While there was chaos on West's side, the Sith Empire was rather calm. It was as if the Sith Empire had not taken the border checkpoints to heart at all, at least on the surface, they were still maintaining their strategy, and the two damned generals were still responsible for leading the legions to surround the royal capital of Orut, waiting for the truce to expire and kill them with a single blow. And the defense process on West's side has slowed down, but it is not without the intention of continuing. In fact, whether it is a nobleman or a soldier, they are not calm enough about the rumors flying all over the sky at the moment, whether it is the front line where the situation is tense, or the rear that is quite comfortable. After all, what human beings fear most is uncertainty, which is why people are moving at the moment.

But that didn't matter to Yuren anymore, in fact, he was now back in the twilight forest—with his loot.

"Frankly, I didn't expect you to do that, my lord. ”

Looking at the wooden door of the guest room with a complicated gaze, Offariel was silent for a moment, and then said with a wry smile. Under the power of Messiah, Her Royal Highness the princess had been in a coma all the time, so she didn't have any strength from Fei Youlian......... Or perhaps because of this, even if Her Royal Highness is tied to the back of a horse like a cargo, the best reason is not to protest. Upon her return, Julien ordered Charlotte to place her in her room, explaining to Ofariel that Olut and her party had been ambushed at the border, and that the poor woman was mortally injured and unconscious. If I hadn't arrived in time, I am afraid I would not have been able to save her life.

After deducting the second half, in fact, Yulian didn't lie.

From Ofariel's point of view, although he had already understood Yuren's plan, it was only a literal plan after all, and once it became a reality, there would still be a feeling of disbelief. Especially now, looking at the door in front of him, Ofaril himself felt a little as if he was dreaming, the royal descendant of the former allies, Her Royal Highness the First Princess, would now appear in the castle of such a barren and remote territory as the Twilight Forest, and it was a little unbelievable to think about it.

"I've always kept my word, Miss O'Faryl. ”

In the face of Offariel's words, Yulian only showed his usual smile.

"It's a human virtue to do what you say, and I think it's very important to keep your promises, don't you think?"

"With all due respect, I always feel that these virtues will always have a completely different understanding in you, my lordship, than in the world. ”

Hearing this, Ofaril rolled her eyes and replied angrily. Yu Lian didn't mean to refute this, he just shrugged his shoulders and then diverted the topic.

"How's it going?"

“.....................”

Ofariel opened her mouth, obviously unhappy with Julien's gag, but in the end she didn't protest and reluctantly began to answer Julien's questions.

After receiving the financial supply of the Golden Trade Road, the operation of the Twilight Forest began to be on track. Of course, Offariel also knew that it was not a good thing to blindly rely on the source of funds for the gold trade route, so she began to use the funds to start transforming the entire territory. The first thing she did was to reclaim a large amount of land to ensure food self-sufficiency. As a former princess of West, Offariel knew the importance of food to the territory, although among the nobles, food was often obtained through trade, but Offariel knew very well that those who had the straightest waist and the loudest voice in the kingdom were always the lords who had enough land. They will not fear the repression of their competitors, nor will they fear the trade blockade of the royal family. And those small and medium-sized families have to be treated everywhere for this reason. Moreover, in the process of getting along with Yuren, Ofariel has also understood that the other party is not the kind of nobleman who is stable and has considerable connections. To put it mildly, the young lord was a little afraid of the chaos in the world, and his surname was strange, he always liked to go off the rails in everything, but he rarely looked for reasons and excuses that were enough to convince others. Don't look at the two lords who now border the Twilight Forest are obedient to him, most of them are still a deterrent built on force. Of course, O'Faryl also admits that this lord also has his own hand in playing with force and deterrence, but she and Yuren are still different after all, and the cautious O'Faryl is not used to relying on such means to expand his influence all the time. Moreover, food, an important material, must also be concentrated in one's own hands. Otherwise, if a nobleman sees You Lian as unpleasant, secretly stumbles on him, and uses a series of excuses to delay the import and transportation of grain, then the consequences will be very worrying. After all, it is impossible for Yu Lian to directly hold a sword to someone else's neck because of such a thing, and it is a good thing to properly show force and deterrence, but it is not wise to rely on this method all the time.

Therefore, Ofariel immediately made two preparations, and after obtaining sufficient funds, she bought a large amount of grain in case of emergency. On the one hand, a large amount of land has been reclaimed, and more farmers have been recruited from among the refugees so that the fields can be cleared in the shortest possible time.

Generally speaking, there are many issues that need to be paid attention to in clearing the field, first clearing the ground, transforming the soil, driving out wild animals, and cutting down the land at the same time, all of which takes a considerable amount of time. But with the help of the source, none of these problems are a problem. Through the power of the source, the land can be transformed into a fertile field in an instant, and the weeds on it will naturally wither. The trees that had been dense disappeared overnight. As for those beasts, not to mention, under the breath of the source, those beasts with a certain dangerous surname have been banished to the depths of the twilight forest, and there will be no danger.

Sure enough, as O'Faryl had predicted, the price of food had begun to rise because of the imminent war, and in some places it had even reached a situation where demand was outstripping supply. Although the situation in the Twilight Forest was slightly better, there was not much difference, and even with the Winterless Hand Chambermaster in the midst of it, Ofariel still had to buy the food he needed at half the price he usually said.

In terms of the gold trade routes, there were not as many obstacles as expected. Custer was very dedicated and seemed to have fully committed his allegiance to Yuren, but considering the two geist warriors he was following, it was perhaps the main reason why the captain of the garrison did not dare to act rashly.

On the other hand, with the increase in the number of servants, the expenditure of money also began to increase simultaneously.

This is not because of the cost of labor. After all, according to the agreement between Yuren and the source, every day at midnight, the source will divide a part of the power of Mana he has collected, so that the spirits that wander in the castle will be manifested, and after these spirits are manifested, they will be responsible for the internal affairs of the castle. Of course, these people don't need to be paid. But on the other hand, they are the most expensive.

Just like Charlotte, the original Church of Grace recruited talents from all fields, including many professions other than swordsmen, including alchemists, pharmacists, and even swordsmiths who specialize in forging weapons, etc., and these "production" talents are managed by Charlotte, and a special action unit has been established.

At the beginning, Ofaril was quite satisfied with this, after all, although these geyers have been dead for many years, their knowledge is extremely rich, besides, the so-called "first" in various fields is not bragging, once these people's skills and knowledge can be used properly, then it is definitely a good thing for Valhalla, which lacks talents. After all, materials can still be bought with money, but talents can't be found with lanterns. Moreover, these geists have made a contract with Yulian, and there is no doubt about their loyalty, so they are simply the perfect helpers.

However, as time passed, Offariel began to wonder if she had the right idea.

In the beginning, the geists proposed that an alchemical workshop was needed to research and manufacture alchemy. Two days later, Ofariel was approached for a forge, and even for a Magic Cannon and Petrified Beast. All of this made O'Faryl's head a little bigger, although it was not that there was no space for this purpose, but looking at the pile of submitted lists of materials, O'Faryl was in danger of not getting angry.

Dragon's Blood, Night Alloy, Sage's Core, Psionic Ore............... Divine grace is above, these things are worth thousands of dollars now! Not to mention that some of them are not to be found at all, in fact, even the well-informed Ofariel only knows a fraction of the materials on the list, and even those materials that she has been lucky enough to have seen are ridiculously expensive - if she did buy them, then I am afraid that the entire Twilight Forest will lose even the pants left.

"Oh, and that happens?"

Hearing Ofariel's slightly embarrassed complaint, Yulian glanced at her with some curiosity, of course, this has to be said that Yulian was not thoughtful. In fact, he originally had the same idea as O'Faryl. The Church of Grace tried to possess the most powerful group of soul golems who would always be loyal to them, and the consequence was to provide Yuren with the most powerful group of contract spirits. And Yulian also believes that as long as he can use these powers well, then the development of the Twilight Forest will definitely not be a problem. But it is clear that both Yuren and the Spirit Warriors have made the fault of a researcher - they only know how to research and manufacture, and as for the cost of materials, they are never within the scope of these people's concerns.

It's no wonder, after all, those wandering spirits were the top people in their respective forces before they were alive, and what materials they wanted to do research were not what they wanted, and once upon a time did they care about the source of the materials?

But now, after all, they are not in the Mage Association, the Alchemist Association, or the Forge Association, but in the Twilight Forest, so the problem of materials is the biggest problem they need to consider.

"So, how did you deal with it?"

"This ..............."

Hearing Yuren's inquiry, Ofaril was stunned, and then, she lowered her head.

"I have relayed the present situation to Miss Charlotte, and ask them to bear with me for the time being, and as for the final decision, I will have to wait for you to come back, my lord..............."

“..................”

Although Yu Lian's expression did not change at all, at this moment, his heart had fully understood the thoughts of the former princess.

Obviously, after learning the true identity of Charlotte and the others, O'Faryl also showed a lot of concern about this. After all, no matter how you look at it, Charlotte is far more familiar with Yuren than herself, that is, they are closer to Yuren than themselves. Among them, Ofaril was the only one who was excluded, and she did not know the origin of Yulian or his intentions, and could only rely on the contact and understanding of Yu Chang to deduce. It was this disadvantage that made her dare not make more decisions. Although Ofariel's power as a minister was second only to that of Lord Julien, she did not dare to use it too much, so as not to give the impression that others were vying for power. Of course, there are reasons for this, but the most important thing is probably the habit that Ofariel has cultivated in the palace for a long time in order to avoid people mistakenly thinking that he has ambitions for the throne.

"There is no need to report such things to me later. ”

"Huh?"

Hearing Yuren's answer, Offariel looked up in a little surprise.

"Your Excellency, what do you mean..............."

"Charlotte, they are indeed very good, but after all, times are different, and I believe you have a better advantage in this regard than with them. ”

At this point, Yuren paused, staring at Ofariel in front of him, and after a moment he continued.

"And don't forget that you're my adjutant, and in that regard, I think you should understand how to use your power. ”

"I see, my lord. ”

Hearing this, Ofaril's face softened slightly, as if he had just breathed a sigh of relief. She nodded vigorously and replied in a firm tone. Ofariel wasn't a stupid person, she knew very well why Yuren said this, of course, the gap between her and those geyers would not be erased by Yuren's words, after all, these geyers had obviously followed Yuren for a long time, but they were only very short. But now, O'Faryl is confident that as long as she gives herself enough time, then she can take the initiative to break into it and become good partners with others.

Thinking of this, Ofariel immediately became a little excited, she saluted Yuren, and then turned to leave, but at this moment, Yuren stopped her again.

"By the way, what do they need? Do you still have those lists?"

"Of course. ”

O'Faryl responded as she took out the list from her bosom and handed it over, which was her strength, no matter when, whatever the other person needed, she could prepare in advance. From this it can be seen that Ofaril's political talent and mental acumen are above many people.

"Thank you, Miss O'Faryl. ”

Taking the list from Ofariel, Yulian smiled at her and nodded.

"You can go and rest, I think you'll have a lot of things to do in the future............ I think you should understand very well that we don't have the experience of taking care of a princess. ”

"Don't worry, I'll take care of this. ”

The corners of O'Faryl's mouth twitched, although it sounded like she was sarcastic about Yulian's words, but in the end she still didn't say anything, after all, she was just a "former" princess.

Yuren smiled and shook his head at Ofariel's departing figure, and then he shifted his gaze back to the list in front of him.

It was not without his gains in the days of Orrut, for he observed not only the methods used by the Sith Empire, but also their thoughts—at least, one of the four generals of Damnation was untired of war, and as enthusiastic as he was. In this case, Yuren can be sure that in no more than two and a half months, the Sith Empire will launch an attack on West. And the time I can have is getting less and less.

He needs the army.

Individualism is never needed in war, and this is not to say that individualism is bad, just as the four generals of the Sith Empire, Yuren believed that with their strength, even if they were alone, they could be a threat to the enemy - but only a threat. 100,000 to 1 person, such a ratio is unbearable for anyone. The same goes for gifted knights...... Of course, not without exceptions.

However, war itself is a combination of offense and defense, and it is like playing chess, where a chess player cannot rely on a queen who can run rampant on the chessboard and abandon rooks, horses, phases, and pawns. Even if this queen can kill ten chess pieces in one move, she still has no way to protect the emperor, and her fate is still checkmate.

And right now, what Yuren's territory lacks most is manpower. Especially well-trained soldiers. The war left him less and less time, although the plan was that as long as the Twilight Forest could survive the first round of invasion, then Yulian would have the confidence to absorb the defeated remnants and the armed forces of other nobles. But now, he had to build his own breakwater.

Looking at the list in his hand, Yu Lian nodded secretly, I have to say that these spirits are still very self-motivated and powerful, or in other words, they have always existed in the form of souls, and finally have **, so they naturally hope to continue their unfinished business. This sentiment is understandable, but the level of enthusiasm may not be something that Offariel's fragile nerves can bear.

After carefully reading the list in his hand, Yulian reached out and picked up the bell on the desk, and with the crisp ringing of the bell, Charlotte's figure appeared at the door.

"Master, may I ask what is the matter?"

"Call Judy and Arya, I'm looking for them. ”

"Okay, master. ”

Hearing Julien's richness, Charlotte quickly left, and a moment later, Judy and another girl appeared at the door of the study.

The red-haired captain of the guard still had a unique youthful vitality, while the other girl who followed her was different, with light brown medium-length hair tied into a ponytail shape, swaying playfully. Moreover, judging from the clothing, she is not like Judy, wearing delicate and graceful armor, but wearing a black maid uniform, which shows that the girl in front of her belongs to Charlotte's subordinates.

After all, by the time the Twilight Forest had developed, the rudiments of the entire territory had been fully formed—Yuren was in charge of the overall situation, and Ofariel was the key figure in making the decisions. Under them, Judy was in charge of all military systems in the realm, while Charlotte became the handler of the internal affairs of the castle and the realm.

However, although she is wearing a maid's uniform, the brown-haired girl's dress is easy to look at. She wore a pitch-black glove on her right hand, and a thin silver-white chain attached to a small silver shield at her elbow. A circle of throwing knives was slanted into the girl's waist, and at her thighs, the snow-white reflection of the dagger could be seen. A long sword hung diagonally behind her back, and the wide and heavy machete on the left hand side was also particularly eye-catching.

Compared to Judy, who was dressed in military uniform, the girl looked more like a humanoid weapons museum, with all kinds of weapons hanging all over her body. It's dizzying.

"Your Excellency, may I ask you to come to us, is there anything you have to do?"

As soon as she entered the study, Judy asked. Yulian shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands.

"Of course, I have some urgent matters that you need to do immediately......... Judy, I want you to increase the number of members of the guard to five hundred in the shortest possible time. And to ensure that their strength can reach the level of a mid-level swordsman. ”

"Five hundred?"

Hearing this, Judy's eyes widened in surprise.

"Your Excellency, we can't find five hundred people now, and besides, after the chaotic years, the quality of these people is not very high now, if you want to raise their strength to the level of a middle-level swordsman, I'm afraid you won't be able to do it without three or five years............"

"As for numbers, I'll explain to O'Fariel that in the coming days we'll buy some more slaves, and I'll also be mobilizing and recruiting some soldiers from other towns. After all, the gathering place in our territory is not only Valhalla, we can recruit externally, mercenaries, adventurers, of course, as for their whereabouts, you need to pay more attention. ”

“.................. Yes, Your Excellency. ”

Judy didn't say anything more, but nodded quickly. So Yuren turned to the "Museum of Humanoid Weapons" standing beside her.

"As for strength, I think you'll remember that in the Age of Chaos, if we didn't have enough strength, we could rely on equipment to make up for it - so, Arya, I hope you can take the craftsmen in the City of Valhalla to craft armor that is enough to raise the strength of these people to the mid-level level, as long as they have access to the power of the soul, and of course, the style must be beautiful and generous, so as to attract more people to join our army. ”

"Armor up to the middle level?"

The girl repeated Yuren's words with some confusion, and then she looked embarrassed.

"Your Excellency, in the era of chaos, there are indeed some weapons and equipment that can allow people to use their power beyond the ranks, but ......... The current raw materials are insufficient........."

"We don't need the ability to fully restore it. ”

Yulian interrupted the girl's speech with a wave of his hand.

"Frankly, I can tell you that in this day and age, the raw materials that we used to need and use are not easy to find, so you can only use the existing raw materials to make them -- I don't think it will be too difficult for you to be a forger. Of course, you can also think of it as a challenge. ”

"Use these ordinary ore materials to make advanced soul armor?"

Hearing this, the girl's face finally relaxed, as if she had found some interesting toy.

"It is indeed a very difficult subject, but it is worth experimenting, and I will complete your request as soon as possible and in the shortest possible time, Your Excellency. ”

"Good. ”

Hearing this, Yu Lian nodded with satisfaction, and then clapped his hands.

"We are running out of time, folks, and remember, our enemies are also on the move. ”

Then, with a slightly gloomy face, he spoke in a low voice.

(To be continued)