章 34: Tall Order

Derrick arrived back at the town, which was already bustling with activity.

Such a sight filled him with pride. People were roaming around, smiling, laughing and not worrying about what tomorrow had in store for them. Their entire faith rested with Derrick, convinced that he would succeed.

After taking the sight in for a few more moments, he continued and arrived at a building that looked almost completed : the forge.

The structure honestly looked better than he had expected. Derrick knew he didn't have specialized construction workers, so this result was more than satisfying.

When the crew saw Derrick arrive, they stopped everything and all bowed down, with one of them also going to fetch Jack.

He arrived a few instants later by Derrick's side.

"Your Highness, everything is almost completed. The only thing left is to make sure that the aeration is sufficient"

"Have you asked Fomamli for his input?"

Jack's eyes widened in surprise... How could he have not thought of something so simple?!

"No, Your Highness... It's my mistake"

"I'll call him here. I also have to speak with him about the 'little' task he'll be in charge of"

A flash of evilness passed through the necromancer's eyes, and Jack couldn't help but tremble.

The poor blacksmith probably didn't know what awaited him...

"Fomamli, come to the forge's location. It's time to see your new toys!"

Shortly after sending the mental missive, the dwarf arrived with great fanfare, excited about his new working environment.

Before he had been captured, he owned a small shack that barely accommodated his needs, so when he saw the large and spacious forge, tears formed at the corner of his eyes.

A mere slave... That's what he was right now. He had no right to be on the verge of accomplishing one of his dreams.

"Mas... Master... Thank you"

Derrick was shocked by the blacksmith's reaction. Still, it was great to see someone appreciating their opportunity.

"Don't cry on me just yet! You haven't seen the new equipment. For the record, the budget was tight, so I had to cut a little in some places"

The two of them proceeded inside the building while led by Jack.

Once inside, they saw that it had various empty spaces. Of course, those were meant for the brand-new tools.

Derrick took out the magical pouch Brigand had given him and drew out everything he bought from 'Blacksmith & Co'.

When Fomamli saw the loot, he was agape.

"Cut in the quality? Really?!"

He couldn't help but express himself loudly, to which Derrick responded with a loud laugh.

"To be honest, I knew you'd appreciate it. I can tell you that, in the future, I plan on upgrading all this gear since you'll be at the center of our flourishing strength"

A devilish grin appeared on Derrick's face when he said that, causing the dwarf's huge smile to instantly recede. Investing such an amount surely meant that the task ahead would be enormous.

Beads of sweat started forming on his forehead, and Derrick couldn't help but inwardly jest. He hadn't lied when he had said that he wouldn't mistreat them, but that didn't mean that he wouldn't exploit their expertise to their limits.

He needed them to become the best version of themselves.

After letting the poor dwarf fidget around like a scared kid, Derrick dropped the hammer.

"150 Iron armors, 20 Bronze armors and 10 Steel armors"

Fomamli's soul instantly left his body... He was equipping an entire army, by himself?! AHHHHHHHHHH!

His inner self was already tying the rope's noose while kicking the chair beneath him.

Dwarves were indeed maniacs of their craft, but repetitive work really wasn't their forte. The fact that he also had to do it all by himself just added insult to injury.

However, he really couldn't complain. A slave that wasn't abused, and instead given work? That was a dream come true.

"It'll be my pleasure, Master"

Derrick saw the various emotions swirl through his subordinate and had decided to increase the incentives.

Sure, they could earn their freedom and that might be motivation enough, but if he wanted them to overachieve, he had to be creative.

"If you manage to make all these armors in two weeks, I'll buy premium materials and let you freely create an armor of your choice"

When he heard that, the previously resigned dwarf shook in disbelief. He would be given the opportunity to craft something exquisite and to his taste?!

"Don't get me wrong, Fomamli. If you waste even a single alloy, I'll hold you accountable, and you'll wish you were making armors..."

This had already been on the dwarf's mind, and he nodded. He was aware of his skills, and he knew he'd have to grind through the Iron ones before making his way up. Failing was definitely not an option.

"Here are the materials"

After walking to a storage space in the forge, Derrick just emptied the remaining items from his magical pouch. The sheer quantity that came out was frankly unbelievable, on top of their great quality.

After talking a bit more, Derrick left Jack and Fomamli to discuss the finishing touches.

At the end of the day, they would have finally taken a major leap in their quest to domination, making his blood boil to no end.

However, and before he could go forward with his plan of conquering another village, he had to figure out a solution to a problem that still plagued him : money.

He couldn't raise taxes because his people were poor, and he couldn't simply make equipment from epic monsters out of nowhere. It just wasn't enough to sustain an entire economy.

He needed to find a source of income that was reliable enough and that would enrich his people, therefore giving them buying power.

Also, trading was out of the question since they didn't have any roads connecting them to the outside world. That would be another important and urgent project, although only possible once he had more subjects.

Such much to do, but fortunately for him, he had plenty of time.

Suddenly, an idea crossed his mind. Something that everyone needed was resources!

He had the luxury of being located in untouched lands that brimmed with hidden treasures.

What if he could find them and exploit them? He would then be able to go to different cities and sell them at a large profit, allowing him to distribute the riches to his people.

In other words, it would be used to kick-start his entire economy.

From what he could tell, only two issues were blocking this plan.

First, he didn't have a discovery spell, and second, he couldn't send exploratory parties, as the forest was filled with beasts that would tear them apart.

Derrick thought for a bit before taking out a communication trinket.

It was another gift that Brigand had given him before leaving. Now that he was a dirt poor, he needed to ask for some favors.

"Brigand?"

...

"Brigand???"

"AH! Who's this?"

"Did you already forget me?"

"Wait, Mr. Tarlin! I never expected to receive your call so soon. What's the occasion?"

Scratching his head and swallowing his pride, he went ahead.

"I've run out of funds, and I was hoping for a loan"

"Hahahaha! I didn't know you were so fickle with money!"

The burly man's raucous laugh on the other end squeezed Derrick's heart. He couldn't deny the fact that he was new to this game...

After calming down, Brigand continued.

"How much would you need?"

"How much would a Discovery Spell cost?"

A long silence followed the request. Was his request, once again, outrageous?

"I'll be honest with you. What you're asking for is something that is kept secret to the highest level. After all, if everyone had access to them, every resource would have already been pillaged"

The logic was sound, and it made Derrick re-think his plan. Had he been too optimistic about this whole thing?

"I won't be able to loan you enough for this, but I can help you access such a spell for a short period of time. Concerning the price, how about another future favor in exchange?"