[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry":3,"chapter-building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-chapter-70":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Building a Viking Empire with Modern Industry",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1364949,1804,"Chapter 70: For the silver","building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-chapter-70",70,"\u003Cp>A few days had passed since Ragnar had finalized the \"Scarborough Strategy\" against the Franks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Boardroom formerly known as the Great Hall of York was buzzing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar had summoned every Jarl, Chieftain, and minor Lord from Northumbria and the newly acquired East Anglian territories. They had arrived expecting a feast. They expected roasted boar, flowing ale, and perhaps a speech about how much loot they would plunder from the Franks. They did not expect a Powerpoint presentation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, the 9th-century equivalent: a large slate board covered in chalk diagrams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar sat on the High Seat. He was wearing his executive armor polished steel over a tailored wool tunic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at the assembly. These were proud men. Men who defined their worth by the number of warriors in their personal \"Hird.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar stood up. He simply tapped the slate board with a pointer stick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Gentlemen,\" Ragnar began, his voice projecting clearly. \"Thank you for attending this mandatory quarterly review.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Jarls muttered. They hated it when he used words like \"mandatory.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We face a hostile takeover attempt by the Frankish Empire,\" Ragnar continued. \"Their market cap I mean, their army size is substantial. To counter this, we need to optimize our workflow.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar paused for effect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As of today, I am abolishing the right of any Jarl to raise a private warband.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"WHAT?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jarl Sigurd, a scarred veteran from the borderlands, leaped to his feet. He kicked his chair over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You want to strip us?\" Sigurd roared, his hand going to the axe at his belt. \"My father raised his Hird! I raised my Hird! These men swore oaths to me, not to a machine!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah!\" another chieftain shouted. \"We are free men! Not thralls!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room erupted into chaos. Dozens of Vikings were shouting, spitting, and threatening to burn the palace down. It was a PR nightmare. But Ragnar didn’t flinch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stood perfectly still. Behind him, General Bjorn stepped out from the shadows. Bjorn wasn’t alone. He was flanked by twenty members of the \"Heavy Assets\" Division.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were clad in the new, standardized munitions-grade plate armor. They held heavy halberds. They looked like statues made of iron. They just stared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shouting died down. The Jarls looked at the armored giants. Then they looked at their own chainmail and axes. The math was simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar tapped the board again. \"If you are quite finished with the feedback session,\" Ragnar said coolly, \"I will explain the benefits package.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked down the steps of the dais, approaching the furious Jarl Sigurd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sigurd,\" Ragnar said. \"How much do you pay your men?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sigurd blinked, caught off guard. \"I... I feed them. I give them rings when we raid.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Unreliable income,\" Ragnar noted. \"And their equipment?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They bring their own,\" Sigurd grunted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Inefficient,\" Ragnar sighed. \"Half your men have rusted swords. The other half have wooden shields that rot. If you fight the Franks like that, you will be liquidated in ten minutes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar turned to face the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I am not stripping you of your command,\" Ragnar lied smoothly. \"I am promoting you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pointed to the diagram on the slate. It showed a pyramid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You are now Commissioned Officers in the Imperial Army. You will not pay your men. I will pay your men. You will not buy their armor. I will buy their armor.\" Ragnar explained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gestured to the armored guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Standardized plate. Uniform weapons. Medical insurance provided by the Ministry of Health. And a pension plan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A murmur went through the crowd. A pension plan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sigurd frowned, his hand leaving his axe handle. \"And me? What do I become?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You become a Colonel,\" Ragnar said. \"You keep your men, but they answer to the Central Command. You lead them, but you follow my doctrine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sigurd chewed on his mustache. \"And if I want to raid?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You file a request form,\" Ragnar said. \"If the target is approved, you raid. If it’s not, you drill.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sigurd looked at the armored guards. He looked at Ragnar. He realized that the era of the wild chieftain was over. The era of the soldier had begun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I... I will consider the offer,\" Sigurd grumbled, sitting back down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Good,\" Ragnar smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the meeting wasn’t over. A minor Lord from East Anglia stood up. He looked nervous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Director,\" the Saxon Lord said. \"If I cannot raise my own levies... who protects my farm? Who protects my borders from bandits?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar smiled gently. This was the selling point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You don’t need to protect your borders,\" Ragnar said. \"The System protects them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked over to a map of the region. \"We are constructing Star Fortresses at key logistical hubs,\" Ragnar explained, pointing to the star-shaped icons. \"These will be manned by professional garrisons on a rotating shift. They will patrol the roads. They will police the villages.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Garrisons?\" the Lord asked. \"Loyal to whom?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Loyal to the Paycheck,\" Ragnar said. \"And since I sign the checks, loyal to York.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Lord paled. He realized what this meant. Ragnar was putting his own troops in every lord’s backyard. It was a military occupation disguised as a security service.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This... this is unprecedented,\" the Lord stammered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is Modernization,\" Ragnar corrected. \"Do you want to worry about bandits? Or do you want to focus on maximizing your grain yield?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room fell silent again. The Jarls and Lords exchanged looks. They knew they were being trapped. They knew Ragnar was slowly tightening a noose of bureaucracy around their necks. But they also remembered Thetford. They remembered the screaming stones. They remembered the fire that floated on water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We have a Crusade coming,\" Ragnar reminded them, his voice dropping an octave. \"The Franks are bringing heavy cavalry. They are bringing the full weight of the Continent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at each man in the eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can fight them as a mob of heroes and die. Or you can fight them as a Machine and get rich.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked back to the table and picked up a stack of documents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"These are your Commission Papers,\" Ragnar said. \"Sign them, and receive your first month’s salary in advance. In silver.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound of silver clinking was the final argument.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One by one, the Jarls stood up. Jarl Sigurd was the first. He walked to the table, grabbed a quill, and scrawled his rune.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For the silver,\" Sigurd muttered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For the Company,\" Ragnar corrected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One by one, the Lords of East Anglia followed suit. They signed away their feudal rights. They signed away their independence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time the sun set, the Military Reform Act was law. Ragnar stood on the dais, watching them line up. Gyda stood beside him, organizing the signed contracts into a neat pile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They think they are just changing titles,\" Gyda whispered. \"They think they can still rule their lands like little kings.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let them think that,\" Ragnar whispered back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He watched a Saxon Lord sign the paper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They don’t know about Phase Two,\" Ragnar murmured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Phase Two?\" Gyda asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Zoning Laws,\" Ragnar grinned, a predator’s smile. \"Once the army is centralized, I’m going to nationalize the land. I’ll turn these Lords into ’landlords’ Their political power will be zero.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gyda looked at him. \"You are evil.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He clapped his hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bjorn!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The General stepped forward. \"Director?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The contracts are signed,\" Ragnar said. \"Take these men to the training yard. They are officers now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And if they refuse to drill?\" Bjorn asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then dock their pay,\" Ragnar said ruthlessly. \"Hit them in the wallet. It hurts more than a sword.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bjorn grinned. \"Yes, Director.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ragnar stretched his arms. Now, he just needed to test it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Leif,\" Ragnar called out to the shadows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, Director?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Send the signal to Scarborough,\" Ragnar ordered. \"Tell the garrison to prepare the ’Welcome Mat’.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Franks are coming?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Franks are coming,\" Ragnar nodded, looking at the map. \"And thanks to today... we are ready to process them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1323,"2026-06-05T21:25:06.131Z",1,"novelbin.me","dd0d6ca0de847ce4ff3d734772cf871a79651f872fa047de233be5914cfd2171","building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-chapter-71","building-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-chapter-69",357,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbuilding-a-viking-empire-with-modern-industry-cover.jpg"]