Ironvine Territory (15)

Viscount Ferry shared Victor's thoughts; he believed that Victor's troops were guest forces and it was inappropriate to entrust him with the most challenging tasks.

Just as Viscount Ferry was pondering how to refuse Victor, Lenster said, "Viscount Ferry, since Viscount Victor has already thought it through, I think there's no problem with it."

Besides, our forces are not much smaller than the enemy's, and we have a chance to defeat them even in a head-on confrontation. I think Viscount Victor staying at the central camp will indeed be a great help."

Since Lenster had said so, Viscount Ferry had no choice but to agree to Victor's request.

"You've already helped us a great deal in this battle, and yet you're still in danger. I'm truly ashamed."

Victor discovered that Viscount Ferry was indeed very special; compared to ordinary independent nobles, he was more like a Court Noble, with a strong sense of responsibility towards his lord.

"After all, the Salt-leaf Family has always been a vassal of the Iron Vine Family, so this makes sense."

The three then discussed some details of the plan, talking until very late before finally finishing the discussion.

After the discussion ended, Lenster leaned back in his chair and let out a long sigh, "It's finally over. After this battle, Ironvine Territory can finally get rid of its current predicament."

Viscount Ferry patted Lenster on the shoulder. "Look at yourself! What kind of behavior is this? If the Count saw you like this, you'd be punished."

After listening, Lenster sighed, "Spare me! The war in the Ironvine Territory has never stopped this year. We are exhausted, and the people are even more exhausted. If the war ends, I will definitely take a good vacation."

Viscount Ferry shook his head. He saw Victor just smiling at them and said apologetically, "I was also Lenster's teacher before. This guy is quite talented, but he's always been rather lazy. If it weren't for that, the Count would have made him his heir long ago."

This war is a good thing, it finally made this guy feel some responsibility. Please excuse my presumption, Viscount Victor.

It's getting late, why don't you rest for today, young master Lenster.

Viscount Ferry drew out the last syllable of his sentence, and Lenster knew his teacher was a little angry, so he quickly sat up. "Alright, get some rest!"

As he was about to stand up and leave, Viscount Ferry called him back again, "Make arrangements for Viscount Victor, and take Victor there tomorrow morning."

"Then what are you going to do, teacher?"

"I'll patrol the camp tonight; you come tomorrow night."

Then Lenster took Victor to a prepared place to rest. "Viscount Victor, please rest well. I will come to see you again tomorrow morning."

"Yes, Lenster Renster, see you tomorrow."

Lenster and Viscount Ferry arranged a very suitable place for Victor, with several rooms available for Victor personal guards in addition to Victor's own private room.

Victor noticed it was getting late and decided to get some rest, as he had a lot to do the next morning.

"Viscount Victor is right here!"

Lenster led Victor to a rock face halfway up a mountain and pointed to a hole about two people high on the side of the rock face.

"Is this the entrance to the cave where the underground river flows?"

Victor curiously examined the cave entrance before him. Overall, it seemed quite unremarkable, certainly not the kind of cave with a large river that he had imagined.

However, after Victor followed Lenster inside, he discovered that the cave was a completely different world inside. The further they went in, the wider the cave became. The stone walls on both sides had been chipped into some pits, and a lot of oil lamps and torches were placed there. But in the innermost part of the cave, these lights could not reach the top of the cave.

Moreover, Victor could feel a gentle breeze inside the cave, carrying with it a slightly fishy smell.

Along the way, there were many soldiers with Ironvine Territory guarding the area. As Lenster walked, he explained, "The discovery of this cave was quite lucky. There were no cave entrances here back then, and even the Yalori Valley was a desolate wasteland."

The family had no intention of developing this area; they simply built a road to connect it to other noble territories in Cornwall County, and the forests on both sides of the road were home to a large number of blue sheep.

The cave was discovered when the naturalist's ancestor was hunting ibex and a landslide caused by a torrential rain occurred. The cave entrance was also exposed due to the landslide.

After discovering the underground river, the ancestors regarded it as the core secret of the family before they began to develop the Yalori Valley, considering it a backup plan for the family's survival. They then sealed the cave entrance with rocks.

It was precisely because of this that the cave was not discovered by the Cornwall County nobles during their occupation.

It's a full two kilometers deep here. We've deployed a large battalion of soldiers to guard this area, as well as the embankment of the underground river."

After walking along the cave for more than half an hour, they finally arrived at the end of their journey. Victor discovered that there was not only the sound of water in the cave ahead, but also natural light.

After he went inside, he looked up and saw a patch of sky peeking out from the top of the cave.

Lenster smiled and explained to Victor, "This is the core of this plan: the sinkhole in the Yaloli Cavern."