Answer the Call
Victor finalized his relationship with Veronica for two reasons: firstly, war was about to begin, and all ceremonies needed to be simplified; secondly, Victor wanted to completely bind himself to the Iron Birch Family's camp.
This way, we can get involved in some things under a more suitable pretext.
After receiving Viscount Benjamin's approval, Victor said to Viscount Benjamin, "Thank you, Father-in-law. Thank you for entrusting Veronica to me. I will protect her from now on."
Victor immediately suggested to Count Colt, "Uncle, I have an idea. I will intercept the secret agreement. The more than thirty guards I brought this time are all elites, and with my own superb martial arts skills, I am more suitable for this kind of mission."
When Benjamin saw that his new son-in-law was going to carry out such a mission, he quickly stepped forward to stop him.
"Victor, are you crazy? You have more important tasks to do. Don't be reckless."
Count Colt was also puzzled as to why Victor did this. "Victor, since you call me uncle, then you and I are family. There's nothing to hide. Intercepting the secret pact is indeed important, but guarding these two noble families is also crucial. Why did you choose to intercept the secret pact?"
Victor shook his head. "No, Uncle. I want the credit for blocking the secret pact, and I also want the credit for guarding the Swinging Faction nobles. I just want to gain more merit by following the heir of the Iron Birch Family in this operation."
In fact, even without this unexpected situation, if Victor had been given another two or three years, Victor would have been confident that he could have built up his territory into a stronger one, deployed more troops to participate in the Civil War, and naturally gained more merit.
But not now. Although the Two Rivers Territory is not weak, it is not considered powerful in the entire Northern Frontier Noble Alliance. The three viscount families of Golden Pear Territory, Crimson Maple Territory and Holly Territory alone can overpower him. With the current strength of the Two Rivers Territory, he is not confident that he can stand out.
The Raine Kingdom has only granted the titles of Duke to one family, Marquis to three families, and Earl to six Count in this land. Without sufficient merit, he might not even be able to obtain the Count's title, since there are also powerful nobles in other counties of the Duchy who are willing to cooperate with the rebels led by Count Colt, and they will also occupy these spots.
Victor's answer stunned Count Colt and Viscount Benjamin, who hadn't expected him to be so blunt.
A moment later, Count Colt burst into laughter, then called out to Alex, who was standing there dumbfounded, "Hurry up and thank Victor for helping you with this mission."
After Alex realized what was happening, he quickly stepped forward, grasped Victor's hand, and said with tears in his eyes, "Victor, thank you, my brother, oh no, my brother-in-law."
"I'm doing this for myself, brother. I hope we can work together smoothly from now on."
Victor's words were indeed blunt, as if he were just trying to claim credit. However, everyone present understood that Victor wanted to participate in the operation on behalf of his own people. Intercepting the secret pact was no greater achievement than protecting Alex, the heir.
Count Colt understood that even if Victor only participated in the garrison operation, it would be a great help to him. However, since Victor also had to participate in intercepting the secret agreement and protecting Alex, he and the Iron Birch Family had to owe Victor a debt of gratitude.
"Then what about the army in your territory? Even if you don't lead the troops yourself, you still need to go back to your territory to do so, right?" Count Colt asked.
"I don't need to go back in person. I have a way to quickly notify the territory, and my territory's military system is capable of organizing such a military operation while I'm away. Also, Count Colt, please borrow the Iron Birch Territory's fleet to go to Boler County in East County and send my father to the Two Rivers Territory. He can also manage the territory in my place."
Victor could easily use the Gale to issue combat orders to the territory, which is already one of the functions of the General Staff. If the order is issued now, the General Staff will receive it tonight, and the territory can begin preparations for troop deployment.
This is much faster than returning to one's territory for redeployment, but only Victor can do this; other nobles, such as Viscount Benjamin, must return to their territories.
As for why other nobles couldn't send orders by carrier pigeon, unfortunately, carrier pigeons have limited carrying capacity. The official orders of noble lords had to be more detailed, and they also had to be accompanied by a seal and code words or symbols to prove that the order was issued by the lord himself. This would make the letters very heavy, and carrier pigeons simply couldn't complete the delivery.
Victor explained to the group why he could issue orders without returning to his territory, and then introduced them to Little Paru and Gale. Count Colt, Viscount Benjamin, and Alex were all filled with envy.
Victor drafted the order, affixed his personal seal, and sent it back to the territory by the Gale.
As the Gale gradually disappeared into the night, everyone present felt the approaching atmosphere of war.
Benjamin bid farewell directly to Count Colt, as he needed to return to his territory as soon as possible to deploy the suppression mission.
Count Colt didn't say much, only reminding him to be careful and arranging for Alex and Victor to see him off.
Victor called Veronica along, and the three of them went to see Viscount Benjamin off. Victor also revealed some information to Veronica, hoping that Veronica could stay at Iron Mountain Fortress, as it was the safest place there.
"Since war is imminent, the wedding must be kept simple. But as your wife, I will not back down. Let me return to Two Rivers Territory, where I can do everything I can to help you."
Standing before the gates of Iron Mountain Fortress, the three watched the Golden Pear Territory Cavalry gradually disappear into the distance, and Veronica said these words to Victor.
Alex chimed in, "Girls from the Northlands are very strong, especially Veronica. Since you promised to protect her for life, Victor, you should respect her wishes and not hurt Veronica."
Victor had no choice but to agree to Veronica.
After returning to the meeting room, Victor wrote a letter and handed it to his two youngest guards. They would take the Iron Birch Territory's fast ship and depart early the next morning for Boler County to deliver the letter to the Old Baron Wembley and then return to the Two Rivers Territory with him.
After completing all the preparations, Victor gathered the remaining guards and told them that he was going to carry out a secret mission in the western part of the duchy. He told them to get some rest as soon as possible and to depart at 3 a. m.
The reason Victor and Alex chose to set off in the early morning was that it only took two hours to reach the trail entrance to the Carson Mountains from Iron Mountain Fortress. It was not safe to go too early and walk on the mountain at night, so it was better to go up the mountain after dawn.
For this operation, Count Colt prepared a batch of special armor, all half-body armor made of Iron Birch bark, which was lightweight, provided good protection, and would not consume stamina during long marches.