Chapter 451 - 424: Battle Plan

Ronin summoned Carlos and had him transport a batch of iron ore from Chishan Town back to Wubei Port.

This was all refined iron smelted by Feng Si and his men. After Simon and Carlos processed it further with their Fighting Qi, it could be used for shipbuilding.

Having a Giant Dragon transport the ore was immeasurably faster than using horse-drawn carriages over land.

Carlos dropped Ronin off as it passed Wushan Castle before continuing on its journey.

The transport job required no skill, but the dragon was happy to do it. After all, its master was just that incredible.

"Young Lord, you’ve returned!"

Mosite bowed respectfully upon seeing Ronin. "His Lordship is not at the castle. I expect he’ll return this evening."

"What’s keeping Grandfather so busy?"

"Work has begun at the large iron mine behind Wushan City. The supervisor sent by the Royal Family arrived today, so His Lordship went to accompany them on an inspection."

Ronin nodded.

’The Royal Family wants to cooperate on the mine while also causing trouble for me. Is this their idea of keeping us in check while working with us?’

"Let me know when Grandfather gets back."

With nothing else to do, Ronin went to the front courtyard to see Wiggin.

Ronin recalled that he still hadn’t given Wiggin his share of the profits from the Chishan Iron Mine from late last year. Wiggin, for his part, hadn’t brought it up.

Wiggin, however, was enjoying his leisure.

He no longer had to manage the affairs of the castle, worry about the business of Wushan Territory, or even contemplate its future.

Despite losing a leg, he was back to living a carefree life. He was content, no longer having to force himself to bear burdens as he had before.

His attitude toward Ronin had undergone a long and winding transformation: from initial disdain, to familiarity and understanding, then to high esteem, and finally to his current admiration and pride.

When he was out drinking with friends, Wiggin couldn’t help but boast about his fine son.

No, two of them.

Though the Bretton of the future wouldn’t be as powerful as Ronin, he would certainly be stronger than any of the young lords from the other duchies.

That evening, the castle held a banquet to welcome the Kingdom’s Minister of Finance, Luther Cox.

That night, after the banquet attended by three generations of their family, Ronin went to Lurans’s study. He recounted everything that had happened in Shore City in detail.

This included how he and Sophia had annihilated tens of thousands of Witch Soul Knights, and how Garrett and his men had later tried to take Sophia away.

Lurans listened quietly, his eyes deep and bright, as if they could pierce through anything.

"It seems you’ve grown stronger again, Ronin!"

He remarked with a sigh, "To slay two Meteor Knights and over twenty thousand Witch Soul Knights on your own... what level has your strength as a Knight reached?"

"I’m already at the peak of the Silver Moon level."

Ronin said, "If I continue my training as planned, I’ll become a Proud Sun Knight and a Great Mage in another fourteen months."

Upon hearing this, the light in Lurans’s eyes shone even brighter. He roared with laughter. "It seems the age of our Wushan Clan is at hand!"

He took a deep breath and said slowly, "Ronin, the shadow of war already hangs over this land. Ever since His Majesty the King let Jesus go and helped him create a cover story, we’ve become allies they must also guard against."

Ronin understood what Lurans meant.

The moment his own power—along with that of Lurans, Melonika, and Carlos—was revealed, it was bound to attract suspicion and defensive measures from others.

And now, with the addition of two more Eighth-level Transcendents, Sophia and Ridder, their top-tier power was simply overwhelming.

"So, Grandfather, you think they’ll attack us first?" Ronin asked.

"They will."

Lurans said with certainty, "The Villa Duchy, Moonlight Valley, and Screaming Island will all make a move. But they won’t do it openly under the banner of nobility."

Ronin understood. "So, the Black Gold Brotherhood, the Polante Thief Gang, and the pirate gangs at sea are going to take this opportunity to make a move?"

"Haha, exactly."

Lurans took a deep breath. "It’s just a pity that Wushan Territory is in a poor position. We have a long history, but we’ve always been viewed with apprehension. As a result, we have no allies and can only rely on ourselves."

He mused for a moment. "I’ve already sent Melonika ahead with her forces to Black Python City, along with the Eighth Knight Order led by Homer. Together with your troops in Purple Thunder Territory, they will guard the east. Once war breaks out, Kabil will also provide timely reinforcements."

"As for the remaining two Knight Orders, I’ll send Toru to Sharp Horn City and Sandro to your Wubei Port."

"Wubei Port isn’t important."

Ronin said, "If they attack from the sea, they’re more likely to strike Rapids Island. I’ll have Carlos defend it. Let Sandro’s Knight Order go to Purple Thunder Territory instead. It’s the perfect opportunity to strike first and wipe out the Black Gold Brotherhood, who have retreated into the Black Pine Mountain Range."

"This is actually a war of attrition. The number of Knights in Wushan Territory is limited. Those three factions combined have deeper reserves than we do. They can bleed us a little at a time, and if they do it enough, we’ll be bled dry."

Lurans said, "So, if this war starts, we must win with the greatest possible strength and speed. We need to make them seriously re-evaluate their own power before they even think of trying to bleed us again."

When we display a sufficient level of power, even the Royal Family will have to weigh the cost before making a move against Wushan Territory.

"So, Moonlight Valley..." Ronin looked at Lurans.

Lurans held up two fingers. "Two months to mobilize our forces. When the time is up, we can launch our own attack. I’ll go and help as well."

Ronin laughed. "One Proud Sun, two Silver Moons, one Magic Master, plus three Meteor Knights... With that kind of combat power, our battle against Moonlight Valley will be an overwhelming victory!"

「Late at night in the Golden Feather Palace.」

After returning to the Royal Capital, Broel reported everything that had occurred in Shore City to Bruno.

As a Knight sworn to the Royal Family, Broel was loyal.

Although he was on good terms with Ronin and Lurans, he did not deliberately conceal any details.

"As if one Magic Master wasn’t enough, now there’s a Silver Moon Knight too..."

"Where did all these powerful experts suddenly come from?"

Bruno rubbed the bridge of his nose. His intuition told him that Wushan Territory was now incredibly powerful; reining it in would be no easy task.

"I don’t know either."

Broel shook his head. "Your Majesty, how do you plan to deal with Ronin? After all, he openly defied your command."

"He defied it, so he defied it. What can I do to him?"

Bruno gave a bitter smile. "The Royal Palace is currently preparing for Blanche and Ronin’s wedding. I can hardly announce that Ronin has betrayed the Kingdom, can I?"

After a moment of thought, he had an idea.

"I originally wanted to cooperate with Wushan Territory to curb the ambitions of Screaming Island, Moonlight Valley, and the Villa Duchy. I never expected the tables to turn like this."

Bruno gazed at the bright moon outside his window, thinking, ’This is fine too. Let them fight amongst themselves. The Royal Family will focus on the battles at the border and stay out of it.’

"Broel, go write a letter to Garrett. Tell him he no longer needs to concern himself with matters here."

He thought for a moment, then added, "Oh, and write a letter to Ronin as well. Since he guarantees that Sophia wasn’t responsible, I’ll choose to believe him. The friendship between the Royal Family and the Wushan Clan should not be affected by such a trivial matter."