Walter was not a timid man; otherwise, he would never have hosted that far-reaching tourney at Harrenhal all those years ago. After hearing William's analysis, he was somewhat surprised, but not afraid.
"What you say is certainly possible. Perhaps Storm's End wouldn't dare challenge Casterly Rock alone, but with Highgarden, it's different." Walter's eyes gleamed with intensity. "Regardless, strengthening our military power is never wrong. I will halt all other projects except for the sept repairs and prioritize restoring the castle's defenses. I'll also re-equip the infantry as soon as possible."
"However," his tone shifted, "the current size of our cavalry is probably Harrenhal's limit."
"Insufficient funds?" William smiled confidently. "Don't worry. I've found a way to double the output of the textile workshop."
"Oh?" A flicker of excitement appeared on Walter's face, but it was quickly replaced by a trace of melancholy. "Funds aren't the biggest problem. House Whent's current lands are... too small."
Harrenhal now maintained fifteen hundred standing cavalry ready for deployment at any time. Aside from over two hundred freelance riders similar to sellswords, the rest were smallfolk from the direct domains fulfilling their feudal obligations. The key difference was that Harrenhal's steady stream of cash income allowed them to keep these cavalrymen mustered indefinitely without disbanding them. Most nobles lacked sufficient ready coin and could only maintain a small standing cavalry force in peacetime, resorting to levies in wartime.
In terms of standing cavalry alone, this scale was quite considerable in Westeros, only slightly inferior to that of the Great Houses. But it also meant Harrenhal's wartime potential had reached its limit. Almost all men suitable for cavalry on their lands had already been recruited; it was impossible to levy more cavalry in the short term.
William couldn't help but feel disappointed. He had thought that with money, he could raise unlimited troops, but he had forgotten about population constraints. After all, cavalry were a technical branch; you couldn't just grab any farmer from the fields and expect them to be effective.
He thought of another source of troops. "If we need to campaign, how many cavalry can the three small lords provide?"
"Lord Deddings holds Longlake Town and is relatively wealthy, but he himself is not militarily inclined. Lord Wode's lands are... somewhat barren, so he has few cavalry. Only Lord Gray has a respectable cavalry force." Walter thought for a moment. "Together, they could provide over three hundred cavalry."
In theory, one hundred cavalry per Lord was about average for Westeros, but the Riverlands were densely populated, making one hundred cavalry seem rather paltry.
Based on Harrenhal's recruitment ratio, William felt the three Small lords should be able to provide five hundred to eight hundred cavalry. But even though the Lord of Harrenhal was their liege lord, he had no right to interfere in how they governed their lands or managed their armies. The three lords only needed to fulfill their feudal obligations as stipulated.
'Damn it, this bloody feudal system! I wonder if starting to train a new cavalry force from scratch now would still be in time for the war...'
Seeing William's displeased expression, Walter ruffled his hair. "Don't worry, William. If needed, we can hire more sellswords."
"Sellswords? They can't fight hard battles in the field, and they might be bribed if used for garrison duty. I don't trust them." William curled his lip, then suddenly had an idea. "Do you know of the Unsullied?"
"What are those?"
"The Unsullied are eunuch slave soldiers. They obey their master absolutely and fear nothing in war."
William then proceeded to tell Walter about the brutal training and glorious battle record of the Unsullied.
Walter listened with great interest, but in the end, he laughed heartily. "What fighting power can eunuchs have? That's probably just the slave traders boasting."
'Sure enough, seeing is believing. I wonder how much an Unsullied costs. I should find an opportunity to buy a small unit to test them out.'
"By the way, you just said you found a way to increase the textile workshop's output? I've spoken with Archmaester Mollos many times. The Citadel is unwilling to send more personnel and doesn't allow us to train our own repairmen. This isn't easy to solve."
Setting aside the matter of the Unsullied, William first introduced Ravender. With a smile, he said, "After I recruited him, he proposed an idea. The reason for the frequent mechanical failures is that some components wear out easily. If we use higher-quality iron to make them, we can reduce the failure rate. This way, the same number of repairmen can maintain more machinery."
"That makes sense," Walter said, though he wasn't particularly excited. "But good iron is hard to come by."
The metallurgical technology in Westeros was only so-so. Harrenhal's smelting workshops were already above average. Improving quality further was easier said than done.
"So here's the fortunate coincidence: Master Glop has invented a rather good metal." William smiled mysteriously. "It's related to magic."
Back when William and the Warlock were researching how to make Valyrian steel, they produced several dozen types of magical metals. One was used in the steam engine with great effect. After that, neither William nor the Warlock paid much attention to the remaining metals. However, the Warlock's apprentice, Mokken, often took these metals out to study, or rather, to play with. He discovered that one of the materials had excellent toughness and was very wear-resistant.
So, when William and Ravender discussed the component problem, Mokken had a brainstorm and suggested using this material to make the parts. They then went to the blacksmith to have a component forged as a test, confirming that this solution was indeed effective.
"It seems my thinking was still too conservative. If the textile workshop's output can double, Harrenhal should be able to support a larger military. Glop is a rare talent; we must keep him."
William smiled, planning to discuss the magic aspect with Walter another time. "This Ravender is also a rare talent. Moreover, apprentices like him have almost no chance of becoming maesters, so the Citadel doesn't value them highly either. We can find a way to change his status to that of a self-funded student. If we pay sufficient tuition fees retroactively, he can openly join House Whent."
Walter frowned slightly. "With Archmaester Mollos here, this might be a bit inconvenient."
"Archmaester Mollos probably wouldn't mind such a thing. Besides, the workshop in the West Tower is too important to us now. The Archmaester and his apprentices ultimately still answer to the Citadel. If once..."
William left his sentence unfinished. Walter's expression turned grave, and he nodded slowly.
"If we have Ravender, even if the Citadel recalls Archmaester Mollos and the other apprentices, we won't have to worry about the workshop's operation. Furthermore, Ravender is very knowledgeable about metallurgy. He also plans to renovate the smelting workshop and the forges. When that happens, the quality of Harrenhal's weapons will improve, and the cost will be lower."
Walter made a decision immediately. "Good. We can't let such talent slip away. This matter should be dealt with sooner rather than later. I'll arrange for someone to handle it right away."
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