Steel Empire
Arms Dealer

With military reforms, Berengar began to combine militias and professional armies into one cohesive force. People were made to swear under the pain of death and the curse that they would protect the kingdom from all foreign and domestic enemies while also swearing allegiance to Viscounty and its Commander-in-Chief, the one at this moment is Berengar.

After that, about 1000 infantry were transferred to the ranks of the 1st and 2nd Infantry Battalions. By doing this, Berengar ensured that new and possibly disgruntled forces were beside those already fully loyal to him so they had no chance of attacking him.

As far as the 30 knights under his command were concerned, they were transferred to the ranks of the 1st Cuirassier Battalion, whose numbers continued to grow by the day. The cost in raising the Cavalry was far more than that of the infantry or artillery, yet it would be comparable to the amount that concerned Berengar; thus, he did not hesitate to fund such a venture.

Although it would take several months for the new troops to undergo basic and special training, he was confident at the time the impending war broke out that he would have a large army well-trained, and well-equipped that is far greater than any army in a world of equal size.

Every day the weapons factory and armory worked to produce the necessary equipment for Berengar's army to work properly; therefore, the Berengar army, he was quickly left with a large stockpile of outdated weapons and armor that continued to grow by the day. Eventually, Berengar decided he would sell the equipment to Count Lothar at a discount; given that it was second-hand equipment, and some of it had been specially installed for certain people, he said, he would never think of getting a full price for it. Nevertheless, it was a fully functional piece of equipment and its quality was better than basically anything in the world apart from its own troops.

Thinking of this idea, he personally wrote a letter to Count Lothar, who was very interested in the offer and was really curious as to why Berengar sold large quantities of steel plates and brigandines. So the man made his way to Kufstein as quickly as possible, where he was currently meeting Berengar in his armory that housed the equipment, where the two nobles were discussing the exact details of the trade.

Count Lothar was not ashamed of his question; he could not think of a reason why Berengar would hand over such a precious piece of equipment unless it was broken.

"So why are you selling weapons and armor in bulk? Don't you need it for yourself?"

Berengar began to laugh; he had already planned an excuse to sell his army's outdated equipment.

"I am currently investing in a massive infrastructure initiative, and I need more capital than I make from the steel and textile trade. I think my farmer's levies don't need such superior equipment. So I decided to sell them and equip them with good equipment.A much cheaper armor design."

Lothar didn't even think twice about this answer; it was entirely plausible, especially since Berengar said this equipment was used to supplement farmers' levies. The armor Lothar carried began to inspect each piece of equipment to determine if it would survive. The equipment had only seen one battle, and most of the men were completely untouched in that battle; thus, it was in fantastic condition.

While his men were inspecting the equipment, Lothar began discussing the terms of selling a large number of high-quality weapons and armor. Everything except the spears used in the previous battle was for sale.

"If my cabinets confirm the quality of the equipment, then I will be more than happy to buy the goods from your hands; however, because it is used, and most will require reassembling, it will be more than necessary, I can't offer full price for you. a lot."

Given the equipment it was almost entirely brigandine, with a steel helmet, and a small amount of steel vambrace, and a foot protector thrown into the mix, he said, its value was quite large because the manufacture of such a large amount of equipment was unheard of at this time.Therefore Count Lothar gave a tempting offer.

"I'll pay 10 guilders per set of armor as well as matching weapons."

"15"

Count Lothar frowned at this number and replied offered with a new figure.

"12!"

Berengar shook his head and negotiated with his final offer while putting a satisfied smile on his face.

"13, and I'll cover the transportation. If you don't accept, I'm sure Prince Steiermark would love to have good equipment for his troops..."

Berengar had attacked Count Lothar; after all, the man was well aware that Count Otto was a Habsburg mainline loyalist and someone he considered a future enemy if Berengar sold his equipment to the man, then it would definitely complicate him. After all with this equipment, it would greatly reduce his need to buy raw steel and produce it himself.

After careful consideration, Prince Lothair had no choice but to accept and curse Berengar.

"Damn it! Alright, I accept your terms!"

However, even though they shook hands and smiled at each other, Lothar silently thought in his mind.

'Once an idiot, he did not know of any approaching danger, and he had just sold such precious equipment to his enemy, leaving his army in a poor state, the Teutonic Order should have been able to wipe out his army easily.'

Lothar had no way of knowing that this armor was being sold, which he thought was the highest piece of equipment in Europe at the moment, and perhaps the world was already considered obsolete in Berengar's mind and that the young Regent was already in the process of being replaced.

Berengar smiled with an arrogant expression as he was too aware of what Lothar was thinking and could not wait to see the expression on his face when his army was torn apart by the thunder of Berengar's weapons!

With this first step, Berengar had entered the arms trade and made a huge profit of 13,000 guilders or approached it! He would use some of these profits to invest in the arms trade where he would start supplying all the upcoming civil war factions from which he would profit significantly. It was only for the faction that purchased its equipment to arrive at the terrifying realization that it was fighting the power of the flintlock rifle and the 12-pound cannon of Berengar's army, to, the equipment they had sold was completely and completely useless.