Chapter 391 — The Day War Descends

In the study of the lord's manor in the Cecil domain, Gao Yang was carefully reading a report Amber had just brought him.

"Looks like the news from the 25th Battalion reached their master safely," Gao Yang raised his head and looked at the half-elf standing beside him. "Right now, knights from more than forty fiefs, great and small, across the Southern Frontier have gathered under Count Hossman with their retainers and militia. They've stopped even pretending — those knights answering the call are marching down the roads in broad daylight, and couriers carrying messages between the nobles' domains are everywhere you look."

"Actually, the nobles never bothered hiding this sort of thing in the first place," Amber said, snatching an apple from Gao Yang's desk, holding it to her lips and gnawing at it so fast her words came out muffled. "I mean, aside from Cecil having a Military Intelligence Bureau, who else would ever come up with an intelligence system like yours? And besides, things have already come to this — there's no point in them hiding anything anymore."

Gao Yang gave a derisive snort and shook his head. "Now I'm just waiting for a formal letter. By the rules of those traditional nobles, a declaration has to be delivered before war is declared."

Amber stopped chewing and looked at him, puzzled. "Speaking of which... even though Ansul and Tifeng have signed a peace treaty, once Ansul falls into civil war, won't those Tifeng people tear up the treaty and kick them while they're down?"

Gao Yang looked at Amber with some surprise. "You can actually think about things like that now. You're improving."

"I think hard all the time, you know! I just don't have all those filthy tactics of yours!" Amber glared, cheeks puffing out. "And I wanted to ask about this from the start — I just never got the chance!"

Looking at how seriously angry she was, Gao Yang couldn't help but laugh and shake his head. "Of course Tifeng won't invade. At least, not now."

Amber looked baffled. "Why?"

"Tifeng has dealt with Ansul for hundreds of years. They understand the character of the Ansul people very well," Gao Yang explained patiently, weaving in his own conjectures. "Remember how I specifically confirmed one thing with Clement? There are people from the End of All Things at the Tifeng Emperor's side too... So from the very beginning, this 'peace treaty' was nothing but a play. But for now, the play will go on. Royan Augustus will watch Ansul fall into civil war, watch Ansul sink deeper and grow weaker over the next few years, until the kingdom is nearly torn apart — only then will he step in to reap the profits. But before that, he will never lift a finger against Ansul, because he knows... the moment Tifeng makes a move now, Ansul's civil war will end immediately."

Amber blinked, seeming to understand what Gao Yang meant.

"A Tifeng invasion would make Ansul rally together in an instant. The three Frontier Dukes haven't built up enough hatred yet, and they would most likely unite against the foreign enemy," Gao Yang set down the documents in his hand, and in his mind rose his impressions and analyses of Ansul's three border dukes. "Victoria Wilde of the Northern Frontier chose to prop up a puppet king to stabilize the nation; Silas Loren of the Eastern Frontier chose to swear loyalty to the Moen bloodline to restore the glory of the First Dynasty; Franklin Baiyu of the Western Frontier rarely involves himself in royal factional strife, but half of Ansul's economy depends on his border trade... In this civil war, no matter what role each of the three dukes plays, and whether their methods are clever or foolish, one thing at least is certain: they are all defending this nation according to their own logic. I imagine that Royan Augustus must have investigated and understood this as well."

At this point, Gao Yang suddenly sighed softly. "The only thing I'm not sure about now is whether Prince Edmund and that Tifeng Emperor share some kind of 'understanding,' whether they're playing a high-stakes gamble... If so, then Francis II's death is truly lamentable."

"To die for a play, and for a gamble beyond the play..." Amber muttered, looking at the apple in her hand and suddenly finding it tasteless. "Maybe everyone is looking forward to this civil war, and only that old king truly believed in peace... I really don't like this foolish logic of the nobles."

A knock at the door came just then, interrupting Gao Yang and Amber's conversation.

The study door opened, and the tall, sturdy priest Wright appeared in the doorway.

Gao Yang looked at the only priest in the domain with some surprise. "Mr. Wright, is something the matter?"

"My lord," Wright bowed slightly in greeting, then said bluntly, "I want to go to the battlefield."

Gao Yang was taken aback — this he truly hadn't expected. "To the battlefield?"

"I saw the news in the papers. War is coming soon, isn't it?" Wright pulled out the "extra" he had picked up. "I want to fight."

Gao Yang had originally meant to explain to him how the domain's current professional soldier system and chain of command differed from the traditional, chaotic system of private retainers, but after seeing the serious expression on Wright's face, he asked only one question: "Tell me why."

"I know that a group of priests and church knights from the Church have joined the Southern Frontier nobles' army," Wright said frankly. "I want a chance to face them head-on."

Gao Yang looked at Wright in silence for a long time, and finally let out a soft breath. "You should know that the Cecil Combat Corps is different from ordinary noble retainers. It isn't enough to have a strong arm and sign up to meet the standard for the battlefield, and there's currently no formal chaplain position in the army."

"I know. I've seen those ray guns too — they're things I've never used, and it's probably too late to learn now," Wright nodded. "But I can go to logistics, help build fortifications, or carry the wounded. I know bandaging, first aid, and herbal medicine. Those should all be useful on the battlefield."

"...The medical corps needs hands," Gao Yang mused for a long while, and finally nodded. "Go sign up with Sir Byron. Tell him I sent you. Also, you should still learn to use a ray gun and grenades. I'll have Byron prepare a suitable set of equipment for you. Even if you can't reach proficiency, at least you'll be able to defend yourself on the battlefield."

A smile appeared on Wright's face, and he bowed deeply. "Thank you for your understanding."

Then he straightened and walked toward the door, but just before he pushed it open, Gao Yang suddenly called after him. "Mr. Wright."

Wright stopped and turned back. "My lord?"

"Facing your fellow believers of the Church on the battlefield is not the same as a brawl breaking out in a village street," Gao Yang said, looking into Wright's eyes, his tone calm. "Have you really thought this through?"

"I've thought it through, my lord," Wright said earnestly. "Facing them on the battlefield means they are true enemies."

"It's not just that you need to think through," Gao Yang said gravely. "I hope that before you face them, you consider another question... Is it the Holy Light you believe in, or the God of Holy Light?"

These words seemed to strike Wright deeply. The tall priest suddenly fell into a brief silence, and only after several seconds did he draw a deep breath and bow in salute. "I will think it over carefully, my lord."

"You're really letting that big fellow go?" After Wright left, Amber couldn't help asking out of curiosity. "You should know he doesn't have the Holy Light anymore. Apart from being big, he's basically an ordinary man — and one who's never received Combat Corps training... A man who's never even touched a ray gun, won't he be a problem on the battlefield?"