Chapter 321

*Thud!*

Marquis Safia slammed his fork down on the table after hearing the message from his daughter’s messenger.

The messenger gulped, sensing his master’s irritation.

But Marquis Safia’s expression remained calm.

“Very well. You are dismissed.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

The messenger bowed deeply and quickly left the room.

Marquis Safia didn’t pick up his fork again. Instead, he turned to the elderly man sitting beside him.

An old steward with a wealth of experience.

“Steward.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

“You know what my lifelong ambition is, don’t you?”

“Of course, Your Excellency.”

“Yes, I’ve spent my entire life preparing for it. I’ve poured all my resources into it. And if anyone dares to interfere…”

Marquis Safia’s eyes flashed menacingly.

He picked up his fork and stabbed it into the table.

*Thud!*

“I won’t forgive them. I’ll crush them and eliminate them.”

“It will be done.”

The steward bowed deeply.

He knew how ruthless his master was.

A man who had spent his entire life honing his skills and waiting for his chance.

‘Tsk, he should have known better than to get ahead of himself. Young people are so shortsighted.’

The steward clicked his tongue, thinking about Max Celtrine.

He acknowledged that Max was a talented young man.

But he was still naive.

He didn’t understand that trying to take everything for himself would only lead to his downfall.

The steward had seen it happen countless times.

Marquis Safia’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Increase the number of troops to one hundred and twenty thousand. Begin preparations immediately.”

“As you command, Your Excellency.”

A storm was brewing in the west.

* * *

The Celtrine army’s unstoppable advance, which had swept through the western part of the central region, came to a halt.

There were no major clashes between the princess’s forces and the Crown Prince’s forces after that.

Only sporadic skirmishes.

Both sides knew that it was the calm before the storm.

A tense standoff, like a sheet of thin ice that could crack at any moment.

But changes were happening.

Changes that would bring a storm to the front lines.

It started in the east.

Duke Cavern arrived at the Imperial City with an army of eighty thousand.

The north followed.

Regina Erenbert, the Acting Head of the Erenbert family, set up camp at the Celtrine territory with thirty thousand elite soldiers from the north.

Then came the south.

Duke Henatus’s army of one hundred thousand marched towards the Imperial City.

And finally, the west.

Marquis Safia entered the Celtrine territory with an army of one hundred and twenty thousand, joining forces with the princess.

The main forces of both sides had finally assembled.

The tension was palpable, as if a bloodbath was imminent.

Everyone held their breath, waiting to see what would happen next.

* * *

“Hahaha, I haven’t felt this good in a long time.”

Crown Prince Adolf was finally smiling again.

The two powerful dukes, who possessed the strength to turn the tide of the war, had arrived, lifting the gloom that had settled over the Imperial City after their recent defeats.

Duke Cavern and Duke Henatus.

Duke Cavern was a cunning old fox with steely eyes, and Duke Henatus was a wild stallion of a man with a sun-baked face.

“You seem to have been troubled, Your Highness.”

Duke Cavern said.

He stood tall and proud before the intimidating Crown Prince.

It showed how he had managed to maintain his position as the most powerful figure in the east for so long.

“It’s a bit embarrassing to admit, but yes, I have.”

“A thorn in your side, I presume?”

“The Celtrine family… Max Celtrine, to be precise.”

“Indeed.”

Adolf admitted it frankly.

He couldn’t deny it. Max was the person he wanted to kill the most in the world.

“He’s a cunning and devious bastard.”

“I’m somewhat aware of his abilities. My grandson was also a victim of his schemes.”

Duke Cavern said, and Arhin, who was standing behind him, blushed.

He remembered the humiliation he had suffered in his duel against Max at the Celtrine family’s training grounds.

‘I’ll make him pay for that humiliation!’

Arhin gritted his teeth.

“Hmm, I see. It seems you’ll have your chance for revenge.”

“Personal grudges are insignificant. But for the sake of Your Highness’s reign, the traitorous Celtrine family must be eliminated.”

Duke Cavern’s words carried weight.

“Haha, I’m reassured.”

Adolf smiled again.

He might be old, but he was still a powerful figure.

He would be a valuable asset in this civil war.

“I will also eliminate any traitor, be it the Celtrine family or anyone else. Just give the order.”

Duke Henatus said.

His words were filled with confidence and determination.

He was indeed a worthy man, known as the Hero of the South, who had divided and conquered the desert tribes.

“You’re both very reliable.”

Adolf’s eyes gleamed as he stepped down from his throne.

He walked towards the center of the throne room, where a large map of the empire was spread out.

“Now, let’s discuss how we’re going to hunt down those traitors.”

A cruel smile spread across his lips.

* * *

The Celtrine territory, a wealthy territory in the central region.

Never before had so many powerful figures of the empire gathered here, and never before had so many soldiers been stationed here.

It was a historic event.

The Celtrine family, which had become the center of the civil war, was bustling with activity.

Count Celtrine, his wife, and even their daughter, Liss Celtrine, were busy.

They had so much to do that they barely had time to sleep.

But compared to Max, they were having it easy.

Max was constantly on the move, attending to countless matters from the moment he woke up until he went to bed.

‘Hmm, he’s definitely planning something.’

The princess was observing Max’s actions from afar.

She had tried to follow him a few times, but it was beneath her dignity, as the princess and the leader of their faction, to be seen trailing after one of her subordinates.

There was a limit to everything.

‘Hehe, it’s more interesting to leave it to anticipation.’

Anyway,

‘Today’s the day, isn’t it?’

The war council to discuss their strategy against the Crown Prince’s army, which had assembled a massive force.

This war council could decide their fate.

A single wrong decision could lead to irreversible ruin.

‘Let’s see what they come up with.’

The princess herself, the leader of their faction Max, her special senior who represented the Celtrine family Lobel, the giant of the north and Marquis Safia, the cunning strategist of the west.

There were other minor lords present, but their opinions didn’t matter.

Only the opinions of those four mattered.

‘No, three, actually.’

She didn’t think there would be any disagreements between the Celtrine family and the Erenbert family, who were close allies.

Unless she strongly voiced her own opinion, the decision would be made based on whether the Celtrine-Erenbert alliance or Marquis Safia had the upper hand.

‘I’ll just stay neutral and enjoy the show.’

The princess smiled.

* * *

“You heard what they said, right?”

“Yes.”

Marquis Safia nodded, acknowledging his daughter’s words.

“They have an army of two hundred and forty thousand.”

Eighty thousand from the east, one hundred thousand from the south, twenty thousand from the Imperial City, and forty thousand from the central region.

It was a staggering number.

If Max and the Celtrine army hadn’t inflicted heavy losses on the Imperial City’s forces and the forces of the central region, it would have been over three hundred thousand.

The princess’s forces consisted of one hundred and twenty thousand from the west, thirty thousand from the north, twenty thousand from the Celtrine family, and twenty thousand from the rest of the central region, including the Lambert family, for a total of one hundred and ninety thousand.

“A difference of fifty thousand.”

It wasn’t a small difference, but it wasn’t insurmountable either.

However, there was one crucial factor they couldn’t ignore.

The Crown Prince’s forces had a much larger number of elite soldiers.

The armies of the east and south, led by Duke Cavern and Duke Henatus, were undoubtedly elite forces.

Of course, the Erenbert family’s thirty thousand soldiers were also elite warriors, perhaps even more so.

But they were severely outnumbered.

“Even though the difference is only fifty thousand, we can’t deny the difference in quality.”

His daughter, Emily, pointed out.

Their family, the Safia family, which made up more than half of the princess’s forces, had one hundred and twenty thousand soldiers.

They weren’t a ragtag bunch.

They were soldiers who had been tempered in skirmishes with the Kingdom.

But they were just skirmishes.

They couldn’t compare to the soldiers of the east, north, and south, who had been fighting for their survival against foreign invaders for generations.

“So…”

“I know. We have to avoid a decisive battle.”

Marquis Safia said calmly.

Anyone who commanded an army of one hundred and twenty thousand would be tempted to engage in a decisive battle.

But Marquis Safia was different.

He might seem like a gentle man on the surface, but he was actually a cold and calculating strategist.

He wouldn’t gamble on a strategy with low odds of success.

He would choose the path with the highest chance of victory and push his enemies into a corner.

That was Marquis Safia.

“As expected of Father.”

Emily, who was very much like her father, smiled.

Her brother, Ethan, on the other hand, who seemed like a complete anomaly in their family, blinked in confusion.

“Um… So what should we do?”

“Sigh, you idiot. It’s obvious, isn’t it? We have to go to Lambert Castle.”

Lambert Castle.

It might seem like an insignificant castle, considering how easily Max had convinced them to betray the Crown Prince, but it was anything but.

It was one of the most impregnable fortresses in the central region.

There was a reason why the Crown Prince had put so much effort into winning them over.

And there was a reason why he had been so furious when Max had ruined his plans.

Anyway, if their army of one hundred and twenty thousand, along with the Lambert family’s five thousand elite archers, defended Lambert Castle, no one would be able to conquer it, not even Duke Cavern, the Iron Wall of the East, or Duke Henatus, the Hero of the South.

“Huh? But that castle is that guy’s achievement…”

“Who cares? We have to go there. He did us a favor by conquering it for us.”

“She’s right.”

Marquis Safia said.

“Do you think you can defeat the armies of the east or south in a decisive battle?”

“W-Well… No.”

“Yes, that’s how you assess the situation calmly. That’s how you win wars.”

Marquis Safia continued, “A decisive battle is what the enemy wants. We can’t give them what they want. We have to do what they hate the most. We have to dig in and defend.”

“B-But what if they don’t attack…?”

“Hmph, they will. The situation has already been set.”

“Huh? What do you mean…?”

“The only way to boost their morale, which has plummeted after their consecutive defeats, is to win. But if we just keep staring at each other, their morale will continue to decline.”

In other words, it was the situation that Max Celtrine had created.

But it didn’t matter.

Whoever created the situation, they just had to take advantage of it.

“They’ll be forced to attack. We’ll defend against their attacks, and then we’ll counterattack when they’re weakened. That’s our strategy.”

“It’s a brilliant strategy, Father.”

Emily smiled.

“And you’ve already taken steps to ensure that it works, right?”

“Yes, I’ve made all the necessary arrangements. They won’t be able to resist the tide.”

Marquis Safia’s expression was filled with confidence.

* * *

“They’ll try to go to Lambert Castle.”

Regina said.

It was a strategic location that they had to secure, and it was also the safest place.

And it was the place where they had the highest chance of achieving merits.

The Knight of Zephyr wouldn’t miss that.

“Yes, they will.”

Lobel agreed.

He was also a sharp strategist.

“So what should we do? Should we try to stop them?”

It wasn’t ideal for allies to have conflicting opinions, but this was different.

Their choice of battlefield could determine the fate of their families.

“No, let them go.”

Max said, surprising them.

“Oh? You’re fine with that?”

Lobel tilted his head in confusion.

“Well, it’s not a bad idea to make a concession for the sake of unity. But then where should we go? Celtrine Castle?”

Celtrine Castle was also a strategic location.

And it had a history of repelling the Imperial City’s army.

The enemy wouldn’t dare to attack it recklessly.

But,

“No. We’ll head towards Odinel. Let’s fight them in the open field.”

Max declared.

“What?!”

Lobel’s eyes widened in shock.