Knight with Wand

As the armies withdrew, the smoke of gunpowder disappeared and the Wachterburg returned to peace.

In the reception room of the castle, Baron Gunnar looked uncomfortably at the enemy he had fought for more than ten years: "I didn't expect that one day I would sit at the same 'table' with you."

Elliver leaned back in his chair comfortably, and smiled with a relaxed look: "Really? If I remember correctly, more than two months ago, we sat at the same table in the general camp of Mamor and cursed each other."

The Lord of the Thorn Flower still remembered the proud look of the other party when he got Ledingburg.

It's just that the situation has changed. After taking over the "Acherburg" with a population of nearly 20,000, Elliver looked at the "Ledingburg" of the Viper Baron Dawson, and the small town of two or three thousand people was simply not worth mentioning.

"This is a metaphor! You Faroris still claim to be cultured." Baron Gunnar snorted coldly.

"Only cultured people would not use such inappropriate metaphors." Elifer shrugged: "Let's get back to the point, Lord Gunnar, our time is precious, and I have to rush back to Glade County as soon as possible to take charge of the situation."

"Is my son still here?"

"Canis? I haven't seen him much, but he should have gone to Longka or Selva with my vassal."

Since the Farolis family would save Canis, Baron Grey Wolf was not worried about the safety of his eldest son. He glanced at the door and turned his head to say seriously: "Are your people reliable? I don't want others to know that I have been here."

"Don't worry, the nobles of the royal party will not know that the head wolf of Wolfenhall actually came to secretly "flirt" with the remnants of the former king." Elifer joked sarcastically.

Gunnar was disgusted by Elifer's sarcastic remarks and frowned.

But he had to ask for help, so he could only pinch his nose and try to express his proposal.

Listening to Gunnar's words, Elifer's mocking expression gradually became serious.

After some probing, the Lord of the Thorn Flower had a plan in mind.

"I can help you, but the return from the Wolf Family is not enough to match the benefits you will get. That little money can't buy the rich land you will get." Elliver waved his hand and asked Sir Marcelo behind him to spread the map on the table.

"Do you want to take back the territory that was cut off from the Wolf Territory sixteen years ago?" Gunnar frowned. He would never agree to this. The Wolf Family has been operating here for more than ten years. How could they spit out the land they have eaten?

"If possible, I would like to drive you all back to your hometown in Farayel Territory." Elliver shook his head and pointed to the map: "But I don't have the energy to fight with you now. The land south of the Nightmare Forest is very vast. I have been entangled and bound by the grievances of the past for many years, which has already annoyed me."

He was further west of Aiken Village west of Longka, close to the southwest edge of the Wolf Territory, and drew a vertical line straight down, running straight through the Nightmare Forest.

"All the forest areas east of this line belong to the Thorn Flower family. The Gunnar family must write to the king and promise that they will never touch the new territory opened up by the Faroris family. I have no control over the areas west of that. You and the other lords of Kosos can do it on your own." Elifer retracted his finger and unceremoniously assigned one-third of the Nightmare Forest in the east to himself.

The big appetite of the Thorn Flower Baron made Gunnar raise his eyebrows: "You are dreaming, Lord Faroris, why don't you take a closer look at where this line starts?

The Thorn Flower family wants to enclose land from the southern end of the Wolf Territory? Do you want the territory that the Gunnar family has conquered in the south to become an enclave?"

"What does the enclave have to do with? The Wolf Territory of the Gunnar family in Kosos County and your hometown in Farayer are also enclaves." Elifer said fearlessly.

"Can the territory of Orland be compared with that of the territory outside? If the Wolf family's territory outside cannot be connected, how can I transport supplies and troops if I encounter an attack by the Kantardars? Do I have to ask you to borrow the road every time? Your Excellency is very calculating." Gunnar said dissatisfiedly.

"You can go further west. The forest west of this line is still unowned land. What if the shape of the territory is slightly turned?" Elliver smiled.

"Further west? You want the Wolf family to go to the south of Baron Flagg to encircle the land?" Baron Gray Wolf was almost laughing.

Asking him to seize territory in the south of the royal party's allies, is the Wolf family openly betraying the royal party because they have nothing better to do?

"Sir Gunnar, you are begging me, not me. I have given the conditions of the Thorn Flower Family. I will not force you to choose. If the Gunnar Family has the ability, they can open a road in the forest to the south. But I will not let you pass my road in advance."

Eliver leaned back in his chair with a smile, pointed at the armrest and said, "If you are willing to wait for half a month and take the Thorn Flower Family's road with the Kingdom's army, I will definitely not stop you at that time."

Hearing this, Gunnar stood up with his fists clenched, as if he was so angry that he almost left.

But the Lord of the Wolf Territory clearly weighed the gains and losses in his head, and finally sat down slowly.

When attacking with the army, it is not certain how much land can be obtained from each lord when the territory is distributed.

The Wolf Family has taken a lot of advantages in Mamor County. It is impossible for the royal party to always give all the benefits to the Wolf Territory. After all, the Thorn Flower Family now controls the pass, and the royal party does not need the Wolf Family to "charge" against Baron Farolis.

Gunnar complained, "You are such a greedy guy. Even if you take over Glade County, you still can't be satisfied? You still want to occupy such a large forest. Do you have so many people to open up the forest?"

"The Wolf Family doesn't need to worry about this. As for greed? Isn't it because of you that the Thorn Flower Family is like this today? How many concessions has the Farolis Family made? You can press on as usual, but I don't need to retreat this time." Elifer sneered. When he was young, he inherited a broken family business and watched in humiliation as the royal party nobles cut up the ancestral territory piece by piece. Now blame him for greed? He hasn't settled accounts with the royal party yet.

Baron Gunnar said nothing more, looked down at the map, and gradually fell into deep thought.

Elifer waited patiently with a blank expression

After a long time, Baron Thorn Flower got a satisfactory answer.

"Okay, but after the Wolf Army goes south, you must ensure the passage and safety of my army and supplies in your southern territory. If you do anything, I will not only give up my southern land, but also bring the war to the Thorn Flower Territory."

"No need to threaten. Even if we have a grudge, even a lion will share water with its prey when it is thirsty." Elifer smiled.

But both he and Gunnar understood that it was because the "lion" was not hungry.

Of course, Elifer did not intend to let Gunnar's army go to Selvadong to borrow the road.

He pointed to Aiken Village at the southeast end of Wolf Territory: "From Aiken Village in your territory, clear the forest to the south, build a road to connect to my road, march south quickly, and you can reach Kantadar in less than a day."

"What? Your road is so close to Wolf Territory?"

"Yes, it is so close. My army has occupied the checkpoint in the forest. If you don't want your army to be trapped in the forest, let your wolf cubs be honest when passing through." Elifer did not hide the location of the ancient road in the forest. This road could not be hidden either. It would soon welcome countless kingdom armies traveling between the front and the rear.

Gunnar looked at the pointed location in surprise, and understood something in his heart: "You ordered people to invade Wolf Territory before, it turned out to be to hide this marching road."

"Invasion? I don't want to repeat it. The Thorn Flower Family has never ordered people to invade Wolf Territory. It was your good son who attacked first. Do you still want to talk about so-called witchcraft? Then I hope your army will not be scared by the ancient ancestors of my Thorn Flower Family in the forest."

Eliver shook his head. He had bought the corpse of the undead moved by the Wolf Family after the arbitration meeting that day. Although he couldn't recognize the specific person, considering the traces left by the curse in the forest now, it should be a Thorn Flower ancestor who entered the cursed land.

"If it wasn't you who seized the Wolf Territory village, how could Canis..." Gunnar said halfway and paused.

Thinking carefully, now that he knew that the warlock Met was colluding with foreign spies, Gunnar suddenly felt a little strange about the content of the letters he had exchanged with his eldest son before.

It was well known that foreign enemies were instigating a civil war among the lords of Kossos County. He could not help but plan to confirm the contents of the previous correspondence after returning to Wolfenhall.

And the suspicious eunuch beside General Trosa

April 15, 673 of the Orland Kingdom calendar.

For Selva, Longka, Pleton, and even all the surrounding villages and towns, this was an exceptionally sunny spring day.

The war clouds that shrouded the Thorn Flower Territory dissipated.

The brief conflict between Farolis and Gunnar ended, and the army assembled in Longka will gradually disband and return home.

Although defending the local area and the homeland is the obligation of the armed people of the territory, there is no salary to speak of.

But all the young and strong men of the three territories who participated in the war and did not escape received a considerable post-war reward.

Even the soldiers who did not kill the enemy received at least 15 silver nalers from the distribution of spoils as military pay for this battle.

For ordinary tenants in Pleton and Longka, this amount of money was enough to save up after two years of hard work.

Even for the conscripts who died in battle, Leon would arrange for the guards to deliver the military pay and additional death compensation to their relatives door to door, and bury their bodies properly.

As for the warriors who verified the number of killed enemies, they could get extra generous bounties after recording the list.

This naturally did not miss the elite troops brought by Sir Redo. If it were not for the Duwana halberd veterans to contain the main force of the opponent, this battle might not have the opportunity to capture Canis.

Given that the number of soldiers under his command was not too large, Leon and his companions personally supervised the distribution of rewards and military pay.

The unexpected military pay and large bounties were actually received, and even the conscripts who were seriously injured and disabled in the medical camp were delighted.

Looking at the disabled patients who were grateful to him, Leon, as an earthling in the modern society of his previous life, could not help but sigh and feel ashamed.

This level of pension treatment, even if it has surpassed the general contract soldiers of the present world, can still be called cruel from his own perspective.

However, fortunately, he will not sit idly by and watch the future life of such seriously disabled soldiers. Families whose male members are unfortunately disabled due to fighting will be taken care of by the policies of the territory, just like families whose main breadwinners have died in battle.

There are not many seriously injured and surviving soldiers at present, and it seems simple to take care of them, but if there are larger-scale battles in the future, it will be a troublesome matter if there is no reasonable arrangement after the war.

As for letting them fend for themselves? Leon has never considered this option.

If it is so cold-blooded, how many people will fight for themselves in the future?

Things before and after death are both important parts of building a strong army.

Tax reduction, relief subsidies, shelter and care Leon recalled the various corresponding measures and detailed systems of the ancient dynasties in his previous life, and he needed to discuss it carefully with Azerien and others.

The young and strong men of Pleton were the first to disband and leave.

Afterwards, the young and strong team of Longka, except for retaining the minimum militia, was disbanded on the spot, abandoned their weapons and served the people. The old, weak, women and children of Longka returned to their homes that had been upgraded from "village" to "fortress", which were almost unrecognizable, and cleaned up the farmland that had been trampled and destroyed.

Fortunately, every household has young and strong people to participate in the war, and the income of Longka residents has increased greatly. This year's life will be more relaxed and worry-free than in previous years.

The last to leave were the Selva people.

After returning victorious with the veterans, Leon disbanded the conscripts and went home to recuperate, and Sir Redo also said goodbye to report to Lady Adelina.

The next day, after a simple rest for one night, Leon summoned everyone in the family to hold a meeting to discuss the affairs of the territory.

Around the long table in the hall on the first floor, Azerien, Lohak, Old Brian, Olivia, Corvis, and Elena sat down.

Leon first listened briefly to the report of Ms. Elena, who was entrusted as the housekeeper to supervise the affairs of the territory, on the situation in the territory when everyone was away from home to fight.

The progress of the Selva Barracks has only been about halfway through because the war was stopped for a time, but the barracks that have been built are enough to accommodate at least sixty or seventy soldiers for daily residence.

In addition, to Leon's surprise, the newly built East District of Selva has already earned a lot of income under the care of the baggage team and soldiers traveling in the woods, and this year's commercial taxes are expected to be collected a lot.

Finally, there are the hundreds of refugees from Aiken Village.

They set up a camp on the west side of the northern slope of Selva, and usually participate in the construction of barracks and towns as laborers in exchange for food and remuneration.

Leon planned to talk to the leader of these Aiken villagers from Wolf Territory and invite them to stay in Selva.

If someone insisted on returning to Aiken, Leon would not stop them, but he felt that no one would want to return there after hearing the bad news he brought.

In that small village, all the property that the villagers did not take away was looted, and there was nothing left in Aiken now.

Of course, the army of the Thorn Flower Family never set foot in Wolf Territory from beginning to end, and it was not Leon who looted the village.

And based on what Leon saw when he went to investigate with the scouts, he estimated that it was probably the rabble recruited by the Wolf Family, and perhaps even the soldiers of Wolfenhall were involved.

Now that they go back, the Aiken villagers will face a situation of being penniless, without livestock and poultry, and without a trace of property and food.

Wherever they go, they will start from scratch. Leon believes that he must be more merciful than the tax officials of Wolf Territory. It just so happens that Selva has a large piece of land to be divided, and it just happens to be short of people to farm.

As for the original Selva locals.

The morale of the local young and strong men fell into a strange and inexplicable excitement.

When I returned to the territory yesterday, when the barracks announced the disbanding of the army and the return of weapons and armor to the barracks arsenal, these young and strong men who had returned to the fields were visibly uncomfortable.

After the distribution of the first batch of ransoms, and now they have received spoils of war and military pay, the Selva people are rich.

The old soldiers who have money that they can't earn as farmers in their lifetime are not only not scared by the Battle of Longka, but they seem to have no intention of going home to farm.

This is not a problem.

Now that Selva has sufficient funds, complete weapons, and people's hearts are available, Leon doesn't mind training the Selva people into an elite standing army as soon as possible.

The problem is that the local young and strong men don't want to farm anymore, and someone has to farm the fields west of the territory.

People always need to eat. Last year, the Grey Shirt Valley Territory had a good harvest, and the markets in the south were not short of food. But if the harvest is bad and there is no food stored, then you have to spend many times more money to buy food.

The current Aiken villagers can just fill the labor gap left by the locals after they leave their jobs and join the army.

Discussing the territory affairs one by one, Leon looked at the territory's financial expenses summarized by Ms. Elena, and the military pay, food and pension expenses calculated by Azerien.

Since the last financial settlement, as of today, he has spent a total of about 700 gold crowns.

But looking at this huge expense, Leon did not feel panic.

Not to mention the weapons, armor and war horses worth more than 1,300 gold crowns seized in this battle.

He didn't know how to spend the 5,000 gold crowns reward for the title of Lord.

It was really a happy trouble.