Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation Heavy snow fluttered in the sky, covering the mountains and plains with a thick coat of white. Winter had arrived.
Perhaps I'm getting old. Baron Abbott felt a chill run down his spine even though the fire in the fireplace was burning brightly. He tightened the leather coat on his body and downed the fruit wine in the golden cup in one gulp. He stared silently at the snowstorm outside the window, and couldn't help but think back to the happy days when he and his good friends from the mercenary group gathered in the tavern to celebrate …
The good old days were gone, and the energetic and hardworking Goshawk mercenary group was no longer there. He remembered when the boss got drunk and announced in the tavern that he wanted to make the mercenary group one of the top ten mercenary groups in the Trade Alliance. Everyone happily swore to help the boss achieve his wish.
He remembered the tavern owner, One-eyed Maude, standing behind the wine cabinet and smiling kindly. The customers all cheered and cheered, and no one laughed at the young mercenaries for having such a wonderful wish. Almost all the mercenaries in Moriente City hoped that their mercenary group could become one of the top ten mercenary groups. That represented the highest honor of a mercenary group …
After nearly 20 years of adventuring as a mercenary, through the hard work of Boss, himself, Ol 'Three, and all the elite mercenaries in the mercenary group, Goshawk mercenary group had finally risen from the top 100 mercenary groups in the Commerce Alliance to the top 20. At that time, they were only a short distance away from achieving their dream, but no one had expected that this short distance would become a huge chasm.
All the changes happened when the Trade Alliance was about to implement the Lord system, and when the Glass War broke out between the Trade Alliance and the Telimbo Kingdom. The boss decided to lead the entire mercenary group to the Telimbo Kingdom, and use the sword in his hand to find a path to becoming a Lord and a bright future for the mercenary group …
Before they set off, all the comrades in the mercenary group were in high spirits. The Goshawk mercenary group was not a nameless group in the mercenary world. They were ranked twenty-first, and all three of their leaders were Gold-ranked mercenaries. They even had an elite team of a hundred Silver-ranked mercenaries. When they first entered the Telimbo Kingdom, everything went smoothly. They robbed three noble manors and reaped a bountiful harvest. Everyone thought that they had made the right decision, and they even managed to hold down three noblewomen who they could only watch from afar …
The nightmare had come so suddenly. In less than ten days, the leader of the group that had gone on a raid was beheaded by a great swordsman who coveted the bounty that King Trumbo the Seventh had issued. Only three of the forty or so elite Silver Mercenaries who had gone with him managed to escape. The Grey Hawk Mercenary Band had their backbones broken, and they were greatly weakened.
Then came an internal strife. To fight for the leadership and inheritance of the mercenary group, Ol 'Three and Ol' Three fought the battle. The Goshawk mercenary group didn't have a good time, but they didn't have it either. Ol 'Three had a hand and a leg, and Ol' Three had suffered. Ol 'Three left.
It was just that he didn't have his boss's great talent and strategy, so he couldn't continue developing the mercenary group. More and more people left, and just when the Grey Eagle mercenary group was about to collapse, the vice manager of the Twin Dragon merchant group that he knew pulled him back and introduced him to the vice president of the merchant group. He used the Goshawk mercenary group's savings to bribe the vice chairman, and got him to help him get the title of baron.
The heavy wooden door was pushed open, and a gust of cold wind rushed into the warm room. Baron Abbott woke up from his memories and tightened his coat again. He turned around and looked at the burly man and the skinny middle-aged man who entered the room. The burly man was Baron Abbott's chief knight, Aradeline, a 3-star Silver-ranked former elite mercenary of the Goshawk mercenary group. The skinny middle-aged man was called Grigail. He used to be the mercenary group's logistics manager, but now he was the baron's chief steward. The two of them were Baron Abbott's right-hand men.
"Sir, I just came back from patrolling the ranch. The snow outside is very thick, and it's already knee-high. Everything is fine, except for an old sheep that froze to death. I had someone whip the shepherd slave twenty times … "Knight Aradeline reported.
"You didn't whip him to death, did you?" Baron Abbott asked.
"No." Knight Aradeline shook his head. "Don't worry, my lord. I know what I'm doing. These wretches won't listen unless they're beaten. They're tough, and they'll live through the winter. "
Baron Abbott was silent for a moment, and then nodded. "You did well. Appropriate punishment is necessary, or these slaves will slack off. But you have to understand that we bought these slaves with money. If we're too harsh, we'll lose our gold coins for nothing. And I heard that the war is about to end, and the Trade Union can no longer take captives from the Southern and Southern Kingdoms. These slaves will become more and more valuable in the future. "
"I understand, my lord," Knight Aradeline said.
During the war between the Trade Union and the Southern and Southern Kingdoms for more than four years, the Trade Union, as the victor, had captured nearly a hundred thousand captives in the process. If they wanted to feed so many captives, they would need a lot of food, which would consume a lot of garrison power and funds. So a shrewd member of the Trade Union proposed to sell these captives, which was approved by the parliament. This decision was very popular among the lords who lacked manpower.
However, the Trade Union had always claimed to be democratic and free, and was not an abominable slave country. So they only sold the captives' labor rights. The captured civilians were sentenced to three years of labor, and the captive soldiers were sentenced to five years of labor. In theory, the captives bought by the lords would automatically be freed as long as they finished their labor, but in reality, no one would care about the rights of these captives being auctioned.
On the contrary, the parliament of the Trade Union was delighted. They believed that this not only saved the cost of guarding the captives, but also raised a lot of war funds through the auction of these captives. At the same time, it provided enough manpower for the territories that lacked manpower. It was really killing many birds with one stone, and it was one of the Trade Union's most effective policies.
Andwolf was also considered a new territory of the Trade Union. After annexing Andwolf, the Trade Union conferred a total of more than eighty new nobles in Andwolf. Baron Abbott was one of them. However, when the Second Prince destroyed the Redelis Kingdom, Andwolf had been in a series of wars with the nobles' allied forces. Nine out of ten houses were emptied, and it was already in ruins.
Seven years ago, when Baron Abbott came to Andwolf to confer his title, he had gathered less than a thousand people, and they were all old and weak. After a few years of unscrupulous gathering and fighting with the nearby lords a dozen times, the population of Baron Abbott's territory finally exceeded ten thousand, which was second to none in the surrounding territories. However, most of them were old and weak. For this reason, Baron Abbott bought more than three hundred young captives from the Trade Union's auction, and they became the main labor force in his territory.
"Sir, I've patrolled the manor just now. It's safe and sound," Gerigal reported his duties to Baron Abbott.
Baron Abbott nodded in satisfaction. "You've all done well. Come, sit down and have a glass of wine. Warm yourself up by the fire. Aradeline, there's a calf leg hanging over there. Go get it for us to roast it. "
In private, Baron Abbott didn't put on any airs, nor did he care about seniority. Although he had been conferred the title of baron, his temper was still like that of the straightforward mercenary deputy leader. He was often criticized by the surrounding nobles, who secretly nicknamed him the Mercenary Lord and mocked him for his lowly mercenary background.
He took a piece of roast meat from Aradeline, dipped it in a plate of salt, and stuffed it into his mouth. Majordomo Grigail handed him a newly poured golden cup filled with ale. Baron Abbott took it and drank it in one gulp. He let out a long sigh. "Nice."
Putting down the gold cup, Baron Abbott said, "We must build a castle next year."
Baron Abbott didn't mind being mocked as a mercenary lord by the surrounding lords, but it had been seven years, and he still hadn't built a decent castle in his territory, which made him feel very embarrassed. Everyone knew that it was natural for a lord to live in a castle, instead of living in a house made of logs. Even the manor was only surrounded by branches.
"My lord, our family's armed forces don't have to guard the border next year. We do have the manpower, but do we have the funds to build a castle?" Aradeline asked.
Four years ago, the king of the Andenac Kingdom, Ogesero the First, went on an expedition to the four central duchies, and it only took him a year to reach the Handa Duchy. The messengers of the Grand Duke Handa asking for help came one after another to the capital of Fedeliga, which was the territory of the Visia Merchant Guild. All the nobles in the Andwolf province were frightened, afraid that they would be next after the Handa Duchy was destroyed. Some nobles spared no effort to support the Grand Duke Handa, while others packed their belongings and bags, ready to run back to Morent City if they were attacked.
At the critical moment, a vice president of the Visia Merchant Guild came to inspect the Andwolf province, which gave the nobles some peace of mind. The vice president reminded all the nobles not to forget that the Commerce Union was now the largest and most powerful country in the Galinthia continent. Although they were currently at war with the Southern Kingdom's Coalition Army, and their military strength was limited, they still had the power to fight. Don't forget that the Commerce Union had just roped in a Storm Sword Saint to guard the country. As long as the king of the Andenac Kingdom still had a brain, he wouldn't dare to offend the authority of the Commerce Union.
The vice president's inspection finally calmed the nobles in the Andwolf province. What happened next was just as the vice president had predicted. After the surrender of the Grand Duke Handa, the army of the Andenac Kingdom did not continue to attack. Instead, they stopped at the border of the Andwolf province. Then, the famous White Lion Legion of the kingdom was mobilized, and they assumed a defensive posture at the border. Now, all the nobles of the territory could put down their anxious and uneasy hearts.
However, what happened next left all the nobles in the Andworf Province feeling awkward. In order to defend against the invasion of the Andinac Kingdom, the nobles formed a coalition army consisting of more than 10,000 people. They were prepared to defend against the Andinac Kingdom's invasion, and at the same time, buy time for the nobles to evacuate. However, the Andenac Kingdom's army did not launch an attack. Instead, they assumed a defensive posture. In that case, should the coalition army be disbanded?
In the face of a powerful enemy, for the sake of their lives, they could still work together to fight against the enemy. All the nobles had done their best to support the coalition army. However, now that there was no threat from the enemy, was there still a need for the coalition army to exist? After all, the military expenses of supporting the existence of a standing army of nearly 10,000 people were extremely painful for the nobles in the Andwolf province.
However, they had to be on guard at the border in case the Andenac Kingdom's army suddenly launched an attack. The nobles in the Andwolf province discussed and came up with a brilliant idea. They would draw lots, and whoever drew the lot would have to send troops to guard the border. The number of troops would be based on the population of the territory. One out of twenty people would be drawn, meaning that one out of twenty people would have to be a soldier. As for the cost, everyone would share it. It was much cheaper to maintain a border guard of 3,000 people than a standing army of 10,000.
Therefore, Baron Abbott was honored to draw the lot. Although he had always suspected that someone was behind this, he could not find any evidence, so he could only swallow his anger. He selected 500 young men from his territory and put them under the command of Knight Aradeline to guard the border for three years. Due to the lack of labor, not only could the territory not develop, but they could not even build their own castle. They had no choice but to buy the captives back.
Baron Abbott laughed lightly, "You guys don't know this, but the Andenac Kingdom's Oggesero the First has already gathered an army to fight against the Trade Union. However, he did not launch an attack from here. Instead, he moved his army to the two provinces in the southwest. I guess he thinks that those two provinces are closer to Moronte City …"
"No wonder the White Lion Legion deployed in Margic Province has also moved out. There's an army of 10,000 people stationed at the border. I don't know if it's a new army, but it's very tight. The scouts we sent were chased back, and a few of them were injured or killed …" Knight Aradeline said.
"So we're safe here. Next year, we can watch the Trade Union and the Andenac Kingdom fight to the death in Campona Province. It's winter now, and it's snowing everywhere. We don't have to worry about being attacked by the enemy at all. When the war starts in Campona Province next year, we can take this opportunity to deal with those guys. I've always suspected that it was Viscount Weems' doing. He made us draw the unlucky lot and wasted three years of our time.
When spring comes, we'll use the water source to stir up a dispute. Anyway, Weems only knows how to talk and have a crooked brain. He only has a garrison of 200 men and three Silver-tier knights. They're no match for us at all. Although the Trade Union forbids the lords from killing each other, we won't touch his family. We'll just loot his town of 3,000 people and his broken castle. When the parliament sends someone over, we'll argue with them. Maybe the Trade Union will only pay attention to the war with the Andenac Kingdom and not care about us … "
"If we don't have enough funds to build a castle, we'll take this opportunity to plunder from the lords around us. Hehe, the three years we spent at the border were not for nothing. I'm very grateful to you, Araleen. You've trained our family's garrison into a powerful armed force," Baron Abbott said after careful consideration.
Grigail was very happy. "We should've dealt with that old man a long time ago. The last time we met on the road, he laughed at us for being lowly mercenaries. Didn't his Chamber of Commerce start off by selling linen? How much nobler than us …"
Baron Abbott laughed and suddenly stopped. He listened carefully. "There seems to be some movement outside?"
Indeed, there seemed to be some noise in the wind.
Araleen stood up. "I'll go see what's going on …"
As soon as he said that, there was a loud bang. A few soldiers in white cloaks and brown leather suits rushed into the warm room. The swords and spears in their hands gleamed coldly under the light of the fire. "Don't move! Put your hands up! Surrender! Kneel and spare your lives!"
…
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