New Goal

"Gentlemen knights, my people," before the bonfire dinner, Landen gathered everyone once more to address them. "After nearly ten days of trekking and hard work, we have finally emerged from danger. We can even say that our territory has embarked on a brand-new path of development!"

"Thank you, Lord Landen!" "Thank you, my Lord!" The commoners smelled the fragrant mutton and knew exactly who had provided it.

"I know we are still on the Gallop Plains, and we still face the threat of the barbarians. But the situation is vastly different now. We have just proven that we can not only survive on the Gallop Plains but also defeat the barbarians!" Landen was in high spirits at this moment.

"Huzzah!"

"My people! We have the protection of the God of Knights and Mages. I will lead you out of this grassland and back to the Gallop Territory. I will find my father and brothers and bring back our Baron of Galloping Horse. We shall eventually become the masters of the Gallop Plains and restore the glory of our ancestors' Gallop Kingdom!"

"For the glory of the Gallop Kingdom!" Several knights were the first to stir the atmosphere.

"For the Galloping Horse, for the Galloping Horse!" The commoners cheered once again.

Watching the cheering crowd before him, Landen even felt his own strength increase. It was as if that power was being reinforced by all the commoners and knights into his own soul and his own battle qi.

The commoners kept repeating the chant, and even as they moved on to their meal, many magic-users and non-magic commoners continued to approach Landen to pay their respects.

"Landen? Come here for a moment." During the meal, Albert specifically called Landen into the main tent.

"Uncle, is something the matter?" Landen asked, feeling a bit puzzled.

"You just said you wanted to go and save Hark and Ryan?" Albert asked.

"Of course. I suspect that if they were captured, they must be in one of the tribes somewhere on these Gallop Plains."

"They are very likely in the salt mines. The barbarians need magic-users to mine the salt."

"I know that. My analysis is this: Father and the others could be in one of three places. First, the barbarian camp heading south; second, a small tribe on the plains; and third, the salt mines. First, we can rule out the southern camp; it would be too easy for Father and the others to escape from there. The barbarians wouldn't let them run off, so the best way is to keep them from heading south and instead move them north. Secondly, regarding the salt mines, according to our previous inquiries, if the Grey Goose Tribe wants to transport human magic-users to the salt mines, they need to request a barbarian priest to assist with the escort. However, barbarian priests are extremely rare; there aren't even a few in the entire southern region of the Gallop River. The Grey Goose Tribe will certainly concentrate their existing priests to assist them in their southern sweep. Therefore, their best option now is to send my father and two brothers to be guarded in some relatively large tribes on the plains, so that even if my father could escape, he wouldn't be able to return to the Dragon Kingdom in time."

"..." Albert remained silent for a long time. It was clear that Landen had fully considered all possibilities and analyzed them one by one. Even Albert himself could not offer any further suggestions or possibilities. At this moment, Albert even doubted whether there was any blood relation between Landen and Hark; Hark certainly had some petty cleverness, but he had never displayed this kind of analytical ability.

"You are quite right. Looking at it this way, it is most likely that Hark and the others are in some camp south of the Gallop River."

"Yes. I believe that if we scout properly, we will have a full opportunity to defeat a tribe guarded by about ten cavalrymen. We can sweep eastward along the Gallop River. If we suffer casualties, we can return to the west; at worst, we can return to the Gallop Territory via the original river path." Landen had already prepared a plan.

"Very well, I will convey your decision to the knights."

On the night of September 30, 996, Landen and the people of the Gallop Territory were enjoying the celebration of their victory. Meanwhile, a hundred kilometers to the east, several knights were enjoying a brief rest after their escape.

"Father, what should we do now?" The speaker was Ryan Gallop, Landen's eldest brother, the eldest son of the Gallop Territory, and the future baron.

"What else can we do? We must head south and return to the Dragon Kingdom," said Baron Hark Gallop. At this moment, they had just escaped from a large barbarian camp.

"Father, you were amazing just now! I never expected you to be able to use battle qi here!" Landen's second brother, Obert, was still young and was still savoring the battle that had just occurred.

"It is an ancient and expensive technique, one that the former Galloping Horse royal family explored over hundreds of years of combat. Every use consumes magic crystals; you could call it a 'crystal-burning' tactic," Hark said with some helplessness. The two magic crystals in his undergarments had been his trump card; he hadn't even used them during the battle where he was captured, but now, to escape, he had used them all up. Although they had two horses to ride, they truly had no trump cards left.

"Father, how do you think the territory is doing now? Are Landen and Albert and the others alright? Did Walker make it back?" Ryan was the heir to the territory, so he was naturally very concerned about his future foundation.

"We still have two days of travel ahead of us. Stop thinking about these useless things. This time, we were betrayed by that whelp Bob Rothe, which led to the territory falling into crisis. As long as we can see the Count, I believe he will not allow the Gallop Barony to be revoked!" Hark said firmly, though he had no bottom in his heart.

"Really?" Now even Obert began to worry about the territory.

"Of course. You must trust Albert. Once he returns to the territory, he will lead everyone to migrate to the Great Forest. We made preparations before we set out; it won't take more than a day to enter the forest. I didn't take Raul and Iron Awl with me back then specifically to preserve some strength." Iron Awl was another enfeoffed knight in the territory, and his son was also a reserve knight.

Suddenly, the father and his two sons fell into silence. At this moment, all three of their hearts were on the territory. However, they knew that they had to reach Blue Magpie Castle and join the Count's knight order; only by performing meritorious service in the battle against the barbarians could they offset the potential crisis of having their title revoked.

With the three moons above, the father and his two sons rode their black horses, galloping toward the mountain pass in the south.

In the lord's room of the Rothe Territory castle, the leader of the Grey Goose Tribe sat grandly on the lord's bed. Beneath him were several women; they were the concubines of the former lord Bob and his son, as well as blood relatives of Bob's illegitimate son. These women had been tortured by the Grey Goose leader in front of the illegitimate son for an entire afternoon, and now they had no strength left to move.

The Grey Goose leader was now looking with great interest at the illegitimate son on the wall opposite the bed. The illegitimate son had been beaten by the barbarian warriors for an entire afternoon and no longer had the strength to scream.

"How about it? Have you thought it through? How do you open the magic array in the secret room in the cellar? As long as you tell me, you and they won't have to suffer this anymore."

The Grey Goose leader walked up to the illegitimate son, looked at him playfully, and whispered in his ear like a demon.

At this very moment, the illegitimate son truly wished he could use all his strength to perish together with this barbarian giant who was half a meter taller than him. However, at this moment, his eyes were only on his sister, who had taken care of him for over a decade, lying on the ground.

Twenty minutes later, the Grey Goose leader and the High Priest finally opened the door to the storage room in the castle's basement.

Every wealthy noble family builds a magic storage room in the basement of their castle. Its operating principle is very similar to a magic-sealing box, but it requires dozens of magic arrays to function.

The purpose of the room is, of course, to preserve magical items, while also providing protection against fire and theft.

Nobles usually select a magic-wielding relative to be in charge of the storage room, and Bob's illegitimate son is one such person.

A standard gold coin box from the Wealth Church (a branch of the Temple Alliance) can hold 1,000 gold coins, a gold coin chest holds 10,000, and a magic crystal storage box holds 100 magic crystals. Right now, before the chieftain, there are 3 gold coin chests, 4 gold coin boxes, and 3 magic crystal boxes.

In addition, there are dozens of magic-patterned plates, various magical tools, enchanted weapons, magic scrolls, magic stone tablets, magic books, and more. Even the Grey Goose Chieftain, who has been living in luxury these past few years, is dazzled by this golden, glittering sight.

"Is this... the wealth of a human viscount?" The High Priest is so shocked he is left speechless.

"No, this is the profit from our tribes selling Black-Scaled Horses over the past few years. This swindler actually intercepted so much!" The Grey Goose Chieftain stares at the wealth, drooling incessantly. He decides to use his words to make the seizure of this wealth seem more justifiable.

A viscount certainly could not produce 37,000 gold coins. In fact, most of the gold here consists of deposits from various families in the royal capital for Black-Scaled Horse orders from Rothe, deposits from nearby territories for salt and pig iron, and deposits from several nobles for enchanted iron armor.

In the coming winter, Viscount Bob was counting on this money to purchase large quantities of food, rune plates, and alchemical items to be delivered to the Gallop Plains in the spring.

Of course, the Grey Goose Chieftain clearly does not understand the difference between cost and profit, and even if he did, he would still claim this wealth for himself.

"Then what shall we do with this money?"

"Leave it here for now. You know our cavalrymen—who could resist such temptation?" The Grey Goose Chieftain knows his own people inside and out.

"Still let that illegitimate son guard it?"

"Of course. Who else could open this door?"

"And those women?"

"Give them back to him, as promised. Keep the girl he cares about most by our side, and leave a few men here to watch him."

"But this man knows too much," the High Priest says, feeling uneasy.

"My High Priest, we aren't just here to pull off this one heist and leave. We will gain many more people like him later; we have to give them something to look forward to." The Grey Goose Chieftain does not understand how wealthy a viscount is, but he understands human nature.

"You are right."

"Tell the cavalry outside to stop idling. Have them immediately head along the borders of Rothe Territory to the various knightly fiefs. They only have magic-wielders now, not knights; we don't need to make a special trip for them."

"Understood."

On the night of September 30th, 996 of the God Emperor's reign, the Grey Goose Chieftain's orders are passed to dozens of barbarian cavalrymen. These cavalrymen will set out at dawn the next day for the various knightly fiefs of Rothe Territory. The current knightly fiefs are like storage rooms with their doors wide open, waiting for the arrival of the Grey Goose Tribe.

Under the dim moonlight, in many civilian homes within the town of Rothe Territory, many non-magic-wielders are stirring. They know the barbarians are currently reveling in the castle, and now is the best time for them to leave and bring news to their masters. Many quietly swim across the boundary river to the east, fleeing toward Bristle-Wolf City, Elk Territory, and even Dragon Tooth City.

At this moment, in the headquarters of the Palace Front Department on the outskirts of the imperial capital, the Chief of the Palace Front Department is reviewing intelligence gathered from various regions, while his student stands respectfully, awaiting his instructions.

"It seems the current progress is exactly as we anticipated," the Chief says, his tone filled with smugness.

"Yes, Teacher. The Grey Goose Tribe has already devoured a barony and a viscounty. Our men have already seen barbarian tribes gathering on their way back from the salt mines. Once these tribes finish assembling, they will provide support to the Grey Goose front line. By then, we will incite the ambitious factions within the tribes to coerce the entire barbarian force into a collision with the Bristle-Wolf Knights."

"The barbarians and the Bristle-Wolf Knights will both suffer, and even if Blue Dragon Legend arrives in time to prevent the fall of Bristle-Wolf City, the Dragon Kingdom's indifference toward their subordinates will infuriate His Majesty," the Chief says quite cheerfully as he describes the second half of his plan. However, when he notices the few pages of information before him again, he falls silent.

"What is it, Teacher?"

"You..." The Chief points to a document. "Don't you think information about one person is missing here?"

"Oh?" The student also looks at the material. "The head of the Gallop Family, the eldest son, and the second son have all been captured. Only the fourth son, a knight apprentice, successfully escaped. And then there is the territory's scholar?"

"Correct, Albert Gallop." The Chief seems to recall something. "This person once came to the imperial capital to study, but he had no potential as a mage, so he returned after staying in the capital for a few years."

"This Albert is just a junior knight with no right of inheritance; he can't stir up any trouble."

"No, one cannot view problems so mechanically. His Majesty and the Tower of Purity have always been watching the Gallop Plains; it has been a thorn in his side for a long time. I remember when Albert came to study, he was specifically received by a certain legend."

"He has a connection to a legend?"

"Correct. So, do not underestimate these seemingly unimportant figures. Have the secret agents in Bristle-Wolf City find out the truth immediately!"

"Yes, Teacher. And what should we do once he is found?"

"Have the barbarians find him, then ransom him back. Anyone related to a legend must be handled with caution!"

"Yes!"

"Also, is there any news from Lord Ben Kaul?"

"No. Lord Ben has been gone for quite some time, but we have been unable to contact him, and he left no message for our people."

"It seems he still does not trust me," the Chief mutters.