Western Fantasy Lord: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 115 The Silver Knights

We didn't harm the Baron; we only massacred some civilians. The Grand Duke has absolutely no reason to cause us trouble...

Jeremy thought this, but his expression remained somber.

The psychological pressure was immense, stemming from being targeted by a duke and a sky knight.

At that moment, the door to the reception room was pushed open by two fierce lion knights, who stood faithfully on either side of the door. Theodore walked in with his hands behind his back, his expression calm.

After he entered, the two knights left the room and closed the door behind them.

"Duke." The city lords quickly stood up and said respectfully.

Theodore said calmly, "Sit down."

The group didn't dare to sit down, standing obediently like schoolchildren, waiting for Theodore to take his seat in the main seat before they sat down, their posture restrained and their expressions humble.

"Do you know why I called you here?"

The group felt a chill run down their spines. They remained silent and turned their gazes toward Jeremy, because he was the one who had gathered them.

"Nobody in this world is loyal..." Jeremy forced a smile and said, "Duke, we really don't know. We've been staying at home quietly, doing nothing, and suddenly we were summoned here. We're quite confused right now, and we hope Your Excellency can give us some guidance."

The others' eyes flickered slightly, then returned to normal.

Theodore glanced at him a few times, gave an ambiguous "heh," and then said, "Lily Town reported to me that you sent people to maliciously sabotage Lily Town, seriously endangering the local security environment. Lily Town hopes that I will severely punish you."

Mark immediately cried out, "Injustice! Duke, this must be slander! We have no past grudges or present animosity, why would you want to sabotage us?"

Kenneth nodded in agreement and said in a deep voice, "Your Grace, there must be some misunderstanding. Vanessa wine and those new clothes from Lily Town are selling so well that we're eager to cooperate."

The new clothing styles have gradually spread to every city. Because the target audience is mainly nobles, the city has hardly been affected by population loss.

Theodore remained unmoved and said to the door, "Bring the person up."

The city lords' faces darkened, and they had a vague sense of foreboding.

The door to the reception room opened, and two fierce lion knights escorted in a heavily wounded figure.

His hair was disheveled, his face was covered in bruises and swelling, and he was dressed in tattered, blood-stained linen clothes. His body was being supported by two knights, and he looked as if he had no bones.

Jeremy squinted and looked closely, then suddenly realized the man looked familiar. When he saw the man raise his head and look at him, his eyes widened in shock, as if struck by lightning.

Kai?!

What is he doing here?!

The others didn't recognize Kai, but they noticed Jeremy's sudden change in expression and frowned.

"Do you know now?" Theodore's emotionless voice rang out, as if he had casually done a trivial matter.

After his initial surprise, Jeremy's eyes immediately filled with fear, his face turned pale, and he unconsciously clenched his fists so tightly that he didn't even notice his nails digging into his flesh. He stared intently at Kay.

Kai was the only knight under his command who had a contract with a dark elf. He was exceptionally talented and skilled in battle command, and his personality was also the smooth-talking and quick-witted type.

He couldn't confirm whether Kai had betrayed him, or if he had, how much he had betrayed.

"This is one of the knights who attacked Lily Town. Does anyone here look familiar?" Theodore chuckled, but there was no smile in his eyes.

When faced with difficult questions, everyone chose to remain silent.

Jeremy was completely out of his mind at this point, panic gripping his heart. He lowered his head, trying to hide his unfocused gaze and vacant expression.

Theodore waved his hand: "Go down."

"Yes, sir." Two fierce lion knights carried Kai away.

He chose not to reveal it; sometimes, holding onto a card in your hand is more powerful than playing it.

Theodore stood up and said, "Until the truth comes out, I ask you all to stay at Lion Keep and cooperate with the investigation. Once everything is cleared up, you will all be exonerated."

After saying that, he turned and left, leaving the city lords in a state of confusion in the reception room.

As the door slammed shut, the group quickly gathered around Jeremy.

"What exactly happened? Was that person one of your knights?"

Jeremy nodded heavily.

"Tsk, what a piece of trash!" Mark cursed angrily, pointing his finger at his nose.

"What we should be thinking about now is how much Kay has revealed, and how much evidence the Duke possesses," Jeremy said coldly, glancing at Mark. "Instead of engaging in idle chatter."

Mark paced back and forth in frustration, roaring, "Then tell me what to do!"

Blake turned to Dane and asked, "Don't you often make friends around? Do you know anyone in the Duke's castle who you could ask around about?"

"No, Sylvia is very shrewd. She has the Duke's Castle firmly in her hands, and no one else has a chance to make a move," Dane sighed.

The reception room was immediately filled with worried expressions.

Little did they know that this was precisely Theodore's own doing, causing them to fall into internal strife and anxiety, leaving them no time to think about anything else.

During this time, Connors will try to devour the resources in their territory. When they return, the city will only be filled with idle nobles and empty streets.

As for the methods... hehe...

Shikoshi Shokai.

Connors arrived at the top floor. In the corridor, two knights stood in front of the chairman's office, dutifully waiting.

"Lord Connors."

Connors nodded and asked, "Haven't we noticed any suspicious individuals approaching lately?"

"Reporting, sir, everything is normal."

After offering a few brief words of comfort, he pushed open the door and entered.

.

Inside the office, Hecate was still the same as always, sitting behind her desk, seriously reviewing the documents in front of her.

"Is there something you need?" Hearing someone come in, she glanced up and saw it was Connors before continuing to stare at the documents in front of her.

Connors sat down at the table, took a file from his levitating bracelet, tossed it onto the table, rested his chin on his hand, and smiled: "Take a look."

"So mysterious..." Hecate put down the document in her hand, muttering to herself as she opened it and began to read. After only a short while, her eyes widened in shock: "This, this, the Duke agreed to this?"

"Of course," Connors said with a smile.

"How could this be? The Duke would actually agree to such an absurd proposal; he's simply insane."

'

Hecate stared blankly at herself, muttering to herself.

What Connors showed her was the Southern Integration Plan that Sylvia had left behind.

Although the plan was only a draft, it contained everything that needed to be included, only some details still needed to be improved, which was why Connors came to Hecate.

"This integration will be divided into three or four phases, and I hope that you and Sylvia will jointly lead it," Connors said.

Hecate snapped out of her reverie, thought for a moment, and shook her head: "No, I'm already overwhelmed with business in Lily Town. I don't have the time or energy to handle integration."

Connors thought for a moment and asked, "Isn't there anyone in the Chamber of Commerce who can be entrusted with important tasks? Integration is more important. The commercial system in Lily Town has already been established, and there shouldn't be any problems unless something unexpected happens. Why don't you find someone familiar with the business processes to temporarily replace you?"

Hecate lowered her head and thought carefully. "Now that you mention it, there really is one. She's the clerk in the archives. Her name is Ishma Maxwell. After the Chamber of Commerce established its archives, most of the documents had to be sorted and filed by her. If there's anyone who can take the lead when I'm not around, I think it's her."

Connors nodded: "You can make the arrangements. Sylvia will be coming over in a couple of days to discuss integration with you. You'll have many more opportunities to interact with her in the future, so remember to maintain a good relationship with her."

As August arrived, Lily Town once again entered the busy farming season. At the same time, a new urban area appeared to the south of Lily Town. After the integration plan began, the population of Lily Town was bound to surge again. In order to avoid chaos, Connors deliberately built it ahead of schedule.

After everything was ready, they set their sights on Lakeside City as their first target.

This city is most influenced by Lily Town and is the closest to it, making it a good practice subject.

Moreover, due to Rex's death and severe population loss, Lake City is a mess that no one wants to take over, which has made it an unclaimed city, greatly facilitating their operations.

Inside the study, Connors, Hecate, and Sylvia were gathered together.

"The most important resource of a city is its population, followed by its natural resources," Connors said, arms crossed. "Our first step is to relocate the population to Lily Town. I've already prepared the accommodations; you can decide how to relocate them."

"What about the nobles in Lake City? Will they also relocate here? Although they are not very useful individually, they have a lot of resources if we consider them as a whole. Also, are they willing to relocate? Will they be able to adapt to the environment of Lily Town after they relocate?" Hecate asked a series of questions in one breath.

Connors pondered, "Use force to coerce them?"

Sylvia hesitated slightly before saying, "I don't recommend using force to clear the way. This is just one city; there are 11 more to come. We need to find a way to resolve this."

Hecate suggested, "How about we convert their titles into equivalent monetary value? Or we could fund the purchase of their titles; Lily Town isn't short of money right now."

"The crux of the matter is whether they retain their noble privileges after migrating here. If they don't, things could get very difficult," Sylvia pointed out incisively.

Connors shook his head: "There's definitely no reservation."

Sylvia frowned.

The progress suddenly stalled here.

Hecate's eyes suddenly lit up: "Maybe we can keep it!"

The two looked at her with puzzled expressions, but Connors didn't interrupt her immediately.

Hecate has been integrated with Lily Town for so long that she exudes a lily-like aura from head to toe. She can't possibly be unaware of what he wants.

Hecate said leisurely, "We can keep the title, but abolish the power, and bestow the title of noble as an honorary title upon them. This way, we can preserve their noble status without conflicting with the system of Lily Town."

Sylvia denied it, saying, "The nobles aren't fools; they'll definitely protest."

Hecate thought for a moment and said, "We can make some small but non-conflicting benefits within the system. For example, nobles can receive a gold coin subsidy each month, or a special area can be designated for nobles to purchase. These harmless things can make nobles feel a clear sense of superiority."

Connors and Sylvia exchanged a glance, and both of them couldn't help but relax their brows slightly.

"I think this is good, I'll vote for it," Connors said, raising his hand.

Sylvia hesitated for a few seconds before raising her hand: "I'll vote too."

"Not bad, you actually got Sylvia's approval." Connors nudged Hecate and teased.

"Not at all, just some clever tricks," Hecate said modestly, understanding that Connors was trying to foster their relationship, since they might be working together frequently in the future.

Sylvia smiled slightly: "With such a capable assistant like you, Connors, it's no wonder that Lily Town is developing so well."

""

As the integration efforts proceeded vigorously, the local Siyue Chamber of Commerce branch in Huxincheng also joined in the effort.

They parked carriages openly on the street, holding stamped Moonlight Castle documents, and demanded the cooperation of the residents of Lake City.

One by one, residents boarded the carriages and were transported to Lily Town. To avoid putting too much pressure on the receiving population, the migration was carried out in batches.

As the previous group of people gradually began to integrate into Lily Town, preparations began for the next shipment.

Amidst this flurry of activity, Connors led a procession to Moonlight Castle.

Asoran stood at the entrance of Moonlight Castle with a complicated expression, welcoming Connors' arrival.

.

The Silver Knights left behind by Rex are the purpose of Connors' trip.

This is a knightly order composed of guardian knights; how could Connors possibly ignore it?

Connors dismounted from Fei Yu and approached Asolan, smiling, "Long time no see."

"Long time no see, Baron Connors," Asoran remarked.

Connors patted him on the shoulder: "I should have informed you of the purpose of my visit beforehand. What was the knights' attitude?"

Asoran sighed, "It's neither good nor bad. Some people want to go with you, some want to go out and see the world on their own, some want to become mercenaries, and so on. There are all sorts of ideas."

It seems things haven't been so good here since Rex left; the knights' morale has waned... Connors said, "Let's go in."

The two walked through the corridor to the courtyard. Along the way, Connors noticed that the castle was quite dilapidated, with a layer of dust on the windowsills and the courtyard garden overgrown with weeds and withered flowers.