King
Chapter 799 - 799 58 Beast Tide_3

799: Chapter 58: Beast Tide_3 799: Chapter 58: Beast Tide_3 The nobles of the Northern Border were not naturally honest, but were consistently beaten by the Orcs, so they couldn’t hide their true strength.

In contrast, the major nobles in the south were different.

In all the wars, they played the role of reinforcements, and the deeper they hid their strength, the more beneficial it was for their family.

Simply calculating the apparent military strength, the power of the Dalton Family was only one-third of the weakest among the Five Great Houses of the North, and the Flowing Wind Family had only half the strength of the weakest family.

However, looking at the performances of these two families, they clearly had more power than this.

After the apparent loss of their armies, they were able to reorganize immediately.

Even if their combat power had declined, it was enough to prove their strong foundations.

From the perspective of the kingdom, the robust strength of the domestic major nobles was undoubtedly a good thing.

But for the King, it was not necessarily the case.

No monarch liked subordinates who hid their strength, as this concealment often meant they were uncontrollable.

“Chancellor, rest assured, I am not a petty person.

If they have the confidence to block the invasion of the Black Forest Kingdom, it is also a good thing for the kingdom.

The matter of the garrison, let’s not mention it again.

The kingdom’s strategic focus should still be on recuperation and recovery of vitality.

Apart from the newly recovered Seven Provinces of the North, which still need time to develop and can be exempt, all other provinces must refill the ranks of their nobles’ private armies within three years.

Especially in these border provinces, we must urge them to expand and prepare for war.

The Military Department needs to step up on this matter and ensure that everyone is ready for war at all times,”

said Caesar IV, with an unfazed expression.

Clearly, the seemingly unconcerned Caesar IV was not truly magnanimous.

From the words he spoke, it was evident that he was acting with a facade of “doing you a favor while actually causing discomfort.”

“Expanding the army and preparing for war” sounds simple, but all these preparations require money.

Unlike serf soldiers who serve without pay, the formal private army of the nobles also needs to be paid.

No matter how much they economized, they needed to provide enough for their people to live on.

Otherwise, the Wandering Knights would not come seeking refuge.

For the major nobles, restoring the private army was nothing much.

Their systems were already full; the only difference was a reduction in combat effectiveness.

The truly injured parties were the smaller nobles.

In theory, they should have recovered after two years of recuperation.

Unfortunately, over the past two years, there was also the war repayment tax.

This tax, when broken down per individual, was not too much, but it was collected in pure cash, without the option to pay in kind.

For the nobles in areas with convenient transportation and developed commerce, this was not much of a pressure, as they could easily liquidate their land outputs.

But for those noble lords in remote areas with poor transportation and a lack of liquidation means, this posed a big problem.

If the major nobles further squeezed them, the problem became even more severe.

Already struggling, where would they find the capacity to expand and prepare for war?

If the kingdom didn’t raise this issue, it would have been better, but with pushing and escalating demands, it became a heavy burden.

…

Blood Moon County.

“Are you sure you saw correctly that the magical beasts of the Black Stone Mountain Range are converging?”

asked Governor Piers with a grave expression.

In recent days, the incidence of magical beast attacks on construction teams had risen sharply.

To understand the situation, he had no choice but to send experts into the Black Stone Mountain Range to investigate.

They found a problem upon investigating.

Based on past experiences, a large convergence of magical beasts usually signaled that a monster wave was about to erupt.

“Your Excellency Governor, I saw it with my own eyes.

If it weren’t for the speed of my Crackling Beast, I almost wouldn’t have made it back!”

said Mage Yuri, still shaken from the experience.

Having walked among a swarm of Magical Beasts and returning unscathed was certainly a blessing from the Lord of the Dawn.

If luck had been slightly less favorable, being targeted by a High-order Demon Beast in the Black Stone Mountain Range meant one’s fate was to become feces.

“How large is the swarm?”

Governor Piers asked with concern.

There were different levels of beast swarms; some small ones that even rural nobles could handle, while a large beast swarm wouldn’t be surprising if it devastated counties and provinces.

The largest beast swarm in history even had a record of annihilating a nation.

“I don’t know!

Anyway, I saw hundreds of Magical Beasts, and more were continuously converging on this road.

The Black Stone Mountain Range is home to many High-order Demon Beasts, and it’s impossible for ordinary people to get close.

If you want to know the specifics, it would be best to send Earl Hudson to check it out!”

Mage Yuri suggested.

It wasn’t that he wanted to shirk his duty, but simply that venturing deep into the Black Stone Mountain Range was too dangerous.

On his way back, he had seen many mercenary groups turned into snacks for the Magical Beasts.

It wasn’t only dangerous for Sorcerers to go, even Great Sorcerers couldn’t guarantee they could emerge unscathed when encountering these High-order Demon Beasts.

Even the legendary Sanctuary Powerhouses had to run swiftly when encountering a beast swarm.

Once surrounded, they too could end up buried in the green hills.

Over the past years, many masters had died in the Black Stone Mountain Range, and they were not just one or two.

Dragon Knights could go check because not only was the combat power of Giant Dragons formidable, but another important reason was that Giant Dragons could flee quickly.

Even High-order Demon Beasts rarely could catch up with a Giant Dragon.

Catching up didn’t mean they could win, after all, Magical Beasts weren’t omnipotent.

Having a speed advantage inevitably came with certain disadvantages in other areas; one couldn’t possess all the gifts.

“It’s not appropriate to disturb two people with one matter, Mage Yuri, since this matter involves many and should not be disclosed yet, it’s troublesome but you’ll have to make a trip to the Mountain Domain.”

Governor Piers said, looking somewhat exhausted.

He was indeed weary; he had thought that the construction of the Blood Moon Defense Line would be an opportunity to further integrate the nobles within the province.

Unfortunately, plans cannot keep up with changes.

The construction of the defense line had been troubled from the start: first, the Kingdom’s debt crisis broke out, followed by tightened international tensions.

Although it seemed far from the Southeastern Province, it was somehow all interconnected and Governor Piers had to divide his attention to monitor all.

He had just refused the Kingdom’s Standing Army, and now signs of a beast swarm had emerged, leaving him no chance to relax.

If he had known earlier that a beast swarm was waiting here, he wouldn’t have so straightforwardly refused the Military Department’s proposal to deploy troops.

Without knowing the magnitude of the beast swarm, having two more Standing Army legions to support could definitely have been a good thing.

Unfortunately, in politics, what’s said cannot be unsaid.

Having just refused the Kingdom’s forces, he couldn’t immediately change his stance and invite them back.

“Let it be, for the safety of millions of people in the Southeastern Province, I might as well go myself!”

After his bold declaration, Mage Yuri turned and left through the grand door.

Summoning a Crackling Beast, he headed straight for the Mountain Domain.

…