Chapter 357 - 108: Submission
Chapter 357: Chapter 108: Submission
It was, after all, the first time the Melting Furnace was used, so there were a few small hiccups along the way.
However, they were all minor issues, and Falan single-handedly resolved almost all of them.
A day later, when Robson rushed back to the Steel Mill, it was already fully operational.
Specialists were at their posts everywhere, each performing their duties. For a moment, Robson was almost in a daze, feeling as if he had truly returned to his previous life—to the steel mills of his past.
But the shimmering Magic Runes were a constant reminder that all of this was thanks to the unique nature of this world.
With the Steel Mill running normally, Robson and Falan calculated that it could produce over two hundred pounds of steel per day. With an ample water supply, the mill could run at full capacity, and that number could even double.
When the blacksmiths saw this number, the shock in their hearts was beyond words.
After all, the Steel Mill could control its temperature, meaning its output was basically all Refined Iron. In the past, an output of five hundred pounds was roughly what a single Advanced Blacksmith could produce in an entire year.
When Robson learned of this number, however, he wasn’t particularly surprised. He was even a little disappointed.
After all, in his memory, there was a country whose annual steel production was 1.4 billion tons. Divided among its people, that was one ton per person.
Factoring in the losses from forging weapons and armor, two hundred-odd pounds of steel was probably just enough to outfit one heavy cavalryman in a full set of gear.
Of course, if the lords or families from other domains that produced steel were to learn of the output from Robson’s Steel Factory, they would probably have to start looking for a new line of work immediately.
And they would have no choice. Compared to Robson, they didn’t have an inexhaustible energy source, nor did they have a Mage as seemingly omniscient and omnipotent as Falan.
Once Robson’s steel entered the market, it would be a devastating blow to them.
In fact, Robson did indeed have such plans.
However, to enter the market, he had to face a huge problem: the Affleck Domain was too remote, with only a single, long-abandoned Ancient Trade Route.
Affleck was located deep within the continent, making sea and river transport difficult.
For trading bulk commodities, being unable to use waterways meant transportation costs would be exorbitant.
Of course, this was all a matter for the future. Even if he were to sell steel, it couldn’t start right away.
For the current Robson, the successful operation of the Steel Factory and the armory brought immense benefits to the domain. At the very least, the domain could now produce its own weapons and equipment, achieving self-sufficiency.
...
With the matter of Wild Mountain settled, this year’s spring rains had also mostly passed.
To ensure the domain’s construction work could proceed, Robson rushed back to his territory without delay.
At this time, the Affleck Domain was gradually getting on the right track.
The agriculture of this world was quite different from the intensive farming methods of Robson’s previous life; their cultivation style was rather extensive.
Robson had no intention of changing this. The Affleck people were few, but their land was vast, and they had already cleared a great deal of it. An extensive approach was clearly more suitable for the Affleck Domain’s current situation.
Of course, even extensive farming had its own methods; it didn’t mean that one could simply ignore everything.
This was where Gerard’s expertise came in.
Leave professional matters to the professionals—Robson had no intention of micromanaging everything.
Regarding the domain’s agriculture, Robson only gave a few brief instructions, outlining the tasks that needed to be completed and setting a limit on the amount of merit Gerard could use to assign these tasks.
Ais had returned to the domain early on and continued to organize the land reclamation process after the spring rains.
Everything was developing just as Robson had envisioned. Just as he was preparing to take a short break and wait for the southern nobles of Ehrlichland to finally break and request that he send troops...
A pleasant surprise shattered Robson’s peaceful life.
The dragon had suddenly yielded.
...
"Well, well, Uncle Long, what’s all this? Done being so smug?"
These words weren’t spoken by Robson, but by Huang Na, who was perched on his shoulder.
During the time Robson had been subduing the great beast, Huang Na had suffered no small amount of grief from the wild dragon.
At first, Everton had nearly torn her wings off. Later, at Robson’s instigation, she began engaging in a war of words with him.
And, unsurprisingly, Huang Na was no match for Everton when it came to verbal sparring.
Everton was a slippery dragon that even Robson found difficult to handle. How could Huang Na, a little phoenix not even a year old, possibly be his match?
Now that Everton had made a fool of himself, how could Huang Na not seize the opportunity to mock him a little?
"Oh, my! Little girl, that was all just a misunderstanding before. Uncle Dragon was just joking with you."
"Let me tell you, I, Everton, and the Phoenix Race go way back. It’s a very deep connection. Who knows, maybe Uncle Dragon even knows your parents?" Everton’s tone was now cheerful and completely devoid of its former arrogance.
"What’s this? Weren’t you quite arrogant before? Why the sudden change of heart?" Robson asked with a smile, looking toward the swamp.
"I was just testing you, trying to see what you’re capable of."
"Oh? So the testing is over? And what did you find? What am I capable of?" Robson continued to press, and he, Lord Robson, couldn’t help but feel a smug sense of satisfaction.
"It’s over. Of course, it’s over."
"My Lord, you are wise and powerful, your virtue commands respect from all corners of the world! I imagine His Majesty Danton, in his prime, must have had this very same magnificent bearing!"
Danton was the founding emperor of the Third Empire. He commanded a Dragon Cavalry Corps of real Dragon Cavalry, with over thirty dragons, and thus earned the great name of Dragon Lord.