He then thought that If the author was a god, then Ingrid must have been blessed a lot to be able to last long enough in this cruel world by having a great deal of plot armor to withstand until her final fight against the protagonist.
His lips had paled as he tried to hold making any loud sound that could potentially wake her up. He was feeling weak because he had forcefully stopped his ability immediately after using it.
As he made his way out of Ingrid's room, he couldn't help but take another glance at her before bitterly closing the door. His good mood was now ruined and he couldn't help but become even more curious.
However unknown to him were the tears that suddenly fell from Ingrid's eyes when he left. Her muffled cries seem to be calling out to someone far away. It was sad and painful, but even this had still not managed to rouse her up from her slumber.
With his head in a mess, Herbert entered his room in a daze. How come he couldn't use the Serpentdream bloodline against her? Why was his ability reflected? Was he forever doomed to be unable to unearth her secrets? As he asked himself these questions, he eventually fell asleep.
The next day, with the Hawkwood Baron's approval, the Ravenmoon started to mobilize their pawns, both in secret and in the open.
Some of the other families that are sensitive had managed to get a few small hints of this but have yet to fully comprehend what was going to happen.
Herbert, who had already planned out his next steps, was feeling more confident when he was in the Hawkwood Territory as he already knew what was going to happen. With a plan, he was able to keep his head cool and make sure that he was able to pull off his plan without any issues.
In the meantime, Lord Eric had already assembled his men for training near the borders. Even though it was something odd, it wasn't uncommon for territories to do this. However, this had placed the Oxswords on alert. But that did little to stop what was coming next.
The spy who was posing as a soldier for the Oxsword had already done the deed. A scapegoat was needed and it was through this spy that they had managed to create a situation where it was favorable for the Hawkwoods.
In response to this, the Oxsword family sent an envoy to negotiate peace with the Hawkwoods. This was to show compensation for the casualties that had been lost during the short skirmish, this envoy even emphasized how it was an accident and how they would give the right amount of compensation.
Currently, this envoy was facing Lord Eric in the nearest town where the two territories meet. The envoy that had been sent to meet him was there to negotiate the terms to quickly settle this conflict.
Since Lord Eric did not lack any bit of ability in acting, he continued to pretend to listen to the envoy in front of him. With a smile on his face, he looked as if he would accept the terms that were being presented to him at any moment. However, in his heart, he had already decided on what to do.
"Although we couldn't apprehend the soldier who had started the fight, the Oxsword Viscount is willing to repair and maintain the relationship between our two great territories."
The envoy who had been talking was originally worried when he had first come into contact with the Hawkwoods. He believed that the entire thing had been orchestrated by the other party and that they wouldn't even give him the time of the day. In the end, he had come face to face with the Hawkwood baron. After he had pitched his compensation, he was willing to listen to the demands of the Hawkwood lord since he had been very accommodating.
"I hope my previous offer had been enough to keep the relationship between the two territories. Naturally, if there is something else that Lord Eric desires then we can renegotiate the terms. What do you think of it, Lord Eric?"
With a smile on his face, Lord Eric stared at the middle-aged man in front of him. Although he had acted very politely and respectfully to him during the entire meeting, he could feel that he seemed to have been looked down on. The compensation that they had offered him wasn't much and he already felt insulted, but he didn't let it show on his face.
"I don't think we have anything else to talk about."
"This is great, I always knew that Lord Eric was kind and exceptional. Well then, I will excuse myself here to have my men send over the resources that we have promised Lord Eric as compensation."
"Oh, sorry. I don't think you understand. You have made a big misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding? What do you mean by that, Lord Eric?"
"I said we don't have anything else to talk about because the Hawkwoods will not accept the compensation by the Oxswords. You seem to have been severely underestimating us with your compensation."
With his eyes widened, the envoy seemed to have the face of someone who had eaten something bitter.
"Lord Eric, please do not be too hasty, if you want to increase the compensation then we can always negotiate. Besides, do you know what it means for you to reject this offer?"
"Yes. I completely understand what this means, but do you? You can leave now or leave your corpse behind."
With this, negotiations had broken down between the two sides. News of this had soon reached the outside and the information had already been spread far and wide. War was coming, and the Hawkwoods were already all set for it. The days that passed by only continued to increase the progress in successfully implementing Herbert's scheme.
The Royal Capital soon approved the Territorial War between the two families. Not a single deviation occurred in Herbert's plan and it almost made him feel uneasy. Everything had been going so well that it made him think that there was something wrong.