Recaps

Colt rejected Alex’s proposal to send Victor’s Southern Marching Legion to the main battlefield, arguing that Viscount Borey’s defenses would prevent a decisive victory. He reinforced the western front instead and counted on the Kingdom Navy to aid Victor’s campaign in the south.

• Colt explained that both main armies were entrenched in Sextus County and described how Viscount Borey’s tactics had devastated the Iron Knight Regiment.
• Alex realized the earlier battle had cost the Northern Frontier Allied Army its strongest force and helped create the current stalemate.
• Colt said he had ordered the Northern Alliance Army’s Fifth Legion to reinforce Benjamin and Albert in Durham County.
• Colt told Alex that Victor would still march south to relieve Ironvine Territory, while the Kingdom Navy prepared to reach the Duchy’s western coast in ten days.

Count Colt explained that the western front was close to collapse and that the Kingdom Navy could only help by drawing away enemy forces. Victor’s victories in the east and recruitment of cooperative nobles had doubled his southbound army, making the eastern front the Northern Frontier Allied Army’s best chance to turn the war around.

• Count Colt told Alex that Benjamin and Albert were barely holding the western defensive line against the Duchy’s forces.
• Alex realized that losing the western front could expose Durham County and cause the Northern Frontier Allied Army to collapse.
• Count Colt gave Alex Victor’s letter describing his victory, his control of the Great Oak Territory’s army, and his plan to march south with eastern nobles’ troops.
• Alex and Count Colt recognized that Victor had doubled his southbound army and might defeat the Duchy Army in the Southern Region.
• Count Colt said he would petition the king to grant Victor the title of Marquis if Victor turned the war around.

After the duchy spread news that the Carson Mountains defensive line had fallen, Count Colt decided to convene a frontline conference and disclose the breach. He left Alex to trust the Northlands nobles, who were divided over how much the news concerned them.

• Alex explained that the duchy’s mounted raiders were spreading news of the Carson Mountains breach to weaken the Northern Alliance Army’s morale.
• Viscount Hawk brought Count Colt and Alex papers seized from the raiders, claiming the duchy had advanced to Durham County and threatening the Northlands nobles.
• Alex offered to raid more duchy camps, but Count Colt stopped him and said the cavalry could not prevent the letters from spreading.
• Count Colt decided to convene a frontline conference and announce that the defensive line had been breached.
• Hawk said he was not worried, and Count Colt explained that only the nobles of Durham County were likely to fear the duchy’s advance.

Count Colt prepared the Northern Alliance Army for battle by explaining the western front and sharing Victor’s victory at Rotten Tree Beach, while concealing Victor’s actual destination. The meeting ended with the commanders confident and ready to fight, and Alex planned to use their renewed morale for raids on the Duchy camps.

• Count Colt told Alex that the nobles on the main battlefield were unlikely to rebel because their forces were outnumbered, and he decided to reassure them at the pre-battle meeting.
• Count Colt questioned Hawk’s changed appearance and asked Alex about the Intelligence Merchant Guild, then privately chose to hide a letter from him during wartime.
• Alex organized a large meeting as the Northern Alliance Army’s commanders gathered, and Count Colt addressed them before the assembled officers and nobles.
• Count Colt described the Carson Mountains defensive line and the Fifth Legion’s march to reinforce it, easing the concerns of Durham County’s nobles.
• Count Colt announced Victor’s victory at Rotten Tree Beach and said Victor would soon head north, raising the hall’s morale despite Alex knowing Victor’s forces would actually go south first.
• The meeting ended with the commanders confident, and Alex planned to use their renewed morale to launch raids against the Duchy camps.

Alex watched his cavalry rout a Duchy transport convoy, recognizing that the battlefront meeting had restored the army’s morale. After capturing the convoy commander, Jinduan, Alex learned that the prisoner had lied about his unit.

• Alex noticed that the Northern Alliance Army’s morale and eagerness to fight had improved after the battlefront meeting.
• Alex watched his cavalry attack a convoy, breach its wagon defenses, and rout its nearly thousand-person force.
• Alex’s cavalry brought him the captured commander, who identified himself as Jinduan and claimed to serve in the Duchy’s Direct Legion’s Third Legion.
• Alex ordered knights to check Jinduan’s story against other prisoners and threatened to have him dismembered if he lied.
• The knights reported that Jinduan was actually from the Fifth Legion, and one asked Alex for permission to kill him.

Alex captured a supply convoy and learned that the Imperial Guard Legion’s provisions were far below the claimed reserve level. He used the captured paper to spread accusations in the Duchy Army’s camp, but the officers dismissed them and planned how to cover up the shortages.

• Jinduan told Alex that the convoy carried provisions, arrows, necessities, and an unusually large amount of paper, and revealed that the Duchy Army’s grain depot was nearby.
• Jinduan reported that the Imperial Guard Legion’s provisions had fallen to enough for only about three months, despite claims of a six-month reserve.
• Alex took the supplies and prisoners back toward White Earth City, then publicized the convoy’s capture to raise morale in camp.
• Alex told Count Colt about the shortage and proposed scattering leaflets accusing Duchy officers of selling provisions; Count Colt approved.
• The leaflets appeared in the Duchy Army’s camp, where officers dismissed them and discussed blaming the shortages on Northlands rebels.

Alex's efforts to disrupt the Duchy Army's supplies had failed after it shifted to water transport, leaving him and Viscount Hawke discussing their options. Meanwhile, Fleet Commander Edmund's Raine Kingdom fleet was caught in a violent thunderstorm on the Tears of God Inland Sea as it sailed to support Lord Colt against the Grand Duchy of Vera.

• Alex learned that his maneuver had made no difference to the Duchy Army and told Viscount Hawke that the battlefield would prove the truth.
• The Duchy Army abandoned its vulnerable overland supply convoys and relied on large supply fleets traveling by water, ending Alex's attempts to drain its resources.
• A thunderstorm battered the Tears of God Inland Sea as Edmund led a fleet of Raine Kingdom ships through the waves.
• Edmund ordered First Mate Bertley to use signal lamps to bring the 3rd and 4th Squadrons closer and keep them on course.
• Edmund recalled Count Laou Allen's orders to support Lord Colt and help defeat the Ducal House of Vera.

Edmund led his fleet through a dangerous thunderstorm in the Tears of God Inland Sea and emerged safely, only to discover that they had strayed far from the charted route without encountering further storms. He began marking the unexpected passage on the chart, recognizing it might qualify as a valuable new safe route.

• Edmund checked the lightning rods and resin suits, then ordered Bertley to steer the fleet southwest against the wind while the other sub-fleets followed.
• The fleet endured the storm and reached calm waters the next day, where Edmund helped repair the battered ships.
• Bertley told Edmund that the fleet had deviated far from the charted route, and Edmund confirmed the discrepancy on the chart.
• Edmund realized the fleet might have discovered a new safe route and began marking it to claim the Kingdom Navy's reward.

Edmund used charts and a quadrant to identify a new route through the Tears of God Inland Sea, at least one hundred kilometers shorter than the known route. He continued southwest to confirm his discovery and informed the other squadron commanders, who respected and envied his achievement.

• Edmund drew a new route on the navigation chart and told Bertley it appeared to be at least one hundred kilometers shorter than the original.
• Edmund used his knowledge of astronomy and the quadrant to plan how to determine the route’s exact location.
• Over the next few days, Edmund traveled southwest and made nightly observations that increasingly supported his discovery of a new route.
• Edmund informed Texera and Gilles, the commanders of the other two squadrons, about the discovery.
• Texera and Gilles were astonished and impressed, recognizing that Edmund might claim the navy’s bounty, but they did not dare try to take credit for his find.

Edmund led the fleet along his newly charted route and, after spotting seabirds and a distant coastline, confirmed that they had reached land. The fleet celebrated as it approached the shore, with Edmund hoping the route would prove faster than the old one.

• Edmund continued steering the fleet east, carefully charting the route and avoiding thunderstorms.
• Bertley told Edmund that seabirds indicated nearby land, and Edmund arranged for them to take turns keeping watch.
• After a day and night without finding land, Edmund and Bertley spotted a shadow to the southeast from the crow's nest.
• Bertley ordered the flagship to sail southeast at full speed, then slowed it so the rest of the fleet could catch up.
• Edmund recognized the approaching coastline, and the sailors across the fleet cheered at the prospect of reaching port.

Edmund welcomed commanders Gilles and Texera aboard his flagship after confirming that the fleet had reached the western coast of the Grand Duchy of Vera. When they praised his achievements, he insisted that the fleet’s success belonged to everyone, leaving the two commanders impressed.

• Gilles and Texera signaled that they wished to visit Edmund aboard his flagship, and he granted them permission.
• Edmund welcomed Gilles and Texera to his cabin and celebrated the fleet’s arrival at its destination.
• Texera praised Edmund for guiding the fleet out of the thunderstorm and finding a new route, while Gilles agreed.
• Edmund said the mission was not yet complete and credited the fleet’s cooperation for their success.
• Texera admitted he had been narrow-minded and drank to make amends, while Gilles praised Edmund’s generosity.

Edmund rallied his companions around their mission to aid the opposition in the Grand Duchy of Vera and shared the history behind the navy’s “nobles in reserve.” After Gilles and Texera told how Laou Allen rose to power, they pledged their full support to Edmund.

• Edmund told Gilles, Texera, and Bertley that overthrowing the Silver Maple Ducal House would expand Raine Kingdom and advance the reformists’ aims.
• Gilles and Texera helped Bertley sit down when Edmund’s speech left him overwhelmed, then explained the navy’s tradition of placing noble reformists in flagship captaincies.
• Gilles and Texera recounted how Laou Allen selected them as trusted aides and how they rose through the navy under his patronage.
• Edmund asked Gilles and Texera how Laou Allen gained the king’s trust, and they told him that Laou learned to swim while rescuing the daughter of a duke, who later became his wife.
• Texera assured Edmund that Laou’s ability mattered alongside his good fortune, and Gilles and Texera promised to support Edmund fully.

Edmund realized that his unkempt appearance violated the Kingdom Navy’s housekeeping rules and ordered the fleet to clean itself up as it approached the coast. He left Bertley in charge of the fleet and directed him to find a suitable landing bay.

• Gilles reminded Edmund to tidy himself up before the fleet began its next stage of work.
• Edmund noticed his unshaven, dirty appearance and apologized to Gilles and Texera.
• Gilles and Texera departed from the Leiban in boats and returned to their flagships.
• Edmund told Bertley to lead the fleet north along the coastline and find a suitable bay for landing.
• Edmund ordered Bertley to have the fleet clean its ships, bathe, wash clothes, and put its affairs in order.

Edmund’s fleet captured three fishermen so he could question them about the coast and its rulers. Karask and Gaita answered cautiously, but Hashim refused to trust Edmund, leaving the interrogation unresolved.

• Edmund finished cleaning and organizing Leiban, then ordered the sailors to pursue a fishing boat so the fleet would not be discovered.
• Edmund’s sailors captured Karask and Gaita, while Bertley led a small boat after Hashim, who had jumped into the sea to escape.
• Karask identified himself, his son Gaita, and his brother Hashim as residents of Lord Benn’s territory, and said Hashim had worked in Benn’s castle.
• Bertley returned with a bruised and soaked Hashim, whom Edmund offered to free and compensate in exchange for answers.
• Hashim accused Edmund of being untrustworthy and refused to cooperate.

Edmund learned that the muscular Hashim was only thirteen and that his nephew Gaita was eleven. Karask explained that Lord Benn had taken Hashim to train as a bodyguard, then sent him back and seized the family’s land over his expenses.

• Karask restrained Hashim and repeatedly apologized to Edmund and Bertley for his younger brother’s behavior.
• Edmund questioned Karask’s claim that the towering Hashim was a child, and Karask explained that Hashim was thirteen and naturally large.
• Bertley and the sailors realized that Gaita was also a child, though he was eleven and already tall.
• The sailors praised Hashim’s strength, but Hashim angrily rejected the idea of serving as a noble’s bodyguard.
• Karask explained that Lord Benn had sent Hashim home for eating too much, demanded repayment, and seized the family’s land.

Karask told Edmund how Lord Benn exploited Hashim, destroyed his family, and left them destitute. Edmund promised to release Hashim’s family after completing his secret business and offered Hashim a chance to take revenge if he provided information about Benn.

• Karask explained that Lord Benn took Hashim to his castle under the promise of training him, then mistreated him, extorted money from his family, and had him beaten and sent home.
• Benn’s men seized the family’s land and drove them from their home, while Hashim’s mother and Karask secretly found buried grain and helped Hashim recover.
• Karask later supported the family by fishing and saving for a small boat, which brought them into contact with Edmund’s fleet.
• Hashim accused Bertley and Edmund’s crew of being like Benn and demanded that they release his family.
• Edmund introduced himself, promised on his family name not to harm Hashim’s family, and said he would release and reward them after his business was done.
• Edmund asked Hashim for details about Benn’s family, castle, and troops, offering money and a chance to take revenge.

Edmund explained that he wanted Hashim as a guide and subordinate against the Grand Duchy’s western nobles, while also pursuing territory for his family. Hashim recognized Edmund’s hostility toward Lord Benn and was offered the chance to deal with Benn as he wished.

• Hashim asked whether Edmund’s fleet belonged to the Raine Kingdom Navy, and Edmund’s words convinced him that Edmund genuinely cared little for Lord Benn.
• Hashim recalled how Lord Benn had abused and deceived him, and how he had set aside revenge to protect his family.
• Edmund decided Hashim would make a useful guide for attacks on western noble territories and wanted to recruit him as a subordinate.
• Edmund reflected that his family’s territory was too small and resolved to gain land in the Grand Duchy of Vera by targeting nobles such as Lord Benn.
• Edmund promised Hashim that, if he helped, he could deal with Lord Benn however he wished.

Edmund’s Marines captured Baron Benn’s castle in Sweet Sorghum Territory through a hidden drainage passage, and Hashim took revenge on the Baron’s family. The chapter left Edmund approaching the bloody aftermath in the castle basement.

• Edmund sent Bertley and Hashim with an elite unit to seize Baron Benn’s castle while the rest of his forces secured roads and escape routes.
• Hashim found a hidden passage beneath the castle wall, and Bertley led the soldiers through it despite suspecting it was a drainage outlet.
• Bertley’s troops caught Baron Benn asleep, disarmed the guards, and captured the castle in just over ten minutes.
• Bertley sent a signal, and Edmund arrived an hour later and asked to see Baron Benn.
• Bertley led Edmund toward the basement, where screams sounded, and Hashim emerged with blood covering his clothes.

Edmund interrogated Baron Benn for intelligence about nearby noble territories and the civil war, while Hashim and Bertley kept Benn captive. Edmund left without granting Benn water or release, leaving Hashim to continue dealing with him.

• Edmund checked that Hashim had not killed Baron Benn and learned that Benn's family had been locked up unharmed.
• Edmund introduced himself to Baron Benn and threatened to let Hashim hurt him if he refused to cooperate.
• Baron Benn agreed to answer Edmund's questions about nearby noble territories and the civil war.
• Edmund recorded the intelligence and left without responding to Benn's request to be untied or given water.
• Bertley poured a bucket of water over Baron Benn, and Hashim approached him with a vicious grin.

Edmund’s forces uncovered a fortune in Baron Benn’s castle, revealing how Benn had amassed wealth by impoverishing Sweet Sorghum Territory’s Freemen. After reserving the kingdom’s share, Edmund offered the remaining spoils to split with Texera and Gilles, leaving the two barons astonished.

• Edmund’s clerk valued the coins and precious goods found in Sweet Sorghum Castle at about 1,000 Great Gold Dragons.
• Edmund learned that Baron Benn had intensified his plunder of the Freemen after White Sugar devastated the territory’s coarse-sugar trade, driving many households into ruin or flight.
• Baron Benn had planned to expand his army with his accumulated wealth, but he could not bear the cost of hiring guards and waited for his troops at the front to return.
• Edmund’s expeditionary fleet made Baron Benn the second western noble killed during the Civil War and began the Kingdom Navy’s campaign across the western region.
• After Texera and Gilles returned from their blockade mission, Edmund offered them shares of the 500 Great Gold Dragons left after the kingdom’s portion was set aside, and they were stunned.

Edmund discussed how to distribute the spoils with Gilles and Texera, who agreed to take less than their allotted shares. He proposed giving part of the money to the soldiers while reserving the remaining spoils for headquarters to handle after the war.

• Gilles and Texera checked Edmund's figures and were astonished by how much they stood to receive.
• Gilles offered to take only 150 great gold dragons each and asked Edmund to keep the remainder.
• Edmund agreed, then proposed giving the leftover money and additional gold and silver to the accompanying troops.
• Edmund outlined a plan to divide future gold and silver proceeds among headquarters, the officers, and the soldiers, while sealing and recording other spoils for headquarters.
• Gilles and Texera agreed to Edmund's plan.

Edmund shared intelligence from Baron Benn and proposed using Sweet Sorghum Territory as a base to attack noble territories in the western region. He also revealed a secret plan to exchange homeland territories for much larger lands in the Grand Duchy of Vera, leaving Gilles and Texera eager to pursue the opportunity.

• Edmund concealed Baron Benn's true condition and suggested making his death appear to be an epidemic, then burning his body.
• Edmund explained that Sweet Sorghum Territory's two passages could be fortified as outposts while his forces attacked nearby western nobles.
• Gilles questioned whether hidden routes led out of the valley, and Edmund said scouts would survey and map the terrain.
• Edmund told Gilles and Texera that the Kingdom planned to relocate nobles to the Grand Duchy of Vera in exchange for territories four or five times larger.
• Edmund said the King had approved the plan and urged Gilles and Texera to earn greater merit and seek larger, more fertile territories.

Edmund persuaded Gilles and Texera to join him in concealing the nobles’ deaths and dividing the wealth and territory they seized in the Grand Duchy of Vera. The three formed an alliance, recruited local auxiliaries, and set out to attack more noble territories.

• Gilles and Texera reacted excitedly to Edmund’s plan, and Edmund explained how profitable the Sweet Sorghum Territory could be.
• Edmund persuaded Gilles and Texera to cooperate with him and conceal the truth about the nobles’ deaths.
• Gilles proposed recruiting local soldiers, and Edmund agreed to enlist bankrupt Freemen from Baron Benn’s territory and place Hashim’s family in his army.
• The three agreed to pay recruitment costs from their share of the gold and silver and use their spoils to equip and feed the soldiers.
• Edmund, Gilles, and Texera chose targets, with Gilles and Texera heading southeast while Edmund prepared to advance northeast from Sweet Sorghum.
• Gilles and Texera recruited five hundred auxiliaries in Sweet Sorghum and departed with their troops.

Edmund secured Sweet Sorghum Territory, recruited Hashim and Karask into his service, and prepared to lead troops northeast. Half a month later, Count Sibeth learned that a Ryan army had invaded the Western Three Counties and wiped out nine noble families, forcing him to take the Western Allied Army home.

• Edmund ordered Gilles and Texera to eliminate the direct bloodlines of nobles in their target territories, then learned Bertley had killed Baron Benn and dealt with his family.
• Edmund returned Hashim’s family land, made Hashim his retainer, and gave Hashim and Karask money and squad leader tokens.
• Gilles and Texera reported that they had swept through two baronies in four days with negligible losses.
• After the mountain-pass checkpoint was nearly complete and two auxiliary squads had been recruited, Edmund ordered his troops to advance northeast toward a viscounty.
• Count Sibeth learned that a Ryan army had invaded seven baronies and two viscounties in the Western Three Counties, leaving no survivors from the nine noble families, and told Turas he had to return.

Count Sibeth decided to withdraw the Western Allied Army after learning that the Raine Kingdom Navy was invading the Grand Duchy of Vera’s western territories. Turas persuaded him to leave two regiments at the front temporarily, while the invasion news was kept secret from the troops still fighting.

• Count Sibeth told Turas that Raine Kingdom Navy forces had conquered nine noble territories in twelve days and presented a surrender letter bearing Count Dragonblood’s seal.
• Turas urged Count Sibeth to keep fighting until the Northern Alliance Army was defeated, but Sibeth refused because his territory was under threat.
• Turas persuaded Sibeth to withdraw the Western Allied Army’s remaining troops while leaving two regiments on the front line until Turas could replace them.
• Count Sibeth began withdrawing his troops from Carn City the next day, and he and Turas kept the invasion news from the two regiments still fighting.