"Please think again, Lord Sebastian. This time is really not suitable to start a war." The manager Malone suddenly stood up from his seat, supported the conference table with both hands, and said sincerely Looking at the overly young lord in front of him, he firmly expressed his different opinions, "Thanks to you and Lady Isabel, the construction of the town has gone very smoothly, and all planned plans are on track. At this juncture, It would be a pity if the opportunity to vigorously develop the economy is delayed because of the war!"
"Relax, my dear Malon." The young lord smiled and pressed his hand, "I can understand your feelings about the territory. After all, you watched it being built up bit by bit with your own eyes. But, as a Lord, I want more. Everyone, both this city and myself need a lot of resources to develop rapidly. But resources will not come out of nothing, they need to be obtained with our own hands. Come on. I said this, do you understand?"
"I understand what you mean, sir. But sir, unlike last time, we are taking the initiative this time. Raising troops, supplying troops over long distances, distributing military pay the military expenses are quite large. Unless we can cleanly solve the problem of the old man Grabo, and indeed get replenishment from his treasury, otherwise once the earl forcibly intervenes in mediation like last time, I doubt whether the compensation we can obtain is enough to cover the expenses." As a qualified steward, once The lord made a decision, and Malon no longer struggled too much, but turned to thinking about more practical preparations, "And in fact. Once we take action, Old Grabo will definitely summon the militia as quickly as possible. , and even spend a lot of money to hire mercenary groups and adventurers from other counties. If it really comes to that point, he will not leave it to us in the treasury even if he spends all the money."
"Count Kaliman is Lord Baron's lord. But he is not mine. Therefore, unless he intends to completely fall out with me, he has no right to forcibly terminate my private actions. This possibility is very small, and I will do it again. What can we do to ensure that the probability of it appearing is infinitely close to zero? What is more likely is that Count Kaliman will put pressure on the Baron and prompt him to speak to me." Sebastian knocked thoughtfully On the table, his eyes turned to the family martial arts chief on the other side of the long table, "What we need to ensure is that the dust settles before this scene occurs. Then. Mr. Arati, I leave it to you to convene and train the militia. I need They are not an extremely powerful army, but they must be able to hold up enough scenes and know how to deal with the aftermath. The most important thing is to do it as soon as possible, so fast that no mercenary group has enough time to intervene."
"If this is the case, three or five days of high-intensity training is enough to cope with most situations. But in this way, the combat effectiveness of this team can basically be ignored." Alati reported expressionlessly , "Fortunately, according to Miss Isabel and your request. Some time ago, I have expanded and organized the standing guard team. The newly added guards are organized into teams of ten, with the veteran team members serving as captains; the ten teams are organized into A squadron of 100 people can form a basic battle formation unit. Currently, we have two fully equipped infantry squadrons, most of whom are proficient in using bows and arrows. In addition, we also have five light cavalry squads that can serve as Scouts, messengers, or some sneak attacks and pursuits, if necessary. They can also carry out low-intensity charges."
"I don't want to see that scene." Old Malone shook his head. "My martial arts master, they are not riding specially trained war horses. They are just ordinary riding horses. If they are frightened, they will only become a mess."
"So I have said it, if it is really necessary."
"It's not just a matter of horses. Having said that, two adults, because the number of people in the escort team is large this time, considering the funding, it is really unrealistic to follow the same standards as last time." Old Malone said seriously. , "The price of weapons is hard to keep down, but for armor, I got a load of metal rings through the Joint Chamber of Commerce. The price is reasonable and the most important thing is that the other party allowed us to defer payment. Our people assembled them into mail armor by themselves. , although it took a lot of time and labor, it did save a lot. But even so, we still owed a lot of debt. The cost of building the city, land replacement, resettlement of the people, renovation of the temple area and the obelisk , plus this fee, most of the territory¡¯s income in the next two years will probably be used to pay off debts.¡±
There was some silence in the room. Many people saw the elegant Miss Isabel moving her body unnaturally.
"It's okay, Malone." Sebastian smiled and comforted, "When we annex the Grabo family's territory, all this will pay off."
"Although the number of escorts is a bit smaller, the positionIf we fight, I have full confidence in defeating him. Isabel said softly, "The only thing I'm worried about is that if the situation goes bad, the old guy may immediately retreat to the castle to guard it." The Grabo family's black rock castle has been run by generations and is not easy to break. Our people have little experience in sieges, and siege weapons are difficult to transport. If he is really allowed to hold out until Earl Kaliman intervenes, I'm afraid my father won't be able to delay it for too long. "
"Since I proposed this troop dispatch, I will do my part. Please rest assured." Sebastian glanced at the people in the conference room and said seriously, "Then everyone, please step up. Let's take action. I need to rush back to Sorens City. Within a week, I will be back. I hope that by that time, I will see an army ready to go."
"As you wish, my lord."
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Soon after, a phantom horse riding like a deep black mist drove the young knight out of the castle and flew straight towards the city of Solens at an incredible speed.
The next day, a notice calling for militiamen was erected in the center of the square in Toft City, which was read aloud by a designated person. One team of messengers carried the scrolls and traveled around reading, while another team dispersed and went to various villages.
The execution officials set up the venue and prepared to register the registered citizens. Several veterans of the escort team also assisted, helping to organize and command the militia team.
The news spread very quickly, and before sunset, everyone in Toft had heard about the conscription.
"Have you heard? Our beautiful young lady seems to be planning to make some big move!" In the tavern, a drunken man mysteriously whispered to his companions.
"Your message is too slow, Bieber." His partner replied dismissively, "I tell you, the eldest lady will definitely call back this time!"
"Where are you going to call back?"
"That goes without saying! Who else can be the old enemy of us Salanvanians?"
"Ah! You mean the Grabo family?"
"I think it's close to ten."
"Then I have to sign up quickly." The man seemed to wake up a lot all of a sudden, and he stood up unsteadily holding on to the table, "That old guy lost the battle last time, this time we will definitely win. I heard one of the baron's guards show off that after the last battle, the reward given by the eldest lady was so generous. I can't miss the opportunity this time."
"Really? Wait, I'll go too!"
¡¡¡¡
"Duka, have you heard? As long as you voluntarily join the lord's miserable and hopeless team and kill an enemy, you can break away from your status as a slave and become a free citizen again. If you can kill more enemies, you can also help others recover. Freedom!¡±
"Really? Who did you listen to? Is the news confirmed?" The strong man with dark skin and deep scars on his face suddenly stood up.
"A lot of people have gathered over there in the square. Everyone said so, so there shouldn't be anything wrong. And having said that, Lady Isabel doesn't seem to be someone who doesn't keep her word. What happened last time, we were That bastard Anderson is in trouble! Otherwise, you have also seen that people in several other villages with similar situations to us lived in new houses without spending a single coin. Guys who have saved a few money still buy After losing his identity as a citizen, he suddenly became arrogant. Sigh I wish I had listened to the village chief."
"Don't mention it again We are blind and can't blame others." The dark-skinned man sighed, "We are pretty good, at least we have no arms or legs. Wulin and the others are the unlucky ones. Well, I happened to stop in front of the martial arts master on the watchtower You didn't see it with your own eyes, but I couldn't eat for two days in a row, and I couldn't help but vomit when I saw the color red."
"Let's go too. If we're lucky, we might be able to help Wulin and the others."
"You're right. I'm going to find Smito right now and ask him to vouch for us. Otherwise, we won't be able to sign up." The strong man named Duka hurriedly walked out.
"Well, then I'll ask other people what they think. If there are more people, we can all take care of it together."
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Similar scenes are happening all over Toft. People's response to this troop dispatch seemed to be more positive than Old Malone expected.