Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest
Chapter 92 - 26: The Recruitment Begins

Chapter 92: Chapter 26: The Recruitment Begins

"I have nothing left! Mr. Roman, only you can save me now."

Daken knelt before Roman’s feet.

He regretted his carelessness and despised the pirates.

Though he escaped with his life, his caravan plunged into the abyss.

Jiehai wasn’t covered by the treaties signed between the Commercial Guild and the Nobles, so they couldn’t help him shoulder part of the losses.

This left him bankrupt and saddled with a tremendous debt, which he couldn’t pay off for decades.

Daken had no choice but to come to this place that could show him a glint of hope.

"I haven’t brought you a single slave, but I beg you to help me rise again and reorganize my affairs. For this, I am willing to offer everything I have!"

Roman remained calm, looking at the merchant before him.

Daken said he hadn’t brought any slaves, but to Roman, it seemed he had brought one after all.

...

The concept of the Commercial Guild came from the political entity known as the Free City, one of the Seven Kingdoms.

The Free City, situated in its own corner, was a merchant city-state that valued fair contracts and free trade.

The Commercial Guilds rose to prominence over a hundred years ago, during the Conquest era.

To support the military and the economy, the Conqueror had greatly promoted the development of commerce,

ushering in a period of prosperity.

After the Conqueror’s disappearance, the Commercial Guilds had maintained the commercial system of the entire land for over a century.

Although commercial trade was not particularly developed at that time, merchants were certainly necessary, and trade was undoubtedly to be carried out, with countless merchants embarking on this path in pursuit of profit.

Otherwise, how could they meet the vast social demands of this land?

But this era was savage and dark; commercial trade involved certain risks.

Because of this demand, insurance contracts by the Commercial Guilds came into being.

The Guild also signed trade treaties with the entire noble class.

Merchants regularly paid insurance fees to the Guild, and when a merchant’s goods traded under the directions of the Guild suffered losses, the Guild would help that merchant bear part of the loss, or help to manage affairs so that they wouldn’t lose everything.

If a merchant’s goods were robbed or burned on a noble’s territory and the noble failed to provide security, he was supposed to offer some form of explanation or compensation to the merchant. Otherwise, he had no right to collect high commercial taxes.

However, due to its unique geographical location, Jiehai was not covered by either of these two treaties.

Daken had rented five cargo ships from Bay Port using his own reputation and the salt as collateral.

The market price of each transport ship was dozens of Gold Coins; it required experienced shipbuilders leading scores of workers and a construction period of up to a year.

Now, all of those ships were lost in Jiehai, an unbearable burden for Daken.

After much deliberation, Roman finally spoke, "What kind of help do you need?"

Daken spoke through gritted teeth, "Ships and guards!"

Ships are a merchant’s foundation.

Though the majority of this land’s commercial network relied on overland routes needing carriages for transport, water routes were cheaper, carried more goods, and provided greater profit potential.

A small boat could bankrupt an average professional family.

Daken’s road to wealth had also begun with the support of friends and family, as well as external financing to buy his first ship.

It took him ten years to grow to a fleet of three merchant ships, collectively worth over a hundred Gold Coins—but these ships weren’t entirely his; they belonged to his financiers as well.

He didn’t even dare to go back and face those people.

Daken now understood.

Without a strong and loyal escort, no matter how much money and profit he earned, it was all like a castle in the air, ready to collapse at the slightest push.

Mercenaries were unreliable.

Hence, major merchants usually signed contracts with some influential Nobles, recruiting real Conquest Knights and Guards who possessed formidable combat abilities, unlike mercenaries who would scatter at the first sign of trouble.

Roman nodded, "In the future, I will bestow ships and guards upon you. For now, stay here and work for me."

Roman could also help Daken resolve his debts.

It wasn’t something that could be resolved all at once.

This kind of large debt could take several years, even a decade or more, to be gradually settled.

So Roman didn’t pay much attention to Daken’s predicament. It was hardly a big deal.

But he didn’t have a ship, not now.

Roman could build ships. His consecutive skill upgrades in "Manufacturing," "Architecture," and "Forging" had illuminated him with knowledge on shipbuilding—though it was all about the structures of wooden ships.

Roman had neither the time nor the manpower to build ships.

Nor did he have the guards.

The guards of Sige Town wouldn’t be sent out on distant expeditions without undergoing at least half a year of training, as Roman had decided.

Daken could stay here for now, utilizing his connections and business network to conduct trade ventures alongside Sige Town’s merchants.

Roman no longer needed to procure grain, but that didn’t mean the merchants of Sige Town could rest easy.

In fact, given the entire town’s consumption needs, they still had to scurry about, assisting Sige Town in acquiring a vast amount of goods.

Such as oils, fabrics, furs, and other commodities.

Life had been very basic before, but now that Roman had some leeway, he wasn’t willing to settle for that any longer.

Damn it!

How could those idiots not even have a change of clothes!

I can’t stand it anymore!

The quality of life must be improved quickly!

"Thank you for your grace!"

Daken prostrated himself with his face touching the ground.

Though the price was to work for a noble forever,

Compared to spending the rest of his life repaying debts, which might never be settled even by death—

Daken felt an intense sense of fortune. In times of having nothing, receiving the protection of a noble was something he had longed for in his dreams.

...

The moment Daken left Sige Town with the merchants,

The farmers finally managed to rake a thousand pounds of fertilizer per acre into the ground during the height of summer and buried all the soybeans in the soil.

After concluding the race against time for summer agricultural tasks,

Everyone finally got a breather.

But Roman felt it was time to change the plan, to increase the intensity for his army.

So, on this day,

Roman gathered all the able-bodied men of Sige Town.

Standing on high ground, he spoke with an extremely stern tone, "I am very dissatisfied with the current number of guards; I need more warriors to join their ranks!"

After speaking, he fell silent, his crimson eyes piercing as he gazed at everyone.

Following a brief silence, a loud shout suddenly erupted from the crowd, "I am willing!"

A young, sturdy farmer in his twenties with dark skin stepped forward.

He said excitedly, "Master Roman, I wish to become your warrior!"

His declaration set off waves of response, and the awakening crowd erupted like a boiling cauldron.

"I am willing too!"

"I can be a guard and fight for you!"

"Me as well!"

"Esteemed master, give me a chance, I won’t disappoint you."

In an instant, emotions surged, countless clamorous voices arose, creating waves of enthusiasm, excitement written clear on everyone’s faces.

No one was unaware of the treatment accorded to the guards.

Each month, they would receive from Origin Manor, from Master Roman’s storeroom, 2 copper coins, 10 pounds of wheat, 10 pounds of mixed grains, and two pounds of meat.