Chapter 159

- Unfortunately, there is no precise information. His lordship caused quite a stir, both for the captain and the steward, but both retained their positions. The widowed duchess still refrains from meddling in the disputes between them. She whispered to her trusted man that her son is preoccupied with something else, and she hasn't intervened yet.

The vampire himself knew this well.

- And what is his lordship thinking about?'

The baron jumped up excitedly.

- I couldn't even begin to imagine!'

Leaning closer to the knight again, he whispered,

- I've never seen him so pensive! And all the talk is only about hunting and the marvelous winter balls in the capital.'

Half an hour later, a servant informed the noble gentlemen that his lordship had awakened. Fortunately, the duke was not a king, and in this world, kings didn't have any special morning ceremonies, so after expressing their respects and wishing him good morning, they simply waited for the young man to compose himself. Trying not to notice the maid in his bed and avoiding eye contact with the master himself, they waited and then returned to the study, now with an expanded group.

- 'Gentlemen,' the duke took his place at the head of the table, 'What I am about to tell you must not leave the walls of this room.'

"A couple hundred vampires will know, but no more!"

- 'This concerns the entire kingdom. As you know, the war with Orod is not going as we would like, primarily due to their army's total dominance in mages. The All-Light has granted us lunar silver, and thanks to artifacts made from this material, the king successfully repels all attacks. The border fortresses are also holding firm, but we cannot launch an attack ourselves. But we must punish Henry!

The duke scrutinized both present with a careful gaze! And the vampire and the baron responded with a slight tilt of their heads. Ensuring everyone shared his thoughts, his lordship continued.

- 'And we have a chance to achieve this with your help!'

These words were not fully understood. Neither of the interlocutors could fathom how an outlying barony and a simple knight could help the kingdom win the war and repel the enemy army's attack.

- 'The Pass!' exclaimed the duke, seeing confusion on the faces of his vassals. 'The Orod army we defeated last autumn left a huge amount of artifacts at the pass!'

It was indeed so. Deprived of horses, the commander faced a dilemma. And it was resolved with the army's decisiveness. Everything they couldn't carry further was simply discarded. And among the abandoned items were truly valuable artifacts, for which many soldiers were willing to sell their souls. And it was primarily the attacking magical items that were discarded, as the invading army's main task was defensive! Taking all that was left and handing it over to the royal army was truly an enticing idea, and above all, it promised significant profits.

The cost of the artifacts was simply astronomical. Essentially, the pass held equipment for an entire armored division and it was completely unguarded. But even Gennady, focused on making money, didn't make plans for this property. It could come there. It could even leave there, if lucky, but leave with cargo?! Impossible! The Orod army made a real feat crossing the passes! So why repeat it? The understanding baron better than anyone who knows what goblins are made, timidly tried to dissuade the Duke.

- 'It's all of course, your lordship, but can we do it now? The duchy's army is tattered in battle at the Damned Bridge! Bandits walk through your lands like home...'

The Duke frowned.

- 'And the army doesn't need us! And bandits!'

The guy jumped out of the chair and went to the window.

- 'These fools I entrusted to manage my affairs couldn't handle it! Several valuable caravans were lost. Two! Two golden caravans have disappeared! When his majesty was told about it, I wanted to fall through the earth from shame! You, Baron, did everything right. But now the problem with the bandits is not so acute. Attacks have long ceased.

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