NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 40: Continuous Surprises
Chapter 40: Continuous Surprises
"Lord Thor, is what you said true?"
Upon hearing Thor's words, Neil Morton, who had been troubled, looked up in surprise and spoke with unexpected delight.
"By the Goddess of Life, it is indeed true."
Thor nodded with a smile.
"May the Goddess of Life bless you!"
Neil Morton said with excitement.
"May the Goddess of Life bless you!"
Thor responded with the same blessing.
Then, Neil Morton was seen off.
After Neil Morton left the room, Thor could no longer contain his smile.
Even he hadn't expected the situation to unfold this way.
It turned out to be surprisingly easy to keep Neil Morton.
Although he agreed to let Ryan go with him if Ryan wished to leave, given the kindness Thor had shown Ryan and his understanding of Ryan, Ryan was unlikely to leave.
As long as Ryan stayed, Neil Morton, who was teaching Ryan, would also stay.
In this way, it was equivalent to keeping Neil Morton indirectly.
Although it was not as effective as keeping him directly, it was sufficient for Thor.
After all, as long as Neil Morton stayed, many other things could be easily arranged.
This realization kept a smile on Thor's face throughout the day.
As his smile spread, it seemed the surprises were not going to stop.
In the evening, another pleasant surprise arrived.
"Lord!"
"The supplies from the iron mine have arrived. Would you like to inspect them?"
A knight entered with a respectful tone.
"They've arrived?"
"Let's go and take a look!"
Thor's smile grew even broader, and he quickly stood up.
Following the knight's lead, Thor arrived at the storage area.
Numerous wooden crates were being unloaded by a group of apprentice knights.
As Thor arrived, a knight quickly jogged over.
"My lord!"
The knight performed a knight's salute and respectfully spoke.
"How many are there?"
Thor, looking at the heavy wooden crates, asked the knight curiously.
After nearly two months, he was curious about the total output of the large iron mine, as it represented his future economic foundation.
"My lord, this batch includes one hundred sets of black iron armor, one set of silver armor, and two hundred various farming tools. Knight Commander Steve mentioned that starting next month, the output could increase to two hundred sets of black iron armor and more silver armor."
The knight reported respectfully, presenting the figures.
Upon hearing these numbers, Thor's eyes lit up.
He hadn't expected such a significant harvest in the first batch.
One hundred sets of black iron armor, each worth twenty to thirty silver coins, amounted to two to three thousand silver coins. Not to mention the silver armor, worth three hundred gold coins, and the various farming tools.
If the output could increase further, his monthly income could reach three to four hundred gold coins, or even more.
Even without relying on other sources, the large iron mine alone could bring him an annual income of over three thousand gold coins.
Such a figure was enough to tempt even a count.
While the income of a count was indeed high—well-managed ones could earn tens of thousands of gold coins annually, and even poorly managed ones could earn around ten thousand—that was their total income. Now, a single iron mine could bring in a stable three to four thousand gold coins annually, which was quite substantial.
Of course, without the help of the dwarfs, reaching such figures would have been difficult.
After all, raw iron ore, even with mithril iron, did not command high prices.
It was thanks to the dwarfs that all this was possible. Counts in inland provinces did not have easy access to dwarfs.
Only by being in the northern province and through some luck did Thor acquire these dwarfs.
This led to all these advantages.
Others might not have such luck.
With a smile, Thor ordered the storage of the supplies before leaving the area.
However, it seemed these days were truly good ones, as good news kept coming.
From Neil Morton's arrival in the morning to the arrival of supplies from the iron mine later, another delightful event occurred the next day.
"Thor Dresrosa, my friend, it has been two months. I apologize for not visiting sooner. You know, I have been extremely busy preparing numerous supplies and fulfilling our agreement. Fortunately, the Goddess of Life blessed us, and everything went smoothly. So, I have decided to visit you at the beginning of next month. Your friend, Rachos Assad."
This was a letter sent from Loren City.
The sender was Rachos Assad.
Thor had not expected Rachos to come so soon.
Thor was undoubtedly looking forward to this visit.
After all, this was the most crucial step in building his territory.
Especially after acquiring the large iron mine, a merchant like Rachos Assad was more important than many other things.
Although he could sell his supplies to the Habsburg Chamber of Commerce in Loren City, doing so would significantly reduce their value. Even dwarf-made black iron armor would sell for just ten silver coins, while selling to other noble territories could fetch over thirty silver coins. This was just for black iron armor; the difference for silver armor would be even greater.
Selling to the Habsburg Chamber of Commerce wouldn't yield much, but the demand from other lords for silver armor could skyrocket the price.
All this equated to gold coins.
More importantly, the large iron mine was expected to continuously produce black iron and silver armor.
Thor himself couldn't use that much, so he needed to sell them to acquire more gold coins to purchase supplies and develop his territory.
Rachos Assad was undoubtedly the best choice.
First, being a member of the Assad family, even if not highly regarded, Rachos had access to considerable trading resources.
Second, because he wasn't highly regarded, his strength wouldn't be too overwhelming, especially initially, so there was no fear of any ulterior motives.
Third, because he wasn't highly regarded, what Thor offered would be very important to him. Things others might not want, Rachos Assad might be willing to take.
Especially with controlled substances like flammable oil, Rachos was bold enough to bring them over, making Thor quite hopeful.
Thor wasn't just making empty promises; he had the capability to realize these plans.