Chapter 537.5: No One Dares to Owe Bay Territory Money
"Schroder is willing to pay 200,000 gold coins to request aid from Bay Territory to resolve Alarad City's crisis?"
A smile crept onto Matthew's lips, and beside him, Yaya burst into laughter, chuckling:
"I'd love to see their faces right now; it must be quite amusing."
Nearby, Annie also smiled involuntarily at the scene.
She had witnessed how other territories had tried to blockade Bay Territory's trade and mock it.
Now, they were turning to Bay Territory for help.
The notion that relationships between territories were driven solely by profit felt more tangible than ever.
With a casual shrug, Matthew messaged Old John on the other end:
"Send them the price. Let them decide if they can afford it."
Annie, who had calculated the costs of deploying Bay Territory's soldiers, found herself stunned.
The expenses for equipment, marching, combat, rewards, and compensation were on par with those of elven soldiers from Ail.
Even though their average profession level was still only around level 4…
Their combat power was already comparable to ordinary Ail elves' soldiers.
Annie even suspected that in large-scale battles involving over a thousand troops…
Bay Territory's army might even surpass the Ail elven forces!
Perhaps the Ail elves' experience in battles against Cole Elves would elevate their strength by a tier or two.
But the Bay Territory army's progress was far faster than that of the Ail elves!
"Those fools must think Bay Territory is just asking for outrageous prices."
"They have no idea that Bay Territory is already offering discounted rates. We can't even hire their support ourselves…"
Annie recalled Matthew's response to her inquiry:
"Letting these fools suffer heavy losses might indeed benefit Bay Territory's future development."
"But the innocent commoners shouldn't lose their lives because of some people's stupidity."
At the time, Annie hadn't fully understood.
But as she saw Bay Territory taking in more and more refugees, assimilating them ever faster…
And witnessing Bay Territory's development not being hindered, but instead growing more prosperous, she gained a deeper understanding of the importance of population size.
Setting aside her thoughts on those individuals, Annie once again examined the magical map projection.
She believed the Ail elves could find it useful too.
But what technology would be suitable for a trade?
Perhaps a large-scale magical defense array would be a good exchange…
...
"What? They send a 3,500-strong force and dare to demand 500,000 gold coins from me?"
"Has Bay Territory gone mad with greed? Why don't they just rob me instead?"
In fact, robbery wouldn't even bring in that much money!
Watching the high-level adventurers charge forward and cut down another wave of gnolls scaling the walls…
Schroder, who was still communicating with other lords, grew increasingly frustrated and couldn't help shouting:
"This is absurd! Didn't you agree to support us? How dare you ask for such a high price!"
Hearing Schroder's words, the other lords suddenly fell silent.
They naturally assumed this was Bay Territory's "payback" for their past actions.
But they dared not voice their anger.
Times had changed.
While they weren't in as dire a situation as Schroder, who was not only besieged by gnolls but also on the verge of losing his city…
Their own circumstances weren't much better.
Dragon-blooded creatures outside their cities were growing in number, and some lords had already encountered powerful gnoll brutes among them.
This indicated that the influence of the Mad Dragon Maze Lock was becoming more severe.
For now, they could still hold on, but that might not be the case much longer.
When that time came, they too might have to turn to Bay Territory for help.
In matters of self-preservation, they were deadly serious.
Unexpectedly, a few casual remarks from Old John made them break out in a cold sweat.
"It's a simple matter. I'll lay out the costs, and if anyone disagrees, we can call off this partnership."
"The use of a large-scale teleportation array alone costs at least 5,000 gold coins. To ensure fast support, we also need to use a spatial stabilization array to prevent losses of personnel and materials."
The "travel expenses" themselves weren't terribly high; even Schroder and the other lords found them acceptable.
"Expenditure on combat supplies amounts to at least 35,000 gold coins, including but not limited to three vitality potions per person, three nutrition potions, two war spell scrolls, and seventy thousand bolts…"
"Additionally, the cost of combat wear and tear on equipment reaches 150,000 gold coins, covering 500 sets of replacement weapons and armor…"
Hearing this, every lord gasped, while Schroder, the main stakeholder, remained silent.
They all understood a "simple truth."
A strong fighting force requires high-quality weapons, equipment, and supplies.
However, the gear provided by Bay Territory seemed unnecessarily extravagant.
Schroder realized that with an investment of 500,000 gold coins, he could have already trained a ten-thousand-strong capable army.
But now, it was too late!
The thought of spending 500,000 gold coins just to hire Bay Territory's troops for rescue filled Schroder with a pang of regret.
Yet Old John wasn't finished and continued explaining:
"The most significant expense is the reward for soldiers after defeating enemies, as well as compensation for those who are injured or killed. This requires a deposit of 200,000 gold coins."
"If the total expenditure doesn't reach this amount, the surplus can be refunded."
The unprecedented treatment for soldiers left Schroder and the other lords speechless.
Never before had a lord, faction, or even a kingdom offered such high benefits for ordinary soldiers.
But Schroder had no other option; spending some money was better than losing his city and his future.
After all, he too believed that Bay Territory was using this opportunity to exact revenge.
With that in mind, Schroder decisively agreed to Old John's terms.
Taking advantage of the current situation, he had to save as much of Alarad City's fighting force as possible.
Once the gnolls were dealt with, Schroder vowed to invest heavily in soldier training.
The previous "orc invasion" and the current "Mad Dragon Maze Lock" had made the situation abundantly clear.
With an unstable situation, having one's own fighting force was far more useful than just amassing wealth.
Wealth could be stolen in an instant.
Even Old John seemed slightly surprised; he hadn't expected Schroder to agree so quickly and ask for a full brigade's support.
Thinking it over, Old John promptly sent a message to Bay Territory's barracks:
"Send a strong brigade over. It's their first deployment; make sure the victory is clean and decisive."
This could serve as excellent "advertising."
A strong showing would naturally inspire other lords' confidence.
In the future, if they encountered problems they couldn't solve, they'd think of paying Bay Territory for help.
Old John couldn't help but recall the lord's words:
"While our neighbors stockpile food, we stockpile arms…"
Ahem…
That's not quite the phrase.
"Might makes right; when your fist is big, you're always correct."
...
Upon receiving the orders, Chris raised an eyebrow and loudly announced to his comrades:
"All right, folks, time to move out."
"This mission is simple: get to the teleportation site early, set up the teleportation beacon and stabilization array, and our job is done."
"Completing this task will earn us at least 3,000 points of merit…"
Hearing the details, everyone's eyes lit up.
They weren't new to this; they knew that using these resources indicated more than just a routine fight.
Perhaps, once again, they'd witness Bay Territory's military taking the initiative.
Among the veteran adventurers who had been with Bay Territory the longest, they'd seen firsthand the army's transformation from weak to strong.
Every two or three months, Bay Territory's military capabilities improved significantly.
In the beginning, their soldiers had hardly any professionals and struggled against even small groups of gnolls.
Gradually, they could effortlessly defeat thousands of trolls.
By the time they repelled tens of thousands of orcs, demonstrating extraordinary resilience and strength…
The adventurers knew in their hearts that they could no longer match Bay Territory's army.
Now, they just wanted to see how far Bay Territory's military had progressed.
Chris had the same curiosity but kept it to himself.
He quickly led his team to the mission site, glancing thoughtfully at the distant gnolls, and immediately understood Bay Territory's earlier strategy.
Wiping out these gnolls here wouldn't solve the root problem.
As long as tens of thousands of gnolls roamed the territory, clearing out one area wouldn't make much progress.
However, this time was different.
The teleportation array's glow gradually dimmed.
3,500 well-prepared Bay Territory soldiers appeared before Chris and his group.
Clad in the latest enchanted armor and wielding the latest weapons, their stern and unified killing intent left all the adventurers silent.
A brigade?
3,500 against 25,000?
Could they really win?
Suppressing his thoughts, Chris signaled to Beelzebub, who approached with large strides.
The latter gathered information from Chris, then gestured to the cavalry scouts to investigate.
Instead of rushing into battle, Beelzebub discussed the situation with Chris as they waited.
After hearing about the state of the various territories…
Beelzebub carefully asked about the number and behavior of the gnolls and kobolds.
Stroking his smooth chin, Beelzebub said thoughtfully:
"So, most of the gnolls and kobolds are already affected. The remaining ones won't escape."
"Luckily, we're clearing them out in time. Otherwise, they'd cause significant trouble for the territory's development and construction."
Chris couldn't help but nod in agreement.
Compared to other territories caught off guard, Bay Territory remained largely unaffected.
Half of their forces, including adventurers, were still busy sweeping up.
They were almost hoping more enemies would show up.
They could wipe them out all at once.
About ten minutes later…
The scouting patrol returned.
They quickly reported the surrounding situation and confirmed there were no additional enemies nearby.
With this information, Beelzebub signaled for an attack on the gnoll army besieging the walls:
"Attack!"
Bay Territory's soldiers marched steadily forward, immediately drawing the gnolls' attention.
Nearly all of the gnolls turned away from the walls to face the approaching Bay Territory soldiers.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The sound of synchronized marching echoed across the battlefield, a solemn rhythm that stirred awe in every observer.
"Halt!"
With a whoosh and a stomp…
The advancing soldiers stopped in unison.
"Raise crossbows!"
Every soldier in the rear ranks lifted their crossbows in perfect harmony.
They naturally formed three ranks, ready for sequential volleys.
As the gnolls drew closer, their bloodshot eyes visible, Beelzebub gave the order without hesitation:
"Fire!"
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The first rank released their bolts.
The leading gnolls fell instantly.
The soldiers knelt down, swiftly reloaded.
The second rank fired over their heads.
Followed by the third rank.
As the first rank stood up, they seamlessly became the fourth.
In mere moments, thousands of bolts shot out like a fierce storm.
The gnoll horde charging in disorder was instantly cleaved down as if by a monstrous maw, losing a significant portion of their numbers.
Watching from the walls, where he had yet to pay, Schroder muttered to himself:
"Who would dare owe Bay Territory money?"