Arrival at Iron Mountain Fortress
The port staff of Northwind City spotted the Two Rivers Territory fleet early on and dispatched two small boats to guide the fleet to the nobles' exclusive dock.
Now, under Victor's leadership Golden Sunflower Family is no longer just an ordinary independent noble family; at least in the Northlands, they are a renowned and powerful independent noble family.
The Golden Sunflower emblem is now widely accepted in the Three Counties of the Northern Frontier, and most Northern Frontier nobles are willing to maintain good relations with the Two Rivers Territory.
After the fleet docked, port officials arrived at the pier where the fleet was moored to wait.
After all, these people, as retainers of the Iron Birch Family, are more sensitive to the Iron Birch Family's diplomatic tendencies. They know that the Golden Sunflower Family, now led by Victor, is a newly emerging and important ally of the Iron Birch Family.
The port manager of Northwind City is Letho, a Freemen who is forty-six years old. His family has served the Iron Birch Family for generations, and he obtained the lucrative position of port manager through the kindness of the elders.
He immediately noticed the Noble Crest flying on the fleet, a flag used only by lords when traveling, which meant that Viscount Victor of the Golden Sunflower Family was on board.
This lord is a rising star in the Northlands, renowned and close friends with Lord Alex. If we don't behave well now, wouldn't we be making trouble for our lord?
After Victor and Veronica disembarked, they met with the port manager of Northwind City.
"Your Excellency, I am Letho, the port manager of Northwind City. It is truly an honor to serve you personally."
"Hello, Manager Letho, I just happened to be visiting Your Count. You don't need to be so polite. If it affects your work, then it's my fault."
"How could that be? Your Excellency, you made great contributions in the battle against the Barbarian Alliance. Viscount Alex often mentions you to us servants. If you ever come to Northwind City as a guest, we will make sure you feel at home."
Victor couldn't refuse, so he said to him, "Alright, Manager Letho, I need to head to Iron Mountain Fortress first. I'll have to trouble you to help with unloading the cargo. I'll have my fleet manager Rogier, stay behind to coordinate with you."
"Don't worry, I will definitely handle this matter well. Please take care, sir."
After exchanging a few words with Rogier, Victor led Veronica and his guards to Iron Mountain Fortress.
It's only 9:30 in the morning. If they hurry, they can reach Iron Mountain Fortress before evening and won't have to spend the night outside.
Letho watched Victor walk away. He kept noticing Veronica, feeling that she looked familiar, but he couldn't remember whose daughter she was.
At that moment, Rogier walked over and interrupted his thoughts.
"Letho, I am Rogier, the fleet manager of the Two Rivers Territory. I would like to ask you to send some workers to help unload the cargo. It needs to be delivered to Iron Mountain Fortress first thing tomorrow morning."
"No problem, the Viscount has already given instructions, I'll go and call for help right away."
Just as Letho was about to turn and leave, he suddenly remembered something and turned back to Rogier, asking, "Mr. Rogier, which noble family's daughter is that lady next to the Viscount? I feel like I recognize her, but I can't quite place her."
Rogier looked Letho up and down strangely, then said, "Miss Veronica is the eldest daughter of Benjamin Viscount Benjamin Pear, and also our Viscount's fiancée. She has to call your Count 'uncle', and you don't even recognize her?"
Letho slapped his thigh. "Ah, no wonder she looked so familiar. It turns out she's the daughter of Viscount Benjamin Pear. Oh, no wonder Viscount Victor came to Iron Mountain Fortress at this time."
Rogier asked curiously, "What do you mean, 'No wonder Viscount Victor came to Iron Mountain Fortress at this time'? Is there anything going on at Iron Mountain Fortress lately?"
"Rogier, don't you know? Viscount Benjamin also came to Iron Mountain Fortress some time ago and has been here for a week. Viscount Victor probably came here to visit his future father-in-law to discuss the marriage."
Upon hearing this, Rogier coughed and said, "No wonder, no wonder." He thought to himself, "The Viscount probably doesn't know that Lord Benjamin is here. I hope his trip goes well."
As the fleet manager, Rogier frequently traveled between Northwind City and Two Rivers Territory. He was also in charge of communication between Golden Pear Territory and Two Rivers Territory. He knew better than anyone Benjamin's attitude towards Veronica's refusal to leave Two Rivers Territory recently.
At 3 p. m., Victor and Veronica walked along the main road, having just passed the last checkpoint. They were now only 20 kilometers from Iron Mountain Fortress. Victor had already sent a messenger to Iron Mountain Fortress to inform them of their arrival.
Around 4:00, Victor and his men could see Iron Mountain Fortress ahead. They saw a troop of Cavalry approaching from the direction of Iron Mountain Fortress, their armor neatly fitted and moving very fast.
At first, Victor thought it was a troop movement within the Iron Birch Territory, but when he saw the menacing Cavalry slow down as he Victor sensed something was wrong.
The knight at the head of the group had a banner on his back with the emblem of the Golden Pear Territory Iron Birch Family.
Victor then noticed the figure of the leading knight. Although the knight was covered in heavy armor from head to toe, Victor quickly recognized him.
Seeing the knight charging aggressively towards him, Victor had no choice but to raise the longsword hanging on the right side of his saddle before he could even speak.
With a clang, Victor clashed swords with the knight. Although the knight charged with great force and momentum, he was not difficult to deal with Victor, who was highly skilled in combat and possessed superhuman strength.
However, Victor only parried the opponent's longsword and did not make any further moves.
The guards behind Victor were filled with righteous indignation and vied to go up and protect the viscount.
However, Victor stopped them, saying, "This is Viscount Benjamin; no one should be rude."
Veronica had already discovered the knight's true identity and quickly cried out, "Father, what are you doing here? Don't be silly! That was too dangerous!"
Upon hearing this, the knight removed his helmet, revealing Viscount Benjamin beneath it. He shouted, "Veronica, don't worry about this. Today I'm going to teach that brat from the Golden Sunflower Family a lesson for daring to stop my daughter from going home!"
"Dad, don't joke around. You're only putting yourself in danger. How could you possibly hurt Victor? You're no match for him."
Upon hearing Veronica's words, Viscount Benjamin staggered and nearly fell off his horse; sometimes, his daughter's concern could make the old father even more heartbroken.
Viscount Benjamin looked at Victor with grief and indignation. Victor was filled with anxiety, repeatedly trying to figure out if he had done anything wrong to make Viscount Benjamin so angry.