Chapter 101: The North Soqya Frontline
Standing on the coast of the Lanwan Isthmus, gazing at the endless expanse of sails that blotted out the sky for days, Charlotte sighed from the bottom of her heart: what a wonderful thing it was to have a group of wealthy relatives.
Her maternal grandfather, despite his rebellion, had not forgotten his promise to Charlotte. He dispatched a fleet to deliver all the manpower and resources he had pledged to support her.
These resources included: one hundred adult giant eagles, one hundred giant eagle chicks, thirty eagle trainers, approximately ten thousand "bituo" of grain – "bituo" being the Oran Empire's unit for measuring grain, which Charlotte estimated to be roughly equivalent to one hundred liters, though certainly not precise – as well as refined iron, medicinal herbs, cotton and linen, birch wood, ash wood, and so on.
Ash wood was commonly used in the Oran Empire for making long spears, while birch wood was favored for crafting shields.
In addition to this, there were three hundred thousand Fuso in currency.
These goods and personnel filled over a hundred cargo ships, their vessels stretching along a considerable length of the coastline.
"It is my honor to meet you, Miss Charlotte," a young man with golden hair bowed to Charlotte in greeting.
"I am also very pleased to meet you, Baron Brodel," Charlotte replied with a curtsy.
The young man's name was Lucien Brodel, the commander of the fleet sent by Ethel Holovin.
By relation, Charlotte and Lucien were also kin; Lucien's father was the younger brother of Helen's mother. Given Charlotte's sociable nature, she would have normally addressed Lucien as "cousin." Unfortunately, Lucien was a "legitimate illegitimate son," and thus, he was not afforded this honor. This wasn't Charlotte looking down on him, but rather an unspoken rule within aristocratic circles.
"You certainly should be pleased. His Majesty the King's gift is truly generous," Lucien joked.
Charlotte shrugged and said, "I didn't expect Grandfather to remember such a small matter concerning me amidst his busy wartime affairs."
"Miss Charlotte, you are His Majesty's most beloved junior. How could His Majesty forget about your matters?" Lucien stated.
Charlotte smiled without responding directly, instead saying, "I have prepared a banquet in the castle. I insist you honor me with your presence."
"That would be most appreciated," Lucien said with a smile. "I've truly had my fill of fish on this journey."
Lucien was not like David Bennett; Charlotte couldn't simply accept the supplies and send him on his way.
At the banquet, Charlotte inquired about the war in the Gatu Kingdom.
Lucien, with animated excitement, told Charlotte that the Gatu Kingdom's army was advancing very smoothly and had already captured the strategically important military town of Maxta. With Maxta taken, the entire Byron region was now open to Ethel.
As one of the Oran Empire's largest grain-producing regions, the Byron region's importance to the imperial family was self-evident. If Ethel could seize the Byron region in one fell swoop, he would undoubtedly hold a superior position in the future war.
"There is something Miss Charlotte might not know yet," Lucien said, a strange smile suddenly appearing on his face.
"What is it?" Charlotte asked curiously.
"That Henry Holovin, on the very day of his (harmonious) enthronement, publicly declared his intention to strip the Duke of Green Plains of his title and govern the Green Plains Duchy under imperial rule," Lucien said.
"Huh? Is this true?" Charlotte thought her ears were deceiving her.
"Yes, absolutely true," Lucien nodded.
"Heh... that fellow must have lost his mind," Charlotte shook her head, speechless. She wasn't angry at all; rather, she found it amusing.
Who was qualified to be the Duke of Green Plains? On this topic, Charlotte's grandfather, Karl Mellerfield, could speak; her great-uncle, Perode Mellerfield, could speak; Jose Mellerfield could speak; Philip Mellerfield could speak; Andre Mellerfield could speak; and she, Charlotte Mellerfield, could also speak…
But did the Oran Imperial Family have the right to speak?
In their dreams!
What was the Imperial Family's surname? Holovin.
The Green Plains Duchy belonged to the Mellerfields!
Throughout the entire Green Plains Duchy, from top to bottom, every important position was held by a member of the Mellerfield family or a relative of the Mellerfields.
The successive Dukes of Green Plains ruled not so much a duchy as they did a clan of Mellerfields.
You Holovins, by what right do you presume to govern us Mellerfields? Just because you are the Imperial Family?
Smaller families might defer to the Imperial Family, but the Mellerfield family certainly would not. In terms of historical lineage and family honor, the Mellerfields were not much inferior to the Holovins. If the Imperial Family insisted on forcefully trampling the Mellerfield family underfoot, then even Pacino Mellerfield, the young knight Charlotte had just dispatched to garrison Ambratu County, would unhesitatingly express his dissatisfaction with the new Emperor.
Henry clearly hadn't grasped the difference between major nobles of the "Two Kings, Two Dukes, One Marquis" rank and minor nobles before presumptuously attempting to strip Jose Mellerfield of his title. It would only result in a farce.
Charlotte dared to assert that even if Henry's decree to strip the Duke of Green Plains of his title reached Riverside Castle, her father would merely laugh it off as childish antics, toss it aside, and continue being the Duke of Green Plains. The entire Green Plains Duchy would also continue to operate as usual – even Count Perode, who was most dissatisfied with her father, would not possibly use Henry's decree as a reason to rebel.
"His Majesty Henry probably has only one way to strip my father of his title: to use his army to flatten the Green Plains Duchy and then send everyone surnamed Mellerfield to the gallows."
Charlotte quipped.
"Haha, that usurper (harmonious) probably won't have the chance to flatten the Green Plains Duchy," Lucien laughed heartily. "In at most three months, His Majesty Ethel will be able to break into Platinum City and ascend the imperial throne."
Break into Platinum City in three months?
Charlotte looked at Lucien, whose face was etched with optimism, and couldn't shake the feeling that this timeframe was rather inauspicious.
Soqya Peninsula, Little Sassinian City-State.
Initially, David and his fleet stationed at Swordfish Island did not attract the attention of the Little Sassinians. After all, David's fleet consisted of only twelve ships, ten of which were single-decker oared warships. This military strength was inferior even when compared to Little Sassinian's naval power.
The Little Sassinian fleet had over twenty twenty-oared Soqyan warships. These warships were comparable in size to the Oran Empire's single-decker oared warships and even had an advantage in speed.
Moreover, Oran Empire warships had always been stationed at the mouth of Lanwan Bay, though previously they were on Clam Island, closer to the imperial coast. Now they had merely relocated to Swordfish Island in the center of the bay's entrance.
It wasn't until Lucien arrived with a fleet of over a hundred cargo ships, sailing majestically, that the Little Sassinians' nerves became taut.
In this era, the line between cargo ships and warships was not strictly defined. While some warships might have rams, large cargo ships also possessed considerable combat capability in boarding actions.
"Our merchant ships were inspected by the Swordfish Island fleet yesterday!"
In the Little Sassinian Council of Elders, a middle-aged elder spoke loudly.
"An inspection is just an inspection. It's not like we lost anything. They not only allowed us passage but also didn't charge us any tolls."
A young elder said dismissively.
"Allowing passage now doesn't mean they will in the future! Those naval officers who inspected us already said that the new Viscount of Swordfish Island is that Viscount of Lanwan. Don't forget that the Viscount of Lanwan has a precedent for blockading the Lanwan Isthmus!" the middle-aged elder retorted.
"That's just your own speculation. The previous blockade of the Lanwan Isthmus was because the Viscount of Lanwan had a conflict with Ambratu. We don't have any conflict with the Viscount of Lanwan, so why would she blockade the entrance to Lanwan Bay?" The young elder still disagreed.
Apo sat silently in a corner of the Council of Elders, observing the heated debate.
The middle-aged elder was named Pishos, and the young elder was named Matt.
As the debate continued, Matt gradually lost ground. Evidently, Charlotte's annexation of Ambratu and her continuous amassing of troops on the border had touched a sensitive nerve among the Little Sassinians. The concerns pointed out by Pishos resonated with more elders.
"I propose that Little Sassinian join the North Soqya Frontline to counter the aggressive posture of the Viscount of Lanwan," Pishos finally said.
"What are you saying!" Matt was so shocked he slammed the table and stood up.
The North Soqya Frontline was a creation of Elder Cleon of Fidi more than a month ago.
After Charlotte annexed Ambratu, Cleon was sent to negotiate with Charlotte. As a result, he achieved nothing and was so frightened by the sudden arrival of griffins that he wet his pants. On his return journey, the more Cleon thought about it, the more unwilling and humiliated he felt, and so a plan formed in his mind.
He traveled back and forth between the six city-states in northern Soqya – including Little Sassinian – intending to form an alliance, launch a joint military expedition, and seize Ambratu while Charlotte was unprepared. This alliance was called the North Soqya Frontline.
However, most of the six city-states were reluctant to offend the Oran Empire and worried about excessive war losses. Despite Cleon's efforts, only Dolrcocha and another small city-state named Sudaman joined the North Soqya Frontline, and thus the plan to seize Ambratu came to nothing.
Pishos's current proposal to join this North Soqya Frontline clearly indicated he harbored intentions of going to war with the Lanwan Viscountcy.
"Do you know that the Lanwan Viscountcy has griffins!" Matt glared at him. "Do you want our citizen-soldiers to go to their deaths?"
"Ambratu and Swordfish Island have already become like a pair of pincers clamping down on Little Sassinian. Are we supposed to sit idly by and wait for doom?" Pishos also stood up. "Besides, facing griffins, our citizen-soldiers are not without a chance of victory! Elder Apo, wouldn't you agree?"
By virtue of his military achievement of almost wiping out the Ambratu city-state, Apo had been elected to the Council of Elders by the fervent citizens of Little Sassinian.
After entering the Council of Elders, Apo rarely expressed his opinions on public affairs, most of the time sitting silently in a corner like a wooden puppet. Only when absolutely necessary would he say a few words – like now, when he was specifically called upon.
Apo crossed his arms and pondered for a moment before saying, "Fidi's citizen-soldiers once fought against the griffins of the Kingdom of Lethalia and achieved a minor victory."
Apo neither confirmed nor denied, but his words, when heard by Pishos, were interpreted as agreement.
"You see, Elder Matt, don't overestimate our opponents," Pishos said, holding his head high. "If we hadn't defeated Ambratu's main citizen-soldier force back then, the Viscount of Lanwan would never have had the chance to annex Ambratu. We defeated Ambratu, so we can also defeat the Viscount of Lanwan!"
Encouraged by Pishos, the Council of Elders passed the proposal to join the North Soqya Frontline almost unanimously. For a time, the scent of war began to permeate Little Sassinian once more.
After the meeting adjourned, Matt and Apo walked out of the Council of Elders side by side.
"Mr. Apo, why did you support Elder Pishos's proposal?" Matt complained.
Apo shook his head: "I didn't vote in favor of Pishos; I abstained."
Since entering the Council of Elders, Apo had abstained from every vote, and today was no different.
Matt was somewhat surprised upon hearing this: "But you said the citizen-soldiers could defeat the griffins..."
"I was merely stating a very old battle example," Apo suddenly sighed helplessly. "In the Council of Elders now, what can I say?"
Matt looked at the gloom on Apo's face, opened his mouth, but didn't know how to comfort him.
Apo's current situation was very awkward. After he was elected as an elder with almost unanimous support, a rumor suddenly began to spread within the Little Sassinian city-state: Apo should become the city-state's dictator!
The first time he attended a Council of Elders meeting, an observing citizen asked him if he was going to become dictator.
Apo hurriedly and publicly stated that he would not become a dictator, nor did he want to become one.
But the rumors continued to circulate…
To this day, the turmoil had not completely subsided.
Clearly, someone was intentionally slandering Apo, aiming to prevent the highly respected Apo from gaining control of power in the Council of Elders through his prestige.
Apo, at the center of the vortex, knew that whatever he said could be over-interpreted, so he had no choice but to remain silent.
"On the contrary, it's you," Apo patted Matt's shoulder and smiled, "You were the first in the Council of Elders to remind everyone to be wary of the Viscount of Lanwan and not to oppose letting the Viscount of Lanwan ransom the Ambratu prisoners of war. Why are you now speaking well of the Viscount of Lanwan again?"
"I'm not speaking well of the Viscount of Lanwan; I just don't want the relationship between Little Sassinian and the Lanwan Viscountcy to deteriorate," Matt looked up at the gloomy sky, then explained to Apo: "I visited the Lanwan Viscountcy three times. Although I couldn't meet the Viscount of Lanwan on the latter two occasions, every time I went to the Lanwan Viscountcy, I felt that the land had become a bit more prosperous. The efficient order and energetic populace there left a deep impression on me."
"I always feel that this Viscount of Lanwan is no ordinary person, quite different from us elders and the nobles I've met before. If possible, I don't want Little Sassinian to be her enemy." As he spoke, Matt gave a wry smile and shook his head. "However, it's meaningless to say these things now. The Council of Elders has already made its decision. Mr. Apo, please tell me truthfully, do we really have a chance of victory?"
This time, Apo frowned, pondered for a considerable time, and then said, "It's not impossible..."