Movements on All Sides

At Iron Mountain Fortress, Alex found Count Colt having dinner while holding a document.

"Father, a piece of intelligence has come from Blackwater City. I find it quite urgent, so I have to disturb your meal."

Colt didn't pay any attention and simply took the document and started reading.

"It's intelligence from the Fifth Legion. Is Legion Commander Kimberley leading the remaining troops of the Fifth Legion to move to Sextus County?"

"Yes, Father, it seems our actions have angered Mora. He has deployed the entire Fifth Legion to Sextus County, and he probably plans to retake White Earth City as soon as possible next year."

Count Colt shook his head. "It shouldn't be that simple. Including the Second Legion stationed in Carn City, the Third Legion in Blackwater City, the First Legion and the Imperial Guard Legion protecting Milan County, Fourth Legion stationed in the Southern Region."

Mora and his men only had the Sixth Legion and Seventh Legion as mobile forces. Sending the remaining half of the Fifth Legion to support Sextus County was not very meaningful, as this force was far from enough to defeat Viscount Hawke and his allies.

Lagos and Borre wouldn't do something so pointless; they would try to persuade Mora, and it's possible that the Fifth Legion has other plans.

Alexander, you should instruct your men to investigate, whether by bribery, extortion, or blackmail, to uncover the true target of the Fifth Legion.

"Yes, Father, I will make the arrangements."

Just as Count Colt handed the document back to Alex, he asked, "Was this intelligence provided by Viscount Honeysuckle?"

Alex took the document and paused for a moment before replying, "Yes, it was provided to us by Viscount Taros."

"The Honeysuckle family must be having a tough time right now. Mora is levying special military expenses and noble annuities, which the Honeysuckle family probably can't afford anymore!"

"That's right. The Honeysuckle family has basically sold off all their assets, and now they can only live off the military pay provided by their enlisted members."

"Father, please rest assured, I have already sent someone to provide Viscount Taros with sufficient funds to cover special military expenses and his pension."

Count Colt frowned. "Is this all the money we need?"

Alex didn't quite understand what his father meant. "Yes, we can cover all the expenses that the Honeysuckle family needs to pay to the duchy."

Count Colt sighed, "Alex, you can be very generous sometimes, but why can't you be a little more generous at a time like this? This is a good opportunity to do a favor. Have someone send another 1,000 gold coins to Viscount Taros."

The fact that the Honeysuckle family could still place many of its members and private troops into the Third Legion, despite its current status, fully demonstrates their deep-rooted influence within this legion.

Furthermore, the fact that their family members voluntarily hand over their military pay to the family for unified management demonstrates the family's cohesion. Since we have decided to help this family, we should increase our investment; they do have value.

Alex was sweating profusely, and he realized the problem he had overlooked.

"Father, it's my fault. I'll send someone to find Viscount Taros immediately and give him the money!"

"Besides these?"

"I will add another 1,000 gold. In addition, our Northern Frontier Chamber of Commerce still has some supplies in Blackwater City, mostly military equipment that we haven't had time to transport back to North York County. I plan to give them to the Honeysuckle family as well."

Count Colt nodded, approving of Alex's approach.

"Has anything else happened recently?"

"No, things have calmed down in Boler County. Victor fought a brilliant battle, giving Count Black an excuse to disband the punitive expeditionary force."

Victor should have already returned north; he'll probably take the sea route directly back to Two Rivers Territory.

"Very good, Victor did an excellent job, whether it was the interception operation with you before or the battle in Boler County this time."

"Alex, take note: ownership of Green Oak Territory is being transferred directly to Victor, along with his share of the Frontier Territory."

"Yes, Father, I think Victor will be pleased."

"Remember Alex, money and territory are ultimately just external things. Only by winning the Civil War can we have them."

Entrusting these things to the right people will allow them to be used more effectively than keeping them in our own hands.

"That's right. I didn't expect Victor to fight so well in this battle of Boler County."

"He has great ideas about military development, including training and equipment, and the military equipment purchased from Two Rivers Territory this time proves this point."

"Yes, putting aside the weapons of the Two Rivers Territory, even their standard armor, while not as outstanding as the Iron Birch Wood armor, is still much better than the armor popular within the duchy."

Even with the lowest estimate, the combat effectiveness of our Iron Birch Territory army will increase by 30% after equipping themselves with this new armor.

Count Colt nodded. "How are the expansions of the Third Legion, Fourth Legion, and Fifth Legion going? How much of the purchased military equipment has been delivered?"

"The Third Fourth Legion have basically completed the recruitment of new soldiers, and the officers drawn from various army corps have all arrived and are conducting training."

However, the Fifth Legion is facing some problems. Although we have recruited many Barbarians vassals, we lack sufficient officers to manage them, and training has not yet begun.

As for military supplies, the Two Rivers Territory have delivered 3,000 suits of armor and various weapons to us, but since it is already winter, they cannot be transported by water.

Next, the Two Rivers Territory will supply us with 2,000 suits of armor and various weapons each month via land transport. Combined with the armaments produced within our own territory, this will be enough to arm all our troops by next spring.

Count Colt listened in a daze. Alex, seeing that his father did not speak, asked curiously, "Is there a problem, Father?"

"Oh, it's alright. Now that the military equipment is all set, you can focus your energy more on the work of the Fifth Legion."

You must make proper arrangements. The Fifth Legion has the most Barbarians warriors, so you must ensure there are enough officers and at least one regiment of elite soldiers to maintain control over them.

We are fighting Civil War, and while we need these Barbarians from the Fifth Legion to do some dirty work, we cannot let them run rampant. We must maintain absolute control over the Fifth Legion.

Alex nodded emphatically. "Father, don't worry, I will handle the Fifth Legion."

Seeing that Count Colt had no further instructions, Alex took his leave and left the room.

When Count Colt was alone in the room, he leaned back in his chair and muttered to himself.

"In a month, the Two Rivers Territory can deliver 2,000 sets of iron armor. My son, do you know how terrible that is?"

Count Colt was also a polymath, not only skilled in military operations but also with great ideas on managing his territory. He single-handedly established the military system of Iron Birch Territory, including arms production.

He was very surprised by the production capacity of the Two Rivers Territory. Even though the various military-related workshops in the Iron Birch Territory were at their busiest, their monthly production capacity was only half that of the Two Rivers Territory, and the quality was far inferior.

Keep in mind that this is a Count, with a population dozens of times that of the Two Rivers Territory. Count Colt was increasingly surprised by Victor's performance.

"Hopefully, the union of Veronica and Victor will firmly bind the Golden Sunflower Family and the Iron Birch Family together."

It's impossible to say that Colt wasn't wary of Victor. After all, such a young man was far superior to his son in every way. If he were to become Grand Duke in the future, he would definitely suppress Victor's development.

However, the Iron Birch Family has already determined to become a Duke in the Raine Kingdom in the future, and in order to establish itself in such a vast kingdom, it cannot do without strong and powerful allies.

It turns out that none of the Northern Frontier nobles under his command are capable of becoming such a figure. Even the Great Oak Family and the Iron Vine Family, who have already been identified as allies, have their own problems. At present, the best choice is only the Golden Sunflower Family led by Victor.

Whether for the impending Civil War or for future internal conflicts within the kingdom, Count Colt supported and assisted Victor.

"I hope I made the right choice and that I gave the Iron Birch Family crest to the right person."

On the afternoon of the 23rd, a large border post in Cornwall County, in the Southern Region.

A large caravan arrived, and the officers guarding the checkpoint were very curious about its size.

After all, winter is just around the corner. Even if the climate in the Southern Region is warmer, winter is still very cold. At this time, most caravan trade should have stopped. So why is there a caravan like this?

"Where are you from, and where are you headed?"

The officer stood on the watchtower and shouted to the caravan below.

Just then, a man from the caravan rode up on horseback and arrived at the checkpoint.

"Who is your boss? And Xibro?"

The officer in the tower was puzzled; how did this person know his name?

He examined the person closely and suddenly realized that the person's figure was somewhat familiar, as was the voice from earlier...

The officer suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly ran down the tower. He ran to the guard post and shouted to the guards to open the gate.

After the gate opened, he stepped out and immediately knelt on one knee. "Viscount Ferry, you've returned!"

"It really is you, Xibro. I thought you would be recalled to your original unit!"

Xibro stepped forward to lead Viscount Ferry. "Your Excellency, you did indeed initially inform me to return as Battalion Commander."

But as you know, I've been out of the regular army for two years, and I've been guarding this outpost ever since. I really don't have the confidence to continue leading troops, so I politely declined.

Viscount Ferry dismounted, and the two led their horses to the shadows beside the gate. He smiled and asked Xibro, "Is it a lack of confidence or a reluctance to return?"

Xibro sighed, "You understand me best. I really don't want to go back. These past few years have been so frustrating. During the Civil War, we heard that we could reclaim our lost territories, and everyone was eager to fight."

After the Civil War ended, although Grand Duke Mora, whom we supported, won, we still failed to get what we wanted.

We still failed to eliminate those four rebel families and reclaim our lost territory. Our territory was even restricted from military reduction. It turns out that our Iron Vine Family could do whatever we wanted in Cornwall County and the Southern Four Counties.

The other nobles in Cornwall County are now targeting our territory and have imposed a blockade on us.

Even normal trade has decreased; I've seen it all during my two years as a checkpoint officer!

So I don't want to go back to the army. I feel stifled, and I'd rather stay here for the rest of my life.

"Are you willing to accept this? You are someone I trained, and you are outstanding in every aspect. If you can fight against the invading forces of the East Sea Alliance a few times, you might even have a chance to be ennobled."

"Please don't say that. I am unwilling, but you must be unwilling too. However, this is the current situation. The Grand Duke supports the other southern nobles in blockading us. Even if the East Sea Alliance to invade, we probably won't be allowed to participate in the war."

"You should know that the nobles of Hampshire have roughly two legions of private armies, and other nobles in Cornwall County have about the same size force, plus the Fourth Legion stationed in Dorset County and Devon County. We won't be of much use then."

Xibro said dejectedly.

Viscount Ferry patted him on the shoulder. "Xibro, Count Lloyd has had enough and I'm done. We're going to take back what's rightfully ours."

The caravan I brought back this time was also for this matter. You should go back to the army; we won't let you down again.

After saying Viscount Ferry whistled, and the caravan outside began to slowly pass through the checkpoint.

Xibro was taken aback by Viscount Ferry's words. He understood what Viscount Ferry meant, and he stammered, "But... Your Excellency, aren't we afraid of the Duchy's punishment? The Grand Duke certainly won't stand by our side!"

Viscount Ferry spat. "Grand Duke, he won't be for long. This time, Count Lloyd Xibro not give up halfway. I need you, and the Ironvine Legion needs you too."

At this moment, the caravan's wagons began to pass through the gate. The heavy wheels clattered on the Bluestone floor inside the checkpoint, splashing dust from the cracks in the stones.

Xibro had no idea what kind of cargo was being transported in the wagon that could cause these hundreds of kilograms of stone slabs to vibrate.

At that moment, Viscount Ferry stopped a carriage. He lifted the thick felt cloth on the side, and Xibro's eyes were instantly blinded by the strong reflection.

After he had adjusted to the situation for a while, he saw dozens of armored vehicles neatly hanging on wooden frames inside the carriage.

Xibro walked up and stroked the armor. His years of military experience told him that these iron armors were rare and valuable, and most noble private armies would be reluctant to equip themselves with them.

Viscount Ferry stood beside him, looking at the armored vehicles with satisfaction. "These are my spoils this time. The military shortage caused by the trade blockade has finally passed. We will take back what we lost, whether it is territory or reputation."

Off the northern coast, Victor was writing documents in the cabin, the ship's violent rocking not affecting his work.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Victor called out, "Come in!"

The door opened, and Blox, soaking wet, walked in.

"My lord, we have finally passed through the storm zone, and our course has not deviated!"

Victor then turned around. "So that means we'll be able to go home soon!"

"Yes, there are at most three more days of flight time."