The Lord of the Rings: Lords of Middle-earth.

Chapter 658 Eat and get cards
“Alright, I’ll send a magical communication back now. I bet His Highness is worried sick!” Renault nodded. Although Roland was a bit unreliable, he did a good job of caring for his people.

At this moment, King Roland, who cared deeply for his people, was leisurely reclining on a deck chair, basking in the sun. Nyx was gently massaging his legs beside him. The golden sunlight shone on Nyx's long, golden hair, making it sparkle. However, Nyx was slightly frowning, as if she was thinking about something.

"Don't think about it, silly girl. Ismir won't die!" Roland snorted and patted Nyx on the head.

“When did Lord Ismir become something? Your Highness, you can’t talk about him like that!” Nyx pouted angrily.

“As the king, you need to balance the relationships among the nobles. You can’t be too distant from or slander any noble who has done nothing wrong, or he will be attacked by the other nobles!” Nyx patiently explained the ins and outs to Roland. After all, the nobles were just a bunch of civilized hyenas. When everyone was evenly matched, it was fine for everyone, but once they showed weakness, they would immediately attract countless eyes to fight over them.

Currently, the kingdom's noble power is still weak, so Roland can do whatever he wants. However, once the kingdom grows larger, Roland's actions will become very dangerous! After all, the king is the largest shareholder of the country and a bellwether in the political arena. Roland's actions are undoubtedly telling other nobles that he is not familiar with this noble or even dislikes him. Perhaps Roland's actions were unintentional, but other nobles will understand and extend their claws. Those in high positions need to be cautious in their words and deeds! This is especially true when considering other nobles, and this is particularly fatal for lower-ranking nobles! After all, high-ranking nobles are in a circle, and they don't have to answer to the king's whims. If you stand at their door and curse them all day, everyone will just watch for fun; no one will dare to bare their teeth at them. Lower-ranking nobles are different; to some extent, they are still very dependent on their lord.

"I'll just say it in private!" Roland hugged Nyx and gently coaxed him while caressing him tenderly.

"That won't do! Walls have ears!" Nyx said pointedly. "Do you think those palace scandals of the Empire got out through such means? Why would the Emperor discuss and plot with others in a magic-free chamber? This is a magical world! Magic can do so many things!"

"Alright, alright!" Roland lowered his head and admitted his mistake. Damn it! Being a king is so boring. He can't have three wives and four concubines (mainly because Roland doesn't want to), and he can't lead troops into battle... He's useless at everything!

"Your Highness! A reply has arrived from Lulong Fortress! Would you like to come out and see?" The maid outside the door knocked lightly but did not come in. What if she came in and saw the king and queen locked in a fierce, naked fight? She would be silenced!
"Alright!" Before Roland could react, Nyx pushed Roland's chest with his hand and flipped himself up. A magic circle flashed beneath his feet, and he appeared at the doorway in the next second.

"Click!" The door was opened by Nyx, and Roland had just raised his head like a bewildered child, not knowing what had happened.

"Your Majesty..." A maid handed over a magical envelope.

"You may leave now, thank you for your hard work! Click!" Nyx said thank you for your hard work and closed the door.

"Whoosh!" Before Roland could even turn his head, Nyx appeared in his arms again.

"Holy crap! Appearing and disappearing like a ghost!" Roland's eyes twitched. So what if a mage can Blink? A knight can use Sweep Slash and Charge!

“Let me see! Huh? Renault found Lord Ismir and mentioned that Lord Ismir has received the service of the Imperial Senator’s Guard Captain Sivers, a descendant of the Imperial Remnant…” Nyx read in a low voice, his eyes growing brighter and brighter.

"Hmm!" Roland nodded listlessly. He already knew all this from the system, otherwise why would he be so lazy? The Imperial Senate Guard that I've been longing for!

“Then I’ll reply to them and tell them to be careful.” Nyx nodded after reading it and finding nothing wrong, then vanished from Roland’s arms in a flash before Roland could speak. “…” Roland.

……

"My lord, are we staying here?" Ymir's lips twitched as he looked at the vast riverbank plain. This endless expanse... ugh! Where are the houses? Embracing nature, perhaps? The Lulong Fortress on the opposite bank of the river was quite clear, though.

“This is our future home!” Ismir corrected.

“But there’s nothing here…” Ymir’s lips twitched again. He felt like he’d been completely fooled. This was so unreliable! He knew you were a pioneering noble, but he never expected you to be like this!

“There will be more in the future!” Ismir said firmly, his eyes shining, his clenched fists and his vow convinced Ymir to believe him.

“Then we need a place to stay, right?” Ymir sighed and said, settling for second best.

Don't worry, you'll have a place to stay soon!

……

"Lord Ismir! Greetings! We have been ordered to bring you some tents! This is what General Reno instructed!" Soon, several dragon riders arrived in their wyverns, carrying large and small bags, found an open space, dropped them down, and then approached Ismir to explain.

"Thank you for your help!" Ismir said, patting his chest. He had complained to Renault about it back then, and after much pleading, he managed to get these military tents from Renault. Now that it was almost early summer, the tents wouldn't be cold, and they would be perfect for getting through the season. Ismir still remembered the look in Renault's eyes, as if he had swallowed a fly. After all, Renault was the first person to conscript him and then demand bribes from him (this guy had freeloaded for two days at Lulong Fortress without paying for his meals, and had taken people to Renault's camp to eat every day...).
"Uh... you flatter me, sir. We'll be going now!" Before Ismir could thank them again, the dragon riders mounted their dragons and took off without looking back. Watching their retreating figures, Ismir felt as if they were fleeing in disarray.

This can't be blamed on the dragon knights. After all, Renault had instructed them before setting off not to say much to Lord Ismir, lest they be sold out and still be counting the money for him. Naturally, the dragon knights didn't dare to be careless, since even their commander Renault was wary of him. Naturally, they wanted to stay as far away from him as possible...

"Look! We have a place to sleep now? Isn't this much better than those dog kennels made of wooden planks?" Ismir nodded. Compared to the drafty, leaky wooden huts, these tents were naturally much better!
“Okay, I’ll get everyone together to set up the tents!” Ymir nodded in agreement. Although Ismir’s description of “doghouse” was somewhat insulting, Ymir had to admit that Ismir’s description was accurate. How could people who were constantly on the verge of collapse have the time to build sturdy shelters? Migrating and hiding were the norm for them. They might have to leave that land at any time to live on another land, so they were lucky if their houses were even passable.

"Alright! I'll organize some people to catch some fish, and we'll give everyone a good meal tonight!" Ismir nodded. He didn't dare to feed the civilians too well last night, since the aroma of heated food is like poison in the dense forest. To avoid attracting predators, Ismir only gave them some bread, and even that made the civilians grateful.

Four updates!