Freiyar
Fresh blood flowed all over the ground as a thick, nauseating, iron-like stench permeated the hall. The tens of people who were just fornicating before had already become cold, pale corpses.
Lorist let out a big sigh and patted on Josk's shoulder to wake him up from his trance. Just now, Lorist had only killed the men within but Josk went out of control and lashed out towards every person without regard to their gender. When Lorist came to notice it, everyone within the hall had been killed by Josk.
Exiting the hall while emitting a murderous air, Lorist walked around at a casual pace within the newly-built duke manor. After a while, Terman came to him to report that the manor had already fallen under their control and everyone within from guards to servants had all surrendered and were kept in captivity.
"Let Yuriy send a squad of light cavalry scouts to guard the four city gates and have another squad ready on standby. Order Mister Tim to send out four squads of his soldiers to help out with guarding the city gates as well and have him send the remaining men over here. Have Els bring his two guard squads to the duke manor to defend the place and order your knight squad gather up over here. We still have lots to do," instructed Lorist.
Terman hurriedly sent some men to pass out the orders as Josk approached Lorist and said with an embarrassed voice, "I'm sorry… I was being far too rash just now."
Lorist looked at him and said, "Joe, don't forget that you're a stellar marksman. A marksman must always keep his cool in any situation. Don't let hatred cloud your eyes."
"I understand… I will definitely take that to heart," said Josk as he nodded.
When Els made his way to the duke manor with his men, Lorist had already asked a few of the captured supervisors of the manor about the situation of Geldos City. He had Els leave one squad of his men behind to take over the defense of the duke manor and had a supervisor guide the other squad to take control of the city��s food warehouses and stables. After that, Lorist brought Josk, Terman and his knight squad to the army camp to dispatch the remaining squad of garrison troops as well as tens pike cavalry that remained within the city before rushing over to the laborer camp.
The main issue Lorist now had was the lack of manpower. The citizens of Geldos City was filled with hostility and enmity towards his forces as the count had arranged for the family members of his men to live within the two newly-built street sectors to solidify his standing there. Even though Lorist was currently using stealthy ambush tactics to slowly wrestle the control of the city to him, he was worried that the moment he was discovered, the civilians there would instantly break out into chaos and cause his plan to fail. That's why Lorist had his hopes placed on the laborers that were forced to help out with the construction of the city.
After removing tens of guards, Lorist easily conquered the slave laborer camp. The next step was to utilize the hundreds of men Tim had sent to gather up slaves that were acquainted with them. They ended up with 2000 or so men.
Terman picked a thousand or so strong youths and brought them to the armory that they had just taken over to give each of them a pike and picked a few senior soldiers from Els's men and had them form two companies of pikemen. One of the companies was sent to the gates to replace the men that had been sent over by Tim and Yuriy while the other company was allocated to defend the warehouses and armories under Els's leadership.
Lorist finally breathed a sigh of relief now that he had two more companies of men. However, he knew that the laborer pikemen were only good for looks as it was hard to say whether they were trained sufficiently for battle or not. Even so, now that the city gates were staffed with the laborer pikemen, it allowed for two of Yuriy's units to be reallocated to form a subjugation force with Terman's knight squad, effectively relinquishing Lorist's worry of a civilian revolt.
At the moment, the slave laborer camp was under watch by 800 of Tim's men with another thousand or so laborers who were tasked by Tim to move food from the warehouses and start cooking up a big pot of meat porridge for the rest of the men in the laborer camp. This was done to placate them and fill up their growling stomachs.
Els subsequently sent someone to report that after a rough inventory check, he noticed that there was equipment enough for two companies of pike cavalry and one regiment of garrison troops. After asking the supervisor about that, he found that those equipment was gathered up by the count to prepare for the expansion of his troops. Els had already let the laborer pikemen company change into the complete sets of equipment from the armory and had the guard captains allocated suitable weapons for them. Aside from a few laborers who were allocated pikes as they didn't know how to wield anything else, the rest of the laborers were given the standard loadout of garrison troops and were split into squads of longbowmen and sword and shield users.
Els needed Lorist to send him someone well-versed in making inventories for the rest of the armory and more people to help the laborers that were stationed at the gates to change into the new equipment as well as some men to carry out miscellaneous tasks like making food for the soldiers who had been working throughout the day on nothing other than dried rations.
Lorist facepalmed as he had completely forgotten to let his men rest and recuperate while he was busy managing the affairs of the laborers. Had it not been for Els's reminder, he would've been unaware of that situation until the next morning. It made him feel even more impressed with how Charade could always seem to handle so much without missing out on any small detail. He understood that he wasn't as capable as Charade when it came to management given his tendency to gloss over the less significant but nevertheless important details even though he was quite adept at planning a long-term general strategies.
Lorist asked for Tim to come over and instructed him to pick several men who could do accounts and three hundred others from the laborers who were busy making meat porridge to report to Els and also had one of Els's light cavalry squads escort them there. The laborers who were picked parted unwillingly with the pots of meat porridge and looked towards the food wistfully.
Tim angrily pushed and rebuked them, "Why are you still here? Don't you know that I've just done you a favor? While the amount of food you get here will be rationed, you can eat all you can over there! What are you still waiting for?"
Tim's outburst caused Lorist to laugh out loud. At that moment, Josk suddenly appeared out of nowhere. "Milord, please come over, there's something that needs your attention."
Josk brought Lorist to a corner of the laborer camp that was surrounded by a wall that seemed to be used for defensive fortifications of cities. There was a building that was even more sturdily-built from a combination of rocks and metal bars than the wooden housing that was used to accommodate the laborers outside.
"What is this facility for?" Lorist asked.
Josk responded, "Milord, this is the hard labor camp whose main purpose is to keep the slaves who have already awakened their Battle Force captive with their family members. Most of these slaves are soldiers who had been captured on the battlefield. The reason the count kept them locked up with their family was because he wanted them to change sides and serve under him. Most of the members of the count's new pike cavalry company are people who have been picked from the slaves locked up in this area. As long as they agree to serve the count, their family members will be allowed to move out to the new street sectors and live there without having to experience any hardships."
"How do you know about this?" Lorist asked.
"Milord, the guards that were in charge of watching the area told me about it," said Josk as he pointed towards the stone building where two people in uniform could be seen standing. These men carried out their instructions faithfully under the watch of Tim's men.
"How many people are locked up in there?" asked Lorist as he walked towards the building.
A chubby man walked over and bowed before looking at a thick book in his hand and saying, "Milord, there are 734 captive soldiers within this facility with 3151 others who are their family members, totaling up to a number of 3885 people."
"Why is there so many?"
"Milord, this number is already considered pretty low. The record number of soldiers being held captive here was above 2000 with more than 7000 other family members. Currently, the men who had been locked up the longest was captured sometime a year ago with the most recent prisoners being captured about a month ago. According to the regulations here, those who submit to the count have to work three months of physical labor as the count reasoned that the people would not be completely loyal to him without experiencing some form of punishment," replied the chubby man.
"I see," said Lorist as he rubbed his chin in thought. The count really had his own way of messing with people. If they wanted their families to have better lives, they have no choice but to work for three months before they were allowed to serve the count! No wonder Count Cobry had managed to gather soldiers so quickly and easily.
At the same time, Josk asked the guards about the slaves who still had yet to submit to the count. The guard then flipped the book to the last page and showed it to Josk, to which he exclaimed in surprise, "So, it's him… No wonder he still hasn't submitted yet."
With his curiosity piqued, Lorist went over to take a look.
Josk said, "Milord, you should definitely go see this person. His name is Chino Freiyar and he's a 31-year-old Gold ranked mercenary who has quite a reputation in the northwestern parts of the Redlis Kingdom. It is rumored that he was orphaned from a young age and was raised by a kind female neighbor. When he grew up, he eventually got married to the neighbor's daughter who gave birth to a pair of twins soon after. It was said that when the count's pike cavalrymen raided his town, they broke into his home and ended up killing the woman who had raised him. In a fit of rage, he killed almost 20 of the pike cavalrymen but was later subdued by two Gold ranked illegitimate sons of the count who took his wife and kids hostage. Ever since, Count Cobry has been waiting for Freiyar to submit and serve him but he still hasn't accepted the offer and has remained locked up here."
"Alright, I'll go meet this Freiyar. Hey you, bring me there. Tell me your name," said Lorist towards that chubby man.
"Milord, I am called Tarkel," he replied.
As Tarkel led Josk and Lorist around, he started talking about his woes. "Milord, even though he's our prisoner, Freiyar is even more arrogant and bossy than the warden himself. He's the true leader within the prison camp and there's no way an Iron rank like me would dare to boss him around. Even when a few of the guards were beaten up quite severely by him, the warden didn't bother to take any action; he was satisfied as long as he didn't attempt to escape. To be honest, if it were not for his blind wife and his twins, he would've killed his way to the count for revenge long ago. Even though the count admired his abilities, doesn't he know that there's no way Freiyar would serve him given the grudge he held for his adopted mother's death?
"Oh, Freiyar's cell is just right ahead. Please be careful, there's a ditch on the road," said Tarkel as he led the way with a torch in hand.
The light illuminated the depths of the cell and revealed a tall, big-built man who was cautiously looking at the three who were approaching.
"Freiyar, it's me, Josk. I believe it's been two years since we last met during the martial arts competition at Kessads Castle," greeted Josk.
"Josk?" said Freiyar in a surprised voice. "Marksman Josk? It's you…"
After that, his expression returned to normal as he spoke in a low voice, "Are you serving the count now?"
"Ptooey! I can't wait to feast on his flesh and drink his blood! Why would I ever serve that bastard?! You must be crazy," said Josk with bloodshot eyes. The grudge he had with the count was so deep that it caused it to freak out at the mere mention of him serving the count.
"Oh, then why are you here?" asked Freiyar curiously. He inferred that Josk wasn't brought here as his prisoner given the way the torch-holding guard treated him.
"Tarkel, open the door," instructed Lorist.
"Freiyar, this is the man whom I serve now. He is my lord, Norton Lorist of the Norton Family of the Northlands. Geldos City has already been conquered by us under his lordship's leadership," introduced Josk.
"The Norton Family of the Northlands? The Roaring Raging Bear? I've heard of that family a few years ago when I visited the Northlands. However, why is he all the way here conquering Geldos City?" asked Freiyar suspiciously.
"I think it's better if you let me explain," said Lorist before he greeted Freiyar. He then told Freiyar about his journey to his homeland to inherit his title and position as well as the reason why they were in conflict with Count Cobry as well as the current status of the occupation of Geldos City.
"That pretty much sums it up. Even though the city is under our control, we don't have enough manpower to manage it effectively. When Josk saw your name on the prisoner records, he brought me here right away. To be honest, I also hope that you, Mister Freiyar, will be able to lend me a hand in this matter," said Lorist sincerely.
Trust
Maybe it was because he felt Lorist's sincerity, Freiyar accepted the invitation without thinking for too long. "Lord Norton, I can agree to temporarily serve you, but it's only limited to the conflict with Count Cobry to avenge the death of my adopted mother. However, I hope that you can agree to let my family and I leave if I wish to."
Lorist laughed out loud and said, "Of course. Even if you don't help me out, you are still free to leave with your family. I can promise you that on the Norton Family's name."
"Thank you for your magnanimity, Lord Norton," said Freiyar as he bowed to indicate his respect.
Lorist stretched out his hand to shake Freiyar's and said, "Please call me Locke. That's what all my friends call me."
Now that he had agreed to help Lorist for the moment, Freiyar didn't hold back at all. "Lord Locke, you said that you lacked manpower, right? Can you tell me about the status of your troops?"
Lorist then briefly described the number of troops he brought to ambush the city and also told him about the two new companies of pikemen that were formed from some of the laborer prisoners. "And that pretty much sums it up. Right now, we're still holding up well. But I'm worried that once the count finds out that the city has been conquered, he will have his soldiers come back here right away to retake the place. Given the size of Geldos City, as long as the count manages to gather one pike cavalry company and one garrison regiment led by his Gold ranked sons, they will easily be able to take the city back in one go. After all, the two laborer companies are only good for show and don't have any real combat ability."
Freiyar understood what Lorist had meant and turned back to look at the prison facility. "Lord Locke, do you intend to rally them up?"
Lorist laughed out and said, "I've heard Josk mention that the people locked up here are all either veteran soldiers or garrison troops that have awakened their Battle Force. That's why I intend to rely on them to form a temporary unit. I don't need them to be the vanguard and take the full brunt of the count's forces. Instead, I only require them to defend against a few waves of the count's attacks to allow my family's armed forces to arrive."
"Lord Locke, I understand. Please be assured. I, Freiyar, understands best what the people who are locked up there want. Had it not been for the damned count, they wouldn't have to be imprisoned for so long. Even those who went to serve him did so only to let their families live better lives and are not truly loyal to the count. Now that they know Count Cobry is on the verge of falling, I'm sure they'll be happier than most and try their best to add as much oil to the fire as they can. Trust me, I will gather them up right away. Um, you, hand me the keys. Lord Locke, I will send good news your way in a short while," said Freiyar as he took away the keys hanging from Tarkel's waist and set out to free the prisoners.
Having had his keys taken, Tarkel felt a little dissatisfied and was mumbling something softly.
Lorist looked at him and said, "Do you have anything you'd like to say? I can't hear you that well, Tarkel."
Tarkel turned to look at Lorist hesitantly before saying out loud, "Act-actually… You can defend Geldos City without using these people. Milord, if the prisoners don't obey their orders when they are let out, it'll cause even more trouble for you…"
"Oh, Tarkel, tell me then about the plan you have in mind to defend the city," said Lorist curiously.
"Milord, half of the garrison regiment and the pike cavalry company that had set out with the count are fresh recruits that haven't been in service for more than two months. Their names are recorded in a listing at the duke manor. You only have to hold their families hostage according to the list and bring them to the city gates when the count arrives. I'm sure the soldiers will definitely panic and might even fight back against the count on the spot. Then, you can easily obtain your victory…" said Tarkel.
"Erm…" Lorist really didn't expect that the chubby man in front of him could really come up with an effective plan. "Tarkel, tell me more about your family and your experiences."
Lorist suddenly felt interested in the man whose face was filled with flabby meat.
"Milord, I have a family of four that consists of me, my wife, my dumb daughter-in-law as well as my son. Other than that, I have a brother who's a blacksmith and he lives in the city as well and is in charge of making the count's weapons and equipment. Our family used to be serfs during the days of my grandfather and we were only granted the status of free men when my father joined the count's garrison troop. After that, my father had passed away during one of the count's excursions to eliminate mountain bandits and I have been chosen to fill his position. After the count's return to the city, he had suddenly started to expand his military forces. Not wanting to be enlisted, I spent quite a sum to bribe my way to become a prison guard and have been doing this job ever since and got promoted to the position of a warden," said Tarkel honestly.
"Then, do you understand the big and small matters of this city?" asked Lorist.
"That's a given, milord. I don't want to sound too arrogant, but there isn't a corner of the city that I'm not familiar with," boasted Tarkel.
Lorist naturally didn't take it at face value and started questioning Tarkel about the area. To his surprise, Tarkel really could describe almost every place he named with great detail. He was even familiar with the rough number of resources that were stored in the various warehouses.
"Tarkel, you have truly surprised me today. While the method you proposed earlier is indeed effective, but there are some things that you can do but I cannot. If I obtain victory using the method you mentioned, I will effectively taint the reputation of nobles and lose the honor of knights. No noble would ever use the enemy forces' family members as hostages to win a war. That would constitute to shame and humiliation for the family that chooses to do so. That's why, I can only thank you for trying to suggest an alternative for me," said Lorist.
"Milord, it's my fault for not considering your status well enough. I'm just an uneducated man after all. I didn't consider the honor and reputation of nobles at all," Tarkel said in a horrified manner.
"How about this? Follow me around in the future. Naturally, I will want you to go to the Northlands with us when the matters here are concluded. I also want your blacksmith brother to tag along when the time comes," said Lorist.
"This… Milord, can I refuse?" said Tarkel with an agonized face. He didn't expect that his showing off would cause Lorist to start to fancy him.
"Of course you can. I won't agree to it though," Lorist said while laughing.
At that moment, the laborer camp was illuminated by various bonfires with groups of people gathering around the plaza and making merry like a sudden flash mob. Sounds of laughter and chatter could be heard throughout the night.
Lorist brought Tarkel to the plaza and saw Josk leading a group of men approaching from the front.
Josk said excitedly with a flushed face, "Milord, this is the garrison captain of the territory of Baron Omador, Nors. Over here is the knight of the baron's family, Lind. And these over here are guards Hawk, Marius, Eite and Saibert. I thought they were all dead. I didn't expect for them to be imprisoned here for the past half year…"
Lorist looked towards them and nodded in greeting. At that moment, Freiyar squeezed into the group and said, "Lord Locke, I have already briefed them about the situation and they are all happy to serve you. Oh, before I forget, many people within the laborer camp are their subordinates. As long as you provide them with arms and equipment, a regiment's worth of soldiers can instantly be formed."
"Good work, Freiyar. How about this, let's form a company of pike cavalrymen and three companies of garrison troops first. Freiyar, you will be the commander of these companies with Joe as your second in command. Start allocating the laborers into their respective companies as you see fit. I want them to be battle-ready as soon as possible. After forming all four companies, leave one garrison company to defend the laborer camp as the family members of some of the prisoners here are still at risk. The other three companies will be stationed at the city's army camp and begin training right away," said Lorist as he made his decision.
Freiyar and Josk stood straight up and made a salute. "Milord, we will do as you wish."
"I will ensure that the necessary equipment be delivered as soon as possible. Freiyar, Josk, I am counting on you two. Don't hesitate to report to me if anything urgent comes up."
"Yes, milord."
...
Lorist brought Tarkel back to the duke manor, only to cause him to puke uncontrollably after he witnessed the bloody scene, causing Reidy and Patt to look at him with curious eyes. It wasn't only Tarkel; ten other laborers who were also present had thrown up their meals cleanly.
"Sol, how can anyone eat with this smell in the air?!" Lorist was incredibly pissed as the group of people had puked while he was just about to have his meal.
"Reidy, please close the doors and windows. Remember to have them clean up after they finish puking," said Lorist.
...
The busy night was over and Geldos City still remained the same with the count's flag that depicted a bull's head flying up high. To the citizens, there was no other change apart from the increased presence of soldiers on the streets as well as the curfew order they were given the laborers' halting of the city's construction with the official reason being that an assassin was on the loose in the city. Nobody knew that the control of the city had already changed hands overnight.
The next day was pretty uneventful as well.
During the night, the duke manor's main hall was brightly illuminated by candlelight.
Lorist, Josk, Freiyar, Terman, Els, Yuriy, Tim as well as the several officers from the newly-formed laborer companies all sat at a round table on which a large beastskin map was placed and were listening to the pale-faced Tarkel who was revealing the secrets of the Cobry Family.
"… Count Cobry has 67 illegitimate sons in total and under his training and nurture, 17 of them became Gold ranked and 38 others managed to get to the Silver rank. That was the situation ten years ago. After that, the count brought 38 of his illegitimate sons to serve the First Prince and 6 Gold ranks and 13 Silver ranks died in the process. However, two years after his return, there was 1 son who had just broke through to the Gold rank with 4 others making their way to the Silver rank. However, this wasn't publicized so nobody outside the family knows about it.
"Ever since the count began launching his attacks on the neighboring nobles that didn't submit to him, 2 Gold ranked sons as well as 5 Silver ranked sons have perished. These include the two sons Josk had assassinated when he infiltrated Geldos City once. When the count sent the rebel-sweeping corps to the western mountains, he still had 10 Gold ranked sons and 24 Silver ranked sons. The remaining nine are either not at the Silver rank yet or have not awakened their Battle Force altogether and held administrative posts in Geldos City.
"The rebel-sweeping corps that the count had sent out was led by 3 Gold ranked sons and 8 Silver ranked sons. However, I heard that milord's convoy has completely wiped them out. The reinforcement sent by the count to recapture the camp that was led by 2 Silver ranked sons was also decimated. The Gold ranked son that was stationed there when the count set out for Burdock Bastide was also killed as well.
"After the count set out, he was entrapped at Motz Hills by our lord and I heard that one of the captive pike cavalrymen who were on their way to deliver the letter said that when they first started to attack a stronghold. one Gold ranked and another Silver ranked had fallen. After that, during the operation to conquer Geldos City, 1 Gold ranked and 2 Silver ranked illegitimate sons perished. Among 9 of the illegitimate sons who were not even Silver ranks, 7 were killed within the hall of the duke manor and only two remains by the count's side with his army currently.
"Other than the 1 Gold ranked and 2 Silver ranked illegitimate sons stationed at Williamiles Castle, the count only has 3 Gold ranked and 9 Silver ranked sons remaining. If we include the count himself, they only have 4 Gold ranks on their side. Given that our lord has already prepared the city appropriately for defense, there is no need to worry that they will be able to recapture it based on their forces," said Tarkel as he concluded the report on the count's forces, calming down the restless minds of the ones present.
Lorist laughed out loud and said, "I'm not worried about his forces though. I believe that by the time the count comes back to attack the city, his soldiers would have to deal with the desperate lack of resources as well as the allies that are closing in on them from behind. I'm sure their morale would be extremely low. I am however considering whether I should take the chance to conquer Williamiles Castle as well now that news of Geldos City being conquered still hasn't spread out yet," said Lorist as he pointed to a spot on the map where Williamiles Castle was located.
His plan was rather simple: he would first bring a company's worth of soldiers wearing the count's equipment and request access into the city in the name of helping out with the city's defense and sneak into the castle. As long as he manages to kill the three illegitimate sons that are stationed there, Lorist's group would be able to absorb the garrison forces by telling them that Geldos City, where many of their family members are living in, was under their control. He believed that there would not be much resistance on that front.
Els gave an alternate opinion in that there wasn't enough time. Given that Williamiles Castle was around 1 day of travel on horseback away from Geldos City, a journey to and fro would easily take two days. And the coming two days was the most crucial moment as the count might run out of resources and retreat to the city during that timeframe. If Lorist wasn't able to make his way back at that time, the situation might very possibly turn for the worse.
Lorist disagreed and explained that if he let Williamiles Castle be, the count would still have a place to escape to and be able to recover his forces, causing Lorist's group to be delayed there even further. "That's why I believe the best way to settle the matter quickly is to remove all of the count's foundations and cause him to have nowhere to fall back to. After that, we can swoop in and finish him off to end this conflict. Currently, the defense at Williamiles Castle is at its weakest. When would we attack if not now?"
Lorist then instructed Yuriy, Terman and Josk to get a light cavalry squad, a knight squad as well as the two newly-formed pike cavalry squads to change into the count's pike cavalry equipment and each bring two horses along to prepare for departure within an hour. Lorist will also take Tarkel along the way. As for the defense of Geldos City, he entrusted it to Els, Freiyar and Tim.
Freiyar hesitated in agreeing to that order as he believed that Josk would be a better choice for defending the castle and said that he would instead prefer to follow Lorist to conquer the castle.
Lorist laughed and said, "It cannot be you, Freiyar, as the illegitimate sons of the count will recognize you. Given that they know that you definitely won't submit to the count that easily, your presence would only serve to bring their guards up. That's why I picked Joe instead. The reason I left you behind to defend the place is precisely because I trust you, as should any lord or leader. Els and Tim, Freiyar will be the first in command during my absence, alright?"
"Yes, milord," Els responded.
"Please be assured, milord. This one will definitely not disappoint you," said Tim as he bowed.
Lorist patted on Freiyar's shoulder and said, "I'll be counting on you during these two days. Once I take WIlliamiles Castle, I'll definitely rush back immediately."
Freiyar stood straight up and saluted Lorist. "Milord, as long as I am here, the city will remain ours."
Surprise Attack Successful
Afternoon on the next day, Lorist stood within the great hall on the first floor of Williamiles Castle. Sitting in front of him was a hawk-nosed, eagle-eyed man in fully-armored ]knight attire, wearing a breastplate that depicted a black bull's head. This man was one of the Gold ranked illegitimate sons of the count that was stationed at WIlliamiles Castle. Sitting further away from him was four Silver ranked men in armor. The two at the front were Silver ranked illegitimate sons of the count with other two being garrison squad captains of the castle.
"You mentioned that this pike cavalry company you brought over has only been formed 3 days ago, and that you were sent here by my 21st brother?" said the hawk-nosed man as he stared hard at Lorist.
Lorist made a confused face and said, "That's correct. I don't know the reason myself, but the order I received clearly stated that our company was to make our way to Williamiles Castle to bolster its defense. I myself thought that there was some sort of battle going on here. It seems that our journey here was a complete waste. Oh, and, will you be letting my men into the castle? If not, we'll have to go back to the city."
"Go back? Yeah, right. Now that you're here, you better stay put. What's your name and Battle Force rank?" snorted the man.
Lorist nodded and said, "Milord, this one is called Lorist and I'm at the Three Star Iron rank."
"Pffft!" A man with a receding hairline started to laugh out loud. "Soldiers nowadays really have no standards… For a puny Iron rank like you to be able to become a pike cavalry company captain… It's a little too unreasonable for us Three Star Silver ranks to only be squad captains of garrison troops… It truly is ridiculous."
"14th brother, I think that 21st brother is just trying to mess with us. Otherwise, there's no way he would appoint a Three Star Iron ranked captain. We still have to face the allied noble armies on our front. Even though the recent situation has been quite stable, we might be more prone to enemy attacks if there is no pike cavalry stationed here at the castle. That must be why our lord father sent us this newly-formed company to make sure we'll be well-defended from any potential threat," said another man who wore a mail armor.
"Right, 19th brother's words make sense. Heed my orders, let the pike cavalrymen outside into the castle and order them to gather at the plaza in front. You… Lok-something, you're unfit to be the captain of the company, so train hard till you're a Silver rank first. I will reorganize the pike cavalry in the afternoon, so you will be assigned to be a captain of a garrison troop squad instead," said that hawk-nosed man.
Lorist stood there without making a sound as if he was dissatisfied with having his position taken away from him. The hawk-nosed man didn't bother with it and started discussing with the other men beside him. "Which one of you will go command the pike cavalry company? Pick two among yourselves and mix some of our own troops into the cavalry company so that we'll be able to better control the unit…"
At that moment, the hawk-nosed man once again looked towards the shivering Tarkel. "Oh, aren't you Tarkel? What's a coward like you doing in the pike cavalry company? Are you sick of being a prison guard?"
"8-8th master, thi-this one does not dare to disobey the 21st ma-master… And he said that an Iron rank li-like me should j-join the cavalry company… So I got al-allocated here," stammered Tarkel.
Tarkel was currently regretting his previous actions a lot. How did he manage to make Lorist take a fancy on him? He wasn't that much of a talented person and only loved to pay attention to gossip and analyze the situations surrounding them. Now that he had been picked to be Lorist's personal attendant, he was even brought along to Williamiles Castle to participate in the surprise attack operation.
The one guarding Williamiles Castle was the 8th illegitimate son of the count, a Two Star Gold rank who not only excelled at combat, but was also a devious and attentive person who was not so easily dealt with. This could be seen from how only a small group including Lorist had been allowed into the castle for verification while the other soldiers they brought had been denied entry and were left outside.
Of all the people available, you had to pick me to follow you inside! Marksman Josk would've been so much more helpful for this purpose! Tarkel really didn't understand why he was asked to come along. Was it because he had greeted some of his former colleagues outside the castle? Those were his acquaintances and it would only be more suspicious if he didn't greet them. Lord Norton is also a really careless person. Even though he's only an Iron rank, he actually came inside the castle with an Iron rank like me! It's basically suicide for 2 Iron ranks to go up against 1 Gold rank and 4 Silver ranks!
The more Tarkel thought about it, the more afraid he got. At the moment when the 8th master instructed for Lorist's men to be allowed into the castle, he feared that they would attack right away and cause their intentions to be discovered and set his demise in stone. When he first entered the great hall, Tarkel tried his best to not utter a voice nor attract any attention to himself. But, just because he coughed once, he was discovered by the 8th master. It was fortunate that he was witty enough to come out with an excuse on the spot.
"Hmm, 21st brother must've been drinking a little too much. Then again, Tarkel you coward, are you really that afraid of fighting? If you're this nervous now, I wonder if you'll faint when you're on the battlefield! Hahaha…" laughed the hawk-nosed man out loud.
Lorist turned his body sideways slightly and looked outside the window of the great hall of the first floor from the corner of his eyes and saw that his men were already making their way into the castle. Good, the gates are already under our control. Right now, Terman is making his way to the two side gates with Yuriy's light cavalry scout squad making their preparations at the plaza. Josk is also making his way here already.
The garrison troops of Williamiles Castle were not fully-armed for some reason and only gathered together to watch the spectacle. Maybe they had just finished their lunch and were still slacking off. Some of them were even sunbathing on the side of the walls. This was the perfect opportunity to launch the attack…
Lorist drew his sword and said, ��He's afraid because you are all about to die. He's allergic to corpses, you see…"
The hawk-nosed man was surprised and enraged at the same time. "How dare you go against a superior officer? Your ambitions must have turned you crazy. For you to actually dare to draw your sword in front of me… Settle him, make an example of him for the other pike cavalrymen to see…"
Even though the 8th master was sharp, he actually misunderstood the situation. He thought that Lorist was rebelling because he wasn't satisfied with being demoted from his position as a company captain.
Two of the Silver ranked garrison troops rushed over immediately without bothering to draw their swords. One of them thought, hmph, a mere Iron rank… My hands are enough to subdue him…
Tarkel instantly crouched on the ground and thought, it's over. Is Lord Norton insane? Why did an Iron rank like him even draw his sword in front of 1 Gold rank and 4 Silver ranks? It's like saying, 'Please come and kill me!' He even boasted that they were about to die… I think the first ones to die will be Iron ranks like me and Lord Norton… Why couldn't you wait for your men to arrive first before lashing out? Now you even dragged me into it as well… Oh my poor wife and precious son… What would he do without me, his father, beside him?
Tarkel shut his eyes in despair, only to hear two instances of agonized cries. The first cry slowed into a moan while the other was swift and short. Eh? That didn't sound right. Why was it two cries instead of one?He then opened his eyes only to be surprised by the scene of Lorist standing unscathed with the first Silver rank that leaped towards him rolling on the ground in pain with both his arms severed and asking for a quick death. He also found that Lorist's sword had been embedded in the throat of the second Silver ranked squad captain that came after the first.
The hawk-nosed man and his two brothers jumped up in befuddlement. Nobody would have expected an Iron rank to be able to dispatch two Silver ranked garrison squad captains with only three strikes of the sword.
"Who the heck are you?" asked the hawk-nosed man as he stared at Lorist intensely while slowly drawing his sword.
Lorist laughed in a light tone and said, "My identity doesn't matter. You only have to know that I've come for your lives…"
"19th, go sound the alarm! The pike cavalrymen are not on our side! They're enemies!" shouted the hawk-nosed man to the one dressed in mail armor immediately after his realization.
"Okay…" he answered as he drew his sword and paced carefully towards the exit and broke into a run.
An arrow flew over in a flash and pierced through his chest, sending the man flying for three whole meters before he fell back down on the ground and spit out large mouthfuls of blood with both his hands clasped tightly onto the arrow in his chest as if he was trying to pull it out, before he let out his final breath and stopped struggling altogether.
At that moment, Josk showed up at the door of the great hall with a green longbow in his hand.
"Marksman Josk…" said the hawk-nosed man in stupor.
"Long time no see, 8th master…." said Josk with his bloodshot eyes. The hawk-nosed man, Count Corby's Gold ranked 8th illegitimate son, also referred by others as the '8th master', was the very person that had attacked Baron Omador's castle during the wedding and was one of the main perpetrators that had caused the demise of Josk's loved ones.
"Hold him down!" shouted the hawk-nosed man to the man with a receding hairline as he rushed towards Lorist while drawing an arc in the air with his sword.
"Just what I needed!" exclaimed Lorist as he raised his sword to meet the incoming blade. The moment the two collided, sharp sounds of metal clashing echoed rapidly throughout the great hall.
The 8th master had intended to let the half-bald man hold Josk back while he took care of Lorist before moving onto suppressing Josk together with his partner. That way, they would have a better chance to turn the tide of the battle, since Lorist was only an Iron rank. He thought that no matter how good Lorist's swordsmanship was, it would only allow him to take on Silver ranks at most. Given the 8th master's Gold ranked Battle Force, he would be able to easily defeat Lorist by brute force alone regardless of the level of swordsmanship given the disparity of raw power between their ranks.
That was the 8th master's first mistake. Never in his wildest dreams would he expect that the moment he first crossed blades with Lorist, his Battle Force felt like it didn't have any effect at all, causing a Gold rank like him to stagger backwards against a supposed Iron rank and even almost getting slashed. Even the half-bald man who was busy with Josk stared dumbstruck at the result of the first clash.
Tarkel was looking at the fight with his mouth wide agape with saliva leaking out of it, making him seem like a dumb idiot. So Lord Norton wasn't insane and was confident in his abilities all along! This swordsmanship is truly godly… So much so that he is able to hold back a Two Star Gold Swordsman like the 8th master to the point where he had no choice but to be on the defensive!
The half-bald man snapped out of his stupor and noticed that Josk was still entranced by the battle between Lorist and his stepbrother. Extremely delighted, he carefully inched backwards and intended to escape. This was the 8th master's second mistake: he overestimated his subordinates' loyalty to him.
As a stellar marksman, Josk had noticed the half-bald man's slight movement immediately. He quickly held his green bow up, stretched it wide like a full moon and unleashed three arrows in quick succession.
The first arrow had been blocked by that man, but it took him a lot of effort to do so and he had retreated 3 steps backward as a result. The second arrow broke that man's sword into two and caused the man to cough out some blood. By the time the third and final arrow arrived, the baldy had already lost all his power to resist and could only stare at the arrow expand within his field of view until it inevitably entered his mouth and lifted him into the air, nailing him onto the wall nearby behind.
Having witnessed the death of the middle-aged man, the 8th master started to panic. He already had his hands full with fighting Lorist. Now that Josk had taken care of that half-bald man and had started aiming his bow towards him, the 8th master started to feel even more nervous. In his disturbed mental state, his hands missed a beat and allowed Lorist the opportunity to inflict the final blow. With a flash of a blade, the savage looking 8th master let out a pained grunt before his head separated from his body and flew through the air. Lorist backed off quickly to avoid the fountain of blood that had erupted from the stump of the man's neck.
"How long are you going to stay flat on the ground like that, Tarkel? Quickly get up and hang these heads on the veranda and announce to the soldiers that Geldos City is already under our control," instructed Lorist.
By the time the five heads were put on display at the first floor veranda, the whole castle broke into a panic that was quickly suppressed. That was especially the case after 7 or 8 soldiers who were dead loyal to the count started to fight back against the pike cavalrymen entering the castle, only to be shot to death with one arrow each by Josk, further accelerating the surrender of the castle's garrison troops. By the time evening came, Lorist's men had already taken full control of Williamiles Castle.
"Yuriy, after resting for one hour after dinner, I'm going to bring Terman's knight squad and Knight Josk back to Geldos City. I will leave Williamiles Castle in your care. Make sure you let your light cavalry scouts patrol the surrounding area from time to time, but don't attack the surrounding allied noble armies unless they initiate the attack, in which case you may retaliate. Tarkel, stay here and placate the garrison troops' mental state and tell them that by the time the soldiers that are coming to take their place to guard the castle arrives, they will be allowed to go back to Geldos City to check on their family members. Don't worry, it won't take too long. I'm confident that I'll be able to send a messenger over within ten days," said Lorist as he bit into a piece of bread in his hand.
"Milord, I understand. Please leave the place to me," said Yuriy before he continued his meal.
Tarkel placed the piece of bone in his hand onto his plate, rubbed his mouth with his sleeve and said, "Milord, as long as I'm here, I'll ensure that the garrison troops don't cause any trouble."
The Final Assault
Count Cobry was currently raging nonstop outside Geldos City…
Ever since he sent out the pike cavalry squad to deliver his request for more supplies, he had been experiencing an inexplicable feeling of worry from the depths of his heart as if it was foretelling the misfortune that was to come.
The situation of the battle he was in wasn't ideal either: of the 2000-odd farmer soldiers rallied by his vassal noble families, almost 500, a quarter of the total number, had already perished. On the other hand, his five pike cavalry companies and garrison troop regiment had only sustained tens of casualties for the past two days and still maintained their battle power.
During the past two days, he had conquered three more strongholds and only five still stood in their way. The farmers he relied mainly on to conquer the strongholds were already on the verge of revolt as their numbers diminished quite quickly and the money just wasn't worth that sacrifice. Whenever they received orders to mobilize, they would loiter around and waste as much time as they could until they were pressured and forced to act by the pike cavalrymen.
Count Cobry knew that he couldn't keep this up, given that the knights from the vassal noble families were giving him odd looks, as if they believed that the count was only using this opportunity to try to diminish the strength of the noble families that served him.
With the remaining supplies in their camp only able to last them for three more days, the count started to worry about the absence of any communication from Geldos City after he sent his troops back there two days ago. This shouldn't be the case! Geldos City is not that far away from the Motz Hills and it would take 8 hours at most to get there on horseback! My pike cavalry squad should have been able to make it back here with the response from Geldos City about when the resources and supplies would arrive! Something must be going on.
Unable to continue waiting, the count decided to return to the city after giving it some thought. He left the remaining supplies to his garrison regiment and gathered the knights from the other families for a pep talk to encourage them to continue guarding the camp until his return.
Count Coby then brought his five and a half companies of pike cavalrymen to Geldos City with the intention of replenishing their numbers over there. At the same time, Lorist had just completed his matters at Williamiles Castle and was on the way back to Geldos City with Josk and Terman's knight squad.
During daybreak, the count arrived at the gates of Geldos City with his soldiers and breathed a sigh of relief after seeing his family flag still flying on the flagpole. He then instructed some people to go request for the gates to be opened so that his exhausted men may rest after a long day of traveling.
Little did he know that no matter how loudly the soldiers announced the return of the count and requested for the drawbridge to be lowered and the gates to be opened, the garrison troops on the walls of the city made no indication of doing so at all and instead started cursing back towards the soldiers below and even armed themselves with their bows as if they were going to defend the city from invaders.
At first, Count Cobry was quite satisfied with how alert and careful the soldiers who guarded the city was being. But after half an hour, he noticed that something was off and saw a large group of people showing up at the city walls led by Freiyar, whom he had imprisoned for being unwilling to serve him.
When Freiyar announced to the count that the city was under his control, Count Cobry thought that this was all just a bad dream. Nowhere in his wildest imaginations would he think that a prisoner like Freiyar would be able to take over the city. The raging count then pointed towards the flag and asked why it wasn't taken down if the city was truly under his control.
Laughing in an embarrassed manner, Freiyar told the count that he had forgotten to use the flag to wipe his ass after going to the lavatory as he had way too much things requiring his attention. He then apologized for neglecting the flag and assured the count that he would have someone take it down to be used at the lavatories.
In response, the count was enraged to the point where his veins were almost going to pop. One Gold ranked son who stood by his side started cursing back at Freiyar and said that despite how well the count had treated him, he still dared to go against the count when he was away from the city like a savage who doesn't know how to repay other people's favors.
Losing his temper, Freiyar instantly cursed out loud. "You call killing my adopted mother and imprisoning my family and I a favor? You're so sick and deluded!" Not wanting to continue the conversation, Freiyar ordered the bowmen to fire and the Gold ranked son got wounded by three arrows as a result. Had it not been for the pike cavalrymen who protected him fervently, the count would have lost his life there and then.
Leaving tens of corpses of the pike cavalrymen near the city gates, the count managed to make it out of the bows' firing range unharmed. He quickly ordered his soldiers to log and construct siege ladders in preparation for attacking the city.
However, the count had forgotten an important fact, that was the pike cavalrymen companies that he had brought with him were formed only recently from the people at laborer camp and wasn't the ones who had accompanied him during the years he masqueraded as a bandit. The moment some of them recognized their comrades at the city walls, they started to chat with them and got to know that their families members were in safe hands.
On one side, there was the count who was preparing to attack the city in a fit of rage. On another, the soldiers felt relieved when they got to know that their family members were alright. That's why the count's men came to a tacit understanding to resist the count's orders as best they could and took a whole afternoon to construct only 3 siege ladders at an excruciatingly slow place.
The fuming count angrily caned a few of the men that he thought were slacking off and appointed tens of other soldiers who resisted orders to be the first ones to attack the city.
The result ended up almost knocking the count out form vomiting too much blood. The soldiers he had punished to participate in the first wave of attacks used the ladders they brought to climb up the walls without any resistance from the city walls' defending troops. The moment they got on the walls, they tossed their weapons to the ground and hugged their comrades before starting to curse at the count.
Within a flash, the pike cavalrymen that had made their way up the walls surrendered to the enemy and even helped to pull the siege ladders they brought with them up the walls. The count who had just witnessed such a scene spat out a mouthful of blood with his face red with rage.
At that moment, the count's other Gold ranked son started cursing towards the city walls in an even more vulgar manner when compared to the former son who had been injured by three arrows. Seeing the count faint from bloodloss, and the pike cavalrymen seeming too tired to be able to accomplish anything, the Silver ranked illegitimate sons ordered for the mounts of the soldiers who had surrendered to the enemy to be killed and butchered to make some meat dishes to fill the rest of the men's stomachs for the moment. Having been traveling at a rapid pace without rest for the whole night, the men were all hungry and spent.
After that, the brothers discussed how they should placate the pike cavalrymen. Among the 600 soldiers they had, the ones actually loyal to the count numbered below 50 and were mostly old soldiers who had followed the count for years.
By the time the count regained consciousness, he was faced with two choices. Attacking the city was no longer an option as he couldn't predict how his pike cavalrymen, who were on their verge of changing sides, would react. The first choice he had was to return to the camp at Motz Hills to rejoin his garrison regiment and bring the whole army back to retake the city. The only drawback to this plan was that his garrison regiment would probably run out of food by the time they made their way back to the city. The last thing he wanted was for his desperate soldiers to turn their backs on him.
The other choice he had was to retreat to Williamiles Castle where he could temporarily stay to rebuild his army and regain his power. However, that amounted to giving up on the garrison regiment he left at the Motz Hills as well as Geldos City. But, he believed that as long as he could get into contact with the rebel-sweeping forces who were at the western mountains, he would be able to take everything that he had lost back.
When the count was pondering on which path to take, sounds of horses galloping from afar could be heard. It seemed that a group of soldiers was incoming from the path that led to Williamiles Castle. The return of Lorist and Josk with Terman's knight squad only served to entrap the count at Geldos City.
Josk approached the count's men at a distance of 30 to 40 meters away and tossed over three heads that landed at the feet of Count Cobry. Upon seeing the three heads of his illegitimate sons who were stationed at Williamiles Castle, the count felt that he had been struck by lightning. The deaths of his sons could only mean that Williamiles Castle had already fallen under the control of the enemy.
Seeing Marksman Josk turn away to head back to Lorist's side, the count stood up and headed towards them before stopping ten meters away. Staring at Josk with a savage look, he turned his gaze to Lorist and said, "Who are you and why are you going against me?"
Sitting on horseback, Lorist looked at the well-built 60-year-old man with strands of white hair on his head, who had taken the northwestern area by storm, and said coldly, "I wonder if I should address you as Count Cobry, or Redbeard, the bandit whose infamous name and savagery is well-known throughout the Bodolger Province?"
The count shivered uncontrollably and revealed a shocked expression on his face. He then calmed down without refuting Lorist's accusations and continued as he pointed to Geldos City and then to the three heads that were on the ground, "Who the heck are you? Is this the result of you plotting against me? You've managed to cause my Cobry Family to sink into such depths…"
"Plotting against you? Who do you think you are? Don't tell me you've forgotten your sins already. When you were masquerading as Redbeard, the people of the merchant convoys you raided were all killed without mercy; women and children were no exception either. Did you think you would be able to live out the rest of your life in peace just because you disguised yourself when you did all that? Today, my arrival signals your end. I will uproot the whole Cobry Family just like the way you did to the other nobles in the area, and kill all your male descendants…"
Seething hatred could be felt from Lorist's words. He signalled for Terman to come over and pointed towards the raging bear badge on his chest and said, "I'm sure you've seen this insignia before on the two red wooden boxes in your chambers. My Third Uncle had intended to present those boxes to the girl that he loved. However, the convoy he led had met with the bandit Redbeard and not a single one of them survived. All these years, my family has been searching high and low for this bandit. Who would've expected that the attack on my convoy by your troops would finally lead me to you…
"Oh Lord Count, you must be surprised to find out that the rebel-sweeping corps that had intended to prey on our convoy had been wiped out entirely and some of the troops that had surrendered to us revealed that Redbeard had been you all along. One of them even mentioned that he recognized our family insignia from the two boxes you have in your room… That's why I have come for you."
"You are from the Norton Family of the Northlands…" stammered the count. He could recognize the insignia from the time when he raided their merchant convoy. He even remembered that he had lost one Gold ranked and one Silver ranked illegitimate son from that incident. The people of the merchant convoy who went all out to fight until their last breath had left quite an impression on him. That was also the reason why he kept those two boxes as a memento.
Now that the evidence had been presented in front of him, there was no point for him to deny the allegations any longer. Staring hard at Lorist, he smiled and said, "So what if I was the one who did it? I've raided far too many convoys in my time. Now that you've come for retribution, I'll definitely entertain you. Let's see who will emerge out of this alive."
The count then turned away to walk back to his soldiers with Lorist not bothering to stop him at all. Count Cobry then donned his armor and got onto his horse before he pointed his lance towards Lorist's forces. Behind him, his illegitimate sons and the senior soldiers who were still loyal to him got on their mounts and arranged themselves into a charging formation.
Lorist waved and ordered calmly, "Anyone who's not at the Silver rank may fall back. For those who are, follow behind me and get into a charging formation."
Josk and Terman rode to Lorist's back and subsequently, Terman handed Lorist a pike for his use. The various Silver ranked knights also lined up neatly behind Josk and Terman.
Including Lorist who was at the very front, there were 27 knights in total, who were lined up in a triangular formation. On the opposite side, there were 58 cavalrymen including the count.
During that moment, everyone outside the city stopped whatever they were doing jointly paid attention to the spectacle that was unfolding before them. The atmosphere was heavy and grim with nobody daring to utter the slightest sound.
At the same instant, Lorist and Count Cobry began their charge and the two groups of mounted men rushed towards each other at breakneck speeds.
Lorist's pike let out no blade glow while Josk, who was behind him, had a golden blade of light emanating from the point of his pike. The rest of the knights including Terman all had silver blade glows shining out from the point of their riding lances.
Only seeing one golden blade of light from the ranks of his foes, the count felt elated and trailed his lance that was also letting out a golden blade of light towards Lorist. It seems that the twerp over there is not even a Silver rank… As long as I manage to take him down, I will definitely be able to turn the tables of the whole situation…
In the blink of an eye, the two groups collided and chaos soon ensued…
Count Cobry brutally thrusted his golden lance towards Lorist's left arm with the intention of knocking him off his mount before finishing him off.
In response, Lorist flicked his pike upward and caused it to collide with the lance. The golden lance was knocked horribly out of trajectory and Lorist's pike swiped in quick succession towards the count's upper torso, causing him to fall off his mount with a dumbstruck look on his face. With but a swipe, the count who had not yet fallen to the ground was once again knocked flying into the group of frantic soldiers before he landed ten or so meters away. Two stab wounds could be seen on the count's shoulders as he lay on the ground squirming and screaming, unable to get up.
Lorist then rejoined the chaotic battlefield while thrusting and slashing with abandon. In but a few moments, tens of cavalrymen had lost their lives to his pike.
After Lorist went to and fro the battlefield three times, not a single cavalryman remained on their horses. However, only 10 of the 26 men who had followed him were still mounted.
Terman waved for the Iron ranked knights who had retreated further away before the charge to come and help out his dismounted men. As for the enemy soldiers who had yet to die, they were graced with a swift, merciful slash that spared them from having to experience further pain in the face of death.
Terman soon came over with a bandaged left arm to report their status. There were 8 heavily-injured soldiers with 14 others lightly-injured including himself. That was partly thanks to the armor they had been equipped with that provided excellent defense. As for Count Cobry's side, the men who had followed his lead had all but perished, including his 6 Silver ranked illegitimate sons. The other Gold ranked son had fought with Josk until the last moment only to die as well. The only person who was still alive after all that was Count Cobry himself.
Seeing the count who was groaning and groveling on the ground in pain, Lorist said, "Have a cross constructed. I want to nail him to death on top of it…"
Rounding
Count Cobry ended up being pinned to the cross that Lorist had ordered to be made and died after half a day of moaning and wailing. Before his death, he also witnessed the beheading of his illegitimate son who had been struck with three arrows back at the city gates. That son of his died without any suffering as he had been out cold the moment he was injured.
After the beheading, Lorist had the heads of all the illegitimate sons of the count that had died by his hands stacked up before the cross. He also requested for an artisan to craft a fitting stone tablet that described the count's deeds and sins, including the ones he had committed during his time as Redbeard the bandit, and how the untimely discovery of his identity had caused his downfall. Perhaps in the far future, the tale of Count Cobry and his 67 illegitimate sons would become a folk tale of the Grindia Continent much like the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves in Lorist's previous world.
After resting for the night, Josk took the initiative to lead the two newly-formed garrison troop companies with members recruited from the laborer camp to the Motz Hills to sweep up the remaining troops of the count. There were still 1 Gold rank, 3 Silver ranks and 2 other illegitimate sons whose Battle Force has not yet been awakened there and Josk did not intend to let any one of them slip away from his grasps.
Lorist himself didn't mind as the pike cavalrymen who had surrendered to him had mentioned that the soldiers there only had three days' worth of supplies with them and would crumble eventually even without any outside intervention. What Josk was going to do was no more than speeding up the process.
After three days, Charade and Josk returned to Geldos City.
Josk brought six heads back with him which were also placed in front of the cross. He said that the moment he was spotted by the enemy when he was blocking off the road to Motz Hills, the first ones to panic were the farmers. They instantly broke down and started crying and shouting out loud while running all over the place, effectively turning their whole camp into a huge mess. After that, Potterfang and Loze brought two of their heavy-armored cavalry companies into the camp and slaughtered the enemy, securing their victory.
After the Gold ranked illegitimate son died in the hands of Loze, the remaining ones attempted to run away, only to be sniped one by one by Josk with his bow and arrows. Currently, all of the illegitimate sons of the count had reunited with him at the stone tablet and not one of them was spared.
Charade said that Potterfang would only arrive in the afternoon on the next day as he had to escort the prisoner soldiers who had surrendered to them during the battle. He also mentioned that for the next three days, the family convoy would make its way to Geldos City. Charade then asked Lorist about what to do with Burdock Bastide after the convoy's departure.
Lorist replied, "Hand it to Tim then. For the past few days, I've been thinking about the preparations we need to make before the convoy leaves this place and already have a general idea on how to go about it. You're here just in time to discuss the finer details with me."
What Lorist lacked right now was time. When the convoy first left Armatrin Harbor, there was a distance of 2500 kilometers to travel before they reach the Northlands. Their original plan was for them to travel 1000 or so kilometers through the lands of the Redlis Kingdom to reach the borders of the Andinaq Kingdom. However, it had been postponed when the convoy was prompted to retaliate and wipe the count and his family after the attack of Count Cobry's rebel-sweeping forces. It was already the 23rd day of the 1st month, but the convoy had only traveled a little more than 300 kilometers so far.
After taking control of Geldos City, the riches and supplies that the count had accumulated over the years from wiping out the defiant nobles had all ended up in Lorist's hands. He understood from Charade's ecstatic and gleeful look when he looked at the inventory that the convoy's departure would have to be delayed yet again until the resources were properly managed and sorted out. Otherwise, there was no way Charade would agree to leave the place.
That was why Lorist had decided to head for the Northlands first at the end of the month with only a handful of people with him and leave the convoy behind so that he would arrive at the family dominion before the 3rd month to be in time for the inheritance ceremony. After that, he would wait for the arrival of the convoy at a later date while he settled some more pressing matters of the family. He also appointed Charade and Potterfang to be in charge of the convoy during his absence.
However, there were still quite a number of things that he needed to handle personally before he would be able to leave with a peace of mind.
He first instructed Potterfang to lead a heavy-armored cavalry company to Williamiles Castle to guard it in place of the reorganized garrison troop that used to be the count's and also had Yuriy send some representatives to the allied noble armies to tell them the news of the count's demise and to request them to send some representatives to Geldos City to discuss certain matters on trade.
When the garrison company came back to Geldos City, Lorist gave a cold and cruel order. He instructed the soldiers who had surrendered to him to bring their family members to another street and imprisoned the remaining family members of the soldiers who have resisted him and died in battle in the slave laborer camp.
Looking at the now empty streets, Lorist said, "Mister Tim, this street belongs to you now. You can finally put the sacks your soldiers were carrying to good use."
Tim was incredibly grateful at Lorist's proposition. Ever since he knew that Lorist was going to give the Burdock Bastide to him unconditionally, he quickly met up with a few stronghold leaders and sold 1300 gold Fordes' worth of weapons to them which he had obtained from Charade for only 1000 gold Fordes. After that, he sent somebody to instruct Knight Gemors to move the people and resources under him to the bastide before returning to Lorist's side after all of that was accomplished. He understood that the longer he spent time with Lorist, the more benefits he would get. As expected, before he could finish processing the fact that he got the bastide for no cost, Lorist presented him with yet another huge boon.
Seeing Tim who excitedly went to pillage the empty houses and stores lining the streets, Lorist couldn't help but laugh out loud. He had decided to aid Tim the best he could so that he would have someone to reach out to should he need anything done in the Redlis Kingdom.
When Tim returned, Lorist said, "Tim, I also got you a wife."
Unrolling a beastskin map of the area, Lorist continued, "Look here. This is Viscount Tebri's territory and Burdock Bastide is over here. Between the two locations is Baron Anlar's territory. Even though all the male descendants of the Anlar Family had all been killed off by the count, we have managed to rescue his only daughter from the duke manor. I have decided to let you take her as your wife so that you will be able to absorb Baron Anlar's territory and unite it with that of Viscount Tebri as well as Burdock Bastide."
Lorist then tossed a few documents onto the table and said, "Look, these are the deeds for the lands of Viscount Tebri, Baron Anlar and the bastide. I found them all in the duke manor. With these documents, I will also be able to have the neighboring nobles recognize you as the legitimate successor of Viscount Tebri so that you will have no problems ascending into the noble peerage. What do you think?"
Tim bowed deeply and responded, "Lord Norton, as long as it is your arrangement, I will definitely go by it. You can have me marry a few more wives if you please."
"Sol, only in your wildest dreams. You must have sufficient power to back up your greed and ambition. The bare minimum for defending the lands you hold right now is a garrison regiment. And given the desolate state of Viscount Tebri's and Baron Anlar's dominions as a result of the conflict, you will also need quite a bit of resource to redevelop them," rebuked Lorist jokingly.
Upon hearing that, Tim suddenly turned downcast and looked to Lorist with pleading eyes. "Milord, I don't have so much money… I'm already finding it hard to sustain the 1800 men under me, not to say much about rebuilding the dominion. The money spent on maintaining an army is truly too large."
Charade who was standing nearby laughed and said, "Tim, come over here. After seeing the map, I have an idea for you. I know you are quite adept at doing business from your past experience. Now that you have this large piece of land, if you manage it carefully, you'll definitely be able to sustain three whole regiments of garrison troops.
"There is a corner of the viscount's dominion near the shores and I believe that it would be a good place for a port to be built there. And the eastern part of the viscount's dominion that is near Baron Anlar's dominion has flat lands and forests which are ideal for agricultural development. Given that you used to manage the viscount's farms, you should have a good idea on what to do with these places. With the port built, you will be able to stimulate the dominion's economy. Coupled with the yearly harvest from the farms, you will also be able to sustain your own dominion's food demand and hold firm to your citizens' support by providing them with peaceful, sustainable lives."
Charade continued pointing around the map and said, "Now, look here again at Baron Anlar's dominion. The many hills and forests there will allow you to make quite a bit of money from the lumber and building material as these resources are rather highly demanded on the market. Coupled with the port at the viscount's territory, you no longer have to worry about not having enough funds to run or develop the dominion. If you have a large seafaring ship, you will also be able to transport these raw materials to Morante City for them to be sold there. However, you can already contact a merchant guild over there right now to establish a maritime trade route so that their ships can come over to your dominion to do business. Even after considering the commission you have to pay them, you'll still make quite a bit from the exchange. You can also have someone forage the baron's dominion to see if there are any other natural resources that can be exploited.
"As for Burdock Bastide, I'm sure you don't need me to mention that. This used to be Count Cobry's dominion and it is well-developed with a substantial population living there, so you don't need to use too much resources on that place to profit from it. The economy of the bastide will make you enough money to sustain a garrison regiment. Your only focus would be to rebuild and develop the baron's and the viscount's territories. Naturally, you have to be wary of other threats during times of war like these. You can construct five citadels at these places and station each of them with a squad of garrison troops. That will be more than sufficient to ensure the safety of your combined territories.
"The key to successfully developing your land is manpower and finances. You don't have to worry too much about manpower as I have just discussed with Lord Locke that apart from the prisoners of the laborer camp, we will have the rest of the people who are not willing to go to the Northlands with us settle down in your territory. Given that the number of people isn't a small one, I'm sure that as long as you utilize them properly, you'll be able to quickly make your dominion prosper. Other than that, you can also start looking for people to serve as your family knights so that the elites of the disbanded pike cavalrymen and garrison soldiers don't leave your dominion to join other nobles," said Charade.
Tim felt a little stunned and said, "Milord, you're truly going to leave this place? Are you going to give up Geldos City?"
Lorist laughed and said, "Yes. While this is a great place to be, it is too far away from my family's dominion. If I were to forcibly occupy it, I would be nothing more than those despicable bandits. The last thing I'd want is to take over a place unrightfully and become an eyesore for the local nobles, nor do I want to stay put obstinately and face the First Prince's army one day. Even though I can still leave should that ever happen, the First Prince will definitely use this as an excuse to swallow the local nobles in the area whole and take over the whole territory by himself."
"Milord, couldn't you just use a marriage alliance to have a claim over this land? If the First Prince really comes over, I'm sure that we can rally the nobles to resist him with an allied army," said Tim.
Lorist shook his head and replied, "Tim, you don't understand. The First Prince can be considered to be one of the enemies of the Norton Family because our merchant convoy had been wiped out as a result of him ordering Count Cobry to masquerade as Redbeard for him to raise funds for his rebellion. From a certain perspective, the First Prince can be said to be the true perpetrator of the Norton Family merchant convoy's demise whereas the count is only a means to an end. Now, we have only managed to relinquish the prince of his tool, Count Cobry, and we still hope to be able to settle the grudge with him one day. If I were to become the dominion lord of this place, I would have to kneel down and swear my allegiance to him as my senior noble, and that is far from what I want. That is why I have decided to leave Geldos City and head back to my family's dominion."
Charade said, "Tim, don't worry. Even if we are going to the Northlands, we will make sure that your three dominions will be properly stabilized first so that you will be an influential noble in the lands of the Redlis Kingdom and the Norton Family would definitely be able to benefit from having a powerful ally here. As long as it concerns your dominion, we will not brush it off lightly. Just now, I have told you how to manage your manpower. Right now, let's discuss your finances and resources. I have a suggestion that you may want to consider."
Charade gave him four suggestions in total. First, he should set the tax rate for the produce to 70% for normal citizens and give farmland to the family members of the garrison troops for free and only collect 40% from them to encourage people to enlist without needing to spend too much money on their salary. He believed that it would easily be enough for TIm to form two garrison regiments with that plan given the amount of undeveloped or ravaged land he had at Baron Anlar and Viscount Tebri's dominions.
Second, Charade promised that when the convoy departs for the Northlands, the supplies they wouldn't be able to bring with them would be left at Geldos City and given to Tim for him to use to develop his dominion.
Third, Charade would be willing to sell the weapons and equipment he had at a very low profit to help lessen Tim's financial burden of having to arm his garrison troops.
Lastly, Charade said that he could help Tim get into contact with the Peterson Merchant Guild to start a collaboration between them to develop Tim's dominion to make up for Tim's lack of funds.
Thankful to the point of tears with snot leaking out of his nostrils, Tim accepted every one of Charade's suggestions and pledged that he would never forget the grace the Norton Family had bestowed upon him and that he would never refuse any request for help from the Nortons in the future.
After Tim left, Josk came and announced that he had decided to serve Lorist and become a Norton Family knight and also said that several of his friends wished to bring their families along to leave the area and head for the Northlands.
Elated at Josk's decision to join their ranks, Charade asked him to encourage the other members of the now disbanded pike cavalry and the garrison troops as well as the liberated slave laborers to join the convoy as manpower was a crucial resource for the development of the Northlands.
Lorist furrowed his brow at that point because he felt that the more people the convoy had, the longer its journey to the Northlands would take.
Charade however was confident that as long as he formed another pikeman infantry regiment from the people of Geldos City and expand Potterfang's heavy-armored cavalry to four companies, even if the convoy traveled slowly, their journey would no doubt be a safe one with such a huge force escorting them. After all, they did have a little too much extra equipment. And if any fool dares to bar their way, they would no doubt be decimated and their resources would only help nourish the convoy's own supply.
Conference of the Nobles
Yuriy escorted seven representatives of the allied noble armies to Geldos City with his squad of light cavalry scouts.
Respectfully and politely receiving them, Lorist and Charade invited the representatives into the duke manor to start the discussion.
However, Lorist quickly noticed that something was off as the representatives did not seem to be too happy about Count Cobry's demise and had instead put the convoy in a bad light. They believed that the convoy had overstepped its boundaries by attacking and conquering the count's domain and it wasn't something the allied noble were willing to tolerate.
The representatives then demanded that the convoy leave Geldos City at once and surrender Burdock Bastide, Williamiles Castle and Geldos City as well as all the resources within to the noble alliance. One old representative who sported a long goatee even said that Lorist's act of crucifying the count was a huge insult on the dignity of all nobles and could be considered an act of aggression towards the whole of the Redlis Kingdom's nobles. He even said that no noble would allow for any of their own to be killed and publicly displayed on the cross like a lowly bandit.
"Who do you think you are?" said Lorist angrily as he glared at the flailing old man who was so passionate in his accusations that he spat out saliva with every word he uttered.
"I am Viscount Snaff and as a noble, I demand you, the person in charge of this merchant convoy, to give me the due respect. What authority do you have to be able to punish a person of noble birth?" responded the old man proudly.
"Very well, Viscount Snaff," said Lorist as he stood straight up. "I will take that as an insult to the Norton Family. And that, is something I can never forgive. I hereby declare war on behalf of the Norton Family against the Snaff Family. May the stronger prevail and the weaker perish."
"Knight Loze…"
"Milord, I'm awaiting your orders!" said Lode Wales as he stepped forward.
Looking at the map, Lorist smiled and said, "Viscount Snaff's territory is not far from Williamiles Castle. I give you 3 days to lead your heavy-armored cavalry company and the soldiers stationed at Williamiles Castle to flatten the viscount's dominion. Don't let anyone in his family escape. I won't mind completing what Count Cobry left unfinished."
"Yes, milord. I will definitely carry out your orders without fail!" said Loze as he gave the 7 noble representatives a harsh glare before taking wide steps and leaving the room immediately. Without much delay, the loud sounds of soldiers gathering and horses galloping away from the manor could be heard from the outside, gradually fading away.
Only silence remained within the hall as the arrogant Viscount Snaff slumped to the ground with a pale expression without being able to utter a single word.
The remaining 6 representatives looked at each other with weird expressions as if they had noticed that they had neglected something important.
Finally, a white-haired old man broke the silence and asked, "Sir, may I ask if you're a m-merchant convoy or not?"
"Hehe, I'm glad someone noticed this point. Didn't you guys bother to find that out when you came into the manor? We are not just some merchant convoy. I am Baron Norton Lorist, the head of the Norton Family of the Northlands. This convoy is led by me on the way back to our homeland," said Lorist.
"But sir, as a noble yourself, it's still not appropriate for you to nail the count on the cross. I believe that Viscount Snaff was not mistaken on that part," said the white-haired old man bravely.
"You have a point. However, I was not punishing him as a noble. The reason he was nailed on the cross is because he had disguised himself and masqueraded as the infamous bandit Redbeard and raided countless merchant convoys in the Bodolger Province years back. If you people don't believe it, please look at this journal over here. This is the count's personal journal during his days of raiding merchant convoys. There are a few others like this as well. Reidy, let these representatives see the rest of the entries," said Lorist.
With stone-cold evidence presented to them, the six representatives were at a loss of words.
"May I ask if your family is the one that had been enfeoffed territory in the Northlands during the founding days of the Krissen Empire, the family of the Raging Roaring Bear? And, how has the count wronged you?" asked another representative who had a chubby body.
Lorist nodded and said, "That's right, our family is the Raging Roaring Bear of the Northlands. I formed the convoy after receiving a letter of summons from my family to return to the dominion to inherit the position of the family head after 10 years of studying at Morante City. However, as I was passing through the area, my convoy was attacked by the forces of the count out of nowhere. Fortunately, the force I had assembled to escort the convoy was strong enough and managed to wipe the attackers out and even allowed me to catch a few prisoners alive.
"It was some of the prisoners who told me that they had been involved in serving the count during his days of raising merchant convoys as the bandit, Redbeard. If you may be so inclined, please refer to the records of the exploits of Redbeard in the Bodolger Province 7 years ago. That was the time when the merchant convoy of the Norton Family perished by the hands of the count. After all these years, my family has been searching for the bandit and we have finally found him only recently. It was precisely because of that the Norton Family declared war against the count and successfully eliminated him and his 67 illegitimate sons."
"Sir, it is our fault for misunderstanding the situation and thinking that your convoy was just a normal merchant convoy. The ignorant commit no sin, please forgive Viscount Snaff. He will definitely be willing to make up for his rude behavior towards your family."
"Hehe, it is not me the viscount has to apologize to, but you guys instead," said Lorist with a laugh as he took out a few letters from the box on the table.
"Please check these letters out. After conquering Geldos City, we have discovered them within the study of Count Cobry and they actually contain intelligence reports of the allied noble armies' military movements sent by Viscount Snaff to the count. He also mentioned in these letters that he would try his best to disrupt the unity of the various nobles in the alliance and cause as much trouble as he can. I had originally intended to give these letters to you so that you can take care of him yourself. I really didn't expect him to hand himself up on a platter to me. He must have a death wish."
The six nobles held the letters in their shivering hands as they read through the contents…
All of a sudden, the white-haired noble tossed the letter away and leaped towards Viscount Snaff to give him a sound pummeling and even savagely bit the viscount's ear off, causing Viscount Snaff to scream out in agony.
The rest of the nobles quickly stopped the white-haired man from continuing his beating with much difficulty. But, that did not stop him from swallowing the ear of the viscount whole into his stomach. With blood trailing out of his mouth, he sat down and started crying out loud. "My poor son… Benny… You're death was completely in vain!"
The chubby noble started explaining, "Baron Douglas is far too pained from the death of his son, Knight Benny, from an enemy ambush during an operation he led to ransack the count's warehouse. Just now, the letter he read was the one the viscount sent to notify Count Cobry about the plans on that day."
Sympathizing with Baron Douglas, Lorist said, "Having one's most beloved sacrificed as a result of an ally's betrayal is one of the hardest things for a person to accept. Please pass my condolences to Baron Douglas when he calms down. As for Viscount Snaff, I will hand over his territory to your alliance. Since so many unexpected developments had happened today, let's adjourn this meeting and continue two days later."
The chubby noble bowed to Lorist and said, "Respected Lord Norton, forgive me for asking, but, what kind of business did you intend to discuss with us?"
Lorist nodded back in response and asked, "May I know your name?"
The chubby noble patted on his belly and introduced himself. "I am Baron Henderson and my family crest is that of the razor-sharp spearhead."
"Respectful greetings, Lord Baron. I wish to discuss with the army about the handling of the count's dominion. Because the Norton Family convoy has to continue the journey to the north, I don't wish to leave any loose ends for the nobles here to clear up. Also, I've also rescued 7 noble ladies whose families have been decimated. As a noble myself, I would definitely help another fellow noble out in times of trouble. After finishing arranging these matters, we will leave Geldos City," said Lorist.
"Hmmm…" The baron was a little stunned as according to the customs of nobles, the victor in a fight between two noble families had the right to all the properties of the loser. Given Lorist's status as a noble, it was only right for him to be the one to manage the properties of the count as he saw fit. Lorist's decision to invite the representatives over for discussion was quite unlike the behavior of normal nobles. That's why they had mistaken the convoy for being a merchant convoy and behaved so arrogantly given their higher status to the point when they thought that the raging bear flag was only an insignia of a merchant guild.
"Lord Norton, you're saying that you're willing to give up Geldos City and leave the area?" Even though Baron Henderson was a chubby fellow, he had quite the sharp mind and recovered from his astonishment quite quickly.
"That's correct. My family's dominion is in the desolate Northlands and we have never forgotten the oath our ancestor had sworn to protect the northern borders of the empire. Even though the Krissen Empire is no longer present, we still have to return to the Northlands. We only wiped out Count Cobry because of an old grudge we had with him as well as the despicable way in which he was treating the other landed nobles in the area. Now that the Cobry Family is already no more, we should discuss about what to do with the 13 territories the count had conquered as well as Williamiles Castle, Burdock Bastide and Geldos City. After all, the allied noble armies did play their part in resisting the count as well."
To the noble representatives, Lorist's statement was akin to having gold coins fall right out of the sky. Even Baron Douglas who was crying his eyes out before stopped and stared at Lorist with his mouth agape.
Charade came over from the side, made a knight salute, and lifted the baron up before asking for a servant to bring over a basin and a towel for him. After that he instructed the guards to lock up Viscount Snaff who was moaning in pain on the ground from having his ear bitten off.
Baron Henderson was the first one to snap out of it and he deeply bowed again before saying, "Respected Lord Baron Norton, your generosity has truly captivated us and truly outshines both the sun and the moon. I wonder if the allied noble armies can assist you with anything? Please don't hesitate to request anything of us."
At that moment, Baron Henderson had completely forgotten the fact that Lorist had yet to formally inherit the title and called him Lord Baron right away. He also understood that there was no free lunch in this world and offered any assistance he could give for the benefits the alliance was about to receive.
Looking at Baron Henderson with a gaze of admiration, Lorist said, "Actually, I only have a small request. First, Viscount Tebri is an ally of the Norton Family, but his family has almost been wiped out entirely due to an unfortunate turn of events. With Mister Tim as the sole person alive that inherits the viscount's blood, and the fact that he had been a huge help to our fight against the count this time around, I have decided to acknowledge him as the formal heir of Viscount Tebri to perpetuate the Tebri Family line. I hope that the noble alliance would recognize Mister Tim's birthright so that he has a smooth transition to nobility."
"There will be no problem. Many of us know Mister Tim. Since he is the only one alive with the blood of the Terbris, we will naturally accept him as the heir to the late viscount's dominion and title," agreed Baron Henderson.
"Second, the Anlar Family, whose dominion is beside Viscount Tebri's dominion, has also been wiped out due to the count with only the daughter of the late Baron Anlar surviving the whole ordeal. Having rescued the Lady Anlar, I have decided for her to form a marriage alliance with Mister Tim and I hope that their union will receive your blessings."
"That is a given. We will definitely congratulate them on their marriage and send them fitting wedding gifts," said the six representatives unanimously.
"Third, as both Baron Anlar's and Viscount Terbi's dominions have been ravaged as a result of the count's attacks, I will be giving the control of Burdock Bastide to Tim and his wife so that they would have something to rely on to redevelop their dominions. I hope that the noble alliance will accept that proposition and promise to not violate this arrangement and disrupt the lives of this couple. Naturally, to make up for that, I intend to hand over Williamiles Castle and Geldos City to the noble alliance as well as the deeds for the lands lost by the 13 noble families to the count as well as the six noble ladies that were kept in captivity by the count. Oh, and the treatment of the family members of the count's dead soldiers will also be handed to the alliance."
Baron Henderson felt his throat run dry and found himself to be unable to utter even a word in response. He gave the rest of the representatives a glance and said, "Lord Norton, please state any other requests you have so that I will be able to relay it to the rest of the members of the noble alliance as this is no longer a matter that us seven can decide on our own. I will invite them over here to further talk about this matter, is that alright with you?"
"Of course, my final request is for our convoy to be allowed to stay at Geldos City for a while longer, about another month. Due to the scale and size of the convoy, we need to prepare for some time before we can leave and continue on our journey. I hope that you will be able to understand that. That aside, our convoy has brought along with us quite a large amount of weapons and equipment. So, if any of you wish to purchase some, we can offer them to you at a discounted price."
...
After Baron Henderson and the rest of the representatives sent word about the issue back to the alliance, various nobles have been pouring into Geldos City nonstop to purchase weapons. Potterfang and Loze had also successfully destroyed Viscount Snaff's territory in one fell swoop and demonstrated the military might of the convoy to the allied noble armies.
Seven days later, the noble alliance meeting finally began. On the first day, all the nobles agreed to Lorist's requests. Lorist had also handed half of the administration rights of Williamiles Castle and Geldos City to the alliance and also returned the 13 land deeds, the six noble ladies that they have rescued, as well as the family members of the dead soldiers who had served the count, including the family members of Viscount Snaff.
Ever since that day, the nobles of the alliance kept arguing over the things that have just gained. The only thing they managed to agree on was the labeling of Viscount Snaff as a traitor and the execution of him and his family members. However, that in itself sparked yet another dispute among the nobles on how to divide the viscount's territory.
Charade, on the other hand, spent the following days in absolute bliss. He hoped that the relations between the nobles would be as bad as possible, as the increased tension between the members of the alliance had increased the sales of the weapons, mounts as well as supplies. The current state of affairs had already spurred countless nobles to come to the convoy to make large amounts of purchases.
As of now, Lorist had 4 heavy-armored cavalry companies and 2 pike infantry regiments under his command. Even the Gold ranked mercenary, Chino Freiyar, had been persuaded by Josk to follow Lorist to the Northlands. Thus, Lorist named him the colonel of the newly-formed garrison regiment. As Charade had mentioned before, given the convoy's military might, no normal noble family would be able to pose a threat to them. And any fool of a noble that dared to provoke them was not even worth putting into consideration.
The coming of the 2nd month signalled Lorist's departure from the convoy to head to the Northlands accompanied only by Shadekampf, Patt, Reidy and the relentless Josk who wanted to tag along no matter what. They departed after saying their goodbyes to Charade, Potterfang, Els and the other family knights.