Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

This strategic secret meeting, which concerned the future fate of the Kingdom of Ceylon, lasted from the afternoon until the sun began to set.

The military sand table in the conference room was filled with various small flags, and the battle map was marked with countless arrows and symbols.

The military and political officials in Guimian City carefully considered every detail, striving to ensure absolute safety.

They all knew that if they could win this battle, the situation in Ceylon would become completely clear.

In addition to the regular army of Guimiancheng, there is also a special army that has set out on this expedition.

It was precisely in the last few months that the "Crowning Army," led by Princess Freya, had been advancing triumphantly and unstoppably.

The private armed forces contributed by a large number of small and medium-sized nobles, local clans, and powerful landowners from all over the Kingdom of Ceylon, especially in the southeastern region, who came to surrender and swear allegiance.

Although these private armed groups are not large individually and their equipment and training levels vary, when they come together, their total number of members reaches a considerable figure.

In particular, there are many extraordinary individuals from various professions among them, enough to form several powerful auxiliary legions.

More notably, command of these private armies was usually handed over by the nobles and landowners who donated the weapons to their nephews, brothers, or other core young members of their families for personal command.

The implications of this were clear to everyone present.

Sending their family's private soldiers and heirs to the front lines was the most direct and effective way for these newcomers to express their loyalty to Princess Freya and her supporter Cohen, and to prove their own worth.

Without a doubt, this is the most sincere and determined "pledge of allegiance".

In addition, this is also a valuable opportunity for these new allies to make a name for themselves and gain prestige.

A major battle that almost everyone believed would result in a glorious victory and extremely fruitful results.

For these newcomers eager to gain a foothold in the new regime and seek higher status and greater benefits, being able to participate and successfully earn military merit was undoubtedly an incredibly tempting shortcut.

After all, prior to this, the military operations jointly commanded by Freya and Cohen had been almost invincible.

The series of clean and decisive victories have long since instilled in everyone a strong belief in "inevitable victory".

Therefore, these local nobles and powerful figures, who were quick to sense opportunities and adept at speculation, were naturally unwilling to miss this golden opportunity to both demonstrate their loyalty and gain enormous political and military capital.

They were more than happy to send their descendants to lead the family's private army to join this expedition, to fight for a glorious future for themselves and their family.

Cohen and Freya, of course, understood the thoughts of these newly allied forces.

However, they were happy to see this "noble legion" join them.

Although the actual combat effectiveness of these ragtag troops may be questionable, in a battle of such a large scale, with absolute intelligence and first-mover advantage.

They could at least further enhance their military prestige, and their very existence was a huge political victory, symbolizing the growing support Princess Freya had gained.

At this stage, integrating all forces that can be integrated and uniting all those that can be united is undoubtedly in their fundamental interests.

After a day of intense discussion and repeated simulations, all the details regarding the deployment of troops to Ash Plains, the specific timing of the counter-ambush operation, the total scale of the forces involved, the advance routes of each unit, and the final rendezvous point and timing were finalized.

Finally, a consensus was reached among Cohen, Freya, and the highest decision-making level of the Crown City, and the final battle order was formed.

After a simple dinner, Cohen rested for the night at Freya's palace.

With Melantha around, Freya didn't do anything as daring as "night raid on Cohen".

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Cohen was already up.

Having shared a simple breakfast with Freya, he said softly:
"I'm leaving this place to you. Be careful."

Freya replied firmly:

"Don't worry, sir, I will take care of everything in Guimian City."

Cohen nodded and said no more.

With Melantha by his side, they left the palace and boarded the royal griffin that was already prepared.

He turned back for one last look at Freya, who was standing on the steps seeing him off.

The next moment, the griffin let out a long, resounding cry, and its huge wings suddenly spread out, stirring up a gust of wind.

Carrying Cohen and Melantha, it soared into the sky, transforming into a shooting star and speeding towards the southwest.

Their next destination was not the war-torn Ash Plains, but the Kingdom of Windbreak, located just outside the southwestern border of the Kingdom of Ceylon.

Regarding the plan for the Kingdom of Ceylon and Serene to join forces and ambush the Kingdom of Windbreak in the Ash Plains, Cohen had recently instructed Windsordler to inform King Horn Windrider.

One can imagine the shock and fear that the high-ranking officials of the Windrise Kingdom, especially King Horn, felt when they learned of this news.

They were originally ambitiously preparing to send an elite expeditionary force deep into the southeastern heart of Ceylon, in accordance with the plan they had already agreed upon with Efein, to form a pincer movement with Efein from the north and south, and to overthrow the rule of the usurper Gaius in one fell swoop.

They never expected that the Kingdom of Serene, which had always remained neutral in the Ceylon civil war and had no major grudges with the Kingdom of Windbreak, would suddenly collude with Gaius.

Furthermore, they are plotting such a vicious and deadly sneak attack. If successful, it would undoubtedly be a catastrophic disaster for the Windrise Kingdom, which has deployed all its main forces and left its homeland vulnerable, with unimaginable consequences.

However, further planning is needed to determine the specific response.

Therefore, after the Noble Martial Arts Festival ended, King Horn had been trying to make direct contact with Cohen as soon as possible through various channels to discuss specific strategies to deal with this huge threat.

Today, they finally met the young king who had made a name for himself on the continent at the Noble Martial Arts Festival.

In order to maintain military secrecy to the greatest extent possible and avoid alerting the enemy, the Windrise Kingdom did not hold any grand welcoming ceremony for Cohen's secret visit.

After King Horn disguised himself, he and Prince Elo met Cohen and Melantha directly at the city gate.

King Horn immediately went to meet Cohen and Princess Melantha as they leaped off the back of the royal griffin.

His gaze flickered slightly when he saw Melantha accompanying Cohen, and a hint of regret flashed quickly across the depths of his eyes.

As the monarch of the Windrise Kingdom, he naturally preferred that Princess Windsor, with whom the Windrise Kingdom had a closer relationship, be by Cohen's side at this moment.

However, Horn was, after all, a seasoned politician. He quickly dismissed this inappropriate thought, his face beaming with a warm and genuine smile, and strode forward, saying:

"Your Majesty Corleone and Marquis Rose must be tired from your journey. Your Majesty's personal visit is a great honor and a relief to the entire Kingdom of Windbreak."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries at the city gate, King Horn personally led the way, and the group quietly entered the palace.

After everyone was seated, King Horn, on behalf of the Windbreak Kingdom, once again expressed his sincerest gratitude to Cohen for the timely and crucial intelligence he had provided:
"Your Majesty Corleone, please allow me, on behalf of the Kingdom of Windbreak, to once again express my deepest gratitude to you!"

The intelligence you provided saved the lives of tens of thousands of brave soldiers of my Windbreak Kingdom and prevented our kingdom from falling into a terrible disaster!

Then, the tone shifted, becoming more urgent:

"What does His Majesty Corleone think of this matter, if Gaius and the Kingdom of Serene really manage to join forces?"

If their plot succeeds, it will be a devastating blow to our entire strategic plan and Princess Freya's cause of restoring her kingdom.

"The situation is going to become extremely unfavorable." Cohen nodded slowly.

"Of course not, so I plan to launch a large-scale counter-ambush by taking advantage of their ambush against the Windbringer Kingdom in the Ash Plains."

By annihilating Gaius's forces in one fell swoop, this battle would solidify the victory and turn the tide of the war for the entire Kingdom of Ceylon.

Cohen's words were exactly what King Horn wanted to hear, and he slammed his fist on the table.
"Okay, that's how it should be!"

In the following time, in this secluded room, Cohen, Melantha, King Horn, Prince Elo, and the two marshals of the Windrise Kingdom's Supreme Command were secretly summoned.

Discussions on specific strategic deployments and operational plans began...

……

The Kingdom of Serene, with its capital Toringard.

Deep within the magnificent palace, a symbol of the kingdom's supreme power, lies a heavily guarded war room.

Prince Nirn Thranan, the third lord of the Black Tomb, stood before a massive military map, discussing the ambush plan with several of the kingdom's military and political leaders.

The map covered almost the entire wall, clearly marking the southeastern part of the Kingdom of Ceylon, especially the "Ash Plains" and its surrounding areas, including mountains, rivers, roads, towns, and possible troop assemblies and movement routes.

Since the three tomb owners had their true identities exposed by Cohen at the Northwest Regional Exchange Conference.

After returning home, the three tomb masters, relying on the enormous power and ruthless methods secretly accumulated by the "Black Tomb" organization, successfully sidelined the former king Peter Thran and completely seized control of the military and political power of the Kingdom of Thranen.

This palace thus became an important stronghold and command center for the "Black Tomb".

Those standing around Nain Thran (the third tomb master) at this moment were no longer the traditional royal nobles or civil officials of the Kingdom of Thranen.

Instead, it was a uniform group of high-ranking military officers and core members of the "Black Tomb" organization stationed in Serene, all dressed in crisp military uniforms or black uniforms.

Standing closest to the three tomb masters, he was bowing slightly and using an exquisite metal baton to explain in detail the specific deployment of the ambush plan to the three tomb masters and everyone else.

He was a middle-aged man wearing the uniform of a lieutenant general in the army of the Kingdom of Serene.

He is now the new Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Serren – Marquess Avery Lincoln.

This Marquess of Lincoln was originally one of the trusted generals of the former King Peter Thrand, rising to the rank of lieutenant general and directly commanding three of the most elite infantry divisions guarding the capital Torlingard and its surrounding strategic locations.

He held a high position and wielded great power, enjoying the deep trust of King Peter.

However, this occurred during a critical period when the identity of Nain Thran, the third tomb owner at the Northwest Exchange Meeting, was exposed, triggering a huge political upheaval in the country.

The Marquess of Lincoln, who was supposed to be loyal to King Peter to the death, made a decision that shocked everyone but completely changed his own fate and that of the kingdom.

With his keen political acumen, the Marquis of Lincoln accurately predicted that Nairn Thrann (the third tomb master) would ultimately control the future of the Kingdom of Thrann.

So he did not hesitate to defect, not only failing to lead his army to protect King Peter, but also personally leading his own troops to join Nairn Thrann.

He also made great contributions to the three tomb owners by using his familiarity with the capital's defenses and military system to quickly control the situation, suppress the opposition, and sideline King Peter.

It can be said that the Marquis of Lincoln's betrayal played a crucial role in enabling the three tomb owners to seize power in the Kingdom of Serene so quickly, making him a true "first meritorious official who helped the new emperor rise to power."

Therefore, after the three tomb owners successfully took control of the situation, as a reward for their "loyalty" and "merit" to the Marquis of Lincoln,

He was then promoted exceptionally and became the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Serene, wielding supreme power over domestic affairs and military coordination, far surpassing his previous position as a lieutenant general.

Besides the Serren native military and political figures who had recently joined the "Black Tomb" led by the Marquess of Lincoln, there was another figure with a very special identity who stood silently in the shadows behind Nairn Thrann, the third tomb master.

It was Naxtos Warren, a legendary dark mage and student of the three tomb masters, who was also the one who went to the Kingdom of Ceylon to deliver the message to Gaius.

The Marquess of Lincoln said in a loud voice:

"Your Majesty, it can now be confirmed that the eighteenth expedition of the Windrise Kingdom has officially begun."

Based on the timeline, their 200,000-strong army should arrive at the Ash Plains front line within seven days.

The three tomb owners' voices were low and deep:

"very good.

So far, the plan has been progressing smoothly. As long as Effie doesn't interfere, the Windrise Kingdom is certain to perish this time.

Even though intelligence suggests that Efein's main force is currently tied down on the northern front against Gaius's main force of the Kingdom of Ceylon, making it difficult to spare enough troops to intervene in the south,

Moreover, such a large-scale transnational troop deployment could not have occurred without any prior notice.

However, the cautious third tomb owner was not entirely at ease.

He looked at Naxos beside him and asked:
"Has the Soul Speaker sent back any intelligence in the past few days?"

The Soul Whisperer naturally refers to Melantha, which is her code name within the "Black Tomb".

In order to obtain information about the Black Tomb and its true purpose, Cohen specifically had Melantha contact Naxos.

Nactus quickly replied:

"Teacher, not yet."

The third tomb master frowned slightly, his tone carrying a clear questioning tone as he asked:
Didn't you contact him first?

Nactus's expression shifted slightly, and he explained in a low voice:

"The students have been busy researching dark magic experiments and training the domestic mage corps in order to quickly develop combat capabilities and be deployed in the Ash Plains operation..."

The Third Tomb Master's eyes twitched slightly, and an emotion mixed with disappointment, helplessness, and a little anger rose uncontrollably from the bottom of his heart.

Looking at his prized disciple, who possessed unparalleled talent and made rapid progress in the path of dark magic, and who even had the potential to reach the threshold of sainthood within a century, he couldn't help but let out a silent sigh.

Nactus's talent is indeed impeccable; his understanding and mastery of dark magic has even surpassed that of many veteran legendary mages who have been immersed in this art for hundreds of years.

However, he was far too lacking in interpersonal skills, political acumen, and flexibility in dealing with people.

Against the backdrop of the Gods' Gamble, the Black Tomb does not need extraordinary individuals with peak combat power, but rather well-rounded talents capable of ruling nations, expanding territories, and winning the final victory in the struggle for supremacy among nations.

The reason why the three tomb masters specifically brought Nactus out of the "Black Tomb" headquarters to participate in the planning and actions of the Kingdom of Serene was that...

Besides needing the powerful strength of this legendary dark mage to oversee things, the more important reason was to take this opportunity to train him properly.

Let him be exposed to and learn some political skills to make up for his huge shortcomings in this area and lay the foundation for him to be able to stand on his own in the future.

The results of it?
He was still using the purely bureaucratic excuse of being "busy with magical experiments and training mage corps" to evade this strategic task that concerned the overall situation.

How could someone with such a narrow-minded perspective shoulder heavy responsibilities in the future? Nactus's performance left the three tomb masters feeling powerless, and they increasingly lamented how rare it was to find someone as talented as Cohen, who possessed both literary and martial skills! (End of Chapter)