Pioneer Lord: I Have Conquering System

But at the same time, this place was a gold mine. Every year, before the heavy snows arrived, merchants from Debei would enter the Wilderness and return home with carts full of goods, making a fortune.

If a port could be developed here, one where all merchants could dock, it was almost guaranteed that the area would flourish.

Sea travel was far faster than going by land, saving a great deal of time and allowing for more cargo to be transported in a single trip.

“Just think about it. In the future, this place will become the next White Harbor, maybe even greater. Merchants will flock here in endless streams, iron-hulled ships will line the entire coast, and you will be the Pioneer who transformed this once-forgotten shore into a bustling trade city!” Levi’s tone was almost bewitching as he spoke. “The port will be named after you. History will record your name. You will be famous for centuries to come.”

Miriel knew it would be difficult, but she couldn’t stop herself from imagining what it would be like if it really came true.

She would no longer be just some ordinary merchant.

“I’m in!” Finally, before the Lord could continue his tempting pitch, the beautiful Half-Elf clenched her small fist with a look of fierce determination.

“However, Lord, after we get back, I’ll need to make a trip to Bailiu City first. I know some people there who could be helpful in developing our sea trade.”

“Will two months be enough?”

“More than enough.”

…

Developing High Cliff Castle on its own was ultimately too limiting. It had almost no strategic depth, so establishing a second city was essential. And nothing was more cost-effective than building a port.

Fortunately, there were five or six hundred thousand Gold Coins piled up in High Cliff Castle’s warehouses. If not converted into tangible assets, they were ultimately just pretty things with no practical use.

As expected of merchants well-versed in maritime trade, Kemish and his men had chosen an excellent location for a port and even built a small camp that could be used immediately.

The Lord planned to leave a portion of the supplies from the ship for the team of Centaurs stationed here, while the rest would be transported back to High Cliff Castle.

After the Sun and Moon had traded places in the sky fifteen times, a giant vine that seemed to touch the heavens came into view, still several miles away.

Even though it wasn’t his first time seeing it, Si Kai couldn’t help but gasp in awe. To say nothing of the sheltered Wilderness People, who all stared, dumbfounded.

“What is that?”

As the audacious man who dared to invade the territory of the Lord of High Cliff Castle, Kemish Blue Diamond was receiving his just deserts. He was tied to a Cross and carried by a Giant laborer, giving him a first-person view of the Wilderness’s beautiful scenery from high in the sky.

Thus, he was the first to spot the structure. It couldn’t possibly be natural; the nest-like dome atop the vine was adorned with patterns and decorative flowers that could only have been carved by human hands.

“Never seen one before, have you, country bumpkin? This is a Dragon’s Nest,” Zamanzi sneered, his face full of contempt.

Kemish was so furious he nearly had a heart attack. ‘To think that I, a nobleman, would one day be called a country bumpkin by a Beastman!’

But deep down, he couldn’t suppress a feeling of terror. ‘Just what kind of monster have I provoked? High Cliff Castle actually has a dragon! That means everything those Wilderness People said was true.’

He began to regret coming here. He never would have imagined that a mere Pioneer Lord in the Wilderness would be so absurdly powerful. It was one thing for his subordinates to be terrifyingly elite, but to have a Giant Dragon as well…

But he knew it was too late for regrets. His only option was to do everything in his power to salvage the situation.

When the party returned to High Cliff Castle, braving the wind and snow, all the subjects knew their Lord had won another victory. They gathered to stare curiously at the middle-aged man mounted on a cross in the center of the territory.

Luckily, Kemish was no ordinary man. He cultivated Blood Qi; otherwise, after such an ordeal, he would have long since met the Slave God.

“Darling, did everything go smoothly?” Tina was the first to ask, raising her hand.

Having transitioned from a girl into a woman, she had shed her former shyness.

Levi plopped into a chair and stroked Ashiru’s head. “Some punk from the Persian Gulf Empire. I don’t know if a Goblin ate his brain or what, but he actually tried to capture slaves on my turf to sell.”

“There. That guy outside is the culprit.”

The girls took one look outside, let out a collective gasp, and quickly averted their eyes.

The man outside was wearing nothing but a pair of white underwear.

“Damn it, Worri! Get him down from there and put some clothes on him,” the Lord said, slapping his forehead. He had gotten so used to seeing him like that he hadn’t even considered how indecent it looked.

“Where’s the cook? Hurry up and make us some food to tide us over! We didn’t do much fighting on this trip, just a lot of marching. I’ve probably lost weight,” Zamanzi said, pinching his stomach and voicing the thoughts of all the Barbarians.

They had expected a tough battle, but it was over in half a day. Then they had to rush back without a break, eating nothing but dry rations on the road. Their mouths had been watering for a real meal for ages.

Several Goat-man cooks in tall hats, who had been personally taught by the Lord himself, nodded quickly and scurried to the back kitchen to start cooking.

“By the way, where are Gus and Mier?” Tina asked, looking around. She realized everyone else had arrived except for the Centaur Leader and her brother.

“This battle gave us a new batch of prisoners. Since we can’t sell them, I had Gus and Mier escort them to the iron mine to dig. We won’t have to worry about a shortage of miners for a while,” Levi said, snatching an apple from Zamanzi’s hand and taking a large bite.

“I was just worrying that we were running low on Kobold and goblin miners. Now we don’t have to worry at all,” Tina said with a smile.

“Oh, right. Take Orak with you when you leave,” Levi said, turning back to Miriel to discuss his money-making scheme. “We can’t use their weapons and equipment, but melting them down to reforge them would be a waste. Let’s just ship it all to Bailiu City and sell it. You can also buy whatever you need to build the port and bring it back. Just deduct the cost from the weapon sales, and if it’s not enough, ask Tina for more.”

“A port?” Baisitina asked, looking confused.

The Lord quickly explained his idea to everyone in detail, and it was met with a chorus of approval.

Both Leiden and Tina thought it was an excellent idea.

“I don’t understand all the details, but if you need money, just ask me for it.” Having fully embraced her role as the keeper of the purse strings, Tina gave a small wave of her hand to show her wholehearted support.

“Alright.” Miriel nodded, now full of motivation.

She felt as if she were building her own enterprise, and she couldn’t hide her excitement.

“There’s no war at the moment, so High Cliff Castle must seize this rare period of peace to develop. I have this feeling… like it’s the calm before the storm. The future might not be so quiet,” Levi said, deciding to lay out all his plans. “First, the matter of our population. High Cliff Castle currently has just over twenty thousand people in total. That’s obviously not enough. I plan to personally go into the Kas Mountain Range and bring back all the Northern Old People who are willing to join us.”

“We should have no problem taking in about a hundred thousand new subjects. Leiden and I have already looked into it.”

Everyone knew the serious discussion was starting, and they all sat up straight.

“No problem,” Tina said. “With Old Neil here, we can grow wheat even in the heavy snow. We won’t have to buy all of next year’s grain from outside sources.”

“Lord, I can now tend to much more farmland,” Old Neil chimed in at the perfect moment. Two small dragon horns now grew from his head, and his appearance had visibly transformed from that of an old man to a middle-aged one. His face was filled with respect and adoration.

Now that he was a Dragon Vein Dog-headed Mage, his Magic Cultivation had advanced, officially reaching Tier One. His lifespan had increased to nearly two hundred years, and all of it was thanks to the Lord before him, a man as warm as the sun.

“Good. You should also recruit some talented Kobolds and see if they can learn the Soil Fertility Technique as well,” Levi said with a nod, tapping his fingers on the table.

“Furthermore, the territory needs to be replanned. If that many people pour in, High Cliff Castle in its current state won’t be able to provide housing for all of them.”