426 - 432

Rescue

"Civilians are not just fuel for the fire of war, but weapons as well. Just as the woodcutter's axe can be wielded against the sword, so, too, can the civilian be wielded against the soldier." ~ excerpt from A Treatise on War, by Norton Lorist

On the 6th month of Year 1781, the four houses of Andinaq and House Fisablen of the three northeastern provinces launched a sudden attack on Shabak and initiated Andinaq's invasion of the four central duchies.

On the 17th day of the 8th month, Duke Shabaj gave up on Messen to escape to Farkel. The four house alliance and House Fisablen's cavalry headed straight to Paetro, the capital of Forund. Farkel's Samora and Forund's Freewood were swept by the cavalry attack and consumed by the flames of war.

On the 7th day of the 9th month, Andinaq's king, Auguslo, led Whitelion to Jigzai to join up with the allies' forces, rallying a total of 300 thousand men.

Duke Forund mobilized the duchy's citizens to spend more than two months digging 431 trenches on the stretch of land 83 kilometers across from Freewood to Paetro. More than a thousand mud walls were also constructed to defend against the invasion. It was the first defensive battle fought mainly with trenches in the continent's history.

On the night of the 3rd day of the 11th month, after a stalemate that lasted more than a month, the Andinaq's forces flooded the trenches by diverting the Nibarak river, catching Forund's second legion completely off-guard and killing half of its men. The survivors were captured and General Sanskro, a viscount, slit his throat and fell into the water. The army was decimated. Despite the constant flooding, Forund's garrison legion didn't surrender. They relied on the low mud walls to resist the enemy's advance, suffering severe casualties in the process.

On the 24th day of the 11th month, Duke Forund announced he would give up Paetro and led the first and third legions to Handra where he would continue his resistance. Upon the insistence of General Nuori, he was left in the hilly area near Paetro to harass the advancing enemy.

Duke Forund didn't burn the years of food stored in the city's warehouses before he left, he left it to the invaders. The gesture moved the king and thanks to the duke's benevolence, the invaders kept discipline and didn't wrong the city's citizens.

Given that the trenches in Forund had been breached, the neighboring Farkel lost the protection its flank had enjoyed until then and the sparse rear defenses allowed Andinaq to quickly overwhelm it. Duke Farkel had no choice but to give up his duchy and head to Handra with his four legions.

Before he left, to show his determination to resist till the end, he swore not to let the enemy step into his city and castle. Right before winter, he chased the residents out of their homes and set fire to the castle, the duke's manor, and the city. Nearly 100 thousand commoners had no homes and became vagabonds.

Duke Farkel's irrational decision made the whole dutchy's citizens lose trust and respect for his house. The first ones to abandon the duke were the four legions he had decided to take to Handra with him. Many large-scale desertions occurred along the way to Handra. It got so bad the duke had to treat his legions like prospective criminals and monitor them intensely to prevent more from deserting.

However, by the time he arrived in Handra, nearly half of the four legions had left him. Many of the house's knights and officials had also left without a word. Those that remained didn't even fill two legions. The duke finally regretted his decisions.

-- Excerpt from "Rise of the Raging Bear Dynasty" written by Dawn Academy Head and famed military historian, Lord Professor Geisthausen Year 2317.

...

On the 27th day of the 11th month of Year 1781, Andinaq's forces occupied the undefended Paetro.

"So this is the fifth-ranked palace in the empire, Summer Palace?" mused Lorist as he checked the intricately decorated palace.

"Yes," Auguslo said in awe, "When I was five and seven, Royal Father brought me here for the summer. The scenery is completely different from winter. It was practically heaven on earth. Flowers were all over the place, the trees were tall and provided good shade, different tones of green grass formed a whole layered picture. It was the haven of my dreams back then. I would roll about in the grass freely to catch the goats and ponies without anyone disturbing me, unlike now, when my retainers would remind me to watch my behavior so I don't tarnish the family's reputation."

Lorist scratched his head awkwardly. He didn't think his off-handed comment would send Auguslo into a flashback. The flashback held whole group up. The king's eyes were still a little glazed. His expression suggested he was still reminiscing about his sweet forlorn childhood.

Fortunately, he snapped out of it quickly. He laughed mockingly at himself.

"Apologies for dwelling on matters passed. The impression living here left on me is truly deep."

Duke Fisablen smiled.

"No trouble, Your Majesty. We got the opportunity to regard the famed Summer Palace well with our eyes after all. Come to think of it, this is my first time here. The sight really is a little beyond description. The beauty and elegance of Summer Palace are truly befitting its reputation."

...

On the 33rd day of the 11th month, word of what happened in Farkel arrived. Auguslo was positively incensed. He swore he would never forget Duke Farkel and his house. The news also stated that a large number of refugees had appeared in all three of Farkel's provinces. If they weren't promptly taken care of, droves would die when winter came. The situation was dire.

Auguslo instantly summoned Lorist, Fisablen, Felim, and Shazin to discuss how they would resolve the crisis. He had originally intended for the army to spend winter in Paetro so they may begin their attack on Handra early the following year. Currently, all the duchies' dukes were gathered there. As long as their armies were defeated, the plan would be complete. He could then finally reclaim 11 of the empire's provinces.

The king didn't want Lorist and his ilk to be involved in the matter. Before he arrived with Whitelion, all five houses had made quite the mess in Shabaj. So, during the grand military council, Auguslo announced the military regulations and forbade nobles from privately raiding the lands and taking people away. He even had two nobles who disobeyed orders and secretly sent their troops to raid the nobles manors in Forund punished as an example. Not only were their noble titles revoked, they were even hanged outside the camp's gates along with the near hundred attendants who participated in the raid. It was meant to be a lesson to the other nobles.

A few days earlier, he didn't really mind when he heard Farkel was on his way to Handra with four legions and was quite glad the four dukes were gathering in one place. He wouldn't have to split his forces to deal with them one by one. They could be defeated in one fell swoop next year, far less troublesome. Even if the combined forces would number almost 300 thousand, could they resist his indomitable army?

He had thought the duke would similarly leave behind some supplies before departing and thought Whitelion could send a division to occupy the towns. He didn't imagine the duke would burn his city and render the three provinces a mess for him to clean.

He ground his teeth in anger. He was the king. He couldn't just stare wide-eyed as more than 100 thousand refugees froze and starved, could he? But sending aid was no less of a headache. It wasn't just about feeding over 100 thousand mouths. Large amounts of supplies to survive the winter would have to be prepared as well. As winter was just around the corner, how would they get those supplies in time?

The supplies left at Paetro and those transported by the logistics sections would allow the 300 thousand troops to spend winter comfortably and warmly. However, there were 100 thousand more refugees in Farkel now. Even if they heavily rationed supplies to aid the refugees, it wasn't enough.

Helping them or not wasn't a matter of ruthlessness, but rather reputation. It was Auguslo who had led his army to invade their home. Now, Duke Farkel had escaped and Auguslo was the victor. Those in the future wouldn't condemn the duke for causing disasters, but blame him, the king, for not doing anything to solve it. If it were to be chronicled in the history books, then he would be described as a ruthless ruler, not a good reputation to have.

He already had quite a bad name for killing off so many noble houses to clean up the peerage in the imperial capital. He didn't really bother about their rhetoric because he would be the one to have the last laugh. However, if the 100 thousand refugees really died, he would never shed the label of a cruel and ruthless ruler.

Such was his dilemma. Even though he wanted to help, he couldn't. But if he didn't, his reputation would suffer. Even if he were to become the emperor that successfully reunited the empire again, there would still be a blemish on his legacy.

"Your Majesty, let me get on it. Tigersoar is mainly a cavalry unit and they travel fast. They can make good use of the time," offered Lorist as he stood up to take the initiative.

"What are you planning?" asked Auguslo.

"Move the refugees," Lorist replied without hesitation, "The winter and the rainy season will last far too long. If the refugees stay outside, their survival is impossible. We can't ensure sufficient food and winter gear. Putting aside how troublesome and difficult transporting the supplies would be, we can't ensure sufficient food and clothing for so many. The consequences are beyond fathoming if our supply lines are cut. If the refugees are left to starve, it would be over for the three provinces.

"Additionally, those refugees are mostly not farmers, but city folk. They only ended up like this because that dastardly Farkel burned down their homes. Without the city, they will still be refugees all the same next year. There's also no way to build a city overnight, not to mention the ridiculous amounts of resources it would require. I believe the optimal solution is to move them to another city."

"Which city?"

"Windbury," Lorist replied, "I'm sure you all know it used to be the largest livestock producer in the empire and the largest city in the north-east. The civil war and the chaotic conflicts thereafter have reduced it to barely more than a ruin. The city could house 300 thousand citizens. Most of the houses are empty.

"Most crucially, a good number of the refugees are artisans who have no fields to farm. They rely on their skills to make ends' meet and feed their family. They would be used to their new environment at Windbury. We just need to fund their endeavors and start their own workshops and businesses to revitalize the city."

Auguslo was a little unwilling. Though he knew Lorist was right, Windbury was under Norton control. Lorist was still the city's administrator.

It's all because of that darned agreement! I didn't want to let them move the citizens, but Lorist found a loophole and even justified it magnificently. It's obvious he wants to strengthen his house with this misfortune.

Auguslo rubbed his forehead. Though he had a slight headache, he had no choice but to agree.

"What do you need?"

"Let Pegasus join me. They're light cavalry, so we can head there quickly. The sooner we get there, the better. Also, we need food for 200 thousand people for half a month."

The food required was far less than Auguslo had expected. However, he wasn't willing to do it the way Lorist wanted.

"I can give you the food, but why do you need Pegasus? Isn't it the same with Fisablen's Third Frontier?"

"This..."

Before Lorist could speak, Fisablen interjected.

"This won't do, your Majesty. You should know Third Frontier used to be captives of House Norton. They still hold a grudge. Letting them go will spark conflict and affect the rescue efforts. And without Third Frontier, the grassland barbarians of the reserve legion will be hard to control. Not only will they not obey orders, they will also cause trouble. For the sake of military discipline, it's best to have Pegasus go."

Huh? That's weird. Why's that old fox speaking on my behalf? thought Lorist troubledly.

Auguslo had made his decision.

"Alright, Pegasus and Tigersoar will head to Farkel and save the 100 thousand refugees. Locke, Count Felim, you two must complete this mission and ensure the people survive."

Lorist and Felim stood up.

"Understood, Your Majesty."

Migration

"The civilian may have worth as a weapon against the soldier, but his true potential lies in being firewood - fuel for the furnace of economy. The civilian weapon may kill one soldier, but the firewood civilian can support a soldier who can kill ten." ~ excerpt from A Treatise on War, by Norton Lorist

(In-chapter note: did you guys know we put special, handcrafted quotes in the TL notes for every chapter? Open them up and have a look!)

As Lorist saw it, the 100 thousand refugees of Farkel's the three provinces weren't a bundle of trouble. Instead, they were gifts. As Charade and Camorra had suggested, both Windbury and The Northlands required great masses of people to fuel their development.

The reason House Norton had a different retirement condition for its soldiers was so the converted captives could truly become the house's subjects. Basically, most of their soldiers weren't sourced from the dominion, but rather from the captives who had served their three-year labor terms. After five years of service, they would develop a sense of belonging and would willingly become subjects.

Three years of service was enough to wipe the grudges away. After that, they would be drafted into the household forces. The captives, who had gotten used to hard labor, would accept the arrangement. However, the great benefits and treatment, as well as the strict discipline, would foster a sense of belonging. When they retire after five years, the would even be given farmland. They would be allowed to reunite with their families, or in the case of singles, form new families, and everyone would end up honest subjects in the dominion.

That was Lorist's conversion plan and how the house's forces had grown to the hundreds of thousands. If the method wasn't employed, allowing youths who used to be enemies to enter the dominion would only serve to introduce an unstable variable. Fortunately, thanks to the wealth they plundered from Hanayabarta, Lorist was able to keep such a policy going.

However, the policy required time. After all, military service lasted five years at least. So, the other method of increasing the population was to forcefully migrate commoners. To Lorist, following the extermination of Madras and Iblia, the only enemy left around The Northlands was House Fisablen who occupied three provinces on the great northeastern plains. However, those provinces were even more barren than The Northlands. A lack of population was one of the duke's most pressing problems and Lorist couldn't scour population from him even if he wanted to.

As a result of the swift migration of Shabaj following the conquest, not a single soul could be seen in the plains around the city, or in the city for that matter. Twenty years since the civil war between the three princes, almost every house came to understand the importance of a huge population. Apart from plundering wealth, youths were a rare and dwindling resource.

The reason Lorist agreed to deploy his troops to attack the duchies was largely so he could migrate the population. Currently, The Northlands only had a population of roughly 1.67 million. No one knew how many more years it would take to grow it to three million, not to mention the fact that the target was Charade's minimum manpower requirement to satisfy the development plan of Lorist's dominion. It would take too long to rely on natural population growth through childbirth, mainly because it took more than ten years for a child to mature and there were many risks along the way. Migrating the population from the duchies on a large scale was much faster.

While the duchies were known to be rich, Lorist knew the incessant wars of the last decade had dwindled their income. Especially after they lost 70 thousand elite infantrymen in his last war. And after only three short years to recover, they were invaded by Auguslo. It was pretty apparent that gaining great wealth from them was not realistic. The only thing worth going for was the population.

It was a shame that after attacking Shabaj, apart from the 100 thousand inhabitants of Messen and the 160 thousand refugees whose homes were ruined, the rest were taken by House Fisablen, House Felim, House Shazin and a few other nobles who knew what they were doing. Of the dutchy's three provinces, Rimad was occupied by House Norton alone, Messen was split between House Shazin and the allied noble army, and Jigzai was divided between House Fisablen and House Felim. Of the 800 thousand subjects in Shabaj, only 300 thousand were left after Auguslo declared a ban on migration.

The king believed he had to limit the migration. Otherwise, what would he use to revitalize the economy and redevelop the land? He still had to deal with the Union after all. Fortunately, Lorist and company were aware that they were going a little overboard. Given the current state of the dutchy, if Auguslo didn't stop the migrations, the three provinces would end up empty.

So, after conquering Forund, Auguslo enforced strict military regulation and forbade the nobles from entering Farkel. Since Duke Farkel had already fled for Handra, Auguslo would be the one to take the towns. What would be the point of sending the nobles who had ill intentions out?

He didn't expect that the duke would leave such a troublesome mess for him to clean up, putting him in quite a dilemma. He knew Lorist was gunning for the 100 thousand refugees but he had no choice. After all, given the current situation, Lorist's idea was the best. Otherwise, he had to watch the refugees freeze and starve. Additionally, the cost of migrating the 100 thousand refugees would be borne by House Norton. That was another reason he allowed Lorist and Count Felim to head to Farkel and relocate the refugees.

Auguslo must not have known about the saying 'the general far away didn't have to wait for the decrees of the monarch to act'. Additionally, the relationship between lieges and vassals on Grindia was not strictly hierarchical. As Duke of The Northlands, Lorist had the right to refuse any of Auguslo's orders he deemed to harm House Norton's interest. After receiving the king's permission, Lorist was a bird flying free in the sky and a fish swimming freely in the endless oceans.

Though there were refugees across the three provinces, namely, Samora, Phapsia, and Kribia, most were gathered in Phapsia. It was the province in which the capital, Freimox had stood. The duke had the food stores of the towns in the other provinces burned. The townsfolk now had no food, though they at least still had roofs over their heads.

Given that the total population of Farkel was around a million, how could a mere 100 thousand sate Lorist's appetite? On the way to Kribia, Lorist had already struck an agreement with Count Felim. House Norton would take most of the refugees while House Felim took only a few. After all, House Felim had to rely on House Norton for food after the huge migration since there was no way Southern could sustain so many people in its undeveloped state.

No matter what, Auguslo was still the king. He had to be given due respect. The two came to an agreement. They wouldn't raid the three provinces as bad as they had Forund's. It had to be slightly better at the very least.

Lorist wouldn't touch the farmers properly registered as citizens. It was easily done by referencing the dominion's registry. But as a result, the homes and lands of the nobles who had left with Handra became the target. The nobles were traitors to Auguslo anyway and he would have to do the same thing after he conquered Farkel. Lorist might as well give him an early hand and use the resources he plundered to aid the refugees.

It was a really odd opportunity, to say the least. Even though the provinces had already fallen into Auguslo's hands, the only thing that was really passed to him was the dominion registry that recorded the subjects of each town.

Additionally, subjects of the nobles entitled by the duke were not recorded in the registry. It was not unlike the 1.67 million population count of The Northlands. The number only included the subjects of House Norton. While Delamock and Winston were also controlled by the Nortons and had a combined population of around 700 thousand, they were registered as citizens of the provinces and couldn't be counted among House Norton's subjects.

For example, the citizens of Windbury were considered subjects of Andinaq. While Lorist was the governor and had similar rights to deal with the citizens of the city as he would his subjects, he couldn't consider them his. The governor term could be revoked. Even if Lorist were to serve in the position for the rest of his life, he couldn't pass the position down to his descendants. The household dominion, however, was hereditary. That was also one of the main reasons Auguslo allowed the refugees to migrate to Windbury. They would still end up under his control.

While the population was roughly a million, only were House Farkel's subjects. Now, around 100 thousand had been forced to become refugees by the dim-witted duke. Lorist and Count Felim would soon arrive to move them to Southern. While it didn't seem all that beneficial to The Northlands, all Lorist needed was an excuse to rescue them. He was actually counting on the subjects of the other nobles. He was confident he could migrate them to The Northlands.

Well, I should give Auguslo some face and move only 300 thousand to The Northlands.

With that, the conquest would add 500 thousand more subjects to The Northlands. It didn't include the refugees. House Norton was the one that profited the most from the war. Lorist wasn't too worried about the migration either.

The Norton forces had rich experience migrating droves of people. Count Felim was no stranger to it either. After Tigersoar and Pegasus arrived at Kribia, Pegasus left a division behind to work with Tigersoar to rally and watch over the refugees. Its three other divisions continued to Phapsia and Samora. As they were light cavalry, they moved quickly and could provide aid to the refugees and maintain order sooner.

Loze would lead Tigersoar per Lorist's orders to clear up the dominions of all the local nobles who left with the duke. The order was simple: the resources plundered from the dominions would be used to aid the migration. And for the subjects of the nobles who lost the resources, they would have to join the refugees on the migration so they didn't starve or freeze.

It was another reason Lorist wanted enough food to feed 100 thousand people for only 15 days. It would be enough to ensure that the refugees could make it to Windbury. The duke only burned the resources and warehouses of the areas and towns he controlled, but he didn't order his vassals to do the same. Given the good weather the duchy had had for the last couple o years, the warehouses across Farkel were filled with food. Furybear's informants Lorist had installed in the houses had long investigated and reported everything. The reports were so detailed they even had an estimate of the amount of food present.

Some of the reports even told of some road guides who led Tigersoar along for some good profit. Apart from sparing ten-odd nobles who didn't follow the duke and gave Tigersoar a huge sum of money to leave them alone, there were 34 houses razed to the ground. The army was very thorough; all valuables were taken. It was no great feat, they were so used to raiding. Another 100 thousand people became refugees.

To other houses and forces, winter was a really threatening season. Apart from having nothing better to do for most of it, nobody was willing to be on guard duty in the chilling and windy weather. House Norton's forces were different. They had to train and carry out missions even during the coldest time of winter. With thick furs to stave off the cold and great experience making long marches in the cold, even blizzards were no issue. As long as there was enough snow piled up on the ground, their sleds and skis could see some use.

With sleds, transporting the refugees to another location would be an even quicker affair. Lorist had Charade and Camorra to set up a complete transport line. Rest stations for the refugees to rest and resupply along the way were set up in Messen, Southern, and Windbury. Along the way, the refugees could get off their sleds to stretch their bodies until they arrived at their respective drop-off points.

After the third bout of snow stopped, the already-prepared Tigersoar soldiers led one sled after another on their long journey. It convenienced the Norton forces greatly by transporting large numbers of people during winter as there was no need to have anybody supervise the refugees. After all, anyone with half a brain wouldn't separate from the group to wander off in the snow or cause any trouble. Leaving the wind-shielded sleds in such cold weather only meant death.

So far, more than 400 thousand refugees had been gathered in Kribia. Tigersoar had also swept the province clean and was preparing to carry out the final sweeping operations in Samora. Lorist gave Loze a quota of 800 thousand refugees. Having been under Farkel's rule for just eight years, it was hard to find so many refugees. However, Loze promised he would find a way.

After clearing up the lands across Kribia and Phapsia, the most plentiful among the spoils was food. They obtained very few gold Fordes, around 400 thousand. There were far more luxury goods and collectibles that used to belong to the nobles. Those were worth approximately a million gold Fordes. It was decided that the cash would go to Felim and the rest would fill Lorist's coffers.

On the 32nd day of the 1st month of the next year… More than 50 days had elapsed since the migration began. The refugees from Phapsia had all been migrated, and only 40 thousand remained in Samora. Lorist estimated they could settle the refugees down on the 15th day of the 2nd month with the sleds before the thick snow melts. The rainy season and a month of good rest would follow. They could start making their contributions to the house thereafter.

Potterfang, who received a secret order to lead three divisions from Firmrock unnoticed to Phapsia, entered the main tent in the igloo.

"Your Grace, we are ready. Shall we begin?" asked he, saluting.

Hot Spring Valley

To the Old Man on the Hill

Your days are short here;

This is the last of your springs.

And now in the serenity

And quiet of this lovely place,

Touch the depths of truth,

Feel the hem of Heaven.

You will go away with old,

Good friends. And don't

Forget when you leave

Why you came.

~ Raibo Thrift

A beastskin map was spread on the desk, depicting the terrain around Paetro. It was laid between Forund and Farkel and stretched more than 50 kilometers, straddling. Dense forests covered the region with many streams, valleys, and cliffs scattered all over.

After being obstructed by the trenches and mud walls, Auguslo had tried to take the area near Paetro. As long as he could breach it, he would become a threat to Forund's capital, Paetro, and Farkel's capital, Freimox, at the same time. In the end, however, he just sent a division of Whitelion on a probing attack before abandoning the idea. It couldn't be done. The mountain roads were long and perilous, not suited for large forces to use.

The greatest difficulty was still the mountain legion Forund had stationed there. Most of the soldiers were mountain folk, incredibly fast at climbing and descending the mountains. Not only were they familiar with the terrain, they could even construct traps. Being people who loved battle, they were courageous and didn't fear death either. The division Whitelion sent was a thousand strong. They were ambushed by 400 mountaineers. Auguslo and Lorist were so shocked at the enemy's capabilities they withdrew after just a short skirmish.

In less than half an hour, Whitelion's 1000-man unit suffered nearly 700 casualties while the mountaineers lost less than half their men. While Whitelion's troops were more than double the enemy, given that the battle was fought in forests on the hills, the heavy-armored Whitelion soldiers couldn't do much against the poorly equipped mountaineers armed with small weapons and who cruised between the trees like they were flying. The men couldn't do anything but fight and cry in desperation.

The mountaineers were far too good at utilizing their terrain advantage. One of the rescued injured 100-man leaders reported his experience.

"I never knew where they were. They jumped down from the trees and blended in with the woods, and attacked when our guards were down. They never fought us head-on unless they had nowhere to go...

"There were a few times we managed to force them into a corner, but they would manage to climb the trees and escape or jump down and disappear quickly. We weighed down by our armor and couldn't keep up with them. Each time, by the time we realized they were gone, they were already behind us or had already found and taken out their target. We could do nothing but watch..."

Auguslo unwillingly withdrew his decision to take Paetro by breaking through the hilled region. The casualty rate was completely beyond anyone's ability to absorb. Whitelion had five divisions and one logistics brigade, around 56 thousand men. Each division had ten 1000-man units. They had suffered a full division's worth of casualties during the fight over the trenches, so they didn't have the strength to take the hilled area. They could easily have defeated the enemy on flat, open plains, but fighting in the mountains was a completely different story.

When he occupied Paetro, Auguslo heard the mountain legion had not withdrawn with the duke. Instead, they had chosen to stay in the mountains. He couldn't afford to dedicate troops to deal with them, however.

Let's leave them be in the mountains for now. If they dare to come down they won't be a match for my men

Since Auguslo wasn't going to deal with them, Lorist wouldn't either. Besides, sending cavalry forces, like those in Tigersaor, into combat in the mountains was just looking for death. He had barely made his decision when Tigersoar came under attack. He didn't suffer many casualties, but not so few that he could ignore it like one would a fly buzzing around one's head. The legion came under constant attacks until the snow and winds of the 12th month closed in. By that point, the legion had swept Phapsia clean of nobles and were headed to Samora.

The harassment infuriated Lorist.

You were fortunate enough to have me not bother with you, and yet you still came looking for trouble? You're pushing your luck!

Had it not been for the fact that they were busy with the migration, he would've slaughtered his way up the mountain long ago. He sent word to Potterfang and Malek, dying of boredom on Southern's border, to send over three divisions disguised as refugees. They quietly set up camp and replaced the refugees sent away.

"I had Reidy take several men and reconnoitre the area while the storm was at its heaviest. If not for winter they would've been discovered. The enemy does have winter gear and could theoretically attack us even now, but they seem unwilling to move in the cold."

Lorist pointed at a red circle drawn on the map.

"We had our pursuit teams stop at the border of the foothills after each attack to leave the impression of being unwilling to go up the mountains. Instead, I had Reidy and his mean track them in secret. We've located their main camp, it's in this circle.

"Hot Spring Valley, the largest valley in the region. There are lots of hot springs apparently and it's almost as warm as spring there. Their entire force is housed there. Our informants in Forund, tell me 80 thousand mountain folk spend winter in the valley every year. Coupled with the legion's 35 thousand, there should be just over 100 thousand. That's why I mobilized three of Firmrock's divisions.

"Two divisions from Tigersoar will also join you. They will dismount and enter the mountain range to seal off any escape routes. Pog, you'll take three divisions and attack Hot Spring Valley with me. We have to catch our enemy all at once. I'm sure you've already screened the more detailed plans. We don't need to exterminate them. We want prisoners. The mountain folk are a good source of manpower. Our development projects depend on their contributions and services."

The household knights in the tent all laughed ghastly. They knew their lord had the poor mountain folk in his sights. Lorist also chuckled. He had Jinolio open another map.

"This is a detailed map of the valley. According to the intel Reidy gathered, the eleven hills around the valley have watch posts and smoke signals. If we attack, we first have to take out the watch posts. If they raise the alarm, the rest in the valley will be on their guard. If they seal the three entrances to the valley it'll be very difficult to get in without suffering unacceptable numbers of casualties. Reidy, his men, and I will take care of this. Pog, you will take the three valley entrances.

"The north side is completely blocked by cliffs. The east, south, and west sides each have an entrance. The valley itself isn't completely flat either. It has around ten small hills. The mountain legion occupies them. Most of the mountain folk use the run-down bases as residences. Forund counts on the legion to govern the mountain folk. We have to make sure we pull the roots out completely, we can't leave loose ends. Understood?"

"Understood, Your Grace," replied the knights and high-ranked military officials.

...

"Shut the door quickly. I'm freezing to death," barked Jack.

He had become more and more susceptible to the cold lately, possibly due to his age. Every time it became wet, he would feel intense pain in the joints of his arms and legs. It was probably a serious case of cold autoinflammatory syndrome which Jack probably got because of his exposure to cold during his youth. The treatment was simple, though - just a simple medical concoction worth 10 gold coins a bottle. Three bottles would return everything to normal.

"What horrid merchants!" complained Jack, Do they think gold Fordes are so easily earned? I sold half my life to the mountain legion and only saved 23 gold Fordes… I'm already over 40. Thankfully, the Norton cavalry scout I killed had three gold coins. I also got one coin from general Nuori.

At that moment, the old man was faced with a difficult choice. Upon saving up 30 gold coins, would he buy the medicine required to cure his disease? Or would he use it to wed the widow, Sarina? He was rather old already, he didn't have much time left in the legion. Sarina had told him he could buy farmland with the 30 gold. He could farm herbs and hunt -- a decent life for a family. She would marry him if he could provide her with such a life; they could have children and he could spend the rest of his life in peace.

"Sigh, Old Jack, the mountains are really cold. Even such a short trip froze my limbs stiff! I really miss the hot springs in the valley. Bathing and having a few shots of steaming hot wheat brew in this kind of weather is the ultimate pleasure..."

The one who had just entered was Maskrei. The two were in charge of one of the outposts together.

"Do you think I don't want that as well?" Jack said, rolling his eyes, "But for the sake of my gold coins, I have to forget about luxuries like that. If not for your gambling debts, would you be willing to spend winter here with me?"

His words rang true. It was precisely because General Nuori offered a reward of two gold Fordes. Jack and Maskrei were only willing to leave Hot Spring Valley to suffer the cold for the coins. As long as they could endure the winter, they would get two gold Fordes.

"Any signs of movement outside?" asked Jack.

Maskrei shook his head.

"Nothing, like always. I only see white no matter where I look. Staring too long only makes my head hurt. I circled the peak a few times. The woods are quiet. I did see a muntjac deer down the cliff, though. It's a shame we can't get down there. Otherwise, we'd have fresh-meat soup tonight. I'm sick of drinking salted-meat soup and teething on black bread every day."

They were stationed at the outpost built on the outermost hill. It was also one of the tallest, so it was incredibly hard, even outright impossible, to descend especially during winter. The small path that required one to walk sideways was sealed. The two could only spend winter in their run-down shed. Their rations were also brought up using a rope that hung over the cliff.

"Winter's still fine. When the snow melts and rainy season comes, it'll be far worse. We'll know if our sheds have leaks then. We might have to basically rebuild the entire shed, otherwise we won't sleep all season," said Jack.

"I see..."

All of a sudden, Maskrei's ears twitched.

"D'you hear anything? Something's outside."

"Impossible, no one could climb a cliff like--"

Beroe Jack could finish, there was a knock on the shed's door. It was pushed open a moment later. A lone figure filled the doorway. The cold wind squeezed in around him.

"Surrender now. You have one chance," said the caped, white-scarfed figure.

Jack's teeth chattered, either from fear or the cold, he didn't know which.

"Y-y-you... How did you get up..."

"How?" the figure mused as if it was an odd question, "Isn't there a path? I got up using that."

Jack had calmed down. He secretly tugged on Maskrei's clothes.

"Hold him off. I'll light the smoke signal and help you deal with him after," whispered he.

The smoke signal fire was behind the shed. However, there was an opening in the cabin that gave access to it. Jack had already thought up a plan. As long as Maskrei could hold the figure off for a moment, he could get some quick-burning firewood, ignite it, and toss it out the window. The pile, pre-doused with fuel, would be set alight immediately. If he was fast, he could do it in a few blinks. The enemy's plan would fail and they'd either try to kill the two or panic and run away. Either way, Jack would've completed his mission. Jack didn't mind if it broke into a fight either. Having dwelled on battlefield after battlefield for most of his life, he wasn't afraid of tussling with a rookie.

"Now!" cried Jack before he took out the quick-burning wood from his waist pouch and turned to the opening behind him. From the corner of his eye, he saw Maskrei draw his sword and dash towards the figure.

"I did it!" cried Jack.

Just as he was about to open the wooden window, he felt a cold sensation in his chest and lost all his strength. He lost his balance and crashed into the wall.

What's going on?

He lowered his head and saw a blade poking out of his chest.

"Ugh..."

He turned around with much difficulty and saw Maskrei, still standing a moment before, collapsed on the ground. He didn't know if the man was dead. The figure drew his sword and complained.

"You really don't know what's good for you, do you?"

His vision darkened. He slumped to the ground and lay there, dead.

On the 3rd day of the 4th month, Year 1782, House Norton attacked Hot Spring Valley near Paetro. Forund's mountain legion was completely defeated. General Nuori fought to his death at the hands of General Potterfang. More than 10 thousand mountain folk resisted and were massacred. The remaining 50 thousand discarded their weapons and surrendered.

Word of the Swordsaint

"Take a seat. Is the rain outside heavy?" Lorist asked Charade, who had just come in, as he leaned against his chair. After a busy winter, he had finally dealt with the migration and returned to Ragebear before the rainy season. After a few days of messing around with Sylvia, whom he hadn't seen for a while, he finally returned to dealing with business.

"What do you think? I really hate the rainy season. This incessant rain makes me feel moist as if I have mold growing on me even if I wasn't in the rain. The thought of having to endure this for more than 20 days really drives me crazy," complained Charade as he approached the fireplace like he was trying to bake his clothes dry.

When he felt warm again, he sat on the couch and asked Jinolio to get him a bottle of fruit wine.

"Hey, how's it going with Howard lately? He should be making good progress training in seclusion, right?"

Lorist nodded.

"Yes. Reidy's gone to Firmrock to check on him. He can leave in another half a year. Potterfang also told me before he went to the border that the moment Howard comes out of seclusion, he will marry him to the beloved daughter of Count Felim. Seeing as only Handra remains, if we succeed, Count Felim will be made Duke of Southern. So, Potterfang is getting a little anxious. He worries that, after Felim's promotion, he will not regard his title as baron fondly and make changes to Howard's marriage with his daughter."

"Hehe, Potterfang's brain is rusting. What's there to worry about?" Charade criticized impolitely, "Even if Count Felim is promoted to duke, he would still have to rely on us. Without our support, could he develop his dominion and secure Southern? If Firmrock really was called back, The count would only be able to sleep well if he keeps one of his eyes open at night. Would he really think the armistice signed with Duke Fisablen is a guarantee for peace? The moment Frontier troops march into his castle, it would all be over."

Charade's words contained some truth. Even if Count Felim was to be made duke after the four duchies' conquest, he would still have to stand behind House Norton. If he really were to cut ties with the other houses, he would definitely be swallowed whole by House Fisablen.

"Then again, Howard already has a good carrier, and Katrina seems to be a good girl who's also a great match. The two get along well as well. I've decided to let them get married after Howard exits seclusion," said Lorist.

Taking a sip of the delicious fruit wine Jinolio served, he asked, "The new migrants are doing well, yes?"

The refugees forced to migrate from Farkel to The Northlands totaled 230 thousand. Coupled with the ones from Forund, the number exceeded 400. That was to say, the population of The Northlands had shot past two million.

"It's going well. There haven't been any revolts yet. Even the last batch of mountain folk have been behaving."

Charade saw Lorist was ready to talk about serious matters, so he motioned his attendant to get him his personal folder and searched for the relevant information. Upon mention of the mountain folk, Lorist snorted.

"Make sure to watch them closely. They're really feisty and disagreeable. When we surrounded Hot Spring Valley and forced them into a corner, they actually dared to continue resisting? It took us more than a thousand casualties to subdue them and forced us to have Malek's carroballista division massacre the bulk from afar before they were finally willing to discard their weapons and surrender.

"The mountain legion was the same. Even though they were obviously encircled and their gold-ranked knight general, one of the mountain folk called Nuori, had died, they still persisted. They just wouldn't surrender. In the end, we had to burn their camps down to chase them out and kill them. We lost 18 thousand possible captives. Those we caught were mostly injured. I've decided they will work for eight years, not just three."

"Eight years? Well, Your Grace, weren't you going to recruit them into our forces? Logically speaking, the mountain folk should be rather decent recruits," wondered Charade.

Lorist shook his head.

"They have a really tough personality and they've always been loyal to Forund. They are proud to be citizens of the duchy. Additionally, House Forund's policies towards their subjects are aimed at gaining their loyalty. You might not know this, but there's only been one form of taxation for the mountain folk in the last century: blood tax. That is to say, the mountain folk have to serve in the military. House Forund also gave back by allowing them to congregate in the hilled area near Paetro and develop as they want. Thus their loyalty, unlike soldiers from other factions or houses that joined to make end's meet. Their loyalty will be hard to change."

Charade nodded. Now that he knew, even he did not intend to recruit them. Eight years of labor should teach them their place. After that, they would be placed all over the dominion so they will assimilate as its subjects. He took out another document.

"The plan to settle the refugees is already complete. Do you want to look it over?"

Lorist raised his cup.

"Just give me a brief. As long as the rough details make sense, I'll sign."

"Alright."

Charade cleared his throat and recited, "There are 2871 households among those who migrated to Windbury. They are 98236 people, most are artisans and merchants. We assigned them to the houses across the nearby streets so it would be convenient to set up shops or workshops. We expect Windbury to develop explosively once they're settled down. We estimate the livestock trading centers and leatherworking workshops will be established in Windbury's northern sector next year.

"More than 360 thousand migrants are expected to enter The Northlands in total They will not be assigned to the three new settlements in the south, but rather, the east where two new settlements are being built, Prosperitas and Bliss will be completed later this year. As for the three completed settlements in Southern, namely, Harvest, Vigor, and Haven, they are located near Ragebear, so we have decided to move a few loyal subjects from Felicitas, Salus and Redriver Valley over. The rest will be assigned to the soldiers who are retiring in the coming three years.

"Additionally, the refugees distributed to our vassals are around 13 thousand. That is the gist of it. After the rainy season, we will bring the new subjects and allocate farmland and houses to them. We'll try to have everything settled by the 8th month. Does anything need amending?"

Lorist gave it some thought before he offered, "Let's leave it as is. The plan's fine, there's no need to change it. Just let me sign and have your subordinates execute it."

As Lorist was signing, Charade brought out another document.

"Your Grace, this is the report Grandmaster Sid submitted last year. He has successfully used the new elastic steel to make new compact crossbows for cavalry use with a greatly lowered cost. It seems that, so far, each compact crossbow costs only 7 gold and 8 large silvers to manufacture. I already allocated a budget of three thousand gold Fordes in research funds and requested the production cost to be further lowered to five gold Fordes before we put it into mass production."

Lorist was elated.

"Finally! Now Jaeger's ranged weaponry issue can be solved. Then again, do you know what the range, force, and speed re?"

Charade answered a little apologetically.

"I'm not too sure... I was too focused on the cost. A crossbow usually costs between two to three gold Fordes, the compact crossbow should be at least double in performance. In that sense, it would be acceptable for the cost to even be two times as high..."

Lorist waved Grandmaster Sid's report.

"Since it's not stated here, I believe Grandmaster Sid intends to keep it secret. how about this, write Josk a letter and have him pick a hundred loyal and reliable elite light cavalry from Jaeger and head to the grandmaster after the rainy season. They can do some practical testing to further refine the prototype. After all, they will be the ones to use them in battle, so they should be the ones giving input. Also, there's no need to lower the price further, it might affect the quality."

"Alright, understood."

The two discussed a few other matters. Jinolio knocked on the door and entered.

"Your Grace, Sir Tarkel is here."

The reason for Tarkel's visit was so he could give Lorist reports about the war between the Union and the mid-southern nations. Though Lorist had been on the frontlines last year, he still managed to get some snippets about the war. However, as most were sent via eagle, they were concise and simple. Now that he had returned to Ragebear, he had Tarkel gather and bring him the reports and newspapers from Morante.

Tarkel entered the study holding a stack of newspapers half a person high. It was a collection of seven to eight different publications in Morante throughout the previous year. After putting the stack of newspapers down, Tarkel handed him a folder.

"Your Grace, this is a gross summary of what these newspapers report."

Lorist took the folder. The first page he read shocked him.

"What? The windstorm swordsaint is now living in Morante?"

Charade flabbergasted.

"What did you say?!"

Tarkel smiled bitterly.

"Your Grace, I already reported this to you in an eagle message."

"Sorry, Tarkel. I was too focused on information concerning the four duchies I didn't give those much thought."

Tarkel flipped through the newspapers and took out ten or so.

"The details are in these. This swordsaint is rather low profile, he went into seclusion and nobody has seen him since the interview on his first day in Morante. The Union's law enforcement hasn't allowed the press to send people after him either. Apart from the commotion this caused during the first month, nothing else happened. But with a swordsaint supporting the Union, their morale has risen greatly."

Charade flipped through the newspapers quickly, but was soon disappointed.

"All the newspapers tell his life story and legend. It doesn't contain anything about how Kalia was wiped out and why the swordsaint decided to leave and accept the Union's invitation. They also don't say anything about what the Union did to get him! What kind of bullshit reporting is this?!"

Lorist sank into deep thought for a moment.

This means the Union just gained a swordsaint protector. Auguslo's ambition of retaking the provinces lost to the Union just became pretty much impossible. I bet he won't react well to hearing this news. Then again, this won't affect us much since we're so far away.

Even so, he was still really curious about the price the Union paid to invite the swordsaint over.

"Tell me, if His Majesty were to invite the windstorm swordsaint, what kind of price do you think he'd be willing to pay?"

Charade and Tarkel both blanked. They didn't know what this had to do with Auguslo. But since Lorist had asked, they tried their best to come up with an answer.

"At least 100 thousand gold Fordes, as well as a training hall for him to pass on his swordsmanship," offered Tarkel.

"Not just that. Your conditions aren't much different from how it was for the swordsaint back at Kalia. If His Majesty really wants to recruit him, he'd have to give a province as his hereditary dominion and name him a duke," offered Charade.

Lorist laughed.

"That's more like it. However, the Union's recruitment is horrible news for His Majesty. You should know how he rambles on about reuniting the empire. I'd really like to see the look on his face when he hears about this. Even after exterminating the duchies, he still has to face the huge pressure of a superpower like the Union. Before he comes up with a method to deal with the swordsaint, he will cool down and not try so hard to advance.

"I will soon return to the frontlines with Tigersoar. Though there's only Handra left, the other duchies' forces have gathered there. Coupled with the terrain limitations, this isn't going to be a smooth fight. It may take up to a year. I leave the dominion to you, Tarkel. Take note of news of the war down south. Inform me immediately if any major changes come about."

"Understood, Your Grace," replied Tarkel with a bow.

Method

"A commander that can only come up with three ways to deal with a given situation is either inept or has the wrong morals." ~ Duke Fisablen

Auguslo spent the month-long rainy season with a constant gloom on his face. The news Lorist had brought had already unnerved him so much he didn't have an apatite and couldn't sleep. Then there was the failed attack on Handra. Suffice to say, even being a rank 1 blademaster, his teeth stung like a shard of bone had found its way beneath the enamel.

The herbalist that had just left had infuriated him even more. It took considerable effort not to just end the man right then and there. The man just shrugged, there was nothing he could do to ease or relieve the pain. It was nerves and stress, not anything related to the teeth themselves. In herbal medicine, toothache was a huge problem. Unlike normal bodily diseases. which one bottle of concoction could usually solve, there was only one way to deal with a toothache: tooth extraction. However, it left the unfortunate patient with fewer teeth. Dental filling was unheard of.

Auguslo opted to keep his teeth. A king was not truly a king if he didn't have a full smile. It wasn't that there wasn't a solution; a tooth from a dead person could be extracted and implanted in the lost tooth's place on social occasions -- many nobles resorted to this -- but the thought of putting a dead man's tooth in one's mouth only to remove it before a meal to avoid accidentally swallowing it... wasn't exactly invigorating.

With no other options available -- or allowed -- the herbalist left to prepare some general purpose anti-inflammatory solutions. Auguslo was in so much pain he'd have given the herbalist a beating had he been able to say something properly.

Why, in the world of medicine, where ruptured organs aren't a big deal, is a simple toothache such a pain?! What's this bullshit about teeth being the crystallization of human bones and different from the other parts of the body... He's just making shit up to cover his incompetence! I really shouldn't have spent so much money feeding him!

Looking at the Morantian newspapers Lorist had brought, Auguslo felt his lucky stars were really misaligned. Though the four duchies' collapse was within his grasp and his ambition of reunifying the empire seemed achievable, his biggest enemy, the Union, actually managed to recruit a swordsaint. With a swordsaint supporting the nation, could he send his troops to reclaim the provinces? If he were to give up on them, though, would the reunification ever truly be achieved? Would he be able to claim that he was the ruler that reunited the empire?

Meanwhile, Lorist was accompanying Shazin to check out the battlefield. After the rainy season, Lorist stayed at Ragebear for half a month until Auguslo had sent three messengers asking him to get a move on, prompting him to unwillingly mobilize Tigersoar. He handed the king a few reports from Morante about the Union's recruitment of a swordsaint.

After checking the defenses, he understood why the king was so distraught. At first, Lorist was quite unwilling to mobilize his forces, as using heavy-armored infantry was the way to go in hilly terrain. Tigersoar was a cavalry unit and they couldn't play too huge a part in such a fight. But upon seeing the battlefield himself, he finally understood that the king didn't need his cavalry, but rather, the legion's thunderbolt and carroballista brigades.

When Lorist arrived at the frontlines, it was already the 21st day of the 5th month. After the rainy season, Auguslo led his troops of 200 thousand men into Handra's province, Wesstwood. At first, it went really smooth and a quarter of the territory was conquered. They were soon held back on the Welony mountain pass, however, and lost a few battles in a row. So, they had to borrow Tigersoar's ranged forces to suppress the defenders, hence the messengers' hurried beckoning.

"This battle won't be easy," said Lorist.

That true. Wesstwood, as its name suggested, was a province covered in hills and forests. It was also rather large. In the common tongue, 'wesst' was used to describe mountainous areas. Cloudsnap near Egret Swamp actually stretched all the way from Kanbona to Wesstwood. It crossed five provinces altogether. Though it was one of the mountain range's ends, it was covered with dense forests, making it hard to attack and easy to defend. The first prince had led 200 thousand men in his invasion of the duchies, only to be stopped in Wesstwood. Many battles were lost during the two years of conflict there. But the first prince had attacked from the south northwards while Auguslo was doing so in the opposite direction.

Welony pass was the true endpoint of Cloudsnap. Its terrain was a little similar to Pispir pass, in which stood Pedro, but the opening was far wider at about five kilometers. While it was wide, the cliffs on either side were incredibly steep, exposing the attacking side to great risk. It was exceedingly disadvantageous.

From the telescope, was clear that the Handra garrison was using the same trench and mud wall network. They also constructed a lot of archer towers, though. There were also a lot of ruined shield carts laid all over the network, with the ground around it bloodied and crimson. It was probably the blood shed by the attacking soldiers. There were also a lot of bumps and potholes of varying size dotting the slope.

"Look at those two areas poking out on the slope," said Shazin.

"What are they?"

Lorist pointed the telescope where Shazin had pointed and saw a row of man-made crane-like contraptions on tall wooden structures.

"Catapults," Shazin replied, "When His Majesty deployed the catapults to cover Whitelion's march, he didn't think the enemy would be prepared. Those weird wooden buildings with long arms are actually catapults. Though their range isn't as great as ours', given their elevation, they have the advantage in terms of terrain. Whitelion's assault suffered a hideous loss and huge casualties. Even ten of His Majesty's catapults were ruined."

Catapults? So Handra has already come up with a lever contraption. The wooden buildings below the arms must be to hide the lever. Hehe, so they're pretty secretive.

Lorist counted around 40 wooden towers on one side. There were near a hundred in total on both sides.

"How heavy are the rocks they throw? How far can they reach?"

"More or less the size of a human head, around 20 kilograms. They can be thrown around 300 meters at most. The catapults His Majesty sent were shot down at around that range. His Majesty even threw a tantrum and said the catapults you gave him were defective and couldn't fire as far as the enemies'. That's because, when the enemy started using their catapults to attack us, our catapults also retaliated. But our rocks all fell short."

Lorist snorted lightly.

"Defective products? Props to him for daring to say that. He didn't even think about how we're fighting a literal uphill battle. The enemy has the high ground which means they have a great advantage. Given the difference in elevation, it's no wonder our catapults don't fire as far."

"Yeah. His Majesty also realized this a little later. He tried a night attack but failed because the enemy was on ready. Right now, it's exactly the opposite of how it was in Forund. We dominated and Forund's garrison had to attack at night to retake the land they lost in the day. Now, however, with the hundreds of catapults up there, the day is now their domain. We have no way of launching an attack."

Those hundred catapults were a grave threat. They had to dodge rocks whenever they were in range. Their chances of victory were all but zero.

"Did His Majesty try attacking somewhere else?"

"It's useless," Shazin said, shaking his head, "This is the flattest terrain in the pass. I've already checked everywhere else and it's all worse than this. Some passes circle around smaller hills, even more beneficial to the defenders. The large pass here is the main highway between the duchies and the smallest threat. We didn't think Handra would install so many catapults."

"What is the enemy's disposition?"

"Our scouts and the few prisoners we caught, the pass is defended by Handra's Reddragon. Together with Whitedragon, Reddragon is one of the two standing legions, and, just like Whitedragon, it has 24 thousand men. They are divided into two divisions and another brigade. They're known as the Twin Dragon Legion, though they always fight independently. Currently, Reddragon has four divisions guarding the pass, eight thousand men in each. There's also another logistics brigade of three thousand. All-in-all, we face 35 thousand.

"The eastern part of Cloudsnap is defended by Forund's first legion, Matnamady in the west is held by Farkel's Forestmont. We don't know where the rest are. Altogether, we face 130 thousand men."

Shazin was quite well-informed.

Lorist pointed at the distant, foggy Matnamady stream.

"Has our king not thought of attacking there?"

Shazin smiled bitterly.

"Of course, and it cost me one regiment of elite light infantry scouts. Matnamady sits on mountainous terrain; there's no way to bypass it. There are a number of streams in the area, which completely lock down any possible bypass route. Farkel's Forestmont only has to occupy a few strategic points to make it hard for us to escape. I sent a regiment of elite scouts to reconnoiter the area... less than three hundred returned."

"Isn't the Nibarak river beyond Matnamady? It connects Handra's inner land, Deramak province, right? Has His Majesty considered sending an assault for that way?"

"It's useless. Duke Fisablen suggested that move, but even he lost almost a whole light cavalry division," Shazin sighed, "Handra has long made preparations. Duke Fisablen recruited some worksmiths and constructed countless wooden boards to head down along Nibarak. He didn't think Handra would install chain blockades at three turning points of Matnamady.

"In an attempt to launch a surprise attack, Duke Fisablen didn't send anyone to scout, fearing it would alert the enemy. In the end, the grassland barbarians were sent down the stream only to be stopped by the chains. The troops standing guard on shore hurriedly called for reinforcements and shot flaming arrows and fireballs at the river while dumping fuel into the water. They then set it alight and everything burned. The legion lost 10 thousand men."

Duke Fisablen is really unlucky. The division he lost was burnt alive without harming a single hair on the enemy.

After indulging in schadenfreude, his expression darkened as he thought back to how he had promised the king he would come up with a method to attack the defenses they now faced.

I'm really dumb. Why did I have to mock them for being stranded here? Auguslo's words got on my nerve and I promised confidently I would come up with a way to conquer the duchy… Remind me to never get drunk when the king's near ever again. I really let myself get into a horrible corner this time...

"Show me if there're any weaknesses, Hennard."

Three days later, the herbalist's concoction began to take effect. While Auguslo's tooth still hurt badly, the inflammation subsided and he could speak normally again. With a hint of frustration, the king called for a military council to discuss how they could break through their current predicament.

"Locke, last time you told me you'd find a way to take Welony pass. Have you come up with anything yet?" asked he the moment everyone was present.

Who asked you to bring Tigersoar over so unwillingly? You even said you were busy migrating the refugees and bragged about how you'd solved my problem with the mountain legion and wanted to rest for the winter. You even said Tigersoar wouldn't fight without you present. You're really vexing.

Duke Fisablen even explained how perfect the fortifications are. But you bragged that there was no such thing as a flawless defense and that we just hadn't noticed its weakness... I bet you just had a little too much to drink. You didn't leave before giving me the newspapers and kicking off my toothache… You forced me to suffer all this pain!

If you can't come up with a way to take the pass, I'll mock you into your grave! Who asked you to run your mouth?

Lorist raised three fingers.

"Please forgive my incompetence. I could only come up with three ways to take care of the situation."

Three Methods (1)

"A relationship of deception is a balancing act. One must deceive one's counterpart for as much benefit as possible, without doing it so often they become suspicious of everything you do." ~ Norton Lorist

Are you fucking kidding me?! thought Auguslo blankly.

Rage followed momentarily.

We spent so much time leading the troops in attempt after attempt to take the pass and failed, but you say you found three methods to do just that in just a few days? Aren't you saying we're incompetents? That all the experienced generals and nobles here can't compare to you?!

The king suppressed his rage. However much he wished to deny it, he needed Lorist's input. Perhaps he really had discovered some weaknesses that could be exploited. He silenced everyone and smiled at Lorist.

"Is that so? I look forward to hearing them."

Lorist pulled the rack on which the map hung over.

"We've been stopped dead in our tracks. The enemy's trench network is similar to what we faced in Forund, but even more effective thanks to the terrain. This network is in the middle of a pass half-way up a mountain, there are no streams from which to draw water, so we can't defeat this network the as we did the one in Forund.

"Trenches and mudwalls alone, however, are not that much of a problem. Even if Handra added turrets, they can't hinder our assault that much. The real problem is the catapults. They stand far above us, which gives them far greater range than our weapons, effectively making our ranged equipment useless. We can't break through with a frontal assault.

"Granted, if we threw enough bodies at it, we could get through, but we can't afford the losses necessary."

Ah, I see. Why don't we just dig trenches and tunnels so our men can move hidden from the enemy catapults? They aren't nearly as accurate as ours, so it's not likely they'd be able to hit into the trenches.

Hold on, Lorist did mention this would cause too many casualties. This might not be one of his methods.

Though Auguslo didn't mind sacrificing troops to, Whitelion was the kingdom's only standing royal army. They had already lost over ten thousand men. It would be best if excessive casualties could be avoided.

"Will all the three your methods avoid burning out the men?" asked the king with a beaming smile.

"Well..."

Lorist was a little taken aback by the sudden question.

"About that, it's not that it won't cost us any men. It's about minimizing the losses. The first method is a little dangerous."

"Danger? What kind? Let's hear it," Auguslo said with a smile.

"War is inherently filled with danger. I'm sure no one here fears danger."

"Okay. My first idea is to launch an assault with shock troops," Lorist said as he pointed at the pass on the map, "Since the biggest threat is the catapults, we destroy them first."

"Hah, you make it sound easy. It's not that we didn't think about it before. The problem is how. Without conquering the slope, we can't attack the catapults."

The one who spoke was Auguslo's long-time subordinate, Gold-ranked Knight Ripleid, whom Lorist had met when he was at Egret Swamp during his rescue of Reidy. Currently, Ripleid was Whitelion's general.

"I'm not talking about ordering our soldiers to take the slope," Lorist said with a smile, "We'll form a small elite squad. His Majesty, Duke Fisablen, Blademaster Manst, Reidy, and I combined are five blademasters. We just need ten gold-ranked knights. I've analyzed the enemy's rear. They are ready to fight an army, not a small team. It won't be hard to sneak a dozen or so people past them.

"As long as we secretly circle around, we will arrive at the slope where their catapults are. There is no way that the enemy can resist a surprise attack by five blademasters and ten gold-ranked knights. Additionally, the moment the catapults are set on fire, our main force will advance. You will lead the troops and attack from below and we'll wreak as much havoc as we can."

"I object!" As the king's personal bodyguard, Blademaster Manst was the first to speak out. "Lord Norton, I won't oppose you if you want to head out and risk your own life. But His Majesty cannot leave; he is responsible for the entire kingdom. There's no way he can head out so easily. If something goes wrong, you will be the kingdom's most wanted and hated man! War is rife with dangers and I will not let His Majesty take this kind of a risk!"

Lorist shrugged, "Then, just pretend I didn't propose it."

What does it have to do with me?! Would Duke Fisablen go if Auguslo doesn't go? Would you, Auguslo's bodyguard, go? You want Reidy and me to deal with it ourselves?! Since you are unwilling, why should I bother? Do you think we'd destroy a hundred catapults without at least five blademasters?

Auguslo, as opposed to his guardian, was rather moved by the proposition. Lorist's suggestion was rather suited to his tastes. However, the squad's composition was rather problematic. He was indeed a rank 1 blademaster, but unwilling to risk himself. He had earned his name as a genius military strategist, not as a frontliner.

Ideally, Lorist, Duke Fisablen, and the rest of the squad would ask to be given the responsibility while he remained in the main camp to command the main force from its relative safety. He thought about it for a few moments, and realized why Lorist had included him. The two dukes, Lorist and Fisablen, were not going to go on a dangerous mission their king wouldn't join. They weren't obedient people; to them, a king wasn't worth any more than them.

"Let's put the shock squad aside for now. Tell us the other methods."

He decided he would slowly discuss how he should proceed after hearing all three methods.

"As you wish. My second method involves splitting our forces." Lorist used a pencil to draw a line across Nibarak.

Auguslo said with disappointment, "Locke, we tried that already. Duke Fisablen suffered heavy casualties as a result of its failure. The four duchies' defenses are really tight."

Lorist shook his head.

"Your Majesty, your previous attempt involved leading part of the troops along the river to the enemy's rear. I'm not suggesting this. We will split a section off and send it to Handra's province, Deramak. We don't want to face Reddragon, from both sides, we want to race Hans, Handra's capital. We can cut their supply lines."

"This... How is this different from Duke Fisablen's suggestion?"

"There are quite a few, actually," Lorist said as he pointed at the map, "The duke's reserve legion was sent along the stream to the border. The plan was to chaos cause, and while the enemy was reacting, launch another attack on the pass. You forgot that the dukes are battle-hardened generals. The dukes have thought of this possible approach and prepared accordingly."

"However, aren't you suggesting splitting the forces the same way?" asked the reserve legion's general.

He was a gold-ranked knight called Hausen, a rather rough subordinate of Duke Fisablen.

"The goal is different. We aren't splitting the force to attack Wesstwood from behind. We're pressing forward and sowing havoc along the way. We'll burn the whole province to the ground."

"How will you get through their defenses along the river? They have chains and at least a division stationed along the river and they have numerous catapults."

"Simple. We won't go down the river. We'll cross it and continue east. We'll move down along the farthest banks. It may have dense forests and swamps, but we can manage."

Flabbergasted, Auguslo asked, "But... But won't the enemy discover us?"

"So what if they do? Just look. Nibarak is the province's border. Even if the enemy discovers the troops, what can they do? Cross the river as well? It'd be great if they did, actually. We can march proudly and in the open on the other side of the river. If the enemy wishes to stop us, they'll have to line their troops along the river. Given how long Nibarak is, I really wonder how many legions the enemy will need. They'd have to line the entire river, but we can just pick a spot and cross again wherever we choose," said Lorist gleefully.

"No matter how the enemy chooses to react, the moment we head east, they will be incredibly riled-up. Even if we choose to not cross the river, the enemy will still be held back. They'll send three legions to follow us. In fact, we just need one cavalry legion to lead them by the nose. Let's not forget the duchies don't have cavalry like we do. They can't keep up."

Everyone finally understood what Lorist was planning. The moment the enemy realized the kingdom's troops were on the other side of the river, they would have to respond. The duchies would definitely not allow the kingdom to cross the river unabated and ravage their undefended belly. They would send troops to follow the split-off unit everywhere they went. Lorist was correct in that the duchies' infantry would always be lagging behind. The kingdom just had to race up and down the river to tire everyone out, attack.

Auguslo was convinced. "I wonder if we can split one light cavalry legion off to carry out this plan."

After some thought, Lorist replied, "Your Majesty, I believe it would be best to allow our house's Tigersoar and Felim's Pegasus to conduct this operation together."

"Why?"

"One legion won't be much of a threat. The enemy just has to retreat into their towns and focus on defending them. Additionally, Tigersoar's field and siege capabilities far exceed normal light cavalry. We might exterminate a few legions by working with Pegasus."

Auguslo nodded. Lorist's words made sense, but just as he was about to agree, a switch flicked in his head. He thought back to what happened in Farkel. He realized he had nearly been duped.

What is Lorist up to this time? Why is he so eager? Is he planning to strip Deramak clean as well?

He had lost so much he was instinctively afraid something was going on. The more he thought about it, the more suspicious he became. It was worth noting that the spoils any noble obtained during war would belong to them. The king was afraid he would receive a completely empty plot of land even if he managed to eliminate Handra, and Lorist would have captured the citizens and called them his spoils.

No way. I cannot allow Tigersoar to go there, even if they are the most suitable candidates, thought he.

His face remained a mask.

"You said you had three methods, right? What about the last one?"

Three Methods (2)

"A good negotiator is not the one who can get his opponent to say yes, but who has mastered the art of saying no and knows how to get to an agreement thereafter." ~ King Andinaq Auguslo

It seems Auguslo has realized my intentions. He's actually learning his lesson, thought Lorist as he sighed, disappointed, It's over. I shouldn't think of taking advantage of him anymore. It's getting harder and harder to swindle him. It seems he isn't as much of a fool as I thought.

"The final option is to just continue the stand-off."

"Continue the stand-off?"

"Yes. Think about it, according to our reports, Dukes Forund and Farkel brought two legions to Handra, Duke Shabaj also brought a division. There are 200 thousand more people in the duchy than is normal. Additionally, Hans's reports say Duke Handra has also expanded the Dragon Twins. Coupled with the city garrison, there are a total of 100 thousand men.

"Handra has three provinces and a population of approximately one million. Over a third of their bodies are now in uniform, I doubt the duchy can support so many people essentially just sitting around for long. So far, the dukes are working together to defend against us. But they are running out of money and supplies very quickly. We can just sit around and wait for them to crumble.

"There's be complete chaos when they do, and the three dukes now guests in the duchy won't disband their forces and give up on their claims so easily. If Handra's supplies and money runs out, there'll be hell to pay. I doubt any of the dukes will be willing to disband their forces, they'll try to get more supplies instead.

"I'm sure you can imagine what'll happen then. All three dukes will begin vying for resources, and Handra will recruit even more men to defend his territory against his allies, which'll only worsen the situation and bring the collapse about so much quicker.

"The longer we stay put, the worse things will get between the three. They might be able to hold out without much issue for a year, but no more. And they will inevitably turn on one another when the food runs out. They'll no doubt try and suppress the conflicts at first, but that just means it'll burst out like a hot geyser all at once and the three will be at each other's throats.

"The dukes will likely set their sites on the commoners first. They'll raid the villages and farms for food and other supplies. As the duchy's ruler, Duke Handra will have to protect his subjects. Which will pit him against the other three. We can just sit by and watch the show. We don't need to lift a finger or lose a single life. Handra will fall apart on its own.

"If Your Majesty can be patient enough, just wait until they start fighting amongst themselves. It might even be that the losers will defect and lead us into Handra. If we march in at that time, the victor will be too battered to fight back."

The tent was completely silent. Everyone was analyzing Lorist's third and final suggestion. After a while, Duke Fisablen stood up and gave sound to his doubts.

"Lord Norton, while what you said makes sense, you seem to have forgotten an important point. Handra's Majik province neighbors Anderwoff, which is currently under the Union's control. The Wessia merchant guild occupies Bodolger right next to Anderwoff. The duchies could request support from Wessia or trade with the Union to get more resources and continue to resist."

Lorist laughed heartily.

"Your criticism is fair, Duke Fisablen, but you presuppose the guild will choose to trade with them. Merchants prioritize profit above all else; if the duchies still exist, Wessia's dealings will at the very least break even if they don't profit. But three of the dukes have already lost everything. They still control many men, but they can't trade in people if they want to continue fighting, and they have nothing else.

"Wessia might only provide minor support on account of their cooperation in the past, but they won't truly support them. The guild might instead be the first to crumble if it did. Given that Wessia occupies the former imperial territory of Bodolger, they will rely mainly on the Union instead of the duchies.

"As for the four dukes trading with the Union, that would depend on whether the dukes have something to trade as well. Among them, Duke Shabaj escaped in a hurry and should be the one who brought the least resources. Dukes Forund and Farkel left with the wealth of their house and duchy, so they might look like they are loaded, but given that they're no longer in their dominion, they don't have an income.

"Their forces will only consume their resources, not generate any. After we occupied the two duchies, we estimated they each took around a million to two million gold Fordes. I believe Duke Handra's pouch is in more or less the same state. He still has his duchy, yes, but the war is sapping its vitality, not to mention that most of his tradable produce probably goes to feeding the guest armies.

"How long do you think two million gold Fordes can sustain two legions? Forund and Farkel have already been conquered, and the two dukes have a combined 90 thousand men. No matter how savvy they are, they will still be spending money like water.

"They can't invest their funds in trade with the Union. They'll rely on Handra completely instead. Handra might be forced to give his produce to feed the two legions, but I doubt he'll do so willingly, or be happy about it."

Ah! thought Auguslo as he clapped his hands, I see. The more pressure I apply to them, the more united they will be. But if I let them be, they will fight amongst themselves. Lorist's right. The duchy can't support 300 thousand soldiers for long. They can't sustain that kind of consumption.

"How long do you think we have to wait until the enemy caves?"

Lorist smiled, the whites of his teeth showing. He stretched out two fingers.

"Two years at most, nothing more. Probably less."

"That may be good, but we have forces to feed and pay as well. True, we have an entire kingdom's resources, but that also means we have far further to transport them. It is no cheap endeavor. Two years is a long time. We also have so many cavalry troops here. The food we need is at least double our enemy's." Auguslo furrowed his brow at the thought that Lorist's proposal was a double-edged sword.

"Hehe, Your Majesty seems to be forgetting that you have two new territories nearby. You could spend the two years governing the two properly. We can use its produce supply the army.

Each noble can look after his own forces in terms of any other supplies as long as Your Majesty remembers our contribution in eradicating the duchies and reward us accordingly."

Auguslo paced around, his head lowered. The others present gazed at him, waiting for his final decision. He appeared rather troubled. Lorist's first suggestion was the simplest: keep up the assault. But, the shock squad his participation and it had already been shot down. The second method was to split off a portion of the troops, and the best candidate for the job was Tigersoar as Lorist had said. But, out of worry for any hidden intentions, he'd mentally crossed that off as well. The third option was to stand off without fighting. Everyone understood from Lorist's breakdown that it was the best method; they just had to sit around and wait for the enemy to implode. However, it would take quite long and a lot of supplies to pull off. However, it wasn't a big deal in that the supplies would have to be spent either way regardless of which choice they made. Apart from Whitelion, the standing armies of the various noble families were gathered under Auguslo's banner. Lorist had specified that they only needed food since they could take care of the other supplies.

What troubled Auguslo was what reward he would give to the nobles if he chose this path. Usually, the nobles got to keep what they pillaged. The right to pillage was their reward. But the enemy this time was practically sucked dry already, and would certainly be if they waited for them to collapse. There would be nothing left to give away as spoils of war. He would have to reward the nobles from his own coffers. After pacing about several times and checking the expressions in the tent, it was obvious most of them preferred the third method.

It's true that fighting an enemy that occupies strategically advantageous terrain is really taxing on everyone's forces. It's better to sit and watch as the enemy crumbles on its own. Though it might take longer, they could gain victory and be rewarded without much cost.

"Let me consider this a little longer. We'll discuss this again in two days."

In the end, Auguslo, didn't settle on a method immediately and adjourned the meeting.

What in the world is is he planning? thought Lorist curiously.

The next morning, he noticed Duke Fisablen had been called for a private meeting with the king. Thereafter Kenmays, then Felim. He was just guessing who would be next when Kenmays came over.

"D'you know why the king summoned me?" asked he.

"How would I know?"

"His Majesty asked me what reward I would want for having the two heavy-armored divisions stationed here for two years."

Lorist finally understood what was going on.

"What did you request?"

Kenmays stretched out two fingers.

"I want the salt merchant committee completely exempt from tariffs in the kingdom for two years."

Felim soon came over as well.

"What did you request?" asked Kenmays.

"I asked for 50 thousand young laborers for Southern's development, but His Majesty only agreed to give me 30 thousand."

"What about Hennard?"

"He should've been summoned already."

In the evening, Auguslo sent two guards to invite Lorist for dinner.

"You should know my intentions for inviting you. Tell me what you want. Don't be greedy," said Auguslo frankly.

"Your Majesty, have you decided on not fighting?"

The king nodded.

"The part I'm most satisfied with is that it'll cause the four traitors to fight each other. Just like you said, the moment they turn on each other, a lifelong grudge will form. The most troublesome part of the four central duchies is that they're four nations in one and they'll support each other no matter what. Regardless of how this turns out for them, I'll be satisfied as long as they're at each other's throats by the end. I have more than enough patience to watch them tear themselves apart. But, I'm sure you know how worried I am about not getting any spoils as a result. I wanted to set the reward beforehand."

Lorist smiled.

"Your Majesty, may I know what Duke Fisablen wanted?"

"He didn't ask for much. He just wanted enough equipment to outfit a legion and 50 thousand migrants."

"Oh," Lorist said, "Then I'll have..."

"Stop! Locke, don't even bring up migrating people. I will not allow it. I regret letting you deal with moving the refugees in Farker the most. You should know what you did," interjected Auguslo.

"Fine," Lorist conceded with a shrug, "But what else can you give me apart from people? Any ideas?"

"Locke..." Auguslo slapped his forehead in preparation for the impending headache, "As long as your request is not overboard, I will agree."

"Fine. Exempt my dominion and the territories I control from taxes for five years." Lorist had no choice but to come up with such a request.

"No way," Auguslo objected, before he stared Lorist in the eye, "Fine, three years at most and not a month more."

"Deal."

Lorist stretched out his hand.