Chapter 65

Chapter 65: I Have No Choice But to Change the Game Myself. (1)

Count Digald had suddenly declared war on the Ferdium family.

As soon as the envoy delivered the declaration, Ferdium’s vassals gathered in one place.

Zwalter reread the declaration several times, his gaze grim.

The declaration of war was filled with grandiose rhetoric about how just this war was and the justification for Digald’s actions.

Stripping away the flowery language, the core message was this:

[My son, Gilmore Digald, was killed by Ghislain Ferdium, so I will avenge him.]

The vassals could not hide their astonishment.

What kind of absurd justification was this?

“Have these people lost their minds? How could the Young Lord have killed Gilmore?”

“They’ve clearly made up their minds to go to war! They must have learned about the Runestone!”

“They’re starting a war on a false pretext! We must put them in their place!”

The vassals trembled with fury, criticizing Count Digald relentlessly.

No one believed that the Young Lord had killed Digald’s heir, no matter how much trouble he caused.

They already knew two vassals had defected to the other side, spreading these false justifications.

At first, they didn’t understand why those vassals had done it, but then they recalled the Runestone and everything made sense.

This war was driven purely by greed.

In the chaotic meeting room, Homerne stared at Ghislain with a troubled expression.

‘He did something good for the estate, but the result is war.’

Homerne had always thought that one day, other lords would pick a fight with them.

But he never expected things to escalate so quickly, without any regard for political alliances.

And least of all from someone like Count Digald, who hadn’t even been on their radar.

‘Tch, now we’re going to waste our forces for no good reason. As it is, every single soldier is precious.’

Homerne swallowed his frustration.

The other vassals were also angry at the absurdity of the war declaration, but none of them seemed particularly afraid.

Digald, after all, was just as poor and insignificant as Ferdium.

In fact, if you were to rank the poorest estates in the North, Ferdium and Digald would compete for first and second place.

However, Ferdium was a border county, receiving support from several other estates.

Though their estate was similar to Digald’s in terms of wealth, Ferdium had far more troops and soldiers with battle experience.

Randolph, the Ferdium Knight Commander, shouted boldly.

“Damn it! They want a fight? There’s no need to overthink this! Let’s just go out there and crush them!”

While war had no real benefits, once a declaration had been made, there was no avoiding it.

Revenge for a murdered blood relative was the most powerful justification of all.

Zwalter leaned back in his chair and let out a heavy sigh.

“War... What in the world is going on? And on top of that, we’ve got traitors.”

The fact that they now had to go to war was troubling, but what pained him even more was that a long-serving vassal had betrayed Ferdium out of personal greed.

‘Tch, things are going to get even harder from now on.’

For an estate like Ferdium, which struggled daily, war was nothing short of a disaster.

Even if they won, the cost of the battle would be immense, and it would be difficult to replenish the manpower lost to casualties.

Especially for a place as resource-strapped as Ferdium.

‘I have no choice but to retrieve the Runestone.’

Zwalter didn’t want to touch something his son had discovered.

However, there was no other way to compensate for the losses except with Ghislain’s Runestone.

Zwalter made his declaration with authority.

“Switch to a wartime posture and prepare for deployment. We will annihilate the enemy at the borders of the estate.”

All the vassals bowed their heads at Zwalter’s sharp gaze, one that had been honed through harsh battles in the North.

Although some forces had been left behind to guard the northern watch, the troops that remained in the estate were more than enough to deal with Digald.

Zwalter turned to Ghislain and continued.

“I’ve heard you’ve hired quite a few mercenaries. They should be of considerable help. You, too, should participate as the Young Lord.”

In wartime, the lord’s orders were absolute. Ghislain bowed his head, accepting the Count’s decision, but he didn’t forget to mention an important point.

“First, we should determine the size of the enemy’s forces.”

“I intend to. We need to see what confidence they have in starting this war.”

The estates were so close that they knew each other’s military strength well.

Zwalter was also curious as to what gave them the boldness to declare war when the disparity in forces was clear.

While Ferdium’s vassals were confident, three days later, they were left speechless by the report brought by a soldier.

“Approximately 6,000 armed soldiers! An additional supply unit with 1,000 troops has also been dispatched! We’ve also confirmed numerous carts carrying siege weapons!”

“.......”

It wasn’t the kind of force that could be assembled by a single estate, especially one as poor as Digald.

Randolph, with a look of disbelief, asked again.

“Are you sure you saw correctly? You didn’t just glance at them and exaggerate, did you? Is this report accurate?”

The soldier said nothing.

But even without a verbal confirmation, everyone knew the report was true.

“I haven’t made a final decision yet. But if we receive help from the neighboring estates, we can reduce the damage, even if just by a little. I’ll decide once I see how the other estates respond.”

Randolph stepped back for the moment, though he didn’t hold much hope for reinforcements.

The surrounding estates would only help Ferdium to the extent that it didn’t collapse entirely.

This was because Ferdium served as a buffer, defending against the nuisance of external threats along the border.

However, it didn’t necessarily have to be Ferdium performing this role.

Even if Digald took over this place, the other estates wouldn’t care.

Whether it was Digald or Ferdium, it didn’t matter to them as long as someone managed the border.

During the days spent waiting for responses to their requests for aid, the mood within the estate grew increasingly bleak.

And when the long-awaited responses finally arrived, even the vassals who had clung to hope could no longer avoid despair.

“Count Raypold says he cannot help due to internal issues.”

“Zimbar has also expressed his refusal.”

“The soldier sent to Count Rogues has lost contact.”

“There’s a rebellion in the Willem estate....”

The reasons varied, but not a single estate offered support.

Even Count Rogues, Ghislain’s brother-in-law, whom they had most trusted, had lost contact entirely.

Zwalter closed his eyes, his face steeped in regret.

‘Is this really the end? For whom have I dedicated my life here?’

He realized he had been wrong all along.

He had believed that no one wanted this forsaken place, and that all he had to do was handle the external threats.

‘Who would have thought the Runestone would bring ruin to this estate?’

But despite everything, he didn’t resent his son.

Ghislain had truly done an outstanding job. It was just that the situation hadn’t been favorable.

‘It was all just a dream. Now, there is no future for us. Will the family really end with me?’

Zwalter sighed deeply, pressing his forehead. His face suddenly looked ten years older.

The Count raised his head again, looking around.

The vassals all wore expressions as if the world had come to an end. Homerne and Albert, their faces pale, remained silent, unable to speak.

Only Randolph was still breathing heavily, brimming with fighting spirit.

Zwalter let out a hollow laugh.

‘At least that brat still has energy left.’

Yes, if it came to it, he and Randolph could fight with all their might and take down as many enemies as possible.

The Count gave a self-deprecating chuckle and suddenly turned to look at his son.

‘You....’

Ghislain was different from the vassals.

He wasn’t panicking, frightened, or enraged. He simply stood there calmly, his face expressionless.

‘I can never figure out what you’re thinking.’

Zwalter looked at Ghislain for a moment with a look of pity.

‘I hope you don’t think this is your fault. You did well. Truly, you did.’

As a father, not as a lord, Zwalter hoped his son wouldn’t blame himself for this war.

In any case, with the discovery of the Runestone, this place would eventually become a battleground for the lords, sooner or later.

Digald was merely the beginning.

‘Should I defend, or should I strike back...?’

Zwalter’s thoughts deepened.

It was said that in order to successfully lay siege, an army needed three times the number of forces.

Fighting from behind the walls gave a clear advantage in defense.

But if supplies weren’t properly delivered, those defending could wither and die easily.

Knights who could wield mana could also easily scale walls.

‘If only we had received reinforcements, we might have been able to hold out... I focused too much on fortifying the Northern Fortress. Is it really going to end like this?’

If the enemies had deployed siege weapons, the weak walls of Ferdium wouldn’t last long.

Had the situation been different, he might have considered surrender, but with Digald’s vengeance as the cause, surrender would mean death for all.

Even the so-called “honorable surrender” nobles often spoke of was impossible in this case.

‘We must win, no matter what. I don’t care if I die, but the others must live.’

Zwalter looked around at everyone with a fierce gaze.

“Prepare for battle. We will meet the enemy outside.”

As Randolph had said, if they tried to hold out, they would only die after their strength was drained.

In that case, it was better to go out and fight while they still had some strength left.

The vassals looked grim, but they silently nodded in agreement with Zwalter’s decision.

Ghislain quietly turned and left the hall.

The mercenaries, who had been waiting, began gathering one by one to follow him.

The lord had made his decision, so the vassals had no choice but to follow it.

But Ghislain didn’t believe it was the right course of action.

‘We can’t just fight head-on. Even if we win, the damage will be too great on our side.’

Ghislain’s expression hardened coldly.

‘I’ll have to change the game myself.’