I will be crowned king

On May 6, the hundredth year of the Saint's Calendar, when the first ray of sunlight pierced the horizon, the Stormtroopers dragging a long column along the winding and rugged road had left the Eagle Point Pass and headed towards the Grand Duchy of Thun.

The infantrymen of the brigade were arranged in a loose and not very neat formation, marching quickly in the misty morning fog; because they were marching in a hurry and with light equipment, the mental state of the entire army looked... very bad.

The soldiers' eyes were dull, as if they hadn't woken up yet; it was all due to the inertia of the past few days, the wooden sticks in the hands of the officers, and the high trophies that maintained the morale and organization of the army.

After going through a series of blocking battles at Eagle Point Pass and capturing Eagle Point City, the entire Storm Division made a lot of money from top to bottom, relying on the little clerk to buy and sell in the rear.

According to the statistics of Carl and Allen, excluding the daily operations of the Storm Division and Anson's own share, the loot allocated to each soldier is basically the sum of their two years' salary. Low-level officers are almost a full year. , as for the shares of people like Anson and Fabian... the little clerk didn't record it in the open account.

Especially the profits from the capture of Eagle Point City. Although Ludwig gave the credit for the capture of the fortress to Anson, it was impossible for the Storm Division to really let the Storm Division take all the loot; he only acquiesced that the Storm Division could pick first and take away the siege. portion seized.

Even if this is the case, the book assets of the entire Storm Division have still increased several times; even if Anson retains enough reserves to form new troops and recruit officers and administrative staff, he is still generous enough to distribute the spoils in full without hesitation. Every soldier even has a surplus on his hands.

And when counting the loot, the little secretary also played a little trick; it is impossible to hide the real loot such as grain, cloth, gold, silver and jewelry; but other "arts", such as oil paintings, Iser-style crafts , accessories, exquisite weapons...

These were all packed up by Allen, and the baggage carriage arranged by Karl - he was still very good at finding connections - and the letters were sent to Franz's residence in the royal capital and handed over to Sophia Franz for handling.

According to the little secretary, although he only has a "little understanding" of Israel's artworks, as long as these "arts" can appear in the auction house of the royal capital through Miss Sophia's hands, the bottom price profit will be at least Anson. Three times what I currently earn.

While excited, Anson immediately said that as long as this business was successful, it would be an "extra bonus" for the "Storm Master's core circle" - currently Carl Bain, the young secretary and Lisa, plus Fabian.

For this former Guards major who was "very sensible" and good at figuring out other people's thoughts, Anson promised that as long as the Storm Division expanded, he would be the first commander of the Grenadier Regiment, and would recommend him to lieutenant colonel whenever he had the opportunity. .

As for the others - Lisa cannot be promoted (and does not need to be promoted), Alan Dawn is his personal secretary, and he is as prosperous as he is... Only Carl Bain, he must find an opportunity to advance as soon as possible.

In the Clovis military system, the lowest staff officer was a major; even if Anson could give Carr an annual salary at the level of colonel, it would be impossible for a captain to serve as division chief of staff.

But there is no rush for this. As long as the war against Yser continues, the Guards Corps is annihilated, and the Seven Cities Alliance holds on until the end, everything will be fine.

When the sun rose, the Stormtroopers with the sun above their heads successfully arrived at Count Arcade's castle before noon; an acquaintance who was not supposed to be here greeted the arrival of Clovis's army with a complicated expression.

Henares Alkader.

……………………

"...That's the general situation."

In the slightly empty hall, Henares, who had a dull look on his face, looked at the people who were either shocked, silent, or deep in thought, and sighed exhaustedly:

"Although we have rushed to stop the loss as soon as possible, I am afraid that a lot of news has spread out; the Seven Cities Alliance meeting will be held soon. Once a country accuses the Grand Duke of this matter, Thun will immediately Become the target of public criticism.”

"At that time, let alone win over the Seven Cities Alliance to form an alliance with Clovis, I am afraid that some careerists will use this opportunity to mobilize the entire alliance to suppress or even invade Thun. The years of peace south of the Dawn Mountains will be wiped out."

Leon Francois's eyes widened, and his shocked face was filled with disbelief.

Anson crossed his hands and fingers on the armrests of the chair, his expression as calm as ever, and a little disapproving.

Although the other party seemed to be discussing the matter, one could still hear the accusation behind the words; it was as if Thun could stay out of the matter if people like himself did not show up.

Are you kidding me?

"Where is Grand Duke Thun now?"

Carl Bain, who was holding his shoulders, stared at the map for a while, then raised his head and asked.

"White Tower City—accompanying me are my brothers Count Arcade and Count Pascal." Henares replied:

"Although the incident occurred suddenly, Thun has mobilized an army of 12,000 people, including the Grand Duke's Guards, to completely blockade the entire White Tower City territory. This should be able to temporarily cover it up and prevent the news from spreading."

"But the White Tower City is very strong. Even with three times the army, it cannot be captured in a short time. Earl Brand and the army guarding the city all have the blood of Yser elves. Now that they know that the Grand Duke intends to betray Yser, We will definitely not surrender easily."

After the words fell, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense.

The purpose of the Storm Division's return is to enable Thun's army to assist the Southern Army in attacking the Guards at Eagle Point Pass; if Thun's army is dragged in White Tower City, then this trip will be in vain.

Carl Bain nodded: "In other words, all Thun's troops are now concentrated in White Tower City?"

"...You can say that." Henares frowned slightly, not understanding what he meant:

"Of course, there are also some who followed Earl Brand to rebel and were stationed in various places; plus the time was urgent and not all of them were gathered together."

"Then the troops besieging White Tower City should be fully armed?" Karl continued to ask.

"Well... of course, just to assemble these 12,000 fully armed people and send them to the battlefield in White Tower City, almost half of the current inventory in Alkader Castle and Golden Stone City has been emptied."

As Henares spoke, he looked at the little clerk in the corner with a somewhat apologetic look: "In order to prepare military rations for these soldiers, we had no choice but to use the legion reserves that you sold to us at a low price. That business It may be postponed.”

Alan Dawn looked up and smiled, quickly taking minutes of the meeting in his hand.

Carl Bain, who said no more, immediately turned to look at Anson, as if ten thousand words were written in his simple eyes.

Of course Anson knew what he meant - as long as he helped Grand Duke Thun capture White Tower City quickly, these twelve thousand people would be able to save all the time of arming and dispatching and go directly to the battlefield of Eagle Point City!

Of course, before that, he must be given an irresistible reason to refuse, or the Archduke must have no choice but to side with Clovis.

"Can't you find a way to persuade Earl Brand?"

Leon Francois, who was still in disbelief, couldn't help but said: "I have been to White Tower City, and Count Brand is not the kind of person who is completely unreasonable. As long as you explain to him well..."

"Things are not as simple as you think, Master Leon." Henares had no choice but to interrupt him:

"In any case, Earl Brand always considers himself to be an Iser elf first, and a vassal of the Grand Duke secondly; just like we think that we are Thun people first, and a member of the Seven Cities Alliance secondly."

"Therefore, in Brand's eyes, the Grand Duke's private negotiation with Clovis is probably more serious than the lord's abandonment of his vassals. It is the most shameful betrayal and cannot be easily forgiven."

"What's more, the elf ambassador has entered White Tower City." Fabian said coldly:

"With his and Israel's request for help, even if Grand Duke Thun is willing to confront Count Brand one-on-one and explain his difficulties, he probably won't believe it."

"As for the Grand Duke of Thun... the rebellion has occurred. Even if it is to maintain the dignity and rule of the Francois family, the Grand Duke of Thun cannot let it go easily. The Brand family of White Tower City must pay the price."

Henares, who looked embarrassed, did not speak, obviously agreeing with Fabian's point of view.

"So we must capture White Tower City, and we must do it as soon as possible."

Anson said solemnly: "Once things drag on, the situation will become increasingly uncontrollable. Only by capturing the White Tower City and then getting rid of the Elf Ambassador and the Brand family can the danger be nipped in the bud."

"For the sake of the unbreakable friendship between Thun and Clovis, we are willing to do our best to provide all help; if necessary, I can immediately send people to Eagle Point City and ask Ludwig to send an infantry division and two artillery Company, carrying forty-eight pounders..."

"No, no, no...that's not necessary!"

The shocked Henares stood up directly from above and refused hurriedly: "Thank you for your kindness, but Thun is capable of solving his own troubles, and he doesn't need friends from Clovis to help him yet!"

Are you kidding me? If the Clovis army of several thousand people were to bombard the White Tower City with artillery, Thun would be completely confused!

"Is it really not necessary?" Anson looked at him sincerely:

"It doesn't matter. Since we are all comrades in the trenches, there is no need to be so polite."

"You're really not polite!" Henares sternly refused again:

"If I really need it, I will take the initiative to ask, but not now."

"But you just said that White Tower City is very strong, even with three times the strength..."

"That's just a more cautious statement!"

Henares, who twitched at the corner of his mouth, took a deep breath: "In fact, the Grand Duke is completely confident that he can quickly capture the White Tower City. He just has a headache on how to explain this matter to the outside world and the soldiers."

"Right now, Eagle Point City is about to face Yser's Guards Corps. It would be more appropriate for the soldiers and heavy artillery to stay there."

"Okay, now that you've said that..."

Anson sighed, his expression seemed a little regretful at being rejected.

Only Carl Bain gave a disdainful "tsk"... Ludwig in Eagle Point City was still eagerly waiting for Thun's 20,000 reinforcements. How could he be given an entire infantry division plus heavy artillery?

It would be a huge honor if we didn't force these two thousand storm masters to leave!

But it was obvious that Henares didn't know this. In order to dispel Anson's idea of ​​reinforcements, he had to explain to everyone:

"Although the Grand Duke has surrounded White Tower City, the news released to the outside world is still that the two families have a dispute because of their in-law relationship. Although this conflict is barely an explanation, it is still somewhat unconvincing."

"Besides, Earl Brand has sent many messengers before, and maybe some Thun nobles have already gotten the news; once the matter is exposed, not only will the Grand Guild lose its face, but it will also shake the foundation of the Francois family's rule!"

"So we must find a good enough excuse as soon as possible so that the Grand Duke can reasonably capture the White Tower City and capture Earl Brand and the Elf Ambassador alive, otherwise..."

"Wait!" Anson suddenly interrupted:

"You just said that this elf ambassador...he escaped on his own initiative?"

"That's right." Henares nodded:

"What's wrong?"

"And he is also a black mage from the Old God Sect?"

"This...can't be completely certain yet, but it should be true."

"Then after escaping, he did not return to Yser or find any other country, but ran to the territory of Earl Brand; because there were many Earl Brand and the people of White Tower City. Most of the Yser Elf blood.”

"...Your Excellency Anson Bach, what exactly do you want to say?"

Henares looked at Anson with confusion.

Not only him, but others also showed curious expressions; only Karl looked surprised, as if he had guessed something.

"Nothing." Anson smiled slightly:

"I just feel like this is a conspiracy of an Iser elf?"

"Um?!"

Fabian and Karl reacted immediately, but Leon and Henares still didn't understand.

"You see, they first sent a black mage ambassador to Golden Stone City, trying to control Archduke Claude Francois from behind the scenes. As a result, the plan failed, and the angry elf ambassador immediately went to White Tower City, because the subjects there and Bu The lords of Rand are all proud to be the elves of Yser."

"This elf ambassador not only incited Count Brand to rebel, but also spread a lot of false information, saying that the Grand Duke of Thun was going to defect to the Clovis people."

"What is this? This is the Yser Elf's attempt to infiltrate the Seven Cities Alliance, create chaos, and take the opportunity to overthrow the Francois family, and finally annex Thun and even control the Seven Cities Alliance!"

"What?!"

This time, not only Karl and Fabian, but also Leon and Henares were shocked.

The little secretary sitting in the corner still lowered his head and kept writing minutes of the meeting:

"On May 6th, the hundredth year of the Saint's Calendar, at Alkader Castle, the wise Lord Anson Bach saw through the despicable conspiracy of the Yser Elf with just one glance..."