Prelude to the Decisive Battle

The night was deep and all was silent; midnight had already passed unnoticed.

At this time, Gaita dragged his exhausted body slowly through the gates of the Governor's Mansion. The clock pointed to around eleven.

Throughout this long, tense day, he had spun like a top through every corner of the city, searching for those few limited military supplies.

In the end, the outcome was perfect. After tremendous effort, everything urgently needed had been secured for the troops!

Even better, not too much money or resources had been spent in the process.

The Great Merchant Guilds had shown astonishing enthusiasm and cooperation.

Some guild presidents and managers had been as generous and helpful as President Boli, even offering to personally deliver the goods to the designated locations.

Other guilds had proposed an even more flexible and convenient arrangement: the army could collect the goods whenever needed.

At last, the problem that had plagued them for so long was resolved, and Gaita felt as though a huge weight had been lifted from his chest.

Before this, he had planned to purchase all the necessary supplies at the upcoming trade fair, but life was unpredictable, and human plans could not overcome fate.

Viscount Victor's sudden announcement of mobilization had disrupted every arrangement, forcing Gaita to decisively change his strategy to deal with the emergency.

Just as Gaita returned to the Governor's Mansion, Victor impatiently summoned him.

Upon receiving the order, Gaita did not dare delay for even a moment and immediately quickened his pace toward the study.

The instant he stepped into the study, he saw Victor staring intently at a huge map spread across the desk, a pen in hand as he occasionally marked it.

Victor had just obtained a batch of important intelligence from the Northern Frontier Chamber of Commerce,