Warlords of the witcher world

Chapter 56 The War Renewed
Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, the time had come to June 1267, and two years had passed since Herme's wedding.

In the past two years, Sazarburg has changed a lot. The city is getting bigger and more prosperous.

Now Sazarburg has a total population of [-]. Even in the Kingdom of Aden, this is not a small city.

However, the growth has almost come to an end, and it is difficult to continue to grow. The trade share has been almost filled, but it is enough to support the prosperity of this city.

In the vicinity of this town, there are many villages along the Zaar River.

These villages are newly built, with local Cossacks and immigrants from the north.

In the past two years, the situation in the north has become more and more unstable. Almost every day between the north and the south, there are big and small things on the border. On the other side of the mountain, there are more and more human and non-human races.

The population under Sazarburg continued to increase, and the villages outside the city also developed and continued to increase

The food produced by these villages feeds Fort Sazar, and there is no doubt that these villages are also very obedient to Fort Sazar.

Adding the population of these villages, the population controlled by the Earl of Sazarburg exceeded 5, which is a great success.

Judging from the population under his control, Herme was nothing more than a small lord.

But on the side of Blue Mountain, the most important thing is prestige. This Herme is undoubtedly enough, coupled with the huge amount of gold and silver in his hands.

As long as he wants to, the troops that can be deployed are very terrifying.

Sazarburg has not experienced much war in the past two years. The land of Cossacks has been calm during this period of time, but Herme is often asked by Wengerburg to mobilize some troops to increase the number of people in the king's army.

As for this, Herme handled it very neatly.

With the channel of his father-in-law, Hemei can continuously send the restless people in the land of Cossacks there.

It's a win-win thing, Gettleman gets the Instability, the King gets the soldiers, and Herme gets the influence.

And it was also through this transaction, coupled with various news from the west, that Herme was able to clearly feel the development of the situation.

So he knew that the war was coming soon.

"This year the king took away 3000 people from us, and the Nilfgaardians have hoarded heavy troops on the border, and they may cross the border at any time. There have been many conflicts on the border. Even Redani Ya and Temeria are no longer talking nonsense about the trade war between them, and our country and Kaedwen are not at war on the border, it seems that the war is indeed near."

In his office, Heme said this after reading this year's Cossack dispatch report and Aden's internal briefing.

"My informant in Wengerburg told me that His Majesty the King has left the capital, and the destination is unknown. He may be attending some secret meeting."

Marondo spoke of what he had discovered from his surviving connections in Vengerburg.

Herme knew about this matter, the secret meeting at Haji Fortress... That is indeed the time.

The secret meeting of Haji Fortress was a meeting attended by the monarchs of the northern countries. At this meeting, the countries agreed to pre-empt the south and seize the opportunity of war under the command of the Redanian King Vizmir.

But in practice... it can only be said that it is not as good as people want.

"Don't go any further, Marondo."

Hermi already knew what was going on, so there was no need to investigate further.

"Prepare for war, Marondo, and tell me what strength you have now."

"Yes, Lord Herme."

Marondo immediately started to do what Herme asked, acted vigorously as always, and took out a roster,
"According to the records, the militia team in Fort Sazar and the surrounding villages has reached 1000 to 500 people, and the number of registered Cossacks is also thousands. Including the soldiers and knights in your court, we can take out [-] people in a short time. [-] people."

"Two thousand and five, very good, very good. What about after we summon the Cossacks and allies from all over the place?"

Herme was satisfied with the number, so he asked,

"At least 5000 reinforcements can be brought to you, or more, but it takes time to summon these forces."

"Time, let's start calling, let the strength of allies come over, and recruit all the Cossacks."

"Commander Herme, will this dissatisfy His Majesty the King? Rushing to mobilize troops may be regarded as a rebellion."

"His Majesty the King has ordered the leaders everywhere to mobilize."

Herme took out an order with the emblem of the Kingdom of Aedirn from the drawer, and it was an order from Wengerburg.

"So do it with confidence, Marendo, and tell Dunwa about this, let him prepare to meet the army, there is a big battle to be fought, we must be ready, ready to enter the country to assist His Majesty the King .”

"Yes, Commander, do you have any other orders?"

"Ah, no more, you step back, I want to think for a while, let me be quiet for a while."

The knight exited the room respectfully, while Herme took out his Towson Easter and poured himself a full glass.

Herme shook the wine glass, looking at the shaken red wine hanging on the wall of the glass, she was full of thoughts.

Recalling his experience in the first Northern War, Herme at that time never imagined that he could make it to this day.

Herme's original thought was undoubtedly correct, jumping off the stage did give him the strength to stand on the stage now.

Now on this stage, he is finally not a chess piece driven to death, but a player who can barely play on the table.

Now, the hedgehog in the south (referring to Emhyr) finally couldn't bear it anymore, and was about to start the second war, and the kings in the north were also ready to move, and a turbulent era was coming.

In Herme's view, chaos is a ladder, a way to climb to a higher status, and he decided to seize this opportunity.

Speaking of which, Herme feels really strange, things that were unthinkable four years ago, now appear so naturally in my mind

Next, Herme took out a piece of paper, dipped one side of the black paint with her quill pen, and began to write and draw on it.

First he wrote down the word "Kedwen".

Kaedwin, Herme knows what this country did in the Second Northern War.

After the assassination of King Vizmir, who was the commander-in-chief of the north, the northern countries began to act on their own. Redania was in chaos due to the assassination of the king. Temeria made peace with Nilfgaard privately for its own safety. Kaedwen One step is in place. After seeing the collapse of Aden, he directly divided up Aden with the Nilfgaardians and obtained the lowland swamp (that is, Upper Aden) that they had always dreamed of.

For Herme, this was unacceptable.

King Henselt of Kaedwen is a dictator with a strong desire for control. If he is allowed to occupy Upper Aedirn, the Blue Mountain Tunnel will definitely fall under the control of Kaedwen, and the king will definitely impose various punishments on him. oppression, or even outright seizure of power.

Hmey couldn't let Kaedwen occupy Upper Aedirn, which was the first quest he had to complete westward.

So the first goal he set for himself was to march in Upper Aedirn with arms to deter Kaedwen's forces.

After figuring this out, Herme wrote down the second word, "Niflgaard".

Heme knew about the disastrous defeat of Aedirn in the Second Northern War. Ni’s quick capture of Livia led to the direct defeat of the Aedirn army on the border. Then the imperial army used their fast marching ability to directly crush Aedirn’s troops everywhere. The army, crushing Aedirn's army before they could assemble.

Although in this life, the strength of Aedirn's army is much stronger, but Herme is still not optimistic about their performance in front of Nilfgaard's army. The scale and layout of Nilfgaard's offensive are far beyond everyone's imagination.

Therefore, Hemei estimated that he would have to go south directly to clean up the mess in Aden, prevent the Ni army from going north, and even counterattack the Ni army.

I have to say that this task is very challenging. The Eastern Front Army of Nigeria is a heavy group with nearly 1 troops, and he can only pull out a total of [-] troops.

But Herme has her own advantages.

Thinking of this, Herme crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it into the waste paper bin. He opened the door, and the servant Viator, oh no, the knight Viator straightened up quickly.

Viator's spirit was a little depressed, because he finally married the businessman's daughter last week. Naturally, the young couple would sing and sing every night, and it was normal for them to be in a bad mood.

Although he has been made a knight and has a family and a career, in Herme's opinion, this child is still too lacking in trials. Hemei is wondering whether this battle will send him to a certain army to practice.

In addition, he also thought, don't confer the title of servant as a knight so early in the future, since the conferment of a knight must be done after the age of 20.

After this kid became a knight, he was obviously a little arrogant, and he was not as easy to handle as before. He should be suspended for several years, instead of giving him a title first because he begged for marriage.

But even if he became a knight, he still had to do chores for Herme. Herme didn't give him land, only wages.

And this kid is not stupid, after all, he still knows that following Herme has a great premise, so the pride is the pride, and the obedience is still to be obeyed.

"Let's go, let's go to the gunpowder workshop."

Herme looked at the young man who was a little out of sorts, and called for him to follow.

.

Compared with two years ago, the gunpowder workshop in Sazarburg has changed a lot.

There are a lot more blast furnaces here, and the style is obviously more refined than before, and there is also a crucial place-the cannon casting field.

That's right, the Cannon Field, a weapon that Herme valued the most, finally made it onto the stage.

"Bang bang bang bang bang!"

Hemei looked at a group of soldiers wearing ship-shaped helmets and breastplates who were shooting with arquebus guns, and the arquebus guns were on the gun racks.

The first arquebus guns did not have a frame, but the arquebus guns had less charge and less power, which could not reach the lethal power that Herme hoped for.

The armor penetration rate in this world is very high, so the power must be increased.

So he ordered Dirban to make modifications, lengthen the barrel, thicken the barrel, and increase its power.

In the end, the larger and heavier matchlock gun was taken out, and the weight was solved by the gun frame.

The slanted belts on which they were hung were full of small tubes containing a fixed amount of gunpowder. Since there were twelve of them, the soldiers called them the Twelve Knights.

As they pulled the pull hook, the machine was driven accordingly, and the matchlock was also pushed into the medicine chamber stuffed with gunpowder.

Then there was the roar of muskets, and then the targets were shot beyond recognition.

Sazarburg's matchlock guns have been finalized and have started to be produced steadily, but Hermey did not sell them to the outside world because this is his secret weapon.

Although the difference between a fire door gun and an arquebus gun is largely the difference between a shooting device, even if a fire door gun hits a shooting device, it is considered a matchlock gun, but this little thing has changed a lot of things, so Or hide as long as you can.

After all, it still takes some time to be proficient in arquebus shooting, and the operation of arquebus is not too simple, and it still takes a while to train.

Watching the arquebus shooting was not the focus of Hemei's visit this time. Hemei hurriedly took a look at the soldiers who were training, and came to another shooting range.

Here, warlocks and artisans await.

"Commander Herme, you came to see the artillery again, ah, no wonder you are like this, I am also fascinated by this weapon."

Wearing a yellow sweater and a blacksmith leather skirt, the dwarf craftsman Berning Ayres said that his eyes were full of love for this artillery.

Dirban next to him had similar eyesight. They really liked this weapon so much, they put in a lot of effort for it, and now looking at this cannon is like looking at their own children.

"Durban and Boning, how is your transformation going? Has the bombing problem been solved?"

Hemei immediately asked what he cared about the most, the bombing rate.

The development of the artillery was actually successful eight months ago, just a few months later than the matchlock gun.

But the problem with the artillery is that the blast chamber may be very high, and the experimenters were killed in several waves.

The problem was not alleviated until the arrival of this dwarf from Mahakam.

At that time, the dwarf brought the gunpowder formula he had researched and used it as a certificate to join the artillery research team of Fort Sazar.

Herme had some doubts about letting this inhuman race enter such a secret matter at first, but when he learned that Berning had been tricked by the Scoia'tael and had to come to Hackland to ask for a living, he was relieved and let him enter. the research group.

At first, Durban was worried about the dwarf, but after the dwarf showed his mastery of gunpowder and blacksmithing, he accepted him.

And then, artillery research has indeed advanced by leaps and bounds and continued to develop.

"Commander Herme, don't worry, the bombing rate of this batch of guns has been reduced to less than 5%, and it can be said to be extremely safe now."

Dirban said with a little pride, completely ignoring Herme's bitter face.

"5%... Well, it's better than before, isn't it? Then Durban and Boning, give me a shot."

The two were naturally willing to show for the commander, and then they began to quickly reload the artillery by themselves.

After continuous experiments, everyone here has become a skilled gunner, and it is too simple to install a cannon.

This cannon was a small cannon, the whole body was made of wrought iron, and it was placed on the gun mount. The caliber was about half the size of Herme's head.

As the match was ignited, the stone bullet loaded by the artillery flew out, and hit the conspicuous big target with a loud noise, making a big hole in the target.

Herme, who was hiding aside, nodded in satisfaction. He was very satisfied with this power. This was the effect he wanted, and it was completely sufficient in the current environment.

As for the bombing rate... there is no way, let's just use it, 5% is at least better than those random explosive guns before.

Hemei still remembered that when the gun exploded once, he came to the shooting range excitedly, and then lit the match himself.

Then the artillery exploded directly. If he hadn't run away when he saw the situation was wrong, his head might have been cut off, instead of only his arm being injured.

The batch of guns that were built after that were all remelted and improved again.

The cannon-casting technology currently used in gunpowder workshops is splicing, that is, many parallel iron rods are arranged around the central core bar, and the core bar is removed after welding, thus forming a metal tube, and then plugging a section, The perimeter is reinforced with metal, and the gaps are sealed with molten lead.

This kind of cannon is made of wrought iron. Although Herme knows that bronze cannons are more reliable, but bronze is too expensive, and the technology is obviously more difficult. The gunpowder workshop is still groping.

The wrought iron cannon is a wrought iron cannon, as long as it can be used, although the bombing rate is very high, after careful adjustment, the probability has also come down.

Anyway, next is the debut of the artillery, as long as it can be used, it will be updated slowly in the future.

"What about the quantity?"

"There are eight now, and there are four that can be completed in a few weeks."

Bo Ning said that the dwarf is now the chief supervisor of the gunpowder workshop, and he also loves this job very much, and puts his heart and soul into it.

"During this period, the workshops have been working overtime to produce as much as possible, whether it is arquebus or artillery, don't worry about the money, I will pay three times the usual wages."

"No problem, my commander, I know, I will show you what speed is."

The dwarf readily agreed, and Herme promised to give the money as soon as possible, and the work would be done if the money was given, and the people below would be driven to start working.

"By the way, has anyone come to investigate the Gunpowder Workshop recently? And how are the craftsmen doing?"

"Everything is normal, everyone is satisfied with the current treatment, but it's only for now, Commander Herme, I think as you push the artillery to the battlefield, some people will definitely come to poach corners by then."

Here is Durban's response, his face full of worry.

"Well, let them go at that time, as long as the core is not lost, and the biggest core of this research, isn't it the two of you? In the research of gunpowder and artillery, no one in this world can compare with you Two."

Hemei had been mentally prepared for poaching corners, and it was a matter of time. The method he started to limit the activities of craftsmen with high salaries and strong coercive means would inevitably cause problems.

After all, there is a saying that only a thousand days can be a thief, where there is a thousand days to defend against a thief, such as being poached, there are always times when you can't defend against a day and night.

So just make sure that the largest core is fine, and the others can only be said to do their best.

Of course, you can't say that when you give orders to the subordinates, and you definitely can't cause a person to leave. After all, if you give those people room, the possibility of accidents is higher.

"Of course, I will never betray you."

Dirban first said that the resources that Herme provided him were unimaginable. Warlock is a person who reciprocates his kindness and will never betray Herme.

"Me too, I am very grateful for your resources, and I will never betray you."

Bo Ning folded his arms and said seriously that for the dwarves, if Herme hadn't accepted him, he would have to return to Mahakam in desperation.

Bo Ning didn't like the closed environment of Mahakam. He escaped just to escape from that environment. If he went back with his tail between his legs, he would be ashamed.

And, and most importantly, both of them can see that Herme has great potential in the future.

It is impossible to betray without seeing how far this potential can go.

"Thank you very much for your loyalty, and I am generous to loyal people, you two, you can check your own account at Vivaldi Bank in three days, then now, we will see you again."

Herme had other things to do, so she bid them farewell, while the warlock and the dwarf bowed respectfully to Herme from behind to express their respect.

Under the escort of the guards, Herme, who was walking on the street, was in a much better mood. After all, seeing that her biggest killer was ready.

On the way, he saw a few mercenaries walking by carrying a petrified cockatrice. It seemed that they were going to the Witcher Guild to deliver the goods to get paid. The sight to see.

Isn't it just a small petrified cockatrice?This doesn't get everyone's attention at all.

Back at the main castle, Herme happened to find out that Katya came back from a horse race today. Although she said she was the hostess of Saza Castle, she still kept this habit.

The Cossacks under Katya's command now appear to be very obedient and behave more politely than the previous various rebelliousness.

After becoming Mrs. Sazarburg, Katya strengthened the training of her war gangs. It is absolutely impossible to be a hooligan like before.

Today's Katya is still the same as before, all in black, but compared to the girlish indifference of the past, Katya, as a wife, now exudes some mature charm in her gestures and gestures.

After all, Katya now often works with Herme, and attends various meetings and trials with Herme. Originally, the temperament of a superior in her was very strong, but now it is getting stronger and stronger.

After seeing Herme at the first sight, Katya told Herme something that surprised him, and after the accident, he was ecstatic, finally waiting for the news.

"Today I went to a few herbalists outside the city, and they all confirmed one thing, that is, I'm pregnant, Hemi, and we finally have a baby."

(End of this chapter)