I was a lord farming, how did I become an emperor?

Chapter 318 Can you kill me?
……

……

Lano did not make any other suspicious moves.

Wolfhooves charged into the manor first, but Rhodes was already prepared to deal with the traps.

But in reality, there was no ambush, and the knights inside had also laid down their weapons and even removed their armor.

"Your Excellency Baron Rhodes, Ferran and Tecalen are knights under my command, both possessing the strength of high-ranking knights."

Lano still wore a gentle smile. "But please rest assured, they will not do anything dangerous."

“If my father pays the ransom for me, I will pay the ransom for them.”

"Ah."

Rhodes glanced at Lano and nodded with a smile.

His smile held a hint of mystery, causing Lan Ao's brows to twitch slightly.

However, it only lasted a moment before Lano's expression returned to normal.

Baron Rhodes surely wouldn't deny his father even the chance to redeem him, would he?
Lan Ao thought to himself, after all, he had already given Luris of Eagle Ridge a chance.

After the fall of White Deer Territory, Lano began investigating Eagle Ridge and Rhodes.

Lano's sister, Winnie, has already rallied the nobles to deal with Rhodes. If Lano were to intervene further, everything he did would be in vain.

If Rhodes is really killed, then all the credit will go to Winnie.

If the execution fails, Winnie may also pin the blame on Lano.

Therefore, Lano simply withdrew his power and did not participate.

If this works, Lano can send troops to take a share of the spoils.

If he fails, Lano will complain to his father, adding another charge against Winnie.

But Lano didn't expect Rhodes to be so cunning, creating a false impression to make everyone believe that the knights had succeeded before launching a surprise attack on the border town.

Having investigated Rhodes, Lano knew very well that he was no match for Rhodes with the power he possessed.

He couldn't handle at least two dragons.

Rather than risk being killed in a war with no chance of winning, it's better to surrender honestly and gain some goodwill.

After all, Lano has plenty of options, so it's not worth risking his life for this.

As for the blame for the loss of the border town, it can be placed entirely on Winnie's head—and that is also true.

"Although my father's treasure vault is not in the border town, this manor is quite wealthy and contains many items that are worth your attention."

Lano smiled and pointed to the main building of the manor, "Please follow me."

Lano took the initiative to show Rhodes around the main building and sorted out all the valuable items.

Silver candlesticks, silver plates and silver cutlery, as well as various handicrafts inlaid with gemstones, were all taken out and prepared to be packed into boxes.

However, just as Lano was having the servants tidy up, Rod raised his hand to stop him.

"These things look good; we can keep them."

Rhodes surveyed his surroundings and said calmly, "This will be my manor from now on. Don't touch the decorations and furnishings for now."

Gazing at the flickering firelight of the border town, Rhodes recalled the scene from his last visit.

Back then, we were still carefully calculating our expenses and staying in ordinary hotels.

Now they are able to live in the manor in the border town and become the masters of the border town.

Lano was slightly taken aback, but quickly regained his smile.

"Of course, this place belongs to you."

"Lan'ao, I admire your decisiveness and ability to make the right choice at the right time."

Rhodes smiled and turned to look at Lano, "But you're not that honest."

“None of these valuable items you gave me are related to the extraordinary,” Rhodes cautioned.

“Your Excellency Viscount Rhodes, as I said before, the lord’s manor is not my father’s treasure trove.”

Lano explained with a smile, "So there are no extraordinary items here, just everyday items."

"No, I'm not talking about the items in the manor."

Rhodes looked Lano up and down and said, "Hand over the extraordinary item your father gave you to save your life."

"Baron Rhodes..."

Lano opened his mouth to say something, but was stopped by Rhodes.

"Lan'ao, you've made the right choice. Don't let these trivial matters affect my impression of you."

Rhodes patted Lano on the shoulder. "You should understand that as a prisoner, everything you have is mine."

Lano fell silent.

In fact, Lano belongs entirely to Rhodes.

Although nobles were willing to exchange prisoners during wars, this was merely an unspoken rule among them, not a law.

Rhodes could dispose of Lano's life at will, as long as he wasn't afraid of completely offending Marquis Hanren.

After thinking for a long time, Lan Ao finally nodded.

Then he led Rod to his bedroom and, in a hidden corner under the floor tiles, took out a ring engraved with red patterns.

"It can withstand a fatal assassination attempt."

Lano explained, "But it's just an attack from ordinary objects; it can't block magic."

Rod held the ring, examined it for a moment, and then put it away.

This is the simplest protective ring; Rhode had seen it before in a book of magical items.

Wizard apprentices often carry out tasks assigned by their teachers, facing beasts and knights, so many of them wear them.

In this era, however, it has become a rare and extraordinary item.

"Is this the only one?" Rhodes asked.

Lan Ao nodded solemnly and assured him, "Really, I won't lie to you."

Rod stared at Lano and smiled. "I hope what you're saying is true, so you can see your father smoothly."

Without giving Lano a chance to react, Rhodes instructed Vivian, "Have the guards arrange a better dungeon for him."

"In addition, imprison the two high-ranking knights separately."

"Baron Rhodes..."

Lano was somewhat surprised to hear this order and explained, "I want to be with my two knights."

"If you want to live peacefully, then don't do anything that would make me suspicious."

Rhodes didn't give Lano a chance to speak again, speaking in a commanding tone.
"Go and rest. I have other things to take care of."

Lano looked at Rhodes and suddenly felt that everything had deviated from what he had originally expected.

But now he had no other choice but to nod and follow the guard away.

Despite having been wandering in the wilderness for over a month, Rhodes was in no hurry to enjoy the manor's large bed.

He left the matter of questioning Lano to the guards, and Rhodes personally led a team to patrol the entire border town and capture the escaped soldiers.

During wartime, thieves and robbers always appear, and Rhodes entrusted these people to the Slender Rat to deal with.

Rats always have special ways of dealing with other rats.

To prevent panic and desertion in the border town, Rhodes sent men to summon all the merchants to the manor at the crack of dawn.

Tell them that everything is normal in the border town, except that it has a new owner.

Rhodes' army will not plunder any merchants; they can continue to do business here as long as they pay their taxes as usual.

Of course, many people in the border town also lost their peaceful lives—the nobles.

All the collateral relatives of the Coldblade family living in the border town were arrested by Rhodes.

Rhodes took away their wealthy lifestyle and possessions, and then exiled them to a remote place in the north to mine.

Some of these people are knowledgeable, and Rhodes may use them in the future, but for now they need more training and testing.

The soldiers worked through the night to clean up the battlefield, and after the situation stabilized, Rhodes ordered everyone to get some rest.

During their rest period, Chris and Gunther reorganized the vanguard composed of surrendered soldiers and began recruiting new soldiers.

Only Rhodes didn't rest; he took Vivian and headed towards the wasteland.

The border town and Frostholdt have formed an army of five hundred men and are heading towards Frostleaf Town.

Rhodes wasn't worried about the defenses of Frostleaf Town; he simply wanted the five hundred strong soldiers.

……

……

Outside Frosty Leaf Town.

The cold wind howled, and snowflakes fluttered down.

Five hundred soldiers, clad in heavy cotton armor, gripped spears and shields tightly, forming a barely orderly square. "This...this is a town?"

Army commander Vinnis muttered to himself.

His brows were furrowed, his gaze fixed on Frostleaf Town ahead, his voice filled with disbelief and shock.

Intelligence reports that the walls of Frostleaf Town are towering, reaching five meters in height.

However, the city wall in front of them was already over eight meters high, and the only way to get up there was by using siege ladders.

"How much did Rhodes spend on this city wall, given its height?"

Vinnie's adjutant swallowed hard. "Sir, what should we do?"

Vinnie remained silent, his expression growing increasingly grave.

He knew that attacking Frostleaf Town would not be a simple matter, but he did not expect it to be so complicated.

"Should we retreat temporarily?"

The adjutant inquired, "After the siege equipment arrives..."

"no!"

Vinnis interrupted him.
"We must take this town before Rhodes' army returns."

He took a deep breath.

"Besides, we've already come this far. If we retreat without even trying, we won't be able to explain it to the Viscount."

As Vinnis spoke, he was secretly thinking to himself.

A frontal assault on such a city wall would be impossible; without siege equipment, it would be impossible to breach it.

"But we can try to break through the gate."

He pointed in the direction of the city gate.

"Have the soldiers prepare shields and escort the battering ram to smash the gate."

"Archers, provide support and suppress the guards on the city wall."

Upon hearing this, the adjutant frowned slightly; this was a common method of attacking a city.

After a moment's hesitation, the adjutant immediately accepted the order.

"Yes! I'll arrange it right away."

With the order given, the army immediately began to move out.

The archers, positioned far from the city walls and protected by their shields, unleashed a barrage of fire at the Frostleaf Town walls, suppressing the guards on top.

Twenty soldiers, holding round shields, formed a mobile shield wall to protect the entire battering ram.

The battering ram was made of thick pine wood, with the front end covered with iron sheets. It weighed several hundred kilograms and was mounted on a wooden cart with four wheels.

"go ahead!"

With a shout from the adjutant, the soldiers marched in unison, pushing their battering rams toward the gates of Frostleaf Town!
"Shhhhhh!"

As the battering ram approached the city wall, a dense rain of arrows poured down, striking the shields with a series of clanging sounds!

"what!"

Some arrows pierced through the gaps in the shields and struck the soldiers, causing screams of agony to erupt one after another!
But the team didn't stop, abandoning their companions and continuing to rush towards the gate!

"Collide!"

The burly men shouted in unison, and the battering ram slammed heavily against the oak door!

"boom!"

A heavy thud echoed, and the town gate shook violently, but there was no sign of damage.

The town gates are blocked by bolts and pillars, and it would take a long time to break them open with a battering ram.

Before the soldiers could strike a second time, hot oil poured down from the city wall, precisely drenching the shields and soldiers.

Immediately afterwards, several rockets landed on the shield, and bursts of flame instantly erupted, spreading rapidly across the shield!
The grease, still burning, dripped down through the cracks, and four or five soldiers were immediately hit, screaming as they fled in all directions!
The flames caused the shield wall to fall apart rapidly, and dozens of arrows rained down from the city wall. The soldiers pushing the carts were instantly turned into hedgehogs and fell onto the battering ram.

Such fighting was a completely futile sacrifice, and Vinnis quickly issued the order to retreat.

The soldiers couldn't even spare the battering ram and could only retreat quickly.

We must find other solutions.

Vinnis thought to himself, and then sent out a scout team to search around the city walls.

Upon circling around to the back of the town, we discovered a steep cliff.

"If we don't want to attack the city, we can only send our soldiers up from here for a night raid."

Vinnie stared at the cliff, which was more than ten meters high, his brows furrowed.

The adjutant followed the gaze upwards and couldn't help but sigh, "If they weren't careful, they would have fallen and turned into a bloody mess..."

The voice just fell.

The adjutant saw two black dots appear in the distant sky.

The black dot kept getting bigger, and the adjutant finally saw that they were two giant beasts that were constantly approaching...

"Dragon! It's a dragon!"

The adjutant pointed to the sky and screamed in terror!

Vinnis was startled.
"Isn't Rod dead?!"

"What?! The dragon is still here?!"

In everyone's mind, since Rhodes, the dragon tamer, is dead, the dragons should all have left!
The adjutant stared blankly at the sky without answering, as two dragons swooped down from the sky.

"It's over!"

Vinnie reacted instantly and exclaimed in surprise.
"Rhodes is not dead at all; he must be alive and well!"

"The Viscount must have been deceived!"

Without hesitation, Vinnis immediately spurred the reins and galloped towards his army!

But it was too late; the two dragons were already above the army!
The next instant, two cone-shaped beams of light, one crimson and one blue-white, descended from the sky and swept swiftly through the ranks of soldiers!

Frost and flames swept through, and in the blink of an eye, the dozen or so soldiers in the center of the formation were turned into ice sculptures and charred remains!

"what!"

After the other soldiers realized what was happening, they scattered and fled in terror!
"Spread out! Quickly spread out!"

Vinnie shouted loudly from horseback, but it was too late!

The two dragons kept darting back and forth in the sky, with flames and frost falling on the soldiers from time to time!
In an instant, the ranks on the ground descended into chaos!
Fear was spreading; no one knew if the next breath of dragon's energy would land on them.

More importantly, no one can deal with the behemoth in the sky!

The soldiers didn't stop at all, abandoning their shields and spears and scattering them all over the ground as they fled like headless flies!

The two dragons seemed to be toying with the soldiers, their breath always landing on the places where the most fleeing soldiers were!

The soldiers were quickly completely bewildered, not knowing where to escape to!

Just then, the two dragons flew in two directions and landed where the soldiers were most numerous, blocking their path.

"I am Lord Rod Tulip of Blackpine Ridge!"

Rhodes stood on Thunder's back, his booming voice carrying an air of authority.

"The border town has fallen, and you have nowhere to escape now!"

These two sentences left the soldiers looking at each other, at a loss for what to do.

Before setting off, their lords confidently claimed that Rhodes was dead, the legendary dragons had fled, and that they would sweep across the entire Blackpine Ridge.

But now the dragons have reappeared and are slaughtering them, and Lord Rhodes has also appeared, even announcing the terrible news of the fall of the border town.

"do you know?"

Rhodes looked at the soldiers who were frozen in place and continued shouting:

“Just two weeks ago, the Cold Blade family sent eight knights to assassinate me.”

"They were equipped with the sharpest enchanted longswords and all sorts of extraordinary items, but they failed!"

"They were burned to charcoal and frozen into ice sculptures by the dragon's breath!"

"Just like what you see now!"

Rhodes pointed to the pitiful state of the fallen soldiers behind him and questioned, "And what about you?"

"You only have rudimentary cotton armor and wooden shields!"

"Do you think you can kill me?!"

Looking at the timid soldiers, Rhodes felt the time was right. He immediately raised his voice and unleashed the aura of a dragon slayer.

"If you don't want to become souls lost to the dragon's breath, if you still want to go home and see your wives and children!"

"Now, kneel down immediately and submit to me, Lord of Blackpine Ridge, Dragon Rider, and new master of the border town, Rhodes Tulip!"

(End of this chapter)