The Lights of Horns Bay Are Going Out
Translator: Cinder Translations
...
While Paul and Gerd were engaged in lively discussion, a guard from the lord's manor hurried into the workshop and quickly approached Paul.
He bowed to Paul and Gerd, saying, "My lords."
Then he looked at Paul.
Paul asked, "Are you looking for me? Is there something you need?"
"It's the Council of State; they want to discuss something with you. The details are in this letter."
Since Gerd was present, the guard wasn't sure whether to speak or not, so he simply handed the letter directly to Paul.
Paul opened the letter, his eyes rapidly scanning it. His brows furrowed tightly at first, then relaxed.
Gerd suppressed his curiosity, waiting for him to finish reading.
"Excuse me for being forward, but what's happened? If you can tell me."
Paul handed the letter to him. "War has broken out in Horns Bay."
"Is that so?"
Gerd took the letter and skimmed through it.
His face showed no signs of surprise. Anyone with even a little knowledge of the Horns Bay situation wouldn't be shocked by the outbreak of war.
It would be more surprising if it hadn't erupted.
Paul said, "The initial news came via carrier pigeon; the war has likely been going on for over a week now."
He then asked, "Does the kingdom's government have the strength to provide protection for Aldorian merchants in Horns Bay?"
Gerd smiled wryly and shrugged. "Given the current situation, that's a bit difficult, especially since there's still the Giles between the royal territory and Horns Bay. In fact, this is the first time I've heard of using national strength to protect merchants abroad. Generally, shouldn't they just accept their fate? After all, they chose to pursue wealth, so they must bear the corresponding risks."
"Well!" Paul didn't continue on that topic.
"Earl Grayman, does the outbreak of war in Horns Bay trouble you?" Gerd noticed a hint of worry in Paul's expression.
Paul replied, "Horns Bay is an important trade transit point and resupply base for us. If it becomes unstable, it will pose a serious threat to our trade with the East."
He apologetically said to Gerd, "In that case, my lord, I must immediately discuss countermeasures with my officials, so I can't accompany you for the rest of your tour."
Gerd waved his hand. "You don't have to worry about me; please go handle your affairs."
He understood the significance of maritime trade in the Northwest Bay, so this matter was very important to Paul.
Paul nodded slightly to him and walked out of the workshop with the guard.
...
The countries of Horns Bay generally implement a citizen-soldier system. Take the Horns Bay Alliance as an example. The alliance consists of ten main cities, including Niceport, each of which, along with its surrounding satellite towns, forms a district that serves as both an administrative and military unit. Each district is required to provide one squad of infantry and cavalry, along with five armed ships manned by crew members. This structure has remained largely unchanged.
The entire military of the Horns Bay Alliance, comprising both land and naval forces, is commanded by ten generals, who take turns leading during expeditions, with the chief general holding the highest rank.
All free individuals in the Horns Bay Alliance are citizen-soldiers, divided into four levels based on wealth: the first and second levels provide cavalry, the third level provides heavy infantry, and the fourth or the impoverished provide light infantry or oarsmen.
In the past, citizen-soldiers were required to supply their own weapons, which is why the levels were based on wealth.
However, this time, the alliance has undertaken military reforms to completely resolve the threats from inland countries, spending a large sum of money to purchase a vast amount of weapons and armor from the Northwest Bay. This has increased the number of heavy infantry with metal armor while providing light infantry, who previously wore no armor, with some protection through leather armor.
At this time, Quill Foster was dressed in finely crafted full armor, standing alongside other key military leaders of Horns Bay on a high platform, with a sea of dark figures below.
As a noble's son, he was surely part of the war.
This second son of the Foster family looked worried as he gazed at the scene before him.
Niceport was holding a war mobilization conference.
The leader of the pro-war faction, Senator Horas, was passionately conveying to the audience the righteousness of their cause and the certainty of their victory.
"Citizens of the alliance! My dear compatriots!"
"The evil Horns Bay Church and their inland lackeys have gathered together. As I speak, their armies are already crossing the border, invading our beautiful country! Tell me, should we stand idly by while this invasion occurs?"
The crowd below was stirred up, shouting, "No!" "Kill the church's lackeys!"
The uproar was relentless.
"I see your fervor for defending your homeland!"
Horas continued to shout, clearly pleased with the audience's response.
"The despicable Horns Bay Church has plotted a long-standing murder to frame our great alliance! They dare to call themselves servants of the Lord of Light, but the Heavenly Father will rain down wrath upon them."
"For too long, the Horns Bay Church has operated under the guise of the Lord of Light while engaging in despicable acts. Fellow citizens, I ask you, who among you does not have one or two relatives who have been bullied by the church's so-called witch-hunting activities? But are they truly hunting witches? Oh, look! The 'Chronicles of Injustice' have already made it clear; they merely use witch-hunting as a pretext to exploit the wealth of innocent people."
The crowd reacted strongly, shouting, "To hell with that church!" "To hell with that Elvis!"
Curses filled the air, as painful memories from the witch-hunt movement were reignited.
"Because of the witch-hunt, our trade activities have been disrupted; because of the witch-hunt, everyone lives in fear; because of the witch-hunt, we even have to be careful when speaking!"
"Yet, we endured all of this, foolishly believing that the church was truly considering the welfare of the people! But it wasn't until that damn church tried to transfer the hard-earned money of everyone to those inland leeches that we realized we had been deceived. Reality slapped us hard in the face!"
"So the heroic people of the alliance responded heroically—expelling the church's lackeys from our territory and no longer recognizing it as the representative of the Heavenly Father on earth, boldly facing the church's wrathful threats of war!"
"Now, they have put their threats into practice under despicable pretenses! But we will tell them that the great alliance dares to protect its people! We—swear to fight to the end!"
Horas's rapid-fire rhetoric completely ignited the audience's emotions.
"Fight to the end!"
"Fight to the end!"
The loud slogans echoed throughout all of Nissburg.
...
In contrast to the fervor in the square, there was silence in the Speaker's office.
Joe Foster and his friend, Speaker Marcus, were standing by the window, watching the crowd dispersing after the mobilization meeting.
"My friend, do you think we will win this war?"
Unlike the confidence he showed in front of others, Marcus asked this question with a hint of trepidation in his voice in front of his close friend.
Foster slowly replied, "Whether we can win the war or not..."
He pointed out the window; night was approaching, and families in Niceport were starting to light their homes. The lighthouse at the dock was also igniting with bright flames—throughout history, the dense lights had been a source of pride for Niceport, indicating the prosperity of its residents.
However, Foster said:
"The lights of the entire Horns Bay are going out, and we may never see them reignited in our lifetimes."
(End of the Chapter)
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