Munitions Empire

In the kitchen, listening to the sound of soldiers’ boots clacking against the floor, a woman in a white apron stared blankly at the teapot in front of her.

With trembling hands, she grasped a teacup, the tea inside swaying from the shaking, just like the rolling waves in the open sea.

Finally, amidst the sobbing cries of the soldiers outside, she gulped down the tea in her cup and her face immediately regained a sense of relieved calm.

"Open up!" the soldiers outside commanded loudly, followed by a sharp gunshot. The bullet pierced through the door, sending splinters flying through the air.

"Bang!" At last, the flimsy wooden door was forced open and several guards brandishing revolvers barged into the room, only to find an overturned teapot and the body of the woman next to it.

"She’s dead..." A soldier knelt on one knee, took a careful look at the woman’s face, which still had her eyes slightly open, and then turned to his companion to say.

"" Standing there, the Northern Ridge officer, frustrated and furious, held his pistol and spun half a circle on the spot. He ultimately couldn’t hold it in and kicked a nearby cabinet.

"Crash!" The sideboard of the cabinet was kicked in, tea cups and plates inside shattering and scattering onto the floor, rolling all around.

"Captain, Captain!" A soldier hurried over, his eyes filled with despair. He rushed to the captain and with a sob, shook his head.

The approaching soldier, with a crying voice and while wiping the unstoppable tears on his face, said, "The doctor just arrived, he, he said... "

The captain, anxious, demanded, "Said what?"

The soldier covered his face with his arm, shaking his head fiercely.

...

Tang Mo stared blankly at the waving wheat fields in the distance. Standing not far from him, a security force officer handed a list to a Leite Kingdom officer, "Here are 3500 Quick Guns, take a look."

While saying this, he pointed to the carriages parked beside them. Soldiers in the bright yellow uniforms of the Leite Kingdom were counting wooden boxes filled with bolt-action rifles loaded onto the carriages.

After several officers nodded their heads in approval, the Leite Kingdom officer smiled, nodded slightly to his security force counterpart, and then approached the daydreaming Tang Mo.

Stopping not far from Tang Mo, he made a small nod of acknowledgment to Wes, who was watching him closely, and then said to Tang Mo, "His Majesty will surely thank you for your generosity."

From the beginning, an uncomfortable sensation had been lingering in Tang Mo’s heart. He felt uneasy and irritable.

However, the deal before him seemed to have no issues, so he still responded professionally to the Leite Kingdom officer, "I hope my investment will be reciprocated!"

"I will convey your words to His Majesty," the officer responded courteously to Tang Mo, aware of the young man before him whom the King, in his struggle against Shireck, was so eager to court.

Can’t you see? A baron of just 19 years, if not hereditary, who would believe this was a first-generation noble from a newly risen family?

Tang Mo managed a weak smile and asked the officer lightly, "So, where are my things?"

The officer pointed towards two distant carriages, "Inside the carriages are 3000 Gold Coins, and there are also three beauties prepared by the King for you. They all come from decent families in King City and can look after your daily needs."

It was unclear if the King had genuinely provided three beauties for Tang Mo or if he intended to plant spies close to Tang Mo. Nevertheless, since the intentions were laid out plainly, Tang Mo could only accept them all.

Tang Mo did not, in fact, reject them, for he had no intention to keep these women in his service. He simply nodded indifferently and thanked, "I appreciate the King’s generosity; they will certainly feel at home here." ᚱАNÓʙĘṠ

"Congratulations, Baron!" The royal officer, after handing the royal appointment letter to Tang Mo, then smiled and congratulated him, "Brunas is officially your domain now."

Tang Mo took the appointment papers from the officer’s hand and waved them, "Now, is there anything else I need to do?"

The officer grinned and explained earnestly, "Normally, you would go to King City and personally thank His Majesty... But due to the tedious protocols, it’s generally not necessary to bother."

It was a test for the nobility; at that time, nobles earnestly obeyed the King’s orders, so no one minded making such a ceremonial visit to King City.

Receiving the title from the King while proving one’s undying loyalty added a full sense of ceremony for oneself.

It’s just that the current nobility, especially the newly ennobled powers like Tang Mo, generally had little enthusiasm for loyalty.

Moreover, their trust in the royal family was also filled with doubt, fearful that visiting King City might turn them into yet another soul under someone else’s knife. Hence, they no longer pursued these elusive ceremonial feelings.

As such, the royal family no longer required newly ennobled nobles to visit King City to receive their titles, and the new nobles were not foolish enough to go to King City to suffer.

Everyone had formed an unspoken, marvelous understanding: the King would only issue documents for the ennoblement of the nobility, and the nobility would only accept the King’s ennoblement within their actual controlled territories.

Just as the saying goes, rules are dead, but people are alive. Everyone tacitly understood this arrangement and likewise stopped fussing over traditional protocols or etiquette.

Tang Mo nodded slightly, glancing at his own name on the document, "Then please thank His Majesty the King for me."

The other party waved his hand, as if it was his duty to do so, "Oh, it’s nothing... this is what I should do."

Wes walked up to the officer and handed him a tightly tied bag. The officer was stunned for a moment, then instinctively reached out, and the hefty bag fell into his palm.

His hand dropped a good distance under the unexpected weight before finally stopping the descent.

Just with a rough estimate, he knew there had to be at least 20 Gold Coins in the bag.

Who would have thought that stepping out could yield such additional income? The officer’s face immediately showed delight that he could not hide.

With a beaming smile, almost obsequiously, he reminded Tang Mo, "Additionally, there are some trivial matters that will require Baron Sir to personally undertake."

"Such as?" Tang Mo asked knowingly, feigning complete naturalness.

The officer, believing it his duty to inform Tang Mo, immediately proceeded conscientiously, "For example, choosing your own Guardian Knight, finalizing your family’s coat of arms, picking the colors of your banner based on personal preferences, constructing your own castle or manor..."

Generally speaking, a noble’s fiefdom can utilize their family’s banner.

For instance, the Ronin Family’s Northern Ridge doesn’t hang the Kingdom’s banner but opts to display their own wolf banner.

Furthermore, Tang Mo could also levy his own additional taxes here and enact some personal laws of his own.

Usually, these laws cannot override national laws or bind other nobility but do have some legal force over the commoners.

Of course, after becoming nobility, there would be many privileges, including the Kingdom’s semi-acknowledged private Troops, as well as the use of slaves, among others.

All in all, ennobling a new noble entails numerous related issues that need to be resolved, which is also why nobility is valuable and why the Kingdom doesn’t lightly bestow nobility.

Every noble would siphon a portion of the King’s power and, to a great extent, split territories and pose a significant threat to the Kingdom.

However, granting nobility is one of the most important means for a King to court someone’s favor, and thus, in certain circumstances, he must display generosity and promote new nobles to counter the established ones.

The contradictions among nobles, between nobles and the King, and between nobles and commoners mutually restrain each other, forming the "social ecosystem" of the current world.

"Ha! This all sounds quite exhilarating," said Tang Mo with the air of being pleasantly surprised, which made the officer feel his reminder was particularly significant.

"John, accompany this gentleman to the casino for a few rounds, the chips are on me..." Tang Mo instructed the Elf at his side thoughtfully.

John immediately bowed and complied, "Yes, Master."

"Thank you, Lord!" The officer’s face immediately broke into a deeper smile upon hearing what Tang Mo said. After arriving at Brunas, he had heard of the casino’s popularity but hadn’t dared to try it due to financial constraints.

Watching the two depart, Tang Mo turned to Wes and ordered, "Have the prepared flags hung at the Brunas municipal hall."

"Understood," Wes responded promptly.

"And send 10,000 training rounds to His Majesty the King... as a token of our sincerity," Tang Mo commanded again.

Wes continued to nod, "Yes!"

As if he had remembered something else, Tang Mo continued to instruct, "Oh, and those three women, hand them over to John. Let him not trouble those girls; those willing to work in the casino or the restaurant should be arranged to work, and those who do not wish to should be given some money and sent on their way!"

"As you wish, Lord," Wes smiled and nodded again.

As the two were walking back, a horse bolted out from the main road of the Vicious Forest. The armor of the rider on the horse was disorderly, but he couldn’t be bothered to straighten it out.

He spurred his horse into a gallop, holding aloft the wolf banner of the Northern Ridge, heading towards the factories billowing thick smoke not far away.

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