Margaret must have been preoccupied with something recently, preventing her from visiting.

Seated on an iron chair, Howard rested his chin on his hand, gazing into the distance.

Nora, standing by his side, saw through Howard’s thoughts and advised, “Once Bosiden brings good news, he’ll return. As for Margaret not visiting, it’s because you never asked her to come frequently. You can’t blame others for not adhering to an unspoken rule.”

Howard stubbornly retorted, “I do look forward to Bosiden’s return, but what does Margaret’s absence have to do with me? I am the lord, and she is my vassal. If she doesn’t come, should I beg her to? It’s her choice.”

Nora chose not to respond further, preferring not to engage in meaningless conversations.

Ten days later, Bosiden still hadn’t brought any news of victory and returned dejectedly.

Old Mibo, who started his career as the chief of spies under Earl Layton Gade, was a master in the art of espionage.

When Bosiden, acting as the diplomat, entered Mibo’s territory, he was immediately detected by Mibo’s men.

For over ten days, everyone Bosiden thought he had cleverly connected with, be they “castle residents” or “villagers,” were actually actors deployed by Mibo’s chief spy, Portia.

Poor Bosiden, who initially believed his mission was progressing smoothly, thought he had successfully infiltrated Mibo’s domain and swiftly built relationships with the locals.

He dreamt blissfully of his achievements.

However, within a couple of days, he realized something was amiss.

Everywhere he went seemed eerily prearranged, as if cleaned and cleared in advance.

The capital of Earl Nok’s land, where he roamed, felt as desolate as a war-ravaged wasteland, despite its usual bustle.

Until yesterday, when Bosiden stubbornly ventured into an area the “villagers” forbade him from entering, his true predicament was revealed.

A group of long-halberd guards surrounded him, and Portia, laughing maniacally, expelled Bosiden from the territory as per Mibo’s orders.

Upon seeing Bosiden, Howard noticed his crestfallen face and bowed head, as if he dared not meet Howard’s gaze.

Howard tried to buoy Bosiden’s spirits, urging him not to lose heart or fall into despair.

Yet, Bosiden’s failure left Howard at a loss about whom to turn to next for the proclamation.

Old Mibo’s defensive measures were astoundingly clever; how could one obtain a decree from Mibo’s lands?

At that moment, Margaret entered the lord’s hall, waving a document that turned out to be a proclamation from Earl Nok.

Howard was stunned, almost thinking he was seeing things.

Alonso, in attendance, exclaimed in disbelief, “Ah? Is that really a proclamation from Nok Barony? How was this achieved?”

Even Nora wore a look of incredulity.

Margaret, with a sweet smile, ran up to Howard and nestled into his arms, handing him the proclamation and said, “Look at this, Howard. I’ve gone through so much trouble and used many connections to get this for you.”

Hearing this, Howard was momentarily puzzled, but then it dawned on him that Margaret, too, came from a noble lineage – her father being a knight under Baron Bob.

Howard had always been so overshadowed by Anna’s Katerina family’s prestige that he had forgotten Margaret’s own noble connections and influence.

Howard responded with a carefree smile, poring over the proclamation from Nok Barony several times, as if beholding a treasure rich enough to rival nations.

He asked, “How did you manage to obtain this?”

Margaret replied, “My father, upon learning I had become a knight, sent me a gold coin in support. I added eighty silver coins I had earned from bandit raids and utilized our family’s network.”

“I bribed several of Portia’s key subordinates. Even with Portia’s diligence, she couldn’t detect my activities. ”

“I spread tales of your great deeds among the villagers, proclaiming you the rightful and legitimate owner of Nok Barony. With persistent effort, I finally secured the last villager’s signature yesterday!”

Howard was deeply moved, feeling that Margaret was an exemplary vassal, addressing his needs and accomplishing what he desired.

He immediately offered to pay her double the money she spent, but Margaret refused to accept it.

Determined, Howard then bestowed upon Margaret the honorary title of ‘Relief Worker’.

She joyfully accepted, knowing that from then on, the title would bring her a modest salary and prestige each month.

Beside them, Bosiden looked on with a mix of envy and frustration.

He thought that his failure alone would have been tolerable, as no one would ridicule him, and he could always devise another plan.

However, now that Margaret had succeeded where he had not, others might see her as more capable than him.

Additionally, Bosiden lacked the support of a historical family; his family wasn’t originally noble.

It was only through Howard’s conferment of knighthood that he had a family name to call his own.

Bosiden’s resentment stemmed not only from the embarrassment of his failure compared to Margaret’s success but also from envy of her family’s network of connections.

He saw her as someone who had achieved her goals solely through her family’s influence, a person greedy for credit.

Howard, unaware of Bosiden’s thoughts at the moment, was crystal clear about one thing: the war against Earl Mibo could finally commence.

With a resounding roar, Howard gave his orders, and Alonso promptly responded.

Howard instructed him, “Send a declaration of war to Mibo.

Tell him it’s war if he refuses the earldom.”

Alonso swiftly departed to carry out the command.

Howard then turned to Bosiden, “Summon the major lords and the conscripted soldiers from my lands.

We must be ready to wage war against Mibo at any moment!”

A day later, Mibo rejected Howard’s demands.

He rallied his own forces along with those of Baron Hof and Mayor Portwan, preparing for a decisive battle with Howard.

The conflict between Howard and Mibo officially escalated into open warfare.

Howard’s troops began assembling outside Castle Fernsouth.

Once gathered, they would number over 1300: 800 light infantry, 200 heavy infantry, 200 archers, 84 light cavalry, and 32 heavy cavalry.

Meanwhile, Mibo was mustering his forces near the city of Wislot, close to Castle Fernsouth.

His assembled force would total around 2600: 1,900 light infantry, 270 heavy infantry, 130 archers, 230 pikemen, 60 light cavalry, and 10 heavy cavalry.

Though Mibo’s forces outnumbered Howard’s, their quality was not as high.

Howard’s smaller army, on the other hand, was composed of hardened, battle-ready troops.

The term ‘light cavalry’ might sound impressive, but on the battlefield, they often amounted to nothing more than conscripted villagers.

In the best-case scenario, under a generous lord, they might receive a short sword and some leather armor, resembling something akin to light infantry.

However, under average lords lacking war resources, these troops might end up on the battlefield in tattered clothes, wielding nothing but sticks. 𝘳𝑎.𝒸ℴ

This, absurd as it may seem, was a common occurrence.

Apart from the legendary Viking warriors, the average light infantry was indeed the lowest tier in the military hierarchy.

Mayor Portwan of Wislot city, this time, appeared to contribute a significant number of troops, sending 1,500 soldiers.

However, most of these were light infantry with minimal combat effectiveness in real battle scenarios.

Baron Hof, after much effort, managed to muster a force of 300, of which only 50 were heavy infantry and 20 archers of any note.

The remaining 230 were all light infantry.

Mibo had ordered Hof to deploy his cavalry for the war, but Hof excused himself, claiming a lack of funds to maintain a cavalry unit, and suggesting he never had a cavalry in the first place.

In reality, Hof, prioritizing his own safety, was reluctant to send his elite troops into battle.

Mibo was left trembling with fury at Hof’s actions but had no real recourse other than to bitterly reproach the messenger sent by Hof.

Due to geographical advantages, Howard’s forces completed their assembly before Mibo’s.

Once Howard’s troops were ready, the major lords took command of their respective armies, and Howard appointed Resarite as the overall commander.

In strategizing the upcoming consolidation of troops, Resarite had a clear plan in mind.

Howard’s army, though smaller in number, had the advantage of rapid assembly.

This benefit had to be leveraged for a swift breakthrough, aiming to intercept and defeat the enemy’s reinforcements before they could join forces.

To achieve this, it was essential to amalgamate all the lords’ armies into a unified force.

Unity, after all, is strength; a single rope may break easily, but ten ropes twisted together are much stronger.

Howard agreed with this strategy, leading to the formal consolidation of the army and the appointment of three commanders to lead the left, center, and right divisions.

Howard himself took command of the left division, a decision that went unquestioned since he had personally expressed interest in the position.

The center division was led by Resarite, whose command abilities were widely respected and beyond dispute.

The right division was assigned to Anna.

There was little debate regarding the command of the left division, largely due to Howard’s direct involvement.

The choice of commander for the center division sparked some controversy, but Resarite’s proven leadership skills ultimately won over any skepticism.

𝘪𝘳.𝒸𝑜𝑚