Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 306 Forerunner

Sumu received Gale in the parliament hall. Respect should be given to the parliamentary envoy. Most of the high-ranking officials of Longlitburg were present and sat on both sides of the long table.

The officials of Longletburg have now undergone a major reshuffle. Since Maggie took office, she has selected a number of capable individuals from among the young nobles to form the backbone of the government. As for the meritorious officials of the previous era, they were either wiped out by Whitestone City along with Rex, or they rebelled with the Griffinson family and were suppressed; very few remain.

After all, no one could have imagined that the frail Marquises would be able to turn the tide and preserve Longlet Castle amidst the chaos of war.

Of course, everyone knew who was behind her, and some gossipy women even secretly slandered Maggie, saying that she only secured her marquisate because of her mouth.

However, those who truly know Maggie know that this Garfield heir is genuinely talented. Leaving aside magical abilities, he is at least obedient and follows the trend, which is something many nobles cannot do.

The North is such a vast territory; surely the duchy must have some elite figures, yet Rhodes ended up like this. Was there truly no generals capable of fighting? Or was there a lack of capable administrators?
No, the real power lies with the top figures who control the direction of this force. Their words, actions, and decisions will affect everyone below them, especially the people they employ, who are of paramount importance.

Rhodes's ascension to the throne was illegitimate; he only dared to use generals he trusted, and even carried out a purge in Winterhold, making it difficult for him to win over the people. It's no wonder he was defeated in the face of a crisis.

Being able to listen is often a talent, and Maggie is one of them.

“Count Sumu, the council held a special meeting to discuss your matter. The result was that the fortress army started the disturbance, and your decision to punish the troops was somewhat impulsive. Therefore, you are hereby fined three months' worth of timber resources and are prohibited from trading with the fortress for several years.”

To be honest, the punishment sounds severe, but due to the impact of the war, Kuraki hasn't handed over the full amount of logs for a long time. The amount to be handed over is determined by Sumu. As for trading with the fortress, aside from trading second-tier resources with shipping merchants, he hasn't traded with anyone else.

It might arouse suspicion from the trading city, but it won't hinder them; it's tantamount to a verbal warning.

"It was a moment of impulse that led me to use violence against the brother troops at the fortress. I hope the Emerald Kingdom will not take offense. I will have my men reflect on their actions."

Su Mu looked serious, and Maggie and the generals below nodded in agreement, as if they were deeply remorseful. As for how much of it was genuine, only the dead fortress soldiers probably knew, but there was nothing they could do about it even if they wanted to.

Gale was somewhat helpless; Su Mu was clearly biased towards his subordinates and didn't even want to find a scapegoat. However, Congress had already made its decision on the matter, so Su Mu was definitely out of trouble.

Gale coughed a few times: "The soldiers are certainly loyal and patriotic. There must be some criminals who have misled them. They should be severely punished."

Maggie glanced at the warden, who immediately straightened his back: "Recently, there have been some prisoners who have escaped from the border and are swindling people. They definitely need to be severely punished!"

With just a few words, they found the culprit behind the chaos in Shansha Town. Whether the Emerald Kingdom believes it or not is their business.

"Count Sumu, no, he should soon be Marquis Sumu. The royal court has already dispatched Prince and court minister Gwen Finaksia to the plains to bestow the title upon you. I am the advance officer to inform you of this good news."

This time, you not only receive the title of Marquis, but the royal capital has also specially unified a region north of Bear Castle and the mountainous area near the hills under the administration of Kuraki. You will become the Marquis with the largest territory and real power in the kingdom, all thanks to the favor of the King and the Parliament.

Of course, generals such as Maggie, Orin, and Ivan who participated in the Battle of Sunset would also be rewarded.

Upon hearing this, the nobles of Longletburg widened their eyes in disbelief.

Su Mu wiped out tens of thousands of fortress troops, but instead of being punished, he was rewarded and even promoted to marquis, receiving a large amount of resources and treasures.

Just over a year ago, Su Mu was an unknown steward named Cang Mu, but now he's going to become a marquis—it's beyond imagination.

Previously, the officials of Langlitburg might have felt that as marquises, they were forced to obey Kuraki, which was beneath their dignity. Now, they no longer had that thought. As the governor of the Sumu and also a marquis, he was clearly a regional lord, a truly powerful figure in the kingdom. Who would dare to look down on him?

After the reception ended, many officials from Langlitburg came to visit Maggie, some to express their loyalty and attitude, and others to persuade the Marquis's daughter to make a move and become Sumu's wife.

At the rate of her promotion, it's hard to say what will happen next. However, Maggie has now let go of such thoughts. Her abilities are increasing day by day, and becoming the Dreamer's right-hand woman to the Governor is far more important than being just a pretty face. As long as she continues to improve in the war, she can help Su Mu.

Su Mu has more than one beautiful woman by his side, and there will be more and more, but useful women are very rare. This is Maggie's clear self-positioning.

After settling Gael in, Sumu returned to Cangmu and headed towards the blacksmith's shop.

The fact that a prince came to Pingyuan to bestow a title suggests that the royal family is also considering it.

Su Mu had heard Raven mention the royal family before, and it seemed quite chaotic. The king hadn't appeared before the emperor in a long time, the court ministers held immense power, and the princes were vying to prove themselves.

Elton's decline to its current state is largely due to the weakening of the royal family; there's a lot more to it than meets the eye, and Su Mu doesn't want to get involved.

The royal family is the largest owner of the boundary stones, so they might be able to reap some benefits.

But that's a story for later. Right now, the most important thing is the advancement of the Holy Blood Vial.

Master Randall spent some time at the Glory Blacksmith Shop and really liked the integrated forging station he had created, where he tried to make many weapons.

"This place is really weird. When I forge the same weapon, my success rate is much higher than before. People who don't know better would think that the old man's forging skills have improved again!"

Sparks flew in the blacksmith's shop as a new weapon was forged. Randall admired the perfect tool and nodded in satisfaction.

Su Mu went along with it, saying, "In that case, why don't you stay in Cangmu and have the weapons you like forged?"

Randall fell into deep thought, wiped his sweat, and finally shook his head, saying, "I'm too old to work for many more years. I'm just repaying a favor by agreeing to help Raven."

Don't try to fleece an old man. After I finish getting this Holy Blood Vial for you, I'm leaving to enjoy a few years of retirement.

Seeing that Randall was determined, Su Mu did not try to persuade him any further.

He specially allocated dozens of logs and dozens of boxes of gold coins to Randall, and opened up some access to the Eight Kings Palace building so that Randall could see the dungeon where he was suppressed.

When the foundry craftsmen saw the sealed artifacts beneath the Eight Kings' Palace, they were utterly amazed.

Randall was fortunate enough to participate in the construction of the Forbidden Castle and was very familiar with the sealed artifacts, but even so, it was extremely rare for him to be able to convert the sealed artifacts for his own use, just like the Eight Kings Palace.

As for the details of the sealed artifact's transformation and how to use it, Randall didn't ask further. These were likely Kuraki's core secrets; he knew their extent, and sometimes ignorance was bliss. Besides, as a blacksmith, he was only interested in the suppression of treasures and had no interest in studying anything else.

He came to Kuraki to explore new casting methods, and Su Mu generously met his needs, which pleased Randall greatly.

"The components of the Holy Blood Vial aren't of a high level, making it easier to forge than the Crimson Curse Armor. Besides, the success rate will be higher at your Glory Blacksmith Shop."

Go find the materials yourself: 10 parts Dragon Blood Essence, 10 parts Dark Night Source Blood, and 15 parts Alchemy Dust.

The rest of the bag is mine.

(End of this chapter)