Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1387 1359. Secret Meeting
King Demavere of Aedirn was half lying on a chair covered with bear skin, staring at the wine glass placed on his stomach with dark circles under his eyes from not getting enough rest.

Foltest, ruler of Temeria, Pontar, Mahakam, and Soden, and recently senior patron of Brugg, turned his head to the window, leaving a noble silhouette exactly like the one printed on the Oren coin.

Across the table was King Henselt of Kaedwen, who had a big beard like a bandit, and his small eyes, slit by the flesh of his cheeks, glanced at the others secretly.

The Queen of Lyria and Rivia, Miwei, fiddled with the huge ruby ​​necklace on her towering chest, and her plump and beautiful lips twitched from time to time.

"We can't make that mistake again."

Seeing that no one spoke, Vizmir remained calm and just repeated his point of view in a different tone.

"We are not qualified to make mistakes now. We must learn from the experiences of our ancestors. When our ancestors landed five hundred years ago, the elves were like ostriches burying their heads in the sand. They were resistant to change and fearful and refused to face the threat."

"Every time our ancestors took a step forward and took a little more territory, they consoled themselves by saying, 'This must be the last time.' They retreated again and again. Then, we became kings."

"And now." Vizmir's face, which looked older than it had been a few years ago, looked at the kings one by one, "We have become the elves of those days."

"I have heard more than once that someone in my court said, 'The black men will stop on the south bank of the Yaruga River' and 'They don't want to fight anymore'. I believe there must be such voices in your courts as well."

"So I'll say it again: Let's not make the same mistake as the elves."

Still Foltest did not look back.

This window in Haji Fort looks out onto the raging Pontar Rapids.

He clearly remembered that half a year ago, this torrent, which was so turbulent that it was frightening to watch, had been blocked a little further downstream.

In the end, the river itself had accumulated three days of water, and under Triss Merigold's explosion spell, it blasted the river channel open, allowing this major artery of river transportation in the North to flow again.

The blockage at the time was near Temeria's pioneering territory, the Floating Harbor.

According to his loyal intelligence personnel, the huge amount of broken rocks and huge trees that blocked the river were thrown down from the mountain by something!

And what was a very coincidental thing was that it was just the time when a demon hunter was invited by him to deal with the abnormal situation in the Pontar Valley.

Foltest still remembers the expression on the face of the intelligence officer who presented the report to him.

'He must be terrified.'

This was the first reaction of the King of Temeria at the time.

That spy who had been through hundreds of battles and lived comfortably in the dark, sinister and vicious intelligence community. What traces of something did he see during his investigation that frightened him so much?
Foltest looked out the window and said nothing, but someone didn't want the conversation to remain silent.

"Don't compare us to the elves, Vizimir. It's an insult." Henselt's bandit beard twitched. "The elves don't know how to fight. They didn't teach our ancestors a lesson at Sodden Mountain."

"They will just retreat again and again in a weak way, abandoning one city after another."

"But we beat the men in black to a pulp!"

"Remember how Emperor Emhyr purged his troops after the defeat of Nilfgaard? There were eight official large-scale executions, and countless informal or minor ones!"

"In order to maintain his prestige after the defeat and distance himself from the defeat, he suddenly transformed himself into the person who opposed the military action from the beginning!"

"They really didn't feel sorry when they started fighting. The commander was killed cleanly!"

Henselt sighed when he talked about the purges after Nilfgaard's defeat, but then he laughed.

"So, how can he send out troops now? The commanders were killed, who will lead his army? Will it be those non-commissioned officers?"

"No, it won't be the NCOs." Demave of Aedirn interrupted the conversation coldly. "The troops will be led by the young officers in their prime."

"Remember the military school system in Nilfgaard? This system has been stable for several years now. If you think about it, now is the time for talented people to emerge."

"We have all heard the names and achievements of those young people."

"They crushed the uprisings of Metina and Nasser, and quickly suppressed the rebellion of Ebin. They killed everyone so cleanly, much more decisively than the old man."

"Previously, those older generals blocked the path for the young to be promoted. They could only be stuck in the middle and lower levels of the army, accumulating experience and knowledge, as well as resentment for not being able to achieve their goals."

"Those young people have been waiting for this opportunity for a long time like wolves and tigers."

"Compared to merit and wealth, how can the blood and tears of those annoying old predecessors possibly intimidate the young people?" "It's better if they can't be intimidated." Henselt grinned. "The military academy system is indeed good. I'm also running a small-scale one now to try it out."

"But talent is talent. No matter how many talents he has, can he create military supplies and materials out of thin air?"

Henselt moved his beer glass on the wooden table with his stubby fingers, but he did not drink from it. He just grinned.

"Where do they get the boats and foothold to cross the Yaruga River?"

"The military fortresses on the Yaruga River are all on our side. Do they dare to launch their ships into the water? Do they dare to land after launching their ships into the water?"

"You don't want the flank anymore? You don't care about the logistics supply line?"

"How about crossing the sea? Haha, King Bran of the Skellige Islands is going crazy wanting to avenge his brother Ester Tursek! The Nilfgaardians can't even protect their own coastline now, and are about to be pierced by the Skellige longships. Do they still dare to go to the sea?"

When he said 'pierce', Henselt smiled and made a very obscene gesture, obviously describing the longship as something else.

"It would be best if those young officers could not be intimidated," Henselt sneered. "That way, when they cross the river impulsively without thinking, we can easily reenact the Battle of Sodden."

"But don't worry, they won't cross the river."

At the end, Henseite waved his hands in a disinterested manner, as if he felt it was a pity.

"But suppose," Queen Miwei suddenly spoke, ignoring Henselt's obscene behavior.

"Assuming that the men in black will not cross the Yaruga River, and that they can indeed wait patiently, who will benefit more from this situation? Who can hold out? Who can't?"

"Absolutely right." Vizimir agreed immediately, "Mi Wei is still as sharp as ever!"

The oldest king among the four northern kingdoms paced to the side of the table next to Mi Wei's seat, expressing his attitude with his position.

He went on: “Emhyr has plenty of time. And you still don’t understand the situation?”

"Two years ago, the Nilfgaardians loosened a stone on the hillside, and now they are waiting for a landslide!"

"Two years ago, that 'pebble' was literally unmovable for a lot of people, but now it's rolled off! It totally boosts the spirits of those guys."

"From the Gray Mountains to the Cape of Brimwood, there are inhuman guerrillas everywhere! If we wait any longer, the free elves of Dol Bretanna will also have something to say! The Dwarf Autonomous Region of Mahakam will surely be ready to make a move, and the dryads of Brokilon will become more and more outrageous!"

Vizmir slammed his fist on the table.

"The Nilfgaardians are fanning the flames while waiting for us to become increasingly stretched!"

"Scoia'tael," Henselt admitted now. "They are a real problem. They disrupt trade and transport, and prevent farmers from doing their work. Damn inhuman bastards!"

"The Scoia'tael want war, so we'll give them war." Foltest, who had been standing by the window, chimed in. "I've always advocated peace, but that doesn't mean abandoning the use of force."

"I hereby make a promise: I will wipe out the Scoia'tael from Temeria within six months."

"Too much blood was shed in that land when my ancestors fought the elves. It was a tragedy in my opinion. But since you are still causing trouble at this critical moment, the tragedy will inevitably happen again."

To be fair, Foltest's statement made others feel relieved.

Because his attitude towards non-human races is indeed quite mild, as can be seen from the dwarven autonomy of Mahakam.

Unlike Kaedwen or Aedirn, he did not directly discriminate against non-human races in his policies.

Discrimination in Temeria is mostly a problem of customs and prejudice rather than a policy issue.

But after Foltest expressed his opinion, Demavie just hummed and laughed.

"Yes, Foltest. As long as you give the order, your loyal army and the Blue Guards will attack the Scoia'tael or the non-human races without hesitation."

King Aedirn said lightly.

But then, he finally sat up straight from his lazy half-lying position on the chair, frowned and asked in a shocked voice.

"But the question is, will your army, your Blue Guards, attack humans?!"

(End of this chapter)