Throne of the North.

Chapter 741 The Hot Spring Province in Need of Reconstruction

The politics of the nobility is essentially an exchange and compromise of interests.

The emperor did not rule unilaterally, especially in a world where the emperor and nobles co-ruled.

What Ryan wanted was clearly not the portion that the nobles offered to appease the emperor's so-called "part."

He wants more.

But all of these had to be snatched from the hands of the nobles and the emperor.

The matter has been settled with the emperor, but what about the nobles?

Ryan stood atop Rhinoceros Horn Mountain, where one could only look north. The once adjacent North Garr Lake Waterfall was now beneath his feet, a testament to the power of the mountain's essence, an extraordinary force that made the peak even more majestic.

The world to the north remained as desolate as ever. Ryan wanted to change this unchanging world, but that would require a lot of resources.

……

……

……

The empire has six provinces bordering the northern border.

To the west of the Northwind Province, beyond the towering mountains, lies the Blazing Snow Province, and further west is the Twilight Province. To the west of the Twilight Province lies Morelos.

Continuing westward, you'll reach the Hot Spring Province, and finally the Purple Mountain Province, formed by Purple Mountain.

It can be said that each of the six provinces in the North has its own unique characteristics.

Ryan's first stop was the hot springs.

Due to the war, this place accumulated the vast majority of the empire's war resources in the later stages. Even though the resources were consumed like water during the war, the remaining resources, when converted into gold coins, were still a terrifying amount.

The wheel tracks left two muddy marks on the ground, and the liquid seeping from the two ruts behind the carriage was a deep purplish-black.

"War ravages the land, and while bloodshed may bring boundless nourishment, that is something that will happen decades or even centuries later."

Sitting in the carriage, his handsome face was resolute, and beneath his long black hair, his dragon-like eyes were tinged with a hint of crimson. Ryan gazed at a hot spring not far from the edge of the road.

The surface of the hot spring was shrouded in mist, but the color of the mist was a deep crimson, like blood.

It may have once been beloved, but now, both nobles and commoners alike have a deep dislike for this hot spring, which symbolizes misfortune.

After the war, countless men in the Hot Springs province were killed, so much so that Ryan saw many women dragging their tired bodies, hunched over, clearing the wasteland.

Yes, land reclamation. The Hot Spring Province originally had abundant arable land, but war can destroy everything, leaving the survivors with no choice but to cultivate new fields.

The soil of those wastelands has not yet been completely soaked by blood.

Hot springs, a beautiful name, are now considered an omen of bad luck by the empire.

Ryan's arrival attracted everyone's attention. His magnificent noble carriage and imposing army of knights were not targets that ordinary people could provoke.

Ryan arrived in the province of Hot Springs without much fanfare, and even brought very few people, only Brand and fifty servants.

The reason is that Avril Lavigne is pregnant.

A significant military force remained in the frozen tundra to maintain stability and prevent any adverse events or statements.

This is the unique importance that nobles in this world place on offspring and bloodline inheritance. Anyway, Ryan is very suspicious of the reason behind this, because a lot of noble bloodlines died young in the past.

Ryan has achieved legendary status, and according to the power of legend, it can be passed down in one's bloodline. Moreover, this matter has calmed the hearts of countless people. Even the Earl of Clayton and the Earl of Stirling, who are far away in the province of Calais, sent their congratulations with joy.

So much so that during the war, no one stopped Ryan from leaving Northwind Province.

"Go and inform Earl Ferguson that Baron Ryan of the Northwind Province has come to visit!"

Brand rode to the front alone and shouted loudly at the soldiers on guard. The powerful blood and energy of the Saint-level peak knight brought immense pressure.

"Ferguson."

Ryan withdrew his gaze. Beside him, the transparent dragon spirit hovered around him. Unlike the previous longing, the dragon spirit now faced Ryan with deep awe.

Ryan reached out and squeezed the jelly-like thing, and then he remembered why the name didn't seem unfamiliar.

“Previously, during the battle with Grand Duke Meyers, Signy killed a count, and that count… was also Ferguson.”

Having the same name is not a big deal, especially among nobles. For example, there are quite a few nobles in the world who share the surname William, and there are also several in other kingdoms of Norris.

However, while the Earls of William were all connected by blood, these two Fergusons were not.

The Ferguson killed by Signy was the Ferguson of the Empire, while the Ferguson of the Hot Springs province came from the northern world of Norris, which was covered by the North.

Because they lived so far apart, the two noblemen had no contact with each other.

It could even be considered... a grudge?
After all, they have the same name but different bloodlines, which always leads to disputes.

The reason why these two count families didn't cause any trouble within the empire was simply because—these two noble families were too weak.

In this century of dramatic change, these two families were remarkably similar, falling to the bottom of the great nobility and naturally unable to make any waves.

Ryan knew a little about the reason for the Earl of Ferguson in the south, because of the Grand Duke of Freming, while he recently learned the reason for the Earl of Ferguson in the north, because of the Marquis of Hot Springs.

A piece of land has a limited capacity to sustain life, even with supplies from other worlds.

Ryan speculated that even if Ferguson had blasphemed and obtained divine essence back then, he probably wouldn't be able to compete with the Marquis of Hot Springs.

Most of the interests and wealth of the Hot Spring Province are in the hands of the Marquis Governor.

In comparison, the governors of the North Wind Province... are simply not worthy.

The castle gates slowly opened in the mist, and the fixed covered bridge rose gently from the pink hot spring water. Indeed, this count's castle was built in the center of a huge hot spring.

The castle used to be surrounded by the mist of hot springs all year round, making it look beautiful. But that was in the past. Now, the Earl's family looks at this lake-like pink hot spring water with disgust.

Many people are even afraid to get close.

Who allowed those orcs to fight their way all the way to the vicinity of the Earl's castle? If it weren't for the castle's strong defenses, which made it easy to defend and difficult to attack, the damage would have been even more terrible.

The bridge was very stable, and the carriage did not feel any bumps as it traveled across it. As the carriage disappeared through the tall city gates of the castle, it finally appeared in a sunlit square, and Ryan got off the carriage.

With his eyes slightly narrowed, he looked up. This was truly a wonderful place. The castle on the island in the middle of the lake covered every corner of the island, and the sunlight shone directly on the surface of the castle from the east. The golden curtain spoke more than anything about the Ferguson family's devout faith in the light.

Indeed, Count Ferguson's faith in the God of Light has grown stronger recently, and he has even built a small chapel of light within his castle, on one of the castle's two spires.

As for the reason.

Everything that is happening in the Onsen Province now is inextricably linked to the war that took place more than a month ago.

The count's family feared the spirits of the dead, but amidst the bloodshed of war, some people claimed to have dreamt of grotesque monsters roaring and howling, causing widespread panic throughout the land.

The count was also uneasy and hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time. The countess looked much older and was terrified.

Of course, none of this has anything to do with Ryan.

He was there to discuss interests, not some mystical or supernatural thing. After passing through several ornate doors and climbing a few steps, Ryan finally saw Earl Ferguson.

The Earl was in low spirits, but Ryan brought him specialties from the North: chilled fruit wine and gems. Instantly, they refreshed the Earl's soul and revitalized him considerably.

“Your Excellency, I hope you will like these gifts.”

Ryan smiled and performed the aristocratic etiquette, and Earl Ferguson returned the same etiquette to Ryan.

There was no other way; the two nobles were complete strangers, let alone acquainted, so all the proper etiquette had to be observed.

“Ryan, I’m glad you’ve come to my territory. But I’m curious, now that the war is over, why have you, the Empire’s renowned military commander, come to Hot Springs Province?”

Ferguson was anything but calm. The battle at Sunny Grassland had terrified him, and he feared that Ryan's arrival would tell him the war was far from over.

Even if the other party is a nobleman from the North Wind Province, he definitely doesn't know as much as the other party about the war in the Hot Spring Province.

“My lord, the war is over. As a nobleman, I have the right to appear anywhere in the empire at my own discretion.”

"However, as you can see, I have a purpose in visiting you, Earl."

Ryan said with a smile, neither humble nor arrogant, that in terms of ability, Earl Ferguson was no match for Baron Ryan.

"On my way to your territory, I saw many commoners who were clearing wasteland."

"The bloodshed brought by the war has inflicted enormous wounds on the Hot Spring Province."

Upon hearing this, Earl Ferguson also became serious.

"Yes, we all need to rebuild our homes. The hot springs will be clear again, and the land will no longer be crimson."

"This requires a lot of resources."

"His Majesty has promised us that he will provide resources to help rebuild the Hot Spring Province."

"A large portion of those resources are not suitable for land restoration."

Each of them spoke at once, and Ferguson, not being stupid, finally came to his senses and realized the purpose of Ryan's arrival.

"Baron Ryan, you've come for those resources?"

Ryan nodded, not denying it.

"Yes, Your Excellency, the war in Hot Spring Province has ended, but in my territory, in Northwind Province, the war continues, with the werewolf army commanding hundreds of thousands of orcs to invade the Empire's lands."

"You understand the horrors of war; the North Wind Province is currently suffering a tremendous disaster."

Earl Ferguson's eyes widened, as if to say, "Even in this state, you, with your military talent, are still running around everywhere?"
As it turned out, Ryan beat him to it.

"Because the war is still ongoing, Ryan had to come to Hot Spring Province in person, hoping that the noble gentlemen who have experienced the war could provide more support."

That sounds reasonable.

"His Majesty has already issued the order that resources will be transported to Northwind Province, so Baron Ryan need not worry."

"War cannot destroy the Northwind Province, in the face of His Majesty's will."

Ryan even suspected that there might be some of the emperor's spies here.

“My lord, you know that what I need is something that can truly help the war.”

"Ryan, I can't decide..."

Before the Earl could finish speaking, Ryan interrupted him:

“My Lord Earl, Ryan believes in Ferguson’s influence in this land, and he also believes that Ferguson will achieve even greater glory in this land than ever before.”

“On this land, it is not only by developing military power that we can confront that Marquis Governor.”

Count Ferguson was initially annoyed that Ryan had interrupted him, but upon hearing the next sentence, he fell silent.

"What's the meaning?"

"Your Excellency should know very well how this war was won, shouldn't you?"

"Of course, thanks to His Majesty's wise and courageous command, the united efforts of Grand Duke Russell and the imperial nobles, and the fearless courage of the powerful imperial army..."

This time, it was Ryan's turn to have a strange expression.

"Is that so?"

"of course."

Ryan remained silent. This earl wasn't that capable; like Baron Hatton, he was merely more sensitive when it came to politics and wealth.

At most, he's 150% Baron Hatton.

"In Ryan's view, this victory was just one of the Empire's many wars that had absolutely nothing to do with military strength."

"My lord, think about it. At Twilight Fortress, His Majesty the Emperor, who was then the Elector, used countless resources, hundreds of millions of gold coins, to have mages bombard him with magic 24 hours a day. He used food, money, magic crystal cannons, and extraordinary power to forcefully shatter the orcs' attack."

"Without the backing of such immense wealth, would the war at Twilight Keep have been so simple?"

"And what decided the outcome of the war at Thermopylae Fortress?"

"Is it the army of the empire? But these armies are supported by spatial magic, countless logs and stones, food, and the protection of magical arrays; is it the extraordinary legion of the nobles? However, before the arrival of the extraordinary legion, the divine remains of the imperial capital awakened, and the legendary mage wielded the source of divinity to kill that great being. The ultimate goal is victory on the battlefield of the divine kingdom."

"Without that countless riches, there would be no magic, no food, no warhorses, and one could even say, no stones."

"Can the war still be won smoothly?"

"Now, throughout the empire, everyone is discussing His Majesty's methods of warfare. The nobles are shocked by the influence of wealth on war."

"Among all of this, the most important thing is not the army."

Listening to Ryan's words, Earl Ferguson couldn't help but ponder.

"That seems... to make some sense."

He was somewhat bewildered.

"Soldiers can win wars, but the army's ability to win wars is inseparable from its robust logistics."

"Does Your Excellency believe that if the Ferguson family controls all the productive forces in the province of Hot Springs, they can share the rights to this land with the Marquis of Hot Springs?"

"If he doesn't listen to me, I won't provide him with food and water, nor will I give him clothes..."

Earl Ferguson's eyes lit up.

"As far as I know, in the Wenquan Province, regardless of whether it existed before, everything is in ruins after the war, and there is currently nothing in terms of production."

"Coincidentally, Ryan is very experienced in this area in the Northwind Province."

Ryan said with a smile that he had established an initial friendship with Earl Ferguson.

(End of this chapter)