Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 171 The Lumberjack Master
Gabe and Philip mingled with a merchant caravan, crossing a desert as they approached the trading city of Corneliuston.

“I saw the Minister of the Interior of Longlet Castle negotiating with the people from the North a few days ago. Although the two sides did not reach an agreement and parted on bad terms, they did not expel the Rhodes people. The person who came was Marquis Carson, my brother’s father-in-law. He must have come with a secret order. If things drag on any longer, there may be changes. It is wise for us to leave as soon as possible.”

Gabe, on the contrary, became highly motivated and determined to find a way out of this desperate situation.

Philip lived in constant fear, dreading the thought of waking up to find himself captured and taken back to the North.

They had only a few dozen guards left, all of whom were cavalry. The high combat strength of the level 6 troops at least ensured that they would not be attacked by enemies in the wild.

But in the Langlitburg area, Sumu's promises are what really matter.

With the promise of the Thorn Viscount, they traveled south from Bearhold, through Cangmu City, then to Longlet Castle, and finally to the border city of Greystone. No one dared to cause them any trouble, and there were even lurking thieves ensuring their safety.

It is at times like these that one can see how deep Su Mu's control over the territory truly is. Even if Rhodes, the newly enthroned duke, wanted to enforce his orders in the north, he would essentially be unable to do so.

There are too many factions, and too many people who are dissatisfied. Although most nobles will not openly rebel, their feigned compliance is enough to cause trouble. However, this did not happen in the marquisate, which shows the stability of Sumu's rule.

Philip actually preferred to be escorted by the army of Longlet Castle. He had seen all sorts of nobles, but those with the power of the Viscount Thorn were extremely rare. He instinctively felt that it would be safer to be escorted by Sumu.

However, Gabu disagreed, feeling he couldn't be controlled by a viscount, especially since he had already contacted the people of the trading city and they had promised to come and meet him. So, somewhat confused, he followed the group out of the borderlands and into the heart of the kingdom.

Fortunately, the people who took Gabu in this time were more reliable. They infiltrated the caravan and managed to deceive everyone; even Su Mu only just found out they had left. Once they reach the trading city, going to the capital will be a piece of cake.

Gabu and the others looked delighted as they gazed at the green land on the sand dunes.

Just then, the surrounding mounds emitted strange sounds. When everyone looked up, they found themselves trapped at the bottom of the sand dunes and surrounded.

"Be on alert! Enemy attack!"

Gabu and the knights dropped their pretense, drew their spell-wielding lances, and charged forward on horseback. But each time they reached the edge of the dunes, they would inexplicably slip and fall back to their original positions, unable to leave.

"Hercules and quicksand traps".

Suddenly, a star gate appeared in the void, from which dozens of assassins dressed in black robes were teleported in.

【Void Assassin (Neutral Tier 5 Special Unit, an upgraded version of the Thief): Attack 14, Defense 7, Damage 10-15, Health 30, Speed ​​8, Small Size】

Element: Void.

Stealth Strike: After reaching a certain distance, you can teleport behind the enemy to perform a stealth strike, which doubles the attack power and deals void damage.

Poison of Exile: Enemies will be poisoned after being attacked, and their defense will continuously decrease (up to 4, can be expelled).

Void Phantom: When attacked by physical attacks, you have a 20% chance to dodge.

Evaluation: A thief's stage goal is to become a Void Assassin in the night; for those low-health mages and archers, the Void Assassin is a nightmare!

The moment the Void Assassins launched their attack, dozens of people in the caravan fell instantly into pools of blood; no one could survive the clutches of these terrifying assassins.

The trading city only sent some guides, clearly not considering that their tracks would be discovered.

"It's the Void Cult, Rhodes! He colluded with the Void Cult to seize control of Winterfell!"

The moment Gabe saw the group of assassins, he understood why Rhodes knew about his father's death and how Rhodes controlled Winterfell.

"To actually submit to the Arcane Empire! I must report this to Congress!" Although surrounded by enemies, Gabu wasn't panicked. He was a hero proficient in water elementals, capable of performing exorcisms in critical moments. Besides, he had dozens of cavalrymen under his command; a mere level 5 assassin would be dead if he dared to show himself.

Gabu launched a cavalry attack against the Void Assassins. Although they couldn't charge within the area, the cavalry's superior health and firepower were enough to overwhelm the assassins.

Unexpectedly, the lances pierced straight through the assassins' figures, unable to touch them at all. Instead, the Void Assassin's sharp poisoned blade pierced the joints of the cavalry armor, causing high burst damage and a continuous reduction in defense.

Although Gabu used water elemental magic to dispel the attack, the cavalry could not hit the enemy, and even their thick skin and flesh could not withstand the attack.

After a fierce battle lasting several tens of minutes, another group of Void Archmages arrived from within the Star Gate, becoming the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Gabe stared bloodshot at the enemy commander, the one who had been lurking in the shadows ever since emerging from the stargate. While the Void Assassin was powerful, a 20% chance wasn't enough for him to survive against cavalry. The reason the enemy had increased their evasion rate so much must be related to this hidden hero.

Unfortunately, the cavalry's health is now depleted, and even if they discover it, it's too late.

In the blink of an eye, a phantom appeared behind Gabe, a cold blade pressed intimately against his neck, and a sinister voice rang in his ear.

"Your brother, Rod, sends his regards!"

……

Forrest arrived in the area west of Bear's Castle and found an abandoned forest where snow had flattened the trees, and there wasn't even a proper road. Even the most skilled carpenter couldn't cut down the timber there and move it out.

This place is sparsely populated and inhabited by a large number of wild animals, so ordinary workers cannot stay here for long periods of time; it must be guarded by extraordinary soldiers.

Forrest had anticipated this, bringing dozens of griffins with him to clear out the wild monsters before making any further plans.

During his on-site investigation, Forrest discovered that there were reasons why the forest farm had been abandoned. Not only was logging difficult, but building roads was also a major undertaking. The surrounding snow was too heavy, and the weather was humid year-round. Even if a mountain path was quickly cleared, it would soon be covered up again, and even a small disturbance could trigger an avalanche, making transportation impossible.

Forrest continued to explore into the forest, and just as he was beginning to think that developing the forest would be too costly, he suddenly heard the sound of a stream.

Using earth magic to see through the earth, they discovered a hidden underground river flowing south along the edge of the forest, stretching for tens of kilometers underground. When it resurfaced, it had reached a spring in a valley.

That is, Forrest must have been observing from the sky while riding a griffin, and his earth elemental mastery had been upgraded to a high level, otherwise it would have been very difficult to discover this river.

There was a river in the forest area, and Forrest suddenly had a flash of inspiration and came up with a way to transport the goods.

As for the forest workers, they rotate shifts every so often, while the griffins serve as permanent soldiers, responsible for transporting food and guarding the area. This ensures stability to a certain extent in the early stages.

He led his griffin unit across the snow-covered forest to the valley spring, waited for more than ten minutes, retrieved the giant tree he had personally cut down in the forest, and revealed a smug smile.

With the construction of the earth and wood industry, a huge lumber mill was quickly built in the valley, just waiting for the tools to be transported in so that the timber could be processed and logs produced.

In this way, Kuraki's third sawmill was born.

[By controlling 3 sawmills, you have mastered the manufacturing process of various types of logs, attained the Lumberjack Mastership, and gained +1 Spell Power.]

[Lumberjack Master: Increases logging efficiency by 200% (800%). This effect is active when stationed in the main city, forest, windmill, or other buildings as the leader (affected by elements; if stationed in the main city, all wood-producing buildings within range are affected by the 100% effect, including the wood-producing efficiency of the resource warehouse). Using the Timber Wagon Treasure grants a 2x (8x) effect.]

Assessment: The title of master craftsman is only bestowed upon those supreme masters who inspire awe. At least in the world of logging, few can surpass you!

(End of this chapter)