Dragon, choose cultural victory to make money

Frostmaw is the castle where the Randall family has lived for generations. Although the name is very cool, it seems like the kind of place where many legendary stories will happen.

In fact, it is just an ordinary fortress, and outside the castle is just an ordinary small or medium-sized town.

At its peak, the population just exceeded 10,000, and now there are still several thousand. The residents may not know each other, but they will look familiar when they see each other on the street.

There is only one Internet cafe in the whole city, which has more than a dozen consoles, a dozen game consoles, and more than twenty headbands.

There is only one Magic Cinema with two theaters.

When color magic vision had already been invented, black and white magic vision had just been promoted here.

Overall, it's an unremarkable place.

The reason why it got such a cool name is entirely due to its geographical location.

From here to the north, the river freezes in winter, but to the south it does not.

This place has become a landmark on the dividing line between the northern and central regions of Sutton.

Hence the name "Frost Throat".

This means that the further south you go, the less frost there is.

For many years, this small city, although a bit backward, has always been a peaceful and livable place.

Until a few months ago.

All peace was broken.

From then on, poor Earl Randall never slept well.

First, the coalition forces attacked the northern border, and the huge army passed by him, and he also contributed a dozen of his knights.

More than a dozen people went there, and two came back. One of them went crazy and has not been cured yet.

Then we received the news that the North had occupied Dronburg. In addition to being an important military fortress in the north, Dronburg was also the southernmost city in the northern region of Sutton.

In other words, after the Northern Legion captured Dronburg, the next target should have been the landmark on the dividing line, the Frostmaw.

Count Randall's mental torture has continued from that day to this day.

Surrender or protect the monarchy, that is the question.

With the strength of the Randall family, they should undoubtedly surrender. Even if they try their best, they will only be kicked to death on the side of the road.

However, surrender is not necessarily safe.

The Northern Legion has been here for such a long time and has no intention of continuing to move south. If he surrenders and the other side does not come to take over the garrison, then he is doomed.

The royal family can’t defeat the North, so they can’t defeat him?
Then he waited for the arrival of the Royal Legion, and with it came King Sutton VII himself.

Earl Randall provided a lot of supplies and sent them on their way.

I didn't expect that it would really hit the road.

The royal army never returned.

Last time, some soldiers from the coalition managed to escape, but this time, not a single deserter was seen.

There was no movement in the North again, while the South began to elect a regent.

The question arises again, what should he do?
If he voted now, would he become a victim of the Regent's dying struggle?

The elderly Earl Randall had never felt that the position of earl and lord was so difficult.

After all, it is the moment that determines the life and death of the entire family.

My favorite desserts no longer taste good, and my weight continues to drop at a rate of one kilogram every five days, and is almost below 200 kilograms.

If it weren't for the severe insomnia these days, this would have been the healthiest time in his life.

The tremendous mental pressure brought him to the brink of collapse.

Therefore, when he saw the huge Northern Army on the distant horizon, he felt no panic or fear, only a sense of relief.

He stood on the terrace and looked at the legion for a long time.

Watch them transform from tiny black dots on the horizon into clear images.

At the front of the team were giant dragons leading the way. They were wearing armor that glowed with cold light and carried heavy machine guns on their backs.

Following closely behind the dragon group were numerous steel chariots and groups of troop transport vehicles, with fully armed soldiers sitting neatly on the bumpy vehicles.

These are actually almost all the large-scale mechanized equipment produced by the North so far. They were prepared in just a few months, and this is already the limit.

However, these equipments are sufficient to deal with any possible battles in Sutton, and even have a lot of excess combat power.

Taking them all out is to show strength and boost military prestige.

I hope that the nobles who see this team will be more sensible and not engage in a resistance that wastes time and lives.

And Earl Randall, who is now on the terrace, happens to be a very sensible nobleman.

Look at this team composed of steel and discipline, and then think about your own soldiers whose equipment can't even put together a picture. When they march, they have to have the military band play bagpipes to ensure that they don't fall behind or even get lost.

How desperate do you have to be to even think of resisting?

Looking at it this way, it was somewhat lucky that two of the dozen or so knights he sent out to join the coalition were able to return.

Or maybe the North showed mercy and did not use overly extreme annihilation tactics.

"Notify the kitchen to make some desserts. I want all the styles I like. We need to make up for the food we haven't eaten during this period. Also notify the city defense forces and ask them to open the city gates. If they have already opened the gates privately, there is no need to report it."

Earl Randall was in a very good mood and even hummed a little tune, which made the servants very confused.

I wonder if the master has gone mad too, like the knight who escaped from the coalition forces.

Otherwise, how could any noble be so happy when their territory is about to be lost?

Seeing that the servants were surprised and did not move, Earl Randall had to urge them, "What are you doing? Why are you standing there like an idiot? We still have to stay in the same house from now on. But I should no longer be your master. What's the word? It's called... employer. Yes, employer."

Seeing the Earl in this state, the servants had no choice but to follow his orders.

At this time, the count added: "Well, the bands and dancers in our castle haven't had any work for a long time. Call them all out. Today is a good day and we should celebrate."

The servants looked at each other, and felt more and more that their master was crazy.

And looking at the symptoms, it seems like the last moment of glory before committing suicide, which is how it is played out in the magic video machine.

Count Randall put on a full suit, including the overweight wig that would make him sweat after wearing it for a while.

He called the whole family over, and they were all dressed very formally. If you didn't know, you would think that this family was going to receive a reward.

"Band, play a light tune."

The dancers danced gracefully to the exquisite accompaniment of the band. It has to be said that the level of the artists supported by the traditional aristocrats for comparison is indeed very high.

This may be the only place where they are ahead of the North.

Count Randall followed the rhythm of the music, waving his hands as if conducting, while enjoying the exquisite dessert.

"Master, the emissary from the North has arrived."

"Come in, come in quickly, you don't have to stop, continue playing the music, continue dancing, change to something a little more solemn."

Soon, a team of elite soldiers pushed open the door of the castle's main hall and walked in quickly in neat steps.

Earl Randall, who was originally very relaxed, was finally so surprised that he dropped the spoon in his hand when he saw the person at the front of the team.

The so-called envoy from the North turned out to be Sutton VII, who had led the royal army and left Frostmaw not long ago. After a brief moment of astonishment, Earl Randall suddenly started laughing.

"Hahahaha, distinguished sir, how should I address you now?"

In fact, he had roughly guessed the intention of the Northerners, which was to show the stubborn royalist nobles, "The king you want to protect has already surrendered, why are you still struggling."

A very reasonable approach.

He knew that there were indeed a few who steadfastly supported the old system, even above their own lives.

I don't understand what they are thinking.

But no matter how reasonable it is, I couldn't help laughing when I saw this scene with my own eyes.

How absurd.

"Ahem, Mr. Randall, on behalf of Ms. Figsin Sutton, the commander of the Northern Army, I would like to convey to you..."

Sutton VII said timidly, so embarrassed that he didn't know where to look.

Several reporters were holding cameras to record this bizarre scene.

Given Drogo's control over publicity channels, it's not hard to imagine how many people will see it in the end.

This should also be considered a form of torture, at least much more severe than parading through the streets.

Earl Randall did not allow Sutton VII to continue to torture him, and said directly: "I swear allegiance."

Then he took out something he had prepared long ago, "This is my enthronement document, this is the title deed to my land, and this is the property details, including all the people in my family."

Several documents were neatly arranged and classified on different trays and presented by the servants.

This is the awareness of Earl Randall for the continuation of his family.

The Northern personnel in front of him had thought that the other party would cooperate, but he did not expect the other party to cooperate so well. He was inevitably a little surprised and was stunned for a moment before continuing with the process.

"Please forgive me. It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that due to our disciplinary requirements, these documents still need to be verified, which may take two to three days."

"Of course, please go ahead and check it out. It's reasonable and I completely understand. By the way, do the nobles who pledge their allegiance to you need to sign a document?"

Earl Randall saw in the newspaper the signing of the reform bill of the northern nobles.

He felt uneasy without signing, and only after he signed did he feel that the incident was completely over.

“Yes, the document is here, you can read it carefully.”

Count Randall took it and without reading it at all, he turned directly to the last page and signed his name.

He felt that this thing was similar to the user agreement before starting the game. What's the use of reading it? It couldn't be modified, and there was no room for rejection, unless he didn't want to play anymore.

"Thank you for your cooperation."

"You're welcome."

The Northerners prepared to leave with Sutton VII, and their mission was completed with a degree of sophistication far beyond their expectations.

"Um," Count Randall suddenly stopped them, "I want to ask you something. Is that convenient?"

"of course."

"Will the Randall family's castle continue to belong to the Randall family?"

This is the only thing he can't let go of.

The family castle was ordered to be built by his great-great-grandfather and was completed after his great-grandfather came of age.

It carries the memories of several generations of their family.

He spent his childhood, adolescence, youth and middle age here, and he didn't want to leave here in his old age.

"Of course, sir, the Randall family's castle, including all the property in the castle, will belong to you forever."

"That's good."

Earl Randall breathed a sigh of relief, but he didn't notice that the other party said that it would belong to him forever, but it was hard to say whether it belonged to the Randall family.

With the abolition of serfdom, future castle maintenance and repair work will no longer be as simple as paying for raw materials, but will become a very expensive task.

This price will become more and more expensive as labor costs continue to rise.

Unless the family has extremely good descendants, it is difficult to afford this money. Even if the descendants are well off, the painful price will make people question whether it is worthwhile to continue maintaining the family castle.

In the foreseeable future, a large number of nobles will abandon their ancestral homes. Those with historical value can be sold to emerging big businessmen, or protected by the government as cultural relics and tourist attractions. As for those without value, they will only be abandoned and dilapidated, and occasionally appear in the works of Internet celebrities as the venue material for "Late-night Thriller Adventure Live Broadcast in the Horror Castle".

……

The process of the Northern Army's advance southwards could not be said to be unimpeded, but it could be said to be without any resistance.

Basically, the process of King Sutton VII's envoy appearing and the noble lords signing happily was repeated over and over again.

It’s not that we haven’t encountered stubborn royalists.

But there was still no fighting. Those people were captured by the angry people in their own territory, including the knights who had sworn allegiance to them, who rushed into the fortress, tied them up and sent them to the guillotine.

There is no need for Figithin and Drogo to take action.

No one wants the place where they live to be bombarded because of the obsession of one lord.

It took the Northern Army less than a month to advance outside the royal city.

Not even a shot was fired along the way.

……

At this time, inside the royal city.

Sutton Palace.

Charlton Sutton, who was elected as regent, stood at the window and looked out at the countless excited people surrounding the palace, layer upon layer.

They are all waiting for the final decision.

Charlton Sutton felt that he was innocent. He was just an idle prince who spent most of his time on his hobbies, drama and painting.

He is considered to be the one in the royal family who is closest to Drogo. Because of his love of painting, he and Flynn are in the same association and are quite familiar with each other.

He was completely pushed to become the regent.

"Tell me, if we order a defense of the city, will they rush in and tear down the palace?"

The Regent suddenly said this.

"The mob cannot break through the palace's defenses," one of the ministers replied.

"Really? Then do you think the defense here is still under the command of the royal family?"

The Regent looked at the guard beside him.

"I'm going to ask you to stop those civilians now. Anyone who wants to rush into the palace will be killed without mercy. Will you follow my orders?"

"I...I will follow orders." The guard was not very confident.

"Oh? Then go ahead."

"This……"

"Haha, lower the royal flags," the regent ordered, "lower all the royal flags." (End of this chapter)