Chapter 46

<46.  Loots. >

Unfortunately, the decision on the direct territory of the Mesoamerican region was postponed.

The leaders of the allied forces had once again sailed to their own territories.

‘It’s a matter of moving their base, so they need to be careful.’

Kim Ki-woo understood them.

No matter how much they were the heads of each faction, as soon as the territorial agreement with the empire was signed, the entire tribe had to move.

In addition, they had to discuss which area they would move to if that happened.

The allied forces were not a single faction. 

Of course, they would want to occupy a better area.

‘I don’t need to interfere with that.’

The Wakan Tanka Empire only needed to allocate part of the territory of the Mexican Gulf.

It was a matter for them to discuss among themselves where each faction would move.

Kim Ki-woo intended to stay quiet until the allied forces reached a conclusion.

Even without that, there was plenty to do.

Kim Ki-woo went up to the top floor of the administration building again and looked down at the square.

As usual, there were many imperial citizens gathered in the square.

Of course, the reason was different.

Today was the day to execute the leaders of the Aztecs.

In the square, there was a high scaffold where their blood would flow.

“Your Majesty, the convicts will arrive soon.”

“Don’t delay and proceed quickly.”

“Yes.”

The minister left his seat to convey Kim Ki-woo’s words.

Indeed, his words were true.

“There they are!”

“Die, you devil!”

“Die! Die!”

The square became noisy.

All kinds of curses echoed in the square.

Kim Ki-woo threw his gaze toward the source of the noise.

‘Are those them?’

They were not visible from afar, but at a glance they were the protagonists of this execution ceremony.

“Kyaak! Spit!”

“You bad bastards!”

Thud! Thud!

Splash!

As they approached the square, Kim Ki-woo could see the stones, dirt, and saliva thrown at them.

Of course, there was no filth.

Filth was prohibited by imperial law from being handled by imperial citizens at will.

‘They look terrible.’

They had been walking a long distance like this and had been humiliated by all kinds of imperial citizens.

As a result, their condition was not good at all.

“Walk straight!”

“Don’t stop walking!”

Splash! Crack!

When the convicts tried to stop due to exhaustion, the warriors’ whips tore their bodies.

Thanks to the metal attached to the end of the whip, wounds were gouged out every time they were whipped.

“Ugh…”

But they had already done so much evil that their voices had long gone out.

Of course, their clothes had been torn long ago, and bright red blood flowed from their bodies in streams.

But Kim Ki-woo did not pity them.

‘Those bastards deserve it.’

Considering how many people they had killed innocently with human sacrifice in the Aztec region so far, this was a very merciful punishment.

While Kim Ki-woo was thinking about various things, their execution finally began.

As soon as the convict climbed onto the scaffold, the warriors bound their bodies.

And they pressed their heads down to the ground.

Then.

Splash!

They chopped off their necks with a single blow of a large and heavy axe.

Then blood splattered everywhere.

“Waaaaah!”

But despite the cruel scene, the imperial citizens cheered even more.

They were ecstatic at the miserable end of the sinners who went against the will of the great spirits.

And then.

Thud!

The head of the Aztec emperor, who decorated the end of this ceremony, fell from his body.

From now on, their heads would be burned and their flesh would be dissected collectively at the medical department and contribute to imperial medicine.

‘It’s over.’

Finally, the devils who had killed countless people in Aztec territory were dead.

Kim Ki-woo came forward. Then gradually the noise subsided.

Eventually Kim Ki-woo declared briefly:

“I hereby proclaim that all wars have ended here!”

That’s how the Aztec campaign ended.

***

“Huh…”

“It’s amazing.”

“It’s unbelievable that this is just a fraction of it. It’s astonishing.”

The chiefs couldn’t help but admire as they looked at the gold piled up in one corner.

“Haha. Minister of Internal Affairs, aren’t you too happy?”

“How can I not be happy? With gold from Aztec we can finally circulate currency.”

One who stood out as happy was naturally Straight Tree.

As the head of internal affairs who was in charge of finance and currency, it was a natural reaction.

‘It’s really incredible.’

Kim Ki-woo exclaimed inwardly as he saw an enormous amount of gold.

This was just a very small part of what they brought from Aztec.

As Straight Tree said, if gold from Aztec was added to Wakan Tanka Empire, they would be able to circulate currency sufficiently.

With this gold, the resources and efforts that had been poured out so far were not wasted at all.

‘And this is not the end.’

There were more spoils that they brought after destroying Aztec.

The Aztec Empire had sucked in tribute from surrounding tribes countless times.

A considerable amount of their enormous wealth was attributed to the empire.

They gave some to the allied forces, but it was enough to not feel sorry.

And there were also unfamiliar things like cocoa and rubber that spread to the empire.

That was not all.

The knowledge they had accumulated so far.

Especially…

‘The anatomical knowledge is beyond compare.’

The information about the body that they naturally learned through human sacrifice.

Thanks to that, the scholars of medicine learned more about the human body.

‘We gained a lot from this expedition.’

Although a lot of resources and labor went into the war, they gained more benefits.

With this, Kim Ki-woo was able to secure both legitimacy and practicality.

“All the spoils that came in this time will make Wakan Tanka Empire even more powerful. Especially gold will make currency reform possible. Minister of Internal Affairs, use gold from Aztec to mint currency.”

“I will follow your will.”

The minister of internal affairs bowed his head deeply.

It was time to discuss the next agenda.

“Minister of Military.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Kim Kiwoo looked at the military chief Lonely Wolf.

He was still a fairly unfamiliar figure.

He was the successor of the powerful archer who led the military department.

It was natural, but he was also from the Creek faction.

If it was another department, a chief from a different faction might have been born. And soon such a thing would happen.

‘But it’s too early for the military chief.’

The military chief was the head of the imperial army.

The current imperial army was a very conservative group of obedience and loyalty, and most of the military department leaders were from the Creek faction.

Kim Kiwoo organized his thoughts and opened his mouth.

“How are things going in the central continent’s direct territory?”

It was precisely the Central Wakan Tanka continent.

There was no word for America here.

That was a name given by Europeans.

The empire called this continent Wakan Tanka continent.

They called the current mainland of the empire North Wakan Tanka continent, or North continent, and the lower part was similarly South Wakan Tanka continent, or South continent.

“It’s marked in detail on the map.”

“Really? Can I take a look?”

“Of course.”

The military chief approached Kim Kiwoo politely and handed over the map.

Chwak!

Kim Kiwoo unrolled the rolled-up paper.

“Ho.”

The map showed in detail the power distribution of the current central continent.

First of all, what caught Kim Kiwoo’s eye was the direct territory occupied by the empire.

‘Not bad.’

This direct territory was the result of final negotiations with the allied forces’ leaders.

The direct territory spread quite widely around the Gulf of Mexico.

If a port is built in the direct territory and goods produced on the mainland are transported to the port…

‘This area will become a commercial center of the central continent.’

The empire’s various cheap industrial products would shake up the market of the central continent from its roots.

Dyeing the central continent with Wakan Tanka empire’s color would start from here.

For this, it was necessary to quickly stabilize the direct territory.

Kim Kiwoo entrusted this to the military chief.

“Many imperial citizens will move to the direct territory from now on. Also, many people from the central continent will come under the empire’s shadow. The imperial army has a duty to protect their lives and property. The military chief should keep this in mind.”

“I will do so, Your Majesty.”

Military chief Lonely Wolf bowed his head with a determined expression.

Was it because he had not been a military chief for long? His face was full of enthusiasm.

***

“I finally came! Euhahahaha!”

“Oh dear, are you that happy?”

“Of course! I got out of that shitty central continent and finally came to the mainland. How can I not be happy? Haha! Let’s drink until our noses are crooked today!”

The conscription order was finally lifted.

With this, most of the warriors who guarded the central continent’s direct territory, except for those recruited, gradually returned to their homeland.

At the same time.

“Those who are going to the central continent, get on board! We’ll be leaving soon!”

“Oh dear, it’s time to go. I’ll be back.”

“Okay. Come back safely.”

“Aww, I wish we could go together.”

“Haha. I don’t care how much they pay me, I have no intention of leaving my homeland.”

“Central continent or homeland. Anyway, take care.”

The ship that reached the mainland by crossing the Gulf of Mexico took people back and started sailing to the central continent.

These people were construction workers and laborers who built ports and various bases in the Gulf of Mexico.

As ships went back and forth like this, imperial warriors were replaced by laborers.

Some of them even joined the construction in Mexico without returning to their homeland after being released from conscription.

This was because they paid more in Mexico than on their homeland.

Who would leave their homeland and go to direct territory if they paid less than their homeland?

Of course, not only imperial citizens were in direct territory.

“Oh ho, you came here like this. Have you made up your mind?”

“Yes. We all want to become Wakan Tanka citizens.”

“Haha! You made a good decision. Wakan Tanka empire is always open.”

People from central continent steadily entered under empire’s shadow.

This could be classified into two categories.

First, it was becoming a full-fledged citizen.

If they became citizens, their lives and property would be protected by soldiers stationed in direct territory.

But they had to learn imperial standard language compulsorily, and they had to live with strangers.

They implemented a policy of scattering each tribe as they did on their mainland here as well.

Therefore, there were not many cases where tribes returned together. Most people came individually or in small groups to become citizens.

Despite these unfavorable conditions, why local people voluntarily entered under empire’s shadow was mainly due to empire’s strong military.

The fact that they could escape from the threat of neighboring tribes was a very attractive condition in this era.

“Really? You want to go?”

“Of course! Even if I work here for a hundred years, I can get more things if I work under the imperial people. Why don’t you go with me instead of doing that?”

“Hmm. But I think the elders will say something…”

“Tsk. You’re just scared. I’m going, so you can stay here or do whatever you want.”

And second, it was a system like a concession area.

Imperial citizens hired many local residents.

Of course, there were many differences between imperial citizens and non-imperial workers.

“No, they got so much wealth, why do I only get this much?”

“Hoo…”

Sharp Axe sighed briefly as he divided the wages while looking at the worker who protested.

It was a sound he had heard annoyingly so far.

Sharp Axe gave him the same answer as before.

“They are all people who have been granted imperial citizenship. If you are envious, you should also obtain imperial citizenship.”

“No matter what, we did the same work…”

“Don’t you see the people behind you? Hurry up and take your share. We’re busy.”

The man reluctantly left his seat at Sharp Axe’s urging.

In this way, the wage difference between imperial citizens and non-imperial workers was quite large.

Imperial citizens’ wages were more than double.

Even if they paid low wages, there were many local residents who came to provide labor.

That’s why some of the workers who worked in direct territory eventually became imperial citizens.

In this way, the number of people who became imperial citizens among the workers working in direct territory area gradually increased.

< Loots. > The end