Chapter 17: The City of Black Iron
The preparations began before dawn.
Not openly.
Not ceremonially.
And not with the kind of noise that usually accompanied military movent within the northern fortress, because the mission entrusted to Sir Cedric was not one that benefitted from attention, and every individual involved in its planning understood clearly that secrecy now held more value than speed.
Snow continued falling across the city in slow drifting layers, covering rooftops, walls, and roads beneath pale gray skies while workers within the fortress carried out their routines unaware that the foundation of sothing far larger than simple territorial expansion had already begun taking shape beneath the surface of recent events.
Inside the inner courtyard, several horses stood prepared near the eastern gate.
No banners.
No noble insignias.
No heavily armored escort.
Only practicality.
Sir Cedric adjusted the thick cloak covering his armor before checking the straps securing the supply packs along his mount, his expression remaining calm and disciplined as always despite the unusual nature of the task he had been assigned.
Most knights expected battlefield orders.
Patrol routes.
Defensive assignnts.
This—
Was different.
And that alone told him how important it truly was.
Malen approached first.
"You understand the mission?"
Cedric nodded imdiately.
"Yes, Commander."
"Repeat it."
Cedric answered without hesitation.
"Travel south-east to the trade city of Karhold."
A pause.
"Acquire labor discreetly through legal purchase channels."
"Prioritize skilled workers."
"Limit visibility."
"Avoid noble attention."
Malen nodded once.
"Good."
Another figure erged from the fortress entrance shortly afterward.
Lucas Marcus.
The administrator carried several sealed docunts along with a heavy leather pouch secured beneath his arm, his movents calm and organized despite the freezing wind moving through the courtyard.
He stopped before Cedric.
"These contain rchant authorization seals," Lucas said while handing over the docunts. "Use them only if necessary."
Cedric accepted them carefully.
Lucas continued.
"The funds are divided."
Another pouch followed.
"If theft occurs, you won’t lose everything at once."
Cedric gave a slight nod.
Practical.
Expected from Lucas.
The administrator’s eyes sharpened slightly afterward.
"Rember this carefully."
Cedric straightened fully.
"You are not purchasing slaves."
A brief pause.
"You are purchasing workers."
The knight understood imdiately.
Because words mattered.
Especially in cities driven by trade.
Workers implied infrastructure.
Construction.
Economic developnt.
Slaves implied desperation or military expansion.
Lucas continued calmly.
"Buy craftsn first."
"Miners."
"Blacksmith assistants."
"Masons."
"Woodworkers."
"Laborers only after skilled personnel are secured."
Cedric nodded again.
"Yes."
Then—
The final instruction ca.
Lucien himself stepped into the courtyard.
The surrounding guards imdiately straightened.
"My Lord."
Lucien’s gaze settled upon Cedric.
"You know why secrecy matters."
"Yes, My Lord."
"Good."
Lucien stepped closer slowly.
"Do not bargain recklessly."
Cedric blinked once, slightly surprised by the instruction.
Lucien continued.
"Cheap labor dies quickly."
Silence followed briefly.
"Buy healthy workers."
"Fed workers."
"Useful workers."
Another pause.
"We’re building sothing that needs stability."
Cedric lowered his head slightly.
"As you command."
Lucien studied him for another mont before speaking again.
"If trouble appears..."
Cedric answered imdiately.
"I withdraw."
"Correct."
The knight’s survival mattered more than labor acquisition.
Because reliable subordinates were far harder to replace.
Lucien finally nodded once.
"Go."
Cedric mounted imdiately.
The small escort assigned to him followed shortly afterward, only six riders in total, intentionally limited to avoid attention while still providing enough protection for travel through winter territory.
Then the eastern gate opened.
And they departed.
---
The journey toward Karhold took four days.
Four long days through frozen roads, abandoned watch posts, narrow mountain paths, and trade routes half-buried beneath snow, where caravans moved slowly between settlents while ard escorts watched constantly for miasma beasts lurking beyond visibility.
Karhold itself appeared near sunset on the fourth day.
And even from a distance—
The city looked different from the frontier fortress.
Massive black walls surrounded the settlent, their surfaces darkened permanently by soot and industrial smoke rising endlessly from the countless furnaces built throughout the outer districts, while towering chimneys released thick streams of dark gray smoke into the sky above, creating an almost permanent haze over the city.
Where the northern fortress represented military survival—
Karhold represented industry.
Trade.
Production.
The City of Black Iron.
Cedric slowed his horse slightly as they approached the outer gates.
The roads here were crowded despite the winter.
rchants.
Workers.
Guards.
Ore wagons.
Smith caravans.
Slave transports.
Everything moved constantly.
Because unlike frontier territories struggling rely to endure winter—
Karhold profited from it.
The city’s iron production supplied multiple northern territories, including military contracts extending even toward royal lands further south.
Which made it the perfect place to disappear.
And the worst place to make mistakes.
Cedric pulled his cloak slightly tighter before entering through the main gate alongside his escort, the guards barely sparing them more than a quick inspection after noticing the rchant authorization seals attached visibly near the saddle packs.
Money opened gates faster than rank.
Another lesson this world understood clearly.
Inside the city—
Noise dominated everything.
Hamring tal.
Steam vents.
Shouting rchants.
Grinding machinery powered through mana-assisted industrial systems far more advanced than anything existing within Lucien’s territory.
Cedric observed carefully while guiding his horse through the crowded streets.
Karhold was ugly.
Dirty.
Cold.
But efficient.
And efficiency ant opportunity.
The slave district lay near the lower industrial quarter.
Not hidden.
Not secret.
Simply normalized.
Rows of holding compounds lined the streets near the labor markets where traders negotiated contracts openly beneath large iron-frad structures designed to protect buyers and rchandise from heavy snowfall.
Cedric dismounted near one of the larger exchange halls.
A broad man wearing layered fur clothing approached almost imdiately.
"Looking for labor?" the man asked casually.
Cedric answered calmly.
"Construction workers."
The trader’s eyes sharpened slightly.
"Mining?"
"No."
"Fortifications?"
Cedric paused deliberately.
"Infrastructure."
The trader imdiately relaxed.
Because infrastructure ant long-term purchase potential.
Better profits.
"Skilled or unskilled?"
"Both."
The man smiled slightly.
"You ca to the right district."
Cedric followed him inside.
The interior slled of tal, sweat, smoke, and damp wood while groups of workers sat or stood behind reinforced partitions separated by category and trade skill, each wearing identification tags around their necks displaying origin, health condition, and labor specialization.
Cedric’s expression remained unreadable.
But internally—
He understood why Lucien had emphasized healthy workers.
Many here looked exhausted beyond recovery.
Useful only temporarily.
Not sustainable.
The trader gestured toward one section first.
"Miners."
Strong fras.
Rough hands.
Harsh expressions.
Another section.
"Masons and quarry workers."
Then another.
"Woodworkers."
Cedric observed carefully.
Not emotionally.
Practically.
Because this was not charity.
It was acquisition.
Still—
He selected carefully.
Healthy individuals.
Working-age adults.
Several older craftsn.
Even a few younger apprentices capable of long-term training.
Hours passed.
Then more.
By the ti negotiations ended, Cedric had secured over one hundred workers divided across different trades, with contracts processed legally beneath frontier construction authority seals provided earlier by Lucas Marcus.
Not enough for a city.
But enough—
For a beginning.
As the final docunts were signed, the trader smiled broadly.
"Your lord must be planning sothing large."
Cedric answered calmly.
"The frontier always needs stronger walls."
The trader laughed.
"Fair enough."
But Cedric noticed the curiosity lingering behind the man’s eyes.
And understood imdiately—
Karhold would rember this transaction.
Which ant they needed to move quickly now.
Very quickly.
Because sowhere far away beyond frozen mountains and hidden valleys, Lucien’s secret headquarters still existed only as an idea waiting beneath snow-covered land.
But soon—
Workers would arrive.
Then construction.
Then furnaces.
Then industry.
And once that process truly began—
The world itself would slowly begin changing around it.
End of Chapter 17
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