Life in a Simulation - Chapter 27

One day in August of this year, Baron Connor, accompanied by several knights, hurriedly visited the earldom castle. Within two days, he returned to Granling with the same urgency.

An oppressive and tense atmosphere followed in his wake, spreading throughout Granling.

War was imminent.

A real war.

Everyone was at risk of bloodshed, including the lord, the knights, and the peasant auxiliaries.

The cause of the conflict could be traced back to the royal noble court, where two noble factions had been in contention for over three hundred years. These factions, divided by the north and south, consisted of the “Southern Faction,” comprising seven earldoms in the southern part of the kingdom, and the “Northern Faction,” made up of seven earldoms in the northern part.

Perhaps due to the king’s tacit approval, the rivalry between these factions was extremely fierce within the noble court. They frequently engaged in heated arguments over various matters, such as the quantity of tributes to the king, the selection of court justices, the appointment of generals for wars against neighboring countries, and the choice of ministers for domestic affairs. Both the Southern and Northern factions sought to gain greater advantages for their sides in the noble court.

For instance, this time, regarding the allocation of 500 warhorses to be tributed to the king this year, the Southern Faction, citing the abundance of high-quality warhorses in the northern highlands, demanded that the Northern Faction contribute 400 of the horses, while the Southern Faction would provide only 100.

The Northern Faction, on the other hand, argued that the southern regions were warm and prosperous, whereas the northern regions were cold and impoverished. They insisted that the Southern Faction should contribute 400 horses, and the Northern Faction’s financial capacity could only cover 100.

Both sides had their reasons and were locked in a fierce dispute. In the noble court, the situation escalated to the point where the nobles rolled up their sleeves and engaged in a physical brawl. The once-dignified aristocrats were left with bruised noses and swollen faces, their grace and composure completely lost.

After being informed of the situation, the king ordered the chief justice to arbitrate: Each faction would send a representative to engage in a battle on their border. The winning side would only need to tribute 100 horses annually, while the losing side would be required to tribute 400.

If the battle ended in a draw, each side would contribute half, tributing 250 horses each.

After further discussions, the nobles of both the Southern and Northern factions agreed to the arbitration and even increased the stakes! The losing side would not only have to contribute more warhorses but also cede one-third of the land and population of one of their earldoms.

This decision was like pouring a bucket of cold water into a boiling oil pot. The earls of both factions eagerly volunteered for the battle, eager to defeat the “South (North) louts” they had long despised.

Ultimately, Baron Connor’s direct superior, Count Lautiz, secured the mission. His “Lautiz Earldom” would deploy troops to wage war against the neighboring “Merlin Earldom” of the North, represented by Count William. If Count Lautiz’s forces could defeat Count William’s army, one-third of the land and population of the “Merlin Earldom” would be ceded to him.

As for the possibility of losing?

Count Lautiz claimed he had never even considered it!

Count Lautiz might not have thought about losing, but Baron Connor had to. His Granling territory was adjacent to the Merlin Earldom. If Count Lautiz were to lose, there was no doubt that Granling would be ceded to the territory of the Merlin Earldom.

At that time, the lords and knights of Granling and the other baronies that would be ceded would lose their lands and subjects entirely, becoming wandering nobles and knights, relying on the charity of others to find a place to stay.

“Mobilize all the knights, bring out all the wealth from the castle, hire some capable mercenaries, and conscript all the able-bodied farmers in the territory. Stop their agricultural work immediately, take up arms, and join this battle!”

In the castle’s council hall, Baron Connor quickly made his decision.

“Dad, there’s no need to make such a fuss, is there? The farmers are currently harvesting in the wheat fields. The war won’t start until September, after the wheat has been gathered. Calling the farmers to stop their work now will delay the autumn harvest. Besides, those farmers are of little use; just give them a spear temporarily.”

Edward, sitting at the long council table, dismissed the idea. He had heard that the northerners were formidable, but not to the extent that they required such attention.

“We must stop the farming work immediately! Seize the remaining time for some training. Edward, this is a real war, not the one-on-one duels you have in the knight academy. If you lose a duel, at worst, you only need to recover for a few days. But if we lose this war, we will have nothing left!”

Looking at Edward, Baron Connor stood up and said with great seriousness, “We must use every means possible to increase our chances of victory, even at the cost of all the farmers in the territory!”

“Yes, Dad!” Edward put away the disdain on his face and nodded solemnly.

“Wilard, Morris, you are in charge of training those untrained farmers. Try to get them to form a decent formation within a month,” Baron Connor instructed his two long-time guard knights.

“Yes, my lord!” The two knights rose and saluted.

…

Zhou Ming in the castle quickly sensed this unusual atmosphere.

Teams of farmers put down their agricultural work and were gathered in the training ground in front of the castle. Each was given a brand-new spear and a thick, hard wooden shield. Under the personal command of two knights, they were enthusiastically engaged in formation marching, spear thrusting, and anti-archery training.

Even the notoriously stingy steward Brunold, for the first time, had the cook prepare large pots of fragrant beef and mutton, soft and golden-brown oatmeal bread, as well as a large amount of dried meat, cheese, and eggs, etc., to replenish the energy of these hard-training farmers every day.

During the training breaks, Steward Brunold walked among the farmers and shouted, “Sharpen those spears in your hands! The lord said that on the battlefield, killing a peasant will be rewarded with 50 silver coins, killing a mercenary will be rewarded with 1 gold coin, and if you can kill a knight, you will be rewarded with 50 gold coins! Behave well, and whoever distinguishes themselves, the lord will not neglect you!”

Upon hearing these tempting words, among the farmers present, some young men’s eyes would light up, asking, “Is this true?” “Are there really so many rewards?” and secretly made up their minds to kill a few enemies. However, most of the farmers had indifferent expressions, as if it had nothing to do with them.

Zhou Ming, who was quietly observing, thought to himself: Apart from the few young men who were blinded by the rewards, what these farmers probably considered most about this war was how to survive on the battlefield.

Looking at the nine knights who were nervously training in the castle’s training ground, and the more than a hundred mercenaries hired by Baron Connor with a large sum of money, who had just arrived at the castle yesterday, and were also practicing with knives and axes, Zhou Ming speculated: These well-equipped, fierce-looking mercenaries, with quite a few barbarian wildmen in their ranks, would definitely have no problem fighting a winning battle. But if they were truly asked to fight to the death and battle with strong enemies until the last moment, it was probably one hundred percent impossible.

“That is to say, the only ones in Granling who can really be of use now are these 110 or so knights and mercenaries. As for the more than a thousand farmers training outside the castle, they are probably just there to block bullets and be cannon fodder to exhaust the enemy knights’ energy…”

Zhou Ming shuddered. Fortunately, he had become young Donny’s servant; otherwise, if he had also gone to the battlefield, the outcome would be unpredictable and uncertain.

“Layne, the lord just said that some of the strong servants in the castle also need to participate in the training. You are in such good shape; join us on the battlefield!”

Edward’s squire—Fat Baum, appeared behind him at some point, looking at him with a sly smile.

Zhou Ming’s heart sank. He stepped forward and whispered, “Lord Baum, my chest was injured by a black bear last year, and it hasn’t fully healed yet…”

“More than a year has passed; how is it possible that it hasn’t healed yet? Stop making excuses, Layne! The lord didn’t keep you here to just eat and drink for free! The time has come to serve the lord. I just told the lord about your eagerness, and he said that since you have the intention, you can follow as a support soldier and help transport some provisions… Can’t you even do such a small thing?” Baum said with a tone of discontent.

“I can do it, of course I can.”

Zhou Ming gritted his teeth and forced out the words. That damned Baum was trying to frame him!

But even if he ran to Baron Connor to explain now, it would leave an extremely bad impression on the baron… He could only swallow his anger and endure it.

“Hahahahahaha!”

Watching Zhou Ming’s receding figure, Baum laughed heartily inside. Layne, join us on the battlefield. I will have young master Edward place you at the very front of the battlefield. Once you’re dead, your delicate and lovely sister will be taken care of by me, Baum. Of course, I also told young master Edward that Alice’s first night should be reserved for him to enjoy first…

Life in a Simulation - Chapter 27

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Hate that cliffhanger, don’t you?

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