Looking at Holo, who was lying on the ground listening to the earth's movements like a mythical beast, Kayal was slightly concerned.
"If we follow your three-crop system, there's absolutely no problem," Holo said, wrinkling her nose. "But there's a crucial issue here."
In fact, Kayal already knew before she even said it.
"Monsters!" Kayal and the Wise Wolf looked at each other and simultaneously uttered the word.
Why was Scotland's output so low? It wasn't that they lacked fertile land, but because there were too many forests. Too many forests led to a massive food chain, and this huge food chain included humans and livestock for farming. Can you say that wild wolves or brown bears coming down from the mountains to hunt cattle and kill people and livestock to fill their stomachs are evil?
And the King of Scotland had no way to deal with these beasts.
Firstly, these beasts used guerrilla tactics; they knew the mountains better than the King of Scotland's army. Secondly, behind them were monsters, and the King of Scotland's military strength and combat power were insufficient to face monsters.
Ultimately, it was a matter of strength.
The King of Scotland could not guarantee the safety of his people, so he might even be overthrown by a rebellion. Camelot, on the other hand, repeatedly gained advantages in foreign wars, whether against the Gauls or the Scottish. Slaves provided a large amount of labor for the common people at home, while the noble class gained contribution points to climb higher, and the state acquired land, labor, and finally, population.
The last point was the most important, and also what Kayal desired most.
With his mind made up, Kayal nodded to the Wise Wolf and rode his horse back towards Camelot.
By now, most of the Scottish people must have been relocated, right? Kayal frowned, leading the Unicorn and the Wise Wolf on the way back.
Many monsters with sensitive noses smelled them, but no monster dared to come out, because the Unicorn and the Wise Wolf should both be considered mutated monsters. Two monsters together would certainly have much greater combat power than just one!
No other reason, they just didn't dare to provoke them.
Kayal also had considerable research on monsters. In his view, monsters were either mutations or evolutions.
The lineage of monsters could be inherited, as seen from the monster horse in his home.
Holo was clearly enhanced in intelligence and transformation, while the giant ape was probably enhanced in strength, and the Unicorn in speed, and so on... As for the specifics, it can only be said that their bodies were all enlarged, became gigantic. This was the premise. Monsters could be seen at a glance to be different from other animals, which was obvious. And Kayal already had the idea of completely eradicating monsters or capturing them as breeding stock.
Whether for Scotland's food cultivation plan or for his grand strategy, this step was imperative.
However, the continuous use of troops made Kayal uneasy about other areas, all of which needed careful consideration. Such matters could only be discussed further upon his return.
When passing through Black City, the city of 100,000 people had already become a ghost town, as everyone had already gone to Camelot proper.
And Bradford Fortress, with a population of 200,000, had also become an empty castle. Although Kayal would still send troops in the future to prevent the Gauls from landing at nearby seaports, and would rely on Bradford to develop the surrounding wasteland and mineral resources, of course, these things would happen three to ten years in the future. Currently, Camelot needed to use its six million population to assimilate one million newcomers with different languages, regions, customs, cultures, and lives.
The migration went relatively smoothly. Those who surrendered were fine; they had enough time to pack their valuables, clothes, and other items. Although the knights only gave them ten minutes, it was still better than those slaves who, despite wearing clothes, were still freezing like hell, right?
Along the way, every town offered soup and bread, which showed them Camelot's unity. Encountering such a hostile nation, let alone defeating them, even escaping was desperately difficult.
The slaves could even foresee that if they tried to escape, they would be surrounded by the entire world.
The most slaves died from freezing, with over 200,000 slaves migrating, but over 50,000 froze to death, and the rest suffered from frostbite, looking extremely miserable.
Kayal would not provide them with treatment, too much food, or material comforts. The value of a slave was like toilet paper; once used, it was discarded. Would you inlay toilet paper with gold?
When Kayal arrived at Camelot Royal City, over a million Scottish people were forced to set up tents made of coarse cloth on the plains surrounding the Royal City. These Scottish people, who used to live on the ridges of fields, originally included commoners, nobles, farmers, servants, and so on, but now they were all treated equally, with ten tents forming a circle around a huge bonfire. These bonfires contained charcoal for smoking, but outside were wooden piles, enough to burn for a day and a night without stopping. Ten such huge bonfires formed a massive red circle, radiating heat that not only evaporated the rain and snow but also plunged the entire camp into a heatwave like summer. There were three such huge circles, consuming an astonishing amount of wood daily. Fortunately, it was only the second day, and Kayal returned just in time, otherwise Artoria, who was very worried about the national treasury, would have had blisters on her lips.
That night, the two discussed and reached an understanding. Ultimately, Kayal would preside over the academy's work, while Artoria would completely transform these one million people into laborers and integrate them into Camelot.
In fact, Artoria actively pushed for this. It wasn't that she feared Kayal seizing her prestige, but rather that Kayal's actions in Sunset Canyon had stimulated her too much. She understood that while Kayal appeared gentle, it was only internally; for these outsiders, he merely treated them as tools. Although he would make these tools work themselves to death and be grateful for it, Artoria still feared that Kayal would dig a pit for these slaves to jump into unknowingly, so she quickly discussed it with Kayal and obtained full authority to manage these slaves.
Kayal was momentarily stunned. Although he didn't know why Artoria was so enthusiastic, it was a good thing. So, after telling her his thoughts, Kayal naturally relinquished power.