Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 240 Letter
With Ronald's and Epel's troops successively wiped out, the New Reclamation Army had no more usable troops left in Iron Peak County.

After pacifying Iron Peak County, Winters first sent a letter to Maplestone City.

They also used messengers from the Zhevodan garrison and the communication channels of the New Reclamation Corps.

The fact that the "rebels" captured the county capital was impossible to hide from the legion's eyes and ears.

Moreover, Ronald and Epel had already sent messengers to the legion to request reinforcements.

So Winters didn't bother to hide anything and wrote a letter to General Adams openly.

Compared to his arrogant attitude in sending the letter, Winters' words in the letter were quite humble.

He reported to General Adams in a formulaic subordinate tone, "Major Ronald went out of the city to quell the rebellion, but was ambushed on the way and his entire army was wiped out."

The garrison is currently under the control of his troops, with him acting as the garrison commander.

Finally, Winters wished General Adams good health and hoped that the Legion Headquarters would send a new garrison officer soon.

The recipient was “the most honorable General Kevin J. Adams”.

The sender signed the letter "Captain Winters Montagne of the Army of the Republic of Palatine".

“Brother,” the temporary scribe Charles asked in confusion, “why do I feel like you’re deliberately provoking General Adams, yet at the same time you seem to be saying the softer things?”

“You’ve improved.” Winters was intently carving chess pieces with a small knife with a leather cord handle. “I’m just being conciliatory.”

"If we speak softly... General Adams won't attack us anymore?" Charles stopped writing and looked up to ask.

“No, the more we soften our stance, the more Maplestone City will send troops to attack us.” Winters blew away the wood chips from the chess piece, revealing the horse's head that represented the knight.

Ciel asked, puzzled, "Then why..."

"If I speak harshly, will Adams let us off the hook?" Winters handed the carved chess piece to Heinrich and picked up a new piece of wood.

Heinrich took the chess piece and carefully colored it.

In front of Heinrich were many painted soldiers, knights, and cannons, which were drying in the shade.

Ronald's office has now been transformed into a wood carving workshop.

“General Adams is going to attack us anyway.” Charles pondered, then tentatively asked, “Should we appear weak rather than tough?”

“That’s it.” Winters coughed as he opened the doors and windows. “The paint smell is awful; we need to go somewhere with better ventilation.”

Heinrich nodded vigorously.

"Have you found out anything about your grandfather?" Winters asked Heinrich.

Heinrich shook his head sadly.

Heinrich's grandfather, the executioner "master" Franz, was nowhere to be found; he was neither in Zhevodan nor in the Iron Peak County.

“It’s alright, keep searching.” Winters felt a pang of sadness as he thought of the silent, resolute old man. “The cavalry will soon be heading to the neighboring county to scout, and they will also help you gather information.”

“A traveling executioner has no fixed abode; he goes wherever he needs to kill.” Heinrich forced a smile. “Perhaps my grandfather has just retired. In this day and age, the last thing we need is an executioner.”

……

When Winters wrote to Adams.

In Hailan, Grand Consul Debera and four Overseers were also holding a closed-door meeting.

In addition to the ruling five, Antonio and Jacob de Bar—commanders of the Fourth "Florence" Legion—were also present.

The Third Army Corps is currently stationed in the Tanilla Islands.

The Fourth Army is currently facing off against the Second Army of the United Provinces on the south bank of the Benliu River.

The two legion commanders were secretly summoned back to Hailan to discuss an important matter—how many troops could the two legions allocate to intervene in Palatul?
The ruling quintet has reached an agreement:
[The noble republic must punish the Paratists for their “malicious default” with the harshest measures; otherwise, all of Veneta’s debtors will be eager to act from now on]—these are just the stated reasons.

The ruling council was determined to "collect debts by force," and the two generals were summoned back not to discuss "whether it was right or wrong," but to ask them "how to do it."

However, Antonio unusually and resolutely resisted the ruling group's decision.

“Once our troops march into Palatour, it will be tantamount to declaring war on the United Provinces!” Antonio questioned the five-man group directly: “Your Excellencies, do you have the resolve to go to war with the United Provinces? Is Veneta ready?” In Antonio’s belief, soldiers should not be involved in political decision-making.

But this time, Antonio went against what he had long adhered to.

Grand Consul Debera, the general most loyal to Veneta, showed great patience.

He carefully explained the secret agreement with Alpad: "Our army will serve the Paratu military government as mercenaries, avoiding direct conflict with the United Provinces Republic as much as possible."

Antonio's eyes were filled with grief: "This is nothing but self-deception! You gentlemen are all hoping things will turn out for the best, but reality often falls in the worst possible direction. Armed intervention in Paratú will inevitably lead to a direct war with the United Provinces. That would be a true civil war within the Alliance! Brothers killing each other! But we are not ready, not even close!"

"Shut up!" Zio interrupted his trusted general, preventing him from speaking further: "Do you need to teach me how to weigh the options in the ruling council?"

“Militarily, Venetta may not be ready. But politically, we must respond,” de Bella said slowly to the Third Army commander. “What if Venetta’s debtors follow the example of the Palatine? What if we allow the United Provinces to intervene and take control of Palatine?”
Monta and Varn are already puppets of the Union Provinces. If they also control Palatul, can Veneta still exist independently in the world? No matter the cost, Veneta must at least ensure Palatul's independence and prevent it from siding with the Union Provinces in order to maintain the balance within the Alliance.

Antonio couldn't refute De Bella because he knew De Bella was right.

The United Provinces are small, with an area of ​​just over 100,000 square kilometers, roughly one-third the size of Veneta.

Although the United Provinces are densely populated and have wealthy cities, in terms of war potential, they are far inferior to Veneta and Plato.

It was only through its formidable military strength and the presence of the Monta and Vane families, which allowed the United Provinces to achieve a balance of power with Veneta and Palatour.

The three parties are like a triangle, mutually restraining and interdependent, barely maintaining the balance within the alliance under external pressure.

If this triangle is broken and Plato leans towards the United Provinces, then Veneta will be the next to be swallowed up.

“If Your Excellencies are determined to send troops, then I request that the Council of State begin preparations for a full-scale war with the United Provinces now.” Antonia gritted his teeth: “[Ancient saying] To have peace, prepare for war! [Common language] I request Your Excellencies’ permission to formulate a war plan to capture Golden Harbor and annihilate the First Legion.”

……

Meanwhile, in the State Palace in Guido, in the office of Lionel, the Secretary of State of the United Provinces, a heated argument was taking place.

"Secretary of State! Are you going to just stand by and watch the Venetians take control of Palatour?" General Taylor, the first commander of the United Province's army, roared at the United Province's nominal head of state: "Veneta plus Palatour! The United Province will be forced to fight on two fronts! When that happens, can you bear the responsibility for the nation's downfall?!"

“General Taylor, you’ve got cause and effect backwards.” The Secretary of State suppressed his anger and tried to be as gentle as possible: “If your army hadn’t interfered with Palatour, Veneta wouldn’t have intervened without permission.”

"It will be too late when they actually get involved!" the army's top leader roared.

"We can intervene when they actually get involved," the State Secretary replied calmly.

“Mr. Secretary of State,” Taylor asked with a sneer, “are you from the United Provinces or from Venetia?”

“General,” Lionel’s facial muscles twitched, but he asked calmly, “So, are you a member of the United Provinces or the United Provinces Army?”

"The Army has always only served to protect the United Provinces," Taylor said coldly, slamming the door as he left.

The meeting between the Army General and the State Secretary ended unhappily.

……

Meanwhile, in the heart of the empire—the Palace of No Worries.

Upon his return from his mission, Count Narzia walked through a long corridor and entered a small room in the southwest corner of the Palace of No-Consciousness.

The room was not only small, but also unusually simple, with only a desk and a chair.

A man was sitting in the only chair in the room, writing something.

A portrait hangs behind the man, which is also the only decoration in the room.

Within the picture frame, an elderly man in military uniform, whose appearance bears a slight resemblance to a man, gazes sternly at everything in the room.

“Your Majesty.” Count Narzia walked to the desk and helped the man open the yellow wooden box containing letters sent from colonies in the north, south, and even the ends of the earth: “The rebels are about to kill each other again.”

"No rush." ​​The man trimmed the excess part of the letter, folded it, sealed it with lacquer, and placed it in the red wooden box on the table.

He moved quickly and cleanly, putting the torn-off letter into the drawer for future use.

He personally does these seemingly insignificant little things, never asking anyone else to do them.

"Just wait," he said.

[There's one more chapter today, but the mood falters here, so I'll end the chapter here (facepalm)]
[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, donations, and comments. Thank you everyone!]
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(End of this chapter)