Viscount Vale sat in his grand chamber, a glass of dark wine in his hand, swirling it absentmindedly as he stared at the map before him. The flickering candlelight cast long shadows across the polished table, illuminating the intricate routes that marked his true kingdom—not land, but trade. The frontier was a desolate, barren place, one that no true noble would waste resources conquering. The idea of expanding into such land was foolish. The cost to develop it into something profitable would outweigh any potential gain.
That was why Vale had never cared for territory. He wasn't like the other lords, obsessed with ruling over land and peasants. His domain was something far more valuable—the lifeblood of trade. For years, he had controlled the movement of goods in and out of the frontier. Every merchant who wanted to trade in this region had to go through him. Every deal, every contract, every tax—it all flowed through his hands.
Or at least, it had.
Now, that balance had been disturbed.
By a man who had no right to challenge him.
Alexander Maxwell.
Vale's View of The Maxwell Dominion
Vale had dismissed Maxwell at first. A rebel, a rogue, a man playing warlord in a land no one wanted. But then the trade routes began shifting. Merchants who once relied on his protection started finding alternatives. The frontier, once dependent on his supply chains, began producing its own goods. And worst of all—The Maxwell Dominion had started to export.
Iron. Timber. Blacksmithing goods. All things that had once passed through Vale's controlled markets were now being traded without his oversight.
That was the true danger. Not military conquest, not land, but disruption.
Maxwell wasn't a territorial threat. He was an economic one.
Why Vale Has Not Attacked Yet
Vale took a slow sip of wine, his gaze narrowing. His commanders had urged him to march on Emberhold, to crush Maxwell with force. And he had considered it. But war was expensive. Even with his resources, a prolonged siege would cost more than it was worth.
His vassals—merchants and noble traders like himself—were hesitant to support military action. They saw Maxwell as an irritation, yes, but not one worth bleeding for. And with war brewing between the Kingdom and its rival, he couldn't afford to weaken his own standing.
A full military campaign was not an option.
So he would fight a different war.
The New Strategy – Economic Warfare, Done Right
"We tried this before," Baron Devrin reminded him, standing near the fireplace, his expression unreadable. "We cut off their trade, declared merchants who dealt with them criminals. And yet, they adapted. They found new routes. They kept growing."
Vale nodded. His first attempt at economic pressure had failed because he had approached it like a noble—blockades, tariffs, intimidation.
But Maxwell wasn't playing by noble rules.
So neither would he.
"This time, we do not simply block their trade," Vale said, setting his glass down. "We make it impossible for them to trade at all."
The gathered men looked at him with curiosity.
"How?"
Vale smirked. "We do not just target their merchants. We target their buyers."
The Maxwell Dominion was surviving because it had customers—small lords, independent traders, lesser merchants willing to take the risk.
"We spread a simple message," Vale continued, leaning forward. "Any lord, any merchant, any trader who dares buy from The Maxwell Dominion will find their businesses burned to the ground. If they trade with Maxwell, they trade against me."
His commanders exchanged wary glances. This was a far more aggressive move than before.
"Won't that push some merchants toward him?" one asked cautiously.
Vale scoffed. "Merchants are cowards. They will not fight—they will retreat. If trading with Maxwell becomes dangerous, they will take the safer route. They will come back to me."
This wasn't about forcing Maxwell to surrender overnight.
This was about isolating him.
No buyers. No partners. No market.
Without trade, The Maxwell Dominion would wither.
Vale's Orders & Next Steps
"Send word immediately," Vale commanded. "Make it known—anyone who does business with Maxwell is an enemy of this house."
The room was silent, but his men nodded.
"Increase raids on his trade routes. Do not just steal. Destroy. Burn the goods so they cannot be used or resold. Make every caravan a loss, not a risk."
"And finally," Vale smirked, picking up his wine once more, "we will offer incentives to those who turn against him."
A new proclamation would go out. Any merchant who abandoned Maxwell and returned to Vale's trade network would be given lucrative contracts, tax reductions, and protection from banditry.
Make Maxwell's trade unreliable. Make Vale's trade the safer, better choice.
It was not about winning the war.
It was about making Maxwell irrelevant.
Vale's Final Thoughts
As his advisors left, the door closing behind them, Vale sat back in his chair, watching the candlelight flicker.
Maxwell had been bold. Too bold.
The frontier was never meant to be independent. It existed to serve the noble class, not rise against it.
Maxwell was trying to change the rules of the game.
Vale would remind him who truly controlled the board.
And when trade withered, when the merchants abandoned him, when Emberhold found itself suffocating under its own ambition…
Then, and only then, would Vale strike the final blow.