Chapter 124: The Rights and Games of Kobolds

The technological level of Riverbend is, on the whole, only slightly higher than that of an Imperial village, barely reaching the standard of a small town. Riverbend already possesses its own blacksmiths, carpenters, stonemasons, fletchers, and tailors, but their skills are merely average, capable only of producing the most basic tools for daily life.

As for chainmail, the simplest to craft, the lack of wire-drawing technology means the links must be imported; it is more cost-effective to simply buy the finished product. Needless to say, mail armor and scale armor with finer links are completely beyond Riverbend's capabilities, both in terms of materials and craftsmanship—they must be bought. As for laminar armor, which is even more advanced—it must be bought!

Only brigandine armor can be produced in small batches, but it consumes a vast amount of manpower and materials, and the quality is significantly inferior to those produced in town workshops. Given the time and labor required, it is better to produce iron ingots and farm tools for sale.

"Better to buy!" Valery insists. "Buy, buy, buy!"

Ulyan can only sigh in frustration and look for other ways. Buying is impossible—there is no money! The cheapest iron armor in Isempor is the silver-scaled breastplate imported in bulk from the South. To accommodate the tall frames of the Northerners, they are all extra-large; even a sturdy man like Leo could wear a piece of hardened leather armor underneath one. Unfortunately, a single silver-scaled breastplate costs five gold coins. Furthermore, it only provides protection for the chest and back; adding a full set of splinted arm guards, leg guards, scale-covered pauldrons, and chainmail boots doubles the price. In other words, arming a single regular infantryman costs ten gold coins—a sum far beyond Riverbend's means.

The regular infantry of the Imperial standing army wear the more refined and superior legionary chainmail, which offers better protection and is lighter and more flexible, but also much more expensive. The leather-lined chain shirt Leo currently wears is a "beggar's version" of that legionary armor. As for the heavy plate and laminar armor worn by heavy elite infantry and Imperial cataphracts, they are essentially simplified versions of knightly plate armor, and one could not acquire them for less than twenty or thirty gold coins.

Speaking of which, metal armor in the North is almost entirely imported from the South. The metal armor produced in the few large Northern cities is essentially monopolized by the great counts, produced and consumed within their own circles. Only custom-made knightly armor comes from the hands of Northern master craftsmen. These custom pieces are not made of ordinary iron, but incorporate alchemical products, with materials comparable to modern alloy steel.

Some of these knightly armors are even plated with magical inscriptions, providing various special effects. This level of equipment—so-called magical gear—can only be crafted by hand by master smiths and cannot be mass-produced. However, Riverbend is not entirely without sources of iron armor. During battles between the Riverbend patrol and local bandit gangs, they have seized some second-hand equipment. Many of these bandits are veterans, deserters, or other skilled fighters, and some are even Northern longbowmen with archery skills as precise as wild hunters. Having long lived through slaughter, they understand the value of iron armor, and many bandit leaders and seasoned outlaws possess decent gear. Although battered and worn, these mail, chain, scale, and brigandine armors are collected by the Riverbend patrol, repaired in the workshop, and transformed into a part of their own strength.

Through his connections with the Petukhov family, Ulyan also managed to trade stockpiles of iron ingots and high-quality furs for a batch of second-hand mail armor sold at half price, which finally allowed him to raise the iron armor coverage of the Riverbend infantry regiment to seventy percent. As an officer retired from an elite legion, educated in military doctrine and hardened by real combat, Ulyan naturally knows that unarmored militia are just for show. Militia can chase away beasts or deter bandits, but in a true state of war, numbers mean nothing; everything depends on the field army and the rate of iron armor coverage.

Leo understands this point particularly well. Without a comparable field army and fine equipment, a nation with a population of hundreds of millions can still be defeated by a remote tribe of only two hundred thousand. But reality is always a far cry from the ideal. Leo has no "system starter pack" and no "technological eureka" moments; he can only work with Ulyan, accumulating strength bit by bit.

One day, Ulyan went to Isempor again. When trouble arose, Ivan could only report to Leo. Seeing him walk in, Leo immediately greeted him, "You! You..."

"Shut your mouth!" Before he could finish, Ivan was already gripping his sword hilt, glaring with such fury that he seemed ready to spill blood, disregarding all hierarchy. His exploits are widely circulated in Riverbend, spawning various versions. Some even spread rumors that he is "incapable" in that department, causing several village beauties who used to flirt with him to avoid him from afar. Although young Ivan is not as dazzling as Leo, he is a pillar of the Riverbend infantry regiment, a squad leader, and a favorite in Leo's inner circle. Young, unmarried, sunny, and handsome, he was the target of many village girls. Unfortunately, all that beauty has now gone up in smoke.

"Speak, what is it?" Leo quickly shut his mouth.

"Commander, there's trouble in Kobold Valley."

Leo remained calm. "Let them make trouble. What does that have to do with us?" Just as most new developments in Riverbend are related to Leo, any news from Kobold Valley is usually caused by Fissa. Just as Ulyan is unwilling to deal with Leo's messes, Leo is exhausted and unwilling to manage Fissa's disasters.

"Ogres have gone to Kobold Valley, intending to become the leaders of the kobolds."

"Oh?" Leo stood up, highly interested. "What kind of trick are these big fatties playing? Let's go, let's go watch the show!"

On the way to Kobold Valley, Ivan detailed the information he had gathered. It turned out that ever since the ogres occupied the abandoned blockhouse, many kobolds had come to regard them as gods. Ignorant and superstitious human villagers often compare brown bears, tigers, or even strange rocks and trees to mountain gods. The kobolds, with even lower intelligence, are even more ignorant. The terrifying stature of the two-headed ogres deeply intimidated them. Some kobold hunting parties would secretly offer half their prey to the ogre tribe, praying for their protection. This was the reason the ogres had never eaten a kobold since arriving in the Western Forest.

When the black-furred kobolds joined Fissa's tribe, the situation worsened. The black-furred kobolds admire strength more; they felt that Fissa, being female, could at most be the tribe's shaman, not its leader. In their eyes, only the strongest kobold could lead everyone to grow, strengthen, and reach greatness. However, the black-furred kobolds are generally smaller and thinner than the golden-furred ones, and the strongest golden-furred elite guards are all loyal to Fissa. Thus, they thought of the two-headed ogres and prepared to invite them into Kobold Valley to be their kings!

The thought of having a group of ogres charging at the front whenever they fought other races excited the black-furred kobolds. This idea gained the support of a small portion of the golden-furred kobolds, so they went to the ogre lair to make contact. Krog, the two-headed ogre, was even more thrilled; he grabbed his club on the spot, ready to lead his tribe into Kobold Valley. That was several hundred kobolds! If they handed over their daily food harvest to the ogres, they could eat until they burst and still have leftovers! Even if there were no food left, several hundred kobolds would be enough to feed them for half a year!