Knights and Magic Wand
Chapter 507 - 507 239 Noble Alliance and Dumbledore_2

507: Chapter 239: Noble Alliance and Dumbledore_2 507: Chapter 239: Noble Alliance and Dumbledore_2 “We can give it a try.

Talk to them.

If the Thorny Flower family is willing to deploy troops, I can offer an additional twenty thousand gold coins to assist your negotiations.” Count Lunaf was the first to express a willingness to consider the proposal.

Seeing the biggest lord of Baldim County speak up, the eastern nobles in the hall erupted into murmurs of discussion.

“But Count Marmore detests the Northern people.

If he sends someone to question us about why we are colluding with the Orland people, how should we respond?” someone asked Count Lunaf.

Slapping the armrest of his chair, Count Lunaf furrowed his brows in anger and said, “If Count Marmore could send troops to save us, would we still be in this position?

What’s there to justify to him?”

Ultimately, a few lords from the southern regions, who were more inclined to solicit Duke Ablo’s assistance, left the meeting with their entourages.

The majority of the eastern nobles, however, accepted the proposal.

Naturally, Count Lunaf seized the opportunity to propose the formation of a military alliance among the families in the East Territory.

What followed was a smooth series of negotiations—raising funds to hire reinforcements, assembling the armies and resources of the various families, one topic after another was discussed more efficiently than beforehand.

In the process, Lunaf rose to an invisible position of leadership among the nobles.

After the lengthy meeting adjourned, the lords temporarily dispersed, and Yevan stepped out of the castle hall.

Clad in plate armor and now officially knighted, Ron followed in his lord’s footsteps, handing Yevan a clean water flask.

Taking the flask, Yevan moistened his throat before letting out a long sigh in the castle’s rear courtyard.

Situations like these were alien to him in the past, especially having to play a supporting role to Count Lunaf, echoing his sentiments to persuade those stubborn lords to unite.

For someone who was purely a warrior until recently, his performance was understandably clumsy.

Fortunately, most of the nobles he faced were similar in age, which helped Yevan not feel overly intimidated.

He had already been forced to abandon the land his ancestors ruled for over a century.

Now, he could not afford to let down the tens of thousands of displaced civilians who lost their homes.

“From now on, the East will merge into a cohesive whole.” Count Lunaf, who had successfully secured leadership of the alliance, walked toward Yevan.

His expression finally seemed more relaxed after the relentless news of territorial losses.

“Even so, combating calamities with only our strength is still insufficient,” Yevan lamented.

Count Lunaf nodded toward the trustworthy ally before him: “Let’s hope the Thorny Flower family you’re in contact with will follow through on their promises.

We have no other options left.”

…

……

Ustato Mountain.

Aside from Lydwen’s troops, the Orland lords who had been summoned to gather their forces began gradually leading their respective units away from the northern mountain passes and withdrawing from the Kantadar Royal Domain, dispersing back to their territories.

The Battle of Ustato lasted no longer than the forty-day obligatory service period for the lords, so the King did not need to issue monetary compensation or salaries to his vassals.

Yet the abundant rewards and spoils of war still allowed each family to profit handsomely.

If one were to assess the side that bore the heavier cost, Caso and Ustato faced far greater losses than the defeated Duke Ablo.

Including the additional “consumption” after the war…

expecting the Northern army to leave the wealthy towns of Ustato territory untouched was evidently wishful thinking.

The Orland people weren’t here to do charity for Caso.

However, Lydwen was also unwilling to let the Kantadar Royal Court under his control turn into a desolate wasteland.

At the very least, he did not allow the Orland Army to commit the same burning, killing, and looting as the Urians.

Yet as for monetary wealth, grain supplies, countless other assets…

the spoils of war being carted out from the mountain passes naturally didn’t solely originate from the defeated Southern army.

The massive sums extorted from Caso were enough to severely weaken the Ustato Kingdom.

Deprived of the Royal City and the stockpiles of grain, treasures, and weaponry accumulated over many years in warehouses across the King’s Domain, coupled with losing nine-tenths of the two thousand Royal Palace Guards in the aftermath of the war, the new king of Kantadar, Caso, would remain a puppet in Lydwen’s hands for a long time—an unequivocal vassal with no bargaining power whatsoever.

For the sake of a crown, was it worth it?

Leon didn’t know.

But after witnessing the bloodshed left behind by the Urians in the southern regions, he thought Caso might, in a twisted way, have done a good deed through bad intentions.

Compared to the Urians’ looting and pillaging, the Orland extortion was almost like a beacon of civilization.

Right now, this world seemed to be a competition of who was less rotten…

As he slowly departed Ustato Mountain with the Thorny Flower family’s troops, Leon sat in a carriage under the protection of his knights, gazing up at the sky.

His mind drifted to the “cooperation” he had reached not long ago with Lydwen.

Accepting the position of Court Mage, in some sense, it may not carry the prestigious weight of a Dusk Blood Guard’s title, but it still bore political significance akin to it.

After all, both roles were close advisors to the King.

Yet reflecting on the agreement to cultivate mages, Leon suddenly realized that in his eagerness to obtain Moonfall Silver, he had inadvertently revealed too much during the discussions.

That old dragon had never asked directly how Leon planned to find apprentices with magical talent.

By agreeing to these terms, however, Leon had unwittingly admitted that he had a way to find them.

Indeed, Lola could assist him in identifying individuals with talent, but in this world, other than witnessing the accidental manifestation of magical phenomena by talented individuals, no one else possessed such an ability.

The Northern Society relied on magical devices to sift through candidates, whereas Leon depended on Miss Lola’s “Eye of Insight.”

Lydwen had remained silent throughout, never delving into details.

But Leon understood that for someone determined to cultivate a loyal mage group, the King must have already attempted privately and understood what such a breakthrough would entail.

Nevertheless, the Northern Society, spanning centuries of tradition, still relied on luck to locate apprentices across the Western Continent, and their training process was anything but easy.

A king who had only ruled for a mere decade like Lydwen couldn’t possibly have made meaningful progress in this area.

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Leon decided he needed to be more cautious in future discussions with this old reptile.

Even a momentary lapse could give Lydwen insight into his hidden cards…

To prevent Lola’s existence from being revealed to outsiders, Leon figured he should replicate the magic-detecting devices found in the Northern Society’s Warlock Fortress as a decoy in Avalon.

Fortunately, though such devices were considered advanced magical equipment in this era, with Lorelette’s knowledge and Lola’s guidance, building a simple-functioning version shouldn’t be too difficult…

as long as he didn’t require rare, hard-to-obtain materials.

If he couldn’t manage to build one, he might as well emulate scenes from his previous life’s novels—craft a crystal ball, add some sound and light effects for show.

Lola could handle the actual selection process.

Magic res…

Tier 3…

Imagining a potential recreation of such “classic scenes,” Leon chuckled quietly to himself.

He wasn’t in a rush.

Though he had agreed to Lydwen’s terms, nurturing spellcasters was a gradual endeavor.

Currently, there was still the eastern crisis to deal with, and the King hadn’t yet pressed him for results.

Moreover, the royal resources promised to him were far from fully delivered.

At the very least, he needed to secure the Moonfall Silver before proceeding.

With the task now defined as establishing a “magical institution” for the Royal Family, his original rewards for military merit had been shifted to a new form.

Salary transformed into educational funding; the King’s Domain grant morphed into future support for magic materials and logistical resources.

Leon didn’t feel shortchanged.

Not only did he get his hands on the coveted Moonfall Silver, but the King’s rewards were merely altered in format.

Once the resources were in place…

as the future “Minister of Magic” and “Headmaster of the Magic School” of the Orland Kingdom, who would stop him from skimming off the top?

Just a little harmless personal gain under the guise of magical research and educational expenses!

And Lydwen…

if the creation of an official mage organization for Orland indeed came to pass, the King himself might stand to benefit even more.

The old dragon’s eagerness to break free from the Northern Society’s monopoly on magical matters was something Leon could sympathize with.

Rulers were naturally wary of powerful forces beyond their control.

Though mages were scarce in this era, under suitable circumstances, their destructive potential remained unimaginable.

Especially considering that, as Leon heard from other nobles, during the civil war more than a decade ago, when the promise of victory lifted restrictions on the Society to gain magicians’ support…

Plagues, undead, assassinations…

countless ruthless and bloody attacks aided by the Society’s magic devastated the forces loyal to the former Tyrant, leaving a lasting impression on the land’s lords.

Thus, it wasn’t surprising that Lydwen later enacted the “Anti-Witchcraft Decree,” barring magicians from involving themselves in noble disputes.

Predictably, he reneged on his promises to the Northern Wizard Association.

The new royal dynasty imposed harsher restrictions on spellcasters than ever before.

On this issue, the Northern Kingdom’s nobles displayed rare unity—aside from the three counties constituting Boraiden Territory, all other lords shared an unusually consistent stance.

The Warlock Society was predictably enraged by the nobles’ betrayal.

Yet the magicians had no alternatives.

The consequences of defiance were annihilation.

Regardless of the cost, the forces capable of obliterating the Society weren’t limited to Orland’s vast army and formidable knights.

If the Kingdom simply loosened its stance slightly, Leon knew the Holy Sun Church would likely be eager to intervene in Orland territory, capturing unmonitored spellcasters and sending them into the Church’s Magic Ring to chant scriptures.

Despite these limitations and suppressions, it was clear that Lydwen remained dissatisfied with having only the Society as an option for magical affairs.

Leon sensed the King might not expect him to be exceptionally loyal, but at the very least, he offered an alternative basket to hold his eggs.