Chapter 59

The Kingdom of Roadberg boasts a history of over 200 years since its founding, making it one of the largest and most prominent nations in the southern continent.

In contrast, the Kingdom of Ransel, located to the west, is a much younger country, having been established only about 60 years ago.

It was about four years ago, after the third-generation king ascended the throne, that the young Kingdom of Ransel began to show territorial ambitions towards the Kingdom of Roadberg.

Since then, the two countries have been in conflict in the southern part of the Bezel Great Forest, a region where small forests are scattered across the plains.

In this conflict, the Kingdom of Roadberg heavily relies on mercenaries.

Both the current king of Roadberg and the nobles, including the Duke of Galdwin, who holds territory in the conflict zone, do not want to exhaust their own armies. They wish to preserve their regular forces as much as possible for the inevitable full-scale war to come.

Due to these considerations, many mercenaries are fighting in the conflict zone instead of the regular forces.

Gozling's mercenary group was one of these "disposable pawns" replacing the regular forces.

Gozling and his men were ordered to invade a fortress built by the Ransel army. It was a harsh order, one that would likely result in significant casualties—so severe that regular forces would not advance without considering the damage.

Despite the high risk, they could not refuse the order since they had been paid. As a result, the mercenary group suffered heavy damage, nearly being decimated.

Gozling found himself in a situation where he had to abandon not only the dead but also the wounded who were still alive, and he fled with the remnants of his troops.

Failing the mission and losing more than half of his men, Gozling and his group, having nowhere to go, turned to banditry.

Even though the mercenary group was nearly decimated, Gozling, as the leader, still bore responsibility for his men's lives.

Even as bandits, they were still alive, and being alive meant they needed to eat and drink.

To survive and keep his men alive, Gozling continued to attack others.

* * *

The sound of a crossbow bolt slicing through the air, "Pshu," was followed by the bolt embedding itself in the center of the target set up in the shooting range.

"Well, that's the 100th shot, right?"

"Yes! That completes the 100 consecutive shots! How does the crossbow feel?"

Yuri, who had just fired the bolt, checked the various parts of the crossbow in response to Damian's question.

"It's fine. There's no damage or looseness in the parts. The accuracy hasn't changed either. The handling... I'm fine with it, but how about you guys?"

"I don't have any issues either."

"Yep, it works just fine."

When asked by Yuri, Pense and Radley also gave their approval.

The crossbow prototype, which had progressed to the 12th version, had cleared the tests for power, ease of use, and accuracy, and had finally moved on to the final stage of durability testing.

Yuri, Pense, and Radley had just completed the grueling test of firing 100 consecutive shots.

"Then, the durability is also fine, right? What do you think, Noein-sama!?"

Having received the "all clear" from Yuri and the others, Damian turned to Noein with an expectant look.

Noein, who had been observing the test, showed a thoughtful expression.

"...The performance criteria are perfect. One last question."

"What is it!?"

Damian, usually laid-back, showed a rare look of tension.

"This question is directed at Yuri and the others, who will actually use the crossbow in combat... If you were to stand on the battlefield, could you trust this crossbow as a weapon? Not just logically, but intuitively, could you rely on this weapon in battle?"

As he spoke, Noein looked at Yuri, Pense, and Radley.

"...Yes. If I were an archer, I could entrust my life to this crossbow. It's a highly completed weapon."

"It's far more reliable than an ordinary bow."

"There's no soldier who would complain about such a good weapon."

The three gave their approval without hesitation. Noein, hearing this, nodded at Damian.

"If that's the case, then it's fine. I recognize that the crossbow is now a complete weapon. Good job, Damian."

"R-really... I did it! I did it!"

Overjoyed, Damian let out a loud scream on the spot.

The others present covered their ears, and Matilda, the rabbit-eared girl with excellent hearing, grimaced in discomfort. Chris, who was observing the experimental field in the backyard, and Kimberly, who was doing laundry, both turned in surprise. Anna, who was in the steward's office, opened the window to see what was happening.

Damian's voice was that loud.

"Damian, that's too loud..."

"Ah, I'm sorry! But I'm just so happy! To think that my invention has finally been recognized! I feel like I'm about to ascend to heaven!"

"Haha, I understand how you feel. But don't ascend just yet. We need to mass-produce these crossbows."

For now, only Damian knew the intricacies of crossbow production. If he were to ascend too soon, mass production would be impossible, and all of Noein's investments would be wasted.

"Right! You're right! One completed crossbow won't change the world! We need to make more and spread them!"

"Exactly. First, let's aim to produce 10 crossbows and 300 bolts by winter. We'll also need some help, right?"

"Understood! Yes, having people to handle simple tasks will speed up mass production!"

"Got it. Although we don't have much spare manpower, we could buy new slaves and lend them to you. I'll look for slaves with experience in workshop labor."

"Of course, that's fine! Thank you!"

In the spring, a large number of slaves were purchased, but with the rapid development of the Alquvist territory, Noein's available labor force was once again insufficient.

There was plenty of work to be done, from maintaining his own farmland and conducting reclamation work to the upcoming crossbow production and oil production from soybeans. The more manpower, the better.

(We need to contact that slave trader again...) Noein thought.