North County Collar, Solid Stone Pass.

After two months of development, the area has become the most important commercial and trade center in North County, and the flow of people has increased several times in a short period of time, filling the fortress built in the canyon.

Even in the villages outside the pass, where the barren land is cultivated, there are many people who are staying overnight.

The salt trade from the Narun Desert fed the fortress.

No way.

The fine white salt produced in the Naren Desert has already seized the salt market of the entire Lion Principality.

The mineral salt procured from distant dwarven tribes, even if the quality is not inferior to that of the boiling salt of the Narun Desert, or even slightly exceeded, but due to the cost problem, it has now completely lost its ability to compete.

Even the human nations along the Rythniston River began to circulate the fine white salt of the Naryn Desert.

The price is only two-thirds of that of dwarven salt.

But the quality is almost the same.

The fine white salt of the Narun Desert soon became the most popular commodity in the Northern County Territory.

Not to mention the large and small caravans of the entire Lion Principality, even the caravans of other kingdoms from the Resniston River, they all began to inquire about the news of the Narun Desert intentionally or unintentionally, and pushed the caravan station here.

In particular, the Jianshi Pass, which guards the center of the Sanwaya Mountains, is home to nearly 300 caravans.

Plus a large number of speculators who come in search of opportunities.

Even a spy who is pregnant with a ghost.

Countless laborers who saw business opportunities and gathered to find work.

and all kinds of vicious bandits who operate in the wilderness or on the borders of the Duchy of Lion.

Whether it is mercenaries, who act as guards for merchants or as security guards for lords along the way, even in villages that are now wealthy, occasionally hire these mercenaries in order to guard against attacks by bandits.

After the development of the salt trade in the Naren Desert, the Northern Commanders actually prospered with a strange appearance.

Completely dependent on the salt trade.

This is an iron item.

Salt is a complete luxury!

This modern cheap condiment, in the feudal era, was an important material that could support the tax revenue of a kingdom, especially in the inland areas where there was no sea, and it was comparable to a silver mine!

In some places, salt can even be used as currency, enough to see the value of this commodity.

Fatis also understood.

He stood at the top of the wall at the rocky pass.

Nearby, chainmail-clad Swadian infantry patrolled by.

There were also Vecchian archers and Swadian crossbowmen armed with warbows, stationed majestically among the towering watchtowers and wide towers, vigilantly staring at the crowded road outside the city walls.

The current solid stone pass is no longer desolate and barren at the beginning.

Only crowded.

A large number of houses are being renovated, and the price of houses in the entire pass has tripled.

Wealthy merchants bought land and built spacious and luxurious offices near the original pass market, so that the local merchants in the originally poor and sour Jianshi Pass could see what real decency is.

This also led to the upper-class atmosphere of the entire Jianshi Pass, and began to move towards luxury and grace.

Even the commoners were dressed in cloth from other kingdoms.

As for the traditional coarse linen.

Only coolies and poor people wore them, and the commoners wore fine linen clothes.

As for the knights and squires, as well as the nobles who were more enthusiastic about luxury, they even wore velvet garments, which was once worn by the lord of Grothenburg, the supreme viscount of the entire northern county, and the viscount of Wayne.

But in the lucrative profits of the salt trade, the big merchants exposed a little oil and water, and countless people were fed.

It indirectly promotes economic development.

There are also taxes.

Not to mention the various taxes at the Solid Stone Pass.

Even from the Solid Pass to Grothenburg and Masburg, taxes made the nobles very profitable.

There is also Lionheart City on the banks of the Resniston River, and because of the salt trade, the tax revenue has doubled every month, and as time increases, more and more merchants come to the Lion Duchy, and the amount of tax is also increasing.

According to some scholars' estimates, it is possible to increase taxes 20 times in two years!

But.

The nobles were not happy.

Even the caravans that have mastered most of the salt trade.

Even the taxes and tolls along the way make them all eat with their mouths full of oil.

However, looking at the real gold and silver mines in the Naren Desert, which were not yet under his control, they all had covetous and greedy looks on their faces, and they slowly gathered together to do something.

They all wanted a piece of the salt mine in the Naren Desert.

Instead of just eating a little oil and water like now.

They.

I want to be the owner of the salt mine, even if it's one of them!

As a result, under the co-optation and indulgence of some nobles, a group of mercenaries was organized and occupied some of the hills outside Lion Mountain, becoming a huge mercenary group.

There were nearly 20,000 people, and there were even mercenaries from other human nations outside the Resniston River.

Outside, there were other noble coalition troops of nearly 10,000 people.

Headed by Viscount Wayne.

Although there is no direct indulgence, he crosses the threshold of Musburg, which is to go to the Southern County Territory.

However, many nobles in the Northern County Territory have begun to test towards the Solid Stone Pass.

Even during this period of time, there were at least a dozen mercenaries disguised as robbers who intercepted and killed caravans, and the impact was very bad, and once many caravans avoided the trade route of the Northern County Territory and chose to go near the Death Penalty Mountain of the Southern County Territory.

This is still the news that has been poked out, secretly, I don't know how many more burning, killing and looting.

Mercenaries aren't good people.

If there is a lord hiring, that is a soldier.

No.

That's the bandits.

Even some female mercenaries had to act as barracks maidens.

These guys who can even sell their lives for money, sell their chastity for money, that's even simpler.

These are all digressions, the current Fatis is facing such a coalition army led by nobles and mercenaries, and it is beginning to approach towards the solid stone pass, and the breath of war is getting stronger and stronger.

If you are still immersed in the prosperous economic activities of the Jianshi Pass, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Fatis knew in his heart.

Rolf, who had been operating on the periphery, has returned.

Brought a very large number of desert bandits, and scattered as scout cavalry to defend against many bandits' light cavalry.

As the days passed, the war was getting closer and closer, and some merchants came with the news that the coalition forces of the Northern County Commandery seemed to be in action, and the target was here.

The war is about to start again, and it's on the territory of the Northern Commandery, the Principality of Lion.