Magic, steel, heavy industry

Chapter 24 Recruitment Plan

The next morning, Karl arrived at the square on time.

He's gotten used to this kind of life over the past few days. His mother and sister help with cooking, while he goes outside to collect goblin cores.

Although they receive no salary, the family receives food six times a day.

If you eat bread sparingly, you can save at least two pieces a day.

Since experiencing the hunger of the past few months, Karl is quite content with this kind of life.

Of course, the two bowls of meat soup every day are his biggest motivation to get up early in the morning.

Although the ingredients were simple, the occasional bits of meat that appeared in the broth still surprised him. And, whether it was just his imagination or not, after drinking the broth for several days in a row, he felt that he had grown taller.

However, the square today is somewhat different from yesterday's.

On the southeast side of the square, a huge wooden board had been erected at some point, with several sheets of paper neatly pasted on it.

By this time, many people had gathered in front of the wooden board, and Karl soon spotted his best friends, Blackie and Skinny.

He immediately walked over and asked curiously, "What's this?"

Blackie shook his head blankly. "I don't know either. There are words on the paper, but none of us can read."

Indeed, the literacy rate among serfs was extremely low, especially among the serfs of the Anvil Territory, who had no opportunity to learn to read.

Seeing everyone scratching their heads, Saka, who was in charge of maintaining order, walked over.

This wooden plank was erected at Vilan's behest.

"Quiet down. This is called a bulletin board. All of Lord Vilan's announcements will be posted here from now on. If anyone damages the bulletin board, I'll kick their ass."

Saka's tone was unfriendly, and the onlookers immediately took a few steps back.

At this moment, a free citizen, whose attire was noticeably neater, excitedly asked, "Lord Saka, is what's written here true?"

He could read, but it was precisely because he could read that he seemed even more surprised, because the contents of the notice board were simply unbelievable to him.

Saka nodded without hesitation. "Lord Vilan wrote all of this himself. Do you think he would lie to you?"

"That's not what I meant... it's just... is it really true that miners can get 4 silver coins as a wage?"

"What?!"

Everyone stared wide-eyed, unable to believe what they had just heard.

Saka shrugged. "Of course, that's what it says. A qualified miner earns 4 silver coins a month. If they perform well, they can be promoted, and each promotion will increase their salary."

As soon as Saka finished speaking, the onlookers erupted in gasps of surprise.

They used to be paid when they were sent to mine, but they could only get a maximum of 10 copper coins a month, which wasn't even enough to cover their basic food needs.

Lord Vilan is now recruiting miners who can actually receive 4 silver coins!

If you work for 3 months, you can get 1 gold coin!

And don't forget, Lord Vilan said yesterday that he would provide all the miners with free breakfast and lunch.

Wouldn't that mean I could save all my salary?

The serfs were immediately enveloped in a sense of happiness. Karl and the skinny, dark-skinned man exchanged a glance and spoke almost simultaneously, "I want to be a miner!"

However, at this moment, the free man who asked the question pointed to the next few sheets of paper.

"So the rest is true too? You can get two silver coins just by becoming an apprentice in the workshop!"

"A workshop? An apprenticeship?"

The others looked puzzled; they had never heard of any workshops in Anvil Territory.

Saka looked at the guy who asked the question with some surprise.

"This guy is working so hard as a shill, he's got talent..."

That's right, that free man was actually a shill hired by Saka from the start.

After all, these serfs were illiterate, and Saka was worried about recruitment difficulties, so he came up with this idea.

It now appears that the dog-raising effect has exceeded his expectations.

"That's right. Lord Vilan has established a Vilan Workshop, which has merged most of the workshops in Anvil Territory. Now, a large number of apprentices are needed. Anyone who thinks they have talent or is willing to work hard can apply. Although the apprentice's salary is not as good as mining, it is much easier than working in the mine. In addition, if an apprentice becomes a full-fledged craftsman, the salary can increase several times."

"Good heavens! Can serfs enroll in artisan apprenticeships?"

A serf cautiously raised his hand and asked.

After all, craftsmanship was a profession for free citizens, and serfs were not allowed to learn it. Many people showed expressions of regret; they were more interested in becoming apprentices than in the arduous work of mining, but the lord would not allow it…

"Of course! Lord Vilan said that anyone who passes the selection, whether a free man or a serf, can become an apprentice craftsman," Saka nodded and said.

"Yay! Long live Lord Vilan!"

"I want to sign up! I want to be an apprentice!"

"But if I become an apprentice, will I still be able to farm in the future?"

Many people looked worried. As serfs, they were meant to grow grain for their lord, and if they couldn't pay the grain tax, the lord had the right to hang them.

Seeing the worried expressions on their faces, Saka immediately said loudly, "Lord Vilan said that all those who become formal employees must pay employee tax, which will be deducted directly from your wages. Those who pay employee tax can adjust the agricultural tax rate according to their family circumstances, so everyone doesn't need to worry about not being able to pay the tax."

What is employee tax?

The group stared at each other, completely unable to understand what Saka was saying, but Vilan's actions over the past few days had made them completely trust the young lord.

"Sir Knight, what does it say on that last piece of paper?" a serf asked loudly.

That's right, there are three recruitment notices in total. The first one is for recruiting miners, the second one is for recruiting workshop apprentices, so what is the third one for?

Saka looked at the person who asked the question and suddenly revealed a somewhat proud smile.

"The last one is a recruitment notice for the guard team."

"Lord Vilan said that Iron Anvil Territory must not be harassed by bandits again. In order to protect ourselves, he decided to establish a guard. The first guard will only recruit 30 people, who must be young men between the ages of 16 and 30."

"By the way, becoming a formal guard soldier means receiving one gold coin per month, the same as the artisans in the workshop."

After Saka finished speaking, he observed the reactions of the crowd.

Sure enough, at first, everyone was completely bewildered.

What is the Guards?

Recruiting soldiers? Isn't that something you do during wartime?

Can someone who isn't a knight join the army?

It's no wonder they were bewildered; this is the tradition of this world. When war breaks out, lords recruit knights and then use serfs as servants to handle logistics.

Those who truly charged into battle were always the valiant knights and nobles, or mercenaries who were paid to do the work.

No one had ever heard of serfs being allowed to charge into battle.

How could they possibly defeat those powerful knights on horseback, clad in armor?