Crick is not a cruel person. On the contrary, he is actually quite gentle. He is polite to everyone. Even to the servants of the Baron House or even the beggars on the roadside, he rarely shows a harsh look or does something. Cruel punishment.
But this does not mean that he is weak and can be bullied, nor does it mean that he will commit womanly mistakes on key issues, like Mr. Dongguo or the farmer who rescued the snake.
At the critical moment, he can be just as brutal and ruthless.
That winter two years ago, on the battlefield when the sun went out, he still rode his horse and brandished his sword, killing countless people.
At this moment, facing Duke Thunder who had gone too far to bully others, he was so angry that he was not afraid to kill anyone!
Priest Milomon's idea was very good and practical. The key was that it pointed out the blind spots in his thinking.
All this time, he never thought about fighting against the Thunder Duke. After all, the gap between Keen Territory and Thunder Principality is as wide as heaven and earth.
If necessary, the Principality of Thunder can pull out at least 20,000 regular troops, of which more than 3,000 are knights who are skilled in using various weapons and can wear heavy armor and charge on horses.
And what about Keenland? If you plan carefully, you can still gather 3,000 people--assuming that all young and middle-aged people, regardless of gender, old or young, are roped in, and each person is given a sharpened wooden stick as a weapon.
As for the 20,000 people, don't even think about it. Not to mention the people in Keenland, even if you include the livestock, you can't make up this number.
… It’s probably more practical to gather 20,000 ants.
Looking at the high-end military force, there are four legendary strongmen in the Thunder Principality. At critical moments, they can win over twice that number. Among them, there are at least two who directly belong to His Majesty the Grand Duke - one of the three Marquises and the Duchess's brother. Marquis Henrique de Gates, the "Slayer of the Blue-Eyed Dragon", is one of them.
And what about Keenland? The current number one master is Priest Milomon of the Church of the Mask of the Void. He is level 19, and has not even reached the peak of the high level yet - and he is not directly affiliated with Creek. Among Creek's own subordinates, the highest level one is "Three Arrows" Rhett is currently at level fifteen and has just entered a high level.
This is like being completely crushed, okay!
It is true that the strength of the Keen Territory is actually very strong. Thirty heavy infantrymen, twenty veterans who are good at using bows and arrows or other weapons, about ten knights, four mid-level spellcasters, and three senior adventurers , based on this, plus the temporary recruitment of militia, it is enough to form an army of about 300 people.
If we also seek help from the friendly Church of the God of Literature and the Church of the Mask of the Void, it is estimated that there will be about twenty more adventurers, including at least three or five spellcasters, and we may even be able to borrow a small group of temple knights.
With this kind of force, it is enough to crush any barony with overwhelming force. Even if it faces most of the viscountries, it can win in battle.
… But against the entire Thunder Principality? That's a matter of intelligence.
Creek has always thought this way, so even if Duke Thunder ordered him to go to the Eagle Kingdom to support him and narrowly escaped death, he did not dare to refuse.
But Milomon's words were like the most crucial ray of sunshine before dawn, illuminating his heart brightly.
Yes, the Thunder Duke is indeed powerful, and the Thunder Duke is indeed powerful, but so what
He is just the leader of the great nobles. Facing a baron or viscount, he is certainly arrogant and arrogant, but facing the earls, he cannot show off his authority.
Keen Territory is located in the hinterland of the Earl Territory of Holhak. Regardless of whether Archduke Thunder wants to send troops to annihilate it or send experts to raid, he must first ask the Earl's opinion. The two parties may have to bargain for a while. In this place with inconvenient transportation In the world, it is not uncommon to talk about it for a year and a half.
In this case, why are you afraid of a bird
At worst, I will rebel against him and go directly to Earl Holhack!
In this world, "betrayal" is a very despised thing, and decent people would rather die than do it. The reason why Grand Duke Thunder decided to seize the Keen Territory was because he thought that Creek Keen was a decent man. Even if he was dissatisfied, he would not dare to risk the disapproval of the world to betray him.
But he is really too sentimental! It is true that Crick is a decent man, but he is not from this world at all. The concepts of "loyalty" in this world have no influence on him at all.
Crick still remembers that when he was in college, there was a professor who liked to criticize the transformation of traditional literati in the past. Whenever he talked about this period of history, he would often shout heartbreakingly: "If a country has its way, then its officials will be good. If you don't have the right, you'll hide, but what the heck is it if you can't even hide?"
... As a result, the professor later got into a fight with another professor because he said bad things about the first generation of national leaders. I don't know whether he was loyal or traitorous.
Thanks to the old roaring emperor, Creek remembered some historical aphorisms. Although he didn't know the actual source, at least he could use them when he needed them.
For example, now.
Duke Thunder is unkind, so it is natural for Baron Keen, his younger brother, to betray him or even join another more reliable boss!
Crick only felt happy doing this kind of thing, and there was no psychological pressure at all.
But if you want to confront Duke Thunder, you can do it now. You can take refuge with Earl Holhak. We can discuss it later.
After all, Creek had never thought of defecting to this guy before, and he had never carefully investigated the situation of this earl. Apart from knowing that he was very powerful, very powerful, and had many brothers under his command, he basically knew nothing else.
Are you going to identify the boss based on this information alone? Is this crazy? Or mentally retarded
He thought about it and couldn't help laughing at the end.
If there is a crosstalk talker next to you at this time, you must praise him and say: "Why are you laughing, sir?"
Unfortunately not.
Everyone just looked at him in surprise, wondering how he could be so sullen before, but after whispering a few words to Priest Milomon, he became energetic, smiling, and as cheerful as the clear sky.
Even Milomon himself has some doubts. He feels that the plan is indeed good, but it is not good enough to make Baron Keen so happy...
Crick smiled and glanced at everyone in the conference room. Seeing everyone's confused faces, he smiled and explained: "Just now, I figured out something big."
"What's the big deal?" Butler Layton asked hurriedly.
Crick smiled mysteriously, whetted everyone's appetite again, and then said slowly: "I have sold my life for His Majesty the Grand Duke before, and now I don't owe him anything. In this case, I don't have to You have to be loyal to him."
Everyone was stunned. You looked at me and I looked at you. Most of them were a little confused.
Previously, in response to an order from His Majesty the Duke, Creek led the troops from the territory to go on an expedition. He was really going through life and death. But why did he change his position after only a few years
"Everyone, shouldn't the prerequisite for subordinates to be loyal to their masters be that the masters treat their subordinates well?" Crick said, "I fought tooth and nail for His Majesty the Grand Duke. Is that considered loyalty? But how did he repay me? Robbery The harvest of my territory!”
"What will happen to you if one day you risk your life for me and come back injured after a narrow escape from death? Not only do I fail to praise and reward you heavily, but I try to take away your property?"
"How can it be!"
"Sir, you are not that kind of person!"
"Yes, sir, are you kidding me?"
Creek sneered, took out a short knife, and slapped it on the table with a bang: "If that day comes, you don't need to tell me, I will wipe my neck first, so as not to be embarrassed in the world!"
He looked seriously at everyone's faces one by one: "Now, this is what that wicked fat man did to me!"
Everyone understood immediately, and everyone was furious. The young and energetic knight Charles Oss even jumped up and shouted: "Rebellion! Rebel against him!"
"Rebellion needs to be considered in the long term. We can't touch eggs with stones." Crick pressed his hands to signal everyone to be quiet, and then said, "But there is no doubt that from now on, we don't need to pay attention to that bastard anymore." That bullshit order! Rafael, wait a minute and find someone to deal with the messenger secretly, so that he will be attacked by monsters on the road before he reaches the territory. Isn't this difficult? "
"It's easy." Intelligence officer Raffl sneered.
Creek nodded, smiled at first, then sighed.
"Speaking of which, this guy is actually quite innocent. He just sent a letter, but he paid for it with his life... "
"He is not innocent!" Patrol Captain Rhett said with a cold face, "This guy galloped on his horse on the way into the city. If I hadn't happened to be there at the time, someone would have been trampled to death and injured by his horse. At that time He also plausibly said that there was an urgent military order to be delivered, which frightened me!"
"Oh?!" Creek's eyes turned cold, and his smile suddenly became a bit sinister. "Then it seems that this guy is not a good guy, so I won't have any psychological pressure."
"Most of these messengers are villains who use their strength to bully others. How many good people can there be?" Scout Reina snorted coldly, "It's less than the gold coins in my wallet!"
"How many gold coins are there in your wallet now?" Creek asked curiously.
Reina took out her wallet and poured it out. There were only silver and copper ones, as well as a holy emblem of the Church of the Goddess of Wealth.
Obviously, she had saved all the gold coins, and there were no gold coins in her wallet at all.
Everyone burst into laughter, and the previous gloomy atmosphere was swept away.
A few days later, a group of adventurers discovered "the remains of His Majesty's envoy from the capital." They reported Baron Keen and received a nice reward.
His Lordship then sent a letter to the capital reporting the incident.
As for why a powerful envoy with a guard was attacked by a monster on the road, not only did he die, but he also lost most of the items he carried. Why the news was transmitted so slowly, no one knows.
Anyway, Crick said, I don’t know anything.
Regardless of whether His Majesty the Grand Duke believed it or not, he believed it himself.