Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords.

Chapter 425 Undercurrent surging
The officers in the southern border looked at their general with expressions that went from confusion to disbelief, and finally to deep admiration.

Look at my own general, no wonder I can only be a minor official. If I don't learn from his mindset, when will I ever become a commander-in-chief?

Although there was no such thing at all, since someone was willing to share his burdens, the lord would naturally not refuse such a kind offer.

After all the infected soldiers were cured by the lord's divine magic, and with General Pik and the others recounting their tearful stories, the soldiers of the Southern Border looked at the lord as if he were the embodiment of the Holy Light.

The Dragon Knight's fame spread throughout the entire military camp.

The perpetrator only showed up briefly before fleeing the scene.

There's a saying that goes something like this.

Distance produces beauty.

If we stay any longer, the lord might reveal his true colors at any moment, and then a bunch of admirers' illusions about their idol will be shattered.

This is precisely the essence of his belief that "distance creates beauty"—mystery is the only way to maintain an idol's aura.

……

"Li Wei, you're becoming more and more famous. My knights all admire you and take you as their role model." The girl, known as the Tulip of the Highlands, smiled and said, "To be honest, if I were a knight, I would love to pledge my allegiance to you and learn swordsmanship from you."

"Oh? Then why don't you just pass the dukedom to someone else and serve me as a female knight? I'll definitely pass on everything I've learned in my life to you." Li Wei said, spouting nonsense.

“I agree.” Heather, who was watching the drama unfold, said with a smile while eating sunflower seeds.

“Okay,” Leah said seriously.

This surprised the lord for a moment. He only understood when he saw the barely perceptible slyness on the girl's lips. He waved his hand and said, "Don't be silly. Being a duke is great. You're second only to the emperor and can have anything you want."

"Why aren't we participating in Levi's next attack on Wirtz?" Leah changed the subject.

“Wiltz has gathered the enemy’s main force, not to mention that the Persian Gulf Empire will certainly not stand by and watch the southern provinces fall into our hands, and will definitely send reinforcements.” When talking about military affairs, Li Wei became unusually serious: “It’s not comparable to Stone Ridge Fortress and Fog City. In the meat grinder of Wirtz, life and blood can be expected to become cheaper than weeds.”

"Just our group of about ten thousand people..."

The lord shook his head: "Let whoever wants to be the vanguard this time be the one. I'm not going. We've already made enough of a name for ourselves. It's good for us to stay in the back and relax."

Besides this reason, there was another reason: this expeditionary force almost became a one-man show for him, and he stole the limelight.

Given his current status, it can be said that he has reached the limit of advancement for the time being. No matter how much military merit he accumulates, the most he will be rewarded with is some territory, treasure, and beautiful dancers.

Therefore, he readily agreed to Bernard's tactful explanation.

Let them handle the tough battles; Gaoyabao can just sit back and enjoy the spoils.

Moreover, Li Wei was considering whether to request a piece of land within the Persian Gulf Empire as a second territory of High Cliff Fortress after the war ended.

After all, although the wilderness is vast, the weather is indeed too cold, and if it weren't for the fertile soil, it would be completely unsuitable for planting.

The Persian Gulf Empire has a warm climate and a large amount of land, which can be used as farmland for High Cliff Fortress.

As a person of pure Chinese blood, Li Wei has always had a persistence in farming that is hard for ordinary people to understand.

However, all of this can only be discussed after the war is over.

……

Thus, the allied forces of the Southern Legion and High Cliff Fort officially settled in Stone Ridge Fort, waiting only for the expeditionary force to capture Wirtz before continuing their march according to orders.

While stationed at Shiling Fort, the lord was not idle.

Aside from commoners, all the nobles in the castle had their accumulated treasures looted. These treasures, along with the spoils from the battlefield and the spoils from Mist-shrouded City, piled up like mountains in the castle's warehouses.

This mountain of supplies was distributed freely between High Cliff Fortress and the Southern Territory. As is a tradition of Debei, there was no question of handing them over.

This was also how Debe maintained the morale of the legion's soldiers.

Regarding this batch of supplies, the lord directly proposed a 30/70 split, and no one objected to this decision. The officers of the Southern Border were even surprised that there was such a high split.

Because if it weren't for Gaoyabao, they might not even have been able to take Shilingbao.

In reality, the lord only gave him that extra 10% because of Lia's sake.

There's a saying that goes, "The benefits or enjoyment easily gained in the present often come at a price in some form in the future."

No one knew what the Lord of High Cliff Fort was up to.

Then, small detachments of troops were dispatched to eliminate the remaining Persian Gulf soldiers and to replace the flags of griffins with those of the villages and towns surrounding Stone Ridge Fortress.

Shiling Fortress was also lifted from military control, allowing civilians to continue living as before without any restrictions on their freedom. However, if they left Shiling Fortress, they could only go south. If they went north, they would be treated as spies by the griffin riders patrolling the skies, first receiving a beating, and then being thrown into prison to await interrogation.

Li Wei dared to do this for two reasons. First, he didn't care whether these unarmed civilians would rebel; after all, why would a dragon care about the attack of ants? Second, these civilians didn't have much of a sense of belonging to the Persian Gulf Empire. On the contrary, after the allied forces from Gaoyabao had been in Shilingbao for so long without any looting incidents, they felt that this army was even stronger than their own Persian Gulf soldiers.

The passing of bandits is like a comb, and the passing of soldiers is like a grate.

Never doubt that civilians' fear of soldiers is actually no more intense than that of bandits.

It's not the goods that matter, it's the people. While Debai may not be the best, the knights who uphold the code of chivalry are moral exemplars compared to the soldiers in the Persian Gulf.

Therefore, everything in Shilingbao unexpectedly returned to normal.

The expeditionary force also began to penetrate deeper into the southern provinces, heading towards Wirtz, and the heavy responsibility of logistics was entrusted to the garrison of the five military nodes.

As long as these five military fortresses do not fall, no Persian Gulf army will be able to outflank and launch a surprise attack on Whale Harbor.

……

Seven days later, on a morning just like any other, the Eternal Sky had just opened its eyes, and the morning mist shrouded Wirtz within it, making him appear indistinct and mysterious.

The only difference is that the walls of Wirtz are now filled with people.

Accompanied by muffled, uniform footsteps, like rolling thunder, they drew ever closer. On the horizon, banners representing the Sun Legion, the capital of the Persian Gulf Empire—golden sun emblems gleaming against a scarlet background—were the first to pierce the pervasive morning mist.

In the sunlight, the armor reflected a cold metallic luster, the ranks so disciplined it was breathtaking, stretching as far as the eye could see. On the city wall, all the officers, including Marshal Howard, finally showed long-lost smiles on their previously tense faces.

“It’s the royal banner! It’s His Majesty’s personal guard!” A sharp-eyed young officer’s voice trembled.

Marshal Howard's tense back relaxed slightly. The boulder that had been weighing on his heart for days, almost crushing Wirtz City, seemed to loosen a bit. He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging emotions, straightened his slightly worn marshal's uniform, and smiled, "Open the city gates! Follow me to welcome the reinforcements from the capital!"

The heavy city gates slowly opened with the groan of the winches. Howard, leading a group of core generals of Wirtz City, stood solemnly at the end of the city gate passage, waiting for the troops.

The reinforcements' vanguard stopped five miles from Wirtz, a safe position.

This way, the garrison inside the city wouldn't be too tense, and they wouldn't have to face any danger.

The leading general was tall, wearing magnificent gilded armor, with a resolute face and sharp eyes.

He rode his magnificent magical beast, the Lion Scorpion, forward alone, and then stopped at a suitable position, his movements as precise as if measured with a ruler.

His movements were fluid yet tinged with an indescribable stiffness. He strode up to Howard, clenched his right fist, and pounded it heavily on his left chest, giving a standard Imperial military salute.

"Marshal Howard, I'm so glad I can still see you."

The general's voice was loud and clear, and a look of joy appeared on his face.

"General Ross, thank you for your hard work." Howard returned the greeting, a relieved smile on his face. "Thank you for your timely assistance. Your arrival is a ray of light in the darkness."

Howard, an old man who had served under three kings, naturally recognized the general who commanded the Sun Legion.

Just as I remembered, almost nothing has changed.

"However, General Ross's blood energy cultivation has become even more profound. He's still so energetic after such a long journey." Howard then patted the burly man on the shoulder, a look of envy on his face.

Howard was much more relaxed with the arrival of reinforcements, and even had the leisure to crack a little joke.

He noticed that Ross's face did not show the weariness of long marches, and he even had a green stubble on his chin.

It seems that even when on a military campaign, this general did not neglect his personal image and still spent time taking care of his appearance.

"The blood energy cultivation technique I practice is designed to enhance physical strength, so it's normal for me to have more energy," Ross said with a smile.

"My lord, my soldiers are exhausted from their long journey. May we be allowed to enter the city?" he continued.

Howard looked at the exhausted army shrouded in thick fog before him.

The ranks were extremely orderly, and the soldiers stood silently. In the thick fog, their faces under their helmets were blurred, only patches of shadows remained.

Howard discovered that the soldiers made almost no sound.

Even his legion couldn't avoid whispering among themselves after reaching their destination after a long journey, but these soldiers didn't at all.

A barely perceptible, instinctive chill seemed to rise from the depths of Howard's heart, but he immediately shook his head.

It's normal that they don't have the energy to talk after such a long journey. After all, these ordinary soldiers aren't like Ross, who has cultivated blood energy techniques and is as energetic as a jungle tiger.

Moreover, these are the elite troops of the capital, so their discipline must be strict.

Leaving such a large army stranded outside the city would have unimaginable consequences should the Debe people launch a sudden and fierce attack.

Entering the city to rest and recuperate is indeed a choice that any general would make.

"I'd like to ask, who are the three lords who provided support? Where are they?" Howard asked curiously. "After all, the enemy's dragon knight named Levi is far too powerful. I would feel more at ease if I knew it was one of those three legendary lords."

The letter only said that reinforcements would arrive, without specifying which three legendary experts they were.

Howard understood this approach; after all, if the letters were intercepted by the enemy, the names of the three legendary figures would become known, inevitably leading to their targeting.

The main form of warfare is information warfare.

“I know him, the dragon knight of Debe. We all wish he would go down to the abyss!” Ross’s voice was somewhat meaningful: “But my lord, there is no need to worry too much. The three lords who are supporting us have a way to deal with him. However, due to some minor delays, they are still behind us and will arrive in Wirtz in two days at most.”

"Then I'm relieved." Howard nodded without giving it much thought.

Not to mention Ross, he also wished this dragon knight would go to hell. If it weren't for the other party, his plans wouldn't have been disrupted one by one.

Legendary experts have long since transcended worldly affairs, and even His Majesty cannot force them to do anything. It is perfectly normal for them to be late because of some trivial matters.

"Sir, may we enter the city now?"

“Of course.” Howard nodded and instructed the officer beside him, “Clean up the camp immediately and prepare food and water.”

In fact, he had already arranged the camp, so that the other party could lie down and rest as soon as they entered the city.

Wirtz was a provincial capital and the commercial center of the southern province, so accommodating hundreds of thousands of soldiers was not a problem at all.

"Thank you for your generosity."

Ross finally smiled from the bottom of his heart and expressed his gratitude.

He turned and, facing the silent, mountain-like army behind him, issued a clear and cold command: "All troops, enter the city!"

The order was given, and the endless ranks of soldiers began to move slowly. There were no cheers, no whispers, only the chillingly uniform sound of footsteps.

The morning mist enveloped the procession entering the city. They moved in perfect unison, silently and orderly through the deep city gate passageway, pouring into the city of Wirtz.

Some of the city's garrison soldiers, with their keen sense of smell, seemed to detect a mixture of sulfur and rust in the air.

Marshal Howard stood aside, calmly watching the fresh troops pour into his city, while inwardly calculating how to redeploy the defenses and how to use this powerful force to launch a counterattack.

After the last soldier entered, the heavy city gate slowly closed with the creaking of the winch, shutting out the thick fog from the city.

crunch~
With a loud bang, the moment they entered the city, all the soldiers suddenly looked up, smiles appearing on their faces.

(End of this chapter)