Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

"Aren't you being a bit too partial to Mr. Mitchell?" Bard half-joked.

As Bard's jaw muscles worked, his cheeks bulged rhythmically.

Apparently, tonight's beef was quite a challenge, but Bard was patiently chewing.

"Am I?" Winters gritted his teeth and stabbed at the pieces of beef on his plate, fuming, "Later, I must call Lannis over and ask him properly—how, with so much dining expense, can it still be so bad?"

Bard swallowed the practically unchewable beef without changing his expression, glanced at the slaughterhouse-like plate in front of Winters, and kindly reminded him, "Don't waste food."

"Alright, alright, you eat it." Winters surrendered completely, just like in the past, pushing all the meat on his plate onto Bard's: "All for you."

Bard gladly accepted the offering: "It's meat, how could it not be delicious?"

"Yes." Winters sighed deeply, "I'm also quite curious about that."

...

The Baroque-style mahogany desk, which the former garrison officer cherished immensely, was used as a dining table. Winters and Bard refused Mr. Artemis's invitation to a banquet and simply cooked in the garrison.

The food was the same as for all Iron Peak County soldiers: beef, turnips, coarse bread.

The sun had actually set long ago, and the capital of Vernge County outside the window had long faded into the night, but the two "Iron Peak County Guardians" only now had time to address dinner.

To be precise, it was because one Civil Guard Officer was just too busy, too busy even to eat. Meanwhile, the other unnamed Civil Guard Officer had nothing to do, but insisted on waiting to start the meal with his friend.

...

"Maybe the beef is still the same old beef." Staring at Bard happily enjoying dinner, Winters reflected with a heavy heart, "It's just that my once strong teeth and stomach have been worn down by time."

"First of all, your stomach was never 'strong as iron'." Bard cheerfully exposed his friend's fibs, "When we were in Guidao City, you were quite picky about food."

"That's just compared to you." Winters actively defended himself, "If you look at it from the academy's overall perspective, I absolutely don't count as a picky eater."

Bard gently pressed his hands down to comfort his friend before continuing, "If your stomach was truly 'strong as iron,' then its wear and tear isn't entirely Mr. Berlion's fault."

Winters considered for a moment, then unwittingly raised the corners of his mouth. He nodded and solemnly agreed, "That's right, Lady Navarre is also to blame."

Bard cleared his throat lightly, pointing at the beef on his plate, "I mean, these are from older cows, and they're inherently hard to stew soft. Right now, the price for a two-year-old cow in Vernge County has at least doubled compared to last year. Even if you offer a high price, you can only buy these retired, weakened cows ready to be slaughtered."

Putting away his smile, Bard explained seriously, "Not only cows, the prices for horses, mules, and even donkeys have gone up compared to last year. This isn't just happening in Vernge County, it's even worse in Iron Peak County. I think it's likely the same in the other counties of the Newly Reclaimed Land too."

Hearing this, Winters immediately set aside his plate and took a hardcover booklet from the drawer.

After carefully reviewing it, he held his head in contemplation for a moment, then lifted his face and asked in bewilderment, "Is that so? But during the Great Wilderness War conscription, I bought a lot of livestock, and the cattle prices Lannis reported weren't very different."

"That's because gold and silver prices have also gone up." Bard picked up a graphite stick and wrote a few lines of numbers on paper, "See, when converted into grain prices, the livestock price increase becomes very clear, at least doubling."

Winters stared at Bard's written numbers, lost in thought.

"Logically speaking, war causes livestock prices to rise, and that's understandable. But why have gold and silver prices also soared? While grain prices conversely have dropped?" Bard smiled bitterly, "To be honest, I can't think of a reasonable explanation—Is Mr. Leo in Maplestone City?"

"No." Winters shook his head lightly, "He left the Newly Reclaimed Lands Province before Sanel's troops moved into Mirror Lake County."

"Then... can we contact him?"

Winters pondered for a bit, "We can send a message through the Navarre Commerce, but no one knows when Mr. Leo will get it, so don't hold out too much hope."

Bard nodded, not showing any disappointment or worry, just smiled gently, "Alright then, let's solve the problem ourselves."

For some reason, when meeting Bard's calm and forgiving gaze, Winters felt like no difficulty was insurmountable.

"In the current situation, killing cows for food is my mistake." Winters tried not to show frustration or regret, but his fingertips etched four scratches on the tabletop unconsciously, "The soldiers are too exhausted, too hardworking, and I wanted to let them eat something better..."

"No one blames you, and livestock hasn't become scarce to the 'apocalyptic' level. But since you know the scarcity of large livestock, you shouldn't waste it." Bard pushed the beef back into Winters' plate, teasing, "You always just use, and when it's not enough, you just ask for more, so of course you don't know how hard it is for Senior Mason and me."

Winters stuffed the beef into his mouth and chewed silently.

Bard put down his utensils and earnestly inquired, "Do you still have contact with your little lover from the Red River Tribe?"

Winters was taken aback suddenly, followed by a violent coughing fit. He reflexively beat his chest hard, inadvertently aggravating his injury, and couldn't speak for a while, only able to glare at Bard.

"Don't look at me like that, you never talked to me about the Red River Tribe, so I naturally had to ask others." Bard's expression was calm and composed, "They all say you have a lover of considerable standing in the Red River Tribe, and it's thanks to her that the tribe is honestly doing business with us."

Winters wiped food residue from the corner of his mouth, asking fiercely, "Who said that."

"If I tell you, can you keep it a secret?" Bard asked back with a sly grin.

Winters' fury was caught in his throat; he grasped the edge of the table in anguish, and in the blink of an eye, the two corners of Colonel Zibeer's prized desk crumbled into splinters.

"Have you already reached such a level?" Bard expressed rare surprise and disbelief, but he managed to curb Winters' frenzy with a single sentence: "This seems to be quite expensive."

Winters let out a pained growl, pressed his forehead, and after a moment of silence, calmly told Bard, "First, I did indeed know a lady from the Red River Tribe; second, she and I are not in a romantic relationship; third, you've met the lady as well, she's one of the Herders who helped us on Red Sulfur Island; lastly, the Red River Tribe's willingness to trade isn't guaranteed by that lady, but because of mutual needs."

Bard nodded with a nonchalant "Mm-hmm, mm-hmm" as he listened.

The bishop was more concerned with something other than his friend's romantic rumors: "Since you have a close relationship with that lady from the Red River Tribe, can she decide to trade horses and cattle with us? Currently, all they sell us is wool and sheepskin."

"You tell me clearly! What do you mean by close relationship?" Winters became anxious.

Bard's expression turned serious, "So, there is no such relationship?"

Winters was rendered speechless, and after a while, he stammered, "That's not exactly what I meant either..."

Bard directly skipped over Winters' reaction and explained the current dilemma to him: "The situation in Iron Peak County is decent, we can redistribute the draft horses we don't need for now and the retired warhorses. But the livestock losses in Vernge County are mainly due to the New Reclamation Legion's recruitment, with almost no chance of replenishment. If left unchecked, it will inevitably hinder the autumn harvest and planting."

Bard sighed, "Without large livestock, we can't cultivate enough land. Without cultivating enough land, we can't harvest enough grain. The shortage of large livestock isn't apparent today, but come next year, famine will surely surge in."

"Although we're not yet clear about the situation in the other four counties, it can't be any better. The lack of livestock has become a common issue. It's impossible to rely on internal circulation to solve it; we have to look outside the Newly Reclaimed Lands." Bard paused for a moment, then said somewhat sorrowfully, "You know, this used to be a major production area for large livestock. In just two years, it's turned into this."

Winters' expression also grew serious, "Understood, I'll talk to Skylark."

Seeing Bard's eyebrows arch in confusion, he explained, "The agent of the White Lion."

Bard's furrowed brow relaxed, "All the local gentry in Vernge County are discreetly asking if we can sell them some retired military horses. If we can fill the gap in Vernge County's draft animal supply, we can not only prevent a grain production decrease next year but also win some public favor."

"Don't get your hopes too high." But Winters' brow remained furrowed, "The Red River Tribe is unlikely to agree to trade cattle and horses with us."

"Don't worry, we have plenty to trade with them." Bard reassured Winters, "Mr. Berlion has already filled the warehouse at the ironworks; even if it costs us, it's worth it."

Winters understood Bard's misunderstanding and sighed, "What are we currently selling to the White Lion?"

"Pig iron."

"No," Winters softly corrected, "it's inferior pig iron with a lot of 'toxins' that can't be reprocessed into weapons because we don't want to supply the White Lion with resources for war."

Bard had already realized, but he patiently listened to Winters continue.

"To the White Lion, cattle and horses are equally valuable war resources. Trading inferior pig iron for wool and sheepskin, the White Lion would gladly accept. But if we wish to trade for cattle and horses..."

Winters' expression wavered, "The White Lion will undoubtedly set another price."

Bard thought for a long time and then earnestly replied, "I think even trading military equipment would be worth it."

"You haven't met the White Lion, the White Lion..." although Winters and Bard discussed everything openly, Winters took a large measure of determination to continue, "is too dangerous."

Bard neither mocked Winters for being 'cowardly' nor jokingly questioned "would a mighty Blood Wolf fear someone else?".

He solemnly listened to Winters' words and asked, "How dangerous?"

"In my view," Winters slowly replied, "Grof Magnus of Kingsfort and Alpad across the river combined don't match a single White Lion."

"Then let's find another way." Bard answered directly; he trusted Winters' judgment unreservedly, "We'll no longer consider dealing military arms with the Red River Tribe."

"No." Winters gave a shocking reply, "I will still speak with Skylark."

"Why?" Bard was puzzled.

"I believe, in the eyes of the White Lion," Winters pondered, "tying together the three major tribes of the Herders doesn't compare to me alone."

...

...

...

"Eat something." Bard placed the plate back in front of Winters, "Wait any longer, and it'll get cold."

"You don't believe me?" Winters found it both amusing and exasperating.

"[An unparalleled sense of confidence is a common trait of leaders]." Bard diverted the conversation, quoting an old saying from who knows where.

His cheeks flushed bright red, and after a long while, the most amiable character of the twenty-third class of the Senas Alliance Military Academy couldn't help but burst into laughter, "But back in school, I never imagined you could boast like this one day!"