Recaps

After the Silver Maple Secret Guard was defeated at great cost, Lenster and Victor learned that some of the enemy had become frenzied and kept fighting despite devastating injuries. Lenster sent his shaken soldiers away to recover and asked the surviving squad leader to explain what had happened.

• Lenster surveyed the battlefield and mourned the heavy casualties among his elite guards.
• Lenster and Victor inspected the Silver Maple Secret Guard's mutilated bodies, and the squad leader explained that some enemies had gone mad and attacked indiscriminately.
• The squad leader described how the frenzied enemies continued fighting after their limbs were severed, and one bit a soldier's face off.
• Victor advised Lenster to remove the shaken soldiers from the battlefield and calm them to prevent a camp mutiny.
• Lenster sent the soldiers away, reassured the squad leader, and asked him to recount the battle.

Victor and Lenster examined the aftermath of the battle against the Silver Maple Secret Guards and discovered that two had escaped. The survivors, Tooth One and Tooth Two, fled the area and decided to go to Ironwire City.

• A captain reported that the Secret Guards had resisted capture, killed the first squad captain, and caused heavy casualties before the soldiers killed them.
• Victor and Lenster inspected the corpses and found Iron Birch bark armor and an array of costly weapons, but counted only eighteen bodies.
• Lenster questioned the soldiers and confirmed they believed no Secret Guards were missing, while Victor reassured him that the valley would remain under watch.
• Victor asked for the guards' bottles and jars as spoils, and Lenster agreed to have them packed and sent to Victor's camp.
• Tooth One and Tooth Two revealed they were the only survivors of Tooth Squad and that Claw Squad had been wiped out.
• Tooth Two rejected Tooth One's plan to recover the Comfort Drug and led him toward Ironwire City.

Victor examined the bottles from Lenster and discovered that Number One had turned their black powder into a gem that could gather and store magic energy. Number One explained that the gem could eventually help Victor use Transcendent abilities or accelerate his modifications, though it would recharge slowly.

• Victor dismissed his men and called on Number One after setting out the bottles and jars from Lenster's subordinate.
• At Number One's direction, Victor opened four green bottles and poured their black powder together.
• Number One reshaped the powder into a small black gemstone that could store magic-energy particles.
• Victor asked whether the gem could recharge Number One, and Number One said it lacked enough energy to sustain its operation.
• Number One explained that the gem could slowly gather magic energy for Victor and had been fitted with circuits to double its efficiency and provide protection.

Victor learned that Number One’s gemstone could detect hostile life forms but needed recharging, while Number One explained the Silver Maple Secret Guard’s enhancement materials and urged him to seek a supply. The next morning, Victor prepared for the Southern Noble Coalition’s arrival and learned about Viscount Rusa as the battle approached.

• Number One explained that Victor’s gemstone could detect nearby hostile life forms for ten hours per activation and could be improved with more materials.
• Number One concluded that the Silver Maple Secret Guard used drugs and magic-attracting powder to boost their fighters, and suggested the Silver Maple Ducal House might have a stockpile.
• Victor and Number One said good night, and Number One returned to dormancy before the coming battle.
• At headquarters, Lenster told Victor that a rebel battalion had taken over the outer wall and sent an envoy to negotiate with the Southern Noble Coalition.
• Viscount Ferry predicted that Viscount Rusa would wait until evening to attack and recounted how Rusa’s family gained power in Hampshire.
• Lenster told Victor that Ferry and Rusa had once competed for the same woman, who ultimately married Count Colt.

Victor learned that Viscount Ferry still cared for Count Colt’s first wife and had helped her son, Viscount John Green Banyan. Meanwhile, at Yalori Valley, Portland and Suas prepared to act against the nearly ten thousand troops there, hoping to avenge Bolton.

• Lenster told Victor that Count Colt’s first wife had been a famous beauty and that Viscount Ferry had given her son John money and supported his rise to viscount.
• Lenster explained that Viscount John had stayed out of the war and that the southern nobles had deliberately avoided attacking his territory.
• Viscount Ferry called Victor and Lenster over to check the map for omissions.
• At Yalori Valley, Suas ordered soldiers under Portland’s command killed to prevent them from revealing what the men in the valley had done.
• Suas offered Portland a squad to replace some of his lost troops, and Portland asked when Tyre City would send help as he planned to avenge Bolton.

Portland Ironvine and Suas led a force of dissidents and secretly coordinated with the Silver Maple Secret Guard to betray the Iron Vine Family by opening Yalori Valley's outer defenses. After taking over the outer wall, they waited for Viscount Rusa's coalition troops, though Portland doubted they would arrive in time.

• Portland Ironvine's grief over Baron Bolton's death led him to seek allies against the Iron Vine Family, and he joined forces with Suas, who wanted to avenge Baron Sebas.
• Count Lloyd and his commanders gathered the dissidents and their troops into a force under Suas, while Lenster planted an informant among them and kept their plans under surveillance.
• After Victor arrived with the Southern Marching Legion, Lenster and Viscount Ferry moved the dissident force to the outer wall, where Suas and his men began their plan.
• Lenster's informant witnessed Suas purge soldiers under Portland's command, while the rebels learned that Viscount Rusa's coalition troops were still on their way.
• Suas urged Portland to be patient, and their force formed a defensive line facing into the valley as they waited for the coalition troops.

Suas and Portland handed the outer wall over to the Coalition of Nobles’ relief force, led by Knight Gregory, while negotiating to keep their troops housed inside the fortifications overnight. After the Coalition seized their armory and equipment, Suas promised to meet Viscount Rusa in the morning, while Portland warned he would stop cooperating without an explanation.

• Suas and Portland welcomed Knight Gregory and the Coalition of Nobles’ troops at the outer wall as the relief force arrived.
• Gregory ordered the Independent Regiment to surrender the entire wall, but Suas persuaded him to let their troops stay in the barracks until morning.
• Suas and Portland helped Gregory’s troops take over the defenses, and Gregory imposed a curfew to conceal the handover from the enemy in the valley.
• Independent Regiment officers complained that the Coalition had seized their armory, Heavy Crossbows, and other equipment.
• Suas said he would meet Viscount Rusa in the morning and told his men to keep order, while Portland threatened to stop cooperating if they received no explanation.

Portland was persuaded by Lanko to consider building influence in the Southern Region, though both kept their ambitions private while focusing on the campaign at Yalori Valley. After Suas regained control of the Independent Regiment and the Allied Army secured the Valley Outer Wall, the Coalition of Nobles began marching toward Yalori Valley.

• Lanko urged Portland to seek merit and a future role in Ironvine Territory, and Portland agreed to let Lanko follow his lead while prioritizing the campaign.
• Lanko secretly sent a letter to his lord through a hidden passage, and the soldier carrying it did not return to the troops.
• Suas led the Independent Regiment out of the outer wall and told Sir Gregory about the dispute over the regiment's change of guard.
• Gregory returned the Independent Regiment's supplies and equipment, allowing Suas to regain control of the regiment.
• After confirming the Valley Outer Wall was secure, Gregory reported to Allied Army headquarters, and the Coalition of Nobles marched toward Yalori Valley.

Viscount Dawan joined forces with Viscounts Asur and Melendo to attack Ironvine Territory’s camp in Yalori Valley, placing his troops under Asur’s command. Viscount Rusa arrived at the valley’s outer wall and met Gregory, Portland, and Suas as the Allied Army began assembling for the campaign.

• Dawan offered Asur and Melendo the chance to combine their troops with his and attack the enemy camp on Yalori Valley’s eastern side.
• Asur and Melendo agreed to the assault, and Dawan placed his troops under Asur’s command.
• Dawan, Asur, and Melendo mobilized their forces as the other Allied Army nobles marched toward Yalori Valley.
• Viscount Rusa arrived at the outer wall with the first Allied Army contingent and praised Gregory for carrying out his orders.
• Portland assured Rusa that Lloyd’s resistance would be overcome, and Rusa encouraged him to earn merits in the coming battles.
• Suas introduced himself to Rusa as a man seeking revenge for his former lord.

Viscount Rusa excluded the Independent Regiment from the attack on Yalori Valley, while Victor and his allies gathered intelligence and prepared to use the underground river against the Coalition of Nobles. The chapter ended with the enemy set to assault the valley the next day.

• Viscount Rusa ordered the Independent Regiment to rest and offered it weapons, while Suas and Portland recognized that he intended to claim the victory at Yalori Valley without them.
• Suas accepted that the regiment could not challenge Rusa, and Portland planned to leave the outer wall and later return to Ironvine Territory.
• Victor, Lenster, and Viscount Ferry learned that nearly two legions had entered the valley and discussed how to monitor the enemy after the Independent Regiment was driven off the wall.
• Victor sent Ranger Cavalry to scout, prompting Rusa to establish infantry outposts that Lenster's agents used to gather intelligence.
• Lenster confirmed that the Coalition of Nobles would attack the next day and sent word for the underground passage to be opened at the underground river.

Viscount Rusa spotted water sword grass near the Coalition of Nobles’ camp and suspected the Ironvine Territory planned to flood the valley. He warned the commanders to prepare for a possible retreat, but several nobles dismissed his concern, and Suas confirmed that no major rivers lay nearby.

• Viscount Rusa examined the Ironvine Territory’s camps and noticed water sword grass growing near the thicket.
• A young guard identified the plant, and Viscount Rusa hurried back to camp after realizing the enemy might flood the valley.
• Viscount Rusa summoned the Coalition of Nobles’ commanders and ordered them to prepare for a possible withdrawal.
• Several nobles rejected Viscount Rusa’s warning, arguing that no major rivers or lakes could supply enough water.
• Suas told Viscount Rusa that, as far as he knew, no major rivers lay near the valley.

Viscount Rusa ordered Suas and the Independent Regiment to march with the Coalition of Nobles’ central force, despite Suas warning that Yalori Valley could not be flooded. As the coalition advanced, Lenster decided to open the waterway in two hours, leaving the soldiers in the cavern trapped beyond it.

• Suas told Viscount Rusa that no river could supply Yalori Valley, but Rusa kept the battle plan and ordered the Independent Regiment to join his central force.
• Suas explained the order to his officers, who agreed to follow the central force despite suspecting Rusa might deny them military merit.
• Portland asked Lanko whether Rusa had reason to worry, and Lanko said the valley lacked enough water to flood.
• Dawan showed Asur and Melendo the Scorpion Ballistae and heavy crossbow carts he had bought from the East Sea Alliance.
• As the Coalition of Nobles advanced, Lenster told Viscount Ferry and Victor he would have the soldiers in the cavern open the waterway in two hours.
• Victor promised Lenster he would help rescue the soldiers trapped in the hollow after the battle.

Marvin and Foss defended the camp from a coalition force that used arrow volleys to cover troops filling the trenches and leveling the ground. After Manzo identified the noble armies, Marvin concluded that Viscount Asur Golden Sword Orchid was likely commanding and chose to keep defending until the agreed time.

• Marvin pulled Foss back behind the watchtower barricade as an arrow struck where Foss had been looking out.
• Marvin explained that their forces would limit their return fire to conceal their strength and avoid fighting the enemy archers at a disadvantage.
• Manzo identified the opposing banners as belonging to Viscount Golden Sword Orchid, Viscount Greenleaf Vine, and Viscount Yellowleaf Vine.
• Manzo said Asur Golden Sword Orchid was the most likely commander because the other two viscounts lacked military ability.
• Marvin decided the camp would keep defending while the enemy filled the trenches and leveled the ground, and Foss went down to check on the troops.
• Marvin explained to Manzo that Foss was nervous because he could not swim well and became seasick on boats.

Viscount Asur oversaw the allied right wing as it prepared to attack the enemy camp, while Dawan revealed that a flood in the East Sea Alliance had displaced millions of refugees. Asur worried the refugees could threaten the Southern Four Counties, but Dawan assured him Hampshire had kept forces on the border; the chapter ended with the right wing charging.

• Melendo and Dawan celebrated the progress filling the trenches, while Asur cautioned that the enemy camp would still be difficult to breach and reported slow progress on the other battlefields.
• Asur rejected sending exhausted Serf Soldiers in the first charge, explaining that their deaths could damage the army’s morale, and Dawan promised him two thousand serfs and Melendo a thousand.
• Dawan explained that a major flood had caused famine and mass displacement in the East Sea Alliance, sending over a million refugees into Emerald Crescent Province and prompting Hampshire’s nobles to take in serfs.
• Asur feared the East Sea Alliance might drive refugees into the Southern Four Counties, but Dawan assured him that Hampshire had kept a substantial force guarding its border.
• Asur ordered the right wing to attack, and its troops advanced behind volleys from archers, crossbowmen, Scorpion Ballistas, and heavy crossbows.

Yule’s squad faced an Allied Army assault as concealed Scorpion Ballistae bombarded the defenders with stone shot. After the attack was reported, Marvin ordered Two Rivers Territory’s Catapults to return fire.

• Yule prepared his pikemen for the enemy’s charge, and they weathered an arrow volley behind their pikes and the wall’s arrow screens.
• A stone shot crushed a soldier’s chest, and Yule sent two men to report the concealed enemy weapons before leading his squad to meet the attackers.
• Yule rallied his inexperienced soldiers by reminding them of the farmland benefits their families received for their service.
• Foss questioned the watchmen while Marvin inspected the stone shot and learned from Manzo that the East Sea Alliance used low-profile stone-firing ballistae.
• Marvin ordered Two Rivers Territory’s Catapults to target the densest part of the enemy formation.

Marvin’s defenders repelled the Allied Army’s first assault on their camp, while Asur identified possible weak points and prepared for another attack. The battle paused with both sides anticipating the next move.

• Marvin ordered the catapults to fire in rotation at the Coalition of Nobles’ heavy weapons, while the defenders’ arrows and spears stopped the assault at the camp wall.
• Yule rallied his soldiers with the promise of Military Support Farmland, and they drove back the attackers using volleys and alternating spear thrusts.
• Dawan ordered his Scorpion Ballistae to bombard the wall despite Melendo’s warning, but enemy catapult fire forced him to move the weapons.
• Asur ordered the Allied Army to withdraw and noticed that the defenders had let their troops retreat without counterattacking.
• Asur pointed out suspected weak spots in the camp wall, and Marvin told Foss that the enemy commander had likely recognized weaknesses and was preparing another assault.

Victor, Viscount Ferry, and Lenster assessed the battle reports and realized that Viscount Rusa was using probing attacks while keeping his main force in reserve. With the Allied Army’s left and right flanks already engaged, they decided to confront Rusa directly if their plan did not draw him in.

• Lenster reported that the Allied Army’s left flank was filling trenches and attacking relentlessly, while the right flank had repelled its first assault with few casualties.
• Victor and Viscount Ferry identified Viscount Rusa as the commander facing their central camp and noted that he might have guessed their plan.
• Victor explained that Rusa had split his forces, using nearby frontline command posts to probe the camp while keeping his main force farther back on higher ground.
• Lenster worried that Rusa might refuse to take the bait and ruin their plan, but Viscount Ferry said that engaging both flanks was already enough.
• Victor drew his sword and said they would fight Rusa directly if necessary, since their forces would retain an advantage if the rest of the plan succeeded.

Viscount Rusa held back his reserves while the Allied Army attacked the Ironvine Territory’s left-wing camp. Knight Yellen’s counterattack routed the assault, but the Allied Army then executed hundreds of serf soldiers, prompting Yellen to order his troops to hold the line and make the enemy pay.

• Viscount Rusa watched the battle and refused to send reinforcements, suspecting Ferry had a trap prepared in Yalori Valley.
• Knight Yellen sent a battalion to flank and rout the Allied Army’s supervision officers, causing the serf troops to flee and the left-wing assault to collapse.
• Yellen’s troops returned to the camp with few casualties and began repairing the breached defenses.
• The Allied Army drove captured or fleeing serf soldiers into the battlefield and executed them in rows before retreating.
• Yellen handed the front-line defense to the returning commander and ordered him to hold the camp and keep pressure on the enemy.

Lenster and Viscount Ferry explained to Victor how sections of the camp walls could serve as rafts for pursuing the Allied Army after the flood. At the Allied Army’s central headquarters, Viscount Rusa finally sent Hesta’s troops into battle, just as distant rumbling and shaking began.

• Lenster checked the time and, with Victor and Viscount Ferry, waited for the planned waterway to open.
• Lenster explained that some camp walls had been built as rafts, which, along with prepared boats, could carry troops after the flood.
• Viscount Rusa reviewed reports that Dawan’s force might break through and listened as his officers asked to attack.
• Viscount Rusa ordered Hesta to lead his troops into the assault while keeping the rest in reserve.
• Hesta’s troops joined the central front’s attack, and Viscount Rusa heard rumbling and felt the ground shake.

A planned flood triggered a catastrophic mudslide that devastated both the Southern Noble Coalition and Ironvine Territory’s camps. Victor organized the surviving troops’ withdrawal, while Viscount Rusa learned the coalition had lost half its soldiers and nearly all its supplies before collapsing.

• A section of the mountain collapsed, and a torrent of water and mud swept into the valley, forcing Victor, Lenster, and Viscount Ferry to prepare the central camp and seek higher ground.
• The mudslide swallowed many of Viscount Asur’s and Viscount Dawan’s troops, while Marvin and Foss’s reinforced camp survived with most of its soldiers but lost its supplies.
• Viscount Rusa ordered the coalition’s remaining troops to retreat as the mudslide spread, and Victor realized the central camp had escaped with limited damage.
• After the mudslide stopped, Victor and the others built a floating bridge between camps, learned their losses were limited, and began withdrawing through the left-flank camp.
• Viscount Rusa learned the coalition had lost half its troops and nearly all its supplies, then fainted after hearing that the Independent Regiment and its officers had been buried in the valley.

Victor and Viscount Ferry oversaw the retreat from the flood-stricken valley and took precautions against disease. They discovered Lanko, a spy sent by Lenster, who had survived the mudslide and wanted to report to him.

• Victor refused to leave the central camp until Marvin and Foss had led the right camp's troops to safety.
• Victor asked Viscount Ferry to spread leftover lime around the camp to delay a plague outbreak.
• Soldiers brought in a mud-covered prisoner, who revealed himself to Viscount Ferry as Lanko, Lenster's spy.
• Viscount Ferry recognized Lanko and promised he could see Lenster after the retreat from the valley.
• Lanko explained that Baron Portland had dragged him along during the retreat and that they had been trapped on a rise with a dozen soldiers until the waters receded.

After escaping the mudslide disaster in Yalori Valley, Victor and Viscount Ferry organized their troops’ withdrawal and reflected on the losses. Viscount Ferry contracted the plague and collapsed, leaving Victor responsible for returning to Ironwire City and protecting Lenster.

• Lanko escaped a fight between Baron Portland’s men and Suas’s surviving troops, then reported what he knew to Viscount Ferry and Victor.
• Victor and Viscount Ferry estimated that the Allied Army had lost at least five or six regiments, and Marvin arrived with news that half the right-side camp had crossed the failing pontoon bridges.
• Victor and Viscount Ferry led the withdrawal as the floodwaters receded, and Lenster found a safe route out of the valley.
• Victor and Viscount Ferry discussed reinforcing Ironwire City and protecting Lenster, while Viscount Ferry chose to remain behind and watch the Rear Valley.
• Viscount Ferry began coughing from the plague, entrusted Lenster and Ironwire City to Victor, and then fainted.

Victor and Lenster led the main army through Yalori Valley’s relentless rain and mud, driven by the need to reinforce Ironwire City and care for the sick. The chapter ended with a messenger reporting that Lenster had found a new route and the vanguard had escaped the valley.

• After three days of heavy rain, Victor and Lenster decided to lead the main force out of Yalori Valley while Viscount Ferry stayed behind with the sick and a healthy contingent.
• Victor and Lenster pushed the troops through mud and damaged crossings because Ironwire City needed reinforcements and the valley lacked clean water, firewood, and hot meals for the sick.
• Lenster led the vanguard while Victor managed the main army and dealt with falling rocks, frightened wagon horses, blocked bridges, and disputes over marching order.
• A messenger told Victor that Lenster had found a new route and that the vanguard had successfully left the valley.

Victor and Lenster rested their exhausted troops for two days before continuing toward Ironwire City, while Ursus prepared another move against the city. Ron and James concealed their battered cavalry in a forest, where Victor’s messengers arrived with orders.

• Victor reassured Lenster that the main army would march together to Ironwire City after two days of rest, and they agreed that Viscount Ferry’s force could remain in the valley for now.
• Ursus questioned two surviving Silver Maple Secret Guard members, gave them Soothing Potion as a reward, and promised more if they helped him take Ironwire City.
• Ron and James discussed their losses and injuries while hiding with their cavalry in a forest near Ironwire City.
• Riders arrived at Ron and James’s camp and announced that they had come on Viscount Victor’s orders.

James and Ron learned why Victor’s forces had been out of contact and described their defeat to Gutierrez, who arrived with Victor’s orders. The chapter ended with Gutierrez instructing them to block all roads between the ferry crossing and Ironwire City to keep enemy scouts from discovering Victor’s movements.

• James met Gutierrez in the clearing, and Gutierrez explained that mudslides, heavy rain, and illness had disrupted communications and kept Michael from delivering the orders.
• James told Gutierrez that enemy assassins and a trap had caused the Cavalry force to lose its rear camp and provisions, forcing its units to forage across Ironvine Territory.
• Gutierrez reassured James that Victor’s main force was approaching and would soon be able to take revenge on the Fourth Legion.
• Ron joined them, and Gutierrez told him that Victor and Viscount Lenster had recently wiped out a unit of Silver Maple Secret Guard.
• Gutierrez gave James Victor’s order for James and Ron to block every road from the ferry crossing to Ironwire City and prevent enemy scouts from learning their intelligence or marching routes.