.

"Grantham Mine Owner, the mine is almost at a standstill right now. If you were in this situation, what methods would you use to restore the mine's gem production to normal?"

Commander Hekelis asked the Grantham mine owner.

The Grantham mine owner's eyes lit up. He pondered for a moment before saying, "You've released all the Half-Elf miners. They were the main workforce mining gems during this time, so a reduction in mine production was inevitable. There are some ways to temporarily restore gem production, but these methods can't last long..."

"The best way to restore production at the mine is to add new miners to the mine!"