King
Chapter 566 - 566 123 Knocking_1

566: Chapter 123, Knocking_1 566: Chapter 123, Knocking_1 “Earl, the Orcs are retreating!”

The day had just broken, and this good news was received, Hudson was invigorated.

If a victory is not assured in a battle, it is best not to fight.

He wondered what the newly arrived Nobles from the Southeastern Province would feel when they heard this “good news”.

“Tom, send someone to spread this good news.”

Hudson said with a smile.

“Good news” has to be shared with everyone.

There was originally a plan to convene all the high-ranking nobles for a discussion, but it seems unnecessary now.

The mission of support can essentially be declared as perfectly accomplished since there will be no Orc Army to make trouble.

Heavy losses matter not, as long as we have managed to protect the core of the many Kingdom’s clans, preventing the political system from completely collapsing.

Unlike previous wars, this failure was completely unexpected.

The Alpha Kingdom was pawned by the Human Alliance and had to accept it against its will.

At most Marshal Campbell was half to blame.

But since he died in the battlefield, there is no one to hold accountable.

Without a defeat to bear responsibility for, the heavily stricken nobles are thus heroes of the kingdom.

And they will assuredly be well-treated.

Survival of the fittest also has a compassionate side.

At the very least, everyone needs to maintain appearances.

Aside from those families that have been completely wiped out and are about to be divided up, the remaining nobles will be allowed to continue their lineage for the time being.

If they have substantial foundational resources, have a reliable network of relations, and the successor possesses strong abilities, preserving the family’s property should be manageable.

Conversely, they will gradually decline.

Over the years to come, those who covet their land and property will slowly take everything away.

The smaller nobles are the most likely to be discarded during this reshuffling.

Since they inherently have less resistance to risks, once they have been severely injured, it is difficult for them to recover.

Major Nobles are deeply rooted.

Even if they decline, it will be hard for them to be eradicated immediately as long as they don’t bring disaster upon themselves, they can survive for many years by relying on their inherited wealth.

As the war has continued until now, Hudson’s attention is increasingly focused on the post-war period.

After secretly checking out the Kingdom’s firm foundation, Hudson has come to a conclusion in his mind.

The military forces on the front line represent at least seventy percent of the Kingdom’s military might.

The impressive Northern Expedition Army survived a harsh encirclement and breakout with losses of four-fifths of its forces.

The forces now under his command make up about eighty or ninety thousand men.

Even including those who might be rallied in the future, there would be at most a couple tens of thousands more.

These troops can be considered the first tier elite of the Kingdom.

The thirty-thousand cavalry under Hudson’s command and the few corps from the Expedition Army are the second tier elite.

The difference between the two mainly lies in the proportion of cultivators among the surviving soldiers of the Northern Expedition Army is higher.

Of course, in a short amount of time, the gap in combat effectiveness between the two sides has not widened.

The few tens of thousands of elite soldiers in Hudson’s hands may indeed be slightly weaker in terms of individual combat effectiveness, but they have the advantage of having been victorious along the way and thus have a higher morale.

The surviving soldiers of the Northern Expedition Army are certainly elite, but they have just suffered a large loss and their morale is almost completely gone.

In addition to these more than two hundred thousand capable soldiers, there are also several hundreds of thousands of Cannon Fodder Troops on the defense lines, their combat effectiveness is actually pitifully low.

Then there is the military power kept in reserve by various families.

It’s impossible to get a comprehensive statistic for this part, they can only roughly estimate their strength.

The Alpha Kingdom is already tired and weary.

In the coming wars, they may be able to play a supporting role with the Human Alliance, but they are no longer qualified to be the lead.

The most important thing for a person is to recognize their place.

Supports should have a supportive style of play.

If they still consider themselves as the lead, then that’s foolish.

A battle report quickly took shape under Hudson’s pen.

Once the ink dried, it was swiftly put in a bag and sealed, the whole process was completed in one go.

With power comes responsibility.

Hudson had written all his suggestions in the confidential letter.

As for how the Kingdom will decide, that is beyond his control.

…

In the camp, Count Piers, who received the news of the Orcs’ retreat, immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.

A mistake in judgment earlier had led to heavy losses and humiliation for the Southeastern Province Noble Alliance Army.

Despite swallowing his pride to rush here for reinforcement, the Orcs have retreated.

Every decision he made ended up stumbling, as if the whole world is against him.

“Priest!”

“Priest!”

“The Earl is hurt!”

…

The guards, in a panic, broadcasted their cries, causing quite a stir in the camp.

It couldn’t be helped.

There were dozens of Earls in the camp.

Without using names, nobody can be distinguished.

The panic was soon followed by rampant rumors.

Gossiping is always mankind’s favorite, especially after learning that the Orcs were retreating.

The absence of survival pressure suddenly has everyone clamoring for an activity to relax their hearts.

Poor Earl Piers, unfortunately, became the star of the gossip.

By the time he woke up from his faint, all possibilities, from wounds, poisoning, assassination to curses, had been rumored about him repeatedly by everyone.

…

“Priest Debon, how is Governor Piers’ condition?

When will he wake up?”

Feigning ignorance, Hudson asked at the bedside.

With his ability, it was too easy to discern whether the unconsciousness was genuine or a deception.

Anyone who could ‘pretend to be a magician’ with the aid of a compass was indeed a magician.

Hudson knew well the general healing magic.

But being always cautious, he had never demonstrated it to the outside.

In the eyes of others, he was just a talented knight with fair abilities, who turned magician only because of the sharing of the Earth Bear’s magic gift.

If they were mistaken, he would just let them stay in the misunderstanding.

Cautious Hudson would never expose his true strength.

“Rest assured, Earl Hudson, his Excellency the Governor just fainted from overwork.

He’ll wake up after a while.

Now is not the time for too many people to disturb him, you see…”

Priest Debon said with a blush on his face.

It was not a problem to lie, but he couldn’t help feeling nervous about telling lies in front of many big shots.

If any big shot saw the problem and recklessly exposed it on the spot, it would be a tragedy for him as a priest.

As it turned out, he was simply overthinking it.

There was no shortage of nobles who noticed that Earl Piers had awoken, but their emotional intelligence didn’t permit them to bluntly point out the issue.

“In that case, we shall excuse ourselves.

Priest Debon, for the safety of Governor Piers, we’ll have to trouble you further.”

Having said this, Hudson led the way out of the tent.

The drama had reached this level and was enough.

Trying too hard for perfection would make it more likely to leave loopholes.

Even as just an honorary earl, he wasn’t highest-ranked in the army, but at this moment, he was the most powerful.

Sadly, this power was empty.

Everything stemmed from the kingdom’s appointment.

An appointment granted him his command over the kingdom army at the front; but his power could be stripped away due to the revocation of the appointment.

After mildly frustrating Earl Piers, Hudson shook his head.

Originally, the two families could have lived in peace, but now they were at odds for profit.

Situations like this happened frequently within nobility.

It wasn’t only about two unrelated families; even relatives and friends could turn into enemies in the blink of an eye.

With an additional, heavyweight ‘patient’, the army was forced to halt.

Since the Orc army had fled and they dared not pursue, Hudson was not in a hurry.

As soon as he returned to his tent, his two elder brothers rushed over.

Their delighted expressions betrayed their hearts’ delight.

“Hudson, is Earl Piers going to die?”

Upon hearing Evola’s words, Hudson nearly choked on his drink.

How could he say that Piers was going to die when he is perfectly alright?

“Where did you hear such rumors?

He’s very alive and well.

Remember not to say such unfounded things in the future!”

Hudson chided with a stern face.

Rumors can be deadly.

Earl Piers had fainted out of anger, and such rumors circulating showed clear signs of someone deliberately spreading them.

The mastermind behind the scenes wouldn’t be easy to track down.

Mainly because there were simply too many people who could be behind it.

Dalton family’s past political opponents; unnamed nobles who meant to take over Dalton Family; Southeastern Province nobles affected by it.

Even Hudson himself was a prime suspect.

The whole issue was as tangled as a ball of thread.

Investigating such thankless cases wasn’t something Hudson had time for.

“Hudson, sometimes rumors can become reality!”

Nelson lowered his voice purposefully, yet his excited expression betrayed his feelings.

Earl Piers’ only son was still a child and could not support a major noble family.

If the leader died, the Dalton family would instantly lose its guiding force.

Not sure if the Koslow family could replace them, at least they wouldn’t give any trouble to the Koslow family for a very long time.

“Rumors can indeed come true, yet more often they expose one’s self to peril.

As the clan leader of the Dalton Family, you’re not so naive as to believe that Piers would lack guards, are you?

Enough, you folks don’t need to get involved in these matters.

Our conflict with the Dalton Family can be worn down slowly after the war ends.

Don’t fantasize about taking over right away.

It’ll just choke you to death.

Instead, you should collect data about nobles in the Southeastern Province who don’t have an heir.

It’ll be extremely useful in the future.”

They are too eager!

Victories one after another had made many in the Koslow Family lose themselves, unable to discern their own standing.

Hudson knew very well that these two represented not only themselves but also a large portion of the family.

The reason they became representatives was that they were close enough to Hudson to say anything conveniently.

Such anxious, deviant trends must be suppressed.

Hudson didn’t want the family he led to decline before even having a chance to flourish.

After hesitating for a moment, Hudson added: “Sometimes your eyes and ears can deceive you too.

What you see and hear are only what others want you to see and hear.”

The only enemy of the Koslow Family now is the Rocknard Family who occupied our ancestral land.

As for the Dalton family, they are competitors with potential conflicts of interest.

We are not at a point where either of us must die.

You must learn to distinguish priority.

Don’t let your shallow judgements bring unneeded enemies to the family!”