I'm not a lord

Chapter 261 The Invasion of the Wilderness
Lynn had long since returned from Turbulent County to his most loyal Rivers County castle.

In the afternoon, after waking from a nap, Lynn looked at the intelligence summary from various parts of the North submitted by the scribe Victor. His appetite returned; he first ate two slices of toast wrapped in thin slices of smoked pork, then drank half a cup of rich, sweet mead, and gave the order:
"Sit down and have something to eat with us."

"Thank you, sir." Victor didn't stand on ceremony and obediently sat down to enjoy the afternoon tea.

Or should it be called afternoon wine?
Tea is no longer a beverage in the North; they have to substitute alcohol for it.

Both of them had very good appetites, and soon they finished off the two plates of smoked meat and bread, as well as the pot of hot wine.

"The colder the weather, the more lively the North becomes." Lynn put down the documents in his hand and looked up at the clear autumn sky outside the window.

In early November, Kawanuma Prefecture already had a hint of winter in the air. Withered yellow leaves swirled past the window from time to time, and fireplaces inside the castle were all lit.

Lynn only needed to lower his head slightly to see the wisps of black smoke rising from the farmhouse chimney.

The residents of Kawanuma Prefecture are currently working hard to renovate their houses, with most farmhouses now equipped with brick fireplaces, which significantly improve safety compared to the simple ground fire pits used in the past.

After admiring the beautiful autumn scenery, Lynn suddenly turned to ask, "Victor, who do you think will be the final winner between Lothair and Otto?"

After a moment of contemplation, Victor replied, "Lothair may have an advantage in the early stages of the war, but the ultimate victor should be Otto."

Based on current intelligence, Lothair has gathered most of the noble forces in the royal territory, and in terms of military strength, he has even surpassed Otto.

Lothair also has the advantage of location.

If the two sides were to actually engage in a decisive battle in the wild, Lothair would undoubtedly have the absolute advantage.

The problem is that Lothair's forces are limited.

The population resources in the North are limited, and the number of professionally trained nobles is extremely limited. If a large number of them die in the short term, there will be no one to replace them in time.

Just like the court cavalry under the Duke of the Marsh, after suffering heavy casualties at Amber Harbor, they could only retreat to Golden Deer Castle to regroup. It might take several years or even more than a decade to replenish their strength to four thousand men.

In contrast, Otto, backed by the Kingdom of Rui and the populous Southern Territory, was able to recruit new soldiers continuously from the Southern Territory.

The Southern Territory has no shortage of mercenaries and lower-class nobles eager to make a fortune.

Moreover, as the North becomes increasingly chaotic, some middle and high-ranking nobles in the South will surely be unable to resist joining this 'reconquest' war.

Few nobles would object to more territory and titles; wasn't the first King of the North born into an earl family in the South?

Even if Otto loses a battle, as long as he doesn't die on the battlefield, he can escape back to Amber Harbor to regroup and make a comeback.

Otto could wear down the Duke of the Swamp by just a few more rounds.

Of course, all of this is just Victor's personal opinion.

Lynn picked up his silver goblet, took a sip of wine, and asked with a smile, "Lothair also has a chance of winning. Maybe he can really decide the outcome in one battle and take back Amber Harbor?"

Lothair might defeat Otto, but it seems unlikely that Lothair could defeat Otto.

There is a significant gap in overall strength between the two sides. As long as Otto can hold onto Amber Harbor and the sea route connecting the southern border, he will be virtually invincible.

“Indeed, we cannot rule out that possibility.” Victor nodded thoughtfully and replied, “However, from the perspective of White River Territory, they would certainly hope that they would entangle themselves for as long as possible.”

Lynn said with certainty, "That's right. Lothair knows that the more he struggles, the easier it will be for me to continue to grow and become bigger. But does he have a choice? He doesn't. If he doesn't struggle, all his past sacrifices will be in vain. With his proud nature, he can't bear to do that."

Although Lynn never met the Duke of the Swamp in person, he was able to analyze his personality by gathering intelligence.

Since personally initiating the war more than a year ago, the Duke of the Marshland has always had a way out.

Even after suffering two defeats at the gates of Amber Harbor, he still had his stronghold to return to.

But he preferred to send his eldest son back to Golden Deer Castle rather than stay in the royal domain to continue fighting, which shows just how obsessed he was with the crown of the North.

The Duke of the Swamp would never give up as long as there was even a sliver of hope for victory.

Lynn admired his perseverance.

This Northern Crown is wonderful; we must fight for it.

Lothair, my good buddy, let's give it one last shot for the crown!

Lynn had just finished her afternoon snack when Foreign Minister Kalebo came to see her:
"My lord, Earl Vasa of Mirror Iron has already occupied the entire territory of Scythe."

Recently, Kalebo has made two trips to Mirror Iron Territory to solidify the alliance between White River Territory and Mirror Iron Territory. He even risked going to the front lines of the war in Tin Rock Territory just to bring back the most accurate intelligence from the South to Lynn.

"Sit down and speak slowly."

Lynn gestured for him to sit down and then instructed the maid to bring more wine and food.

Caleb pulled out a chair and sat down by the fireplace, handing over a letter: "My lord, Vasa is very grateful for the provisions you provided for him, and says he has prepared a ship of the highest quality tin ore for you, which will be delivered to Rivers in a short time."

The Earl of Mirror Iron's unstoppable advance was undoubtedly due to the grain and ale sold to him by the city of Three Rivers.

In return, he readily supplied Lynn with various ores, including iron ore, tin ore, and copper ore.

Although Chixi County in the north could already produce iron ingots stably, Lynn still didn't think he had too many of these strategic materials and continued to accept them all.

The situation in the North could change drastically at any time, so the more high-quality ore the better.

Lynn took the letter and opened it. It was a handwritten thank-you note from Earl Mirror Iron, written in a bold handwriting. He glanced at it casually and said:
“Vasa was well prepared before the war and took over the entire territory of Siyan in just two or three months. No wonder Herman couldn’t hold back and was ready to fight him to the death.”

Kalebo took the silver goblet offered by the maid, warmed it in his hands, and slowly replied, "I believe that without strong external interference, the final victor in this Valley Duchy will be decided within two years, and it will most likely be Vasa."

The situation in the North has changed dramatically in just two months.

First, Otto III made a miraculous appearance, capturing Amber Harbor and defeating the Duke of the Marsh;

Later, Earl Lynn of White River and Earl Vasa of Mirror Iron successively expanded their territories, becoming prominent new nobles.

Now, several established powers in the North have also begun to take action.

The Duke of the Marshland recruited nobles in the Crown Territory in an attempt to revive his fortunes.

The Duke of the Valley, on the other hand, gathered his forces, preparing for a desperate battle with Earl Mirror Iron.

But it's clear to anyone with eyes that Count Vasa of Mirror Iron is the one with the advantage.

This man amassed a huge fortune by selling ores, which enabled him to raise an armored cavalry force of over two thousand men. In the Valley Duchy, this would be a complete game-changer.

Moreover, he had been plotting for a long time, secretly bribing and supporting many other minor nobles in various territories, and as soon as he raised an army, he was followed by a large number of followers.

Therefore, he was able to quickly reach the neighboring Tin Rock Territory and force the Duke of the Valley to send troops to fight.

Chaotic times are indeed the most favored stage for ambitious people.

After Kalebo took a sip of his drink, Lynn instructed him, "Be prepared. After this war is over, you might need to secretly contact the losers."

“Understood, sir. We must not allow Vasa to easily occupy the entire duchy.” Kalebo did not hesitate at all.

Kalebo was well aware of Lynn's concerns.

Vasa's expansion is too rapid. If left unchecked, he might even seize the entire duchy before Lynn.

Lynn's ambition was to unify the North, and a fragmented Valley Duchy was clearly more advantageous to his ambitions.

"It's hard to say. It depends on the situation in the Crown Territory. If Otto is too powerful, we might have to join forces with Vasa to deal with him."

Lynn did not think there was anything wrong with his thoughts and methods.

Diplomacy is all about "adapting to the times and changing circumstances".

Given the right conditions, former mortal enemies can become comrades-in-arms in the same trench, and former staunch allies can turn against each other in the blink of an eye.

Although Lynn twice refused the Duke of the Vale, he would readily offer his daughter if Lynn were willing to marry her and promise to send troops to attack the Earl of Mirror Iron. The nobles of the North were all experts in this kind of thing.

Take the Duke of Meadows, for example; he's recently gone 'missing'.

He was leading more than two thousand cavalrymen to cause trouble west of Golden Deer Fortress, and it is said that he also looted many manors and towns.

Their forces even reached the outskirts of Golden Deer Castle, tying up most of Golden Deer Castle's energy and manpower, which can be considered as contributing to Lynn's occupation of Turbulent County.

However, as news of Otto's landing at Amber Harbor spread rapidly in the northern interior, the Duke of Meadows, who had been enjoying his looting, withdrew his troops overnight, leaving behind a large amount of food and military equipment along the way.

Perhaps he had eaten and drunk his fill and was going home to digest, or perhaps he was trying to avoid the court cavalry that the duke's eldest son had brought back.

But in Lynn's view, the Duke of the Grassland was deliberately maintaining a kind of 'balance'.

Previously, the Duke of the Marshland had been too powerful, so he raised an army and launched a large-scale invasion.

With the formidable enemy Otto invading the North and Lord Lynn of the White River rapidly expanding, he retreated at lightning speed, greatly reducing the pressure on Golden Deer Castle.

Lynn's decision to keep his third son on the defensive in Turbulent County was also closely related to the retreat of the Duke of Meadows.

Without the strong restraint of the Duke of Meadows, Golden Deer Castle can free up troops to strengthen its defenses.

Despite the fact that these three dukes in the North have been mortal enemies for over a hundred years, the size of their territories has remained unchanged over all those years.

Whenever one becomes powerful, the other two will form an alliance to counter it, and the royal family can intervene at any time, keeping the three dukes in a delicate balance.

Lynn even suspected that if he were to lead his troops to the gates of Golden Deer Castle next year, he would not only have to face the Duke of the Marsh's court cavalry, but perhaps also the Duke of the Meadows' bandit cavalry.

In other words, the chaos in the Crown Territory gave Lynn the opportunity to cause trouble.

If his rise to power had occurred in a relatively peaceful era, Sanhe City would probably already be surrounded by a coalition of nobles from various regions.

Of course, Lynn chose to go from being a bandit leader to a noble lord precisely because he foresaw the chaos in the North.

However, the chaos in the North was far greater than he had anticipated, and the intervention from the Southern forces came sooner than he had expected.

However, one must be strong to succeed. If Lynn had the strength to conquer the entire continent, he wouldn't need to care about diplomatic relations and changes in the situation; he could simply push them all aside.

But he needs more time and space to develop.

After Kalebo left, Lynn walked to the map table in the center of the room.

He first looked towards Amber Harbor at the easternmost point, then his gaze traveled westward, paused briefly at Mirror Iron Territory before turning north, following the winding White River upstream, and finally landing on the snow-covered landscape that symbolized the wasteland.

The fifty to sixty thousand people of the seven tribes of the Wilderness are Lynn's primary target at present.

If he could devour them all, he could recruit at least five thousand soldiers from them.

With the existing army and the new recruits under training, his professional army will officially reach the 10,000 mark, and all of them will be equipped with relatively advanced weapons and equipment.

At that time, he will no longer be a player who has just sat down at the table, but will become one of the dealers who set the rules.

At the same time, Karula, the God of War of the Rift Valley, had returned to the Wasteland and met Augusta, the chieftain of the Rift Valley, in the northeastern part of the Wasteland.

"Want some wine? Your favorite oat wine."

As Augusta spoke, he personally poured Karula a glass of wine.

The wine was still bland, but the glass was quite unique; it was made from a human skull.

Carula looked down and smelled a strong odor of blood emanating from the glass, which told her that the glass was made of very fresh material.

Augusta said with a smug look, "This is a wine cup made from the head of the Ice Plains tribe chief, and it's the first time it's been used to hold wine."

Among the wild people, there is a long tradition of using the heads of the defeated to make wine cups, while the teeth of the defeated are usually made into necklaces and hung around the necks of the victors.

Carla looked up and saw that Augusta was indeed wearing a brand new necklace of teeth.

During the time that Karula was heading south, Augusta gathered the strength of the four major tribes and launched an offensive against the other three tribes.

The wilderness people always sought to settle in fertile farmland, so the living areas of these three tribes were quite fixed.

In order to protect their farmland, they had no choice but to rally together and fight a decisive battle against Augusta.

In the end, Augusta won a great victory, crushing the three-tribe coalition and completely unifying the seven tribes remaining in the wasteland.

Carula picked up her glass, downed it in one gulp, and asked, "This wine is quite good. Is there any more?"

Augusta didn't rush to pour the wine. He held out his right hand, his tone urgent: "Did you bring it? Lynn's head?"

Carla put down her glass, her skull making a crisp clinking sound on the table, and then calmly replied, "Although he appeared once in White Bear County, I failed to take him down; he had too many guards around him."

"Really? That's a real shame." Augusta's words were a genuine expression of his feelings. Unless there was a major upheaval in the White River Territory to the south, he really wouldn't dare to head south right now.

Based on the intelligence sent by the Spirit Rift people, he gained a general understanding of the overall strength of the White River Territory and realized that with the current backward level of weaponry and equipment of the Wilderness People, rushing south would be tantamount to suicide.

But to say that Augusta didn't want to move south would definitely be a lie.

He coveted the rich and prosperous land and abundant resources of the south.

Moreover, the lowland and high cliff tribes that betrayed the wilderness are waiting for him to deal with them.

He was quite eager to add two clean white skull wine glasses to his collection.

Karula suddenly changed the subject: "But I brought back good news that will definitely excite you."

Augusta became interested: "Oh? Tell me about it!"

"According to the information I've gathered, White River Territory was originally the territory of the Duke of the Rui Marshland, and Lynn, who now occupies White River Territory, is actually a traitor who betrayed the Duke."

Currently, Lynn has already engaged in a large-scale war with the Duke of the Swamp. The war is taking place at the southernmost tip of the White River Territory. The troops stationed in the north have all been transferred away by him. Currently, there are only about a hundred soldiers in White Bear County south of the salt mine, plus a small militia composed of local farmers.

Moreover, Lynn seems to be at a disadvantage in the war, so if you want to head south, now should be the best opportunity.

Carla is neither good at nor fond of lying, so she maintained a blank, expressionless demeanor while reciting the lines Lynn had prepared for her.

However, this did not arouse Augusta's suspicion.

Because she always maintained the persona of a 'cool and aloof' war god in the Rift Valley.

When she wanted to drink, she didn't need to turn into a thief to steal it. She only needed to wave her hand, and immediately a beautiful young woman from the wilderness would come to her with a wine bottle. Even the chieftain Augusta had to personally pour her wine.

Augusta suppressed his excitement and replied, "I understand what you've said, but I need to think about this further."

In fact, similar intelligence had already been reported to him, but he always maintained a certain level of vigilance and composure, and did not readily believe everything.

Augusta was certainly no naive girl, having unified the seven tribes of the Wilderness.

"Well, that's all I wanted to say."

Carula had no time to guess Augusta's thoughts. She stood up from her chair and walked straight to the door, her tone still indifferent, "I'm tired and want to rest for a while. Remember to send someone to bring me some wine."

But just then, Augusta suddenly looked up and asked, "Is the wine from the South good?"

“It’s a million times better than the wine from the Rift Valley. Call me again when there’s a war. I hope to drink southern wine again.” Karula didn’t turn around; this time, she chose to follow her heart.

Compared to the various fine wines brewed in Baihe Territory, this oat wine from the Rift Valley Territory is pure horse piss; even dogs wouldn't drink it!
Unexpectedly, these words solidified Augusta's resolve, and he shouted at Carula's retreating figure, "You won't have to wait long."

Ten days later, Augusta brought all three captured tribes of barbarians back to their homeland.

On the makeshift wooden platform, he swept his gaze over the tens of thousands of pairs of azure, hungry eyes below and proclaimed loudly, "Follow me south to reclaim our homeland!"

(End of this chapter)