Chapter 324: ๐๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐๐ญ (1)
Johan changed the subject just before Iselia noticed the abnormality and asked.
โItโs good that their numerous enemies are scattered, but wouldnโt that mean we wonโt be able to catch the really important people?โ
โThat is true.โ
It was a hard situation to chase after important people because there were too many of the remaining defeated soldiers scattered around.
Although the knights were satisfied as long as they were able to capture those with some wealth regardless of who they were, Johan wanted to capture the commander if possible.
Although there wasnโt much of a need to worry about the individual lower aristocrats causing conspiracies, the enemy commander was a different story. There was no knowing what he might try if he was left alone.
In addition, he felt a sense of unease from the fact that they tried to escape so desperately to this extent.
Could it be that there was a hidden plan?
There was no reason why they would abandon such a large army and run away if that wasnโt the case. Any competent commander would have tried to retreat in an orderly manner even if he had to step back.
โArenโt you being a bit too sensitive?โโI also think itโs like that, but. . .โ
Suetlg and Caenerna cautiously opened their mouths. Although they might be arrogant, this victory was a truly great one.
It was a decisive victory that annihilated the fighting strength of the Sultanโs army that had landed.
Even if there was a great commander, it would not be easy to recover from this defeat. It would take years just to gather the scattered forces.
โHe could bring more tribes from the south, or call for reinforcements from the sea.โ
โThatโs. . . but. . .โ
It was a slim possibility, but it was possible. Caenerna did not think that even the enemy commander, no matter how great he was, would be able to persuade the tribes in the south to provide support after suffering such a defeat.
The lords in this vicinity all had eyes and ears. . .
โ๐๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ, ๐ช๐ต ๐ฎ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ด๐ด๐ช๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ช๐ง ๐ช๐ตโ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ฌ๐ฆ.โ
Caenerna thought as she stared fixedly at Johan. Her standards for the impossible had been lowered quite a bit after following the Duke around and gaining experience. It was not a bad idea to be prepared just in case.
โWhat then? What are we going to do?โ
โAs planned, we will send forces to the Holy Land to begin the siege, and chase after the enemies with the elites. Whatever theyโre planning, they wonโt be able to do anything if we capture them.โ
Their top priority right now was recovering the Holy Land. They could not tell the pilgrims gathered here to โ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ญ๐บ ๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ด๐ฆ ๐ข๐ง๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต๐ฉโ.
In any case, the number of soldiers remaining in the Holy Land would only be a handful, so Johan himself did not need to go.
Since a siege was something that took up quite a bit of time, it was not a bad idea to move while preparing for the siege in advance.
โHowever, it seems like the cities on the southern coast will be unnecessarily vigilant. . .โ
โLetโs utilize the feudal lords here. They wonโt dare refuse the Dukeโs proposal.โ
The monotheist feudal lords who had deep roots established here were somewhat familiar with the cities further south. They were not close enough to send messengers, but they were at least familiar.
Of course, the magistrates or the city nobles who ruled the city might make annoying requests, but that was something the feudal lords had to figure out.
Because the Duke was the victor.
The Duke who led his army and swept away the enemies while the monotheist feudal lords cowered within their castles and sent a few soldiers or some silver coins. Even the feudal lords had probably not expected the Duke to achieve such a great victory.
โNo. . . isnโt that a bit much? Itโll be annoying if they end up harboring grudges for no reason.โ
โWhy are you worrying about something like that?!โ
โYou should at least do that much!โ
Suetlg and Caenerna who were listening from the side shouted at once in disbelief.
They couldnโt believe that he was still being considerate of the feudal lords after literally crushing the enemyโs large army. How could he be so cautious, even if he was being prudent?
If it was the Emperor, he would have said โ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ถ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ด! ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ค๐ณ๐ข๐ธ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ข๐ณ๐ณ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต. ๐๐ฏ๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ณ๐ข๐ช๐ด๐ฆ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ด ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ฅ!โ It was a victory that allowed for such arrogance.
โ. . .Youโre being too careful, but I think itโs fine for you to ask for it this time. The feudal lords may harbor grudges in their hearts, but there will definitely be no one who will show it on the surface.โ
Even Valeon, the son of the old king, had stepped up.
Originally, there was no reason for him to step up since he was basically brought here against his will, but he ended up speaking because he felt stifled.
As Valeon was a knight and led his soldiers into battle, he was fully aware of how great his performance on this battlefield was. None of the knights in his fiefdom had ever shown a performance like the Dukeโs.
It was not limited to just battle. Everything from gathering soldiers before the battle, creating rifts in the enemy, leading them to an advantageous battlefield, and finishing them off seemed like one perfect calculation.
Of course, the truth was a bit different, but it was easy to make such a mistake when looking from the outside.
Although Valeon himself did not admit it, Valeon was now firmly captivated by the outcome of the battle. It was because he was taking Johanโs side rather than the monotheist feudal lords.
โRight. If you say it to that extent, letโs send a messenger. Letโs be as polite as possible, just in case. . .โ
โThe underlings will take care of such things, so stop worrying about that.โ
Suetlg scolded the Duke for the first time in a long time.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
At the news of the great victory near Tahkreng Castle, the monotheist feudal lords all rejoiced. That was until the messenger spoke.
โHis Highness the Duke has requested that you send men to the southern cities for a smooth pursuit.โ
โMen. . .? What for?โ
Count Tragalon was quick-tempered and greedy. It was not uncommon for him to lead a group of rogues as a count and loot the merchant ships of pagans.
โIf we lead our army there, wonโt those b*stards dare to touch us?โ
โHe said he wanted to receive cooperation from the cities.โ
โ. . . . . .โ
The countโs joyful face darkened. The southern cities were full of greedy and arrogant people. In order to receive their cooperation, they would have to pay a steep price.
People usually bowed their heads and asked for help when they were in dire straits, but they tended to start acting haughty once things got better. The count briefly considered refusing outright.
โ๐๐ฃ๐ด๐ฐ๐ญ๐ถ๐ต๐ฆ๐ญ๐บ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต.โ
The aide desperately looked at the count. The other subordinates present were the same.
No matter how good the money was, there was no way it would be good to incur the Dukeโs wrath now. In the worst case, the Dukeโs army could advance into the countโs fiefdom.
The idea that they were brothers of the same faith and would not attack each other had been shattered centuries ago. The brothers that had crossed the sea could kill their own brothers without hesitation for the sake of land and power.
โ. . .Of course I have to cooperate. The Duke is fighting so fiercely against the pagans!โ
โThank you very much!โ
Not noticing the silent conversation that had just occurred, the messengerโs face brightened at the quick acceptance. It had ended much sooner than he had expected.
โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฐ!โ
And similar conversations took place in the fiefdoms of the feudal lords. Contrary to what Johan had expected, no one prepared for a rebellion or caused a commotion. There were not even any minor complaints.
โIf I knew this would happen, I should have collected a bit more tax?โ
โItโs not too late even now, so letโs send another messenger. We have to make them understand the situation.โ
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
The people of Aniza City received the eunuchs and escorts. There was no need to tell them not to enter with an army. Except for a handful of escorts, there was nothing left.
Even so, there was a reason why the people of Aniza City received them. Even though they had suffered a shocking defeat, the Sultanโs land was still large and his wealth was abundant, so they thought they could receive a large share by helping them.
โHave you definitely sent a message to Viceroy Manansir?โ
โI sent three messengers, but I havenโt received a reply. . .โ
The eunuchs were quick to catch on. They immediately realized that Manansir was intentionally delaying things.
โ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ข ๐ท๐ช๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ณ๐ฅ.โ
Of course, it was not something they could not understand. Their large army had been defeated in one blow, and the neighboring monotheist feudal lords had unexpectedly turned to the Dukeโs side as if they had eaten something wrong.
Facing the Dukeโs army, which was now in high spirits, was like charging head-on into a storm.
Nevertheless, it did not mean that their annoyance disappeared. After all, Viceroy Manansir was the one who had started all of this. If he had not schemed to form a marriage alliance with the Sultan and coaxed him, the Sultan would not have done anything reckless.
Going further back, it was all because that man had greedily captured the Dukeโs ship.
โWe canโt do anything if thereโs no contact. Letโs escape by ship. The captains of Aniza City will prepare ships for us.โ
โHmm. . .โ
Although it was shameful to escape after abandoning their large army, the eunuchs did not care much about such shame. There was something more important than that.
The oldest eunuch opened his closed eyes and spoke.
โWe need someone to take responsibility.โ
The other eunuchs nodded in unison. If they lost such a large army, even the most lenient monarch would swing his sword. Considering the Sultanโs fiery temper, it was possible that the eunuchs would also be killed.
They needed a scapegoat to avoid responsibility.
โItโs unfortunate, but we have no choice but to offer up Yeheyman-gong.โ
โBut, Yeheyman-gong will not sit still. Arenโt there many people in the court who are on Yeheyman-gongโs side?โ
โThatโs right. Thatโs why we have to shut his mouth.โ
โ. . .?!โ
The other eunuchs made shocked expressions as they realized what the oldest eunuch meant. A dead body could not speak. Even if the Sultan pressed them.
The old eunuch looked at the young eunuch and spoke.
โYouโll be able to do it properly this time, right?โ
โ. . .Of course. Iโll show you right away.โ
โCalm down. We canโt shut his mouth right now. Yeheymanโs men are not fools. Letโs take care of it on the ship.โ
They could drug Yeheyman to make him sleep soundly, let his subordinates confirm that he was alive, and then stab him on the ship. They could come up with any excuse they wanted. They could simply say that he was trying to escape or that he was trying to kill the eunuchs.
โThose b*stards are saying that the Republicโs fleet is roaming around, but this. . .โ
โIt canโt be helped. We have no choice but to tell them to prepare ships as quickly as possible and give them a large sum of money.โ
The moment the sea route became safe, they planned to escape on a fast ship and head north.
However, no one expected that the Dukeโs army would reach this far in the meantime.
With the holy Holy Land in sight, there was no way a noble would come this far after leaving it alone to chase after a few insignificant eunuchs.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โIt reminds me of Jekyllid.โ
The appearance of Aniza City reminded him of the pagan hundred kingdoms that he had conquered in the past.
The lord of Jekyllid, an island not far from his original fiefdom, had made the mistake of underestimating and insulting Johan. He had to pay the price for it himself.
โIt seems like a good city. Itโs bustling.โ
The group of messengers from the feudal lords who had arrived first quickly escaped after waiting. They prostrated themselves and waited for Johan to approach.
โYour Highness the Duke! This victory is. . .โ
15 minutes later.
โ. . .that Your Highness has given us.โ
โRight. Thank you. What did the people of the city say?โ
The people of the city had declared that they would not mind the fearsome Duke leading his army around. To be exact, they did not have the ability to mind it.
However, it was a different story if they were to enter the city.
First. Only 100 people could enter the city.
Second. They should not cause any fights inside the city.
โIs the commander taking refuge inside the city?โ
โHe said no, but it looks very suspicious to me. The city b*stards are not denying it strongly either.โ
Suetlg asked curiously. He was curious about how the Duke would resolve the current situation.
โAre you thinking of entering?โ
โHmm. . . letโs do that.โ
โAre you thinking of causing a fight inside?โ
โNo.โ
โ?โ
โIf we take him aboard a ship, itโs outside the city, right?โ
Johan said as he looked at the harbor.
Originally, the laws of this era were extremely complicated, being a mixture of customary law, city law, and noble law. It was not for nothing that lawyers appeared in court even in this era.
Fortunately, Johan had authority and an army. The people of the city would not be able to say anything if he had a proper justification.
โLetโs go in!โ
โ. . .A-Are you really going in??โ
The city noble who was waiting anxiously on the city gate was shocked and hesitated at the words that they were going in. He had never expected that they would actually enter.,
Johan changed the subject just before Iselia noticed the abnormality and asked.
โItโs good that their numerous enemies are scattered, but wouldnโt that mean we wonโt be able to catch the really important people?โ
โThat is true.โ
It was a hard situation to chase after important people because there were too many of the remaining defeated soldiers scattered around.
Although the knights were satisfied as long as they were able to capture those with some wealth regardless of who they were, Johan wanted to capture the commander if possible.
Although there wasnโt much of a need to worry about the individual lower aristocrats causing conspiracies, the enemy commander was a different story. There was no knowing what he might try if he was left alone.
In addition, he felt a sense of unease from the fact that they tried to escape so desperately to this extent.
Could it be that there was a hidden plan?
There was no reason why they would abandon such a large army and run away if that wasnโt the case. Any competent commander would have tried to retreat in an orderly manner even if he had to step back.
โArenโt you being a bit too sensitive?โ
โI also think itโs like that, but. . .โ
Suetlg and Caenerna cautiously opened their mouths. Although they might be arrogant, this victory was a truly great one.
It was a decisive victory that annihilated the fighting strength of the Sultanโs army that had landed.
Even if there was a great commander, it would not be easy to recover from this defeat. It would take years just to gather the scattered forces.
โHe could bring more tribes from the south, or call for reinforcements from the sea.โ
โThatโs. . . but. . .โ
It was a slim possibility, but it was possible. Caenerna did not think that even the enemy commander, no matter how great he was, would be able to persuade the tribes in the south to provide support after suffering such a defeat.
The lords in this vicinity all had eyes and ears. . .
โ๐๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ, ๐ช๐ต ๐ฎ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ด๐ด๐ช๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ช๐ง ๐ช๐ตโ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ฌ๐ฆ.โ
Caenerna thought as she stared fixedly at Johan. Her standards for the impossible had been lowered quite a bit after following the Duke around and gaining experience. It was not a bad idea to be prepared just in case.
โWhat then? What are we going to do?โ
โAs planned, we will send forces to the Holy Land to begin the siege, and chase after the enemies with the elites. Whatever theyโre planning, they wonโt be able to do anything if we capture them.โ
Their top priority right now was recovering the Holy Land. They could not tell the pilgrims gathered here to โ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ญ๐บ ๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ด๐ฆ ๐ข๐ง๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต๐ฉโ.
In any case, the number of soldiers remaining in the Holy Land would only be a handful, so Johan himself did not need to go.
Since a siege was something that took up quite a bit of time, it was not a bad idea to move while preparing for the siege in advance.
โHowever, it seems like the cities on the southern coast will be unnecessarily vigilant. . .โ
โLetโs utilize the feudal lords here. They wonโt dare refuse the Dukeโs proposal.โ
The monotheist feudal lords who had deep roots established here were somewhat familiar with the cities further south. They were not close enough to send messengers, but they were at least familiar.
Of course, the magistrates or the city nobles who ruled the city might make annoying requests, but that was something the feudal lords had to figure out.
Because the Duke was the victor.
The Duke who led his army and swept away the enemies while the monotheist feudal lords cowered within their castles and sent a few soldiers or some silver coins. Even the feudal lords had probably not expected the Duke to achieve such a great victory.
โNo. . . isnโt that a bit much? Itโll be annoying if they end up harboring grudges for no reason.โ
โWhy are you worrying about something like that?!โ
โYou should at least do that much!โ
Suetlg and Caenerna who were listening from the side shouted at once in disbelief.
They couldnโt believe that he was still being considerate of the feudal lords after literally crushing the enemyโs large army. How could he be so cautious, even if he was being prudent?
If it was the Emperor, he would have said โ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ถ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ด! ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ค๐ณ๐ข๐ธ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ข๐ณ๐ณ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต. ๐๐ฏ๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ณ๐ข๐ช๐ด๐ฆ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ด ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ฅ!โ It was a victory that allowed for such arrogance.
โ. . .Youโre being too careful, but I think itโs fine for you to ask for it this time. The feudal lords may harbor grudges in their hearts, but there will definitely be no one who will show it on the surface.โ
Even Valeon, the son of the old king, had stepped up.
Originally, there was no reason for him to step up since he was basically brought here against his will, but he ended up speaking because he felt stifled.
As Valeon was a knight and led his soldiers into battle, he was fully aware of how great his performance on this battlefield was. None of the knights in his fiefdom had ever shown a performance like the Dukeโs.
It was not limited to just battle. Everything from gathering soldiers before the battle, creating rifts in the enemy, leading them to an advantageous battlefield, and finishing them off seemed like one perfect calculation.
Of course, the truth was a bit different, but it was easy to make such a mistake when looking from the outside.
Although Valeon himself did not admit it, Valeon was now firmly captivated by the outcome of the battle. It was because he was taking Johanโs side rather than the monotheist feudal lords.
โRight. If you say it to that extent, letโs send a messenger. Letโs be as polite as possible, just in case. . .โ
โThe underlings will take care of such things, so stop worrying about that.โ
Suetlg scolded the Duke for the first time in a long time.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
At the news of the great victory near Tahkreng Castle, the monotheist feudal lords all rejoiced. That was until the messenger spoke.
โHis Highness the Duke has requested that you send men to the southern cities for a smooth pursuit.โ
โMen. . .? What for?โ
Count Tragalon was quick-tempered and greedy. It was not uncommon for him to lead a group of rogues as a count and loot the merchant ships of pagans.
โIf we lead our army there, wonโt those b*stards dare to touch us?โ
โHe said he wanted to receive cooperation from the cities.โ
โ. . . . . .โ
The countโs joyful face darkened. The southern cities were full of greedy and arrogant people. In order to receive their cooperation, they would have to pay a steep price.
People usually bowed their heads and asked for help when they were in dire straits, but they tended to start acting haughty once things got better. The count briefly considered refusing outright.
โ๐๐ฃ๐ด๐ฐ๐ญ๐ถ๐ต๐ฆ๐ญ๐บ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต.โ
The aide desperately looked at the count. The other subordinates present were the same.
No matter how good the money was, there was no way it would be good to incur the Dukeโs wrath now. In the worst case, the Dukeโs army could advance into the countโs fiefdom.
The idea that they were brothers of the same faith and would not attack each other had been shattered centuries ago. The brothers that had crossed the sea could kill their own brothers without hesitation for the sake of land and power.
โ. . .Of course I have to cooperate. The Duke is fighting so fiercely against the pagans!โ
โThank you very much!โ
Not noticing the silent conversation that had just occurred, the messengerโs face brightened at the quick acceptance. It had ended much sooner than he had expected.
โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฐ!โ
And similar conversations took place in the fiefdoms of the feudal lords. Contrary to what Johan had expected, no one prepared for a rebellion or caused a commotion. There were not even any minor complaints.
โIf I knew this would happen, I should have collected a bit more tax?โ
โItโs not too late even now, so letโs send another messenger. We have to make them understand the situation.โ
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
The people of Aniza City received the eunuchs and escorts. There was no need to tell them not to enter with an army. Except for a handful of escorts, there was nothing left.
Even so, there was a reason why the people of Aniza City received them. Even though they had suffered a shocking defeat, the Sultanโs land was still large and his wealth was abundant, so they thought they could receive a large share by helping them.
โHave you definitely sent a message to Viceroy Manansir?โ
โI sent three messengers, but I havenโt received a reply. . .โ
The eunuchs were quick to catch on. They immediately realized that Manansir was intentionally delaying things.
โ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ข ๐ท๐ช๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ณ๐ฅ.โ
Of course, it was not something they could not understand. Their large army had been defeated in one blow, and the neighboring monotheist feudal lords had unexpectedly turned to the Dukeโs side as if they had eaten something wrong.
Facing the Dukeโs army, which was now in high spirits, was like charging head-on into a storm.
Nevertheless, it did not mean that their annoyance disappeared. After all, Viceroy Manansir was the one who had started all of this. If he had not schemed to form a marriage alliance with the Sultan and coaxed him, the Sultan would not have done anything reckless.
Going further back, it was all because that man had greedily captured the Dukeโs ship.
โWe canโt do anything if thereโs no contact. Letโs escape by ship. The captains of Aniza City will prepare ships for us.โ
โHmm. . .โ
Although it was shameful to escape after abandoning their large army, the eunuchs did not care much about such shame. There was something more important than that.
The oldest eunuch opened his closed eyes and spoke.
โWe need someone to take responsibility.โ
The other eunuchs nodded in unison. If they lost such a large army, even the most lenient monarch would swing his sword. Considering the Sultanโs fiery temper, it was possible that the eunuchs would also be killed.
They needed a scapegoat to avoid responsibility.
โItโs unfortunate, but we have no choice but to offer up Yeheyman-gong.โ
โBut, Yeheyman-gong will not sit still. Arenโt there many people in the court who are on Yeheyman-gongโs side?โ
โThatโs right. Thatโs why we have to shut his mouth.โ
โ. . .?!โ
The other eunuchs made shocked expressions as they realized what the oldest eunuch meant. A dead body could not speak. Even if the Sultan pressed them.
The old eunuch looked at the young eunuch and spoke.
โYouโll be able to do it properly this time, right?โ
โ. . .Of course. Iโll show you right away.โ
โCalm down. We canโt shut his mouth right now. Yeheymanโs men are not fools. Letโs take care of it on the ship.โ
They could drug Yeheyman to make him sleep soundly, let his subordinates confirm that he was alive, and then stab him on the ship. They could come up with any excuse they wanted. They could simply say that he was trying to escape or that he was trying to kill the eunuchs.
โThose b*stards are saying that the Republicโs fleet is roaming around, but this. . .โ
โIt canโt be helped. We have no choice but to tell them to prepare ships as quickly as possible and give them a large sum of money.โ
The moment the sea route became safe, they planned to escape on a fast ship and head north.
However, no one expected that the Dukeโs army would reach this far in the meantime.
With the holy Holy Land in sight, there was no way a noble would come this far after leaving it alone to chase after a few insignificant eunuchs.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โIt reminds me of Jekyllid.โ
The appearance of Aniza City reminded him of the pagan hundred kingdoms that he had conquered in the past.
The lord of Jekyllid, an island not far from his original fiefdom, had made the mistake of underestimating and insulting Johan. He had to pay the price for it himself.
โIt seems like a good city. Itโs bustling.โ
The group of messengers from the feudal lords who had arrived first quickly escaped after waiting. They prostrated themselves and waited for Johan to approach.
โYour Highness the Duke! This victory is. . .โ
15 minutes later.
โ. . .that Your Highness has given us.โ
โRight. Thank you. What did the people of the city say?โ
The people of the city had declared that they would not mind the fearsome Duke leading his army around. To be exact, they did not have the ability to mind it.
However, it was a different story if they were to enter the city.
First. Only 100 people could enter the city.
Second. They should not cause any fights inside the city.
โIs the commander taking refuge inside the city?โ
โHe said no, but it looks very suspicious to me. The city b*stards are not denying it strongly either.โ
Suetlg asked curiously. He was curious about how the Duke would resolve the current situation.
โAre you thinking of entering?โ
โHmm. . . letโs do that.โ
โAre you thinking of causing a fight inside?โ
โNo.โ
โ?โ
โIf we take him aboard a ship, itโs outside the city, right?โ
Johan said as he looked at the harbor.
Originally, the laws of this era were extremely complicated, being a mixture of customary law, city law, and noble law. It was not for nothing that lawyers appeared in court even in this era.
Fortunately, Johan had authority and an army. The people of the city would not be able to say anything if he had a proper justification.
โLetโs go in!โ
โ. . .A-Are you really going in??โ
The city noble who was waiting anxiously on the city gate was shocked and hesitated at the words that they were going in. He had never expected that they would actually enter.