As a loyal subordinate personally promoted by Duke Lujins, Baron Camora knew the Duke's character very well. Under the surface of being criticized as a mediocre grand duke with all sorts of problems, there was a heart full of ambition hidden within. The Duke was a very forbearing person. If you offended him in front of him, he would forgive you very generously. But when he turned around, he would immediately turn hostile and ruthless. He would use all kinds of sinister and ruthless means, and he would not stop until he destroyed your family.
If the second prince was compared to a hungry wolf, then the Duke could be said to be a jackal. A hungry wolf was cruel and vicious, but a jackal was cunning and suspicious. Just as everyone knew that the Duke's ambition was to establish the Northern Duchy of Lujins, Baron Camora believed that the real reason why the Duke could not achieve his wish was because of his suspicious and indecisive character.
The purpose of establishing the Northern Army was to compete with the second prince's father-in-law, Duke Fisablun's frontier army. At the same time, it would be the military force and reliance of the Northern Duchy of Lujins in the future. But now, the Northern Legion had become a tool in the duke's hands to blackmail and threaten the nobles of the northern territories. Although the duke's annual income was no more than 60,000 gold coins, the money he had plundered from the nobles of the northern territories was enough to form three more Northern Legions. But the Duke was unwilling to do so. The money was used by him to enjoy and maintain a luxurious life.
Now, the Duke's favorite thing to do was to rely on the powerful Northern Army to coerce the northern territory nobles to obey his orders and pay tribute to him. He never got tired of it. But Baron Camora, who participated in the establishment of the Northern Army, knew the biggest problem of the Duke's armed forces was that they had no actual combat experience. The Northern Army had been established for more than two years, but it had never been on the battlefield.
Just like today, these arrogant Silver Knights of the Northern Army were exposed as soon as they made a move. They were even scared to the point of wetting their pants when they saw the tragic state of their companions who died in battle. In the past, when the territory nobles heard about the Northern Army of more than 20,000 people, they trembled and bowed their heads in defeat. But today, they finally met someone who did not believe in evil. Not only did they knock out the Duke's Gold Knight, but they also killed seven Silver Knights of the Northern Army and robbed the remaining Silver Knights who were still alive. This was a huge humiliation for the duke and the Northland Legion.
Baron Camelot sighed deeply and raised his head to look at Lollister. "Lord Norton, aren't you afraid that the Duke's wrath will descend upon the Norton Family? Aren't they afraid that the Northland Legion will attack the city? I can only say that everything you are doing now is dragging the Norton family into an abyss of eternal damnation. As the new head of the Norton family, you should consider the future and future of the family. Don't let the most famous Bear family in the North be destroyed just because of a moment of happiness. If you're willing to return the 100,000 gold coins and hand over the spoils of war from the Kenneth Family to His Excellency, I think I can still persuade His Excellency to temporarily appease his anger and forgive your rash actions this time … "
Loriste chuckled, "Honorable Lord Baron, you are a talent. I really admire you for being able to make a lie sound like the truth. In fact, we all know the true origin of the 100,000 gold coins, don't we? Even if the 100,000 gold coins belong to the Duke, he has already entrusted it to the Kenneth Family to purchase military equipment. So it has nothing to do with him. This is already considered a loss for the Kenneth Family. The Duke should be urging the Kenneth Family to purchase supplies as soon as possible. Why would he come to the Norton Family to ask for the return of the money? This is not in line with the morals of the nobles, right? "
"So the Norton Family really wants to go against the Duke?" Baron Camelot stared at Lollister and asked.
"Haha, this shouldn't be the Norton Family's fault, right? Lord Baron, perhaps you have heard of the family teachings passed down by the ancestors of the Bear Family. Other than the Crimson Empire's royal family and our own elders, no member of the Norton Family will bend their knees in front of others. When Duke Lujins extends his greedy claws to the Norton Family, you should not be surprised by the result. As for the Northern Legion, if the enemy that comes to the city are all useless … "Lollister pointed at the 12 Silver-tier Knights not far away and said," Then the more the better. Also, ask them to put more money into their pouches. Believe me, this will be good for their lives. "
Baron Camelot stood up angrily and said, "I will tell the Duke everything that happened here today and the attitude of the Norton Family. Lord Norton, since you insist on doing things your own way, then good luck to you! "
"Haha, Lord Baron, thank you for your blessings. I have always thought of myself as a lucky man. Just like today, didn't you all make a small fortune by coming here? Thank you so much. It's getting late. For your safety, I will not keep you all in the castle for the night. I will send someone to escort you all back tomorrow morning. "Lollister said with a cheeky smile. He did not seem to care about Baron Camelot's threat at all.
Baron Camelot could no longer be angry. The new head of the Norton Family was even more shameless than the Duke. He was even more unreasonable. He could only nod his head coldly and said, "Farewell."
After that, he walked out of the castle.
Lollister looked at the 12 well-behaved children and scolded them, "Are you all still standing there waiting for dinner? Hurry up and bring this idiot and your companions' corpses and get out of here. That stupid Duke dares to bully us? Does he think that the Norton Family will not dare to chop off his claws? "
…
"Sigh, Little Locke, you are too impulsive. Since Duke Lujins has already stated his conditions, we might as well bargain with him for the 100,000 gold coins and the construction materials. Perhaps we will not have to fall out with him like this … "
The one who said this was the old butler, Clancy. Although he did not express his opinion during the confrontation between Lollister and Baron Camelot, he felt that Lollister should not have chosen the worst outcome. If he could use a few gold coins and materials to get rid of the Duke's messenger, that would be the best outcome.
Lollister smiled and went to push the old butler's wooden wheelchair. "Grandpa Clancy, I have thought about it. Unless we give all 100,000 gold coins to that stupid Duke, he will not give up. Furthermore, as long as we give in even once, he will think that he has us under his control. He will continue to pressure us step by step. He will not let us go until he squeezes all the benefits out of the Norton Family. Since we are going to fall out with him in the end, why not give him a slap to wake him up? Does he really think that the Northland Army that he is relying on is invincible? "
"Even if his Northland Army is made up of those cowardly Silver Knights, there are still more than 20,000 of them. The Norton Family's strength is far from enough to fight against them … "The old butler was worried.
"Haha, it's fine. With the Rock Castle, they will not be able to enter our family's territory. Numbers are useless. In front of the walls of the Rock Castle, they will only be beaten up badly. They will not be able to do anything to us. " Lollister was very confident in the newly built walls of the Rock Castle. This was also the main reason why he dared to fall out with the Duke.
"Right, Grandpa Clancy, since everyone is here, I would like to discuss with everyone. I am preparing to attack Northern Field Town immediately," Lollister said.
"Are you confident?" The old butler was stunned.
"I am confident, but I cannot guarantee that we will have to pay a heavy price."
Lollister gathered everyone to his side and began to discuss the attack on Northern Field Town.
After listening to Lollister's explanation, Josk was the first to express his opinion. "It will not be easy. Time is too tight. Unless we attack with no regard for the casualties and deplete the armed forces of Northern Field Town, it will be very difficult for us to take down Northern Field Town in a short period of time."
Lollister believed that it would take at least 15 days for Baron Camorra to return to the Duke's territory and for the Duke to attack the Norton Family in anger. He planned to use these 15 days to take down Northern Field Town and remove this tumor from his family's territory.
Lollister planned to send out a platoon and a small group of soldiers from the Rock Castle, leaving two small groups of guards to defend the town. The Maple Castle on the family's side sent out a platoon, along with the mercenaries from the military stronghold, about a thousand people to attack Northern Field Town.
He felt that it would be best to wait for another half a year, because Lollister had forgotten one of the biggest factors that could easily lead to failure. The 1000 or so family soldiers that he was preparing to send out to Northern Field Town were all newly recruited. They had not gone through systematic discipline and military training, so they could be considered a motley crew. Their fighting strength was not much stronger than the peasant soldiers. On the other hand, the enemy had deep trenches, high walls, and a tight defense. Just the geographical advantage alone was enough to give them a big advantage. Not to mention that the number of people defending was more than double that of the attackers. There might even be a situation like what Lollister was worried about.
Lollister smiled bitterly. "We don't have time. When that Baron Camorra returns, even if the Duke can't send out his troops immediately, he will still send out the 2000 armed forces of the Kenneth Family to spearhead the attack. We can only train an elite family army through battle. Even if there are more casualties, there is nothing we can do. Compared to Duke Lujins' Northland Army, Northern Field Town is still a relatively easy enemy to deal with. The battle with the Northland Army will not end in a short period of time. We need to prepare for a long battle. "
"Is there no way we can sneak attack or occupy the city gate to catch Northern Field Town off guard?" Padt asked, unwilling to give up.
Lollister shook his head …
Old Chief Kleis explained the reason to his beloved grandson. "We are going to attack Northern Field Town, but we can't just leave as we wish. We need to gather soldiers and prepare the supplies. These will take two to three days. And the family castle is so close to Northern Field Town. Any movement will be discovered immediately. Besides, many of the servants and employees in the manor are closely related to the families in Northern Field Town. It is very likely that when we decide to send out our troops, the people in Northern Field Town will immediately know about it. By the time we get there, they will have already prepared their defenses. So no matter what plan we have, we can only attack by force. "
"Let's do it this way. Pacico, you will be in charge of gathering and training the soldiers in Maple Forest Manor. Joe, after you send Baron Camorra and the others through Monolith Castle tomorrow, transfer the company formed by the slave labor here. Then, take a small team from the old guards and let Auvix defend Monolith Castle. Paul Robbins will go with you. Redi, go to the military camp tomorrow and let Husky and Jim bring the mercenaries here. Let Steward Cordan continue to be in charge of the construction. "
Lollister made the final decision. "Let's do it this way. We will attack Northern Field Town in three days."
… …
Just as Lollister was discussing with the others about sending troops to Northern Field Town, the front of Maple Forest Manor Castle was bustling with activity. Thirty to forty bored Northland Legion soldiers were shouting at the guards on top of the castle. They had many requests, such as wine and meat, and they wanted the Norton Family to reward them with money. They could not come all this way for nothing. Most importantly, they wanted women to comfort their lonely hearts so that they could pass the lonely nights.
The soldiers from the Northland Army were shouting in unison. Give them money, give them meat, give them women …
Just as they were shouting, the gates of the castle opened. The Silver-tier Knights who had entered earlier in the morning walked out dejectedly like defeated roosters. They did not even bring their mounts out. They carried seven to eight corpses on their shoulders and hands. The Gold-tier Knight Tabek, whose eyes grew on his forehead, was shrunk into a long cloak as he was carefully carried by four Silver-tier Knights …
The soldiers of the Northland Legion were all dumbfounded. It was only when a Silver-tier Knight scolded them that they came to their senses and hurriedly carried the corpses and the unconscious Tabick back to the camp. Soon, everyone knew that they had kicked an iron plate this time. The camp was heavily guarded, and they began to worry about whether the Norton family would let them go or not.
After casually eating some food, Baron Camorra paced back and forth in the tent anxiously. He was not worried about being attacked by the Norton Family at night. Such a traditional noble family had their own pride, and would not go back on their word.
Even if the young man in charge of the Norton Family was more shameless than the Duke, he would not stoop to such a lowly act.
The mission this time had failed. This was something that the Duke and Baron Camorra did not expect before they set off. Now that the Norton Family had become enemies with the Duke, it was inevitable that the Duke would send out his army to seek revenge.
It was very late at night, but Baron Camorra still did not want to sleep. He was anxious because he could not figure out the true strength of the Norton Family. He did not understand what the Norton Family relied on to make an enemy out of the Duke. Even if the Norton Family's soldiers were better equipped than the soldiers from the Northland Army, the 20,000 soldiers of the Northland Army were not just for show. Why were they not afraid of the enemy? What were they planning?
A soldier from the Northland Army stood at the entrance of the tent and looked inside. Baron Camorra asked, "What's the matter?"
The soldier replied, "My lord, there are a few people outside. They said that they are the elders and the captain of the guards from the Norton Family's territory in Northfield Town. They want to see my lord …"
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