Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence.

Chapter 419 Two Knight Orders and the "Surprise" from Phyllis

Phyllis's handwritten letter to herself?

Su Li immediately took the exquisite, snow-white envelope from Bradley's hand; as he had said, the stamp and seal were still on.

With great excitement, Su Li unwrapped the wax seal bearing the emblem of intertwined bauhinia and irises, and pulled out a letter that exuded a faint iris fragrance. Phyllis's familiar, slightly flamboyant handwriting leaped onto the page:

To my distant sun, my undying morning star, and my undying lover:
As I pick up my pen, outside the window in the courtyard of the Eternal Light Palace, the Knights of Eternal Light, their gleaming plate armor almost blinding, march past in formation, the sound of their hooves making my newly replaced stained glass windows vibrate. My dear child, I guess you've already seen this heavy "gift" of mine—the Eternal Light and his unfortunate comrades, along with that group of noisy, voracious knights from the province of Suland.

To be honest, my darling, they're practically bankrupting me! Ever since that green-skinned bastard Ge Ba came, the treasury of Aivi City has been echoing with emptiness. Every day, watching them consume so much grain, fodder, and armor repair costs, not to mention the picky appetites of those northern warhorses… Goddess above, I feel the entire province of Suland trembling under their heavy hooves! After much thought, I realize that only my most, most, most brilliant, most powerful, most wealthy, most capable, and most understanding (and perhaps a little shrewd) darling Su Li has the ability to temporarily take in and… well, "keep" these two overly sharp swords safe for me.

Don't be angry! I know this feels like a hot potato. But believe me, sending them to you wasn't just to lighten the burden on this poor prince (though that's certainly one of the main reasons!). Bradley and his knights bear a heavy curse and an even heavier shame; they crave a true victory more than anyone else, one that can wash everything away. And in Blackwood, under your banner, Su Li Bauhinia, I see that possibility. Letting them fight under your command is both helping you and giving them a chance for redemption. As for those worldly knights? They belong to the Libovitz family's Scroll Knights; consider them a bonus. If used properly, they can be a considerable force.

Of course, Phyllis never lets her sun go to waste. Besides these two "expensive" knightly orders, I've also prepared a little...surprise for you. She should be on her way to Blackwood with my messenger right now. Trust me, my dear, she'll definitely be able to light your coldest fireplace this winter (provided, of course, I can't be there in person!). I look forward to seeing your expression when you meet her.

Last and most importantly, our little Jianjia is growing up day by day, and your image is becoming more and more etched in her features. She has learned a new word—"Papa." Whenever she sees your portrait on the wall, or when I take out the amulet with her baby hair embedded in it, she points with her chubby little finger and calls out in her sweet, childish voice, "Papa...Papa...". I still wear that amulet every night; it carries your scent, her hair—it's my warmest comfort on countless weary nights. She misses you so much, my love. The future Princess of Suland Province awaits her father's embrace.

Forever yours,

Phyllis Liebowitz Iris

In the Full Moon Hall of Averan Palace
P.S.: This messenger brought only my endless longing and that "surprise" along with the letter. The treasure trove of Suland… Ah, my dear, please give me a little more time to untangle this mess; I will find the true treasure worthy of you. As for Jianjia? She's just learned to walk, her wobbly figure is utterly adorable, it's a pity I can't send her along.”

After reading it, Su Li looked up in astonishment, her gaze sweeping over the neatly lined-up knights in the distance. She never imagined that behind their glamorous facade, there was actually a group of refugees!

They probably never imagined that their princess sent them to the Black Forest Territory not because of any grand strategy, powerful alliance, or even any profound reason!
Even Su Li and Oliver were wrong. Phyllis wasn't trying to use Su Li's opportunity to help the powerful Knights of Eternal Light purify the curse on them.

For a simple reason, Phyllis could no longer support such a large army! She had no choice but to ask her dearest and most understanding husband for help.

In fact, she was already trying to solve the supply problem for her troops. To reduce expenses, immediately after the devastation caused by Geba, she filled a large number of knights and troops into the Holy Expeditionary Force. To maintain stability, in the name of the Empire, she ordered all the dukes of the Surland Province to send large numbers of troops to the expeditionary force. This was beneficial for them to seize control of the Imperial Expeditionary Force, and also for the ravaged and devastated lands of the Surland Province to recover and reduce supply pressure.

Even so, she still couldn't afford to support thousands or tens of thousands of troops, so she had to send two knightly orders and their squires to the territory of Hessen.

Moreover, her reasoning was very sound! Extremely sound and perfect, so perfect that even if these knights had some suspicions, they couldn't find any fault with it.

The Knights of Eternal Light came to Black Forest Territory as church knights of the goddess Verena to protect the Verena faith and church in Black Forest Territory.

Their role is similar to that of the Knights of the Sun; when the faith in a deity in a territory expands, a knightly order from that church will move in.

The Griffin Military Academy of the nobles in the Black Forest Territory is clearly thriving, and Verena's faith has been guaranteed and expanded in the Black Forest Territory, so it is quite normal for them to send a knightly order here.

As the Mor faith expands, the Mor sect will also send a knightly order to reside there.

However, as the most influential figure in the mortal realm for the goddess Verena, the Elector of the Province of Suland strongly supported her, prompting the Church's largest and strongest knightly order to send a branch over.

The main force of the Knights of Eternal Light has a size of just over 2000 people, less than 3000 (not counting the branch forces), but they directly sent 1000 Knights of Eternal Light here, almost a third of their main force, and the team was led directly by a Chosen-level vice-commander.

There must have been communication and exchanges of benefits between them. Phyllis must have talked to several deputy leaders, offering to let Su Li help them purify the curse on their bodies in exchange for their support of Phyllis's decision to directly set up the main base in Black Forest Territory to protect this territory.

The Scroll Knights, needless to say, are the garrison of Phyllis, or rather the province of Surland, in allied territories to strengthen the alliance.

This is quite common. For example, Grayrock Fortress and Redbeard Fortress both have hundreds of dwarves stationed in Blackwood Territory. Su Li also sent knights and garrison troops to their territories to help them patrol and jointly deal with monsters.

However, due to their special relationship, Phyllis's garrison was entirely under Su Li's command. Of course, Su Li also had to provide them with ample food.

After reading the letter, Su Li's lips involuntarily curved into a smile, her previous astonishment replaced by a knowing and helpless expression.

He handed the letter directly to Hilde beside him, saying, "Take a look, this cunning woman."

Su Li could imagine that Phyllis's eyes were now curved into two crescent moons with laughter, looking like a cunning little fox.

Hilde was surprised for a moment, then took the envelope from Su Li's hand, quickly scanned it, and then looked up at Su Li: "Phyllis has changed a lot. She seems to have become much smarter than before, instead of being naive and innocent."

"But that self-righteous, coquettish tone of his, shifting the blame, is just too much like him." Su Li sighed. What else could he do? He'd have to support his own wife.

He carefully folded the letter and tucked it into his bosom. The part about his daughter, Jianjia, touched him, bringing a warm wave of longing. Then he looked again at the knights lined up in the distance. Now, their gleaming armor felt completely different—they were no longer merely symbols of force, but more like a burden that Phyllis had entrusted to him because she had "eaten herself into poverty," proof of her trust and reliance on him. Bradley and his knights' curse and desire for redemption were real, but the most direct reason they had come to the Blacksend Territory was probably the empty treasury of the Surland Province.

Su Li turned to Vice-Commander Bradley, who had been waiting. Bradley's face held the seriousness typical of a knight, with a hint of barely perceptible fatigue.

“Vice Commander Bradley,” Su Li said, his tone regaining the composure of a lord, “I understand Princess Phyllis’s arrangements. The Knights of Eternal Light will find their place in Blackwood Territory, and I promise to give you the opportunity to seek redemption.”

Bradley visibly relaxed, placing his right hand on his chest in a gesture of respect: "Thank you for your acceptance, my lord. The radiance of the goddess Verena will shine even brighter under your protection."

“The Scroll Knights are the same,” Su Li said, his gaze sweeping over the flags on the other side. “They will be allies of the Black Forest Territory.”

Then, Su Li's tone relaxed, and she asked them casually, with a hint of curiosity in her eyes: "So, where is the messenger who delivered the letter? Phyllis said in the letter that besides the letter, she also brought a 'surprise,' where is it?"

Bradley turned slightly and pointed to a rather luxurious, enclosed carriage bearing the iris emblem of the province of Suland, parked in the middle of the knights' formation. "The messenger and the 'surprise' are over there, my lord."

At Bradley's signal, the attendant standing beside the carriage immediately stepped forward and respectfully pulled back the heavy carriage curtain.

Everyone's eyes instinctively focused on that direction.

A foot clad in an elegant white soft boot stepped onto the lowered pedal, and then a figure stepped out of the carriage and stood still.

The plain in front of the Bauhinia Manor seemed to fall silent for a moment.

What's most striking is her long, pure white hair, as white as fresh snow. The white is exceptionally eye-catching, flowing smoothly down her back, almost reaching her waist, gleaming with a cool and unique sheen in the sunlight. This is precisely the most prominent feature of a top beauty in the Surand Province.

She wore a perfectly tailored, expensive-fabric pure white long dress, simple in style yet exuding elegance. Her figure was tall and well-proportioned, and her posture was composed.

When she stood up straight and raised her head, her face was clearly revealed to everyone. Her skin was fair and delicate, and her features were exquisite: her eyebrows and eyes were clear and bright, her nose was straight, and her pale pink lips were beautifully shaped. Her temperament was unique, carrying a sense of aloofness and coldness, as if the surrounding liveliness had nothing to do with her. But her gaze was not empty; it calmly swept across the area in front of her and finally landed on Su Li.

Despite the lack of exaggerated embellishment, her appearance alone created a strong visual impact. Her pure, snow-white hair and aloof, unparalleled beauty stood out against the solemn ranks of knights and the dignified lord's mansion.

A few very low, suppressed gasps came from the crowd, clearly stunned by the sudden appearance of such stunning beauty.

A flicker of surprise flashed across Su Li's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by disbelief. Phyllis's description in her letter of "being able to ignite a cold fireplace" now had a very clear correspondence. This was… a surprise Phyllis had sent him?! A woman?!

Hilde gave a soft hum and chuckled, "Phyllis is really thoughtful. Is she worried that we won't take good care of the lord? She even sent a beautiful woman all the way from the province of Suland. But it does fit the characteristic of Suland producing beautiful women."

It's more than just a perfect match!

The beauties of the Surand province are renowned throughout the world! Basically, the most stunning beauties come from the Surand province.

This beautiful woman's beauty is simply stunning, her elegance is unparalleled.

Even Arielia, who was always extremely confident in her beauty, felt a pang of jealousy. This was a beauty that even her shapeshifting spell could not conjure, so exquisite and perfect that ordinary people could not even dream of it.

The transformations of a lustful demon pale in comparison to this beauty, utterly eclipsed.

Amidst the astonishment and whispers of the crowd, the white-haired woman stepped down from the carriage and approached Su Li. She gave a slight nod, her movements elegant and impeccable, like a textbook example of court etiquette. Her voice, like a clear spring flowing over jade, possessed a unique, cool quality; it was neither overly enthusiastic nor cold: "Good day, Lord. Princess Phyllis called me 'Surprise,' which is indeed her usual style. My name is Ilya Silvershine." She paused, then added, her tone flat and even, "You may simply call me Ilya."

"As instructed by Her Highness Princess Phyllis and Lady Avril, the High-Ranking Attendant, I will serve as your personal maid and take care of your daily life, just like Lady Avril."

Like Avril Lavigne?
Su Li took a deep breath instantly, her eyes gleaming: "Do you really know Avril's past?"

That was when Su Li first transmigrated, a pure-hearted young man who had basically explored every possible method with Avril, his first beautiful maid.

It was through Avril Lavigne that I learned about the body and beauty of the opposite sex.

Although he couldn't win over Avril's purity while at Purple Thorn Fortress, Su Li managed to acquire everything about her except for purity. He was cultivating at double speed back then.

Moreover, in order to help him relieve the pressure of training, when he was under the most pressure and when the trainee knight had no hope of breaking through, Avril exhausted every method to help him relieve the pressure.

There wasn't a single part of her soft body that Su Li hadn't touched.

On his very first night away from the Bauhinia Earl's Territory, Su Li took her completely and made her his woman.

A faint blush appeared on Ilya's fair face, and her voice unconsciously softened as she whispered, "Lady Avril personally trained me for three months on how to serve you, Lord, and your various quirks and preferences."

Su Li could almost guess that Avril must have used the word "fetish" when she was training her, otherwise she wouldn't have blurted it out.

I just like beautiful legs, don't I?

Who wouldn't love those plump, fair, tender, and rounded legs of a young girl?

However, this matter was not suitable for public discussion, so he waved his hand and said to Hilde, "You should arrange for them to stay first. Especially for these two knightly orders, everything has been arranged."

Hilde also turned her gaze away from Ilya's stunning figure and said to Su Li, "My lord, we have prepared their camp with the provincial council in advance over the past few days. However, since the number of people far exceeds our expectations, it will not be easy for us to settle them down."

It was far beyond expectations, and that was no exaggeration. Su Li and Heisen initially thought it was a knightly order, with at most a thousand or eight hundred people.

While adding so many people at once is indeed a challenge, Black Forest Territory has been developing for almost two years now. Although Su Li's current rank is only a Pioneer Knight, the territory has the strength of a standard baron!

His rank is low simply because it's not yet time for the first imperial assessment. But it will be soon; it's already late autumn and early winter, so the imperial assessment officials will be here as early as next month, or at the latest two months from now.

Given the current stable state of the territory, this could be said to have happened in the blink of an eye.

Therefore, given the strength of Baron Su Li's territory, settling these 1000 people should not be a major problem.

However, once the situation was fully understood, the scale of the resettlement needed far exceeded what the Hessen territory had prepared for!

It wasn't a knightly order that arrived! It was a ecclesiastical knightly order, a secular knightly order.

The Scroll Knights—despite their unassuming name, they are a renowned knightly order within the empire, responsible for protecting the Land of Knowledge and its priests, and often tasked with retrieving lost knowledge from perilous lands. Therefore, they cover their armor with parchment scrolls and inscriptions containing knowledge they value.

It is said that they have a stronghold in the northern foothills of the Grey Mountains (the shady area that spans the entire Grey Mountains, within the Empire, but not in the border princely territories). The members of this knightly order distrust dwarves because they believe that dwarves do not value knowledge and are very ignorant.

This secular knightly order is roughly the same size as the Crimson Night Knights, consisting entirely of elite knights, with six squadrons, and its leader is the Champion Knight.

These two knightly orders alone had more than 1500 elite knights, and when you include their families, squires, slaves, grooms, and artisans, it is no exaggeration to say that they numbered in the thousands.

Su Li's entire territory has more than 20000 people, but in the Black Forest foothills, the population is only around 10,000. The sudden addition of several thousand knights, servants, and civilians makes it very difficult to settle them down.

Fortunately, these people were also resilient knights, and even if the Black Forest Territory did not provide them with assistance, they were able to set up camp on their own.

So, through the joint efforts of both sides, and after two cycles of time, the Black Forest Territory finally managed to settle them down in an orderly manner.

The first to be settled were the Knights of Eternal Light. Their faith in Verena was unwavering, so they stationed 300 knights on Black Iron Ridge Island to guard the academy and fortress.

They plan to build a fortress for the Knights of Eternal Light here, just northwest of the Central Sanctuary.

Then the remaining knights, squires, and craftsmen led the army to garrison northeast of Flashspear City, where there was a vast plain. Su Li allocated 130 kilometers of land to them. This area may not seem large, but it is all flat and fertile plain, capable of cultivating 20 mu of good farmland.

This land, which they named the Silvershine Plain, is flat and its soil so fertile it seems you could squeeze oil from it. A tributary called the Silent River meanders through the center of the plain, providing excellent water for irrigation and the future castle moat. To the east of the plain are low hills covered with withered autumn meadows, forming a natural barrier; to the west, one can see the sturdy walls of Flashspear City and its bustling dock area; to the north lies the trade route to Grayrock Castle, and to the south, it connects to the Brienne River and the wider heartland of Hessian Territory. This is a treasure trove that combines defensive depth, agricultural potential, and convenient transportation.

Bradley chose a location on the north bank of a wide bend in the Silent River as the core headquarters of the Knights. The slightly elevated position overlooked a vast plain, while a sparse oak forest provided essential timber and some concealment. The river bend itself offered a natural water source and some convenience for water transport.

Under the protection and planning of the Knights, a pastoral scene full of imperial charm quickly unfolded across the Silverglow Plains:
The knights' serfs (many of whom were knights' families or dependents) and some recruited free farmers from the Hessian territory, under the supervision of squires and lower-ranking knights, used the winter break to cultivate the land. Huge wooden plows, pulled by strong draft horses, turned over the dark, fertile soil. Neatly planned furrows divided large areas into winter wheat fields, bean fields, and reserved plots for spring planting. Rows of newly planted fruit tree saplings lined the field ridges, foreshadowing future orchards.

The area near the hills and the edge of the oak forest was cleared for pasture. The Knights' prized northern warhorses, along with the cattle and sheep brought with them, grazed leisurely on the specially reserved autumn hay or freshly cut hay under the care of their servants. The newly built pens were spacious and sturdy, and the stables were made with the finest timber, ensuring that these precious war companions could safely get through the winter.

Downstream from the site of the core castle, on the riverbank, the beginnings of a village to serve the military personnel were already taking shape. Wooden houses and stone farmhouses were scattered about, their roofs covered with thick thatches or newly felled planks, and wisps of smoke rose from their chimneys, creating a lively atmosphere. A huge windmill was under construction on the riverbank, its massive wooden blades already erected, destined to bear the important task of grinding grain.

On a sunny slope within the castle's planned area, a small terraced field has been cleared. An old gardener from Surland directs the planting of hardy grapevines. This is Bradley's vision; he dreams of producing wines that will one day belong to the Knights of Eternal Light. The castle's future inner garden area has also been reserved, awaiting the planting of rare flower seeds from Surland in the spring.

In the center of the makeshift camp, a simple sanctuary built of white canvas and logs served as the knights' spiritual anchor. Every morning and evening, melodious hymns and prayers echoed across the fields, and the emblem of the goddess Verena—a golden sword and scale symbol—hung in the center of the sanctuary. Around the sanctuary, neat rows of wooden stakes inscribed with the goddess's proverbs stood.

(End of this chapter)