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Chapter 657 - 657 657 The Lords Forced to Take Sides

657: Chapter 657: The Lords Forced to Take Sides 657: Chapter 657: The Lords Forced to Take Sides As the hostility between the two princes escalated, a series of dramatic events continued to unfold.

The various voices within the Empire that had previously been suppressed were now all focused on the matters between these two princes.

They began to slander each other, using public opinion attacks with great proficiency.

However, during the process of exposing each other’s shortcomings, the reputations of both princes also suffered.

The reason being that both of them had committed many foolish and bad deeds in the past, which had usually been kept secret.

Now, in order to attack each other, they were revealing these matters.

Perhaps the nobles didn’t find these things too serious, but for the common people and the soldiers, it was too much to bear.

After all, many of these soldiers came from commoner backgrounds.

When they heard about the things the princes had done, they became reluctant to exert themselves on their behalf.

The already slow pace of the military campaign was further delayed.

And the second prince’s troops no longer headed toward the Imperial City, instead turning westward and making their approach from there.

In the midst of the verbal sparring, neither prince hesitated to sell the other out.

There was no helping it; since many of the issues involved both parties, they now focused solely on attacking their opponent.

Even the aides at their sides hadn’t expected their prince to be involved in these matters.

If they had known, they would never have let these secrets slip out.

It’s hard to understand what the princes were thinking.

But things had already gone so far, there was nothing they could do but continue to follow the princes’ commands and attack one another.

This form of attack was of the kind that harmed the enemy a thousand, yet also did self-damage of a thousand.

However, the ones suffering the most weren’t the subordinates of the two princes, but the lords caught in the middle.

As the princes’ armies advanced, these lords began to be forced to choose sides.

They had no choice, for if they didn’t align with one side, they would soon find themselves taken over directly.

Then, the loss to their own territories would be incalculable.

After the first non-compliant lord was directly executed by the orders of the Prince under the pretext of betrayal, no one else dared to do the same.

Those who didn’t want to join either side were promptly attacked by the other lords around them.

The result was that they had no choice but to align themselves with one faction or the other.

Even the surrounding lords received letters from both princes, persuading them to join.

Zhao Guang, having no desire to become involved in these matters, immediately excused himself by citing the fact that his own territory had only been established for less than a year, his forces were still very weak, his army was insufficient, and he needed to defend against the North.

Of course, what followed was a barrage of slander from both princes.

Indeed, both princes had already had a poor relationship with Zhao Guang, and now they did not hesitate to lash out verbally when their persuasion failed.

It was baffling to think what was going through their minds.

If only one of them had refrained from such actions, wouldn’t that mean giving their opponent the upper hand?

Were the two princes competing in foolishness?

Of course, the other lords of the North also kept out of the ordeal.

Not to mention their need to guard against the Undead in the North, their previous losses were not minor.

Even without this concern, they had no desire to become involved, as the performances of the two princes were unspeakably foolish, and they didn’t wish to waste their military strength on such incompetents.

Furthermore, they didn’t even want to offer benefits or make promises, which was bewildering.

Did they think that just because they were princes, the lords had to provide for them unconditionally?

Keep in mind, this is a feudal system, where in theory each lord is a sovereign ruler of a small nation.

If you look at the Empire as a whole, it’s more akin to a federation of numerous small nations.

But those lords caught in the middle were in a difficult position, for their territories lay directly in the path of the advancing armies.

This led to a situation where, even before the arrival of the grand army, these lords had already aligned themselves to either side.

Because they had made their choices, it was necessary to show their allegiance, and thus they began to fight each other beforehand.

The motives of these nobles were incomprehensible; instead of dividing along territorial lines there was intermingling.

One territory might side with the Prince, while another joined the second Prince.

The whole central map looked much like a massive, checker-patterned biscuit.

The lords took up arms directly against the surrounding hostile territories.

Without needing an order from the rear, they had no choice but to engage for the sake of proving themselves.

For a time, the central and northern regions of the Empire were thrown into a chaotic brawl.

On the other hand, nearby Imperial City maintained its distance from the fray, seemingly amused by the spectacle and choosing not to get involved.

“These fools, one wonders what’s going through their heads, if they are all brain-damaged,” Zhao Guang mused exasperatedly, as he perused the reports that arrived daily, revealing an ever-increasing mess of affairs.

Had he not known the cause, Zhao Guang would have thought that it was a war involving multiple nations.

“Master, the Prince has pressured us again, demanding that the two Viscounts to the south of us increase their military presence on our border,” Xi Fei said somewhat helplessly as she looked at the report.

“Must be a bunch of idiots, not to mention the disparity in strength.

Are they planning on making more enemies for themselves?”

“I don’t know, but that’s what they’re doing.”

“What does Marquis Coruas think?

That man isn’t stupid, is he?”

“According to our information, Marquis Coruas seems to be unaware of the situation.

It was something the Prince did behind the scenes.

But he must know by now.

I wonder what he will think.”

“Let’s stand our ground but, as they are reinforcing their presence at the border, let’s do the same.

Let’s see who gets uncomfortable,” Zhao Guang decided nonchalantly.

He wasn’t concerned and treated it as a military exercise.

Without actually engaging, it was enough just to make their presence known.

With any move he made, those two Viscounts’ territories would undoubtedly suffer headaches due to the vast difference in strength between them.

Even if his own forces were numerically inferior, the quality was incomparable.

He decided to purchase a Titanium Alloy processing plant, pondering the upgrade of his troops’ equipment to full-body Titanium Alloy gear.

He had been sparing with the special equipment before, to showcase his uniqueness and due to its expense.

But now, the situation had changed, and a technical upgrade might indeed be warranted.

“Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore.

Your own strength should be close to a breakthrough, right?” he asked Xi Fei.

Xi Fei nodded, “Thanks to your assistance, Master, I should achieve a breakthrough within this week.” Thinking of her imminent rise in power, she couldn’t help but feel elated.

Once she had her breakthrough, she would be truly able to assist her Master.

A Great Mage was not to be taken lightly.