Chapter 237: The Changing Situation

Just as the father and son of House Bolerum were gnawing on dry rations with cold water. In the kitchen of the City Hall, servants were busy chopping wood and starting fires. Although they could not cook a meal, being able to brew a pot of tea was still good. They could not let all the noble lords attending the meeting later drink cold water!

Under George’s bite force, which was like that of a Tyrannosaurus, that hard “brick” was bitten apart with a “crunch—” sound. Then, the “crunch crunch” sound made while chewing was just like eating dry crispy noodles.

From George’s perspective, the texture of this dry ration was not as bad as Viscount Bolerum had claimed. The reason the other party had such a big reaction was largely due to the huge psychological gap!

In the Duchy of Nohan, although it was not very obvious in other aspects. But on the issue of food, the reputation that “what George produces must be a masterpiece” had already emerged! It could be said that in terms of diet, the name “George” was now a brand. Just like the white-bearded old grandpa of KFC.

Compared to the Type 90 compressed rations George had eaten before transmigrating, in terms of crispy texture, this military ration was much worse. The main reason for this was the lack of fats and oils. Although oil was not a luxury item in this era, it was still a scarce commodity.

Fortunately, the crushed fish meat contained more or less a little fat, which prevented the texture of the dry ration from being too dry. It was more like fried rice blocks that had been left for a long time. Of course, paired with the soft crushed fish meat mixed in, which looked a bit like grilled fish slices, the overall feeling could be said to have its own merits compared to those compressed biscuits from Guanshengyuan.

Of course, what Viscount Bolerum felt most regretful about was probably the taste, which had no spices or other flavors aside from being slightly salty! As for the hard texture, ordinary people could eat it easily as long as they didn’t try to gnaw off half a block in one go like he did. In this world filled with murderous baguettes and Black Bread that could block knives, this was just a drizzle!

The first to arrive at the City Hall meeting room was naturally the pride of the Bolerum Territory—Knight Val. He had been stationed in the city during this time. If he hadn’t been afraid that galloping through the city would cause the residents to let their imaginations run wild, even deducting the time for servants to deliver the message, the first to arrive would probably not have been the George father and son.

As soon as he pushed open the meeting room door, he saw the father and son chewing constantly with their cheeks bulging. There were also powdery food crumbs on their chests, with scattered white powder making those two originally dark clothes look as comical as could be.

“Heh—what is our Lord Viscount doing right now!” Knight Val stood at the door with an expression that looked like he was smiling but not quite. From his constantly twitching corners of his mouth, he seemed to be holding it in with difficulty.

“Stop talking nonsense, didn’t you not have breakfast either! Here, catch! This is the soldiers’ future combat rations. As their commanding officer, you should share their joys and sorrows.” Viscount Bolerum said, picking up a piece of dry ration and throwing it towards Knight Val like a brick.

The high-speed flying brick tore through the air in front of it. Beneath its uneven surface, it brought not just the sound of breaking wind. There was also a “hissing” sound like a poisonous snake flicking its tongue, caused by the turbulence.

Knight Val extended his fingers, slightly curved and retracted them, and caught the flying “stray bullet”. He brought it to his mouth and bit off a corner with his teeth, displaying teeth better than Bear Grylls quite effortlessly in front of the two.

Flicking off some crumbs that landed on his chest, Knight Val spoke with his mouth still full of food: “It tastes not bad! Much better than those unleavened flatbreads from before. Young people these days really have good fortune with food, but the price of this stuff shouldn’t be much more expensive than that previous Adventurer ration, right!”

“For the same quantity, there’s probably a difference of about 5 Copper Coins. Of course, that’s the price for our own use. If sold externally, it would be more than that! The Linen used for packaging accounts for a portion of the cost.” Saying this, George wiped his hand on his clothes. The electric current dancing at the tip of his index finger instantly carbonized and vaporized those food residues without harming his silk clothes at all.

This was an advanced application by George of the Knight Technique he had learned from Knight Val before—”Flash of Lightning”. During this time, although George had invested most of his time in the cultivation of the newly acquired Eastern Martial Arts. But this only means of energy attack in the near future was something he would not neglect.

Strangely enough, among that batch of Eastern Martial Arts George obtained, there was a real lack of capabilities regarding energy usage. The “White Crow Style” took the path of inspiring people, boosting morale like a Bard. The “Steel Soul Style” took the path of strengthening the spirit, ultimately achieving will interfering with matter. George hadn’t researched the “Iron Heart School” much, but it seemed to be a path of developing the user’s own potential and assisting it with high-end techniques.

George hadn’t invested much energy into the remaining two paths, “Stone Dragon” and “Tiger Claw”, but based on the descriptions, they didn’t seem to have anything about energy control either. On the contrary, the “Shadow Hand Style” and “Desert Wind Style”, which were mentioned in this ancient scroll but had no training methods, possessed capabilities in this area. The former was about the use of Negative Energy and shadows, while the latter controlled fire. However, George, who lacked relevant knowledge in either aspect, could only sigh in resignation.

With the continuous maturation of the Thunderbird Spirit and its increasingly close connection with himself. George was now able to control this ability very well. If the previously mastered “Flash of Lightning” was somewhat similar to a System function in a game, then now it was like an instinct of George himself.

The former could only be used rigidly as a slashing move, but now it could be well integrated into every move George made, just like possessing a weapon with a Thunderstorm Enchantment.

Of course, this was just its use in battle; now his application of it in daily life had reached the level of perfection. Aside from vaporizing garbage just now, it could also be used to ignite dead branches, and if necessary, to scratch Constructs with an Electric Claw or something.

Integrating the practice of one’s every move into daily life was a method George had heard of in the world before he transmigrated. In the past, he hadn’t had the chance to try this out, but using it now, the effect seemed quite good.

Regarding George’s performance, Knight Val showed a slight hint of surprise. Then he spoke with a sense of relief: “It seems I was right to teach you this Knight Technique before. Your talent in this area is much stronger than that rascal Hiren.”

“Perhaps this path of Knight Techniques just suits me better!” George scratched his head and replied somewhat sheepishly. Or maybe it was because of his innate personality, George was never quite used to others’ praise. For a moment, the atmosphere in the room immediately became harmonious.

By the time the sun gradually rose, several active-duty Knights finally arrived at the meeting room before the civil servants started their work. Although this took quite some time, one had to understand that several of these Knights lived in suburban Manors at no short distance from the city.

At the same time, after receiving the news, they still had to travel in a way that did not cause suspicion or panic. It could be said that being able to arrive here in such a short time was already quite efficient!

As for the reason Viscount Bolerum hurriedly dragged George here without even having time to eat. It was naturally because of those Knights living in the city during this time. Because according to tradition, the Lord who initiated the Knight meeting should be the first to arrive. To show respect for their subordinates, this father and son pair had to do so.

This small meeting room was not the great hall in the Castle, and there was no large furniture for a massive Round Table Conference. The arriving Knights greeted each other in a seemingly friendly manner. This also reflected a Lord’s skill and methods in managing subordinates.

The relationship between subordinates was not necessarily the better the closer and more harmonious it was. Once the connections and relationships between subordinates became too close, the Lord risked being sidelined. Although if important subordinates were all Knights, such serious consequences would not occur. But it could still cause some government orders to be implemented poorly.

And if the relationship between subordinates was too poor, that would be an even bigger trouble. If it was just scheming against each other and tripping each other up behind their backs, it was still manageable. Regulating the balance of power and manipulating subordinates in the palm of one’s hand was still something a considerable number of Lords enjoyed.

However, if the instigation between Knights went too far, it would generate additional risks. Because Knights, compared to verbal sparring and tripping others up, seemed to prefer using swords and blades directly to resolve conflicts.

If some fatal accident happened during a duel, the Lord’s power might drop drastically in a short time. Grasping this measure was the time to test every Lord’s political wisdom.

After everyone was seated, Viscount Bolerum, as the Lord and initiator, cleared his throat and said with a serious face: “Early this morning, a messenger from the Duke came from Karada and delivered a rather severe piece of news. Everyone present, please be mentally prepared!”

The brief pause by the leader did not stop the whispering among the subordinates. George observed the Knights before him without revealing his emotions. Some of them had doubtful looks on their faces, probably waiting for Viscount Bolerum to finish speaking so they could get specific information. There were also others whose expressions, whether real or fake, seemed somewhat excited. Although it couldn’t be said that their eyes were gleaming with light, they looked like beasts that had seen blood. They looked like they had been longing for war for a long time.

“A large number of Dark Elf troops have appeared within the borders of the Kingdom of Lucia. According to reliable information obtained, this is not a hunting ceremony for the coming-of-age ritual of a major Dark Elf family. Instead, it is a cavalry unit of over a thousand brown Velociraptors and supporting Giant Lizard skirmishers. It is said that in the past few days, they have already looted more than three large towns within Lucia. News on other property losses probably cannot be obtained in a short time. But in terms of population alone, the loss is at least 10,000 people.” Viscount Bolerum’s tone lost all the seriousness from before; he was quite obviously displaying a tone of schadenfreude.

“Father, your behavior in the face of this situation seems somewhat inappropriate! If outsiders see this, it will affect your reputation.” George pulled his father’s sleeve from the side and said.

Although George also felt gratified in his heart that the Kingdom of Lucia had suffered such a calamity. But he would absolutely not show it. Because the other party was one of the deadly enemies of surface intelligent creatures—the Dark Elves. At a time like this, even if the two sides were enemies, and even if they couldn’t show shared hatred for the enemy, it was best not to let people think you were kicking them while they were down. Otherwise, it would easily invite criticism.

Dark Elves were also called “Drow”, and like other Elf subspecies, they were widely distributed. Because they hated sunlight, they would try to avoid travel that might involve contact with sunlight. Dark Elves were usually shorter than other Elves, but their movements were more agile than surface Elves. Apart from height and skin color, the appearance of Dark Elves was no different from their surface brethren.

Dark Elf society was a matriarchal clan society, where females were the primary rulers. And males could only engage in unimportant work, such as fencing or certain Magic research. As priestesses of the Spider Queen Lolth, females ruled Dark Elf society. And males could at most become the family’s Weapon Master, Chief Wizard, or even House Patron.

Due to the power of the Spider Queen Lolth, Dark Elf females often had stronger abilities than males, even surpassing them in physical fitness and intelligence. So they found it hard to believe that other races were actually under the rule of males. They also didn’t believe that those male-dominated races could pose any threat to them.

If that were all, aside from the surface Elves who had a blood feud with them after the “Elf War”, their race should have coexisted peacefully with others.

Unfortunately, these Dark Elves were full of hatred for any creature in the surface world. And what they hated the most were the good Elves. Dark Elves would seize the opportunity to kill any Elf they encountered. Of course, if they could kill other surface creatures along the way, they wouldn’t pass up the easy task.

And now that most Elves had gone overseas, the killing for the coming-of-age rituals of those Dark Elves could only target Humans and other surface intelligent creatures. Situations of plundering slaves and killing resisters occurred from time to time in the Western Continent. Making this underground creature almost a public enemy of the Western Continent.

Of course, in George’s view, the main reason Dark Elves were hostile was still their refusal to communicate with surface creatures. Because once communication was possible, there was a possibility of using non-violent means to solve problems. And those Dark Elves themselves had severed this glimmer of opportunity for easing relations.

So, if the conflict between the Kingdom of Lucia and the Duchy of Nohan during this time was compared to the war between the two parties during the New Democratic Revolution. Then the sudden appearance of the Dark Elves could be analogized to the Japanese invasion of China. At a time like this, it was absolutely necessary to pay attention to political correctness.

“You don’t need to worry about this, George. Everyone here won’t reveal this matter. If it were a public occasion, I certainly wouldn’t behave so casually.” Viscount Bolerum shrugged. The meaning of his words was clearly pointing out that George was making a big deal out of nothing just now. In such a small place, inadvertently revealing trust in one’s subordinates, was this a strategy or not!

“So, has the Kingdom of Lucia adopted any strategies! And how did those Black Skins suddenly appear, was there really no news beforehand?” The first to raise this question was the usually quiet Knight Fukna.

“In fact, the Northern Military District of the Kingdom of Lucia has already sent their Champion Cavalry Regiment to clash with those invading Black Skins. Although no news of the outcome has come back, judging by the consistent habits of the Kingdom of Lucia. If they had gained any advantage at all in this battle, they would have been publicizing it all over the Continent by now. As for the reason why the other party appeared so suddenly this time, the most likely possibility is that those Black Skins found a new passage leading to the Surface.” Viscount Bolerum’s tone gradually became serious again as he spoke.

Knight Val frowned tightly, which was quite rare: “Even the Champion Cavalry Regiment of the Kingdom of Lucia didn’t gain an advantage? The Black Skins that appeared this time probably won’t be easy to deal with!”

Since the Champion Cavalry Regiment of the Kingdom of Lucia had the word “Champion” in its name, it meant that these riders had at least won prizes in equestrian tournaments held by nobles at the Baron level or above.

These riders, in various equestrian competitions, in order to gain the favor of noble ladies or substantial bonuses, had engaged countless times in that boring game of charging towards each other on narrow fields and poking each other’s chests with long poles. After countless such honing, their lance skills often became quite exquisite.

Of course, this was also like a screening process; members with slightly weaker strength either died on the spot or later withdrew from this rank due to illness and injury. From this, the best of the best were selected to form a Champion Cavalry Regiment for each military district of the Kingdom of Lucia.

A military district was a special district for peasant soldiers, a system where the state gave small peasants hereditary land in exchange for the obligation of small peasants to perform military service and tax revenue. In peacetime, the soldiers of the military district turned into farmers, meaning Freemen controlling a piece of farmland within the military district jurisdiction, the price being that land-owning families had to provide cavalry when needed, or they could hire others to replace them at their own expense. These small farms could be inherited by the eldest son, on the condition of inheriting the military obligations of the father. However, only a region with vast land and sparse population like the Kingdom of Lucia, rich in natural resources, could afford to play this hand.

This made it so that looking at the entire Western Continent, aside from the Human cavalry of the Kingdom of Lucia, no cavalry of any other race or country could reach this level in large quantities. Lucia also relied on these powerful cavalry forces to look down on most countries—after all, although Formal Knights were powerful, their numbers were scarce.

“Actually, what I’m more concerned about is, since those Black Skins could discover a new passage leading to the Surface. Then could they discover a second or a third one? Could one of them appear within the borders of our Duchy of Nohan?” George rubbed his chin and stated his conjecture, which suddenly caused the temperature in the meeting room to drop by several degrees.