Lord: Stripped of My Inheritance from the Start - Chapter 387 - 361: The Disposition of the Potions
「Mountain Forest Town.」
After several migrations last year, the population of the small town had now surpassed ten thousand.
Looking down from the sky, one could see many large, factory-like buildings constructed by the construction team. These were temporary residences.
Some who had settled down in Mountain Forest Town had already applied to their respective village heads for homesteads to build their own houses.
Compared to two years ago, the town was clearly much more vibrant and full of life.
After flying across Wubei Territory to Mountain Forest Town, Ronin went directly to the Ironwood Workshop.
After several expansions, the Ironwood Workshop now had huge warehouses and multiple factory buildings.
Under Ronin’s guidance, William had assigned personnel to process and assemble the ironwood in an assembly-line fashion.
To increase the Ironwood Workshop’s profits, Chahar, after discussing with Wilson, had also supplemented the workforce here in several batches. When Ronin arrived, all he saw were busy figures.
Although the work here was tiring, the pay was relatively better.
Now that Wubei Territory’s grain production had increased and merchants occasionally came to visit, the workers had money in their pockets and could afford to buy many things.
“Lord!”
Seeing Ronin appear at the Ironwood Workshop, the workers couldn’t help but put down their work and greet him with enthusiastic reverence.
“You’ve all worked hard.”
Ronin waved to the crowd. After a brief greeting, he had someone call William over.
Although William’s skill was not on par with Master Dan’s, the two of them were in charge of different categories of work.
One managed ironwood production, while the other researched new things and organized their production.
Now that the Ironwood Workshop had more people, William, as the manager, was thriving.
He cherished his current life and therefore held a sincere respect for Ronin.
“My Lord, if you need anything, you can just send someone to summon me.”
He led Ronin to a relatively clean break room. “The Ironwood Workshop is very dusty. For a noble person such as yourself to come here in person… we feel quite unworthy.”
Ronin laughed heartily. He first praised William for his performance, then stated the purpose of his visit.
He now had a batch of very high-quality Concave-Convex Mirrors in his possession. The next step was to craft the barrels for the Objective Lens and Eyepiece to fit them, and then assemble everything to create a Telescope.
William had never made anything like this before, so Ronin drew a rough schematic diagram and carefully explained the manufacturing process and the final result.
William was an artisan, after all. The device wasn’t complicated, and he understood it immediately.
Since it didn’t require ironwood, the manufacturing process wasn’t difficult. He immediately assured Ronin that he would have results within seven days.
Ronin left behind a Concave Mirror and a Convex Mirror, then got up and departed.
As soon as he returned to Swamp Castle, he heard the good news of Rogner’s breakthrough.
The effectiveness of the Support Enhancement Potion was so good it surprised Ronin a little.
“My Lord, of the ten vials of Advanced Enhancement Potion that were concocted, Rogner consumed one. The remaining nine are all here.”
Elron handed over a tray holding the potion vials. “I was wondering what you plan to do with the rest?”
Ronin picked up one of the vials and looked at it. The red liquid seemed somewhat ominous.
“It seems the only Advanced Level Knight left in Wubei Territory is the one named Damon, right?”
“That was last year, my Lord.”
Elron shook his head with a smile. “Many more have come seeking to pledge their allegiance recently. After having Rig screen them, we’ve kept two Advanced Level Knights, four Intermediate Knights, and six Basic Level Knights.”
He added, “The number of Professional Knights in Wubei Territory has now reached thirty-three. We’ll soon be able to form three Knight Squads!”
Ronin was surprised, yet he also found it reasonable.
His reputation had spread. The sons of three Viscounts had come to Wubei Territory, and since the territory didn’t just take in noble scions, many Professional Knights looking to ’start their own ventures’ would choose to come here and try their luck.
Although new Advanced Level Knights had joined, Ronin had no intention of giving these potions directly to them.
Their loyalty, abilities, and so on had not yet been verified. Gifting them an enhancement potion that cost over a hundred Gold Coins would be a terrible waste.
“Can Intermediate Knights use it?” Ronin asked.
“Yes, but it must be diluted. One vial of the advanced potion can be diluted into roughly three vials suitable for an Intermediate Knight.”
“Then dilute them. Give several vials each to Tom, Horn, Krami, and Babulin. As for the others, if they want any, they can purchase them with the wages I pay them. For internal personnel, let’s give them a discount for now—say, fifty percent off.”
Ronin smiled. “But you must tell them beforehand: if anyone dares to resell the potions, not only will we reclaim the illicit profits, but they will also be held accountable. The punishment will range from imprisonment and exile to death.”
Elron nodded.
Take the advanced potions, for example. Even at fifty percent off, they would still cost over one hundred Gold Coins. The salary of an Advanced Level Knight was not nearly enough; they would probably have to borrow money from friends and family.
But it was a gamble worth taking. After all, once they advanced from Advanced Level to Bronze, their annual income would quadruple, allowing them to recoup the cost in just one year.
“Should we also make potions suitable for Bronze Knights and Silvers? Generally, one stalk of Flame Grass can produce ten vials of advanced-grade potions, but only three for Bronze-rank and one for Silver-rank.”
The costs were different. The key was whether Ronin wanted to cultivate more mid-tier personnel or make his top-tier forces even stronger.
Ronin mulled it over. He didn’t lack top-tier combat power, and his mid-tier ranks were being filled by new recruits. It was his upper-tier that was a bit lacking.
The two discussed for a while and decided to use the available Fury Flame Grass to produce potions of different Levels in a 5:4:6 ratio.
“I’m about to receive five hundred thousand Gold Coins, so the territory isn’t short on money. Therefore, let’s try to have this batch of potions consumed internally.”
Elron was stunned.
He had always believed that making money from Magic Potions was the fastest way, but he never expected Ronin to make money even faster than him.
’A single trip had earned him five hundred thousand Gold Coins.’
“Here are the Magic Spirit Spring and Starlight Grass for making the Awakening Potion.”
Ronin tossed the two ingredients to Elron, whose eyes immediately lit up.
“My Lord, your efficiency puts me to shame.”
He seemed to feel a bit inadequate. “Although you’ve brought the ingredients for the Magic Potion, I still haven’t succeeded in creating the Inscribed Container for the Awakening Potion.”
The Awakening Potion required not only the Power of Light, but also a container engraved with special inscriptions.
Elron had tried several times, using up some Magic Crystal Stones and a little mithril, but had not yet succeeded.
After all, this was a memory he had only acquired at the Master Level. He had never done this in his past life and had no experience to draw upon.
“It’s alright. Failure is the mother of success. I’m confident you will succeed.”
Ronin encouraged him, “This is also a good opportunity. We can have Rig select and train more people under the age of nineteen with strong physiques, so we can pick out those suitable to use the Awakening Potion.”
He planned to establish a path for advancement in Wubei Territory, giving commoners a viable path to pursue martial power.
However, the Awakening Potion was different from the enhancement potions. It was destined not to be consumed in large quantities within Wubei Territory. After all, given its cost, it would only be profitable if sold externally.
Ronin was neither a Giver of Wealth who threw money around, nor a benevolent lord who asked for nothing in return.
Those who successfully awakened after taking the Awakening Potion would be required to sign a contract with him. At the very least, they would not be allowed to leave Wubei Territory to serve others.
