Chapter 49: Collecting Taxes (Please keep reading)

After reading it, Gavin couldn't help but offer his sincere admiration: "As expected of a professional; your work is truly professional. However, there are a few points here that need improvement."

"Please, go ahead," Zack replied, adopting a posture of humble inquiry.

"First, the separation of mining and living quarters. A mine is a mine, and living quarters are living quarters; the two cannot be conflated. We must minimize casualties in the event of a cave-in. Especially since our tribe is in a period of rapid expansion, personnel numbers will fluctuate significantly in a short time. When mining, this must be fully taken into account."

"Second, the stability of the mine shafts must be further strengthened to ensure safety during mining operations as much as possible."

"Third, a main shaft must be designed. It needs to be high and wide enough to accommodate the free passage of horse carriages to facilitate ore transport."

"The above are my personal opinions. If there is anything unreasonable, feel free to speak up."

Gavin naturally would not act autocratically, especially regarding something as specialized as mining.

"The first two are very reasonable; they can be easily achieved with a slight shift in approach. The last point is a bit difficult," Zack answered. "The larger the mine shaft, the greater the overall structural strain. Without sufficient additional support, the possibility of a cave-in increases significantly."

"Is there a solution?"

"Yes. Using a large amount of raw timber for support is the simplest method, but I wouldn't recommend it. Doing so would drastically increase mining costs and would not be conducive to later expansions. The best method would be to have a caster proficient in Stone Shaping to reinforce and remodel the mine shafts." Zack showed a rather regretful expression. "I am still one level short; otherwise, I could do this myself."

Stone Shaping is a third-tier spell, requiring a sixth-level sorcerer, and Zack was only fifth level.

"It's just a single class level. Work hard, and believe me, it will happen soon," Gavin said, rubbing his chin, which was beginning to sprout stubble. "Then we will proceed at the current pace. It won't be too late to expand the main shaft once your class level increases. Safety first."

Mass slaughtering of life was a shortcut, but it was unnecessary, and Gavin was unwilling to use it lightly.

There was another method: Zack could allocate a large number of kobold miners under his command, letting them follow his lead to remodel the Black Well mine shafts and extract iron ore. Before long, everything would fall into place naturally.

"Yes, sir."

"If there is nothing else, then get to work. Extract as much iron ore as possible in the shortest amount of time. If all goes according to plan, my human merchant friends will arrive by the middle of next ten-day period. They will bring more supplies, and if there isn't enough iron ore, we won't be able to handle their cargo. If you need anything, just come to me; I will try my best to help." Gavin's implication was that he was handing the entire mining operation of the Black Well iron mine over to Zack.

"Understood!" Zack accepted the command joyfully. He hadn't expected this lord to be so unconventional, granting him such great power and trust so quickly. He knew he had to work twice as hard.

"Go. And tell Goth to come see me; I have an important task for him," Gavin said with a wave of his hand.

"Yes, sir." Zack departed to carry out the orders.

Calling it an "important task" was merely a pretext.

A village cannot have two masters, especially two tribes that had just merged; there could not be two voices of command.

Since the mining task had already been assigned to Zack, Goth could not be left in the mines.

Gavin momentarily lacked an idea for what task to assign Goth, so he decided to keep him by his side as a mouthpiece to remotely control the entire Black Well tribe.

For the time being, wherever Gavin went, Goth followed.

Goth didn't suspect a thing; he followed Gavin around happily, his entire kobold life feeling full of sunshine, sensing that his own influence had been further elevated.

After nearly ten days of being well-fed with meat and vegetables, the nutritional status of the Black Well kobolds had improved significantly; they were no longer the scrawny, emaciated creatures seen at first meeting.

In addition to daily work, Gavin began to implement appropriate physical and combat training for them.

This training was, of course, not uniform, but was divided according to professional planning.

The guard reserve led by Cangya naturally underwent the highest intensity and highest density of formal training, implementing a strict elimination system. If one could not keep up with basic training, they would soon be weeded out and reassigned to other specialties.

Other professions underwent moderate training, especially running, which was the most frequent. This included various items such as mountain running, interval training, long-distance, and weighted training, all in preparation for future migrations and long journeys.

Light training was interspersed within other training sessions to help alleviate fatigue.

If one were to speak of the greatest training intensity, Gavin was the foremost, followed by the half-ogre Hou.

Even if Gavin told people he was a sorcerer rather than a warrior, no one would believe him. His training intensity was something even Cangya felt inferior to, and he was constantly striving to learn and imitate it.

As for the half-ogre Hou, it wasn't that he wanted to, but that he was forced to under Gavin's coercion. Once he failed to complete the corresponding training tasks, his food supply would be halved—the punishment he could most not endure.

From time to time, Gavin would also step onto the field to spar with him in actual combat. The young priestess would kindly help heal him, making him relive the reason why he was here in the first place.

This gave the half-ogre Hou the feeling of living in the crack between heaven and hell.

It was just that he spent too little time in heaven (mealtime) and the rest of his time in hell.

While the half-ogre himself didn't feel much change, outsiders could clearly see his transformation.

His large belly was disappearing at a visible rate, and the outlines of his muscles were bulging. Previously, he had relied more on the brute strength provided by his race's large physique; his own training had been limited, leaving vast room for improvement.

During actual combat, he could hold out against Gavin for longer and longer periods. He no longer relied solely on brute force to fight; he learned how to dodge and how to exert force, further tapping into his advantages.

Pain is the best teacher.

In the face of this teacher, even a half-ogre who wasn't particularly bright became somewhat enlightened, forced to work hard to improve himself to reduce his own pain.

Seeing Gavin walking toward him with large strides, the half-ogre couldn't help but shudder, shrinking his shoulders as much as possible. If he weren't so massive, he would have wanted to crawl under the table. Compared to physical training, he disliked sparring with Gavin even more.

What he feared most arrived; Gavin's footsteps finally stopped in front of the half-ogre.

Knowing he couldn't dodge, Hou crouched down and bowed slightly. "My Lord, do you have any instructions?"

It wasn't that the half-ogre had learned etiquette; rather, because of the height difference, Gavin always aimed for his lower body during every spar, and his Achilles tendons were being severed an average of more than twice a day.

Now, seeing Gavin, he felt a throbbing pain in his feet and instinctively crouched down.

"Wasn't your previous tax collection period recently?" Gavin was clearly not here to torment the half-ogre this time.

"Tax collection?" Hou's face was full of confusion; the word clearly did not exist in his mind.

"The days when you go to other goblin and kobold tribes to collect tributes," Gavin used a more common explanation.

"It should be around these days." The half-ogre was somewhat hesitant. He always determined his schedule based on the food in his cave and the fullness of his stomach. Recently, his stomach had been constantly full, causing him to lose his sense of time. Every day felt much the same, and the first thing he did upon opening his eyes was training.