The Lord Of Blood Hill

During the spring plowing season, Henwell wears a simple shirt and swings a hoe vigorously, working the fields beside the Blood Hill estate.

Nearby, Melissa stands in plain clothes, waiting patiently for Henwell to finish the spring plowing ritual.

Henwell, after all, is an Iron Knight; when he works the land, he’s like a bulldozer. The few acres are quickly tilled and ready.

Covered in dirt, Henwell accepts the tea Melissa hands him and drains it in one gulp.

Looking over the neatly tended fields, he says to Melissa, “These are the latest improved seeds developed by the Agricultural Institute. We expect yields to increase by about ten percent. Don’t underestimate that ten percent, it can feed a lot of people!”

Melissa smiles. “Great! When harvest time comes, all the grain should be stored in the estate’s warehouse. I want to taste the crops personally grown by the lord of Blood Hill to see if they’re any better.”

It’s been over half a year since Henwell’s grand wedding.

The cooperative agreements made during the wedding have gradually been put into effect.

The population recovery project has completed preliminary preparations in various regions.

After the New Year, more than 20,000 mid- to lower-level agricultural technicians and over 50,000 supervising engineers have entered noble territories.

Spring plowing has begun in demonstration areas one after another.

This not only spreads Peace Haven’s agricultural expertise but also signals the rapid expansion of its influence.

Coupled with a new wave of major infrastructure projects within Peace Haven, production across the region is running at full speed.

The huge demand for raw materials like steel and construction supplies has made local material suppliers very profitable.

The arrival of massive trading caravans further boosts Peace Haven’s internal commerce.

Besides the service industry, the carriage factories are the busiest of all.

Henwell has already placed orders for over ten thousand various Grand Carriage models for the demonstration zones.

In the coming years, the Grand Carriage series will have a steady stream of orders.

The large-scale, systematic production will drive rapid technological iteration for these carriages.

At the same time, Peace Haven’s base of skilled mechanical workers will grow significantly.

Though carriages seem simple, parts like wheels, bearings, axles, shock absorbers, springs, and steering mechanisms all require technical expertise.

Many places have begun copying Peace Haven’s Grand Carriage designs.

But one thing remains hard to match: production scale.

While clever and skilled artisans can produce higher-quality carriages by disassembling and reverse-engineering, the long production cycles and high costs discourage nobles from competing.

Peace Haven’s increasingly standardized production improves part strength, refines machining precision, reduces tolerances, and advances craftsmanship, establishing total dominance from top to bottom.

This also drives upgrades in smelting and forging factories’ processes.

Although Henwell implements a government-controlled planned economy, there’s still fierce competition inside.

Dozens of forging factories compete to source the best smelted metal materials from ten different smelting plants.

Various factories, including the carriage factories, pick the best craftsmanship from those forging plants.

Customers buying the final products have higher standards, so factories must constantly refine their processes and improve their technical skills.

Henwell offers Peace Haven’s industrial workers very good treatment, compared to other regions, this place is practically a paradise.

The profitability of every factory directly affects each worker’s income, with year-end bonuses tied to sales performance.

This model isn’t perfect, of course, but for a small, high-quality, rapidly growing place like Peace Haven, it’s the best approach right now.

You can’t become a giant in one bite; even a star destroyer starts with screws.

After finalizing this year’s production plan, Henwell heads to the Technical Research Institute to check on the progress of their cutting-edge “black tech.”

The Institute has two most heavily guarded sections: the Mechanical Department and the Potion Department.

Henwell has invested heavily in magical identification devices for these areas. Every staff member entering or leaving must carry a card with a unique magical signature.

The guards stationed here are Henwell’s most trusted men, carefully selected from the Iron Guard camp.

Henwell first visits the Potion Department, headed by Phoebe Crow.

Phoebe is a doctor in his forties from the Lumir Principality, once a student of a renowned physician in Holy Lake City.

However, his methods are somewhat extreme, causing many to shun him.

He was later held accountable for secretly dissecting corpses and attempting organ transplant surgeries.

The surgeries failed, and the patients died on the operating table.

If not for his teacher’s protection, he might not have survived the scandal.

Eventually, he was demoted to slavery, but by a twist of fate, he arrived in Peace Haven.

By then, Henwell had been lord for just over a year and was already building a medical system.

Phoebe was surprised to find Peace Haven had a remarkably bold surgical framework and began honing his skills there.

Under Henwell’s guidance, they established a sterile operating room, and Phoebe personally assisted Henwell in completing the first visceral surgery.

How do you create a surgical room under this tech system?

Simple, use magic!

Combinations of Runestones create a sterile, fully illuminated environment.

With Henwell’s suggestions, Phoebe almost single-handedly built Peace Haven’s current medical system.

By the time Henwell accompanied Arius for the marriage alliance, Phoebe was already head of Peace Haven’s first hospital.

He later oversaw the establishment of the General Medical Academy and the Battlefield Medical Academy.

During the war, Henwell transferred him to lead the Potion Department at the Technical Research Institute.

Over the years, thousands, if not tens of thousands, have died due to Phoebe’s radical experiments.

But because of his medical innovations, tens of thousands have survived.

The medical potion field is a trade that saves lives while also taking them.

To Henwell, this department is a treasure far more valuable than any Glory Knight.

Phoebe is very satisfied with Henwell and deeply grateful for the opportunity to explore the mysteries of the human body.

His only small complaint is that Henwell neither studies medicine himself nor allows knights to join advanced medical training.

Phoebe believes knights, with their steady and swift hands, would make excellent lead surgeons.

Henwell understands this but cannot agree for now.

Perhaps in the future, he will add surgical training to the knights’ curriculum.