[Chapter Size: 1600 Words.]
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Schiller easily captured the city-state of Yunkai. The city had no standing army and relied entirely on mercenaries and slave soldiers for defense. When faced with a disciplined, well-trained force, there was no room for resistance.
This is why mercenaries and the Unsullied are so renowned and in demand across Essos.
Land transportation in Essos is inconvenient, but its maritime routes are well developed. This made the free-trade city-states nearly immune to land-based threats, greatly reducing their need for permanent armies.
Aside from the use of slave soldiers and hired swords, almost no inland trading city-state maintained a large standing force. At most, a few owned small units of Unsullied purchased to assert dominance over their own citizens.
Once inside Yunkai, Schiller quickly split his troops to surround the city's pyramids and gathered the nobles together.
"Tell me, which one of you stole our salt-production technology? Speak the truth!" Schiller demanded, seated on a chair as he glared at the trembling noble before him.
The Yunkish slave traders exchanged uneasy looks until Kirk finally stepped forward. "We are honorable men. We would never steal your technology. You must be mistaken."
"Kirk, isn't it? I suggest you stop resisting pointlessly. Confess honestly, or these arrests will soon leave you speechless."
As he spoke, Schiller drew out a large, black iron tool.
The sight of it terrified Kirk. Which part of his body was this thing meant to torment?
Thinking quickly, Kirk interjected, "Lord Schiller, we truly did not steal it. Search anywhere you like, search everything!"
"Very well. Then tell me the location of your warehouses," Schiller demanded.
The nobles hesitated. Their warehouses were their lifeblood.
Seeing their reluctance, Schiller gave Bronn a subtle signal.
Bronn smirked, removed the shackles from Schiller's hand, and dragged the nearest noble forward.
Moments later, shrill screams echoed through the hall. At the sound of their fellow slave owner's agony, Kirk and the others lost their resolve and revealed the warehouses' locations.
Schiller immediately ordered Varys to lead men to plunder them.
The looting lasted an entire day. Preliminary estimates placed the seized wealth at nearly twenty million gold coins, equivalent to three years of Riverrun's tax revenue.
When Daenerys liberated Astapor, she had confiscated centuries of the slavers' wealth, seizing fifteen million gold dragons. By contrast, when she reached Yunkai, she did not enter the city. Instead, she demanded that the masters free their slaves, leaving Schiller to enjoy his own spoils.
After stripping Yunkai's wealth, Schiller summoned the remaining slave masters.
"It seems you are clever. I searched every warehouse and still found no trace of the stolen salt-production technology. From this moment on, for every minute that passes without someone naming the thief, I will execute one of you at random, until none of you remain alive."
With that, Schiller raised his crossbow and shot a slaver dead. "The clock starts now."
His ruthlessness even made the nobles doubt whether anyone had actually stolen Astapor's salt-making secret.
As the minutes dragged on, four nobles were executed in turn. Finally, several prominent lords broke under the pressure. After exchanging glances, they pointed at five lesser nobles.
Seeing this, the others quickly joined in, shifting the blame onto the same five. The accused realized they were being made scapegoats.
With their lives and fortunes at stake, three of the lesser nobles abandoned all restraint. They shouted that they had not stolen the technology, hurling accusations and exposing the crimes of the others.
One of them rolled his eyes toward Schiller and declared, "My lord, they all keep secret warehouses outside the city. They never mentioned them. The salt-making technology must be hidden in one of those estates."
At this revelation, Kirk and the other great slave owners erupted in fury. Those estates were their lifeblood, treasuries of luxuries amassed over generations.
"Oh? And do you know the locations of these estates?" Schiller asked.
"I do not," replied Mavis with confidence, "but I am certain I can make them talk."
"Hahaha! Very well. I leave this task to you," Schiller said, assigning Mavis a detachment of soldiers before calmly departing.
Four more lesser nobles quickly rallied to Mavis's side.
Mavis wore a triumphant smile. Who would have imagined fate could turn so sharply? One moment he had faced death, the next she had been granted a new identity and authority.
Kirk and the others stared with fear but still tried to intimidate Mavis with weak glares.
Mavis and her companions only sneered. "When you made me your scapegoat, you left me no path but ruin. Following Lord Schiller gave me a chance to live."
…
The following day, Mavis presented Schiller with a bloodstained sheet of paper.
Schiller studied it. It listed the locations of more than a dozen hidden warehouses.
"My lord, if you search these places, you will surely find the salt-making technology they concealed. I am willing to lead the search myself," Mavis declared firmly.
Schiller smiled, then handed the list to Bronn, instructing him to take men and raid the warehouses at once.
Schiller patted Mavis on the shoulder. "Mavis, you've passed the test. They never had the technology to refine salt. The process is top secret, nothing leaves that facility, not even a rat."
Hearing Schiller's sincere words, Mavis was both surprised and relieved. He marveled at his ruthless methods, but rejoiced that her life had been spared.
"My lord, the Volantene coalition forces will arrive in two months. We must prepare in advance," Mavis warned. Having chosen to follow Schiller, she knew there was no turning back.
"Do not worry. The slavers' enemies are not only us, they also have the Dragon Queen of Meereen beside them."
Mavis frowned. "My lord, Daenerys's regime in Meereen is extremely unstable. The Sons of the Harpy are everywhere. I fear they will not be able to aid us when the time comes."
He added, "And the Sons of the Harpy are not only in Meereen. They are in Yunkai as well. We must plan ahead and not accept defeat passively."
Schiller smiled faintly. "I was right about you, you truly have ability. Yes, there are Sons of the Harpy in Yunkai, and in Astapor as well. Only yesterday, dozens of their severed heads were hung on Astapor's walls."
The thought of the Harpies amused him. In the early days of Astapor, their activity had been rampant.
But with the introduction of the collective-responsibility system and the reward system for informants, every suspicious person became a walking gold dragon in the eyes of the populace. Many Harpies were betrayed by their neighbors without realizing it.
Some were even denounced by their own children, eager to claim the fifty-gold reward. Though Schiller sometimes suspected their motives, he always paid the bounty when the accusations proved true.
Thus, from the beginning, Schiller had never worried about the Sons of the Harpy. Moreover, with the influx of low-ranking scholars from the Riverlands, governing became far easier.
The scholars were remarkably useful, similar to the old imperial academicians, but with a broader scope. They studied astronomy, geography, and many practical sciences, rarely content with theory alone.
After hearing this, Mavis realized Schiller truly had little fear of the Harpies.
"Mavis, I give you three thousand men. Within three days, you will drive out every landowner around the city. Can you do it?"
"Of course, my lord!" Mavis answered without hesitation. Three thousand elite soldiers were more than enough.
Over the next three days, he led her troops to sweep the villages, towns, and estates surrounding Yunkai. Meanwhile, Schiller began implementing his new policies.
With the experience gained in Astapor and the wealth seized from Yunkai, Schiller quickly transformed the city.
Because Yunkai contained a vast number of bed slaves, two hundred thousand of them were suddenly freed in the process. Their survival quickly became a crisis.
These bed slaves, both men and women, knew nothing but the arts of the flesh.
To address this, Schiller organized groups of scholars to teach them farming, cooking, and other practical skills. Those with different ambitions were free to choose their own paths.
Yet many bed slaves refused to abandon their accustomed way of life. They had grown too used to it.
For them, Schiller devised a bold plan: to build a "Heaven on Earth", a vast red-light market constructed with cement, glass, and newly made clothing.
This Heaven on Earth would become a cornerstone of Yunkai's new industry. With seductive attire designed by His Majesty and unmatched service, Schiller believed it would soon attract merchants and nobles alike.
As he considered it, Schiller could not help but admire Theon's wild imagination. Who would have thought he could design such alluring garments?
"My lord, a messenger from Meereen requests an audience."
Schiller, busy with Yunkai's reconstruction and overseeing numerous projects that would create jobs and stabilize the city, raised an eyebrow. "Let him in."
He had not expected Daenerys to reach out on her own initiative. Clearly, her situation was dire.
A man soon entered.
After bowing, he introduced himself. "Lord Schiller, my name is Raymond. I have been sent to invite you to Meereen. The Dragon Queen wishes to see you."
"If she wished to see me, she should have come herself instead of sending you," Schiller replied coldly.
"My lord, Her Majesty longs to meet you in person. But as you know, the Sons of the Harpy constantly stir rebellion in Meereen. She truly cannot leave."
The messenger's words were smooth, but the truth was plain: Daenerys could not abandon her city. The Sons of the Harpy were wreaking havoc, and if she departed, chaos would surely consume Meereen.
"Very well. In three days, my king will visit Daenerys personally."
"Of course, my lord. Your king is most welcome!" Raymond noted silently. He had not expected Schiller to reveal that he was not the supreme leader.
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