After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

After a few days of rest, Oswald is gradually able to get out of bed and walk again.

To be honest, he was not used to the feeling of being worried about, especially since his every move would cause a stir among those around him.

It's like you're some kind of toddler just learning to speak...

Good heavens, His Highness the Duke can walk now!

Good heavens, His Highness the Duke can feed himself now!

Good heavens, His Highness the Duke can roll his own cigarettes now!

Oswald, who was about to light a cigarette, was utterly speechless. What was so important that you had to announce this to the whole government? Wait, stop yelling.

Elena rushed over upon hearing the news, confiscated his tools, gave him a warning glare, and then hurriedly went back to attend to official business, leaving Oswald alone and bewildered in the wind.

"Come here, come here."

Oswald, leaning against his desk, waved to the old butler, who stood at the door, frantically shaking his head in refusal.

Sir, we have a revolutionary friendship, we even helped you to the toilet, we know each other inside and out, you can't treat me like this.

"Your Grace, it's time for treatment."

Jenny interrupted their interaction and went straight into the room.

Oswald struggled to sit down in the chair. Jenny came to him and, without a word, began to cast a healing spell.

A pale green light seeped into Oswald's body, making him feel warm all over, and even his wounds began to itch.

After the treatment ended, Jenny was still a little worried, so she examined Oswald's body again and exclaimed, "This is the first time I've ever seen a body as strong as His Excellency's. The speed at which his bones heal far exceeds that of ordinary people."

Well this...

Oswald remained silent. The system had already told him that the magic crystals inside his body were very unruly, seemingly constantly infiltrating his bones. He didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse.

In short, the magic crystal has shrunk considerably in the past few days and will probably merge with him soon.

System: Don't worry, it's just a mutation. At worst, we won't be supporting characters; we'll be the villains!

[To celebrate the host's outstanding completion of the storyline of defeating the Undying Giant Serpent, the host is hereby awarded the following reward: One Spirit Wind Sword Replica]

(Where is the next part?)

[Host, the storyline has gotten messed up, and we're not getting any rewards for what we do. Didn't you say you'd never received a weapon reward? This is one that this system copied from another system; it's yours, you're welcome.]

(Why don't you just steal one from another transmigrator, especially those who use the Ten Thousand Swords Return to One technique? Losing one good sword won't make a difference; they won't need it later anyway.)

[......]

[Actually, this is the original; what I returned was a replica.]

(Oh, I see. Thank you.)

[It's alright, the story over there has ended with "One Sword Opens the Heavenly Gate," and the transmigrator is about to comprehend the principle that "no sword is better than having a sword."]

amount……

The two good-for-nothings fell silent at the same time. They had dutifully completed their role-playing, but the natives of this world had turned the tables on them. The original plot was no longer relevant; they would just have to see how they finished this charade.

Elena is too ruthless, yet no one has the right to criticize her.

After completing his treatment for the day, Oswald ate dinner, lay in bed, and silently looked at the fresco of the Virgin Mary holding her child on the ceiling.

As the sun sets in the west, the murals are bathed in golden light, adding to their sacred atmosphere.

The scene is filled with blooming flowers, with the Virgin Mary holding the child tightly, her expression serene and gentle. The child, however, is curiously looking around, his chubby little hand reaching out as if trying to grab something.

A little while later, Eleanor arrived with a stack of documents. She sat down on a chair by the bed and, seeing Oswald still lost in thought, asked curiously, "What is the Duke thinking about?"

"I'm thinking about the relationship between fate and will."

Oswald struggled to sit up, smiled at her, and said, "Someone told me that the meaning of life lies in the suffering it endures."

"Just like fate and will, a tortuous fate forges a strong will, and a resilient will enables one to face a bleak fate head-on..."

"But like some races that have been wiped out, if no one can break through the encirclement in endless suffering, should we blame people or suffering?"

Elena paused, looked at Oswald intently for a while, then looked up at the mural, unable to figure out how Oswald had connected the two.

"Give me the list of the dead."

Oswald didn't really want to think about these profound questions. He was just afraid that if he couldn't solve the disaster caused by the chaotic storyline in the future, what would they do?

After carefully reviewing the documents, Elena pulled out the list of the dead and handed it to Oswald.

The Knights lost 281 men, the cavalry lost 493 men, and the counts lost 3895 men, for a total of 4669 men. There is no count of missing persons.

Nearly five thousand lives were lost just like that.

This also included nearly five hundred cavalrymen carefully trained by Oswald, who were supposed to become the foundation of Oswald's army and the sharpest spear of the Northern Army.

But before it could be carefully polished, a quarter of it broke off.

Oswald breathed heavily and tossed the list back to Eleanor as if it were burning his hand. He had anticipated this, but he still couldn't accept it.

After reorganizing the documents, Eleanor took out a report and slowly placed it in Oswald's hand, gently brushing her fingers across his cold fingers.

"The calamity that befell our Northern Territory is no accident; an army of undead has also appeared in the Southern Territory. Furthermore, there are rumors that someone has seen bone dragons in the mountains and forests of the Western Territory."

"dragon?"

Oswald instantly became alert; the system had indeed been right—the chaos caused by the time distortion was indeed affecting the entire world.

Forget rumors, this is the real news!

However, bone dragons are much more troublesome than undead pythons. The reason is that in this world, all dragons can fly, and bone dragons are no exception.

Oswald pondered for a moment, then asked seriously, "What did the Duke of the Western Territory say? Has he taken any action?"

"The Western Duke's family is in the royal city, and the Western Territory has not taken any action. They even suspect that this is a false message spread by the neighboring Dwarf Kingdom in order to mine their mines."

Oswald clenched his fist, his whole body trembling with excitement. Finally, he saw an opportunity to grow and expand. "Go and call Red and the others here right now!"

As night fell, Red, his cavalry adjutant, and Eleanor arrived at the Duke's room, followed by Count Rondo.

After a brief moment of thought, Oswald looked at Rondo, who was kneeling before his bed, and asked in confusion, "Count Rondo, what brings you here?"

Rondo raised his weathered face, revealing one white eye, and said respectfully, "Your Excellency the Duke risked his life to rescue me. I have no way to repay you, and I wish to serve Your Excellency and the Charles family from now on!"

Oswald was somewhat speechless. There were always people who liked to make unfounded assumptions. Was I rescuing you? I was doing it for the people of the Northern Territory.

Besides, you were supposed to serve me anyway!

But on second thought, Rondo is also a veteran with rich battlefield experience and is good at training troops, making him the perfect candidate to be stationed in Kuogu City.

"I understand your loyalty, and I will need you to shoulder the heavy responsibilities for the Northern Territory in the future." Oswald could not trust Rondo for the time being. His experience in his previous life told him that loyalty was more important than ability most of the time.

For example, a certain maid who rebelled after his death was very trustworthy.

"Yes, sir." Rondo understood all of this, of course. In fact, besides showing his loyalty, he was more worried about Oswald's health.

Seeing that Oswald was recovering well, he voluntarily withdrew.

The door closed again, and Oswald's aura instantly changed as he issued orders in a sharp voice.

"Elena, remember this: I'm making the following strategic deployment."

The three knelt on one knee in the dimly lit room, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

"First, temporarily promote Kate, the commander of the Second Regiment of Kuogu City, to division commander, in charge of the daily training of the three regiments, and report to me every three days."

"Second, mobilize the three thousand archers who are training separately in Kuogu City and secretly go to Xingluo City to assist in the defense against the demon invasion. Inform Count Camaro that he needs to closely monitor the movements of the demon army in the near future and make relevant preparations to defend the city."

"Third, the more than 500 cavalrymen currently resting in Ice City will be disguised as bandits and led by their adjutant to secretly go to the Western Territory to investigate the Undead. Once war breaks out, remember, this time it is not to kill the enemy, but only to plunder the wealth of the Western Territory."

"Fourth, Red mobilizes the militia to provide logistical support for the cavalry. Once the war breaks out, immediately block the roads leading to the Western Territory. If necessary, he can feign an offensive and plunder supplies from the fallen cities in the Western Territory."

"Fifth, all the supplies and wealth brought from the Western Territory shall be handed over to the herding Marquis Barton in exchange for cattle, sheep and horses. Tell the Marquis that I know he has connections to sell things to the dwarves, and if the Marquis can obtain armor and weapons from the dwarves, I can buy them at a high price."

"Sixth, cattle and sheep are to be brought to pasture, and horses are to be sent directly to Kuogu City. I have ordered Commander Kate that, in addition to the remaining thousand cavalry, I also want to see two thousand new elite cavalry this year!"

All three agreed, and as they stood up, they couldn't help but feel a surge of pride. If the Duke could orchestrate such a meticulously planned scheme while on his sickbed, what reason did the Northern Territory have to continue its decline?

Besides, who doesn't love to take advantage of a disaster? They just hope that the bone dragon will be strong enough to break through the capital of the Western Territory in one fell swoop, so that they can go in and plunder it.

"Oh, what a pity."

Elena gently pinched her chin, reviewing the entire plan over and over again, and couldn't help but sigh softly.

Red grunted, "What's a pity?"

"It's only June in a few days. If the Undead start their operation in September, we can harvest a large amount of food in the vast western territories."

Reid... When it comes to ruthlessness, it has to be you civil officials.