Carnford Further Expands Its Defenses

In the evening, in the Lord's Hall, Edgar was giving Karl his routine report.

Holding a densely written sheet of paper, he clearly and logically stated. "Sir, the production of fifty bottles of Militia Potion for this month has been completed and registered in the warehouse. The street planning and sanitation improvement in the residential area have been completed, the public toilets are functioning well, the irrigation canal project has been fully completed, and the residents' feedback has been excellent. The upgrade of the farmland irrigation system has also been basically completed. One hundred and thirty-seven newly added displaced people have all been properly resettled and put into land reclamation and construction work..."

As Karl listened to Edgar's detailed and detailed report, he was filled with emotion.

These tedious and extremely important domestic affairs tasks used to fall almost entirely on the shoulders of Old Morrell. Although Morr was diligent and conscientious, he was getting old and his energy was limited, so he could not attend to many details.

Now, thanks to his outstanding management skills, rich experience, and tireless energy, Edgar manages everything in an orderly manner, even more meticulously, scientifically, and efficiently than before.

Old Morrell remained a respected clerk, while a large amount of routine and tedious administrative work, resource allocation, personnel placement, and logistical support naturally shifted to Edgar.

Currently, most government measures are proposed by Edgar, then checked and proofread by Morr, Hans, and others. Once they are correct, they are handed over to Karl for review, and Karl makes the final decision before the decree is implemented.

The specific implementation process was left to Edgar, Morr and Hans were only responsible for reviewing and deciding on resource allocation.

Of course, their cooperation has been flawless so far. Edgar's proposed measures and the necessary resources and manpower are all reasonable, and Morr and Hans are cooperating with his actions.

Looking into Edgar's eyes, slightly bloodshot yet still sharp from days of hard work, Karl said sincerely, "Mr. Edgar, you've worked hard. You deserve much credit for Carnford's current situation. Entrusting the administration to you was one of the best decisions I ever made."

Edgar bowed slightly, a tired but satisfied smile on his face, "You flatter me, sir. This is merely my duty. To see a piece of land become orderly and vibrant under my management is the greatest reward for me."

The two exchanged a smile and said nothing more.

The old scribe Morr had no complaints whatsoever about Edgar taking over almost all of the territory's daily administration and logistics. Instead, he felt a long-lost sense of ease and relief.

He could finally be freed from those tedious tasks such as population registration, distribution of supplies, and dispute mediation.

He poured almost all his energy and wisdom back into the field he loved and was best at—engineering construction and fortification.

His gaze was no longer limited to the increasingly fortified main castle atop the mountain.

As an old man who had participated in the initial construction of Carnford, he knew better than anyone that Carnford's defense system was never an isolated castle, but a three-dimensional defensive complex consisting of the main castle, outer watchtowers, guard fortresses, and low walls, moats, and traps built according to the terrain.

Today, the expansion of residential areas and the concentration of population at the foot of the mountain make the reconstruction of these outer defense facilities an urgent matter.

Their goal was not to permanently halt Sauron army, which was unrealistic, but rather to slow the enemy's advance and deplete their manpower.

This buys precious time for the civilians in the living area to retreat to the hilltop castle, and weakens the enemy as much as possible before the main force retreats to the castle for the final battle.

Morr knew that once the main force of the Sauron attacked, the farmland, houses, workshops, and even the watchtowers and fortresses he had personally rebuilt would most likely be destroyed in the war; this was an unavoidable sacrifice.

But before that, we must do everything in our power to protect them and ensure they reach their maximum strategic value before they are destroyed.

With Karl's consent, Morr immediately led his apprentices and several experienced stonemasons and carpenters to conduct a detailed survey of the area surrounding Castle Hill.

They redesigned the defense system along key points such as the terrain, road intersections, and stream crossings.

Reconstruction work was then launched in full swing.

The first structures to be rebuilt were three watchtowers in key locations.

They are not majestic stone towers, but rather a mixed stone and wood structure, with a sturdy, square base about one person high built from quarried rubble to protect against fire and impact.

On top of the base, two watchtowers were built using large logs.

The tower is topped with a lightweight but arrow-proof wooden roof. It stands approximately twelve to fifteen meters tall and offers a wide view.

Each tower is garrisoned by three to five sentries, equipped with horns, Beacon Tower, smoke signals, oil-soaked torches, and at least one musket or several archers.

Their mission is to be the first to detect enemy activity and to quickly transmit alarms to the main fortress via sound and light signals.

Building such a watchtower would require about twenty people working for ten days.

In addition, Morr designed and built larger and more robust fortifications along the main roads leading to the living areas and at more critical locations such as mountain passes.

They are more like small, fully-equipped defensive outposts.

The main body of the fort also uses a stone base with a wooden upper structure, but it is larger in size and has enough space inside to accommodate fifteen to twenty soldiers for short-term garrisoning.

The fortress had loopholes and observation windows around its perimeter, and a platform on top that could house a small catapult or more archers.

A shallow moat was usually dug around the fortress, and Caltrops and deer fences were set up.

The purpose of these fortresses was to guard key routes. When the enemy approached, they could be intercepted with arrows and muskets, forcing the enemy to deploy their formation or detour, thereby delaying their advance.

It took about a month to build such a fortress.

In addition, Morr organized a large number of simple horse traps in open areas and at the edges of woodlands where enemies might hide. These traps were camouflaged with grass, with sharpened wooden stakes and numerous hidden tripwires at the bottom. He also cut down trees to create a large number of roadblocks.

Although simple, it was enough to cause trouble and casualties to high-speed charging cavalry in the chaos of the battlefield.

The entire foothills seemed to have transformed into a giant construction site.

In addition to the common people busy with spring plowing and construction, there were also many soldiers and craftsmen under Morr's command, busy with stone-laying, logging, and digging.

Morr spent his days traveling between various construction sites. Although he was tired, he was in high spirits and had bright eyes.

He held a charcoal pencil and parchment, constantly writing and drawing, revising designs, calculating materials, and directing construction.

The completion of each watchtower and the excavation of each section of trench brought him immense satisfaction.

He knew that these fortifications would likely be destroyed or bypassed early in the war.

The soldiers stationed at these isolated outposts will also face enormous risks.

But this is their mission: to trade space for time, to sacrifice themselves to allow the main fortress to be better prepared, and to give civilians more opportunities to evacuate safely.