Chapter 123 - 122: Provocation

After Ronin left Grey Soil Village a while ago, halting the ongoing assault on the Wilderness Tribe, Ridder had been stationed here to keep watch.

Aside from occasional scouting trips to the southeast, he spent the rest of his time either drilling Tom, Juliet, and the Guards relentlessly, or patrolling north along the Kaolin Mine. Honestly, life had gotten a little boring.

On this particular day, he was on horseback at the edge of the Kaolin Ore Vein, supervising the Carpenters and Masons as they constructed new buildings. According to the Lord’s instructions before he left, this area was slated to become a factory complex for mining Kaolin and producing Porcelain.

Although Ridder had no idea what Porcelain was, the Lord placed great importance on it, so he naturally had to treat it with the same gravity.

"Commander!"

While Ridder was patrolling the area, Juliet came galloping over on a horse.

Ridder heard the urgency in his voice. ’Could it be that those troublesome Peasant Slaves are fighting again? Or has a wild beast appeared in the mountains?’

In recent times, the Peasant Slaves had indeed argued and even come to blows, but it was usually Sleirein’s family or lovers, unhappy with the strenuous labor, who started the trouble. They quieted down after Ridder dealt with them a couple of times.

There was also an incident where a wild boar destroyed the vegetable patch. Ridder didn’t even have to act that time; Babulin took care of it with the Guards.

Normally, such minor issues didn’t require the Commander’s attention. ’For Juliet to come now... has the Lord arrived at Grey Soil Village?’

"What is it?"

Juliet reined in his horse as he approached, his face anxious. "Sir, the men from the Black-collar Tribe are building a watchtower right in front of our village. Tom and Babulin just took some men to stop them, and it looks like a fight is about to break out!"

The unexpected news stunned Ridder for a moment. He asked in disbelief, "You’re saying the Black-collar Tribe is building a watchtower on our doorstep?"

"Yes!" Juliet confirmed.

Ridder’s expression turned cold. ’Building a watchtower right on Grey Soil Village’s doorstep? Have they lost their minds?’

"Let’s go. Take me there!"

He had just been lamenting that he had nothing to do, and now trouble had come knocking on his door.

The warhorses galloped through the village, quickly arriving at the southeast entrance of Grey Soil Village.

"Sir, we’ll see them as soon as we round the bend ahead," Juliet said, pointing to a bend in the mountain path.

Ridder glanced back. Although the location was five or six hundred meters from the village entrance and not quite "building a tower on the doorstep," it wasn’t far off either.

As the two rounded the mountain bend, they saw two groups of men confronting each other on the small path ahead.

On the Grey Soil Village side were Tom, Babulin, Sim, and a few Guards.

The opposing side had more people. There were five men on horseback alone, with another seven or eight workers off to the side, using tools and axes to gather local materials to build the watchtower.

It was hard to tell when the other party had started working, but the base of the watchtower was already taking shape.

Ridder’s expression was frosty as he urged his horse forward. "What’s going on?"

Babulin bowed slightly. "Commander, the Vice Leader of the Black-collar Tribe, Finris, brought his men to build a watchtower here. He claims it’s to prevent wild beasts from harassing the Peasant Slaves who are reclaiming wasteland nearby."

That excuse was pure bullshit.

Ridder had patrolled this area many times and had never seen anyone from Grey Soil Village or the Black-collar Tribe reclaiming wasteland nearby.

"Which one of you is Finris?"

A man from the opposing group nudged his horse forward a couple of steps.

He had a sturdy build with clearly defined muscles. He wore Chain Armor and a Shoulder Guard—decent armor.

"You’re the one Ronning Baron left in charge of the Grey Soil Tribe? Heh, and a Commander, what a grand title..."

Finris’s words immediately drew a wave of boisterous laughter.

The men from Grey Soil Village were furious, but Ridder was not.

Seeing that his words hadn’t provoked the other side into action, Finris questioned them coldly:

"I heard the Grey Soil Tribe has already been conquered by the Baron of Mountain Forest Town. In that case, you should abide by the agreement between nobles not to infringe upon each other’s territory. By obstructing our construction of this watchtower, are you trying to provoke a war between Mountain Forest Town and Sain Territory?"

Finris was quite well-informed about Mountain Forest Town and the Wilderness Tribe. For instance, he recognized Babulin as an Intermediate Knight and knew that Ronin’s subordinate, Macken, had blond hair.

He had no intel on this red-haired Commander before him, but he figured that even if the man was strong, he was likely just a Peak Intermediate Knight, only slightly stronger than Babulin.

Ridder was considering this.

’Clearly, word that the Lord conquered three tribes has gotten out. For them to know this and still deliberately build a watchtower here... they must have another agenda.’

Ridder said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, "This place doesn’t seem to be Black-collar Tribe territory, does it?"

Finris didn’t back down an inch. "As far as I know, this place belongs to the Black-collar Tribe. Not only this spot, but everything north and south of this line belongs to the Black-collar Tribe!"

"Bullshit!"

Babulin cursed angrily. He’d lived here for twenty years—how could he have never heard of such a thing?

"Your Black-collar Tribe has always expanded to the southeast! Since when did this place become yours?"

Following Babulin’s furious curse, Tom and the others, including the Guards, all started yelling curses as well.

These guys were usually respectful to Ronin, but when they really started cursing, all sorts of foul language came out.

Ridder remained silent on his horse as he pieced it together. ’They’re here to seize territory, and by the looks of it, they’re not afraid of starting a fight.’

’Perhaps the conflict between our Lord and Sain Territory is about to come out into the open.’

A dangerous aura began to emanate from Ridder. He raised a hand, and Tom and the others immediately stopped their cursing upon seeing the signal.

The other side, however, lacked such discipline. They continued to shout curses for a few more moments before realizing the other group had fallen silent. They too stopped, but not without some ragged, trailing voices.

"You’re Finris, right?"

Ridder’s voice was heavy with warning. "To avoid sparking a conflict between the two Barons, I demand you withdraw five miles. Otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?"

Finris laughed out loud. Following Baron Reisen’s orders, he was here today specifically to stir up trouble. They wanted to show Ronin that Sain Territory wasn’t a pushover.

He placed his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist. "I’m warning you, if you try to obstruct our watchtower construction again, don’t blame me for what happens next!"

Ridder snorted. With a single punch, he sent a massive fist of condensed Fighting Qi blasting into the watchtower’s base, shattering the assembled logs into splinters.

"FUCK!"

Finris hadn’t expected the other man to actually strike first. He yanked his reins, dug his heels into his horse’s sides, and charged straight at Ridder.

Ridder was fearless, urging his own horse forward to meet the charge.

Their Longswords clashed. The once-arrogant Finris’s expression changed drastically. A terrifying impact of Power sent him flying backward, man and sword alike.

"Trash!"

Ridder leaped up, soaring over everyone’s heads, and dove down on Finris.

Seeing their Commander’s incredible prowess, Tom and the others charged the enemy, fueled by a sudden rush of adrenaline.

In an instant, the two sides were embroiled in a chaotic melee.

Finris was panicking. He hadn’t expected this red-haired man to be so strong.

’Didn’t they say Mountain Forest Town only had one Advanced Peak Knight? How can this guy in front of me defeat me so easily?’

"No, no, it’s impossible!"

An icy Fighting Qi Armor formed around Finris’s body, and a surging tide of Fighting Qi condensed on his Longsword as he seemed to prepare a powerful technique.

But at that moment, Ridder descended from the sky, a long Sword Aura of Flame crashing down on Finris, directly stripping away his Fighting Qi Armor and slamming him to the ground.

Finris felt his chest explode as a mouthful of blood gushed from his lips. He tried to stand, only to find a cold blade already pressed against his neck.

"Everyone, stop!"

Ridder roared, and the two fighting groups gradually separated.

He swept his gaze over them. Although the fight had ended quickly, both sides had sustained injuries. Fortunately, there were no deaths.

"If you don’t want to die, drop your swords and get on the ground!"

Ridder shifted the Longsword in his hand, giving Finris a vicious look.

The latter was terrified and hurriedly shouted, "Quick, do as he says!"

"So you have some sense after all, Finris Knight."

Ridder chuckled. "Sim, go to the village and get the Guards. Have them bring hemp ropes. Tom, you come over here and strip his clothes off."

"You got it~"

Tom trotted over. ’Fighting alongside a strong Commander is the best; we barely had to lift a finger to win.’

"Knight, you are provoking a war between two nobles!"

Finris panicked and began to struggle violently, all traces of his earlier arrogance gone. But the sword at his throat was too sharp; with just a slight movement, he felt something warm flowing down his neck.

He was bleeding...

Ridder looked down on him with contempt. "You’re the one who started this."

Soon, all the Guards stationed in Grey Soil Village poured out, bringing ropes to bind everyone from the Black-collar Tribe from head to toe. They were wrapped so tightly they couldn’t stand or use any strength.

"Arrange for the Guards to watch them day and night."

Ridder ordered, "If anyone tries to escape, run them through with a sword."

After saying this, he turned to the only one not tied up—a craftsman from the Black-collar Tribe, who was kneeling and trembling on the ground.

"Go back and tell your leader. Have him inform the Baron of Sain Territory that if he wants his men back, he should come to ransom them in three days with sufficient sincerity. Now go!"

Hearing this, the craftsman reacted as if he’d received a royal pardon. He scrambled to his feet and fled like a madman in the direction of the Black-collar Tribe.

"Sir, what if Baron Reisen doesn’t ransom them and just attacks us directly?" Babulin asked from the side, a little worried.

"That’s a possibility."

Ridder nodded. "Strengthen the patrols for the next few days. Also, Tom, you’ll return to Mountain Forest Town immediately. Inform the Lord of what’s happened here and ask for his instructions on how to proceed."

He could have chosen temporary forbearance, retreated with his men to Grey Soil Village, and then requested instructions from Ronin on how to respond.

But since Ronin had appointed Ridder as Commander, the latter had the authority to handle matters himself.

In Ridder’s view, there was nothing much to say about territorial disputes like this. Might makes right.

Ridder knew Finris’s level of strength. He was confident his fist was bigger, and so he acted.

As for the subsequent negotiations, that was a matter for the Lord to lead.

His side held the advantage, so they wouldn’t lose much in negotiations.

As for who was in the wrong for striking first, who could really say?