Throne of the North.

Chapter 689 Majesty
The seasons come and go, and when it snows, it is called the real winter. This winter, the Kingdom of Kolan, which has never seen snow before, is covered in a blanket of white.

"A great being, whose eternal gaze brought about different changes."

The North burned, and countless snowflakes were burned by the light. They returned to the sky, only to fall again at this moment, heavier than ever before.

This posed a great challenge to the Kingdom of Kolan, as they had never experienced such heavy snowfall. As a result, supplies that were supposed to be delivered to the Kingdom of Andara three days ago were still stuck on the way.

Tyke Butler was sweating profusely. He came from the Butler Viscount family, a family of considerable status, and was a gentleman in every sense of the word. He had thought this was a cushy job, but today he was starting to panic.

"This damn snow."

The vehicles of the Kingdom of Kolan had not considered what to do when it snowed, and the cattle and horses had lost their usual speed. Now, they had even collapsed on the road due to the cold.

"It's all because of this damn snow, otherwise we would have arrived long ago."

Tyke gritted his teeth and said that he was referring to a bard and five knights on the other side.

“If it were because of the snow, Mr. Tek would be understandable, and we wouldn’t be here. You just need to deliver these things to Andara, but is that really the case?”

The bard Shane placed his right hand over his left on his abdomen and calmly looked at Tyk.

"This batch of supplies includes 6,000 sets of linen clothing, 20,000 jin of grain, leather water bottles, and over 3,000 pieces of the extraordinary resource, datura petals..."

“Mr. Tyk, you should have set off for the Kingdom of Andara five days ago, but you left a day late.”

Tyk frowned, his displeasure growing.

"It doesn't matter if we're a day late. If it weren't for the snow, we could have arrived a day later."

“Being a day late is not a big deal, but that’s not why I came. You left 30% of these supplies in Viscount Butler’s territory in the name of the Viscount, and you also plan to earn some pocket money for yourself under the pretext of expenses incurred on the way.”

"That's alright, it's none of your business anymore anyway."

The bard Shane said:

“According to the laws of the Northern Military Council, Mr. Tyk, your life is now over.”

Behind him, the knights drew their longswords and walked towards Tyk.

Tyk's eyes widened in panic as he pushed the soldier in front of him.

"Damn it, what right do you have to threaten me?"

“I am a member of the Butler family, a nobleman of the Kingdom of Coran.”

“According to the laws of the Northern Military Council, Tyk Butler, you shall be executed.”

The bard stared at the soldiers in the group, who blankly drew their weapons and stood in front of Tyk.

"Do you also wish to violate the laws of the North? The King of Coran and all the nobles are supporters of these laws."

“If you protect him, you will all be executed.”

Among the knights in the group, there was silence, gritted teeth, not knowing what to do. Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate, a sharp arrow pierced through Tyk's head.

"No one can violate the laws of the North."

In the distance, a spotted cheetah stood up and transformed into human form.

He is the executioner.

"From now on, you are the supplies officer."

"I'll give you two days to get this batch of supplies to the front lines of the Kingdom of Andara."

The bard looked at the knight, then turned and left, leaving the people standing there dumbfounded.

At almost the same time, an army from the Viscount Butler family within the Kingdom of Coran also came knocking on their door.

"What are you doing? What are you doing? This is the Viscount's residence, what right do you have to come in?!"

Soldiers blocked the doorway, but the bard outside remained calm and spoke to the steward:
"Tell Viscount Butler that he must return the supplies sent to the North. These are supplies to support the North in its fight against the orcs; they are resources for the war, not his personal wealth."

After saying this, the army left the viscount's territory.

The Royal City of Coran.

Galic Gelan looked at his father's angry expression and felt somewhat helpless.

"Father, if Viscount Butler and his men don't hand over the supplies, are you really planning to take action against them?"

“Even Ryan wouldn’t let you do these things.”

"This will offend many nobles."

Grand Duke Gaelan gritted his teeth and let out a cold snort.

"What does this have to do with Ryan?"

Galick exclaimed "Ah!" with a blank expression.

"Weren't you just cursing Ryan for being a damn person?"

"He deserves to die, but this has nothing to do with him."

"It's the king!"

Grand Duke Gelan sighed. The Kingdom of Coran now has two powers: the king questions Grand Duke Gelan, the military minister, and Galic, the Coran legion commander, in the name of the king. They are in charge of transporting supplies, and now that something has gone wrong, the first person responsible is naturally Grand Duke Gelan and his family.

"Then...shall we do it?"

Galic asked cautiously, still holding the king in high esteem.

A cold glint flashed in Grand Duke Gelan's eyes.

"It must be done. We must make the nobles understand that this matter is not open to compromise."

The Grand Duke gritted his teeth; he also wanted to do it, but he didn't want to be forced to do it by others.

"There is one more thing, Father."

After receiving the answer, Galick asked another question.

"The stag squires from the Frozen Territory, those knights, are training Coran's army."

"What's wrong? Isn't this a good thing? I think the military's demeanor has changed recently."

Galick searched for an explanation and began to speak:

"When the Kingdom of Coran's army assembled, there were a total of 30,000 men. Starting with the dectiss, they were all of the bloodline of the baron. The best could become centurions, and most centurions were members of viscount families. After the chiliarch general, they were members of the great noble families. Many people in our family also became chiliarchs."

"Of the three commanders, two are from the royal family and one is Uncle Raize."

"But these days, while those stag knights are training the army, they have stripped many of their titles and made them second-in-commands."

“Some men whose names I had never even heard of before have become new deputies and centurions, and even five chiliarchs have become deputies, two of whom have been replaced by baron’s sons.”

"Furthermore, among the soldiers below, the sergeants who manage five soldiers are all civilians."

Grand Duke Guillain was surprised and asked:
“I’ve never heard of that,” Galick replied.

"Those who lost their titles never fought."

In front of thousands of soldiers, those men were utterly defeated, whether in one-on-one combat or in small-scale battles with ten men. They were completely defeated. Faced with jeers and sneers, they had no confidence to boast or complain to their parents.

Grand Duke Guelan sneered after hearing this.

"A bunch of trash."

Those people complained and told their parents, which actually reached Galic, who then subtly relayed the message to Grand Duke Guillain.

But now, given the Grand Duke's tone, it's clear that those noble bloodlines have no chance of returning to their rightful place.

……

What happened in the Kingdom of Kolan was not an isolated incident.

However, compared to other places, it is much better.

The nobles of the Kingdom of Andara had experienced the brutal wars with other races, and they vividly remembered what would happen after the orcs broke through their defenses. Therefore, they were very dedicated to such matters. As for the Kingdom of Sera, there were not many nobles left. It would be too conspicuous for a noble to ask for help.

Moreover, the nobles of the Kingdom of Sera were more aware of Ryan's ruthless and decisive nature than those of the Kingdom of Coran.

Nobles are not immortal.

The kingdom lost more than half of its nobles before they were able to vacate the fertile land they have today.

"Lane wants the Griffin Legion to enter the North?"

Otto and Roland were together, discussing the letter that Ryan had just received.

What are we doing entering the North?

Roland understood politics but not military affairs, and asked curiously.

"There are too many orcs. The Griffin Legion regularly goes to the North to clear them out, which can prevent large orc groups from forming a leader."

"If a leader emerges in the orc army, it will cause more and more orcs to appear in front of the northern fortresses like a snowball. Those orcs may not be good at anything else, but once they become leaders, they like to recruit tribes to attack the human defenses."

The Griffin Legion can quickly wipe out powerful orc tribes near their fortress.

"I intend to personally lead the Griffin Legion to the North."

Otto's eyes gleamed with excitement. King McCreynolds didn't really care about these things; their king father was now focused on gaining more magical power and trying to become a demigod.

"Is it too dangerous?"

"I'll be careful, and Father gave me a magic scroll; who can catch up with the gale?"

That very night, taking advantage of the moment when no one was watching, the Griffin Legion marched into the Northern Territory, wreaking havoc in the vast snowfields.

Ryan received the message from Rhinoceros Horn Mountain the next morning.

"The Griffin Legion's slaughter can create gaps in the continuous orc population in the North. The gaps in time are our breathing room."

In the Frozen Territory, Ryan was monitoring the entire Northern Front, and it seemed that the front he controlled was fully capable of holding it off.

The biggest threat still lies with the Kingdom of Andara. The demigod warthog carrying a mountain on its back has smashed a smooth road through the mountains that should have been blocked by many peaks. Most of the orc army appears there and in the Fragrant Mountain Plain. Andara has no clear fortress defenses and can only rely on its fortified defenses to fight a protracted war with the orcs.

The Gerald noble territory is much better; if the orcs want to threaten that area, they still have to cross the mountains and forests.

"This time, it seems the six royal courts haven't paid much attention to our attack here?"

Ryan was curious, wondering what the Orcish Royal Court was thinking. They were quite intelligent, and although the six royal orc clans had shown their presence during this full-scale invasion of the Northwind Province, they had not formed a significant force or leadership.

After thinking for a long time, Ryan began to issue orders.

"Have Viscount Landa reinforce the alleyways inside the fortress. If a legend emerges among the orcs, I will go there myself."

“Tell him to always keep an army of three thousand as reinforcements. The Fragrant Mountain Plain is located in a gentle valley with rugged mountains on both sides. But after what happened in the Earl of Winter’s territory, we cannot guarantee that those orcs will not fall from the sky.”

“Write a letter to the royal palace of the Kingdom of Andara. His Majesties should give their speeches. The kingdom’s loyalty to the king will depend on the king’s loyalty to the kingdom. The army of the Kingdom of Andara can be placed under the command of Grand Duke Leta. Knight Daryl can guard the royal city to prevent the fortress defenses from being breached by the orcs and threatening the royal city.”

"Tell Duke Leta that there is a demigod warthog on the east side of the heavy defense line and north of the west side of the defense line. It is not a warthog orc, and it will be difficult for it to get close."

"The Andara Kingdom's legion has dispatched 5,000 men to patrol the Griffin Mountains in the west of the kingdom, working alongside the North Wind cavalry to ensure the safety and smooth passage of the North Wind Road. Even in war, commerce and trade must not be affected."

"The more war there is, the more expensive some things become."

On Rhinoceros Horn Mountain, each servant walked out with their head held high, carrying messages to be delivered to the esteemed lords of this land, all thanks to Lord Ryan's authority.

This Rhinoceros Horn Mountain is not large, but it is the center of power in the entire North.

The servants of the baron's castle are servants, but once they step outside the castle and into the land, they are respected adults.

……

The fact that the Northland didn't put much pressure on the Northwind Province was something Ryan hadn't expected, which made him wonder what had happened in the Empire's other five border provinces.

“Griff, I need you to lead the scouts to the west.”

"Perfect timing, there are many members of the Wings of Light there, you can move freely among them."

Ryan handed the emblem representing the Wings of Light to Griff and continued:

"The orcs' full-scale invasion shouldn't be this gentle, and their numbers are so huge. I suspect the orcs have a different need this time."

Another thing that worried Ryan was how the emperor's death would change the war against the orc invasion.

I hope it won't affect me too.

The front lines in the North are too long, so long that Ryan simply doesn't have time to think about or consider the political issues in the South.

For example, how will the empire retaliate against the Papacy, and who exactly will be the new emperor?

He now has to do everything in his power to deal with this orcish invasion.

Others might blindly believe in Ryan's military invincibility, but Ryan himself wouldn't. The only thing he was clear about was what could increase the chances of winning a war.

In Ryan's eyes, the supplies that should be sent to the battlefield were not to be given up, not even a single grain of rice. As long as there were enough supplies, slaves could become elites, and even extraordinary knights could gain more courage.

The servant who had left the castle to deliver the message returned, bringing news from afar.

"My lord, Grand Duke Gelan of the Kingdom of Kolan has personally ordered that the army be responsible for supervising the transportation of the kingdom's supplies."

"However, the Grand Duke hopes to purchase a batch of knight equipment from the Frozen Territory at a lower price."

"The king also hopes that you, sir, can provide more warhorses."

"Grand Duke Leta of the Kingdom of Andara has sent word, inquiring whether it is possible to request aid from the Empire to have the Empire send reinforcements to help the Kingdom of Andara fight against the orcs."

"His Highness Roland of the Kingdom of Sera wrote a private letter to the Master, and we do not know its contents."

(End of this chapter)