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Chapter 584: Bay Territory's "Expansion"
Cain Bloodhoof blinked in confusion at Alista's sudden eloquence.
He had intended to mediate, to keep their interaction from becoming too tense.
But now the situation had completely changed. Alista's unexpected shift made him uneasy.
Did something happen?
Was Alista being controlled?
Cain had encountered such enemies before—they were dangerous and repulsive, nearly impossible to guard against.
But upon closely examining Alista's eyes, he saw no confusion—only joy and excitement.
Cain finally let out a long breath.
He had overthought it.
Noticing their interaction, Beelzebub waved over some logistics staff and said cheerfully:
"You'll accompany our two minotaur friends to the warehouse."
"See what they might need besides food as payment."
Hearing this, Alista and Cain Bloodhoof immediately stood.
Besides food—
What the Bloodhoof Tribe lacked most were metal weapons and sturdy armor.
Minotaur Warriors weren't weak!
With an average challenge level of 10, they were outstanding among intelligent races.
But their lack of good weapons and gear left them at a disadvantage against dangerous foes and prey.
Bay Territory's army had achieved victory over far stronger enemies precisely because of their superior weapons and equipment—even soldiers with lower class levels prevailed.
As Cain and Alista headed for the warehouse,
The training Bay Territory soldiers caught their attention.
Soldiers formed tidy ranks and launched assaults against the towering city walls in layered waves.
Dense volleys of arrows rained down.
Explosions of fire and dust erupted among the soldiers.
Battle cries, screams, and the clash of weapons filled the air.
They could clearly see that Bay Territory's training mirrored real battlefield conditions.
Several soldiers were even injured and fell during the exercises.
Fortunately, no one died during the training.
Otherwise, Cain and Alista would have thought Bay Territory's drill instructors were insane.
Even so, the fierce combat images of the Bay Territory soldiers lingered in their minds.
Ordinary soldiers weren't as strong as minotaurs physically—
But their tactical coordination gave the two minotaur Warriors a sense of inferiority.
Lost in thought, the two arrived at the warehouse district.
Violent tremors from the ground quickly drew their attention.
Before they could react defensively, a staff member spoke:
"Logging information. Opening the gate. Initiating guided tour mode."
The Dragon Cavalier Unit 01 golem stood, eyes glowing red, scanning the tense Cain and Alista. In a low mechanical voice, it responded:
"Information recorded. Guided tour mode initiated."
As the words fell, two Dragon Cavalier Unit 01 golems rose.
They walked over and stood by Cain and Alista.
Terrifying!
No—
Terrifying for a bull!
Seeing no further movement from the golems, Cain exhaled involuntarily.
He had fought large enemies before—
But never one that gave such an immediate sense of lethal danger as the Dragon Cavalier Unit 01.
It felt like they could kill him instantly!
Alista furrowed his thick brow, memories flashing through his mind.
He confirmed they were unlike anything he had encountered before, and finally relaxed.
A staff member waved them over and walked toward the open warehouse doors, smiling as he introduced:
"These big guys protect us—and help with hauling."
"Come on in. Besides food, Bay Territory has many other great things."
Stacked sacks of grain—
The scent of rice filled the air.
Remembering lunch, Cain Bloodhoof swallowed again.
Alista, beside him, focused on crates full of dried cod.
He noticed the slowly turning ceiling fans, bringing cool breezes.
Bay Territory's strength far exceeded his expectations.
It was like the terrifying, mysterious ruins deep within Hero's Continent.
Something no bull could fully comprehend.
Cain had just pulled his attention from the grain when something else caught his eye.
The outer container doors were open.
Revealing clothes just like those hanging at the entrance.
Various patterns—
Fabric so finely woven it showed no seams.
Garments of all shapes and sizes.
Cain Bloodhoof's eyes began to blur with all the options.
Seeing the labels beside the clothes, Cain scratched his head and asked the staff awkwardly:
"What does this say?"
"These indicate the materials, sizes, production codes, and prices."
The staff suddenly slapped his forehead and apologized:
"Lord Beelzebub forgot to mention something."
"According to Bay Territory law, base pay for all jobs must reach 30 copper coins per day."
"So aside from the promised food, you'll each also receive 30 copper coins daily."
30 copper coins?
Cain and Alista exchanged a look.
They had no real concept of that amount and worried it might cancel the promised food.
The staff led them to a large dark-green outfit and explained quickly:
"30 copper coins can buy this garment."
"It suits your size well."
"In fact, these large-sized clothes were made for ogre soldiers."
Ogres?
Cain didn't know what an ogre was, but he understood the point.
Their eyes lit up as they examined the finely crafted clothes.
Alista, who wouldn't flinch under blade or axe, now stared nervously at the outfit.
Encouraged by the staff, he reached out to touch it.
These clothes, though not soft or smooth, were sturdy and durable—
Compared to the beast hides and linen they usually wore, they felt quite comfortable.
Alista asked hopefully:
"We can buy something like this after just one day's work—besides food?"
The staff, without mocking their excitement, pointed to the price and confirmed:
"Yes. This one is marked at 20 copper coins."
"With the remaining 10 coins, you could get a hat or shoes."
The staff went on to introduce other daily goods.
Not only letting them see and touch—but gifting each of them a set.
He added sincerely:
"These are gifts from Lord Beelzebub himself. We hope you'll like them."
The two overwhelmed minotaur Warriors nodded repeatedly.
Their fondness for Beelzebub deepened.
They wished they could run back immediately to thank him—and invite him to a Bloodhoof Tribe hunting feast.
Like the real-world ritual of swearing brotherhood with chicken blood and burning yellow talismans.
After the daily necessities tour, the two Warriors were itching to return and rally the tribe to help Bay Territory.
But the "temptations" weren't over.
Grinning, the staff led them to another area.
Gleaming weapons of all kinds—
Dazzling suits of metal armor—
That alluring metallic luster, the beautiful patterns of cold weapons—
Left the two minotaurs utterly captivated.
Over ten minutes later—
Both minotaurs now held small daggers and wore clean new clothes.
Guided by the staff, they sprinted out of Warrior City.
Outside, waiting minotaur Warriors—
Watching them run in panic—felt a jolt of alarm.
Was it war?
Not until the pair reached them—
And no enemies or attacks followed—
Did the Warriors relax and rush over:
"What happened? Did Bay Territory treat you badly?"
"What do they want? Is it really labor—or slavery?"
"Where are your weapons? Did they confiscate them?"
"Where'd those clothes come from? They look really nice..."
"Hurry and tell us—will they really give us food?"
"..."
Surrounded by rapid-fire questions—
Cain and Alista finally caught their breath.
Beaming with excitement, they recounted their experience in Warrior City.
As they spoke, they handed out bread from their bags.
After a few bites, every Warrior was riled up.
Their hungry gazes said it all—they wanted more.
Other Warriors nearby looked toward Warrior City.
Some touched the new clothes, eyed the sharp daggers—and smiled in anticipation.
Food and weapons?
Bay Territory—good people!
Back in the tribe,
Word quickly spread from the Warriors—cheers erupted.
If nothing went wrong, they'd no longer go hungry.
After hearing every detail from Cain and Alista, the elder chieftain sighed deeply, hope and gravity in his eyes.
He knew Bay Territory had only revealed the tip of the iceberg.
Yet even these daily goods and weapons were treasures for the entire Bloodhoof Tribe.
Bay Territory could have captured or enslaved them—
But instead chose a more complex path—asking them to "help" with labor.
This signal made the elder chieftain let out a long sigh.
At the very least, the other side wasn't planning to wipe them out.
As for cooperation, the excitement and anticipation on every minotaur's face made it very clear to the elder chieftain.
This couldn't be stopped!
But he didn't intend to stop it either.
Following Bay Territory's "suggestion" to help out and not anger them—
This feeling of one's life and death being held in someone else's hands was uncomfortable.
But the Bloodhoof Tribe had already fallen on hard times.
No food, not even enough strength to speak loudly!
And so, the elder chieftain agreed and sent the first group of 3,000 minotaur Warriors to work for Bay Territory.
He personally led a group of patrol scouts to observe their working conditions from afar.
There were no whips, no chains, not even guards to oversee them.
Only a few staff in plain clothes holding blueprints.
Of course, beside these staff members were always a few towering steel golems.
What shocked all the minotaur scouts—
Most of the heavy and tiring work was done by golems operated by the staff.
The imagined scene of hardship never materialized.
Until the sun set—
After a long day's work, the minotaur Warriors enjoyed a hearty dinner.
They returned to the Bloodhoof Tribe joyfully, carrying their day's pay.
Every Warrior wore new work clothes, making the others envious.
Many shared stories about what they'd seen at Bay Territory.
"There's a powerful dragon in Warrior City."
"She flies into the mountains daily and always returns with one or two mutated wyverns."
"Mutated wyverns—those are the red flying demons we talked about!"
"That silver dragon grabs them in a single swipe. They don't even dare fight back."
"That's not even the craziest part! There's a field in a factory with hundreds of wyvern heads and stacks of leather hides."
"Hundreds of wyvern heads? Were there that many in the group that attacked us?"
"We're not sure..."
"A patrol said there are two wyvern nests nearby."
"One's already been destroyed by the dragon named 'Yaya.'"
"She's looking for the other nest now..."
"Today's food was different from yesterday's—but just as tasty."
"We had fresh meat. They said it was from frozen reserves stored in spatial containers."
"Tomorrow they're going fishing—with those giant steel ships."
"They say Bay Territory has a place called Fishing Island—they catch hundreds of thousands of pounds of fish a day."
"They have so much dried fish they feed some to their Leviathan."
"The Leviathan eats one or two tons of food in a single meal..."
"Those golems working the site—they say they can't fight."
"With bodies that big and strong? Sounds like a lie."
"I say Bay Territory really just lacks manpower—they're hiring us to fill in."
"Right. The rest they can handle themselves."
"Bay Territory sells food, clothes, iron pots, ropes, flint, axes—everything."
"They're even willing to sell weapons and armor, but it costs 'money.'"
"A weapon costs around 3 gold coins—or 30,000 copper."
"Each soldier earns 30 copper a day. A thousand working together could afford one."
"And these weapons are better than the daggers we brought back yesterday..."
"I say buy axes first—they use more iron."
"..."
Listening to their chatter, the elder chieftain finally relaxed.
Seeing so many hopeful eyes, the wrinkles on his face softened as he smiled and said:
"Send 10,000 tomorrow. Ask Bay Territory if they need more workers."
Cain Bloodhoof quickly nodded, though he looked slightly hesitant.
After a moment's thought, he said nothing.
The elder chieftain noticed but didn't ask.
He knew Cain was a smart child who could judge what was right.
Early the next morning—
Over 10,000 minotaurs marched to Warrior City.
A cheerful Beelzebub grinned at Elio and said:
"Your method's best. Now they come on their own."
Elio thought back on her months in the Catachan demi-plane, a smile on her lips.
Watching the minotaurs lining up to change clothes, she said with anticipation:
"Let's start clearing land and planting crops soon!"
"Self-sufficiency is key to sustainable growth."
"These minotaurs eat a lot—if we're not careful, they'll eat us out of house and home."
Liana couldn't help but smile at Elio's joke.
While checking her documents and data, she added:
"We can announce it to the minotaurs in three days."
Shuyu, quietly observing, remembered how stubborn and uncooperative the minotaurs used to be—and now watched them work diligently under unarmed Bay Territory staff.
Was this the 'charm' of Bay Territory?
Simple and effective!
Noticing her expression, Liana offered a reminder:
"Don't overthink it. When the new instructors arrive, you'll have the chance to study too."
"Bay Territory has grown fast because we're not greedy."
"Everyone here earns what they deserve for their labor."
"This platform helps them gain wealth."
"At first, Bay Territory just barely broke even."
"But once they improve their skills and move into higher-value roles, everyone profits."