I must draw my sword immediately!

Chapter 137 Falling out
As soon as Suya said this,
Lucan, Meli, and Dagonet, who were in the know, immediately had strange expressions.

They knew their own situation best; the 20,000 defeated troops they led when they arrived in the capital had already been dispersed to the rear of the kingdom by the British high command, and now they could be said to have no soldiers available.

Moreover, their true intention was by no means so righteous; they simply wanted to escape the turbulent capital and start anew.

But
In such a short time, they managed to compile the intelligence they had just learned into such a seemingly plausible statement, to the point that Lukan and the others felt as if this was exactly what they should have done.

For a moment, the others looked at Suya with some surprise.
They all thought to themselves: You said you didn't want to be king, but isn't your thinking quite comprehensive?

And at this moment,
Suya stared intently at Gerry Freyt, awaiting her reply.

The three points Lukan and his companions raised about escaping the capital can actually be summarized in one simple sentence—

They lacked an army and strength, so they were constrained in everything they did.

The army is the only guarantee for navigating this chaotic world.

So even if it means stealing, robbing, or cheating, Suya must first hold onto this tangible power.

however,
Upon hearing Sua's request to borrow troops, Gerry Freyt frowned immediately.

Even though she was already mostly convinced by it, if she had been in the state of being influenced by magic last night, she would have agreed to it without hesitation.

but,

Gerry Freyt immediately grasped the importance of the army at this moment, and her innate shrewdness quickly pulled her away from Sua's seemingly persuasive words, prompting her to consider more practical matters—

She doesn't have much power at her disposal.

Fifteen years ago, even the capital Winchester had a population of only 10 to 20. Now, in just over ten years, it has expanded to 300 million. This is due to two main reasons: first, the introduction of various ideas from other countries, mainly Jerusalem, after the Great Transfer; and second, the popularization of divine magical facilities in big cities, which changed the social structure.

However, the composition of the military remains the same as it was fifteen years ago.
The military system is a mix of standing army, conscripts, mercenaries, and urban militia, making the cost of maintaining the army extremely high.

In Winchester, the royal capital with a population of 300 million, the number of the most elite knights, including those directly under the king, hired by nobles, and brought by the princes, was only slightly over 1.

Even with all the miscellaneous troops included, the total number was only 7.

As for the militia temporarily assembled when a defensive battle breaks out, they can gather 5 to 15 people, but that can no longer be considered a fighting force.

A more practical problem is—

Gerry Freyt only had about 2000 knights that she could secretly mobilize.

These forces will inevitably be used to assassinate King Perinoa, and with King Perinoa's unusual behavior, the planned assassination will be carried out sooner.

The remaining mercenary groups numbered around five thousand, but due to their identities, a significant portion of them were taken into the Holy Lance as civilians, leaving only about two thousand available for deployment.

These two thousand-plus people are to be used to control key strategic points and handle post-disaster matters; they cannot be used for other purposes.

Furthermore, if Sua is indeed King Uther's son and the heir to the Pendragon family, then she is even less likely to allow him to sit on the throne.

This was not due to hatred between the Cadors and the Pendragons, but rather to considerations of the British monarchy.

After thinking about all this, Gerry Freyt's gaze towards Sua suddenly became clear.
Without hesitation, she shook her head at Suya and calmly said:

"If it's a financial issue, I can provide additional support."

"But this concerns the army, so I'm sorry, I don't have a knight I can lend you."

Suya frowned, still unwilling to give up, and asked, "What about the Royal Guard knights under Sir Miles' command—"

"shut up!"

Gerry Frey suddenly looked coldly at Suya, her tone becoming even more somber.

“That’s why I’m here, Sua Pendragon. Last night, under the influence of a great magic spell, I revealed to you the connection between Knight Miles and the Cador family.”

"This is a secret unknown to outsiders, concerning our upcoming war with King Perinoa."

"Your use of Knight Miles to escape from the Third Ring of the Royal Capital has already added risks to this matter. From now on, please keep this matter to yourself."

"At the same time, don't use the Knights' connections anymore, it's bothering me a lot."

"Wait, are you kidding me?"

Sua frowned immediately, looking at Gerry Freyt with confusion, thinking to herself, "Sir Miles is working part-time as a butler at your casino, and so many nobles are watching. You call that a secret? What kind of secret do you want the whole world to know?"
At this moment, Mary, who was also confused by Gerry Freyt's words, immediately questioned:

"Is your word still credible, Gerry Freyt?"

Gerry Freyt frowned, abruptly stood up, and scanned Suya's team member by member.

Then, she frowned and looked at Suya, speaking coldly:

“I’ll say the same thing to you, Sua Pendragon!”

"Is your word still credible?"

"Before you even entered, weren't you discussing the matter of escaping the capital?"

She looked at Suya with a mocking expression and sneered:

"The route drawn on the map was so obvious it practically told the whole world—"

"You're deserting again!" "Then why do you pretend to be a king, spouting lies about becoming king, trying to deceive my noble knight?"

Upon hearing this, everyone present immediately showed an embarrassed expression, and their gazes toward Gerry Freyt turned cold.

The atmosphere suddenly became somber.

And then,
Mary's face immediately darkened. She looked at the other person and retorted in a cold voice:

"And what about you? Weren't you the one who initially wanted him to become king, the one willing to gamble with the lives of three million people in the capital?"

"Don't tell me, Gerry Freyt, that you don't know the truth about this royal selection, that you don't know that becoming king will turn you into a puppet wielding the Holy Lance!"

"But didn't you say anything either?"

She glared at Gerry Freyt and angrily demanded:
"What is this so-called noble chivalry you claim to have?!"

Hearing these sharp words, Gerry Freyt couldn't help but clench her fists slightly.

She did know the truth about the King's Choice, and she also knew that becoming the Holy Lance King would mean losing herself. In the beginning, what she hoped for was to obtain a Holy Lance King without emotions.

Britain needs a king like this.

Therefore, when she saw that almost miraculous scene, with a hundred gambling tables pointing to the number of saints, she was convinced that Suya would be the king.

But now, precisely because he has realized he cannot implicate the unsuspecting Suya through his own self-sacrifice, and because as a knight he cannot personally place the king in such a position.
That's why Gerry Freyt came here.

And now, the goal has been achieved.

"Since we're on different paths, there's nothing more to say."

Gerry Freyt took a deep breath, turned away from the dining table, and spun in a resolute arc, her bright red skirt billowing in the air.

Immediately afterward, under the watchful eyes of Suya and her group, she walked out of the conference room without looking back, and quietly left the tavern surrounded by shadow knights guarding the door.

In the silent meeting room,
Suya let out a deep breath.

He knew that his attempt to borrow troops from Gerry Freyt was now blocked.

However, the capital city at this time was different from Cornwall, where they had previously fled and fought.

Or,

The entire capital city is now deserted except for knights and soldiers.

However, the knights and legions in the capital are all limited and belong to certain owners, and Suya cannot conjure up a knightly order out of thin air.

And the paths he can try,

The only options left are to try to recruit the soldiers under the Knights of Kael'thas, or to seek help from Agravivan.

But he made a mistake. Now it can't really be called a mistake; Sua killed Arthur Pendragon, making him and the Knight of the Claws veritable enemies who killed their brother.
His soldiers must be quite familiar with Arthur, and they might just expose Sua's disguise, making a mutiny highly probable.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Agraven, to be honest, Sua initially thought he was Morgan le Fay's knight, but now, after learning quite a bit about the secrets of the capital, Sua is also finding it difficult to confirm which side this knight is on.

I have a feeling that finding Agravivan would be like stepping on an even bigger landmine.

For a time,

The people around the table remained silent, feeling as if the capital was full of minefields.

At this moment, Mary realized that she seemed to have messed things up. She looked at Suya, tapped the table sheepishly, and asked quietly:

"Um...did I go a bit too far?"

“It’s nothing,” Suya shook her head and said frankly:
"We got to know Greifred and gained her support mostly because of the Great Magic. Now that the magic has been lifted, it's only natural that she would change her mind."

"Next, we still need to think of other solutions."

Mary thought for a moment, then suddenly her eyes lit up, and she came up with an idea almost without thinking:
"How about we form a magician legion?"

“Several acting monarchs from the Clock Tower factions have approached me, hiring me to eliminate the monarchs of their rival factions in order to consolidate the Clock Tower.”

"Ok?"

Upon hearing Meryl's idea, the people at the table were taken aback at first, but after thinking about it, their eyes lit up at the same time!
It is well known that magicians are cold-blooded and selfish creatures.

In this chaotic situation, the magicians of the Clock Tower, who were the first to realize something was wrong, must be like fleas on a hot plate, wishing they could grow wings and fly away.

At the same time, it also means that they need a commander who can organize them into a cohesive unit.

"hiss--!"

Thinking of this, Suya looked at Meryl and gasped.
He knew that the idea king, whose thought process was different from that of normal people, could find some rather unique perspectives.

"It seems like there's a chance?" Suya thought for a moment and looked at Lukan.

Lukan then turned around and met his gaze, pondered for a moment, and guessed:
"The Clock Tower is riddled with factions, making unity impossible. Without unity, in this situation, it's no different from waiting to die."

"However, managing this group of people will likely be quite difficult."

(End of this chapter)