That's not how you use a witch!

Chapter 56 The Banquet Ends on a sour note

The banquet was filled with familiar faces; besides the renowned Duke of the West, Ronan also recognized some of the others:

The portly man was Earl Victor of Rainbow Territory. He seemed to have lost some weight compared to last time. Ronan wondered if it was just his imagination, but the greasiness and arrogance on his pumpkin face seemed to have lessened considerably. The man with the polite but stiff smile was Marquis Humphrey of Purple Pass Territory. At the last banquet, he had tried to embarrass himself by pointing out the patch on his clothes.

As for the others who speak less, their only purpose in sitting here is to nod, applaud, and say "XX is right."

"Gentlemen, the rebels have finally made their move."

Henry said solemnly, "Three days ago, they advanced to the vicinity of the White Silver River and established a camp, launching an attack on the Dragon Valley. If it weren't for the strong defenses of Thorn Territory, these guys would probably have already stormed into the western border, and the consequences would have been unimaginable. Let us give praise to the Thorn Lord for thwarting the rebels' scheme!"

The nobles raised their glasses, but Ronan could sense the look of utter hatred in some of them, as if they wanted to tear him to pieces.

"Your Grace, with all due respect, we may not be celebrating a hero's triumph, but rather being toyed with by a clown!"

Marquis Humphrey of Zimo Territory was the first to place his wine glass on the table, with a firm but not too forceful touch, neither overly aggressive nor overtly questioning.

Henry's face showed neither anger nor joy; he simply asked, "What makes you say that?"

"Let me expose this guy's true colors!"

Humphrey scoffed. "I'm asking you, Ronan, you said the invading force was the main rebel army. How many of them were there in total? And how many of you were there?"

Ronan replied without hesitation: "The rebels have deployed a total of four thousand elite troops. The total number of personnel involved in the battles in Thorn Territory and Mountain Territory is about twelve thousand, of which one thousand are combat personnel."

"Did everyone hear that?"

Humphrey looked around at the crowd and said, "A thousand or so local militia cannon fodder, hastily assembled, think they can withstand Manstein's iron cavalry? They've swept across the entire North; how could they possibly be tripped up by a mere thorn?"

The counts and marquises around him whispered among themselves, and all agreed.

"It's not entirely impossible, is it?"

Some rational lords spoke up for Ronan, saying, "Fulong Valley is a strategically important and impregnable pass. As long as the tactics are sound, we can still put up a fight."

The slightly more timid one immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes! And didn't Baron Ronan recently sign a new contract with a powerful witch?"

Humphrey immediately retorted, "You mean, the North couldn't hold onto so many natural defenses because those earls and marquises were all idiots, less tactically and strategically savvy than a mere baron? And the witch army that swept through the North was no match for the trash he casually picked up?"

Those who spoke up for Ronan immediately fell silent. They were merely viscounts; they couldn't afford to offend the high and mighty marquis.

"Your Excellency, it's normal to have differing opinions, but there should be basic respect between people."

Ronan stared into his eyes.

"Medel wasn't just some random piece of trash. She's a certified Guardian Witch of the Western Frontier Church, a heroine who made great contributions to the fight against the rebels. Anyone with a conscience would respect and appreciate everything she's done for Thornlands and the Western Frontier."

Humphrey remained silent.

Whether it was his imagination or not, the little baron in front of him suddenly exuded a terrifying sense of oppression, as if he were some kind of ferocious beast, making him instinctively fearful.

Henry glanced at him, but the aura vanished just as he was about to confirm it further.

Next, Ronan ignored the questions and sophistry, and directly explained to everyone present his analysis of the enemy's situation and the specific process of the battle and defense.

The captured rebel flags, armor, weapons, and other physical evidence that could prove the battle took place were also displayed to the public.

He brought Fermi and the others along so that these frontline militia members could corroborate the logic and enrich the details.

The nobles initially disregarded these militiamen, viewing soldiers and serfs as nothing more than talking and walking property, while only the nobles were considered living, breathing human beings.

Until they discovered that Fermi's logic was very clear, and he even understood what he should do in battle and what the battle was for.

The nobles, on the other hand, had an expression that said, "You say what you want to say, I'm listening."

They didn't care whether Thorn Territory was actually fighting the rebels or not; they only cared about making this troublemaker suffer more, or at least disgust him more.

"You said you're from the North and only joined the Thorn Territory later. Now that the rebels are attacking, where do you plan to go next?"

One lord, feigning curiosity, asked, "If you could escape from the North, why didn't you escape from the West again? That should be something you're very familiar with."

The other lords laughed, their expressions showing amusement. In their view, the question wasn't very hurtful, but extremely insulting.

What surprised them even more was that this man, who came from humble beginnings and had once followed the fleeing soldiers, did not show any embarrassment or nervousness. Instead, he proudly and firmly raised his head.

"I'm not going anywhere, because Thornlands has given me a new life!"

He resolutely blocked the railway, speaking in the characteristically humble yet assertive tone of the militia.

"I am willing to fight to the last moment, until all my weapons break and all my blood runs dry. Then, I will reunite with my comrades with pride—for Thornholde will forever remember the heroes who sacrificed their lives in the fight to defend their homeland and strive for happiness against enemies both inside and outside the land!"

The assembled nobles were speechless, unable to believe that these words had come from the mouth of a militiaman.

"Excellent! This is the true spirit of the men of the West!"

Henry slammed his hand on the table and couldn't help but stand up.

"Oranges planted south of the White River yield sweet and plump fruit, while those planted north of it become bitter and astringent. I think this soldier is the best proof of that. Perhaps he was once a deserter from the North, but now he is a valiant warrior of my West. That is undeniable!"

"Yes, I also acknowledge the bravery of the Thorn Territory soldiers... but the truth is, Thorn Territory didn't actually engage in any fierce fighting with the rebels. The so-called valley defense battle ended just like that, didn't it?"

Unable to defend himself, Humphrey could only cling to the core fact: "You only managed to kill a few cannon fodder by taking advantage of your fortifications and familiarity with the terrain. According to you, the main force of the rebel heavy cavalry wasn't even really deployed to the battlefield, is that right?"

"That's right. The rebels initially attempted to charge, but found our fortifications to be well-prepared, so they immediately chose to retreat rather than recklessly engage in a direct confrontation."

Ronan said calmly, "That's why I advised you all to be extremely careful, because the rebels haven't been crippled yet, and their war potential remains formidable!"

"Ha, you're just trying to stir up trouble and create a false reputation again! This precisely shows that the rebels have no intention of managing the Western Territory, and their contact in Fulong Valley was merely a probe. Otherwise, why would they let Fulong Valley, known as the gateway to the Western Territory, go unpunished? If they don't take it down, do you expect them to go the long way around, expending three times the effort to detour through the Ronghai Mountains?"

Compared to the harmonious atmosphere of the last time, this banquet ended on a sour note.

The minority, represented by Ronan, argued their case with reason and, with both witnesses and physical evidence, barely managed to clear the rebels of the stigma that the territory was "given" to the Thornholdt.

However, this was actually a scene that most of the nobles attending the meeting did not want to see.

They don't care about the big picture; they only care about eliminating dissidents.

For Henry, Duke of the West, the second mobilization effort also ended in failure. The rebels were practically at his doorstep, and these good-for-nothings were still thinking of fighting amongst themselves—it was enough to give him high blood pressure.

However, despite his title of Supreme Duke, his actual power was limited; he couldn't simply issue orders to do this or that.

The feudal system is a terrible system... Henry suddenly thought to himself, what if the existence of feudal lords were removed and replaced with the direct appointment of officials at all levels to govern? Would that be more effective?

"Your Majesty the Duke!"

Lost in thought, Houston hurriedly came to him.

"The ancient instrument in your room suddenly started ticking, and the crystal screen lit up, displaying some inexplicable ancient characters!"

Henry, now completely sober, rushed back to his room as fast as he could and ordered Houston to keep others away from him.

Then, he turned his gaze to the square black metal plate on the sandalwood desk.

Its texture is smooth and soft, almost as thin as paper, with a few faintly visible, smoothly cut seams. A pale green crystal screen is inlaid in the very center, currently shimmering erratically.

This is undoubtedly a creation that no country in Terra could have acquired.

Henry also accidentally cut open the belly of an evil beast while hunting in the Falling Star Forest in his early years and found this thing in its intestines.

He tried using psionic powers to activate it, but there was no response.

But at this very moment, square-shaped characters are constantly flashing on the screen:

[Detection indicates that the "Spark Program" is nearing completion of its second phase; monitoring the progress of the "Prairie Fire" program...]

[Checking the progress of "Prairie Fire" Plan... Confirmed that "Prairie Fire" Plan has failed. Plan permissions will be transferred according to the contingency plan. Transfer path settings in progress...]

[Checking the progress of Project "Martial God"... Project "Martial God" is confirmed to be underway; no response has been received from the project team.]

[Confirmed progress of the "Fusion" project... The "Fusion" project is confirmed to be underway; the project has not yet responded.]

[Remote request failed. Please manually set permissions.]

"..."

Henry stared at it thoughtfully for a long time.

After confirming that he couldn't understand a single word, he quietly put the thing away and placed it in a hidden corner of the bookshelf.

This was a deal between him and the Bishop of the West—the Bishop provided a legitimate endorsement for Meryl in exchange for the purchase of this ancient instrument that he had stumbled upon during a casual hunt.

Henry agreed without hesitation, because he himself wanted to sell it, and the bishop was offering a higher price.

Why not repay a favor by selling something you don't need?

Henry's feelings were complicated.

He was afraid that Ronan would cause trouble behind his back, but he was also afraid that without Ronan causing trouble, the Western Territory would be doomed with this bunch of useless people...

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