I'm not a lord

Chapter 259 Otto III's Ingenuity

At the military conference, Lynn issued the latest troop mobilization orders:

"Hugo, Soward, you two should reorganize the troops and hand over the defenses as soon as possible. Return with me to the military camp on the western outskirts of Three Rivers City in a week."

"Roger that!"

The second son, Hugo, and the younger son, Soward, stood up one after the other to accept the order.

These two units would naturally have to return to participate in the operation to hunt down the barbarians.

The defense of Turbulent County is sufficient with Old San Yang's thousand troops, plus a thousand new recruits from the local area.

Lynn's original plan was to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the Duke of the Swamp being bogged down in the Crown Territory and try to continue advancing westward before the winter snows arrived.

It is currently mid-October, a pleasant time of year with clear skies and crisp air, making it an ideal time for military operations.

With nearly two months until the harsh winter, with some effort, we might be able to conquer the territory and population of two or three counties to the west.

But plans can never keep up with changes.

First, the northern barbarians rebelled, which tied up a large number of Lynn's troops. He had no choice but to leave a thousand new recruits and the fourth brother's eight hundred veterans in the western suburbs of Sanhe City.

Then the Duke's eldest son, László, suddenly returned to Golden Deer Castle, reportedly bringing back a large number of court cavalry from the royal domain.

Regardless of how these people 'flew' back to Golden Deer Castle, the return of this fresh force will inevitably become a stumbling block to Lynn's expansion.

Currently, Lynn's forces available for external offensives consist only of Hugh's five hundred cavalry, Young's one thousand infantry, and Soward's seven hundred wastelanders.

At most, they only had a little over two thousand men, and they no longer had much of a numerical advantage over the Golden Deer Fortress.

Moreover, all three armies suffered varying degrees of casualties during the attack on Turbulent County.

The infantry under the command of the third brother suffered the most severe casualties and needed a long period of rest and replenishment.

However, the territory of Turbulent Stream County is surrounded by enemies on two sides.

To the north lies the Blackwood Earldom, which belongs to the Duke of the Marshlands.

After the former Earl of Blackwood died outside Three Rivers, his son inherited the territory and actively prepared for war, and also sent small groups of troops to harass the western border of Turbulent County from time to time.

To the west lies Oakshire, directly under the Duke of the Marsh, named for the vast oak forests that are everywhere.

Oakshire is a traditionally wealthy region within the Duchy, densely populated, with fertile land and adjacent to the River Stillness waterway, earning it the nickname 'the Duke's Cow'.

However, in order to prevent Lynn from continuing his westward advance, the Duchess ruthlessly created a no-man's-land more than 50 kilometers wide in the east of Oakshire. All the inhabitants in the area were relocated, and all farmhouses and houses were burned down, making it impossible for Lynn's army to resupply locally.

If he continues westward, he will inevitably face problems such as supply difficulties.

There are solutions, though: recruit merchant ships from Sanhe City to transport grain by water, or conscript laborers from within the territory to transport grain by land.

There is no doubt that taking the waterway is the cheapest and most convenient option.

However, the naval forces of Golden Deer Fortress were not weak. The Duke of the Marsh did not bring any navy on his eastern expedition, leaving most of his ships at his home base.

Water transport is extremely risky. If something goes wrong, both the land and water routes will collapse simultaneously, resulting in devastating losses.

Faced with the current situation, Lao San Yang offered his own insights:
"I think that before we go to war with the wastelanders, we can try to attack the Blackwood Earl's territory. The most elite troops in this territory have basically been wiped out in the western suburbs of Three Rivers City. The young new earl doesn't have many troops at all, so we have plenty of time."

The third son was always calm and composed. His reason for advocating an attack to the north was actually to better defend Tuanliu County.

Tuanliu County is located south of the Gunbong Mountains, and its terrain is mainly hilly and plain.

The Blackwood Earldom is located on the western side of the Peaks Mountains, with most of its territory situated in the mountains, giving it a clear advantage over Turbulent County.

The knights of the Earl's territory are familiar with the terrain and are skilled in mountain warfare. They can march south to harass Turbulent County without any worries, and if the garrison retaliates, they can immediately retreat into the mountains.

Furthermore, given the deep-seated blood feud between this territory and Lynn, the knights were completely enraged, constantly harassing them around the clock.

This gave the third son, who was in charge of the defense of Turbulent County, a real headache.

When facing an enemy with a terrain advantage, offense is the best defense.

If we can advance northward by 10 or 20 kilometers and capture a few castles located in the mountains, we can effectively curb the enemy's endless harassment.

A war of this scale would certainly not be enough with the forces under the command of the third brother alone; at the very least, the assistance of the barbarian archer troops would be required.

"There's no need for that for now. The autumn harvest is over. If the enemy's harassment is too frequent, we can simply relocate the people of the northern part of Turbulent County inland."

After a moment's thought, Lynn rejected the third brother's suggestion.

During his inspection of Turbulent County, he naturally learned about the situation in Black Fir Territory to the north.

The castles south of Blackfir Territory are all built against the mountains, in extremely strategic locations.

If we were to launch a full-scale attack, it would inevitably result in more casualties for our own troops, and the gains would be completely disproportionate to the losses.

Turbulent County has no shortage of arable land, so we can just let the people in the north move south. We can leave only castles and garrisons in the border areas.

This was not because Lynn was weak, but rather based entirely on considerations of the actual situation.

He doesn't have any extra troops to gnaw on bricks anymore, let alone brick castles built on mountains. Isn't that just blatantly disregarding the lives of his soldiers?

By next spring, the foundry in Three Rivers City will be able to produce the bronze mortar, and Lynn will naturally let these castles in the mountains experience the power of gunpowder and cannonballs.

If the city can be breached without damage, why send soldiers to their deaths in vain?
The Blackwood Territory is geographically unimportant and the territory itself is poor, so it's not worth it at all.

After the military conference, Lynn visited the soldiers at the barracks and held an award ceremony that afternoon to recognize soldiers and groups who had performed outstandingly in the war.

The most attention-grabbing was naturally given to Lucas, who led the charge in numerous siege battles.

On the high platform, Lynn personally awarded Lucas the medal, pinning the pure silver Silver Bear medal to the young man's chest and praising him:
"Your glorious deeds have spread throughout the entire territory. The people of the territory all know that you are a true warrior. I met your mother and sister in White Bear County, and they are both very proud of you."

Lucas was once a refugee who fled from the Crown Territory. His hometown was destroyed by the Power Mercenary Group, his father and brother disappeared during the war, and his mother and sister suffered from hunger and cold on their way to escape, almost failing to reach Three Rivers City.

Lynn took them in and provided them with free food and lodging in White Bear County.

Lucas raised his head, his light green eyes still gleaming with fighting spirit: "Sir, I promised you that I would defend your dignity with my life, and that will remain true in the future!"

After numerous battles, Lucas has seen the light at the end of the tunnel for revenge.

The Power Mercenary Group belongs to the Duke of the Swamp, and its leader, Arno, is considered one of the Duke's most capable lieutenants.

Every night before bed, Lucas prays for his two enemies, hoping they can live a little longer so he can personally avenge them and kill them.

Of course, he would also pray for the master, praying that the master would be healthy and victorious.

If it weren't for Lynn's help and support, he, his mother, and his sister would probably be three nameless corpses by now.

"Good lad, keep up the good work! When we attack Golden Deer Fortress in the future, I hope you will be the first warrior to scale the walls!"

Lynn patted Lucas's broad shoulder hard, then took the sword from his waist and shoved it into Lucas's hand. "Take this sword and use it to cut off your enemy's head!"

This should be considered the second sword Lynn gave after taking control of White Bear Territory.

He gave the first weapon to the barbarian Soward, in exchange for the allegiance of the entire Lowland tribe.

He gave the second sword to the refugee youth Lucas, hoping it might one day be exchanged for the head of the Marsh Duke.

Incidentally, Lynn, as the hidden number one fighter in the territory, always carries real, sharpened weapons, not the fake ones given to him by his bastard son Morris and the Duke of the Valley.

Lucas gripped the cold metal scabbard, but a raging fire seemed to burn within him. He shouted, "My lord, I promise, I will do it!"

At the same time, his face was filled with tears.

The fact that the master still remembered his personal grudge moved him to tears, and he silently vowed to give everything for the master.

After the medal ceremony, Lynn held a grand bonfire party in the military camp, rewarding the soldiers who fought for him with the finest wines from the White River Territory.

While Lynn was rewarding his soldiers, King Otto III of Rui was also hosting a banquet.

The banquet was naturally held at the Northern Palace in Amber Harbor.

In addition to Otto III and his wife Sophia, the attendees included representatives of the citizens of Amber Harbor, led by Mayor Neil, as well as a group of noble representatives from the South.

Otto's base of operations is indeed in the Southern Territory, where he has already recruited an army of tens of thousands.

These troops were mostly impoverished nobles from the southern kingdoms who sailed to the north in hopes of gaining power and wealth, and gathered under Otto's command.

"Gentlemen, the day after tomorrow I will set off westward to conquer those cities and territories that do not obey me, and to eliminate those northern nobles who dare to oppose me. Are you willing to follow in my footsteps and win eternal and supreme honor?"

At the dinner, Otto raised his glass and extended an invitation to everyone present.

Immediately, a burly nobleman stood up and shouted, "I am willing to follow you!"

"I am willing!"

"I do too!"

The frenzied shouts of the followers rose and fell, completely engulfing the entire hall.

After a long while, the frenzied atmosphere in the hall cooled down slightly.

Otto stepped down from the main seat, raised his wine glass, and clinked glasses with several key noble representatives, casually agreeing on the distribution of the spoils of war.

Of course, after the dinner, they will also sign a legally binding contract that clearly defines their respective obligations and rights.

Just as Otto was enjoying his drinks, a nobleman suddenly suggested:

“Your Majesty, I believe you are fully qualified to be crowned King of the North. If you truly wear that crown, we will be able to roam freely under your banner, and anyone who dares to oppose us will be a traitor who does not respect the King.”

Although Otto had completely taken control of Amber Harbor and obtained the Northern Crown and Whale Horn Scepter from the Archbishop of Amber Harbor, he was not in a hurry to be crowned king.

This puzzled some of the nobles who had sided with him.

They could have used the king's name to label the Duke of the Swamp and other local resistance forces as traitors and completely seized the moral high ground.

Why wouldn't Otto do something that has only benefits and no drawbacks?
"No need to rush. I can wear that crown on my head anytime, but I don't want to be a king who only owns one city."

Otto took a sip of the bubbling champagne and gave a witty reply, even taking the opportunity to satirize his bastard son Maurice, who was exiled in the south.

According to the intelligence he possessed, Maurice had indeed fled to the southern border and was currently frantically recruiting an army, the purpose of which was self-evident: to launch a counterattack against the northern border.

Otto, of course, scoffed at this.

Maurice couldn't cause much trouble in the North, and was even driven out of the capital by the local duke. In the South, he had even less room to maneuver.

Upon hearing this, the nobleman who made the suggestion abruptly changed his tone: "Your Majesty, I am willing to be your vanguard and crush all enemies that stand in your way!"

Otto put his arm around the nobleman's shoulder and said, "Good, very good. I agree to this. As long as you can make enough contributions, I will make you a count!"

The nobleman was overjoyed: "Thank you so much for Your Majesty's generosity!"

Otto understood these nobles who came to him very well.

What you seek is nothing more than wealth, fiefdoms, and titles.
If you are willing to fight for me and wipe out the entire Northern Kingdom, I can certainly reward you with this!

Otto positioned himself very correctly, appearing to be a king and the reconqueror of the North, but in reality he was just the leader of a loose alliance.

The various forces that come to him are unlikely to fight for him wholeheartedly; they will only fight for their own tangible interests.

In order to unite these forces to the greatest extent possible, Otto had to be willing to offer rewards.

In any case, they were all just empty titles to him.

In just the last two days, he has already promised more than thirty earl titles.

The titles have been arranged for you, but whether you can obtain the land that these titles represent depends on your own efforts.

Even Otto gave up the White River Territory that Lynn occupied, and it was divided into two earls.

This can be considered one of Otto's clever ideas.

He had long coveted the North and had devoted himself to studying its customs, geography, and topography.

The three existing duchies in the North are so vast and possess natural geographical barriers that they are practically the perfect breeding ground for rebellion.

Otto is now like someone holding a knife, cutting up a map of the North and trying to shred it into pieces.

Despite promising dozens of earldoms, the territories represented by these titles were almost entirely indefensible.

As long as he can firmly establish himself on the throne of the North, he will have plenty of opportunities to reclaim these territories in the future.

(End of this chapter)