“This… this is outrageous. My apologies. I had no idea that the young master of House Templeton was present here. Please accept my sincere apologies.”
His demeanor hinted that he was more worried about offending the Templeton Household than Raul, a viscount.
“Enough. Just explain your purpose quickly.”
The observer took a deep breath and turned to Raul, retrieving a scroll from his robe.
“What’s that?”
“It’s the Royal Court’s mediation proposal.”
Whoosh.
Raul unrolled the scroll roughly and read through it rapidly.
Twitch.
Raul’s eyebrow twitched slightly as he finished reading and handed the scroll over to Dalton.
“You know what this document says, right?”
“Of course. It’s why I rushed all the way here.”
Suddenly, Dalton’s face contorted with displeasure and made a sharp sound as he grasped the scroll.
“What kind of mediation proposal is this? It’s blatantly biased in favor of the barons!”
Here’s a rough summary of the mediation proposal:
Stop all further combat, given that the outcome has been decided. The Royal Court will recognize Raul as the legitimate lord of Bates, Francois, and Louisin territories. Release all captured barons, and under Royal Court mediation, agree on compensation for Raul’s casualties, thus concluding the territorial war.
How could it be meaningful to reaffirm Raul’s territory after the Royal Court already backed out of their previous endorsement during the transaction?
And with this latest decree, they wanted Raul to abandon all further claims to the barons’ territories, with only the promise of compensation for casualties.
Managing evacuated villagers, marshaling forces, hiring mercenaries, and military supplies had all cost extraordinary funds, and now they expected Raul to settle for only casualty compensation?
Raul’s irritation was clear.
“Do you know who proposed this mediation? If not, you don’t need to answer.”
Raul didn’t actually expect an answer; he asked out of sheer exasperation. Yet the observer replied confidently, “Consider it an honor. This mediation was directly issued by His Highness, the Third Prince of the kingdom! Such a generous and peaceful offer!”
‘Does this mere viscount think he can ignore a mediation proposal from the Third Prince?’
The observer’s smile widened slightly, thinking he had struck a blow to the unruly viscount by delivering an order from such high authority.
But he had no idea whom he was dealing with.
“I see. So that’s how it is.”
Nodding, Raul stood up and shouted.
“Break time is over. We need to reach the lord’s castle before sunset. Let’s hurry up!”
“Yes, Master.”
The commanders exited the tent swiftly, and Raul started rearming himself. The observer, left in the dust, looked around in dismay before shouting, “What do you think you’re doing!?”
“Hm? You haven’t left yet?”
“I asked what you think you’re doing!”
“What does it look like? We’re headed to end this war. Oh, do you need this?”
Raul threw the mediation scroll back at the observer.
“I was thinking of keeping it as a memento, but if you need it, take it.”
Crack.
The observer could be heard gritting his teeth.
“How dare you! Do you think you’ll get away with this!?”
As he pointed and yelled at Raul,
Zap.
‘Ugh…!’
The choking presence of the knights still in the tent made the observer nearly breathless.
Shing.
When the observer’s guard moved a hand to his sword hilt, “If you draw that, you’ll be dead before you can swing it.”
Josh, a cavalry commander present in the tent, scowled as he warned. The audacity of a mere baron to speak out against his master infuriated him, along with the observer’s underlings, who seemed barely of Expert level, daring to draw weapons.
Clearly outmatched from the start, the guards let their hands drop from the sword hilts, breaking out in cold sweat.
“What should we do with him, Master?”
“…Let him be. He’s just doing his duty. Prepare for departure.”
The tense atmosphere finally eased.
“Huff, huff.”
The observer, almost on the verge of collapse, managed to catch his breath with the help of his guards. Raul picked up the dropped scroll, his gaze icy cold.
“This mediation proposal is rejected. After all, there is a ‘law’ that states the lord has the final say on whether to accept mediation. Now leave.”
The observer glared at Raul one last time before turning away.
“Oh, and I apologize, but I’ll be keeping this scroll. It will make a meaningful keepsake.”
Raul had never intended to give it back. This mediation proposal would not only enrage Raul but also the local lords. Essentially, it was a veiled threat demanding submission to the Royal Court’s will, no matter how adverse the terms were.
‘If necessary, this will become a valuable card.’
The mediation proposal, bearing the Third Prince’s signature, could soon prove useful. Thus, the royal observer left Raul’s camp without achieving any resolution, and Raul’s army approached the lord’s castle without facing much resistance.
*
“Hmm. Are they seriously planning to resist?”
As Raul muttered this, staring at the firmly shut castle gate, it slightly opened, and a messenger waving a white flag emerged.
“They want to negotiate!”
It appeared that Baron Brock’s son had taken over in his father’s absence, seeking a peaceful resolution. Considering the observer and his entourage had already entered the castle ahead of Raul’s army, they likely understood Raul’s intentions.
Thud.
Raul set the scroll down and asked,
“So, you’re saying if I release the baron and withdraw my forces, you’ll offer compensation and cede part of the territory?”
The proposed ransom seemed reasonable, but the land they offered was only 1/20th of the barony’s size and practically abandoned.
“Yes. The acting lord desires a peaceful resolution.”
Raul chuckled.
“Peace seems to be quite popular these days. They should’ve thought of that before starting this war. What if I refuse?”
The messenger, his voice slightly trembling, responded with a firm expression.
“T-Then you’ll have to face the 5,000 determined soldiers defending Brock Castle!”
“Hmm. Soldiers determined to fight to the death, you say.”
Raul glanced up at the castle walls. There were few properly armored soldiers, and the ones he saw were either elderly men over fifty or just-shaved teenagers holding wooden spears.
“It appears the acting lord might be a bit naive. Go back and inform him that we’ll discuss this face-to-face shortly. It shouldn’t take long.”
“W-Wait, hold on…”
“The Viscount asked you to leave!”
The messenger was dragged back by soldiers. Clicking his tongue, Raul spoke to Dalton.
“Has peace lasted too long? These lords seem to have lost their grasp of what war entails.”
“Indeed, having conducted nothing but mock battles under the Royal Court’s watch, they haven’t realized that times are changing.”
“They’ll understand soon enough. War is not a child’s plaything.”
Through these barons, Raul intended to send a clear message to other local lords: Don’t engage in unnecessary territorial wars.
‘I have other events to prepare for.’
Raul watched the humbled messenger reenter the castle and commanded,
“Surround the castle and ensure no one escapes. Power armor users, open the gate.”
With over twenty power armor users at his disposal, calling it a siege was almost laughable.
“Advance!”
As anticipated, the outcome was swift and one-sided. The power armor users, activating their power armors, leisurely approached the castle walls. Arrows launched from the walls proved entirely ineffectual.
Scaling the walls like seasoned rock climbers, the power armor users quickly neutralized a few knights and ignored the soldiers, heading straight for the gate to open it.
Thud, thud, thud.
With the gate opened, knights and cavalry poured into the castle, heading towards the lord’s manor, concluding the uneventful siege.
***
Imprisoning the lord’s family and securing the castle, Raul sat in the lord’s office, engaging in video communications with other divisions. Reports were coming in that the other five baronies had also been captured without much difficulty.
Three surrendered without a fight, while the barons’ families of the other two were caught fleeing with their treasures.
「What are your next steps, Master?」
Philip and the other commanders looked curious. They had heard about the Royal Court’s observer and the mediation proposal.
「As planned, we will annex all the baronies. Arrest the barons and any resistance, and transport them to Calix Castle. Secure and stabilize the villages and strongholds in each territory.」
Raul remained firm. He hadn’t broken any laws and had no intention of yielding to the Royal Court’s whims. The Third Prince acted like he was already king, but the future was uncertain.
「Yes, Master!」
Seeing Raul’s unwavering stance, his subordinates responded with relief.
「What should we do with the prisoners? Once we annex the territories, we won’t be able to ransom them. Shall we put them to work?」
The usual practice was to enslave or make prisoners work off their debt if they couldn’t pay their ransom. But Raul shook his head.
「You’ve all seen the lord’s castle, right? How many young men did you see inside?」
「Come to think of it, hardly any. The few on the walls were mostly middle-aged or elderly.」
「It seems the barons conscripted all the young men for this territorial war. What do you think will happen to the local economy if we put them to work? Release all conscripts and send them back to their homes. Of the soldiers, only accept volunteers, train them, and integrate them into our forces. Retire those who wish it.」
「Understood, Master.」
In Connect, people were more important than land. Given the vast but underpopulated continent, many lands remained undeveloped. The Gate Incident further reduced the population.
Raul’s efforts to spare common soldiers during the territorial war were precisely for this reason. He needed these people to become his subjects. What’s the point of harming those who would work for him?
‘If there had been a direct clash and the conscripts were wiped out, it would have taken ages to rebuild the territories.’
He couldn’t help but feel relieved. To run his territories effectively, he needed more civilians engaged in economic activities than soldiers. Players continually streamed in, able to replace soldiers, exacerbating power inflation.
Training soldiers would be futile.
「What about the barons?」
「Of course….」
All eyes turned to Raul.
「We’ll squeeze every last bit from them and then release them. I’d love to dispose of them, but I can’t go that far without consequences.」
Without special circumstances, nobles couldn’t kill other nobles without the king’s permission. Killing them during battle was one thing, but executing prisoners was another.
‘They’re not even worth killing.’
The fate of a baron who had lost his land, wealth, and followers was grim. Their backers might turn their backs on them as well. Who would support someone who fled and survived only by abandoning everything?
All they had left was to desperately cling to their noble titles, using whatever connections they had.
If they foolishly bore a grudge and tried something against Raul, ‘Then we’ll quietly eliminate them.’
Interest in them would fade over a few months, and dealing with them later wouldn’t be a problem. To be honest, Raul almost hoped the released barons would gather new backers and come at him again.
After all, there was a practical benefit to it.
「Send the recovered power armors to the workshop immediately. How many do we have?」
「There are ten power armor users. We’ve got two intact, seven repairable, and one completely destroyed.」
Thanks to Philip’s precise and controlled combat, the loot was quite impressive. In contrast, Jake’s more heavy-handed approach yielded five, while Pierce had seven, some of which were damaged due to penetration.
From Raul’s battlefield, they retrieved around forty—combining all, they had over sixty power armors from this campaign.
「Wow, this is amazing! A few more like this, and we’ll have everyone fully equipped.」
「Jake, if you’d smashed fewer, we could get there even quicker.」
「Aw, come on, commander. Didn’t you hear? There’s a famous saying: ‘People come first!’
To avoid casualties, I had no choice, you know?」
「Tsk. I’ve read the reports. When we return to Calix, be prepared for some intensive training.」
「Aw man, why is it always me….」
Jake grumbled, causing everyone to chuckle. With the battle safely concluded and the ample loot secured, everyone started to relax a bit.
「Finish up the cleanup as quickly as possible and regroup at the main castle. There’s still a major task left to handle.」
「Yes, Master!」
Raul’s expression hardened as he glanced in the direction of his ancestral home. He was curious about the reaction their lord would have upon receiving news of the territorial wars’ results.
‘Running away is unforgivable.’
The time was approaching to judge the traitor within the family.
(To be continued)