A Conversation in the Capital City

In Silver Maple City, Milan County, in the central part of the Grand Duchy of Vera, the city center was still brightly lit and bustling, showing that Silver Maple City had a very rich nightlife.

There is a gentle hill to the west of the city center, which is about ten meters higher than other places in the city. The palace of Grand Duke Silver Maple is located here.

Inside a white palace with an architectural style reminiscent of Earth's Baroque buildings, there is an open-air platform at the edge of the palace where three people are talking.

Among them were a burly middle-aged man with brown hair and a beard, a tall, white-haired old man, and a plump, blond young man.

"Your His Grace the Grand Duke, this troop deployment is too hasty. You shouldn't have sent the Third Legion to Blackwater City. Their strength is insufficient to guard the Blackwater River waterway. You should have sent Count Carter's Second Legion there instead," the white-haired old man said to the blond youth.

"Count Lagos, please watch your attitude. Even if you are His Majesty's maternal grandfather, you should understand the distinction between ruler and subject."

The burly middle-aged man spoke with a powerful voice, so loud that the blond youth covered his left ear.

"I apologize, Lord Borei, you must have found this amusing. I was just a little too excited," Count Lagos said with a look of shame.

These two are Count Lagos Fennel and Viscount Borre Cornflower. Lagos was the maternal grandfather of the Grand Duke Mora and was a viscount in the western Ent County. After the Civil War, he was made Count by the Grand Duke Mora.

Lagos was shrewd and adept at social maneuvering. He was the second most powerful nobleman in the Western nobles after Count Dante Thyss. However, he was not good at warfare. During the Civil War, he rallied the Western nobles to support Marquis Mora. As a result, due to his reckless advance, he was completely annihilated by Jorah's forces in Fude County, barely escaping with his life.

Because of this incident, he dared not return to the Western Three Counties after the war and lived in Silver Maple City for a long time. Later, he was simply appointed Prime Minister of the Duchy by Mora.

Viscount Borey is the Commander of the Imperial Guard, whose fief is located in Derby County in the middle of the country. He is considered a staunchly loyal nobleman of the Silver Maple Ducal House. During the Civil War, he remained neutral due to the special status of the Imperial Guard, and only pledged allegiance to the Grand Duke Mora after Mora's victory.

However, unlike Count Carter, Borre enjoys the deep trust of Grand Duke Mora. After all, the Imperial Guard Legion he leads is the elite of the Duchy's Direct Legion. The Duchy's Imperial Guard Legion is much larger than that of ordinary legions, with eight regiments and a total strength of nearly 40,000 men, and is said to be comparable to three ordinary legions.

"The pass of Carn City is indeed very important, but Count Carter's Second Legion has too many troops. The central counties had just experienced war two years ago, and York County's food reserves were depleted. They haven't recovered yet and simply cannot support the logistics of nearly 40,000 troops from two legions combined."

Lagos believes that Mora's troop deployment is simply a joke and completely unrealistic.

"Old man, stop wasting your time here. Instead of discussing troop deployments with me, you should go and gather food and supplies to send to York County."

"Besides, do you think I don't want to transfer the Third Legion to Carn City? The Third Legion has just begun to rebuild, with few officers and many new recruits, and it also lacks warhorses and equipment. If you send them to guard Carn City, it will take half a month just to rotate them there. By then, the Northern barbarians will be able to take the city with a single charge."

"The Second Legion is the fastest and strongest force to reach Carn City in a short time. If I don't let them go, who will? Are you suggesting the Imperial Guard Legion go instead?!"

"The Imperial Guard Legion is ready to strike at any time. Please give the order, Your His Grace the Grand Duke," Borre shouted, punching his chest.

Lagos and Mora both had to cover their ears; Viscount Borey's voice was too loud.

"Minister Bolei, please be patient. The Imperial Guard Legion will have opportunities to fight in the future."

"Old man, I know the Third Legion is not up to the task, but time is of the essence. I estimate that Colt already knows that their rebellion has been exposed. I must mobilize the army as soon as possible to stop them from taking such a risk."

"Alas, Your Majesty, I know time is of the essence, but it is already mid-September, and there is only about a month left before winter arrives in the Northlands. They will not easily send troops. We can certainly take our time to plan."

"You can't give me a guarantee. Are you sure they won't start a rebellion?" Mora questioned Lagos.

"I know the Duchy is weak right now, especially since my direct forces don't have much of an advantage, but as long as I stop Colt and his Northern Alliance Army in advance, I can dismantle the Allied Army and tear them apart."

Lagos found Grand Duke Mora's words strange. He knew Mora well; although Mora wasn't stupid, he was just an average person who couldn't come up with any brilliant plans.

"The people from the Raine Kingdom told me that they have obtained a secret agreement between Colt and the Raine Kingdom military. What do you think would happen if I revealed this secret agreement to the nobles of the Northlands?"

Lagos also fell into thought, but he quickly realized, "You mean the Northern Frontier nobles were willing to support the Iron Birch Family's rebellion because of the backing of the Raine Kingdom? Now that we have this secret agreement, they will naturally think that the Raine Kingdom's support for the Iron Birch Family is gone."

"That's right, that's exactly it. You're quite clever, old man. I had to hear the envoy from the Raine Kingdom explain it to me several times before I understood."

"So you dispatched legions to two strategic locations to establish a defensive line, deterring that guy Colt from heading south, and waiting for the secret agreement to arrive before sending him to the Northlands to break up their Alliance."

Mora nodded in satisfaction. The whole thing was done under the guidance of the people from the Raine Kingdom. He also thought the plan was brilliant, as it could eliminate half of the Northlands forces without sending troops or fighting.

"I understand now. I will immediately send people to allocate supplies to support Blackwater City prioritize the reconstruction of the army there to help the Third Legion reach full strength as soon as possible." Count Lagos also understood what he should do at this time.

"Your Majesty, when will that secret agreement arrive?"

"My information is that they have already set off from the Raine Kingdom. It will take them three days to cross the Tears of God and reach Strath County in the west. From there, they will be delivered directly to Silver Maple City by fast horse, which will take about three more days. In total, it will take exactly six days."

"Grand Duke Mora made a terrible mistake. Even if I were to rebel, no one in the Northern Frontier nobles Civil War has only been over for a little over a year, and I don't think York County has enough food to support such a large garrison. As for the Third Legion of Blackwater City, it is only fit to be used as Auxiliary Troops. I don't think this legion has any fighting power."

"I understand Mora's thoughts. He wants to stop me from suddenly raising an army, but he doesn't know that what I'm worried about is the secret pact. As long as the secret pact is not in his hands, neither Carn City nor Blackwater City can stop my army."