vstars Chapter 204 Staying alive
Chapter 204 Staying alive
"It seems that the king is very busy and even I can't handle it." In the bedroom, John finished reading the letter copied by the civil servant and then rolled it into a ball and threw it into the trash can.
"Call the centurions of the White Wolf Knights to gather at the Earl's Castle. I have something important to discuss with them." John said to several White Wolf Knights next to him. Soon, a White Wolf Knight left the bedroom after receiving John's message.
Half an hour later, when the last centurion hurried into the room, John gave the centurions a task:
"Call all the White Wolf Knights, including those on leave, and have them prepare in the next few days and wait for my order to march."
Upon hearing the news, the centurions were stunned for a few seconds, followed by an unexpected excitement. Over the past year, the White Wolf Knights have been training all the time. As John's personal guard, they need to be stationed by John's side. During this period, they could not even go to the border, let alone fight in the battlefield.
Now their master can finally lead them to the front line of the war as he did before. This is undoubtedly a happy event for these knights who have had enough of their boring life.
"Sir, where is our destination in this war?" Just when other centurions were excited about the war order, a centurion asked his own question.
"Grant, the place we went to before was the island that was once invaded by the Yoda people," John responded.
"Besides us, are there any other troops involved in this operation?" After getting John's reply, the centurion asked another question.
"I plan to draw 5,000 soldiers from Franche-Comté and Forest Territory, and combine them with Stephen's artillery unit and the local garrison of Chiusta to form an army of 15,000 people."
This number is the conclusion John came to after careful consideration. Although the plague is raging outside and the armies of various countries are in a semi-paralyzed state, this does not mean that John does not need troops to guard the border. On the contrary, more soldiers are needed to block the border. In the past, if someone broke into the territory, it was at most an assassin. Now, anyone who breaks into the territory from outside is a source of infection. Once they go to crowded places, all John's previous efforts to resist the plague will be in vain.
In addition to the need for troops to guard the border, John asked Wesker to search for information about the deployment of troops in the Principality of Grant. According to intelligence, Grand Duke Haakon not only has a 5,000-man guard stationed in the capital Nord, but also a 3,000-man Fire Dragon Knights led by Grand Duke Haakon's youngest son Edward. One of the centurions in the Knights is the one John knows well, Grunberudo, who was later called the Fire Dragon Knight. Together with other noble armies on Grant Island, Grand Duke Haakon directly or indirectly controls about 20,000 soldiers.
With the addition of John's army, the size of the entire coalition reached 30,000 people. Even if there were more cultists on the opposite side, it was impossible for there to be 30,000 people with the land area of Grant. If there were really so many people, Archduke Haakon would have turned into ashes by now.
After seeing off the centurions, John lay idly on the table and began to think about what to eat for lunch today.
"John, I heard you're going to war again?" Just then Matilda's voice came from outside the door, and then Matilda stood at the door. When she saw John lying on the table, she couldn't help but asked anxiously:
"What's wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"
"No, I just feel a little tired." John immediately stood up and walked to the door. He took Matilda's slender white arm and helped her sit on the long velvet chair next to the desk.
"Actually, this matter is not a big deal. There is no need to rush about it. Just follow the procedures." Seeing that Matilda was still worried, John comforted her with an indifferent attitude.
"Is there any reason for this?" Matilda asked in confusion. Although she didn't want John to run outside during such a dangerous period, in her understanding, no one in this world except Emperor Yoda dared to disobey the orders from the King of France.
"In your eyes, do you think that the French King's Hall, which the King of France rules, is one of the most powerful countries in the world?" John did not answer her directly, but asked a question about her perception of the French King's Hall. After seeing Matilda nod, John continued to explain:
"Since the French King's Office is so powerful, why do you think it ordered me, a vassal of another country, to exterminate the pagans?"
"What you mean is that the French King's Office is far from strong enough due to the plague, and you are currently the person the French King's Office trusts the most, so they chose you as their spokesperson to go to Grant to fight." Matilda thought for a while and analyzed the reason.
"That's right. It seems that you have really thought about the knowledge I taught you recently." John encouraged Matilda, who was gradually coming to her senses, and said:
"As you said, the plague not only impacted the shaky rule of various countries, but also the famine and war that accompanied it also hindered the connection between the pro-French Royal Office forces in various countries and the French Royal Office. After all, they are busy with their own affairs, so how can they care about the tasks assigned by your French Royal Office?"
"Although the plague has not yet spread to the inland of the French King's Hall, the French King's Hall has seen the tragic situation of other countries being ravaged by the plague and has begun to focus on how to eradicate the plague. Naturally, it does not have the ability to send troops to fight against the pagans."
"But." John changed the subject.
"No matter how bad the King's Office is, it is still the richest country in the world. The wealth accumulated over hundreds of years may be destroyed by a plague, but it is unlikely to kill the King's Office. This is why the King's Office is still sending orders to the forces it can contact."
"Of course, this is also what I value. I want to see how much money the archbishops in the Holy City can pay to fill this bottomless pit for the so-called majesty of the French King's Office. If they don't pay a penny, then even if my army has been prepared, I will not take action as long as the cultists don't attack my town."
"So, you want to extort some money from the French King's Office to compensate for the damage caused by the plague to the territory?" Matilda followed up on his words as soon as he finished speaking.
"How can this be called extortion? I'm legally asking for wages. After all, how can the army pay salaries, build equipment, and buy supplies without money? These days, everyone's belts are tight. If you want to work, you have to pay more than before." John explained humorously, looking as cunning as a hunter who saw his prey was about to enter his hunting range.
Sure enough, after John had delayed for two weeks, the French King's Palace finally could not sit still, and letters urging the King to send troops were sent from the French King's Palace to the town where Pros lived via carrier pigeons. Finally, two weeks later, a sincere letter was rewritten by a civil servant and the manuscript was delivered to John's desk.
"Those old antiques in the Holy City have finally come to their senses." John said, holding the manuscript. After two weeks of silent treatment, the other party finally chose to compromise as they watched the plague continue to spread to the French King's Hall. In the end, they agreed in the letter to pay John 10,000 gold coins as military expenses and eagerly ordered John to immediately lead the army north to eliminate the cultists.
Now that the money was in place, John could not delay any longer. With John's order, more than 10,000 soldiers were ready to go and assembled in Beigang in just three days.
John boarded the Sea Wolf, his flagship that he had not seen for a long time, under the escort of the soldiers. Looking at the clear blue sea in the north, John drew his sword with high spirits and said to the soldiers below:
"Soldiers, follow me and march towards Grant!"