Chapter 22: The Shadow Closing In

This rough, dark brown object was covered in air holes. George held back his doubts and reached out to touch it. Although it felt hard overall, it still had a bit of flexibility under heavy pressure.

Baffled, George pointed at the object and had to ask his question: “This seems to be a fermented grain baked product? So, Mr. Val, do you want to use this bran bread, often eaten by the poor, to prove something?”

“I almost forgot. You two, who haven’t traveled the Continent, might not know much about this. Thomas, can you tell George and Hiren what this is?” While showing off his knowledge, Knight Val turned to look at Thomas.

Thomas ignored the man’s words and gave him a look of disdain. Then he simply spit out, “I never eat low-quality food.”

“Cough—cough, cough.” Knight Val choked on his breath and was hit hard by those words.

Seeing Knight Val in trouble was rare, so both George and Hiren made strange laughing faces. This earned them another sharp tap on the head from both Hiren and Thomas.

“Alright, this is not the time for jokes. Let’s talk about this bread.” Knight Val continued holding the “black coal” and said, “This bread is called ‘Gileva’. It is the staple food of the Kingdom of Lucia, located to the northeast of the Duchy.”

Thomas mumbled quietly after being hit, “What’s so special about this? It seems like no one else eats this stuff.”

Knight Val raised his hand as if to strike again, and Thomas immediately scrambled and crawled behind George. Then, Knight Val smoothly smoothed his hair.

After glaring at Thomas, Knight Val said, “Forget it! I suppose you wouldn’t understand anyway. This bread has a hard texture with a slightly sour and salty taste. For people in most regions, it is hard to swallow at first. So, except in the Kingdom of Lucia, where there is a tradition of eating it, few people eat it. Also, making this bread is quite troublesome. Just kneading the dough and letting it ferment takes nearly two days. The prepared dough is put into a special oven with uniform heat and simmered over a low flame. When taken out, the bottom of the bread makes a hollow sound. Its appearance is black and shiny. When cut, it is fragrant, soft, and delicious without crumbling. This is a successful product. Because the process is complex, even housewives in Lucia do not make it at home. Instead, they go to the bakery every day at set times to buy fresh ‘Gileva’ for their families.”

“Look here,” said Knight Val, pointing his finger at the cross-section of this “black coal.” “Do you see those tiny granular particles? Don’t think they are wood chips or gravel added by dishonest merchants to increase weight. These are natural vanilla seeds. Generally, the army of Lucia likes to mix this into ‘Gileva’ to add flavor. After all, the shelf life of this bran bread is not much worse than that of unleavened flatbreads. In the army of Lucia, it serves as both a staple food and dried rations.”

Just as Hiren was about to wake up from his daydream, he shouted, “Speaking of the northwest of the Empire? Isn’t that the territory of the Barbarians? Then the Kingdom of Lucia must be right next to those ‘Tungus savages’?”

Seeing this, both George and Knight Val couldn’t help but hold their heads and shake them. This guy’s reaction time was really long; he only reacted to that sentence after it was already said.

George complained, “Hiren, we have told you for a long time to read more books. At least understand basic history and the geography around the Duchy! Otherwise, you will be laughed at by others when you go out.”

Although George did not want to speak too harshly, Knight Val quickly jumped on the opportunity to continue: “What George said is actually a small matter. If you get a title like ‘Barbarian Knight’ or ‘Muscle Knight’ outside, to ensure the honor of the Val Family is not stained, I will cross your name off the Val Family genealogy and expel you completely.”

This time, not only Hiren but also George and Thomas present were scared. The weight of this sentence was too heavy; it was essentially a final ultimatum to Hiren. At least during this time in Karada, Hiren would have to study hard with books. Although everyone’s goal in urging him to study was the same, George had already decided to make time this time to supervise him properly.

“Alright! Let’s give our ignorant strongman Hiren a basic lesson. The Kingdom of Lucia was originally the northern granary of the Old Empire. Many of its subjects were Barbarians who were assimilated before the Old Empire collapsed.” Knight Val said, “So, you mean they are on the same side as the Barbarians? Then they must have come to cause trouble.” Hiren couldn’t help but interrupt again. This time, the guy actually turned red in the neck with a look of righteous indignation.

Ha! Is this the legendary divine interruption? Immediately, another sharp tap came. This was Knight Val’s punishment for Hiren’s rude interruption.

Knight Val glared fiercely at Hiren and continued, “Listen to me finish first. Then, move that head of yours, which might be stuffed with muscles, and think. Then decide how to answer.”

“By the way! Where was I just now?” Knight Val paused and continued, “I just said that many subjects of the Lucia Empire were assimilated from the Barbarians, but this does not mean they have a good relationship with the Barbarians. On the contrary, Barbarian society is tribal. These assimilated tribes mostly have generational blood feuds within the Barbarian tribes. Either before assimilation, they had to commit the massacre of a small tribe as a price. So the Kingdom of Lucia can be said to be the main eastern battlefield for the Barbarians’ southward advance. Our Northern Fortress is just one of the many invasion points on the west, though a larger one. Of course, they are at least an old-established kingdom with a large population and still have some legacies from the Old Empire era. Dealing with them will definitely not be more difficult for them than for us.”

“So, does this mean this matter was likely instigated by the Kingdom of Lucia?” Hiren asked tentatively.

Another sharp tap greeted him.

This time, Hiren asked unwillingly, “What did I do wrong again?”

“Nothing. This time was just a slip of the hand.” Although he said that, Knight Val’s face showed a secret satisfaction that betrayed him.

Hiren, angry but unable to speak, had to silently rub the pain on his head.

“I have heard from passing caravans that in recent years, under the rule of the current King Anliuke VIII, the Kingdom of Lucia has seen increasing political stability. Its national power seems to have improved slightly as well. So, the calls for external expansion within them are quite strong.” George spoke out his understanding of the Kingdom of Lucia.

“Public opinion is often the least reliable. No significant figure has expressed support for this matter so far. After all, although the political situation in Lucia has stabilized in recent years, the trauma left by the coup twenty years ago is not so easily healed.” Knight Val’s source of information seemed more complete and reliable than George’s.

George thought for a moment and voiced his guess: “I think such a strong and lasting public outcry is not something that commoners can produce on their own.”

Knight Val seemed unsure: “Are you saying someone is manipulating all of this behind the scenes?”

In the world before his transmigration, perhaps because the gap in individual strength was not large, the development in external objects and even in political intrigue far exceeded that of this world. Later, ‘Our Rabbit’ even pushed the integration of politics and mass mobilization to the peak. As an adult who received political education from a young age, after being bombarded by the various true and false movements, conspiracies, and dark secrets revealed in the internet age, George could basically say he had seen the pig run even if he hadn’t eaten pork. Plus, the severe lack of security since his transmigration often made George think of these things in the worst way.

“This is very possible! The rulers first stir up public opinion and ignite the enthusiasm of most commoners. While maintaining this enthusiasm and preventing it from fading, they make no public statement within the upper class. Using this vague method, they confuse the judgment of potential opponents at home and abroad. At the same time, they can secretly make preparations for war. When the time is ripe, they can launch a war wrapped in public opinion, reducing mobilization time and boosting army morale.” After considering for a while, George finally voiced his thoughts.

Hiren, who seemed naturally insensitive to such matters, looked like he hadn’t listened at all. Thomas, however, seemed to have some realization, stroking his beard and wondering what he was thinking.

“Although this situation has not happened before, hearing you say it makes me rule out the possibility in this aspect. Anyway, these goblins are more or less related to the Kingdom of Lucia. I will arrange my own channels to specifically learn about the recent situation in the Kingdom of Lucia. Once we reach Karada, George, you should also discuss your thoughts in this area with Lord Viscount. Lord Viscount should also take some action.” Knight Val thought for a while and decided to partially believe George’s judgment for now. For the rest, he would wait for follow-up intelligence before making a decision.

“Actually, what I can’t figure out now is why Lucia would set its sights on our Duchy of Nohan. After all, the land here is not fertile. Moreover, due to years of Barbarian invasions, the fighting power of our army is quite strong. Plus, due to historical reasons, the whole Duchy has a rough and wild culture, and there is no tradition of cultural integration with Lucia. In any case, it is not a good target for annexation.” After hearing Knight Val’s suggestion, George raised his question. “If it’s just for plundering, it would be even more unprofitable.”

“By your description, the Kingdom of Coruz to the south fits your annexation conditions very well. The wealth of the South is well known. Moreover, that country has not had large-scale wars for a long time. Culturally, Coruz and Lucia, as descendants of the Old Empire, are not far apart from each other.” Knight Val gained some inspiration from George’s words and made his own inference. “In that case, this incident might also be a smoke screen released by Lucia to confuse the surrounding countries, or it could simply be the Kingdom of Coruz trying to share some pressure by dragging our Duchy into the water. Actually, judging from the equipment on those Bear Goblins, I lean more towards the latter. After all, Lucia, which treats soldiers like livestock, doesn’t have such a grand scale. In any case, regardless of which side it is, our battle yesterday disrupted their goals. It’s just bad luck. How did I get involved in such a troublesome matter? I hope luck is on our side and this matter has nothing to do with those two countries.”

As expected of Knight Val, his ability to draw inferences from one instance is truly strong. George’s words were just a small direction, yet he could infer so many situations.