Protection Money

Inside the snow-white conference hall.

Lotner and his confidants were completely dumbfounded. "No way? My lord, you really agreed to the Steel Duchy's request to build Military Fortress?"

Faced with this dire situation, Odom retorted, "Even if we refuse now, it's not a big deal, but once their large army arrives on the cliff, the crisis we face will be far greater."

William raised his hand to stop the others from speaking further, and instead smiled, "Tell me, how long would it take to build a Military Fortress that can hold at least tens of thousands of people?"

"Um... it depends on the number of people. If there are few, it will probably take more than half a year." As the Deputy City Lord, Odom has been in charge of the expansion project and naturally understands the difficulty involved.

Military Fortress, in particular, differ from cities.

All buildings in Military Fortress must have a certain level of defensive capability. The walls must be high and thick to house arrow towers, and the interior space must be large enough to accommodate Catapult. Two large warehouses are also needed to store supplies and food. If it were just for living in, then naturally it wouldn't be so complicated.

"That's right. Would the Steel Duchy use our people to build Military Fortress?"

Definitely not, without a doubt.

Even if he could directly mobilize tens of thousands of people to build this Military Fortress, it would take at least three or four months. In addition, there would be logistical support, which would involve not only long distances but also significant losses each time supplies were transported.

I asked him to build Military Fortress, no problem.

But once he has completed the foundation and is unable to abandon this place, I will have the Steel Duchy pay protection fees every month.

Give me Gold Coin, slaves, and food.

Otherwise, I, the lord, will cut off his food and manpower.

"Do you think they'll give it to me?" William asked, his eyes revealing greed and ruthlessness.

Many of his subordinates were slightly startled; they truly hadn't expected William to pull such a stunt. Odom hesitated briefly, then said worriedly, "They'll certainly give you the supplies you demand to build this fortress, but what about the retaliation that follows..."

"Then that will happen in five or six months!" William narrowed his eyes. "By then, before they finish building their fortress, we'll wipe them out and seize all their resources."

"This... are you really going to do this?" Lotner was puzzled. He didn't understand why the lord was doing this; it was clearly a declaration of war.

William sneered, "Do you really expect them to settle down near Dawn City? Believe me, we'll make a fortune when we raid their new home, and we'll definitely inflict heavy losses on the Steel Duchy."

Moreover, the situation they faced at that time meant they couldn't be easily attacked.

Alec and the others didn't know what to say.

At this moment, we can only obey his orders.

Because they were unaware that the Steel Duchy's Dragon-Slaying Plan would inevitably take place within six months.

That period coincided with William's campaign to capture the Military Fortress. At that time, the Military Fortress would have been quite empty inside, and even if there were many soldiers standing on the walls, it would likely have been a bluff.

With the Military Fortress captured and the game about to enter Open Beta, coupled with the tense situation between the Steel Duchy and the Blackrock Duchy, war is imminent. At that time, how could the Steel Duchy dare to easily send troops to attack Dawn City?

As for the chances of success in attacking the Military Fortress, there shouldn't be any major issues.

Because the Elven Ranger's ability to place wards is no joke; if he can't spot a large group of people walking out of the fortress, then he's probably doomed.

at the same time.

He also wanted to follow those bastards, trace the clues, and head to the East Sea Snow Mountain to see if he could gain any benefits.

In short, this is a crucial battle that will determine his future development.

The victor is king, the loser is villain; why not take a gamble?

Time flies.

William continued to do tasks whenever they came up.

A simple life where I spend my free time farming favorability when I don't have any missions to complete.

For some reason, Siya's 3D model seems to have changed again recently, which really left William dumbfounded.

In particular, she has begun to enjoy researching Magic artifacts with destructive power!

"She's clearly a dual-elemental Mage of water and wood, so she shouldn't like this kind of thing. Could it be that she's starting to explore a new direction? Maybe I should have her research Magic Cannon in the future; that sounds like a good idea."

This day.

William wandered around the city, Insight one slave after another was handed over to unfamiliar people—well, they should be considered Commoners.

The 50,000 slaves of the Steel Duchy have been delivered.

With a wave of his hand, he pardoned all their crimes and slavery, allowing them to become Commoners again. From then on, they would also become members of the New District, which was divided into two districts: the Elf New District and the human district.

The New District is still under construction, and many Commoners like to take a stroll in the city during their time off.

Of course, other Gold Coin and supplies were also delivered.

The Steel Duchy has now dispatched a Legion and tens of thousands of slaves to build Military Fortress.

Yesterday, he also sent a Magic message to Augustine, demanding this month's 'protection fee.' The reason given was that William would be sending troops to attack the Murloc and Gnoll on the grasslands, and that he had suffered heavy losses protecting these allies, so some aid and compensation were needed.

William added that without the troops he sent to protect the convoy, the Steel Duchy would have suffered heavy losses...

In summary, you need to give me 10,000 Gold Coin, 50,000 catties of grain, and 2,000 slaves every month!

Upon receiving William's telepathic message, Augustine and Goethe Narcissus naturally couldn't help but unleash a torrent of curses.

Goethe, in particular, practically cursed all eighteen generations of his ancestors.

He vehemently denounced William as a despicable, shameless, and greedy scoundrel.

Augustine and Goethe breathed a sigh of relief. The way to deal with such a greedy fellow was to fatten him up first, and then take back everything with interest. If they could also take over the Dawn City, that would be the real big profit.

This is similar to how they secretly targeted certain Grand Nobles.

Be patient for a while, and you'll definitely profit!

then.

The Steel Duchy obediently delivered this month's protection fee to Dawn City.

William returned to the mysterious Divination Shop, and Moxis, who was petting Black Cat, saw him approaching with a fairly natural expression.

The two have a goodwill level of over 500 points, but they don't talk much. It's said that the friendship between gentlemen is as spicy as wine, which seems to describe these two alcoholics.

It's obvious.

William has discovered one of Moxis's hobbies.

Or rather, he had known all along that Moxis had this hobby, but because he wasn't favored enough or of high enough rank, he had never even been qualified to drink with him.

Now that his favorability rating is over 500, he can finally drink and chat with the big shots.

"You've brought in so many slaves at once, aren't you afraid of causing trouble in the city?" Moxis kindly pointed at him.

William waved his hand dismissively, "Everything is under control."

Moxis downed the wine in his glass in one gulp without saying another word.

Because he really wanted to see how far William could develop Dawn City.

At its current rate of development, Dawn City certainly has great potential, but taking too big a step could easily backfire...

Moxis stroked his chin. "He's still too young. But when the city falls and everyone is dying, should I save his life? After all, I have a pretty good impression of this kid, and he has some potential. He might be able to help me in the future."

Thanks to: som, Nides, and Dark Shine for the generous donations. Thank you.

I'm begging for Recommendation Ticket! If I get over 8,000 Recommendation Ticket next week, I guarantee 20 chapters within 5 days of release; if I get over 9,000, I guarantee 25 chapters within 5 days of release.

If we get more than 10,000 Recommendation Ticket next week, we'll release 30 chapters within 5 days of the book going on sale!

Keep your word.