NOVEL NEXT Chapter 12: Indifferent Neighbors
TL: Etude
“Everyone, get in formation!” As everyone stood stunned, it was Battalion Commander Bryce who reacted first. “You, go and gather all the companies from the camp.”
The soldiers, thanks to over half a month’s training, quickly arranged themselves in the usual formation, gripping their weapons tightly.
Bryce then assigned two people, ordering, “Escort the Count back to the castle.”
This command snapped the dazed Paul back to reality.
He loudly refused, “No, I want to stay here.”
Bryce didn’t have time to persuade him, focusing all his attention on the small boats on the lake that looked like pirates.
The boats on the lake gradually slowed down and eventually stopped a considerable distance from the shore. It seemed the pirates had noticed the island’s preparedness and knew it was not a good time to attack.
Thus, a tense standoff began, a suffocating tension slowly spreading among the troops.
It felt like a century had passed when suddenly Bryce raised his shield in front of Paul. Then, a “whoosh” was heard. By the light of the moon, they saw an arrow stuck in the ground not far ahead, with a white cloth attached to it.
Following this, the small boats on the water slowly retreated into the distance.
Once the suspicious boats had completely dispersed, Bryce loudly commanded, “Go get that arrow.”
…
“Outrageous!” Everyone saw the Count furiously slam a piece of cloth covered in tiny writing onto the table.
It was now confirmed that the suspicious boats were indeed pirates, probably planning to raid the town. Seeing the preparations on shore, they resorted to shooting over a letter with an arrow.
The letter read: “Grayman, you’d better be wise. We brothers are a bit short on funds lately, and the poor devils by the sea don’t have much money, so we’ve come to you for a bit of drinking money. Considering you’ve just lost your father and govern a desolate land, we won’t ask for much. But we do need around ten thousand in silver coins, or a few thousand will do in a pinch. The matter of pigs, cows, and sheep is up to you, but if you disappoint us, don’t expect to live in peace. You have one week, and we’ll come to collect. The price we’ve set is very reasonable. Just recently, we kidnapped someone from the Horn Bay Alliance…”
The letter ended abruptly there, likely due to lack of space, signed “The incomparably great, wise, brave, handsome, and all other flattering adjectives (though still insufficient), the Lord of the High Seas – Quik the First.”
After everyone read the letter, they exchanged looks. Battalion Commander Bryce stood up again to volunteer for battle: “Our troops are well-trained now and look quite formidable. They’re well-fed and strong, a significant improvement from the last time we fought pirates. It’s time for them to see some action.”
The other officers nodded in agreement.
Steward Ford objected, “I think we should be more cautious. Why not negotiate first? If we can lower their demands and temporarily send them away, it wouldn’t be a bad idea.”
Paul, clearly unhappy, felt negotiation was too humiliating. Besides, the recent military training had drained his funds.
“Have there been any responses to the call for help we sent out earlier?” he suddenly remembered.
Hearing this, Steward Ford’s face showed embarrassment. He instructed his subordinate to bring a thick stack of parchment to Paul, saying, “You’d better see for yourself.”
He picked up one letter, “My dear nephew Paul, it has been a long time since we corresponded. I am shocked to hear of your father’s passing. However, during these times of rebellion, I must guard my territory and dare not leave. I regret not being able to pay my respects in person…” The letter reeked of antiquated, pretentious noble rhetoric, full of empty phrases and avoiding a direct response to whether they would help or not. Paul glanced over it and tossed it aside.
Picking up another, it read, “To the young heir of the Grayman family, if you agree to become my vassal and swear allegiance to me, dealing with mere pirates will be trivial…” This was opportunism at its worst. He threw it away.
Then another, “Dear Paul, it’s just pirates, why worry so much? Once they’ve extorted enough money from the commoners, they’ll leave. ‘Let the strong be strong, let the violent be violent, just guard Lakeheart Town from the castle…’ ” This sounded like it came from someone else who had also traveled through time. Discarded.
Another letter stated, “Grayman, what you are doing is inappropriate. As a non-violent person, I advise you to open your doors and tell the pirates, ‘Come with your weapons of destruction, we will give you half our people to kill, and the other half will not submit…’” Such peacemakers were present in every world, it seemed. Discarded.
Yet another letter read, “My dear brother Paul, it’s not that I don’t want to help you. Recently, a damned royal representative came here, threatening and cajoling me. He took all the soldiers from my territory for conscription…” Paul glanced mockingly at Hansel, who was attending the meeting, and threw the letter away.
…
“These scoundrels, all unwilling to help in a crisis,” Paul realized after going through the pile of useless letters why Steward Ford advocated negotiating with the pirates.
After much consideration, he finally agreed to the officers’ request to wage war against the pirates.
…
“Lord Count, gentlemen, first we need to grasp the pirates’ movements, so we need to disperse the cavalry for reconnaissance, especially along both sides of the Weiss River…”
“The pirates have just arrived, they couldn’t have gone far overnight…”
“Call back two companies from the new recruits training camp…”
“We need to leave some people to defend Lakeheart Town…”
Everyone gathered around a medieval-style, disproportionately scaled map of the territory, pointing and discussing the battle plan.
The decision was made to leave the internal security troops and one infantry company to defend Lakeheart Town. The remaining three companies would assemble and advance along the Vis River towards the coast, seeking to settle the score with the pirates.
After finalizing the plan and arranging for increased patrols and vigilance, everyone dispersed to rest.
After a night of turmoil, the pirates’ “divine assistance” inadvertently confirmed that the Alda territory was indeed inconvenient for deploying troops. This shut up Hansel, who was to stay here for a long time. Without dealing with these brazen pirates who dared attack the lord’s residence, he couldn’t expect a peaceful stay.
Waking up, Paul received reports that pirate traces had been found. They hadn’t gone far, likely looking to raid a nearby unguarded village.
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