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297 AC
Bolton Military Training Camp hardheim
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"Do you want me to rub your tummy while you're down there", the man clad in black wool and leathers said.
"Uh..Uhhmm no sergeant," the recruit answered nervously as he looked up in the man's eyes.
"It wasn't a fucking question! Get up and move you piece of shit, where do you think you're at? Mooove!!!" The north man roared at the boy who had fallen off the log obstacle.
"Move you village scums!!"
"If you want to be apart of the best, and join his Lord's army you gotta do better than this, surpass your limits, there's no turning back now. So move your sorry asses you maggots!"
"My nan can move faster than you lot, run! run!"
A few meters away
"He drives them hard commandant", Domeric said to the Astaporian with a smile.
"Well they all do my lord, we cant have the weak ruining the standards of our ranks not even by a pinch." The essosi said without hesitation.
"Most definitely not and that I would not accept, but tell me how many battalions can I get we get from this new batch of recruits." Domeric quizzed the commander of hardheim.
Meryz Naklos was once a soldier and a former unsullied trainer in Astapor, he had a long resume of training even the legions of old ghis and the mereenese guards.
Yet here he was again, training not essosi , but north men and boys to become soldiers worthy of Domeric's army.
Naklos was a hard task master, he believed that discipline, obedience and hardships bled the best warriors/armies and seeing that he was once a slave army trainer before.
One could already imagine how harsh he could be yet his regular vices were restrained by Domeric's order.
"Approximately two more battalions of spear men and perhaps 700 more Archers and crossbowmen."
"In total perhaps 2500 more to the nine thousand that we already field, hmmm…."
"This is good. You've done well as usual Naklos, this is definitely a great improvement."
"I live to do the best I can my lord, I thank you." He bowed his head in honor.
Domeric merely nodded at his answer as he stood amongst his aides and other advisers that accompanied him , his red guard stood around him like a steel crescent wall. Ever watchful as their lord spoke to the overseer of hardheim.
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Barrowtown
House Dustin Lands
"Grain, furs,potatoes, salt, salted meats, and smoked fish outputs have increased six fold my lady and it continues to ever grow, yet your facilities here are too few if not too little to house and process much of these raw resources into finished goods ". Ilario Marqalen says as he paced beside the widowed woman.
"The eight granaries built two years ago by our own cadre of builders are now at its maximum capacity we've read."
"Your own mills are outdated and are in need of repair and maintenance and thus they can't keep up with the expanding agricultural output made each harvest, and even though you sell most of your surplus to us, where most are crushed into flour. Lord Bolton sees the market on the west coasts as a untaped vein awaiting to proper structure to see its full potential realized. The iron islands do trade as stubborn as they seem, bear island, the Westerlands, the reach and Western Dorne. All are markets that haven't been tapped into fully from this side of the continent and his lord wishes to increase his reach in them all ."
"And once more here we are again , my nephew's ambitions continue to grow. A precipice of profit and extension. Yet I cannot deny his successes , without his advice and support we wouldn't have been at such a stage in advancement nor improvement. My small folk now have enough food that they could now start to grow fat after all these years".
Marqalen and his entourage of eight advisers chuckled.
"I haven't seen my nephew in 20 days what does he propose, the town at the mouth of the grey river has become a defensive bastion and a moderate sized trading town which continues to expand with your help ,so now what does he have in mind?", She asks
"Well as usual Expansion, but where and when, will and shall be meticulously decided on. Helmstown on the grey river is growing as you say, its trade growing every moon and so is barrowtown."
"Lord Domeric proposes to invest over 300,000 dragons to create the much needed infrastructure to process raw goods to finished products. An increase in fishing and trading vessels along the west coast.He also proposes his road construction project to you my lady where his contractors would teach and hire local labour to create a better smoother path leading back to the kings road to the east for better logistics and trade just as in his lands and the manderly's. "
"Lord Domeric also proposes we establish sugar beet farms here as the demand for sugar has skyrocketed and we are looking to expand beet produce outside bolton lands. A profitable endeavor for us all. You grow the sugar beets, where we can buy them from you whenever harvest is ready"
She gave him a side eye.
"We've also found deposits of carbon and quartz in abundance to your north. We'd like to lease this land to make a quarry"
"My Nephew asks for alot." She says as if it was a question
"It is a lot to take in Lady Dustin and rest assured your coffers shall see itself overflowing once all these works are completed and are at full working and producing capacity",
"Hmm, I believe a more detailed explanation and paper work for these investments will be drawn up." She scrutinized the man.
"Most definitely my lady, the necessary paperwork will be drawn up for your review and seal".
Barbary Dustin nee ryswell, lady of Barrowtown and its surrounding lands looked out into the land.
Domeric had become a figure none of major lords in the north could overlook. He was now the wealthiest lord in the north overtaking even the Manderly's themselves not too long ago.
Two of her brothers roger, and rickard ryswell had taken up residence at the residence now working in service of Domeric. They had become martial / law dvisers of some sorts in his service.
Though as she could see domeric was not one to be lacking of advisers or learned men as witnessed by these men here.
Her nephew prioritized, learned, leading, building and improving one's land to earn profit and also see the people of said lands comfortable and prosperous.
He wasn't one to abide by mediocrity or stagnation. He was calm, capable, diplomatic and as she had witnessed was not afraid of being underhanded which many outside of herself and a chosen few knew about.
He was deceptive in his tendencies, and this reminded her of roose bolton.