Chapter 405: The Grand Parade, the Great Scourge, and Convincing the Duke of Thorns (5000!!!)

Rand set off.

With his army.

100 Magic Steel Knights.

Two teams of 72 White King's personal guards.

36 Torch Knights.

A total of 208 super elite heavy cavalry.

Among them, there are 20 magic steel knights, who ride flying ox-horses instead of ordinary ox-horses.

The rest was the army led by Taner.

Two thousand part-time soldiers.

In fact, ever since the start of another civil war in the Frost Moon Kingdom, most of the troops in the Rand Territory have basically stopped production operations.

They have been training for nearly half a year since they left their jobs.

Coupled with the foundation they had at the beginning, they are now elite enough.

Tanr will go with Rand, while Fenris will be in charge of the Lunar Counties.

Rand took away almost all of the "regular troops" of the Earldom of the Moon, but this does not mean that the Earldom of the Moon is empty.

Now Rand is no longer an isolated noble.

There are many small and medium nobles who are Rand's vassals. During the War of the Wind Chasers, some nobles of the Kingdom of Bolen expressed their submission to Rand.

After the Knights' Conference in the Royal City ended, many knights expressed their loyalty to Rand.

Rand also has many vassals under his command.

These vassals would accept Rand's call, provide their own weapons and armor, provide their own food, and lead their knights to fight for Rand.

However, Rand did not ask them to go to war this time. Instead, he strictly ordered them to obey Fenris's orders and guard the territory.

In fact, as long as it is not attacked by a large army, Rand's base camp is still difficult to be breached. Rand is not very worried that his home will be stolen during the expedition.

Fenris is now a reliable general, and Rand is relieved to let Fenris guard the territory.

…

Rand went off to fight.

In addition to the army, some students from the White Country were also brought.

and the thirteenth son of the Black and Brown Marquis.

The thirteenth son of the Black and Brown Marquis is very talented and has excellent character, so Rand plans to train him well.

The Black and Brown Marquis helped Rand a lot when he was nothing, and he always supported him afterwards.

Now that the Black and Brown Marquis finally has a talented heir, Rand naturally has to train him carefully.

Show him the world.

Theoretically, this war will not be too troublesome. It will mostly be a matter of face, and there will be relatively few real fierce battles.

Rand will not encounter many enemies on this expedition.

The purpose of this expedition is to make the neutral faction appear in the eyes of the nobles of the Shimokuri Kingdom with a tough image.

As for the enemies to be defeated, they should only be the die-hard supporters of the third prince and the eldest prince.

As for other things, many small and medium nobles, and even big nobles, have surrendered to the neutral faction.

Rand rode on his flying bull horse and marched along the King's Road under the escort of the army.

Rand somewhat disliked the King's Road, which was the main road of the Frost Moon Kingdom. Unfortunately, due to various reasons, it was no longer very smooth.

It was quite muddy in some places.

It was a bit bumpy to ride on it.

Rand wanted to let his mount fly for a while, but was stopped by Elsa and Olenna.

According to them, it is unsafe.

Indeed, if Rand was the only one flying in the sky riding on the flying cow and horse, he would be a sitting duck.

Therefore, they could only continue riding the flying cows and horses on the ground.

Ellie, Olenna, and Elsa were beside Rand.

This time, Lisa didn't come.

Lisa's research on the vibration communication device has reached a critical stage, and the hideout needs someone to oversee administration.

Lysa stayed in the hideout.

The main reason is that Bishop Kahn has been very busy recently. Karin is out on field work, and Bishop Kahn needs to deal with the work of the newborn sect of the Torch Church.

At this moment, a sharp arrow shot out from the dense forest beside and whistled towards Rand.

The guards beside Rand noticed the hidden arrow.

But no action was taken.

Because Inspector Elsa is here.

Elsa stretched out her arm and caught the arrow accurately.

The residual force of the arrow caused it to buzz after being pinched by Elsa.

Olenna drew back her unsheathed swift sword.

After Elsa handed the arrow to Olenna, she disappeared like a bubble.

The horse under her suddenly realized that its owner had disappeared, and stayed where it was, somewhat puzzled.

Elsa reappeared, holding a dead body in her hands: "He committed suicide."

Rand waved his hand: "Save it and ask when you get back."

[Blessing 5: Call of the Scourge Apostle (Limit reached)]

Indeed, sending a death squad to carry out an assassination mission is a very safe choice.

Because even if it fails, the enemy will only get a corpse.

But Rand can try to resurrect as a ghost, and then arrange for Ayesha to install a voice-generating device on the ghost.

This might not be successful, because the resurrected bone snakes didn't seem to have self-awareness, but Rand still planned to try.

Now it is at least confirmed that there must be someone who really doesn't want to see Rand appear on the King's Road.

I just don’t know which nobleman he is.

Or which ones?

Rand doesn't care much about this. There must be a lot of people in the world who want him dead.

However, there must be more people who hope he lives a long life.

…

On the other side, the city of the dead.

This place is shrouded in darkness.

But now, it is indeed night.

Under the cover of night, the City of the Dead became increasingly eerie, with green flames burning fiercely on top of the obsidian towers. The firelight made the entire city seem shrouded in the abyss of nightmare.

“Dongdong—dong—”

The bells rang from the bell tower in the City of the Dead.

The voice was low and long, as if coming from the depths of time, and each sound was as cold as ice, making people shudder.

The undead began to awaken.

The stone slabs of the square began to vibrate slightly, as if responding to some call.

Beneath the mud and dust, white bones protruded from the ground, pieced together one by one.

The skeleton warriors in broken armor stood up tremblingly, with scarlet or green spiritual fire burning in their empty eye sockets.

Further away, ghosts that had been sleeping for centuries also floated up. Their bodies seemed to be made of mist, and every inch of them exuded a creepy chill.

The gate of the City of the Dead slowly opened, and the huge gate made of black iron made a harsh groaning sound, as if the whole world was resisting the impending disaster.

The undead army poured out of the gate, their footsteps silent but orderly, as if driven by some invisible will.

They did not communicate or hesitate, as if every skeleton and every ghost had already determined its mission.

On top of the high tower, several figures in black robes overlooked everything.

"Death is the destination of everything, and now, we will bring this destined fate to the world in advance." The Archbishop of Scourge on the high tower was so excited that his voice trembled a little.

Although there are still many stupid forces in this world.

For example, the Torch Church, which likes to burn fire.

For example, those humans who are unwilling to admit reality.

But Archbishop Scourge believes that one day, all living beings will believe in the great Mortal, the embodiment of death, the Apostle of Scourge.

Now the power of the City of the Dead is strong enough.

"Attack." The Archbishop of Scourge ordered.

The targets are the Kingdom of Borun, the Kingdom of Lensa, and other kingdoms in the south.

The plan was to sweep across the south, destroy the New Holy City, and then assault the north.

Bring silence to the whole world.

The undead army marched in a mighty procession along the dilapidated road.

Those rusty weapons - swords, spears, and hammers - are no longer sharp; those warriors have long lost the flesh and blood of the living.

But the dead also have no pain or fatigue.

The summoned undead have a limited existence time.

However, after the City of the Dead was established, this obsidian tower burning with green flames could provide energy to the undead within a certain range, thus extending the existence of the undead.

The Scourge Cult plans to build such towers around the world next.

Advance every step carefully.

Finally, the Undead Army walked out of the dark confines of the City of the Dead.

The moonlight peeked out from the clouds and sprinkled on their team.

They did not stop. Instead, they seemed to become even more terrifying because of this ray of light—the bone armor reflected a chilling chill in the dim light, and the ghosts' figures were elongated, as if the shadows themselves were spreading to the world.

A sharp whistle was faintly heard in the night wind, the painful echo of a torn soul. The land of the living finally welcomed the conqueror of death.

At the same time, the Southern Kingdom began to get nervous.

Although when the City of the Dead was established, no country thought that they would be the first to be attacked.

But that doesn't mean they don't pay attention to this at all.

After the undead left the City of the Dead in large numbers, the top leaders of all countries began to hold endless meetings.

At the moment, it seems that the first target of the undead should be the Kingdom of Borun.

The king of the Kingdom of Borun looked worried because he had failed in the last military operation against Rand and lost a priceless gem and a large number of troops.

Now, the undead are coming towards them.

Fortunately, they don't need to face the undead alone.

The king of the Kingdom of Bolun has asked for help from other human kingdoms.

The scourge of the undead can snowball.

The followers of the Scourge Cult can resurrect the dead. If the Kingdom of Borlan is really unable to resist, then other human kingdoms will face an even more powerful undead scourge.

Therefore, unless other human kingdoms are really too stupid, they will not sit idly by.

But the king of the Kingdom of Bolun was still worried, because they would definitely bear the most responsibility, and also, when the orcs from the north invaded, there were also stupid countries like the Principality of Green Shadow and the Kingdom of Wisteria.

There may also be some really short-sighted states in the Southern Kingdoms in the face of this undead invasion.

I just hope there won’t be too many countries like this.

Otherwise it could really be a catastrophic disaster.

"What should we do now?" The King of the Kingdom of Bolun looked at the great nobles who were arguing about strategy in the palace.

The bearded king wanted to re-employ the former Minister of War, but he was hesitant.

Now the former Minister of War is still being well fed and well cared for in a luxurious prison.

But these great nobles in front of him obviously did not want the former Minister of War to come back.

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Many great nobles thought that although the former Minister of War was capable, they could also come.

It’s just that now these great nobles are arguing over how to deal with the undead.

Some said that we should take the initiative to attack, while others believed that we should just hold on and wait for help.

The King of the Kingdom of Bolun had a headache.

He really didn't want to see the expressionless old face of the former Minister of War appear in front of him.

But he at least knew very well that the former Minister of War must be more capable than the people in front of him.

The King of Bolun was a little hesitant.

…

At this time, no nobles in the Frost Moon Kingdom cared about the movements of the undead.

The Royal City faction and the Queen's faction are still fighting for the city wall.

And keep an eye on Rand's progress.

Rand made no secret of his advance.

This cannot be concealed.

Now the intensity of the Queen's faction's siege has been reduced.

The chief military commander sent by the queen found that some of his nobles were becoming absent-minded.

The chief military commander certainly knew why.

Yelled and scolded.

Encouraged.

There is an effect, but not much.

In other words, the chief military commander might actually be distracted by the news of Rand's departure.

And it wasn't just Rand that sent troops.

Rand gathered the troops of the Earl of the Stag and the Marquisate of the Black and Tan on the King's Road, and then walked for a while.

Met the Duke of Thorns.

Several parties gathered in one place.

It's already a huge army.

Although in terms of military strength on paper, it is still not as good as the Royal City Faction or the Queen Faction.

"Long time no see!" Rand greeted the Duke of Thorn.

After not seeing each other for half a year, there is not much change on the face of Lord Thorn.

It just looks a little melancholy, melancholy about the future.

Duke Thorn responded, "Yeah, I haven't seen you for half a year."

Then the Lord of Thorns looked at Rand's mount again.

"Wow, what a magical species this is. I've never seen it before." Duke Thorn twirled his beard and dismounted from his horse.

Then he walked to Rand's mount and even turned over the teeth of the flying ox-horse.

"Dragon-blood eagle?" asked the Duke of Thorn.

Rand shook his head: "Flying cattle and horses."

"What an ugly name." Lord Thorn was a little disgusted, and then said, "Give me one?"

Rand looked at the interested Duke of Thorn and said helplessly, "I'll send you one later."

Lord Thorn nodded with satisfaction and then climbed back on his horse.

Rand looked at Lord Thorn with empty eyes, ready to give him a sterilized one.

After Duke Thorn mounted his horse.

Rand asked, "Do you regret it?"

Duke Thorn said helplessly: "Yes, a little bit."

"I regret it," Rand said. "I should have encouraged you to try to fight for the throne. Maybe we wouldn't have to deal with all this shit now."

Unfazed by Rand's somewhat vulgar language, Lord Thorn said helplessly: "Being a king is too troublesome, and I don't want to seize the throne from my cousin."

"What now?" Rand asked.

"Please let me go." Duke Thorn was about to escape.

"Now that the City of the Dead has sent out its troops, we can't continue to waste our national strength." Rand continued the pursuit.

Duke Thorn said helplessly: "That doesn't make sense from a legal point of view."

Rand told Lord Thorn about Ellie's method.

After hearing this, Duke Thorn wanted to roll his eyes and said, "I think I have no shame, don't I?"

Pass the title of Duke to your son, and then change your surname or something.

That's really shameless.

Although he does seem to be shameless.

"Is there any other way?" Duke Thorn still wanted to struggle.

"No." Rand said firmly, "We have already paid a heavy price for our hesitation last time. This is not good for anyone."

Duke Thorn looked melancholy.

He was a relatively far-sighted and experienced nobleman, so he knew very well how much trouble he would face after becoming king.

This is horrible.

Lord Thorn stared at Rand with his emerald eyes: "This is not fair."

The Thorn Family is powerful and is the most powerful family in the Frost Moon Kingdom, with a vast territory and strong military equipment.

But this is as a duke family.

If the Duke of Thorn were to become king, he would be faced with the problem of his cousins ​​all over again.

The Duke of Thorn was very sure that he couldn't handle it alone.

Therefore, Rand must be tied to his warship.

Otherwise, there might even be a third civil war.

"That's fair," Rand said firmly.

Duke Thorn shook his head: "You have to compensate me."

Rand was helpless. It seemed that he couldn't escape. "You say."

"Marriage." said Grand Duke Thorn.

Rand shook his head and said, "I'm already married."

Lord Thorn stared at Rand, then said, "I don't mean my daughter or my aunt."

If Ellie hadn't existed, this marriage would have been the best.

But if we do this now, it will obviously anger the White King. If the White King Bolan comes to kill us from the White Kingdom, that would be bad.

Even if Rand agreed, Lord Thorn would not agree.

In fact, the Duke of Thorn could give Rand a younger daughter who was not a legitimate daughter as a female courtier.

This can also be considered as tying Rand to the warship to a certain extent.

If it doesn't affect Ellie's status, it won't have much of an impact.

But the Duke of Thorn felt that this was not enough.

And the Duke of Thorn has a way to avoid angering the White King too much.

Although the method may not be very shameful.

But in fact, changing one's surname and sitting on the throne would be a very shameless act.

It’s not impossible to be shameless now.

Duke Thorn said proudly: "Who dares to assume my gender? Can't I be a woman? If we get married, won't that be the end of it?"

Rand looked stunned.

Looking at the old face of Lord Thorn in horror.

"?"

…

at the same time.

The Royal City faction and the Queen's faction, who were still at war, had no idea what Rand and Lord Thorn were discussing.

They just knew that Grand Duke Thorn and Earl Rand had reconciled.

For a moment, everyone in the Royal City faction felt the same pressure as the Queen's faction.

In the Wangcheng faction.

The great nobles were discussing countermeasures.

The eldest prince is also here, and everyone is discussing countermeasures.

"Rand is coming." The second-term senior who was wearing perfume was breathing heavily.

As the war progressed, his status in the Wangcheng faction became higher.

Of course, he is not as good as his junior outside, Zorn from the Hound family.

The seniors of the second term have imagined the situation of having to face Count Rand at that time.

But this day is really coming.

The seniors in the second period still feel a lot of pressure.

In comparison, the young and old nobles, who knew less about Rand than the second-term seniors, were not as nervous as the second-term seniors.

They just frowned, thinking about the gap in troop strength between the two sides and how to deal with it.

"We can actually unite with the Queen's faction first, drive Earl Rand out, and then decide the winner." The eldest prince said.

(End of this chapter)