Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 36 The Royal Army Arrives
The wandering scholar embarked on his journey once more. No one knew where he came from, where he was going, or even what race he was.

Some people get scammed, some go insane, and some become rich overnight.

Su Mu only regretted it for a short while before calming down.

To put it bluntly, they are not strong enough right now. Even if a windfall were to fall from the sky, they would be crushed by it.

If they know when to stop and develop steadily, one day they will take the initiative.

The trip to the mountain fortress wasn't in vain; the remaining archers were all trained into Earth Archers, further increasing our strength.

Although these types of buildings have a limited number of uses, a few hundred Tier 2 units are obviously just a drop in the ocean, enough for him to squander.

Currently, only his family knows about the mountain fortress, so there's nothing to worry about for the time being. However, the guard tower outside Serri Town has been discovered by the enemy, which is quite troublesome.

Oling seemed to sense his worry: "How about I take a squad of Earthbowmen to garrison this place, and wait until enough spearmen are trained before taking over the garrison from me?"

This is a prudent approach, but it's too dangerous.

The enemy water-type hero who escaped is quite capable, and we've learned about their strength from this encounter. If they return, they will definitely bring an even stronger force, which the Earth Bow will find difficult to resist.

It would be laughable to lose a hero just to protect a resource point.

Forrest also sensed the danger: "If the other side has deliberately released the beast tide, they will definitely come to Serri Town again. It seems too passive to just defend it."

After thinking for a moment, Su Mu had an idea: "We may not have had a good solution before, but the other side has given us a powerful defensive weapon."

After saying that, he pointed to the shrunken savage horn and smiled.

The two subordinates were stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what was going on.

Since the enemy was able to summon wild beasts and wreak havoc on the town, they could naturally do the opposite and deploy them as defensive wild troops.

The roads leading to the guard tower are not interconnected, and the building is nestled in a mountain forest. By blocking the road from the north, any attempt to detour to the south will be detected. Since they don't want to show themselves, we'll make them cause a scene and see who's behind this.

The pack of wolves alone couldn't stop that powerful hero, but if he tried to sneak in again, it would be difficult. They only needed to come once a week to train the spearmen to complete their mission.

Forrest touched the horn and asked doubtfully, "I saw that the wolves seemed to have fallen into a bloodthirsty state. If we summon them to the north, will we suffer the consequences?"

Su Mu waved his hand: "The Savage Horn cannot control wild beasts to attack; it only serves to gather them together. Its effect on consciousness depends on the user's will."

The opposing side wants the wolves to attack, making them bloodthirsty and hungry. We want the wolves to defend; simply let them gather on the road and let them roam freely. This will extend the control period, and with the alpha wolf in charge, the pack won't disperse quickly.

Listening to Su Mu explain the details of the magic weapon, Forrest and Ouling were completely convinced.

What they admired most about their lord was his vast knowledge; he seemed to know everything. Whether it was military units, buildings, treasures, or scholars, everything lost its mystique in Su Mu's presence. He was truly the best guide on the path to heroism.

After everyone returned to Kuraki and rested for a few days, Forrest personally took the magic weapon to the north of the watchtower to gather the scattered level 1 beasts.

Unlike his opponent, who was in a hurry and only needed to make the passage crowded, he summoned more wild beasts, numbering over 2000, and scattered them around the roadside. He also specially purchased scout gadgets from the market and placed them on the trees by the roadside, so that he would be the first to know if the enemy started a killing spree there.

Using the Horn of the Beast was too taxing, draining Forrest's magic completely. However, this misfortune turned out to be a blessing in disguise, giving him a deeper understanding of magical power.

Forrest (Architect): Attack 1, Defense 1, Spell Power 3, Knowledge 2 (5).

Loyalty 96, Charisma 60, Element: Earth, Lumberjack Prodigy, Basic Earth Magic.

He already possessed the potential of earth element, and his successful mastery of earth magic was a natural progression.

The enhancement that the Governing Arts provide to Forrest is naturally in terms of spell power or knowledge. He has a higher talent in this area than Ouling, and the use of the treasure this time obviously consumed a lot of energy, so Su Mu gave him a knowledge enhancement.

If there's any flaw in governance, it might be that once a leader is chosen, he can't be changed for a while; otherwise, changing him every now and then would be unbeatable.

Besides setting up defenses against wild animals, he also brought in a group of strong young men and sent them to the watchtower for training. His initial worry that these dull-witted farmers wouldn't be able to master the skill of marksmanship was clearly unfounded; the promise of guaranteed learning wasn't something that could be easily advertised.

After a painful groan mixed with exhaustion from training, a group of spearmen emerged, carrying spell-wielding spears. Although they looked somewhat weary, they were all incredibly excited.

With only 14 slots available and a cost of 840 gold coins, the illusion inside the watchtower dimmed, leaving the others who weren't selected somewhat disappointed.

"It's alright, the next wave will be you. Train hard with the spearmen, improve your physique, and who knows, you might even become a commander, wouldn't that be wonderful?"

After hearing Forrest's words, the unsuccessful candidates were inspired and secretly vowed to try their best next time to become spearmen.

As for why everyone is so enthusiastic, it's naturally because the benefits of being a soldier are good. Besides converting gold coins, a large portion of the tax revenue in the council hall is used to support the army.

As long as you can become a soldier, even the lowest-ranking spearman, you can earn a considerable subsidy for your family.

As for the dangers of being a soldier, or the possibility of dying on the battlefield, that's a joke.

In this magically-filled world, where isn't dangerous? Gathering wood might get you eaten by wolves, farming might lead to locusts the size of a person, and transporting goods might result in bandits and mountain thieves. Relatively speaking, soldiers are the core of towns and not the first consumables.

After three weeks of this rotation, Forrest had gathered over 80 spearmen, making him the second largest force in Kuraki Town. These extra men were naturally recruited from the refugee camp. Since the refugees lacked archers, they were willing to accept spearmen, as archers were relatively scarce in the Kingdom of Elton.

Moreover, Forrest also brought back some rare resources from the windmills.

[Crystal +2, Sulfur +1, Ore +1]

For Kuraki, who currently lacks rare mineral resources, this is at least a welcome relief. The lord says these resources will be very useful later.

He cherished this brief period of peace and took the opportunity to accumulate resources and develop his warehouse.

Rumors circulated that the people who migrated from Seri Town to White Rock City did not fare well. The wealthy were forced to hand over large sums of money to protect their families, while the poor were reduced to slave laborers, working day and night. After all, they were vagrants, beggars living under the roof of others, and they had to pay a price for protection.

If one day Kuraki were forced to seek refuge in Whitestone City, would it be better than in Serri Town? He didn't think so.

In this chaotic world, no one can be relied upon. If you don't want to be oppressed, you can only keep improving yourself.

……

On the Wolf Mountain Passage north of the watchtower, a mysterious hero leads a group of thieves dressed in black, standing on the mountain and looking out.

Countless wolves and leopards roam the hillside, each occupying its own water source and resting peacefully. However, anyone who tries to intrude into their territory will surely be surrounded.

"My lord, these are nothing but wolves and leopards. Let the brothers gather more men and we'll make sure a path is cleared."

Hearing his subordinate's foolish words, he slapped him hard, sending him tumbling several meters and knocking out his front teeth.

"If I'm going to make such a big show of it, what use would I have for you?"

He was somewhat angry, even wanting to kill, but he held back, after all, these men still had a purpose.

"Kuraki Town, excellent methods!"

"Just you wait, one day I'll force you out of this doghouse."

After uttering those harsh words, he led his men away. Attacking the beasts below wouldn't be difficult, but it would easily create a commotion and attract attention from those around them.

It was one thing before, but now that the kingdom's army has arrived at Longlet Castle, a vast army of griffins patrols the skies, and no one can escape their eyes.

Acting impulsively at this moment would be tantamount to courting death.

Let these lucky guys enjoy their freedom for a while longer.

(End of this chapter)