Chapter 89: Rebuilding Lester Kingdom (1)

“Count Forrest’s territory is in the South, not to mention, his new business is in full swing. It wouldn’t be right to send him up to the North right now.”

At her words, one of the nobles spoke up with a regretful expression.

“But Your Highness, even if we searched our entire country for someone to defend our borders, there is no one more dependable or stronger than Count Forrest.”

All the other nobles around him nodded in agreement. They had realized in this war how lazy they had become and how competent Milton was for having consistently prepared for war. 

“Count Forrest, won’t you let go of your personal business and defend the Northern border for the sake of our country’s security?”

Earnestly begging, Viscount Reagan looked towards Milton. In turn, Milton felt rather burdened by Reagan’s earnest request. 

‘This guy is burdensome.’

It wasn’t like Viscount Reagan was a beautiful young lady, nor did Milton feel particularly moved by the earnest gaze of a middle-aged man. But, Reagan’s words were still reasonable.

‘What should I do? I want to refuse, but I don’t have a good enough reason to do that… Should I just say no, knowing that they’re gonna get mad at me?’

For a second, Milton thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to reject them and return back down to the South.  He had saved the country once, but that didn’t mean he was that attached to it to keep saving them. But Princess Leila spoke even before Milton could.

“Viscount Reagan.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“As we all know, Count Forrest has contributed the most and has the most military accomplishments from this war. Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right, Your Majesty. I agree that Count Forrest’s achievements are commendable.”

There wasn’t a single person in that gathering who didn’t recognize Milton’s achievements. As she saw the other nobles agree, Princess Leila continued to speak. 

“I haven’t even been able to award him for his achievements from the war. Do I need to be burdened even further?”

“That’s…”

Viscount Reagan couldn’t say anything in response. He had recommended Milton because he had come to mind when thinking about who would be the most suitable to stabilize the northern border. But when Viscount Reagan heard her words, he thought he had been too brazen and turned crimson with shame. 

She turned to look at the rest of the nobles. 

“Without a doubt, Count Forrest would unequivocally agree if I asked him to defend the North.”

‘Nope, you’re wrong. I’m never going to agree to it.’

Milton didn’t agree with the princess.

But…

“Ah…”

“Of course, it’s Count Forrest…”

“He would definitely agree.”

The other nobles all seemed to sympathize with Princess Leila’s words.

‘Do these old farts take me as a pushover?’

He wanted to say something, but he held back. It seemed as though Princess Leila was priming the nobles for something with her unique beauty and speech, so he decided to watch for now.

‘I should just watch the play she’s putting on and eat some popcorn.’

Princess Leila continued to talk.

“We have been indolent. We took peace for granted and didn’t do anything to keep that peace. And we have paid the price for that indolence. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes, Princess, it’s a tragedy.”

“I have no words for it, Your Highness.”

“Please punish us, Your Highness.”

The nobles who had gathered here were still those who retained their honor, pride, and patriotism. Those were the only types of nobles left. Princess Leila listened to the nobles’ self-reflection and regret, then drove the final nail into the coffin.

“Then do you think it is right to rely solely upon Count Forrest to defend our country? Do you truly think it is right for you to ignore your own obligations to the country and thrust all the responsibilities onto one person?”

At her words, it was like they had been smacked on the head and they were finally able to refocus. 

“It is exactly as Your Highness the Princess has said.”

“Please punish these foolish people, Your Highness.”

“Please correct us, Your Highness.”

Now, there were even nobles who were sobbing and wailing. Princess Leila’s charisma combined with their naivety and innocence, the nobles were moved. 

Watching this display, Milton thought to himself. 

‘So this is how cults are made. They’re born from this kind of an atmosphere.’

In the meantime, he decided to be more alert. 

After confusing the hell out of them, Princess Leila continued.

“Duke Palan.”

“Yes, My Liege?”

When Duke Palan with confidence, Princess Leila gave him a command.

“I plan to have you defend the Northern border.”

“If that is your command, I will give my life to carry out My Liege’s orders.”

Princess turned to speak to the nobles around her.

“It is essential that we increase our Knights in order to increase our military strength. I want all of you to send the young Knights in each of your family. I will have them serve under Duke Palan’s command so that he may guide them as they help to defend our Northern border.”

All the nobles willingly agreed. 

“I will send my son and all the knights in my territory who are in their twenties, Your Highness.”

“I have three sons in my family. I will send all of them, Your Highness.”

“I will also do it, Your Highness.”

Although Milton had the greatest accomplishments in this war, Duke Palan’s prestige was still great. And if there was an opportunity to serve under the command of Duke Palan and to receive guidance from him as well? It was no wonder the nobles were scrambling to send their own sons and the knights from their territories. With that one move, Princess Leila had both the nobles’ full cooperation and increased the Knights within her military. 

She stood up from her seat and raised her sword. 

“Kneel down Duke Palan.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

As Duke Palan knelt, Princess Leila lifted her sword and tapped both of his shoulders.

“Duke Sean Palan, I appoint you as the Margrave of the North and give you full authority. Please protect this country from the beast that is the Republic.”

“I will give you my life to carry out your commands, Your Highness.”

And so, Duke Palan became the Margrave of the North and was given Princess Leila’s promise to fully support him in his efforts to stabilize the North. 

Then, she called Milton forward.

“Kneel down Count Forrest.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Milton knelt and Princess Leila spoke as her sword tapped both of his shoulders.

“Count Milton Forrest. I raise your rank by one and appoint you as a Marquis.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

So far, everything was as expected. 

“Also, I appoint you as the Margrave of the South and acknowledge your right to govern the Southern Region. 

“I will do my best to govern the Southern Region, Your Highness.”

Although the others were a bit surprised, this had been previously discussed between Princess Leila and Milton. But the others were just merely surprised. After all, it was understandable. Milton’s influence on the nobles in the Southern Region was absolute and giving him the title of Margrave was just formalizing it. It wasn’t something that would cause a big change.

However, the biggest surprise was Princess Leila’s next statement.

“And because the Capital has been completely destroyed by the Republic, I designate Marquis Forrest’s Estate as the temporary Capital and appoint Marquis Forrest as the Commander-in-Chief of the Central Army.”

At those words, the other nobles were greatly shocked.

“The residence of the Marquis as a temporary Capital?”

“And on top of that, the Commander-in-Chief of the Central Army?”

It wasn’t unreasonable that nobles were so surprised. Designating Forrest Estate as the temporary Capital meant that for a while, the center of the country would be Forrest Estate. All executive orders would be issued from there and people and commodities would be concentrated there. Even if it was temporary, wouldn’t the Estate rapidly develop and gain economic benefits in the meantime? This was like a divine blessing for a fiefdom. 

And on top of that, Princess Leila had taken it a step further and made Milton the Commander-in-Chief of the Central Army. The Central Army commanded all the military forces within the Capital and for generations was the head of the Royal Knights.

What this all meant was beyond imagination. On a smaller scale, designating Forrest Estate as the temporary capital and handing over the largest military was to avoid any possible power struggle while respecting Milton’s authority as the Margrave. On a bigger scale, it was like giving the single individual, Milton Forrest, the country’s entire military sector. To give someone who wasn’t even thirty this kind of important position wasn’t common in the history of the Lester Kingdom. The gathered nobles were surprised, but Milton was just as surprised as they were.

‘This princess is really wild.’

It wasn’t enough to describe her as unconventional.

Status, military, economy, honor, etc…  It was impossible to grasp exactly how much support he was receiving. 

“… Yes, Your Highness.”

Milton barely recovered from his shock to answer her.

At that moment, Milton heard a message that couldn’t be heard by anyone else.

[The opportunity to become a monarch has come.]

[You have leveled up]

[Characteristic ‘Clout’ has evolved and become ‘A Hero’s Halo.’]

‘Sweet!’

His level had finally gone up after a long time. Milton barely registered all the congratulating words and hurried back to his quarters as soon as possible. As soon as he was alone, he immediately checked the status window.

[Marquis Milton Forrest]

Monarch LV. 4

Strength — 82         Command — 87

Intelligence — 82        Politics — 70

Loyalty — 100

Special Traits - Monarch’s Dignity, Hero’s Halo, Strategy

Monarch’s Dignity LV. 2: Your presence alone instils faith in allies and strikes fear into enemies. Vassals’ loyalty can be greatly increased through apt reward and punishment.

Hero’s Halo LV. 1: Ability to draw strong support and respect from the people. Even if an unreasonable policy is established, public support is not lost. On the battlefield, it can become the enemy’s target. 

Strategy LV. 4: Excellent ability to see the overall flow of war. 

Overall, the stats had gone up.

In particular, the Politics stats had gone up significantly, but this was probably because Milton’s reputation and presence in the Lester Kingdom had equally grown. 

But, what Milton liked the most was the new Hero’s Halo special trait. 

Hero’s Halo LV. 1: Ability to draw strong support and respect from the people. Even if an unreasonable policy is established, public support is not lost. On the battlefield, it can become the enemy’s target. 

‘This is dope.’

It was such an influential power that South Korean politicians would even sell their souls if they could get it in their hands. Disregarding the fact this was a kingdom and that Milton was a nobleman, the influence of public sentiment was still strong.

‘The Monarch’s Dignity and the Hero’s Halo. If I use these two characteristics together then…’

For a second, Milton saw the different possibilities in his future.

But…

‘Forget it, that’s not me.’

No matter the ability, if it wasn’t meant to be, then there was no use. Milton abandoned his regrets and checked how his estate was doing in the status window. 

Territory - Forrest Manor (Temporary Capital)

Population - 135,724 people

Funds - 352,761 gold

Main products - wheat, barley, oat, wood, fur, wool, horse, cheese, marine, fish, copper

Main facilities - copper mine, ports

Development Possibilities- Academy, Royal Palace, Temple

Military Power - 112 Knights, 520 Knight trainees, 2500 cavalry, 12000 infantry, 7000 archers

Significant Detail - The Estate has been designated as the temporary Capital and the Golden Age has arrived. Your territory can be highly developed.

“This is insane.”

Milton felt his heart pounding. He had predicted that when Princess Leila designated his estate as the temporary capital that it would become developed to some extent.  But when he checked the status window, it just said that the Golden Age had arrived.

‘This is okay, right? Everything’s going well, right? It’s not like a native will suddenly appear and argue for an equivalent exchange of corn and gold, right?’

Having hit such a large jackpot, Milton couldn’t believe all this was real. Looking at the status window, it seemed as though the development of the mine and port had been completed. That meant that Sophia and Max, who had been in charge of the territory, had fully met Milton’s expectations.

“But why did the military power suddenly increase so much? Didn’t I lose troops during the war?”

Milton couldn't understand how the military power had multiplied. But when he thought about it, he instantly understood the reason.

“That’s right. I’m the Commander-in-Chief of the Central Army now.”

From now on, the Central Army had to obey Milton’s orders. He realized that he wasn’t just a heavyweight in the South, but he now had influence over the entire country. Milton now had over 20,000 troops that he could move however he wanted. When he had taken over the estate in the past, there were barely 100 soldiers in total.

‘I’ve become really successful.’

When he thought about pathetic past self, he felt proud of all of his achievements up to this point. 

Just as Milton was feeling proud of himself…

“My Lord, are you inside?”

Rick’s voice could be heard from outside his quarters.

“What is it?”

“I have something to tell you, My Lord.”

“Come in.”

With Milton’s permission, Rick entered.

No, to be more precise, Rick and Tommy, and unexpectedly, even Viscount Sabian.

‘What an odd group.’

“What’s wrong? Why did you come?”

At his question, Rick turned serious and knelt down. Once Tommy had knelt down as well, the two grabbed their swords on their wait and gave them to Milton.

“Forgive me, My Lord. I would like to return my sword back to you.”

“Forgive me, My Lord.”

“What?”