Lord Wizard

Chapter 30 War Breaks Out

"I know what I'm doing. If the territory's food supply can't keep up, we'll procure it from outside. I told you to exchange all the gold coins we seized from Denor Castle for food and weapons. How did you handle that?"

Lin Mengdao.

"We have already purchased the gold from the surrounding territories through caravans, but even with all that gold, we can only supply this army of four thousand men for a year. After that, we will have to reduce the number of troops."

Gerald offered some words of advice from the side.

Four thousand people.

Even ordinary earls don't have this many troops. Earl Farrell of Winterfell, as an old earl, only has four thousand soldiers, of which one thousand are deployed to assist the border troops in guarding the border.

The military strength of Linmeng's two territories has already made the surrounding lords feel threatened.

"Alright, from now on, the entire system of the territory must revolve entirely around military combat preparations..."

Just as Lin Meng was about to make arrangements, he heard an urgent report coming from the outer mansion. He saw a guard from outside the mansion leading a dusty-looking cavalryman into the mansion.

Upon seeing Lin Meng, the soldier knelt on one knee, panting, and said, "Lord Leylin, Lord Alfonso has extremely urgent news to tell you."

Lin Meng took the letter from the messenger, glanced at it briefly, and handed it to Jerak, while instructing, "Go and invite Commander Noah, Knight Harvey, Knight Eileen, and Commander Dick of the new army over."

"Yes."

Immediately, a guard responded from outside the room.

"It really is going to be a war. The son of Marquis Heris of the Kingdom of Aden was assassinated at the port of Solent, and the bodies of Marquis Alfonso's men were left at the scene. Now Marquis Heris has gathered his troops and personally led his army to invade the border of Lorraine Province. This is a blatant frame-up. Can't Marquis Heris see this?"

By this time, Gerald had finished reading the message in the letter and said, puzzled.

"All they want is a pretext to send troops; whether it's a frame-up or not is irrelevant."

"This... if the two marquises go to war, the situation will be extremely difficult to control. If things go wrong, it could escalate into a war between the two countries. Our Frost Kingdom and the Kingdom of Aden are allies."

"There are no real allies, only interests."

Lin Meng shook his head.

At this moment, Noah and the others also arrived at the lord's mansion. After everyone had arrived, Lin Meng circulated Nero's letter among them and said, "War has broken out. The location of our Thorn Town is not safe, and we are very likely to be caught in the crossfire. Does anyone have any suggestions?"

"The two marquises are at war, and we are too far away to intervene. However, the letter says that Earl Farrell of Winterfell is also actively preparing for war, and his movements are unclear. We cannot afford to take this seriously, after all, Earl Farrell sent Knight Henry to assassinate the lord back at Denor Castle..."

For Eileen, the life-and-death struggle between the two marquises had little to do with her; all she cared about was Lin Meng's safety.

"Count Farrell wouldn't dare to defy the world and attack you at this time, would he?"

"Dick, the commander of the new army of a thousand men appointed by Lin Mengxin, said."

"That being said, we must still be on guard. From now on, we should send out elite cavalry to patrol the direction of Winterfell, and at the same time have the spies lurking in Winterfell closely monitor the Earl's mansion's every move."

Lin Mengdao.

Such acts of looting during chaos have occurred countless times throughout history; better safe than sorry.

"As for the Marquis, with our current troop strength, we might be able to offer some assistance."

After Harvey finished speaking, he exclaimed in admiration, "I have to admire your foresight, sir. If war breaks out, having strong military power is the foundation for survival."

Harvey's words made Gerald feel somewhat ashamed, after all, he had just been talking to Lin Meng about disarmament, and he did not expect that war would break out so soon.

"Send a letter to Marquis Alfonso to inquire about any special arrangements. If not, we will wait for an opportunity to strike and, at a crucial moment, send troops to Solent City to disrupt Heris's rear."

Lin Mengdao.

He couldn't beat Marquis Heris, but he could easily take on the viscounts and barons under his command.

Even if they can't take over the territory, they can still weaken the power of the Sunrise Group.

"Sir, we..."

Noah looked at the order given by Lin Meng with a complicated expression.

Lin Meng understood Noah's predicament.

Although the Wildebeest Knights are his main cavalry force, it would be asking too much of them to cooperate with him in attacking his own territory.

He walked over and patted Noah on the shoulder: "Once the expedition is confirmed, you will stay behind in Thorntown. I will then entrust my rear to you."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will go through fire and water for you. I will stand with you as long as the city stands."

Seeing that he did not need to accompany the army, Noah stood up and gave Lin Meng a knightly salute.

"Alright, all units shall enter a state of combat readiness effective immediately."

"Yes."

……

The real world.

During his meal, Lin Meng made a special call to Nero: "Are you sure you don't need me to come over and help?"

"Your new recruits are not very useful on the main battlefield. I estimate that the people from the Rising Sun Group want to play big this time and determine the ownership of the two countries with a major battle."

Nero paused, then continued, "Other squads will definitely join this war. You need to protect yourself now. I'll ask for your help if needed... There's one thing you should be aware of. I think Farrell won't let this opportunity to deal with you slip by. I even suspect that he was behind the assassination attempt at Solent Harbor."

"Okay, I'll be careful."

Lin Meng nodded.

"The company still has some issues with you because of the contract. You need to produce some results as soon as possible to show the company your abilities."

Nero said.

"clear."

After Lin Meng finished speaking, he vaguely sensed someone knocking rapidly on his door in the Wizarding World, so he said, "Something seems to have happened in the Wizarding World. I'll go over there first."

"Okay, go ahead and get busy."

……

"What happened?"

Lin Meng opened the door and saw Eileen and a maid standing outside.

"According to the spies, Count Farrell, along with two of his four top knights and more than two thousand men from the Sunset Legion, is heading straight for Thorn Town. They have probably already passed Lake Gar."

Upon seeing Lin Meng emerge, Eileen hurriedly reported.

"They really came."

Lin Meng's expression turned serious: "Can you find out approximately how many knight-level experts there are?"

"It cannot be confirmed at the moment, but judging from the troop deployment, it is expected to reach more than ten people."

Eileen said with a heavy expression.

"Ten Knights."

Ten knights, plus two top-tier knights and Farrell himself, a high-ranking knight...

Thorntown's forces are absolutely no match for them in a direct confrontation.

"Can you help with Marquis Alfonso?"

"Eileen asked."

"His troops are already being moved to the border area, and he can't spare the time. Besides, even if he were willing to help, it would be too late."

Lin Meng shook his head: "We still have to get through this on our own."

"I'll go and gather them here right now to discuss countermeasures."

After speaking, Eileen bowed to Lin Meng and then withdrew.

After Eileen left, Lin Meng couldn't help but think of a solution.

After a long pause, he slowly said, "The key to breaking this deadlock still lies with Farrell. The relationship between Marquis Alfonso and me has been the subject of much discussion lately. If Farrell dies, with the help of Marquis Alfonso, the knights and subordinates in his territory may not necessarily fight me to the death."

Thinking of this, Lin Meng touched the ring in his pocket, feeling a little more confident.

(End of this chapter)