Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest

"Your Highness," the apostate said before him. "I looked through the Sun Stone into the starry sky and saw that the wound has yet to heal. It portends disaster, blood, flames..."

Roman heard Galin's incessant chatter by his ear.

When would this old man ever shut up? He thought to himself, his gaze focused on the stack of reports and official documents.

Today was Roman's second day in the Lion Territory. When he thought he had escaped all the tedious affairs of Fertile City, Galin quietly appeared before him.

This man was a close friend of Jet and Dick, an elder to Gwivelle, a mentor to Sanna, and had made minor contributions to the establishment of Origin City.

But Galin was not standing before Roman with those identities at this moment.

He used to be an Astrologer, firmly believing in mysterious omens and convinced that a great disaster was imminent.

Because not long ago, a scarlet comet streaked across the sky, leaving a hideous, unhealed scar in the Star Realm.

To Roman, unless a meteor from the real world crashed into the earth, it was not worth paying attention to.

But Galin believed the wound in the sky was horrifying, crumbling more with time, like decaying flesh, poised to spread to the earth.

Roman's eyes shifted from the red table to the stone window, trying to find the trace Galin mentioned in the azure sky, but found nothing.

Galin noted, "Your Highness, only we can see the Star Realm."

Roman asked, "Not even Mary?"

He saw the Scarlet Witch shake her head slightly.

The Prophet could use the Sun Stone to observe the Star Realm, which, like the Netherworld, was a dimension only perceptible to a rare few with extraordinary Talent.

But the Witch was not a legitimate Astrologer.

Astrologers couldn't see the Netherworld as perceived by the Witch, and the Witch knew nothing of the Star Realm as seen by the Astrologer.

Roman knew that these superhumans believed the Netherworld and the Star Realm were different manifestations of the same dimension.

Shasta then said, "Hasn't the Star Realm fallen into darkness as well?"

Galin countered, "But what if that scarlet, glaring evil light pierced through the darkness?"

Shasta felt strong unease at these words.

Margaret remained silent; the scarlet light flickered in her eyes.

Roman did not wish to discuss such vague matters.

Because the mysterious side is always like that—it seems normal not to understand, and when understood, it loses its mystery.

Roman rubbed his eyes, "Alright, Galin, I've given this matter enough attention. If it's indeed necessary, the River Valley won't sit idly by. But what more do you want from me now? Just step back!"

Hearing the heavy tone in Roman's voice, Galin realized that the young monarch did not see this as a top priority and was now quite impatient.

Galin sighed internally and could only bow and retreat.

Roman refocused his attention on the official documents of the Lion Territory.

This round of territorial expansion brought him significant benefits.

The Lion Territory, having suffered multiple devastations, still had a sizable population, capable of supplementing River Valley's military forces.

He didn't ask for much, fearing he couldn't digest it all, just three thousand people, and also planned to recruit a portion of new soldiers after capturing each new place.

These new soldiers could only be used as auxiliary troops.

In Roman's plan, during wartime, new soldiers didn't have much time for training. They were different from those with past military experiences, without time to grow within military camps, having to quickly move to various places to support the subsequent major forces in combat.

Roman hoped these new soldiers would grow throughout their military careers.

A military career is a harsh crucible, tolerating no laziness, delay, or disobedience.

They would be led by Professional Soldiers, who would correct all bad habits, turning them into warriors that met the army's requirements.

If new soldiers couldn't change, made multiple mistakes, or tried to escape... Roman would give life-and-death power to the grassroots officers—their lives, whether to live or die, would be determined by their superiors.

A life is just that; it's just an extra compensation payment.

He didn't have time to pay attention to the inconspicuous little figures.

Galin's reminder was not useless. Roman knew there were external threats to the Human Clan, but how could the current state of the earth allow for unity to resist foreign enemies?

At this moment, Tashina burst in, her tall, robust form clad in white riding attire. She immediately said, "Lord Roman, where are the elite soldiers you promised me?"

Roman paused his writing, frowning.

Tashina said, "The Lion Territory has been stable for a month, yet the army you promised me has yet to appear."

"Not even a month! You've pressed me three times!" Roman's eyes darkened, "During this time, I've aided the Lion Territory with hundreds of thousands of tons of supplies, helping restore basic production, and everyone's been working nonstop, yet all you're concerned about is your army!"

Tashina said, "My dear Roman, if you'd let your great army fully participate in this, I believe the results would be twice the effort! But after you kidnapped three thousand young people from my land to serve as your sources of soldiers, you ignored everything else—even now, your army is about to set off—Roman! You completely disregard my concerns."

Roman coldly gazed at Tashina, "Helping you through the toughest phase has already delayed me considerably."

He pulled out a letter from the documents and placed it before Tashina.

"I committed to the contract, stationing five hundred clerks and three hundred instructors here permanently to manage your land and train your army. Yet your ministers are the ones opposing it. They demand my clerks withdraw with the army from the Lion Territory!"

Tashina picked up the letter, her face icy as she read its contents.

The Lion Territory had many things awaiting revival, and she had plenty to deal with, but her ministers were unwilling to contribute. She thought they were merely resistant, not realizing they dared to drag her down.

Tashina said indifferently, "This is a misunderstanding; it seems I haven't made things clear to them!"

The ministers always opposed Tashina having so many Professional Soldiers.

The primary concern was financial—the difficulty in maintaining an army was extremely high and required substantial investment.

Finance Minister Damian was among the objectors. He believed that within half a year, Tashina's newly established regime would face bankruptcy.

The ministers didn't mind wholeheartedly dedicating themselves to the emerging Black Iron Kingdom to earn a place in history and honor and titles to benefit future generations.

But the current Tashina made them feel unfamiliar.

They privately believed she'd been bewitched by someone, poisoned deeply, down to the bone.

Roman's various actions in the Lion Territory were tantamount to trampling on their authority, leaving this group of ministers deeply uneasy.

The Lion Territory currently had two management systems.

One was the River Valley Clerks Roman brought, and the other was Tashina's ministers.

The former was too aggressive, taking over all management orders in the Lion Territory, making everyone do as they said. The ministers dared not speak out, secretly pondering if this was Roman's Lion Territory or the Black Iron King's Lion Territory?

Tashina turned a deaf ear, even tacitly approved and joined in, further hurting and disappointing the ministers.

They had a strong reliance on the old order, accustomed to extracting benefits from the earth using past methods, and regardless of everything, they disliked the King of the River Valley—his style made their blood run cold.

Up until today, this group of ministers finally began exercising their rightful authority.

They aimed to stop Tashina from recruiting soldiers and made appeals for Roman's forces to leave the Lion Territory.

These demands were reasonable, and even the Conqueror couldn't find fault with them.

Tashina spoke firmly, "There will be no misunderstanding in the future!"

Roman nodded, saying, "If you can bring your ministers in line, you'll get what you want in no more than ten days!"

He believed in Tashina's capability. Her White Knight and Black Iron were the toughest nuts to crack on this land.

Roman and his senior officers had simulated scenarios, concluding that it would take at least ten Professional Soldiers' lives to bring down a single Black Iron, and even then, killing a White Knight would require the siege of over a hundred Soldiers.

In fact, the rightful inheritor of the Black Iron legacy, who has now ascended to the throne, was Tashina.

She inherited the will of Iaos, desperately hoping to restore the fractured land to united order at the fastest pace.

Roman realized that this came from a duty and some deep-seated motivation rooted in the depths of the Black Castle Palace.

"Your Highness, let me tell you that the letter advising you to withdraw your troops wasn't authorized by Tashina," Shasta gently said, watching Tashina disappear through the door.

Roman nodded in response, "I know."

He didn't care what means Tashina would use to subdue her ministers, but if she couldn't do it, Roman wouldn't mind lending her a hand to rid herself of that group of fleas, using brute force if necessary.