Pioneer Lord: Starting From Daily Intelligence

Chapter 355: Chapter 157: Over 300 Extraordinary Ears and Territory Specialty · Half-Elf Leather Armor (Part 3)

”The manufacture of leather armor involves leather boiled in boiling water and oil, and even general tailors can make it. Our territory’s production is quite considerable. Also, leather armor is very cheap, so economic reasons are also one of the reasons for its popularity. The Half-Elves love using leather armor.”

”The leather armor and leather from our Balan Autonomous Region are also quite famous specialties — the leather armor they make conceals magic power and is considered one of the top leather armors in the Border Prince’s Territory; this is a well-known specialty of our territory and can bring considerable financial income to the territory.”

Su Li really knew about this matter. After all, even though Su Li doesn’t meddle in the specific trivial government affairs, he is definitely well-acquainted with how many specialties the territory has.

This magical leather armor from the Balan Autonomous Region is a specialty of their Half-Elf race, and the production rights do not belong to Su Li. The Half-Elves are very wealthy, even if an individual member’s assets are insufficient to open a workshop, their large family with its close-knit nature would pool resources to open a tailor shop to tailor leather armor.

Therefore, in the Balan Autonomous Region, several large families have opened six tailor shops and one joint armor-making workshop. The leather armor they produce is highly sought after both inside and outside the region, being one of the important specialties that Half-Elf trade caravans deliver to Marle Castle.

This specialty is as famous as the specialties from other territories yet slightly different because their output does not belong to Su Li but instead provides high tax revenues.

The reason why this leather armor is so famous, yet its proportion in the Hesse Territory’s army is quite low, is entirely because the Hesse Territory has many ironworks and armories directly under Su Li’s command, and the Dwarves make more exquisite plate armor which doesn’t require procurement costs.

Therefore, purchasing leather armor from the Half-Elves is relatively cost-inefficient, and only a few types of troops such as the Archer Corps and Swan Knights, who are less suitable for wearing heavy armor, wear leather armor.

Of course, due to funding and production capacity issues, not all of the territory’s army is clad in heavy plate armor. Soldiers waiting for a change of gear aren’t wearing leather armor, but rather nail armor or chain armor. These are upgraded versions of leather armor, using mass-produced leather pieces and assembled into protective gear with rivets. There’s also a variant using metal rings inlaid into the protective gear, called ”inlaid armor.” Nail armor cannot be used with other metal armor of the same part, and the Half-Elves’ leather armor features do not exist in nail armor;

In the north of the Empire, Nord Territory likes to wear their animal skins as armor, such as bear skin, wolf skin, or the skin of other monsters. Similarly, in Kislev, many wear animal skins. Animal skins are heavy and not breathable, so wearing them is uncomfortable, and they greatly impact agility, making them unable to mix with other protective gear (except helmets). However, their protective performance is about the same as chain armor and carries an intimidating effect on the enemy.

Moreover, as the saying goes, ”clothes make the man,” the same applies in this world. Fashion styles vary greatly in different places—people from the southern territories of the Empire like to wear shirts with capes, while Kislev people like to wear animal skins and hats. In comparison, the Empire’s clothing trend is quite diverse and divides into Westerners, Northerners, and Easterners. Imperial people value attire highly, and they often judge people by their appearance—those who are dressed more elegantly are treated more politely by others.

The western part of the Empire refers to territories with Terrabheim as the capital, including Avalan Territory, Midland Territory, and others. People here have a sense of regional superiority about themselves and their homeland. They are wealthy and live tasteful lives, considering people from other parts of the Empire as country folks. Due to the strong armies of the western territories and the favor policies under the emperor’s feet, both nobles and peasants in the west can afford the outfits they want. Naturally, clothing produced in the west is more expensive compared to other regions.

Western men like to keep full mustaches and long sideburns, while western women largely dictate the fashion trends of the old world. They constantly change popular clothes or jewelry. During the current emperor’s era, the most popular women’s fashion is low-cut long dresses that reveal the chest combined with brightly colored hats—these women are always committed to showing off their figures as much as possible while dressing lavishly.

The Empire’s northern territories, such as Nord Territory, West Territory, and Ost Territory, generally perceive people from the center and west as soft and effeminate. Compared to the elaborate fashion of the west, Northerners prefer to wear animal skins like the people of Kislev. Northerners disdain makeup, silk, precious metals, and most of the ”upper-class lifestyle” that westerners value. Northerners are unkempt, rarely cutting their hair and beards, and even women are often admonished by men not to care about their appearance like western women, but this doesn’t mean they have no sense of fashion—they prefer particularly flashy colors or patterns. Their clothing is very bright and noticeable, and of course, no one feels embarrassed to walk on the streets dressed that way.

The eastern part of the Empire refers to territories that, due to their poverty, cannot dress and style themselves like westerners; neither can they pursue any fashion trends. Due to their harsh living conditions, people here are lifeless and unwilling to interact with others, appearing sloppy. Women here shave their heads for coolness in summer and let their hair grow long for warmth in winter. The clothing here is monotonous, with the belt color being perhaps the only variation.

Food, clothing, housing, and transportation, clothing being the first component of livelihood.

After resolving basic survival needs, the Hesse Territory had to turn its attention to clothing.