"Gentle?"
"In order to prevent the death of craftsmen due to harsh laws, you should improve the production process to avoid tragedies. You are the queen, so you cannot change the law out of mercy. However, you use this method." Aspasia walked in front of Hilde and gently stroked her long hair that was as smooth as silver. "If you don't say it, no one will realize your true purpose. Sissi, you are really a child that makes your mother proud."
"Yes, is that so..."
Hilde felt a little embarrassed.
Because she didn't think so at all.
The purpose of improving technology is to create better weapons.
In order to prevent the craftsmen from being punished by the law... Hilde really didn't think much about this kind of thing.
Aspasia continued, "I heard from Herodotus that the new iron smelting method belongs to the Byzantine Empire and is the property of the Byzantines. We foreigners cannot go and see it. I wanted to see what it was like, but since there is this reason, I won't go and join in the fun."
"Thank you for your understanding, mother."
"It's okay, kid."
At this time, Aspasia changed the subject.
"You are already an adult."
"Hmm...hmm?" Hilde seemed to realize something.
"Remember, kid, Sophia is a good girl. Be kind to her."
"Ah... Of course, I will definitely treat her well."
"Well, also, take care of your health. Three or four hours at a time is too much for most people."
Hearing this, Hilde couldn't help but look back at her house. Only then did Hilde realize that the sound insulation of the houses built in ancient Greece was not that good. So, Hilde's cheeks instantly turned red, and then she coughed twice and said quickly, "Then mother, I will go to inspect the work results first, so I can't accompany you."
"Go ahead, kid."
Aspasia smiled and watched Hilde hurried away.
Ah... so embarrassing!
Hilde rode his horse and galloped directly out of the Byzantine city and headed for the iron smelting blast furnace.
It turns out that you can hear it!
"It's all Sophia's fault... It's all Sophia's fault..."
Hilde, angry and embarrassed, could only blame Sophia for not being able to control her voice.
Soon, Hilde arrived at the iron smelting place. At this time, a small number of craftsmen were still working, while the other craftsmen and slaves were too tired and fell asleep on the ground. After seeing Hilde coming, Marcus, with dark circles under his eyes, walked over quickly and said to Hilde weakly, "Your Majesty, I, we have completed the forging of the weapons."
"So fast?"
Hilde was also a little surprised.
"Your Majesty, our best blacksmith has made a spear especially for you."
"Show it to me."
Hilde dismounted and walked over excitedly.
At this time, Marcus carefully handed a spear on the table next to him to Hilde.
This spear head, which has not yet been attached to the wooden pole, is about 40 centimeters long from head to tail. The edge has been sharpened. Because it was specially made for Hilde, the edge is very sharp and can be used for chopping, slashing, and stabbing. At the same time, it is different from a gray-black weapon made of smelted iron. This kind of steel, which has been processed by multiple processes, can be said to be real steel. After being carefully polished with sand and stone, the spear body presents a dazzling metallic silver color, as bright as a mirror. A craftsman also specially carved a pattern on the spear handle, which is the most traditional mythological pattern in ancient Greece.
no doubt.
This is steel.
Not a compromise like a piece of smelting iron.
"Anything else?" Hilde asked excitedly.
"I also made six short swords and ten spears."
Chapter 3, Section 5: The Appearance of Magical Weapons
"Show me quickly!"
Hilde looked at the other weapons carefully. These weapons made of steel were all silver-white, smooth and strong. At the same time, because the elasticity of steel was much higher than that of iron, the texture in the hand was also very different. These weapons could be said to be the most exquisite weapons that humans could create in this era. Of course, the best workmanship was the spear in Hilde's hand. If it was not equipped with a wooden pole, this spear could be used as a dagger or a short sword.
"Has the weapon's performance been tested?"
"Your Majesty, please test it yourself."
Marcus pointed to a black pig hanging on a stake nearby.
After the pig was killed, it was hung on a wooden stake.
A good way to test a sword is to see if it can cut a pig directly. If it is a good sword, it can not only split the meat easily, but also cut the bones, and then the whole pig carcass will be split into two parts, and the cut is very smooth. Therefore, Hilde picked up a short sword and walked in front of the pig.
Picking up the dagger, Hilde did not hesitate.
cut--!
Accompanied by a flash of cold light.
The lower half of the pork fell directly to the ground.
After all, Hilde was a god, so he was very strong. However, the cut was very smooth, which was obviously the result of the sword being strong and sharp enough. After cutting the pig, Hilde looked at the sword carefully. There was no gap on the blade yet, which showed that the quality of the steel was very good. So Hilde turned around and raised the sword in his hand: "The weapons you made are perfect. Everything was successful. With these weapons, our warriors will be invincible on the battlefield!"
"Success—!"
The craftsmen also cheered.
After so much hard work, the results finally came to fruition.
"I declare that all craftsmen participating in this operation will be rewarded with 10 drachmas, and the slaves will be rewarded with one year's harvest. Moreover, from now on, all weapons forged in Byzantium will be made according to this method. I want you to speed up production and strive to produce fifteen spears and five daggers every day." Hilde knew that the current output must be very average, but fortunately the production of spears was relatively convenient.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Marcus knelt on one knee and said respectfully:
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for bringing such a powerful weapon to Byzantium."
"Your Majesty, did you receive the oracle of Hephaestus to invent such a powerful smelting technology?"
"I did receive guidance from the gods, but today's achievements still rely on everyone's efforts." Hilde walked up to the craftsmen with a smile and said lightly, "Remember, this is just the beginning. Our army has thousands of people. If all of them are equipped with weapons of this material, it will take you half a year to work day and night. In addition, the soldiers' armor also needs to be prepared and manufactured."
"As ordered!"
The enthusiasm of the craftsmen is still very high.
The reason is that they can produce steel with such excellent performance and make powerful weapons.
At the same time, Hilde's strength was once again revealed.
However, Hilde was also very happy now, especially the spears that these craftsmen made specifically for Hilde. She specially found a sturdy spear shaft, and then installed the spear head, and a spear about meters long was complete. Such spears were particularly popular with the Greek army in close combat, especially the Spartans.
Different from the understanding of ancient Greek spears in the real world, many people think that the ancient Greek spears should be the kind of phalanx spears, which are several meters long. All the soldiers gathered together and used the phalanx to defeat the opponent. But in fact, the best use of the spear phalanx was created by the Macedonians, who used super-long sarissa spears to form a bulky but powerful infantry phalanx, and finally swept across Europe and Asia. The phalanx of the Greek city-states was generally a heavy infantry phalanx. The soldiers held round shields and were equipped with flexible Greek spears to attack the enemy in battle.
This spear is about meters long.
There is a natural difference between it and the sarisa spear which is often four to five meters long.
Hilde couldn't help but wonder.
If all your troops are equipped with this kind of steel spear.
Then, the heavy infantry gathered together will be an extremely powerful existence.
The sharp spear can easily break through bronze or leather armor, and the sharp blade can easily cut through skin, muscle, and even bones, causing unstoppable bleeding. Compared with the current block iron and bronze weapons, steel weapons are completely superior to the times.
Chapter 3, Section 6: Preparations for the Army's Departure
Soon, another half a month passed.
During this period, Hilde was almost always busy with iron smelting and brick making.
Under the planning of Hilde and the city magistrate Marcus, two large brick kilns with a production capacity of 10,000 bricks were almost completed. In addition, even larger blast furnaces and crucibles had also been built in a special place, two kilometers outside the city, according to Hilde's plan. This place was located on a major traffic route with smooth roads and not far from the iron mine, making it very convenient for iron smelting. The smelted iron was poured into molds and then immediately sent to the blacksmith's workshop in the city for processing.
It took almost a whole winter.
The city of Byzantium completed a technological upgrade.
Steel weapons were produced in large quantities, replacing the wrought iron and bronze weapons in the hands of soldiers.
At the same time, archers are also equipped with heavy arrows made of steel, which are specially used to penetrate armor. For a small number of armored troops, the effect of these heavy armor-piercing arrows is very useful.
The comprehensive upgrade of weapons has given Hilde more confidence.
But at this time.
Aspasia was about to leave Byzantium.
"I have been bothering you for a long time here. I will feel relieved after confirming that you can live well."
At the port, Aspasia gently stroked Hilde's cheek and said with a smile, "Anyway, I'm leaving here. I won't go back to Athens. I'm so sad there... I'm going back to Miletus to live there. Sissi, if you miss me, you can come to Miletus to find me. With me here, Miletus is your home. Of course, if I miss you, I'll also take a boat from Miletus. Don't despise me then."
"How is this possible?"
Hilde quickly explained:
"Mother, come and visit me, and I will certainly do my best to welcome you."
"Well, good boy."
Aspasia looked at her daughter. When she first came here, she couldn't believe that her daughter would become the queen of Byzantium. But now it seems that her daughter has become a wise ruler. She not only carries the oracle, but also has divine power. She is also a kind and courageous king, deeply loved by her people. Such Hilde makes Aspasia proud, but also a little worried.
"Xixi, can you promise me one thing?"
"Mother, please speak."
"Remember, don't get into trouble, okay?"
Hilde was stunned for a moment, and she was somewhat touched by her mother's advice.
"Yes, mother, I will take care of myself."
"That's good... In that case, I'll be off."
"Yes."
Hilde watched Aspasia and the others board the ship to Miletus. At this time, Herodotus stood beside Hilde and said with a smile: "I wonder when the mother and daughter will meet again? This scene today really touched me."
"Aren't you leaving?"
"Your Majesty, I want to study the Thracian King here."
Herodotus bowed and said:
"I hope you can allow it."
"Of course, you're welcome."
Hilde was not surprised by Herodotus' decision.
However, Hilde did not like Herodotus. One reason was that Herodotus was a historian who loved to pursue the truth. He would definitely spare no effort to dig out the truth of history. If he dug deeper, it was very likely that some of Hilde's not-so-glorious things would be dug out. When writing a history book, Hilde's "great achievements" would be included in it. Then Hilde would probably have no other choice but to curse.
After seeing off Aspasia's ship.
Hield did next.
It's time to prepare to send troops to Apollonia.
"Pass my military order——!"
"Here!" Amyntas stood respectfully in front of Hilde's hand.
"Today, mobilize 200 heavy infantry, 100 archers, and prepare 10 triremes."
"Yes!"
Next, Hilde will begin her plan for the Greek city-states in Thrace.
Apollonia, the city-state located in the north on the coast of the Black Sea, will become Hilder's first prey!
The Byzantine army equipped with steel weapons was full of fighting spirit and was now ready for battle. Moreover, the most important thing was that after months of rigorous training by Amyntas, the Byzantine army, which was originally loose, had now become well-trained warriors. That night, countless torches were lit at the port of Byzantium, and ten three-oared sailing ships were fully prepared, with an average of thirty soldiers and one hundred and forty slaves on each ship for rowing.
These ten triremes.
It was all the property of the Byzantine city.
There were only these ten ships in the entire city of Byzantium.
