The Conversation Between a Son-in-Law and His Father-in-Law

Victor knew beforehand that Benjamin would be traveling to Silver Maple City with Iron Birch's fleet, so he had sent people to monitor the Blackwater River waterway in hopes of seeing Benjamin. After all, it had been a long time since their last meeting, and he also had some things he wanted to discuss with his father-in-law.

Victor and Count Benjamin, who had just been promoted from viscount to Count, sat in the spacious and bright cabin, enjoying the fruit wine that Benjamin had brought from his territory and discussing the promotion ceremony that had just ended.

"Father-in-law, first of all, congratulations on your promotion to Count!"

"You little rascal, are you trying to get me to congratulate you on your promotion to Marquis?"

"No, no, I wouldn't dare! Veronica would come after me!"

"That Edmund must be so smug about being promoted to Count!"

"Yes, Viscount Edmund is indeed very pleased!"

As time went by, their conversation gradually turned to the exceptionally fierce tug-of-war Benjamin had previously waged against the Duchy Army in Durham County in the Northlands.

When Victor heard that Durham County had suffered heavy losses but had not yet received detailed battle reports, he couldn't help but press Benjamin for details. "While I was fighting in the Grand Duchy, I was always getting battle reports from various places through the Northern Frontier Chamber of Commerce Guild."

However, while updates on the battle in Durham County have been available, descriptions of casualties on both sides are vague, especially the exact number of casualties.

Upon hearing this, Benjamin sighed deeply, his face full of guilt, and said, "Alas, I am truly sorry for those heroic soldiers who sacrificed their lives!"

And then there's the late Colt, who trusted me enough to send me with my troops to guard the border of the Carson Mountains.

"If it weren't for me, perhaps the solid defensive line we built in the northern part of the Carson Mountains wouldn't have been so easily breached by the enemy forces of the Duchy..." At this point, his voice lowered slightly, as if he were carrying a heavy burden.

Victor quickly waved his hand to interrupt Benjamin's self-reproach and earnestly comforted him, "How can this be your fault?"

As we all know, at that time the disparity in strength between the two sides was enormous, and the number of troops you commanded was far less than that of the overwhelming Duchy Army.

"Under such difficult circumstances, it is nothing short of a miracle that you have been able to hold the line for so long!"

Benjamin felt somewhat relieved after hearing Victor's words, but at the same time couldn't help but marvel at the ferocity of the battle. He waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to delve into the reasons behind it.

Then, he took a deep breath and slowly said, "That's enough. Since things have come to this, why dwell on the reasons?"

Now that you understand the overall situation of the battle, I won't waste time explaining it to you. Let me tell you about our losses!

At this point, Benjamin's expression turned serious, and he continued, "From the outbreak of the war until its end, the Third Legion of the Northern Frontier nobles, which I commanded, suffered heavy losses, with casualties reaching as high as 15,000!"

It is no exaggeration to say that this legion was almost incapable of fighting. At that time, in order to defend a few fortresses, even my precious Cavalry had to dismount and fight on foot!

In the most critical moment, Raymond and I personally led the troops to the city wall to fight back against the enemy. Raymond's prosthetic arm was cut off, but fortunately his other hand was fine!

However, my Captain of the Guard, Old Pim, did not survive this time. He died in an enemy attack while covering my retreat!

At this point, Benjamin looked very sad. Victor knew that Captain Pim was not just Benjamin's subordinate, but also his good friend.

Victor also felt sorry for Captain Pim, who had fought alongside him. After all, when they fought against the Barbarians together, Victor remembered that Pym's achievements were not far from being made a baron. He never expected that he would die in battle like this.

After finishing his musings, Benjamin continued, "However, I secured a posthumous title for old Pim, and this time I also helped his son become a baron, which can be considered as giving him some closure."

If it weren't for the timely dispatch of private armies from several surrounding noble fiefdoms to reinforce us, the situation would likely have spiraled out of control long ago, and my legion would have collapsed and disintegrated!

At this point, Benjamin paused for a moment, then gently rubbed his right arm, seemingly in considerable pain.

This subtle movement piqued Victor's curiosity, and he immediately asked with concern, "Father-in-law, is your right arm injured? Is it serious?"

Benjamin gently stroked his right arm, as if he could feel the battles he fought on the battlefield back then.

He closed his eyes, letting his thoughts drift back to that thrilling May night.

That day, in the early hours of the morning, the enemy suddenly launched a fierce attack. They surged in like a tidal wave, instantly engulfing the entire defensive line.

Faced with this sudden attack, Benjamin was extremely anxious. At this point, he had no Reserve Force left, and the situation was extremely critical.

However, Benjamin did not back down. He resolutely led his guards to the breach, attempting to stop the enemy's offensive.

At that critical moment, a stray arrow struck his right arm, and blood immediately stained his sleeve.

Despite his severe injuries, Benjamin dared not relax his guard in the slightest. He knew that if they retreated now, the defensive line would collapse, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

So he gritted his teeth and endured the excruciating pain to continue commanding his troops in battle. Due to the severity of his injuries and the lack of proper treatment over a long period, his wounds continued to bleed, but fortunately, the weather at the time was pleasant, neither too cold nor too hot, which prevented the wounds from worsening.

As time went on, the situation gradually stabilized, until Albert arrived on the battlefield with reinforcements.

The reason the enemy was launching such a fierce attack was because they already knew that Albert's Third Iron Birch Third Legion was about to arrive.

It was thanks to the timely support of Albert's troops and other nobles from the surrounding area that they fought a bloody battle and ultimately prevented the Duchy Army from breaking through the defenses and invading the Northlands!

Benjamin continued, "Albert's legion also suffered heavy losses, paying a heavy price to drive out the Duchy Army that had infiltrated the defensive line. The casualties exceeded six thousand, almost half of my troops' losses, but that's not so bad."

Those noble families fared much worse, especially the Purple Alfalfa Fief, because its territory was right next to the Carson Mountains. As a result, it was directly affected by the war, and its castle was besieged by the duchy's detachment!

In that battle, Baron Sneider of the Purple Alfalfa Fief almost died, most of the farmland in the Purple Alfalfa Fief was destroyed, and many of the people were captured by the Duchy Army to serve as laborers!

Baron Sneider had not finished dealing with the post-war work by the time I left the Northlands, but thanks to his military achievements, he was promoted to viscount.

Speaking of which, Brown has been promoted to viscount, hasn't he? Now the Alfalfa Family finally has a viscount, which fills a gap in their family!

Victor nodded in agreement. Speaking of which, Sneider Snyder's son, Sura, was fighting under his command and had gained considerable merit in this Civil War. Several branches of the Alfalfa Family were very eager to be promoted to a noble title.

Their conversation was no longer so heavy, and Victor finally understood why Benjamin hadn't been able to attend the nobility promotion ceremony in Silver Maple City this time, and could only receive the promoted title remotely.

"There's no other way. Alex ordered me to lead the main force to escort the surrendered Duchy Army. We definitely won't be able to make it in time for this promotion ceremony. After all, we can't keep that nobleman of the kingdom waiting for too long!"

Besides, Albert didn't make it either, did he? He's still stuck along the Carson Mountains and the Carn City, cleaning up the mess.

Alex plans to eliminate all the fortresses on both sides of the Carson Mountains to facilitate communication between people in the two territories and trade by caravans, retaining only the trade passes for tax collection!

Victor approved of Alex's approach. Alex had gone from being the ruler of the Northlands to the ruler of the Central Vira Province, so naturally he could no longer allow the Northlands to restrict its communication with the interior, nor could the Northlands remain in a semi-independent state as before.

This time, the Raine Kingdom divided the Grand Duchy into three provinces, intentionally making the Central Vira Province the largest, encompassing the five counties of the original Central Region, the three counties of the western region, and the four counties of the Eastern Region Grand Duchy. Only York County in the central region and the original Three Counties of the Northern Frontier were incorporated into the North Vira Province, while the Southern Four Counties were incorporated into the South Vira Province.

Victor immediately recognized that this represented the kingdom's ambition. In the future, the two provinces, North and South, would definitely continue to expand. The North Vira Province was relatively easy to manage; they could simply demand land from the Barbarians. However, the South Vira Province would have to the East Sea Alliance to fight a fierce war in order to expand its territory.

However, the kingdom's decision to place the Iron Birch Family, whose roots were in the Northlands, in the Central Vira Province was also significant.

The three western counties will soon be taken over by the kingdom. Except for Strath County, which will become Royal Domain, the other two counties will become fiefdoms of the Kingdom Navy nobles, currently including the territories of one Marquis, two Count, and more than a dozen viscounts and barons.

These nobles, who were transferred from the kingdom, were likely also meant to keep the Iron Birch Family in check.

Benjamin also agreed with Victor's assessment, "The three directly subordinate to the Duchy the Central Region have directly become the territory of the Iron Birch Family. In addition to North York County in the Northlands, the Iron Birch Family now controls four counties, reaching 70% of the size of the original Silver Maple Family. The kingdom cannot help but impose restrictions!"

The two chatted for over an hour before Victor finally left to return to his own fleet. Standing at the stern, Victor watched the Iron Birch fleet disappear into the distance. He figured he wouldn't see Count Benjamin again until next year when he traveled to the Raine Kingdom!