Chapter Summaries

Roland assigned Reno to train the Royal Guard and escort a caravan as the kingdom prepared to reopen the western trade route with potential allies. Reno and Ruhl began making preparations, while Omsk reassured Reno that Flowing City and its Knights would remain protected.

• Roland discussed the versatility of Guardians with Ruhl and considered their usefulness against Orcs.
• Reno proposed inviting the Aquavia Kingdom, Dale, Erebor, the Woodland Realm, and the Singri Kingdom to cooperate on reopening trade routes, and Roland agreed to send envoys.
• Roland ordered Reno to train the Royal Guard for the caravan escort and told Ruhl to prepare the caravan for departure.
• Omsk encountered Reno leading the Royal Guard and learned that Roland intended to reopen the trade route to the western lands.
• Reno worried about deploying the king's personal guards, and Omsk told him to trust Roland and assured him that the Knights would protect Flowing City.

Roland organized supplies to help the kingdom’s residents survive winter and prepared to reopen trade routes through the surrounding kingdoms. After several rulers agreed to discuss or support the plan, Roland went to welcome Bai Yi, the White Wing King of Aquavia Kingdom, in Flowing City.

• Roland asked Yun Feng about reserves and prioritized securing food and materials for residents, while noting shortages of meat and vegetables.
• Roland told Yun Feng that he had contacted the other lords about traveling together to open the trade routes and obtain supplies.
• Bai Yi agreed to travel to Flowing City to discuss Roland’s proposal to reopen trade with the Western Humans.
• Thorin pledged the dwarves’ support for reclaiming Old Pass through the Misty Mountains, and Bard agreed to meet Roland about the trade routes.
• Yun Feng used Eyes of True Sight to monitor the area around Flowing City and told Roland that Bai Yi had arrived.
• Roland set out to welcome Bai Yi and planned to bring the Grand Duke with him.

Roland welcomed Bai Yi, whose boat and clothes had been badly damaged by a school of Scale-burst Fish, and lent him fresh clothes. Roland then explained a trade route through the Woodland Realm and Rivendell, but Bai Yi warned that his kingdom could not afford to station troops at the strategically vital Old Pass.

• Roland met Bai Yi at the Swift River and healed his minor wounds after Scale-burst Fish had nearly sunk his boat.
• Roland lent Bai Yi fresh clothes, and Bai Yi greeted Nyx under the watchful eyes of Roland and Omsk.
• Bai Yi objected to clearing the Orc-held Old Forest Road because it would expose his troops to attack.
• Roland proposed traveling west from the Magic Stream through the Woodland Realm and Beornings' territory, then crossing Karl Rock Ferry and passing through the Old Pass toward Rivendell.
• Bai Yi agreed the route sounded good but said the Aquavia Kingdom could not sustain troops stationed far from home to secure the Old Pass.

Roland, Yun Feng, Thorin, Bard, and Bai Yi discussed two possible trade routes to restore prosperity to the Northern Territory. The Old Pass route proved difficult to secure, so Roland introduced a southern route along the Anduin River, whose dangers remained to be explained.

• Roland told Bai Yi that they would discuss the trade route after Bard and Thorin arrived, while Yun Feng urged patience and said they might have to establish trade themselves.
• Thorin and Bard arrived at Flowing City, greeted Roland, and joined Bai Yi and the others to discuss their communities’ shortages and trade needs.
• Roland proposed traveling through the Woodland Realm, Beorn’s territory, and the Old Pass toward Rivendell and the Great East Road, and Thorin agreed the route was feasible.
• Bard warned that Orcs from Fortress of Gundabad could intercept caravans at the Old Pass, and the group realized that no one could afford to station troops there permanently.
• Roland offered a second route south along the Anduin River toward Rohan and Gondor, then hinted that it carried a serious hidden danger.

After the alliance rejected a renewed war against Dol Guldur, Yun Feng proposed an alternate trade route south through the Anduin, allowing the kings to agree on preparations. Roland later asked how many troops would be needed to take and hold Old Pass, and Yun Feng estimated two Swift River Phalanxes to hold it or a Baron to turn it into a full fortress.

• Thorin considered attacking Dol Guldur, but Roland, Bard, and Bai Yi refused to launch another war.
• Yun Feng proposed traveling south from Karlok Town along the Anduin, using ships and resupplying at Dernost Town to reach Rohan.
• The kings approved the route and agreed to gather at the Forest River's mouth in seven days.
• After the kings departed, Roland praised Yun Feng and asked how many forces would be needed to hold Old Pass.
• Yun Feng said two Swift River Phalanxes could hold Old Pass, but a Baron would be needed to fully control and fortify it.

Roland planned to grant Apophis Breo a vast duchy around the Old Pass and prepared a caravan carrying beasts and magical equipment. The caravan’s supplies were nearly ready, and Roland learned that its weapons could compete with Dwarven goods because they were enchanted.

• Roland proposed granting Apophis Breo territory stretching from Gundabad to the Seninger Plains and from the Anduin River to the Misty Mountains.
• Yun Feng questioned Roland’s plan, then agreed that the empire needed people and nobles capable of occupying and governing new lands.
• Roland checked the caravan preparations, and Reno reported that most supplies had been packed into his Space Ring.
• Ruhl explained that the caravan carried fifty Snow Wing Chickens and fifty wagonloads of magical equipment.
• Roland learned that the equipment had special magical effects the Dwarves could no longer forge and wondered whether Ruhl had raided Yun Feng’s warehouse.

Roland inspected Ruhl’s preparations for a new trade route and checked Reno’s training before the caravan’s departure. After spending the night with Nyx, Roland set out to see whether Yun Feng needed help managing the kingdom’s affairs.

• Ruhl showed Roland enchanted weapons and armor prepared for the trade caravan, and Roland said he would see the group off in a couple of days.
• Reno told Roland that the soldiers were ready to protect the caravan and urged him to train so he could defend himself in battle.
• Roland told Reno to rest before the journey, then visited Nyx and discussed writing a letter of state to protect the caravan from local lords.
• The next morning, Roland left to check on Yun Feng, whose responsibilities as royal secretary weighed heavily on him.
• Roland privately resolved to keep Yun Feng in the capital and make him a Court Noble rather than reward him with a distant fief.

Roland struck a deal with Thorin to upgrade five thousand sets of Dwarven army equipment in exchange for one hundred kilograms of mithril. After Reno departed with his force and supplies, Yun Feng learned that the first equipment shipment and mithril had already arrived.

• Roland met Thorin and agreed to upgrade five thousand sets of Dwarven equipment for one hundred kilograms of mithril.
• Roland asked Thorin whether the Iron Hills also needed equipment upgrades, but Thorin said their smiths could make intermediate magic equipment themselves.
• Roland, Bard, and Bai Yi saw Reno and his force set off with the caravan, and Roland warned Reno not to confront the Orcs directly.
• Roland excitedly told Yun Feng about the mithril deal, and Yun Feng fainted when he heard that it involved five thousand sets of equipment.
• A knight reported that Thorin had sent the first batch of equipment and that Kili had arrived with the mithril, prompting Yun Feng to curse Roland.

Roland fled after Yun Feng discovered he had committed him to making five thousand sets of alchemy magic equipment. Yun Feng cornered the king and bargained for compensation, settling on one hundred kilograms of alchemy materials.

• Roland ran from Yun Feng after the furious mage learned about the order for five thousand sets of alchemy magic equipment.
• Nyx saw Roland flee the castle, while villagers and patrolmen watched him race through town in his black silk underwear.
• Roland sought protection from Omsk and Adilai, but they stepped aside after learning Yun Feng was demanding an explanation.
• Yun Feng restrained Roland with Mental Power and demanded compensation for the enormous workload.
• Roland and Yun Feng haggled over materials, and Yun Feng accepted Roland's offer of one hundred kilograms.

After Yun Feng forced Roland to sign harsh treaties over Roland’s demands on his work, Nyx explained that Roland had violated the unspoken rules between nobles and risked provoking his vassals. Roland accepted her warning, and they turned their attention to expanding the Lagrange Kingdom while Reno traveled with the merchant caravans.

• Roland lamented the wealth he had lost in his agreement with Yun Feng, then went to Nyx for comfort.
• Roland told Nyx how he had pressured Yun Feng, and Nyx explained that a liege could not impose such a burden on a vassal without consultation.
• Nyx warned Roland that nobles might see his actions as an insult and rebel, while Roland realized Yun Feng’s loyalty had prevented a crisis.
• Roland thanked Nyx and agreed to keep more distance from his vassals.
• Roland and Nyx discussed Reno’s journey and the need to grow the Kingdom, but Nyx pointed out that they lacked nobles and subjects to settle new lands.

Roland planned a ten-meter-wide flagstone road from Flowing City to Delvin Territory to improve travel and military movement, recruiting Ladyl and Yun Feng to supply magic and workers. Construction was set to begin before winter, while a road to Lulong Fortress remained a future ambition.

• Roland told Nyx he wanted to build roads and settled on repairing the route from Flowing City toward Tupte Territory, while ruling out the much longer road to Lulong Fortress for now.
• Roland persuaded Ladyl to build a ten-meter-wide flagstone road with help from able-bodied workers during winter, and Ladyl mentioned Nina Born’s fire and earth affinities.
• Roland ordered Yun Feng to send two thousand workers before winter to build the road from Flowing City to Delvin, and Yun Feng agreed despite his irritation.

After Yun Feng humiliated him, Roland left the castle for a walk with Lavien assigned to keep him fed. He got lost on the way to Delvin because he had ordered the signposts removed, then stopped to cook and discovered he had no idea how to prepare a simple vegetable soup.

• Roland returned to the castle after Yun Feng scolded him, and Nyx ordered Lavien to make sure he ate properly.
• Roland set out with Lavien and his Knights to explore the Northern Territory, noting the harvested fields and shortage of plow oxen.
• Roland lost his way to Delvin, and Lavien reminded him that he had ordered the signposts removed during the war with the Chariot People.
• Roland agreed to have the signposts restored and stopped to eat, but Lavien prevented him from living on dry bread.
• Roland tried to make vegetable soup, and Lavien realized that Roland’s unhealthy eating habits came from his inability to cook.

Roland visited Delvin, enjoyed a meal he had cooked, and reassigned Marcus to serve as Flowing City's city defense officer, with Lance set to replace him. A system check-in had given Roland a powerful Imperial Outpost, which he considered using to help secure Old Pass.

• Roland cooked a stew with his subjects and praised his own cooking, while Lavien silently doubted his culinary skills.
• Roland learned that Delvin had 854 residents and ordered Marcus to return to Flowing City as its city defense officer.
• Roland told Marcus that Lance would replace him in Delvin and left after spending the night there.
• Roland inspected the Imperial Outpost he had received from the system and learned it could house 500 soldiers.
• Roland considered placing the outpost at Old Pass to help Apophis Breo establish a position there.

Roland received a Reinforcement Event calling him to find a lost army of loyal Imperial vanguards within three days. He sent Omsk and the upgraded cavalry to search the wilderness, warning them to retreat rather than die needlessly.

• Nyx helped Roland prepare to bathe, and the two spent an intimate evening together.
• Roland drew a Reinforcement Event requiring him to find a lost group of Imperial supporters within three days.
• Roland ordered Omsk to assemble the cavalry at the east gate.
• Omsk assembled twenty light cavalry, one hundred heavy cavalry, and one hundred newly upgraded Lagrange Empire Vanguard Knights.
• Roland divided the force into twenty search teams and ordered them to find the reinforcements, report discoveries, and return alive.

The Lagrange Empire Vanguard Knights searched the wilderness for a target despite having lost their way and damaged communications equipment. Roland discussed the Kingdom’s isolated southern territory with Omsk and called for a plan to connect Lulong Fortress to the rest of the Kingdom.

• The Vanguard Knights split into twenty teams and searched in every direction, while one captain ordered his lost team to follow the terrain and keep watch for the target.
• Omsk questioned how the troops had become lost, and Roland explained that their Magic Communication equipment had been damaged.
• Roland considered how the Lagrange Kingdom could defend itself against future threats with its Knights, Dragon Marshals, and Bannaria Archers.
• Roland and Omsk discussed Lulong Fortress’s isolation and concluded that repairing its teleportation array would require more spatial stones than Roland could provide.
• Roland told Omsk to plan a route connecting the Kingdom’s controlled territories so he could eventually build towns along it.
• Omsk advised Roland to protect his only Knight Order, which might remain the Northern Territory humans’ sole Knight Order for a long time.

Lord Laffite Antony’s lost refugees struggled to find their destination before encountering a camp near Flowing City. A tense meeting began after the camp’s sentries mistook approaching cavalry for an attack.

• Laffite Antony learned that the positioning compass could no longer guide his group to the Empire’s survivors and lamented that he had led more than three thousand civilians astray.
• Laffite ordered his people to camp somewhere defensible because hungry Wasteland Orcs threatened them.
• A patrol searching for the camp spotted a settlement surrounded by a low wooden-and-mud wall and sent a rider back to report.
• The Swift River Infantry sounded the alarm when armored cavalry approached, and the camp assembled a phalanx behind its wall.
• Five vanguard Knights displayed their Battle Qi Flames, and Laffite stepped forward to identify himself as a lord of the Lagrange Empire.

Lafitte Antony’s group encountered knights from the Holy Radiance Knight Order, who verified that he was an Imperial noble and summoned the other search parties. By noon, a large force had arrived to escort his people to His Highness, though Lafitte Antony asked for time to pack.

• Lafitte Antony challenged the knights’ demand for proof, then identified himself as Lord Laffite Antony of House Antony and explained that his group had followed a compass to find the Empire.
• The vanguard knights sent a magical signal and told Lafitte Antony he would understand their identities the next morning before departing.
• Search parties across the region received the signal and hurried toward the location, grumbling about being roused from sleep.
• By noon, knights and cavalrymen surrounded Lafitte Antony’s group beneath the Red Flag with Golden Dragon, and the vanguard knight offered to escort them to His Highness.
• Lafitte Antony agreed to move faster but asked for time to pack because most of his people were civilians with many belongings.

Lord Laffite Antony led the remnants of the Empire toward the Lagrange Kingdom, while Roland waited for the support event’s people to arrive. As night fell, city guards heard possible hoofbeats approaching.

• Lord Laffite Antony told his people that the Empire had fallen and that the Lagrange Kingdom was their new home.
• The civilians spent nearly a day gathering their belongings, and Lord Laffite Antony persuaded the vanguard knight to let them travel at night with heavy cavalry clearing the route.
• Roland saw that his support event had succeeded, but the people had still not arrived after four days; Nyx comforted him on the balcony.
• During a nighttime watch, Richard heard hoofbeats and asked DeKai to check whether people were approaching.

A returning procession brought Lord Lafitte Antony and thousands of civilians to Flowing City, where Roland welcomed them and reviewed the kingdom’s status. The new arrivals boosted the population, though the territory assessment warned that Lagrange still needed more land and people.

• The Vanguard Knights returned to Flowing City with Lord Lafitte Antony and 3,641 civilians after a seven-day journey.
• Marcus organized the exhausted city guards and newcomers to maintain order and prepare the city for the arrival.
• Roland met Lafitte Antony, learned he was not a Dragon Knight, and mentioned that another member of his family was one.
• Marcus and Lafitte Antony reported the newcomers’ numbers, including 3,600 Swift River Infantry and seventeen knights, fifteen of whom needed to retire.
• Roland checked the Territory Interface and saw Flowing City’s population rise to 18,993, while the assessment warned that the kingdom still needed more land and population.

Roland reorganized the newcomers and appointed Laffite Antony to administer Flowing City while postponing his fief. As winter solstice arrived, Roland expected the coming winter to be easier than the last.

• Roland ordered the Swift River Infantry to Lulong Fortress, assigned the Knights to the Knights of the Crimson Lily, and arranged for the new residents to integrate into the kingdom.
• Roland directed the city’s idle young men to prepare the farmland outside the city while Old Ladyl needed more time.
• Roland learned that Laffite Antony had come from the Hercane Sea and explained that the kingdom lacked the manpower to grant him a fief for now.
• Roland appointed Laffite Antony Administrative Officer of Flowing City, and Laffite Antony accepted the position.
• As darkness fell on the winter solstice, Roland moved Nyx away from his cold armor and said the coming winter would be easier than the last.