Imperial Crown

The document trembled slightly on the table.

The above content clearly asked Lancha to be loyal to Lei Wen and serve Lei Wen wholeheartedly.

And this is not an ordinary contract, but a magical contract with extremely strong binding power witnessed by the hidden lady and the owner of the contract.

Once signed, there is no difference from selling to Raven.

"Oh oh oh, don't be so excited." Raven shook his finger:

"I think it would be better if you signed it."

"Do you want to watch the 3,000 elites who were loyal to your father die because of your refusal?"

Lancha's heart tightened: "What do you mean?"

"That's the literal meaning." Raven spread his hands and said with a smile: "Your father is a respectable opponent, and the soldiers he personally trained are all first-rate elites."

"Either you sign this contract and lead them to serve me from now on; or, I can only send them to see your father."

Although Raven's tone was calm, just like an ordinary chat, Lancha had no doubt that Raven could do it.

Outside the camp, the sight of tens of thousands of heads piled up into a mountain still lingered in his mind.

Lancha, who has been educated by the Light Church since childhood, has not learned the ability to defend himself.

In his opinion, these 3,000 people could have survived. If he refused now, it would be tantamount to executing these people with his own hands.

But……

Lancha clenched his fists tightly and his body couldn't help shaking.

They have defeated the Manli family and have been loyal to the Principality of Eivor for hundreds of years!

The lives of 3,000 loyal warriors, and the family’s reputation for hundreds of years...

No, calm down, calm down!

Lancha took a deep breath, secretly prayed to the Lord of Light, and gradually cleared his mind.

Raven would not be so kind. He asked me to serve and lead these 3,000 warriors because he no longer has enough troops.

Even if I choose to be loyal, these people will be used as cannon fodder by Raven, and sooner or later...

Looking at Lan Cha's eyes that gradually became clearer, Lei Wen said slowly:

"Are you thinking that even if you are loyal to me, I will only let you lead these 3,000 people as cannon fodder and rush to the front, and they will still die."

"In this case, it's better to let me kill him so that my reputation for cruelty can be confirmed, right?"

Lan Cha was horrified.

Raven is only 27 years old this year, only 3 years older than him, but he can penetrate his mind easily, it's like they have been together for two lifetimes.

Lancha said: "You killing prisoners is a kind of cruelty in itself!"

"Very good, you have a mind that is not inferior to your father's." Raven nodded appreciatively:

"So, have you ever done another calculation?"

"Of course these 3,000 people will be sent to the most dangerous places, but I want to use them, not kill them."

"Some of them will survive after all."

"Their families will not lose the breadwinner of their family."

"Or do you think that if you can't completely save these 3,000 people, you can convince yourself to let it go?"

Lancha was speechless.

He still didn't want to be loyal to Raven, but he couldn't ignore his conscience and just watch people die.

"You are a smart person, and smart people will not lose their minds because of personal hatred." Seeing that he had broken through the first fortress, Raven pursued the victory: "The only thing you worry about now is family honor."

"On this point, Tu Duo has already paved the way for you."

"What!?" Lancha couldn't help but get excited again: "What did my father tell you? He didn't commit suicide, right?"

In the past few days, Lancha has been wanting to see Raven, just to get the truth about his father's death.

Because he couldn't understand why his father would choose to commit suicide. It made no sense at all.

"... Calm down, kid." Raven looked at Lancha and said, "Your father committed suicide and died. Everyone on the battlefield can see it. This cannot be false."

"I don't know the specific details."

"But one thing is irrefutable."

"Count Tudor chose to die calmly on the battlefield when he could completely survive. It can be said that he was loyal to Eivor to the end."

"Morally, he has no stain at all, and he has brought supreme glory to your Chemanli family."

"Because of this, even if you join my army, the outside world will only think that you are coerced by me; and if your brother is not a fool, he will swear to cut off from you."

"So working for me will not affect your family's reputation."

The corners of Lancha's mouth kept twitching, and he couldn't say a word to refute.

Because everything Raven said was true.

There are two paths before him.

Either refuse Raven's request, continue to be imprisoned, and watch those 3,000 loyal soldiers die.

Either agree to Raven's request, serve Raven, and lead 3,000 soldiers as Raven's pawns to fight against the Principality of Eivor, where he was born.

These 3,000 loyal soldiers are already the last firepower of the Chemanli family. If they are all buried here, it will be difficult for the family to regain its former strength in the next hundred years.

Even after the war, they will be moved to remote areas, leaving the Bolan region to others.

What Lancha got was a reputation of loyalty that had been earned by his father.

On the contrary, if you follow Raven, all you will lose is Lancha's personal reputation.

Even if Raven is defeated in the future, those who are still alive in the 3,000-man army can return to the Chemanli family.

And if Raven succeeds - which is impossible in Lancha's opinion - then the Chemanli family will gain a foothold in the new Eivor.

Lancha couldn't help but start thinking, is this his father's purpose?

Did he commit suicide so that the family can have more flexible choices?

Personal interests and family interests are circling in Lancha's mind.

Lancha's originally frowned brows calmed down, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then opened them again: "I understand, I can sign this contract."

The mentality of a young man made Lancha unwillingly say:

"But you are threatening me like this, aren't you afraid that I will not obey in my heart?!"

Raven smiled indifferently: "I only want you, not your heart."

Lancha's pupils shook violently.

After taking a deep look at Raven, Lancha picked up a pen and paper and signed his name neatly on the document.

When the name fell, a trace of light blue magic bloomed on the document and slowly floated up.

Then a heavy ink color appeared around the document, eroding and covering it inward until the entire document disappeared into the darkness.

The contract has been reached, and a mysterious connection has been established between the two.

"Raven... Sir!" Lancha suppressed his emotions: "Now, can you open my handcuffs?"

"Of course, Hyena, open it for him." Raven said: "Then take him to the quartermaster's office, get his identity token, and return his armor to him."

"From now on, he is the commander of my Eagle Army's 1st Independent Corps."

Lancha, who had his handcuffs untied, was led out of the room by Hyena and started a busy day.

After receiving his own and his men's equipment from the quartermaster's office, Lancha came to the prisoner camp and received the elite troops that originally belonged to Duduo.

Originally, there were 2,300 people who evacuated with Duduo, and the remaining nearly 700 people surrendered in scattered groups after the overall situation was decided.

Suddenly they had to fight for Raven, and these soldiers were generally a little confused at first, but they soon accepted the reality.

Anyway, as professional soldiers, they were loyal to the eldest son of their former master Duduo who was most trusted. Except that the camp changed from Eivor to Keynes, there was nothing they couldn't adapt to.

The previous heavy armor was gone, and there were only 3,000 sets of leather armor.

But it was good enough to survive intact. Leather armor is also armor, which is better than being naked!

For a period of time afterwards, Lancha stayed at home and mainly trained and ran in the soldiers. Unless necessary, he would not leave his camp.

On the one hand, he was not quite used to the change of his identity; on the other hand, he did not want to see the people who originally belonged to the Chemanli family being abused by Raven's troops.

But as time went on, he sometimes had to leave the camp and found a very strange phenomenon.

Raven's army did not seem to harass the nearby people.

Next to the military camp, nearby merchants and people gathered spontaneously to form a temporary market for the Eagle Army to consume and entertain.

Spend money instead of robbing directly?

This was beyond Lancha's imagination!

The bandits are as cruel as sickles, and the army is as greedy as goats.

This is a proverb circulating in the Principality of Eivor.

The bandits are cruel, harvesting wealth and life like sickles, but they always leave something behind; and the army, like goats, will scrape the land clean and even dig out the grass roots and eat them.

Is Raven's army really so noble and everyone is a legendary saint?

Through many inquiries, Lancha gradually understood the inside story.

Raven's Eagle Army not only has military pay, but also takes out a part of the spoils after each battle to reward the soldiers.

"I really envy the Eagle Army."

An old soldier who originally belonged to the Duduo Army and is now affiliated with the First Independent Corps of the Eagle Army sighed: "In the past, after we fought, if we wanted to have some fun, we could only rob and use force."

"Not only can we not sell the robbed things for much money, but playing with girls is actually not enjoyable. Either we are like dead fish or we have to beat them to death."

"If we were as rich as the Eagle Army, no one would be willing to do such a thankless task!"

This sentence almost stunned Lancha.

The old soldier's words sounded very reasonable, but they ran counter to everything he had learned before.

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

Shouldn't the noble character of an army be achieved through teaching and discipline?

How can dirty money raise a disciplined army?

This is simply... blasphemy!

And the source of all this is Raven.

"Forgive me, my noble Lord." In the secret room, Lancha knelt down and prayed:

"I sold my soul to the devil!"

...

The capital of the Keynes Empire, Minnagar City, the Royal Court.

Keynes XVI was still wearing a loose Peporos, but his brows were a little more anxious and haggard.

The unfavorable war situation in recent years has made people in the government and the public complain about him.

Insa is getting more and more fierce on the front battlefield, and has penetrated two provinces in a row, and there is no sign of stopping.

The empire has to recruit more troops to the front line, and the daily expenses are like running water, which makes the treasury dry up.

If this continues, he may have to open his own treasury.

The city of Majik, where the magic crystal mine is hidden, has now become a completely isolated city, and the food and grass in it are also being consumed rapidly.

If it is lost, then this war will really be lost.

So in order to maintain supplies, the empire had to consume a lot of resources and opened up an air supply line to transport supplies to Majik City.

The food consumed is dozens of times more than the food transported to the local area!

Not to mention being overwhelmed, but Cairns XVI is also under great pressure.

But today, I finally received good news, and there are two at a time.

The first is that Raven actually broke through the Sighing Wall!

Cairns XVI looked at the map and stroked the Sighing Wall with his fingers, as if he was looking at his lover.

Once the Sighing Wall was broken, the entire Principality of Eivor would no longer have a natural barrier. The empire only needed to exert a little effort to break through the principality and directly threaten the hinterland of Insa!

Occupy?

No need, just send a few more troops to set fire everywhere in Insa's territory.

Burn their most beautiful land to a white ground.

With this, it is enough to make Insa sit back at the negotiation table!

"Well done, well done!" Cairns XVI picked up the letter from Anthony and showed a playful smile.

Although Anthony hinted that it was his idea to let Raven attack.

But Cairns XVI knew Anthony. This guy was old and would never have such courage and spirit.

Attacking the Wall of Sighs must be Raven's own idea.

"Raven Griffith..."

In fact, Cairns XVI did not think about relieving the pressure on the front battlefield by opening a second battlefield.

The choice at that time was the Principality of Eivor.

But in the end, he gave up.

Cairns XVI estimated that at least 200,000 troops from three neighboring provinces would be needed to gnaw down the Wall of Sighs.

But this is completely unacceptable to the empire's finances.

Unexpectedly, Raven could pull down the Wall of Sighs and hold it in his hands by himself!

This made Cairns XVI think of Raven's ancestor, Don Quixote.

Like Raven, the founding earl of the empire had a keen sense of war. He fought step by step on the battlefield and became one of the 24 most meritorious founding nobles.

Otherwise, Cairns I would not have sent Don Quixote to carry out that secret mission.

"Are you trying to restore the glory of your ancestors?" Cairns XVI chuckled and looked at the Angel's Glory offered by Raven, and saw his clear reflection on it.

"But the title is not that easy to get."

After saying that, Cairns XVI picked up another letter on the table.

This is the second good news.

From the Fitun city-states, a very formal diplomatic document.

It requires Cairns XVI to immediately withdraw the troops that invaded the Principality of Eivor, transfer the sovereignty of the Sighing Wall back, and punish Baron Raven who launched the attack without authorization this time.

Cairns XVI enjoyed it very much.

Since the war began, Keynes XVI has asked the Fitun city-states to provide assistance in trade, logistics, etc., but they were all rejected with righteous words.

Now, you come to ask me again?

Keynes XVI cleared his throat and said loudly: "Well... remember!"

Immediately, a palace eunuch prepared paper and pen and leaned aside.

"Tell the cabinet that I have read the letter from the Fiton city-states. Tell their ambassadors that this is an unfounded accusation. Our Keynes Empire has always been peace-loving and will never attack friendly countries without authorization."

"But since the accusation is so clear, we will start a formal investigation procedure next. Please ask the ambassador to keep calm."

"Please believe that our Keynes Empire will definitely give them a satisfactory answer!"

The eunuch stood up and made a sharp and high-pitched voice: "Oh my God, your majesty, this reply is simply a work of genius. It just reminds the Fiton city-states who is the real master of the continent!"

As he said, the eunuch jumped down from the stool-it turned out to be a dwarf less than one meter tall.

His name is Pile, and he is the most favored court jester of Keynes XVI.

"Haha, don't make me happy." Keynes XVI said: "Go and send the letter to the cabinet for polishing, and then call Ezio to me."

"But, your majesty, you also know that Ezio..." Pile was a little embarrassed.

"Stop talking nonsense. I believe that others can't find him, but I don't believe that you, the 'gardener', can't find him."

"I am also borrowing your name, Your Majesty." Pile smiled and bowed to say goodbye.

Cairns XVI lowered his head, stretched out his hand, and a feather pen jumped into his hand.

He himself does not know magic, nor is he extraordinary. He can do this purely because the pen itself is a magical creation.

This letter is written to Anthony.

It tells Anthony that he is very satisfied with this action; at the same time, it also directly orders Anthony to support Raven with all his strength and tear as much meat from Eivor as possible.

The greater the loss, the more bargaining chips in the future.

But this war cannot be carried out in the name of the empire.

In recent years, Anthony's performance is really not enough to reassure Cairns XVI, so in the end, His Majesty the King deliberately emphasized:

"Without support and food, I can only send you Ezio."

"But I believe you can handle the relevant details."

"It doesn't matter if you can't handle it well."

"After all, there are other candidates who can govern the Nord province."

"For example...

Raven."

...