Insulting Remarks

In the reception room of the Lord's Manor in Lakeheart Town, all the lords of the Northwest Bay Customs Union had gathered, except for Mellon Garnard, who was serving in the Royal Capital.

They were about to discuss a serious issue—how to respond to the orc invasion.

"Damn those Steppe Barbarians!"

"Those bastards with hair growing on their asses!"

"A bunch of fools who don't know their own limits."

Curses like these filled the entire room.

"This is still hard to believe."

Earl Heller shook his head.

"Watchman Fortress is impregnable. In theory, there's no way the orcs could have entered the Nerodan Corridor."

Although reason told him that Paul was unlikely to have gathered everyone here over a mere rumor.

"What a shame."

Paul said dejectedly, "Arda's intelligence agents have already sent back word. There are signs of large-scale orc activity in northern Nerodan, specifically in the area near the Rocky Mountains."

Earl Parker furrowed his brow. "If Watchman Fortress is still standing, does that mean the orcs have found a route for crossing the mountains on a large scale?"

Paul nodded. "I believe so."

Their exchange sparked another round of discussion.

"All right! We should make preparations."

Duke Ferdinand rubbed his hands together, looking somewhat nervous.

Because of the increasingly prosperous commercial activity, the lords of the Northwest Bay now had many channels for obtaining information. Unlike the lords in other parts of the kingdom, they were not completely cut off from the outside world.

They had heard a little about what was happening on the Great Prairie. They knew about the recently risen "Royal Tent," the Great Chieftain named Alba, and the fact that the orc army had swept through the Oasis Nations east of the kingdom.

The Ferdinand Family's territory lay inland, at the easternmost