Count Wellen could raise no objections to the terms Xu Yi proposed.
After hostilities broke out, the losses suffered by the Xinfei Merchant Guild were entirely bearable, and it could indeed find other ways to resolve its difficulties. His own losses, however, were beyond recovery.
After defeating Count Fran and several other lords in succession, he had amassed more than thirty thousand combat-ready soldiers. In terms of troop numbers alone, he already ranked among the few lords in the Stantin Duchy second only to the Grand Duke of Stantin.
In terms of fighting strength, he might even have surpassed the Grand Duke of Stantin.
Yet after going to war with the Xinfei Merchant Guild, he discovered that he had no way to counter it at all.
Failing to breach Xu Yi's private domain was one thing, but he could not even impose a complete blockade on the Xinfei Merchant Guild, much less do anything about the sabotage teams it sent out.
The five hundred Human Guards led by Hart swept through Count Wellen's territory unopposed. In just half a month, they cost him thousands of veteran soldiers and many important supply depots.
If this stalemate continued, Count Wellen believed that these mere five hundred Xinfei Merchant Guild Guards would eventually wear him down to nothing.
Moreover, the most significant loss brought about by going to war with the Xinfei Merchant Guild was that he could no longer obtain any supplies of Military Magic Machinery from it.
While he fought the Xinfei Merchant Guild, the four allied lords to the south continued launching attacks on his newly occupied territory.
At first, Count Wellen had been able to repel them with ease and even launch counterattacks.
But after issuing several rounds of emergency orders, Count Wellen discovered a serious problem.
The war