The Witcher: Make Witcher Great Again

Chapter 431 Northern Mutual Protection
How is the right to make claims obtained?

Naturally, it is the bloodline of the rulers of this land.

This is why, in the original storyline, after the fall of Sintra, Celia suddenly became the focus of contention between the north and south.

Because all the kings knew that whoever obtained Hilya would have the right to claim legitimate rule over Sintra.

While Emperor Emhyr announced his impending marriage to Ciri (who was actually a fake princess), Marshal Visekid, who led the Sintra resistance, viciously slandered Calanther and his ancestors.

This was also a strategy to counter the emperor: once the emperor married the fake Ciri, the Sintra people would have no reason to resist, and the Sintra resistance would collapse in an instant.

However, Lynn chose a different path:
He redefined the structure of power by elevating commoners to minor noble status, dismantling the major noble class, and replacing noble rule with that of officials.

This approach is not exactly a path that was never conceived.

Because when humans first arrived on this continent, they did the same thing.

The earliest kings and nobles also came from the common people.

It's just that so much time has passed, and both nobles and commoners have long been accustomed to it and subconsciously feel that kings and nobles have always been so noble.

Just as Virelad was racking his brains for a way to salvage the situation, Prince Wilm from Lyria, on behalf of his mother, Queen Meve, made another proposal.

Queen Meve was willing to grant the Augustus family unconditional rights to station troops and military passage.

It even hinted at a willingness to turn Leiria into Toussaint in the north, making it a neutral country.

Lynn understood the subtext: the land area of ​​Lyria and Livia was far too small, almost half the size of Aden, and only slightly larger than Velen.

Even with the entire population mobilized for war, they were no match for the invasion of the Augustus family or the former Nilfgaardian Empire.

Since it's difficult to protect oneself, it's better to take the initiative to get closer to Lynn.

Queen Mivi also noticed it.

The Augustus family was essentially the second Nilfgaardian Empire.

Although they are still vassals of Cowell, the Augustus family has effectively become independent.

Moreover, the unification of the North and South is already inevitable.

The only difference is whether one is conquered by force or surrenders voluntarily.

Vireradil, standing to the side, stared at Prince Wilm in utter shock.

He never expected that Queen Mivi would actually back down.

It's worth noting that even when the Nilfgaardian army was pressing in, Queen Meve personally led her troops to the Manada Valley fortress to assist Cintra and Skellige in resisting the Black Army.

What now...

Ignoring Verelad's reaction, Queen Mivi's pragmatism pleased Lynn.

He wouldn't mind letting Mivi's family continue to rule that land. After all, Lyria and Livia are small countries, and as long as they don't make any big mistakes, it's not impossible for them to live peacefully for generations to come.

Finally, Mossack and Kratz brought Queen Calanthe's proposal.

It turned out to be another marriage contract, and it was about Princess Hiria, the granddaughter of Queen Calanthe.

Lynn was initially surprised. Had Calanther changed his mind?
Based on his understanding of Calanthe, the queen was always assertive and not someone who would easily back down.

After Mossack explained, Lynn finally understood the reason.

Sintra is a very traditional country.

Traditionally, the nobles of Sintra preferred a foreigner to their king rather than a queen like Calanthe, who ascended the throne at the age of 14 and defeated the enemy army in her first battle at the age of 15.

Caranthe had two husbands. Her first husband died of smallpox, but there are also rumors that he died at Caranthe's hands (because of her infidelity).

Her second husband was Esther Tursek, the brother of King Bran of the Tursek family in the Skellige Islands.

The two had a deep and loving relationship.

However, because Calanther was unable to have children, he had only one descendant, Princess Hiria.

In the original storyline, the Nilfgaardian army crossed the Manada Valley without hindrance and laid an ambush, surrounding the Sintra army when Calanthe and her husband arrived with their troops.

In the end, Calanther was seriously wounded, while Ister died on the battlefield.

Now the plot has changed; the Nilfgaardian army has never been able to cross the Manada Valley, and Ist has survived.

Therefore, it was Ist who proposed that Ciriah, who was of marriageable age, be married to Lynn in order to establish an alliance between the Sintra-Skellig family and the Augustus family.

Lynn's name was already widely known in the Skellige Isles. He had helped the Tursek family split and defeated the invading Nilfgaardian fleet, becoming a household hero in the islands.

The Skelliges had a very good impression of Lynn.

Therefore, Lynn's expansion in the north did not arouse the Skelliges' resentment.

After all, in the legends of the Skellige, the warriors who were qualified to enter Valhalla did only two things before Ragnarok: drink endlessly and fight endlessly.

The fact that Lynn was able to conquer other countries proves that he possesses great military strength, which is exactly what the Skelliges want.

Therefore, since Princess Hilia needs to choose a marriage partner, there is no one more suitable than Lynn.

In this era, the most effective alliance is marriage, forming an alliance with the Archipelago-Sintra-Temeria to fight against Lynn. Why not the Archipelago-Sintra forming an alliance with Lynn?

Even the Skelliges had no interest in fighting a losing battle. And apart from East and the Skelliges, the courtiers of Sintra were also unwilling to antagonize Lynn.

Although Lynn was a Witcher whose identity lay somewhere between a human and a non-human race, the Sintra nobles automatically ignored the issue of Lynn's bloodline after he wielded such great power.

They value prosperity and stability more than futile resistance.

Sintra is one of the countries closest to Toussaint. The rulers of Toussaint even outsourced their defense to Nilfgaard in exchange for the generations of peace and stability of their ducal, noble, and knightly families.

Isn't stability better than standing amidst ruins shouting, "At least they have freedom"?

The people of Sintra are brave and warlike, and the nobles of Sintra are not stupid. They will not gamble with their generations of prosperity. There is no benefit to resisting to the end, let alone any glory.

Because history is a little girl who can be dressed up however one pleases, and it is written by the victors. If they were truly conquered, posterity would not remember how valiant they were, but rather might record that they were the ones who provoked first and were thus conquered.

Lynn happily accepted the marriage proposal.

Verrellard was completely dumbfounded.

Indeed, Princess Hilia's reputation is far superior to Princess Yada's. If he had a choice, he would certainly make the same decision as Lynn.

But Verelad was not Lynn, and he could already foresee what he would encounter when he returned to Vizima.

His Majesty Foltest will probably not be pleased.

……

Lynn chose to hold his wedding with Princess Hiria of Sintra in the city of Tritorg.

He didn't want to be extravagant, but on the advice of his ministers, he eventually held a grand wedding.

Queen Saqia of the United Kingdom of Cordwin and Aden, Queen Meve of the United Kingdom of Lyria and Livia, King Bran of the Skellige Islands, King Ister of Sintra and Queen Calanthe, along with numerous nobles, were present to witness this grand event.

Kowell also sent a representative, but it wasn't Istrad, Lynn's lord, but Istrad's only son, Prince Tancorid.

Out of courtesy, Lynn invited Prince Tancored to take a seat, but Prince Tancored humbly declined and chose to sit among the guests.

This gesture was understood by the other guests present.

Today, the Augustus family has surpassed the Thyssen family in both land and national power, and the relationship between their lords and vassals has long since become a mere formality.

Istrad did not come in person precisely to avoid an awkward situation regarding their relationship.

If he were to sit in the main seat, Lynn would feel uncomfortable; but if he were to sit in the guest's seat... after all, he was still a lord, and he still needed to save face.

That's why he sent his son, Tancorid, in his place.

This way, one can be both polite and avoid any awkwardness regarding one's status.

Although Tancorid was Istrad's son, sitting in the guest seat would neither cause controversy nor affect the conduct of any party.

……

When Lynn and Princess Ciri celebrated their first wedding anniversary, the Nilfgaardian civil war was nearing its end.

As Lynn had predicted, the situation within the Empire was unfolding as various factions within the Empire resorted to extreme measures in their struggle for imperial power.

Burning villages, looting towns, killing civilians...

They used 19th-century tactics to fight a medieval war.

This led to the rapid decline of the once powerful Nilfgaardian Empire.

This once mighty Japanese empire, which dominated the south, has now turned into a rotten piece of wood riddled with holes.

Today, the empire is devastated, villages have been razed to the ground, plumes of smoke rise into the sky, and the surrounding area is deserted for miles around.

Agriculture and commerce suffered a devastating blow.

Severe famines were occurring in various regions, and bandits were rampant. Even without the intervention of external forces, no one could unify the empire in the short term, and even self-preservation was a problem.

The provinces that were once conquered by Nilfgaard by force have shown clear signs of wavering, and many have refused to submit to Nilfgaardian rule.

Lynn had been waiting for this very moment.

His army assembled on the north bank of the Elena River and then crossed the river, marching south.

Upon learning that the banner of the black and gold double-headed eagle had crossed the Elena River, the Nilfgaardian garrison on the south bank of the river did not even have the courage to defend their camp. Instead, they abandoned their armor and fled south.

Lynn's army occupied the entire Metina region with ease, as if entering an empty field.

Next up are Gisso, Ebbinghaus, and Mechette.

The southern kingdoms, once occupied by Nilfgaard, dreamed of independence, but after so long of civil war, they no longer had such aspirations.

As long as they can be given a peaceful and stable environment and have enough to eat, they don't care who rules them.

After capturing Metina, Gisso, Ebbing, and Mechette, Lynn did not send his army further south, but instead secured military control to prevent a Nilfgaardian counterattack.

Next comes restoring people's livelihoods, rebuilding infrastructure, and promoting economic recovery.

Because agriculture in various provinces was severely damaged, it was necessary to transfer grain from Nasser. However, this grain was not simply distributed directly, but was instead used as a work-for-relief program, where refugees had to exchange their labor for grain.

Metina, Gisso, Ebin, and Mechte are all vast plains, and geographically speaking, they are most suitable to be the granary of the empire. Therefore, Lynn's first five-year plan was to restore the agriculture of the four provinces to 70% of the pre-war level.

(End of this chapter)