Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 506 The Second Battlefield
"Sir, are you really planning to use the connections of several private chambers of commerce to establish connections with the cave dwarves, elves, and sea people, bypassing the Federation? Isn't this too hasty?" Reiner hesitated for a long time, but couldn't help but ask.

Harvey rolled his eyes and said helplessly, "What else can I do? The Federation is such a huge continental spellcasting organization, with complex internal factions and intensified conflicts to the point where they are almost irreconcilable... If I want to rely on them, I might as well find another way on my own."

Asdaren seemed to have thought of something and couldn't help but chuckle, "I thought that in your eyes, Your Excellency, diplomatic relations were all accomplished through the intimidation of guns and cannons."

This was a strong statement before some good-natured teasing about Xavi.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with gun diplomacy," Pierce, who had just returned to the North from Jinhui City to report on his work, muttered quietly, "Doesn't the master often use the metaphor of 'carrot and stick'? For those weak and self-contained nations and races, using force to deter them is the most effective method."

Of Harvey's longest-serving subordinates, only Pierce believed most strongly in Harvey's "Open the door! Free trade!" theory of power.

Harvey laughed and said, "That only means they're truly within the range of our Truth Cannon, right? The Eastern Territory, the Breath of the Hills, and the Southern Seas are all thousands of miles away from us. It's truly out of reach, unless I can whip out a mid-range or long-range missile and knock them down!"

Upon hearing this, the military fanatic Pierce's eyes lit up instantly, and he eagerly asked, "Sir! What are medium- and long-range missiles? Are they the new long-range weapons currently being developed in military factories and laboratories?"

Harvey choked on a mouthful of water and said speechlessly, "Shut up! This thing is still in my dream."

……

Signing long-term cooperation agreements with three large chambers of commerce at the same time is a relatively complicated process. Every detail of the cooperation needs to be repeatedly negotiated and finalized. The three chambers of commerce will also repeatedly negotiate on the issue of profit division. The exclusive rights of different commodities and the division of trade routes all need to be strived for.

Of course, Harvey didn't have time to sit at the table and engage in a tug-of-war with them. He directly handed the specific matters over to Reiner, and asked the people from the trade department of the administrative office to cooperate. These noble officials who were already good at managing family businesses would naturally handle things for Harvey.

He then turned his attention directly to sorting out his work plan for this winter.

There is no doubt that a large-scale sweep around the territory is the top priority. Harvey requires the Northern Army's naval and land combat units to work closely together, go straight along the main road of the Ice River, and drive the hundreds of loose evil orc tribes densely distributed along the coast as far north as possible. If they refuse to leave... they will be directly annihilated.

After clearing out this vacuum buffer zone, the East Coast Garrison Corps area, which was not protected by the walls of Spark City in the past, can be completely liberated in the winter. There is no need to station a large number of troops to guard against the invasion of evil orcs. Farmers can also return to the city with peace of mind and take up some temporary jobs to supplement their family income so as to survive the long winter.

Harvey had already prepared ample job opportunities and temporary positions for this group of workers who were entering the off-season. This year's harvest was double that of previous years. The food and cash crops that were continuously transported back from the Dongtuo Base immediately filled up the huge storage area of Xinghuo City. Harvey urgently ordered the Ministry of Construction to build a batch of new warehouses and granaries to prevent these precious materials from being directly exposed to rain and snow.

With sufficient food supply, Harvey felt confident in making any plan.

He couldn't help but think of the message that the chief priest Garrett had conveyed to him - if he chose to ally with the church and fight together against the impending alien enemy, then the church would do its utmost to help him replace the Federation's position and influence in the southern border.

And if he chose to refuse... the Pope actually asked him to send troops directly to the holy city of Goris and directly control the power center of the Glorious Church through military conquest.

This truly baffled Harvey. Logically, the Vatican, having suffered numerous defeats at his hands, should have long been aware of the stark disparity in power between them. Even if they'd set a trap for him to fall into, weren't they truly afraid of inviting a thief into their home, leading to the Holy City's downfall? Sadly, even though he'd forced the old priest to remain in Spark City, he'd clearly been unwilling to explain further, citing confidentiality as an excuse. Harvey wasn't above torture, but both Duncan and Arturo suggested that the Pope's mystics possessed a hidden divine heritage that allowed them to easily shrug off mind control wrought by magic or alchemical potions. If forced, they could end their lives at any time, anywhere. Even the secret psychic techniques of high-ranking necromancers proved futile.

How did the Church learn of the historical prophecy of alien invasion? How did they verify this ancient rumor? And... how much do they really know about the mysterious and unknown Lizardmen? Is there any information that even Harvey doesn't know...

These problems are invisibly prompting Harvey to try - after so many years of rapid development, with a modern army of nearly 10,000 people, he is fully confident that he can deal with all hostile targets in the entire southern continent. Even if he has to confront the Federation's spellcaster regiment with less than 3,000 people, Harvey believes that he can achieve a sweep of the frontal battlefield.

At present, defending the base camp of Spark City is naturally the top priority. The defense force system has directly grown to a size of nearly 4,000 people in two rounds of military expansion. Among them, 2,000 elite troops are stationed in the northern border, and the remaining 2,000 are stationed in important cities of Saint Valen in a rotation form. Unless it is necessary and urgent, these guards must not be easily mobilized.

The Northern Army, with a total number of more than 6,000, bears the main responsibility of long-range combat to keep the enemy out - as long as the strategic planning is appropriate and the logistical supplies keep up, the Northern Army is fully capable of multi-line combat and can also achieve victory.

So whether or not to fight the church... became a decision that Harvey could make at any time with just a nod of his head.

……

Pierce, wearing a neat commander's uniform, hurried into Harvey's office. When he looked up, he saw Harvey leaning over and staring at the map of the entire southern territory spread out on the table.

He also subconsciously looked at the map and found that there were three areas on it, each with a red "King Chess" piece.

They are the Holy City of Goris, the border fiefdom of Count Leon Waters of West Wind at the junction of Saint Valen and Yarid, and the Ice Sea Exploration Base thousands of miles away from the southern border.

Harvey noticed Pierce's arrival and quickly waved him over. He pointed at the red chess piece on the map and said with a smile, "Pierce, if I plan to launch an offensive this winter, how should I choose two of these three targets?"

Pierce recalled the consensus reached with his mentor, Asdalen, during their private discussion. He paused for a moment and said, "Facing the alien lizardmen from the far north, I believe we should adopt a defensive stance before they completely reveal their whereabouts... My Lord, to be honest, even if we possess underwater ships, the vast frozen sea and frozen earth make it difficult to truly detect the enemy's main attack force from the south, let alone the location of their tribe's headquarters..."

Harvey nodded, and the first question he deliberately asked Pierce got a satisfactory answer - don't underestimate the enemy and advance rashly.

He then picked up the chess piece at the Ice Sea Base and shoved it into Pierce's hand, smiling. "So, what you're saying is that internally, we're going to use our forces against Earl Zephyr and the Principality of Yarid behind him, while externally, we're going to consider launching an offensive and heading directly towards the Holy City of Goris?"

I thought that based on Pierce's enthusiasm for conquest wars and his disgust for the Church of Light, he should have chosen to agree with Harvey's proposal without hesitation...but who knew that the other party carefully placed the chess piece Harvey handed to him in a position that Harvey did not expect.

Isengard, the kingdom of cavalry!

(End of this chapter)