Throne of the North.

Chapter 740 The War Ends in Politics

The war is not over because Ryan has not yet gained enough from it.

He had already achieved his goal on his extraordinary path; the legendary blessing brought by slaying a god had resolved the trouble he craved most.

However, the biggest chessboard in this war is still between the Empire and the Orcs.

"The war cannot stop yet."

Ryan was speaking to the werewolf king, Adun.

Ryan didn't understand the age-old feud between humans and orcs in this world, but he did know what it meant to "raise bandits for personal gain."

"Our war will not end with the death of the Orc King."

"I will let you know when the war needs to end."

"Werewolves will not obey human commands."

Yaton gritted his teeth, breathing in the cold air.

“You don’t need to listen to me, because this is a deal. I will grant you the blessings you need, and I will also get something else from you.”

"what?"

Ardon didn't understand and asked in confusion.

"You werewolves pride yourselves on civilization, a werewolf civilization that emerged from the human world, yet you haven't learned the greatest skill of humans."

“There is a saying in my hometown: wherever there are people, there is a world of its own. You may not understand it, but I can tell you that as a communal human civilization, we can never be separated from the topic of politics.”

"On the extraordinary path, truth always resides in the powerful and extraordinary, while in human civilization, political victory can secure 99 percent of the world's benefits."

“After the war between the gods across planes ended a hundred years ago, even the extraordinary were included in this 99% scope.”

"You orcs have launched a full-scale invasion of human territory. I can tell you that you will never win."

There is absolutely no chance.

"The root cause is a political struggle that took place a century ago."

Ryan knew very well that the selfishness of those nobles in this world was extreme, and the current war was brought together by interests.

Seeing the potential benefits, the nobles swarmed in and devoured the orc army.

In other words, the nobles did not go all out or give their all because of the war with the Northern Orcs. For example, Count Pascal, who was nearby, had a powerful weapon of war, the Divine Castle, hidden in his territory.

So, if it really comes down to a life-or-death moment, what is the limit of power that nobles can unleash?
Ryan hadn't seen it, but he understood that it was definitely not comparable to a full-scale invasion by the six major orc royal families.

Since the rise of humankind, it has always occupied the most fertile and prosperous land in the world.

Whether they are savage orcs, noble elves, irritable dwarves, or even the dragons, who are recognized as the top of the food chain, they all have their own gods to worship and serve, but they can never compete with humans.

why?
Because humanity as a whole has never been weak; it's just that the Dawn Church was once powerful and dominated, but now that 'power' has been divided in two.

The orcs lost to the Dawn Church before and didn't show any resentment, which is essentially no different from their current loss to the Empire.

"politics."

Adun didn't quite understand, but he wasn't completely clueless either. At least he knew how he became the werewolf king; it wasn't something he achieved through his own efforts.

This is perhaps the politics of human nobles.

"Then let's continue the war. My soldiers also need human blood."

Ardon bared his teeth and roared, but Ryan interrupted him again.

"War has its limits. You may not care about your people, but I do care about my soldiers."

"I will have Ulf and the others contact you at any time."

"This is not how you fight war."

"We need to fight with coordination, purpose, and strategy."

……

The battle at the Wall fortress in the North ended at dawn, leaving behind a desolate snowfield. No one knew when the benefits of the Land of Fallen Gods, as King McCreynolds had spoken of, would materialize.

Inside the fortress, after bidding farewell to the legendary mage king, Ryan began reporting the previous night's battle to the imperial capital.

This is routine.

After each war, Ryan would write such a letter, a gesture that pleased the newly crowned emperor.

"Your Majesty, on the northern border of your empire, on the frigid edge of your kingdom, the evil orcs have once again attacked. They are cruel and terrifying, wantonly destroying the wealth that belongs to Flor."

"Your people are suffering terribly on this snowy land, and the nobles are filled with anxiety, constantly worried that the orcs might break through the fortress's defenses and appear outside their castle."

"Just like this agonizing night, I can't be sure how many nobles tossed and turned, the roar of the orcs must have frightened them, and the sky in the North even had a brief period of daylight in the pitch-black night."

“I did not go to the front lines myself, but the soldiers brought back a large number of corpses. On this cold morning, all I could see were frozen imperial citizens.”

"The people of the North need you, Your Majesty Emperor Flor. Just as you fought bravely in the Twilight Province of the North, this land, threatened by foreign tribes, needs a wise emperor to protect it."

"The Empire cannot do without the northern provinces. As you expected, the orcs have never crossed the Empire's border fortresses. The war in Hot Springs Province is over, but the war between the Empire and the orcs is not over."

"You have achieved a more glorious victory in war than your father, and it is foreseeable that the empire will enjoy peace for a long time to come because of the wars you commanded."

"Perhaps in ten years, perhaps in fifty years, perhaps in a hundred years, we will no longer be threatened by the orcs of the North."

"This will be the glory of the empire, the first glorious achievement belonging to Your Majesty."

Emperor Flor put down the letter from the North, his eyes shining with satisfaction and profound majesty.

He summoned ministers of the empire, who were actually nobles and close confidants of the emperor and his family.

"The war in Hot Spring Province is over, but there are still a lot of war supplies stored in the North. Let's take some out and send them to the North."

"what?"

"In addition, the Northwind Province is facing a war with the orcs. Ryan said that the nobles there are so worried that they can't sleep at night. Go to the magic academy to get some magic potions and give them to the nobles of Northwind."

The nobles were surprised, their eyes widening. They suddenly realized that although the baron in the North had always been ambiguous and had not sided with the emperor, the emperor was still quite satisfied with him.

Columbus III and Columbus IV exhibited extreme shifts in their attitudes toward the Northwind Province and the Baron.

With each new emperor comes a new court, and the nobles' sentiments are changing, showing a growing affinity for the Baron of the North.

……

North Wind Province.

Shenma Pass, Baron Hatton's castle.

Liam Hatton, steaming hot, fell from his warhorse. His servants quickly came over and removed his armor. Feeling the liquid still flowing on it, the servants couldn't help but feel immense awe.

"Father?"

"Father!"

Liam ran all the way to the castle and knocked hard on the door of the baron's bedroom. Sunlight was already streaming in through the heavy door, but Liam could still tell that his father was sleeping soundly. "Father, wake up!"

Liam was helpless. This was the closest noble territory to the Frozen Territory in the entire Northwind Province, and yet the baron didn't wake up all night.

Is this really not afraid of losing the war at the Wall fortress in the North?

"Father, wake up."

Liam shook him for quite a while before Baron Hatton opened his eyes, yawning.

"Liam, you're back? Is the war in the north over?"

"I'm not quite fully awake yet," Baron Hatton asked, his mind still not fully clear.

"I slept so well last night. I even dreamt that the gods were cheering for my sleep. Honestly, after spending so much time with Ryan, I've started to disrespect Him."

"After breakfast... I'm going to the Cathedral of Light to pray and cleanse my soul that almost fell into depravity."

Baron Hatton yawned, and Liam, who was beside him, remained silent and quickly pulled the baron up.

"Father, there's something good."

After saying that, Liam took out a bluish-white agate stone from his pocket. To the naked eye, one could see that there was a gorgeous shimmering light inside the agate.

"what is this?"

Upon seeing the treasure, Baron Hatton's noble instincts kicked in immediately, and he stared intently at what Liam was holding.

"These are the remains of a god."

“Last night…we followed Lord Ryan and successfully slew a god at the Wall fortress in the North.”

Pfft!
Baron Hatton suddenly fell off the bed, but fortunately, Knight Liam was strong enough to hold back the trembling baron.

"what? What?"

Baron Hatton gripped Liam's arm tightly, his face turning pale.

"Damn it, do you know how our family fell into decline? It was because of blasphemy. Your great-grandfather, my grandfather, suffered heavy losses in the process of blasphemy, which forced my father, your grandfather, to lead the clan to this godforsaken place."

"It's alright, Father."

Liam gritted his teeth, still clutching the agate in his hand.

"We succeeded; no terrible curse befell us."

"How do you know the methods of the gods? The curse of great beings is eternally passed down through bloodlines."

“But Father, this thing can help our family rise again.”

"I……"

Baron Hatton was stunned for a moment, and opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

“Our territory is no less glorious than it was a hundred years ago, and in terms of wealth, I have become the richest baron in the Hatton family.”

"We have risen again."

“That’s not enough, Father. The House of Hatton can be even more glorious.”

"Moreover, this is not the actual remains of a god. No remains were left from last night's battle. This is the divine essence that Count Pascal collected using extraordinary agate."

"It can enhance the bloodline of our Lord Hatton family."

"According to Lord Pascal, at least our descendants of the Hatton family, even if they don't have enough talent in magic, will not have any problem becoming knights."

Baron Hatton's eyes widened. The benefits of divine origin were immense, concerning the inheritance of nobility.

"That gargoyle count was involved too?"

"Of course, he is the main force in killing gods. Lord Ryan said... Count Pascal's castle can stand up."

Liam said with awe and caution, knowing he didn't understand anyway.

"Damn Ryan."

Baron Hatton cursed, then asked:

"How to use this thing?"

……

On Rhinoceros Horn Mountain.

The vortex of extraordinary magic appeared and disappeared, eventually vanishing into the void, leaving behind only a ring engraved with the Heavenly Flower of the Flor Empire.

This is a magic ring, and Ryan finally experienced the treatment afforded to powerful nobles of the Empire.

This ring was made from the finger bone of a deity. It has no other purpose than to transmit information, just as a deity responds to its believers, using the power of its divine origin to transmit information across vast distances.

"Your Majesty the King of Volvo must enjoy the frequent letters from nobles."

Ryan said that.

Just as Columbus IV and Columbus III had different attitudes toward the Northwind Province, conversely, Ryan, the highest-ranking noble in the Northwind Province, did not have a consistent attitude toward the two emperors.

Columbus III found the Northwind Province rather useless; had it not been for the fear of damaging his reputation, the emperor would probably have abandoned it long ago.

The current Columbus IV, however, is concerned with the empire's territory and believes that the Northwind Province is no different from other provinces.

This is the difference between the two emperors. So when facing the previous emperor, it would be meaningless for Ryan to say or do anything. Columbus III would erase all his merits and hard work.

Columbus IV, Volvo Columbus will not.

At least not for now. He enjoys the ways nobles express their loyalty to him, whether it's by writing a letter or by showing respect in words.

These are all proof of the emperor's prestige.

Most importantly, what Ryan did was effective.

The emperor has responded that supplies will be sent to the Northwind Province, and he is instructed to defend against the orcs' attack and prevent them from breaching the empire's fortresses.

Ryan ignored the sweet talk that followed and focused his attention on what was in front of him.

The emperor gave orders to several western border provinces that the war supplies were no longer needed and some of them would be sent to Beifeng.

How much is this part...?

Ryan understood one thing very well: making decisions and carrying them out are different things.

The emperor issued the order with great joy, but who is currently in control of those supplies?

The nobles of several provinces, five marquises, five fortress commanders, and... Grand Duke Russell, who is actively promoting land reclamation in the empire.

Oh, and there's that Princess Hilde. I wonder if she's really getting old and her eyesight is failing. Anyway, she holds the highest position, so I wonder if she controls some of the resources.

So... how much of the resources among these nobles will be allocated to what the emperor calls 'a portion'?
(End of this chapter)