Recaps

Victor toured Alex and Baron Brown through Riverside Village and Sea Song Town, then saw them off with weapons, blueprints, and craftsmen for Iron Birch Territory. He rewarded the Arms Factory workers and Rafam before announcing a census of Two Rivers Territory and Green Valley Territory to be completed before spring.

• Victor showed Alex the factories in Riverside Village and Sea Song Town, and agreed to provide free land for Alex’s residence in exchange for construction and design fees.
• Victor hosted Alex and Baron Brown for a seafood feast, then saw them off on November 1 with their purchases and accompanying craftsmen.
• Victor gave James five mounted crossbows and announced rewards for Bob, the Arms Factory craftsmen, apprentices, and laborers.
• Victor awarded Rafam twenty gold coins for discovering the iron mine, then discussed the rewards with Number One.
• Victor convened a meeting in Wood Fort Town and ordered military officers and literate soldiers to conduct a census of Two Rivers Territory and Green Valley Territory before spring.

Victor arrived in Northwind City to visit the Iron Birch family and meet his betrothed, but Alex welcomed him before his relatives arrived and brought him to a villa. Victor planned to travel to Iron Mountain Fortress with Alex the next morning and instructed Number One to record the territory's geography and routes.

• Victor sailed from Sea Song Town and reached Northwind City Harbor on April 4 with weapons components and gifts aboard his ship.
• Alex arrived at Victor's temporary lodging that evening, embraced him, and insisted he stay at Alex's villa instead.
• Victor and Alex discussed their plans to visit Iron Mountain Fortress and tour the core area of the Iron Birch Territory while waiting for Alex's uncle's family.
• Victor told Number One to record geographical information and travel routes and said he would later send trained cartographers across the Grand Duchy of Vera.
• Number One reported that a basic map of the Grand Duchy existed, and Victor noted that the completed Two Rivers Territory census would advance their work.

Victor traveled to Iron Mountain Fortress, learned about the Garrison Corps and Iron Birch Territory’s military reserves, then formally visited Count Colt with a gift of white sugar. The chapter ended as Victor presented the sugar to the Count.

• Victor questioned Alex about the fortress garrison and learned it had about ten thousand soldiers under Haines Iron Birch.
• Alex explained that Iron Birch Territory kept understrength legions and extra officers so its forces could expand during wartime.
• Victor realized Iron Birch Territory had far greater military strength and likely a larger population than it officially claimed.
• Victor arrived at Iron Mountain Fortress, prepared for his visit, and followed formal protocol to meet Count Colt.
• Count Colt praised Victor and asked to see his gift, and Victor presented him with white sugar.

Victor presented White Sugar to Count Colt and proposed working together to sell it, hoping the profits would fund Two Rivers Territory’s strained finances. Count Colt recognized that Victor wanted to keep developing and expanding his army ahead of the coup expected within five years, and the chapter left their business discussion poised to continue.

• Victor explained that White Sugar was made from sugarcane or beets like Gray Sugar, but required a more complicated process and cost less than Maple Syrup or honey.
• Count Colt asked Alex to arrange food, then led Victor to a private chamber and asked about Two Rivers Territory’s development and difficulties.
• After their meal, Count Colt sent Alex to guard the door, and Victor explained the territory’s financial strain and proposed cooperating to profit from White Sugar.
• Count Colt observed that Victor could slow construction to ease his finances but wanted to keep developing the territory and expanding his army.
• Victor acknowledged that he was racing to strengthen his forces before the Iron Birch Territory-led coup expected within five years.

Victor explained the potential profits and market for white sugar to Count Colt, offering Iron Birch Territory control of the trade in exchange for a one-fifth share for Two Rivers Territory. The chapter ended with Victor asking whether Count Colt would pursue the business.

• Count Colt asked Victor to explain how much profit white sugar could bring in, and Victor described Two Rivers Territory's beet harvest and sugar output.
• Count Colt compared white sugar with Crimson Maple Territory's scarce maple syrup and explained how other nobles shared in its profits.
• Victor offered to hand the white sugar trade to Iron Birch Territory while asking for Two Rivers Territory to receive one-fifth of the market.
• Victor estimated that the duchy could consume six to eight hundred tons of white sugar annually, producing thirty to forty thousand gold coins in profit.
• Victor offered to send people from Two Rivers Territory to teach beet cultivation and sugar refining if Count Colt agreed to pursue the business.

Victor and Count Colt negotiated a deal to sell White Sugar through the Iron Birch Territory, with Count Colt setting a high price and arranging transport. The agreement also brought Victor military training and a yearly supply of top-grade Iron Birch Wood.

• Count Colt proposed that Victor supply 100 tons of White Sugar, with the Iron Birch Territory handling sales and the profits split between them.
• Count Colt set the selling price at four Silver Coins per kilogram, arguing that nobles would pay and that the sugar could be exported if necessary.
• Victor agreed to the price and planned to write to his territory to prepare the White Sugar for shipment.
• Count Colt offered to send ships to collect the sugar and deliver Victor's letter.
• Count Colt arranged for a squad of Iron Knights to teach Victor's men their battle tactics and promised to send top-grade Iron Birch Wood to the Two Rivers Territory every year.

Victor stayed at Iron Mountain Fortress, where he delivered weapons and used a banquet of elaborate sweets to begin his plan to increase demand for White Sugar. The next morning, Victor and Alex went to Northwind City’s docks to welcome Viscount Benjamin.

• Count Colt arranged for Victor to stay in the inner castle and asked Alex to show him around Iron Mountain Fortress.
• Victor inspected the weapons his men delivered to the garrison and discussed their quality with Alex.
• Victor explained his Grand Plan to promote White Sugar by using trained chefs and sweet foods to create new tastes among the nobles.
• At a banquet hosted by Count Colt, Victor introduced the Iron Birch Family to a variety of desserts, which the guests eagerly praised.
• Victor and Alex rode to the docks the next morning, where Viscount Benjamin arrived aboard a warship from Golden Pear Territory.

Victor met Viscount Benjamin and his family, including Veronica, while traveling to Iron Mountain Fortress. Benjamin revealed that he had arranged for Victor to be assessed as a possible match for Veronica, and Victor agreed that she suited him but wanted to hear her wishes before deciding.

• Victor and Alex greeted Viscount Benjamin after he disembarked, and Benjamin introduced them to his wife Joanna, daughter Veronica, and twin sons Ambrose and Islet.
• Joanna and Benjamin explained that Veronica had expected Victor to be a towering, heavily built warrior because of the rumors about him, and Victor realized that was why Veronica had sighed in relief.
• The group traveled from Alex's mansion toward Iron Mountain Fortress, and Benjamin praised Veronica's horsemanship, swordsmanship, and resolute character while explaining his wish to keep her in the North.
• Benjamin told Victor that Alex had recommended him as a potential husband for Veronica and that the campaign against the Tribal Alliance had given them a chance to assess him.
• Victor said Veronica was a suitable match and that he was willing to become engaged, but asked to speak with her privately and confirm her own wishes.

Victor traveled with Viscount Benjamin’s family to Iron Mountain Fortress and discussed plans to develop a medical company and raid small Barbarian tribes. He tested Veronica’s swordsmanship before the banquet, and she revealed that choosing him as her fiancé had been her own decision; Victor agreed to become her fiancé.

• Viscount Benjamin told Victor that Count Colt had arranged a reception banquet and offered him a chance to confirm Veronica’s feelings.
• Benjamin explained that the medical company’s framework was established and discussed plans to test it during raids on small and medium-sized tribes.
• Victor said he would return to Boler County to visit his family, while Alex teased him about his engagement and his own marriage prospects.
• Victor arrived at Iron Mountain Fortress and invited Veronica for a walk, but she led him to the indoor Drill Ground and challenged him to a sword match.
• Victor quickly defeated Veronica, who said she had chosen him as her fiancé herself and had used swordsmanship to express her feelings.
• Victor told Veronica that he was willing to become her fiancé too.

Victor agreed to marry Veronica, and Count Colt presided over their engagement ceremony at a banquet attended by Northern Frontier nobles. After the celebration, Count Colt asked Victor to deliver a letter to Count Black on his way east.

• Victor thanked Alex for helping him and learned that the wedding was planned for May of the following year.
• Veronica arrived at the banquet with Viscount Benjamin, and Count Colt guided Victor through the engagement ceremony.
• The guests eagerly sampled the white sugar at the feast, while Victor stayed beside Veronica and cautioned her against eating too much of it.
• Veronica said she hoped to visit Two Rivers Territory in July, and Victor welcomed her before she left with her family.
• Count Colt asked Victor to deliver a letter to Count Black in Suffolk County when he traveled south, explaining that there was no deep hatred between them.

Victor carried Count Colt’s proposal to Count Black in Suffolk County, traveling south with the Iron Birch Territory’s fleet. Count Black heard Victor’s assessment of the eastern counties’ tensions, while his own losses under Grand Duke Mora left him with reasons to cooperate with Count Colt.

• Count Colt asked Victor to deliver a trade proposal to Count Black and help address the eastern counties’ disputes, and Victor arranged for his ships to join the southbound fleet.
• Victor departed Northwind City with Alex and Veronica seeing him off, then sailed south with the Iron Birch Territory’s fleet.
• Victor reached Sunset City on April 9, learned more about the conflict over Northern Frontier enclaves, and waited for Count Black to return.
• Count Black received Victor, congratulated him on becoming a viscount, and asked his view of the eastern counties; Victor urged both sides to ease tensions and avoid conflict.
• Victor recognized that the enclaves could serve as strategic footholds, while Count Black’s support for Jola and opposition to Grand Duke Mora had cost him territory and restricted his trade.

Victor returned to the Golden Sunflower Territory after persuading Count Black to cooperate with Count Colt and the Iron Birch Family. He reunited with his parents and younger siblings at the manor, where the family gathered for dinner.

• Victor persuaded Count Black to accept Count Colt's requests and cooperate with the Iron Birch Family.
• Victor sailed up the Blackwater River and arrived at Linshui Town on April 14.
• Lessot recognized Victor and sent word to Former Baron Wembley and Lady Ellie, while Victor teased him with a weight-loss penalty.
• Victor brought gifts and money for his family and the territory, then headed to the manor with part of his party.
• Former Baron Wembley, Lady Ellie, Irene, Wendy, and Enrique welcomed Victor home, and Lady Ellie called the family to dinner.

Victor told his family about his engagement to Veronica and invited them to visit Two Rivers Territory. He then showed Wembley plans for southern and western fortresses and discussed the territory’s preparations for conflict in the east.

• Victor told Wembley and Lady Ellie that he had met Veronica and held their engagement ceremony, and his family congratulated him.
• Victor invited Irene to visit Two Rivers Territory in June or July, and Lady Ellie agreed that the family could go together.
• Victor gave his siblings and mother gifts, then stayed behind to speak privately with Wembley.
• Victor showed Wembley plans for unusual bastion fortresses and explained how they would be built on the territory’s southern and western borders.
• Victor and Wembley discussed the eastern nobles, the Third Legion, and the risks of joining Count Colt’s fighting.
• Victor said Two Rivers Territory had at least two years to grow stronger and might eventually be able to face a legion alone.

Victor discussed plans with Wembley to expand Two Rivers Territory’s farmland, labor force, supplies, and iron mining, while using a campaign against nearby Barbarian Tribes to train troops. He proposed transferring Golden Sunflower Territory’s forces north and appointing Marvin of Iron Birch Territory to lead its defense, and Wembley agreed to the campaign and considered the appointment.

• Victor explained that he would borrow twenty thousand gold from the Gorn Trading Company to buy serfs and reclaim more than ten thousand hectares south of the Great Fish River.
• Victor told Wembley that Alex would supply wheat from Northwind City’s reserves and that Two Rivers Territory would purchase cloth while producing surplus steel for trade.
• Victor proposed clearing the northern grasslands of Barbarian Tribes to capture slaves for the iron mines, and Wembley approved.
• Victor planned to send Golden Sunflower Territory’s troops to the campaign as combat training, and Wembley agreed that the deployment would strengthen them.
• Victor asked about commanders Zieg and Rodriguez and learned that the aging Sir Paul also oversaw Golden Sunflower Territory’s forces.
• Victor recommended Marvin, an Iron Birch Territory officer who commanded an independent border battalion, to take charge of Golden Sunflower Territory’s defense.

Victor discussed recruiting Marvin and the Golden Sunflower Territory’s needs with Former Baron Wembley before leaving his family and returning north. He reached Iron Mountain Fortress with Count Black’s reply and went to meet Count Colt.

• Victor told Former Baron Wembley about Marvin’s abilities and arranged to invite him to join the Golden Sunflower Family, while accepting the possibility that some of Marvin’s men could be informants.
• Victor and his father discussed the Golden Sunflower Territory’s labor shortage, and Victor asked him to allocate five thousand people during the next serf purchase.
• Victor said farewell to his family on April 19 and departed with the territory’s northbound fleet, while arranging for shipwrights to be gathered for future oceangoing shipbuilding.
• Victor traveled through Sunset City, where he missed Count Black, and returned to Northwind City on April 26.
• Victor went to Iron Mountain Fortress to deliver Count Black’s reply, and Alex led him to Count Colt, who was waiting to hear the count’s position.

Victor delivered Count Black’s reply to Count Colt, who considered whether Victor could help the Great Oak Family break away from the Grand Duchy and earn a title by raising troops and securing the eastern counties. At Hot Water Fortress, Marvin accepted Victor’s offer to join the Golden Sunflower Family.

• Victor gave Count Colt Count Black’s letter and reported on his visit, and Count Colt praised him and approved recruiting Marvin and up to a hundred soldiers.
• Count Colt told Alex that Count Black wanted a Northern Frontier noble to help defeat the Third Legion, control the Eastern Four Counties, and guard his grandson, and he considered sending Victor.
• Count Colt said he would promise Victor a count’s title if the Golden Sunflower Family raised half a legion and held the eastern counties, and Alex agreed to hint at the opportunity.
• Victor and Alex rode to Hot Water Fortress, where Victor offered Marvin command of an independent unit that could grow into a regiment.
• Alex confirmed that Count Colt had allowed Marvin to leave with his troops and their families, and Marvin pledged himself to Victor.

Victor recruited Marvin and his trusted Freemen for Two Rivers Territory, then traveled back with Alex. After hinting at a future mission that could earn Victor a title as a count, Victor showed Alex his new white flour business, which he expected to bring in substantial profits.

• Alex congratulated Marvin on joining Victor and allowed him to choose suitable subordinates after completing the handover at Hot Water Fortress.
• Victor offered Alex half the dividends from a new project, and Alex warned that Victor should expand his army for an important future task that could earn him the achievement needed to become a count.
• After resting at Hot Water Fortress, Victor and Alex departed on May 1 while Marvin and his subordinates stayed behind to complete the handover.
• Victor and Alex reached Two Rivers Territory, where Victor showed Alex the machinery factory's new project: refined white flour.
• Victor explained that the flour would sell for one Copper Piece per jin and that the factory had also designed flour mills powered by livestock or water.

Victor and Alex planned to expand the flour business, with Victor explaining how flour mills, branding, and better products could keep Two Rivers Territory competitive. Alex left eager to install the advanced mill in Iron Birch Territory, but Victor said it could not be moved anytime soon.

• Alex praised flour after Victor served him a feast and proposed selling flour as a fifty-fifty partner.
• Victor took Alex to Riverside Village's machinery factory, where Alex admired a stone flour mill capable of producing three thousand kilograms a day.
• Victor explained that selling stone mills could help spread flour production while allowing nobles to coordinate prices and avoid competing destructively.
• Victor showed Alex Steel Mill Number One, which could produce up to thirty tons of finer flour a day, and explained its high costs and demanding operating requirements.
• Alex offered five thousand gold coins for Steel Mill Number One, but Victor said it could not be moved elsewhere anytime soon.
• Victor outlined plans for a distinctive flour trademark and premium products, reassuring Alex that Two Rivers Territory's technological lead would preserve its advantage.

Victor reorganized Two Rivers Territory’s army and prepared an expansion ahead of a planned sweep against nearby barbarian tribes. After hearing intelligence from Jell and Luda, the commanders agreed on the order of targets for the campaign.

• Alex signed a flour venture contract with Victor and returned to Iron Birch Territory with flour mills and flour.
• Victor planned to expand the army by 2,000 men and convened military leaders after Marvin arrived in Two Rivers Territory.
• Victor appointed James and Santos as acting commanders of the two combat regiments, assigned Marvin to lead the garrison regiment, and ordered recruitment to begin.
• Jell and Luda reported that their caravans had found seven tribes, including the Blazing Fire Tribe and the Iron Palm Tribe.
• The commanders agreed to target the Blazing Fire Tribe first, its five vassal tribes second, and the Iron Palm Tribe last.

Victor reviewed the territory’s military reforms, agricultural expansion, new settlements, and iron production plans while preparing for the next phase of development. The chapter left Two Rivers Territory aiming to become a major steel producer as Victor questioned the Grand Duchy’s official population figures.

• Victor ordered the Horseshoe Tribe to continue monitoring seven tribes and report any significant changes to the Operations Staff Department.
• Victor reviewed officer training and planned to establish a military rank system after several rapid army expansions.
• Victor assessed new farmland, fruit orchards, and eleven settlements, including fortified settlements and border watch posts.
• James brought 400 professional soldiers and 1,000 serfs from Viscount Ronald, and the serfs began mining iron ore for Two Rivers Territory.
• Victor expanded iron bean cultivation and projected that the territory could produce hundreds of tons of steel if its iron mine reached its planned capacity.
• Victor compared the Grand Duchy’s reported population with information from Alex and Number One, concluding that nobles had likely concealed their territories’ population figures.

Victor considered the duchy's hidden population a potential source of labor and strength, but Two Rivers Territory faced an immediate labor shortage as its army recruited from the militia. By May 20, the territory had enrolled nearly 2,400 recruits, who began basic training.

• Victor judged that nobles' concealed population figures made the duchy's official estimates inaccurate and saw the hidden population as a future opportunity to expand his territory's strength.
• Victor hoped to fight in the southern region during Count Colt's future Civil War, where victories could bring Two Rivers Territory more population and wealth.
• Two Rivers Territory began recruiting militiamen, promoting experienced auxiliary soldiers and selecting new recruits for basic training.
• The territory's militia and grassroots administration helped complete recruitment in four days, calling up nearly 2,400 militiamen by May 20.
• The army planned to make its best-performing recruits reserve combat soldiers and reorganize the others who passed training as auxiliary soldiers.

On May 24, Victor welcomed the year’s first fleet to Wood Fort Town, carrying troops, fuel, slaves, and trade goods. He prepared to inspect an iron mine with Vitri and told the arriving detachments they would join Marvin’s territorial garrison regiment.

• Victor welcomed Vitri, Captain Jack, Zieg, and Rodriguez at the docks and arranged for Vitri to rest before their planned iron mine inspection.
• Vitri offered a ten-year loan at 2% annual interest and brought 5,000 gold for Two Rivers Territory and 3,000 gold stipulated in their agreement, pending an on-site inspection.
• Captain Jack reported that the fleet carried 5,000 male slaves, rotating troops and their equipment, and 1,000 tons of fuel; Vitri’s fleet also brought 3,000 slaves and other goods.
• Victor told Captain Jack that he would eventually lead the territory’s maritime trade fleet, but instructed him to continue managing the transport fleet for now.
• Victor informed Zieg and Rodriguez that their detachments would join the territorial garrison regiment under Marvin and told them to reassure their troops as Marvin arranged their garrison locations.

Victor inspected the newly arrived slaves and organized the arrival of troops rotating into the Northlands, while assigning the Second Regiment to send veterans back to Golden Sunflower Territory. The meeting ended with Vitri learning that Victor had already promised white sugar and flour to the Iron Birch Family, so he asked to inspect the pig iron project instead.

• Victor inspected the five thousand slaves and learned that seventy-one had died during the journey, while Count Black's intervention had secured their delivery on favorable terms.
• Marvin arrived with the Garrison Regiment's troops, and Victor ordered him to take them to their station and prepare an organizational plan.
• Victor told the officers that the incoming troops would form the core of the Garrison Regiment and ordered the Second Regiment to rotate two detachments back to Golden Sunflower Territory under Foss.
• Victor instructed Zieg and Rodriguez to coordinate the rotation details with the Second Regiment and ended the meeting.
• Vitri praised the prospects for white sugar and flour, but Victor told him he had already agreed to supply them to the Iron Birch Family.
• Vitri asked Victor to take him to inspect the iron mine and Steelworks in Two Rivers Territory the next morning.

Victor, James, and Vitri surveyed Green Valley Territory’s iron mine and reviewed the agreement for developing it, then Vitri visited Two Rivers Territory’s Steelworks and finalized a loan with Victor. The chapter leaves Vitri departing by ship as Two Rivers Territory put eight thousand new slaves to work in its settlements.

• On May 25, Victor and Vitri traveled to Green Valley Territory, where James joined them to visit the iron mine under their families’ joint-development agreement.
• Victor, James, and Vitri surveyed the open-pit mine and found that transporting its growing stockpile of iron ore was a greater obstacle than extraction.
• Victor took Vitri to the Steelworks in Riverside Village, showed him the small blast furnaces, and let him inspect the finished pig iron.
• Vitri handed Victor gold coins under their loan agreement and promised to deliver the rest to Old Baron Wembley before mid-June.
• Vitri left Two Rivers Territory by ship the next morning, while a fleet carrying eight thousand slaves departed for settlement assignments.
• Two Rivers Territory assigned the new slaves to four settlements, where residents would reclaim farmland and form militia units to guard nearby outposts.

Victor oversaw the settlements, inspected the recruit camp, and arranged new blue uniforms for the army before reviewing intelligence on the Barbarian Tribes. The Horseshoe Tribe’s reconnaissance uncovered a usable river route toward Tribe Number Two, while Luda and Jell hoped to gain permission to seize the tribe’s wealth.

• Victor ensured the four settlements began normal production, then returned to Wood Fort Town on June 5 and ordered officials to document construction problems for future settlements.
• Victor inspected the recruits, encouraged their training with better meals and sweets, and arranged for linen to be dyed blue and made into standardized uniforms.
• Luda led a Horseshoe Tribe caravan to gather intelligence on the Blazing Fire Tribe, bringing Two Rivers Territory scouts and weapons to build trust with the tribes.
• Luda and Jell sought detailed information on Tribe Number Two, whose population and livestock made it a tempting target for the Horseshoe Tribe.
• The caravan’s scouts found a small river near Tribe Number Two that connected to the Lime River and could carry rafts, establishing the first section of a planned march route.