"Mr. Earl, can you tell me your reasons? The Third Prince is of noble status and is the initiator of the war. I think he is more important to you than Count Lint."
Count Whitley said in a deep voice.
Charlotte chuckled and said:
"Sir Whitley, you are joking. It was the Duchy of Bold and the Duke of Bold who started the war, not the Third Prince."
"Perhaps he is indeed of noble status, but what does it matter? Can I, Castel, use him to threaten His Majesty the King?"
"He has already failed. There is also evidence of his dealings with the Blood Demon Cult. He is finished."
"I don't care whether His Majesty the King likes this son or not. I only know that for me, Castel, keeping him is not only worthless, but also has some hidden dangers."
Lord Whitley shook his head and said:
"No, sir, it seems to me that it is valuable to you."
"oh?"
Charlotte raised an eyebrow and glanced at him.
Count Whitley thought for a moment and continued:
"My Lord Earl, independence from Bolder means that you will become a direct vassal of His Majesty the King, and all vassal contracts need to be re-signed..."
"I think you should be able to sense that the King, who acquiesced to the Third Prince's war against Castel, actually doesn't have much good feelings towards you who supports the Holy Royal Court."
"Don't you think this is an opportunity to show your goodwill to His Majesty the King? For the nobles, there are no eternal enemies..."
Charlotte smiled.
"Are you suggesting that I show my loyalty to His Majesty the King by unconditionally releasing the Third Prince?"
Whitley nodded slightly, as a sign of agreement.
Charlotte put away her smile and said calmly:
"Mr. Whitley, the Third Prince's violation of the Sacred Code and the Kingship Contract has already caused public outrage in the kingdom. A messenger has brought news that the nobles are ready to sue the parliament."
"In recent years, the relationship between His Majesty the King and the nobles has become increasingly delicate. I am aware of this. I have no intention of making enemies with the nobles of the kingdom just to show my goodwill to His Majesty the King..."
"So, let's discuss the price of redeeming Count Lint."
After hearing what Charlotte said, Earl Whitley sighed slightly.
He knew that the Duke's idea of replacing the hot potato of the Third Prince and exchanging the heir at the same time had failed.
"My Lord, since you have said so, I believe you have already thought of the ransom. Please just name the price."
said Lord Whitley.
As he said this, he took a deep breath and prepared himself for the young lion to open his mouth.
There is no way. Count Lint is the heir to the duchy. The ransom is far beyond the reach of ordinary nobles. It is definitely a astronomical price.
"No, I don't need Quintana."
Charlotte shook her head.
"Uh... huh?!"
Lord Whitley was stunned.
Charlotte glanced at him and smiled:
"I want territory."
"This is impossible!"
Count Whitley blurted out.
After saying this, he realized his own gaffe, and quickly coughed and continued:
"My Lord Earl, please don't joke. Although Earl Lint is the son of the Duke, he is not a lord after all. It is really against the rules to use territory as ransom..."
"Sir Whitley, don't you want to know which part of the territory I want?"
Charlotte said.
Lord Whitley hesitated for a moment, then asked:
"Which part of the territory do you want?"
Charlotte motioned to the knight of the Royal Guard to bring the map over, then pointed to a small piece of territory northeast of Violet on the map, sandwiched between the Principality of Roman and the Earldom of Castel, and said:
"My requirements are not high, I just need this place."
Whitley looked in the direction the girl pointed and frowned slightly:
"The Barony of Bethel?"
He knew the barony.
This is a protruding territory on the border of the Violet Principality, sandwiched between the Roman Principality and the Castel Territory, with an area of about 1,500 square kilometers.
The Barony of Bethel was not wealthy, as more than half of the territory was covered with forests. It had even suffered great destruction because it had been the main battlefield of the Star-Moon War.
However, this territory is not unknown and it has been glorious in history.
Before the Star-Moon War, this barony was the direct territory of the former Violet Duke's family, the Willett Family, and it was also the ancestral land of the Willett Family.
Of course, decades later, the war destroyed everything, and now the Barony of Bethel is a desolate place.
Years of war had caused a large number of undead to accumulate in this territory, making it extremely difficult to clean them up. Even the Buat-Lint family had given up.
The Violet Duchy is very large and has many baronies. Seriously speaking, if it were this insignificant barony, Earl Whitley felt that the Duke might indeed agree.
It's just... what does Castel want this territory for
Looking at the map, the only thing Count Whitley could think of was that the Barony of Bethel was an important trade route between the Duchy of Roman and the Barony of Castel.
The rest of the borders between the two territories are covered with forests and mountains. Only the route to Baron Bethel's territory is the most convenient, and it is also the only way for caravans on the road to pass through.
Of course... the premise is that the caravan can deal with the undead that may appear at any time.
But then again, the Duchy of Roman is the territory of the Falling Star Kingdom. There are constant conflicts between the two kingdoms. The nobles of other kingdoms want to stay away from them but it's too late. Who would be willing to actually border each other
Moreover, even for trade, the sea route seems to be more convenient for Roman and Castel. After all, the two sides are neighbors on the sea, and it only takes three days to reach the capital of the Roman Principality from North Port by boat.
Count Whitley couldn't understand.
However, he didn't plan to ask any further questions.
In his opinion, Count Castel's proposal was not excessive. If the Barony of Betel was converted into quintana of equivalent value, it would probably be about the same as the ransom for the heir to the principality.
After all, it was really a barren place. Not to mention extraordinary resources, there were not many ordinary resources. There were only wandering undead, ruined castles, and a dwindling population. It was not even comparable to a few Quintana villages.
The only things that can be considered valuable are some magical beasts, but the Violet Principality has no shortage of magical beasts, and there are even beast tides every year.
"I understand. However, I cannot make the decision on these matters. I will report to His Excellency the Duke. Everything still needs to be decided by His Excellency the Duke."
Count Whitley thought for a moment and said.
Charlotte smiled:
"Of course, the magic tower in Beigang is open to you at any time, so that you can communicate with His Excellency the Duke remotely."