Frontline Conference (I)

Just as the father and son fell silent, there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Count Excellency, Viscount Hawke has arrived and says he has important matters to report."

"That's what the guard who knocked on the door said."

Alex suddenly looked up. "I know what happened. I guess the Duchy has organized a small cavalry force to spread rumors that the Carson Mountains defense line has been breached and that the Duchy Army has entered the heart of the Northlands."

In the past few days, besides organizing Cavalry units and Hawk's mounted infantry to attack the duchy's small camps and supply lines, another important task for Alex was to clear out the duchy's rangers who had come to the front lines in the Northlands to spread these messages.

Viscount Borey was more cunning than imagined. After receiving news that Turas had breached the defenses of the Carson Mountains, he sent men to the front lines of the Northern Alliance Army every day to shout the news and try to shake the morale of the Northern Frontier nobles.

Although Alex's strict blockade and clearing out of these rangers did not have much impact, it still annoyed him greatly.

"Let Hawk in first!"

Count Colt, who was standing nearby, called out towards the door.

"Yes!"

A few minutes later, Viscount Hawke entered the room. Alex was somewhat relieved, but Count Colt seemed a little uncomfortable with Hawk's demeanor.

In Count Colt's eyes, Hawk was no longer the same as he had been during last year's battle. His body was no longer round like a ball, and his width had decreased by more than half. Although he still looked a bit fat, he no longer looked bloated. Instead, his fine plate armor from the Two Rivers Territory gave him a sense of heavy, muscular fat.

Upon seeing Count Colt, Hawk snapped to attention and gave a sharp military salute, his right arm striking his chest armor with a resounding clang, exuding an imposing aura like that of a victorious general.

Count Colt, however, remained calm. He simply rubbed his eyes and asked, "Hawk, what happened?"

Hawk pulled a stack of papers directly from his breastplate, divided them into two piles, and handed them to the father and son respectively. "Count Excellency, and Viscount Alex, these are what we just seized from the Duchy's Rangers."

The two examined the papers, which were made of the lowest grade of Papyrus Paper. The text on them was very short, and it was clear that they were copied by different people. The content was similar, mostly about the fall of the Carson Mountains, the deaths of Viscount Benjamin and Viscount Albert, the Duchy Army penetrating deep into the Northlands of Durham County, and the fact that the Northern Frontier nobles had not yet surrendered, and that the Grand Duke would surely strip them of their titles and exterminate their clans in the future.

Alex was furious after reading it, but Count Colt laughed, "Mora and Borei have us cornered. Look, other Northern Frontier nobles are given lenient treatment, but our Iron Birch Family hasn't been mentioned at all. It seems they have to strip me of my title and wipe out our family."

"Father, I'll lead men to destroy a few more of their camps and see if they dare to do it again!"

Just as Alex was about to leave, Count Colt shouted, "Don't go. Even if you attack many of their small camps and supply convoys, it won't have any impact on them. Instead, it will only deplete our valuable Cavalry forces."

"But Father..."

Count Colt cut Alex off immediately, saying, "There's no need to keep the news under wraps. This time they're not shouting from the front lines; instead, they're using these letters to spread the message, making them even harder to detect. Your Cavalry can't stop them."

I will convene a pre-battle meeting immediately to announce the status of the Carson Mountains defenses.

Alex was very worried. "Won't this cause unrest among the army?"

Count Colt smiled and reassured Alex: "Don't worry, you should trust our people. Ask Hawk if he's worried."

Seeing the father and son turn their gaze to him, Hawk replied loudly, "Count Lord, I am not worried about them at all. Viscount Benjamin and Viscount Albert are both renowned generals of the Northlands. They cannot possibly fail."

Besides, our family's territory is all in Bria County; even if they were to attack, it would be a long time before they do.

Hawk's first half of his sentence sounded quite serious, but the second half made Count Colt burst into laughter.

"Look, Alex, the entire Northern Frontier nobles is actually divided into two parts. My Iron Birch Family occupies one of the Three Counties of the Northern Frontier, and the remaining nobility are half in Durham County and the other half in either Bria County or the northern grasslands of North York County."

Only the nobles of Durham County are worried about the defensive lines; nobles elsewhere don't care at all. But do you think the breach of the Carson Mountains defenses can be kept secret from these Durham County folk?

Count Colt looked at his son with a half-smile.