Uncle here isn't your average office worker!

“Chief of Staff Mikhail, we have a deal. If this contains any information about your collusion with Ursus, then don’t read it aloud. I’ll just kill you and you’ll at least have a clean reputation. Trying to drag me down with you is impossible.”

"What are you thinking?" Mikhail rolled his eyes. "This is Ursus..."

"Military intelligence, right?"

"Can't you let me finish what I have to say?" Even Mikhail, with his excellent composure, couldn't help but curse.

"At four o'clock in the morning three days later, the Ursus Third Army will launch an attack near the White Wave River, cross the White Wave River, and outflank and launch a surprise attack on the nearby Conqueror Knights."

He finally spoke, letting out a long sigh of relief, and continued.

"I need your help to deliver this message to the Knights of Conquest. Only you can do this here."

“The mole hasn’t been found yet. All of our forest rangers are suspects and at risk at the same time. The messengers we sent out haven’t made a move in so many days. I guess they’re probably in grave danger. You’ve only been here a short time. You’re the only one here who is absolutely innocent and absolutely safe from being monitored.”

Moreover, you're the only one here who can travel in that way, flying through the air.

Mikhail didn't say this, he was quite sarcastic about Roy's "Great Wilderness Starfall" and his speaking such blunt truths.

"As for compensation, Lord Roy, you have seen the current situation of the forest rangers. As long as we can offer it, you can simply ask for it."

Mikhail knew that Roy was a Special Championship winner and had some connections with the Business Federation. To persuade him to help, he would naturally have to discuss the benefits. Moreover, delivering messages was inherently risky, and the previous messenger had vanished without a trace. Getting Roy involved and asking him to take the risk was not something he could do for free.

Roy nodded, thought for a moment, and said:

"If I may, I would like to ask you for one person."

Mikhail frowned: "Every forest ranger is family to us, please forgive me for this request..."

Before he could finish speaking, Roy waved his hand:

"That's not what I meant. Never mind, we'll talk about it later."

Mikhail pursed his lips, could only sigh, and nodded.

He did hope Roy would offer monetary rewards, but that seemed unlikely. Roy was the champion; if he wanted money, he could easily have a ton of people handing it over. In terms of money, he could buy an entire ranger; he wouldn't care about such things. And what else, besides people, was worth his attention?

But the thought of sending people away as payment made Mikhail somewhat uncomfortable.

Let's take it one step at a time. Besides, if we don't survive this ordeal, forget about giving away money or people; it's questionable whether the forest rangers will even exist anymore.

Looking out at the desolate birch forest, Mikhail let out a long sigh.

Volume 1: Chapter 146 The Return

"Waaah, Aunt Zofia, waaaah, help!"

Hearing Maria's pitiful cries on the phone, Zofia, who was at the Knights' Guild, felt a pang of anxiety. Forgetting all about correcting her form of address, she quickly asked with concern:

"What happened, Maria? What's wrong? Why are you crying? Who bullied you?!"

Zofia was furious. Could this Grand Knight Commandery ever be any better? They'd already wrongly exiled Margaret, and now even Maria was being bullied? It must be those troublemakers from the Merchant Guild, always trying to extract fabricated gossip from Maria. Why didn't they do that when Marna and Roy were around? Now that they're all away, they're bullying us, a widow and her children, all alone at home!

Zofia headed straight for the training room, asking questions as she went to retrieve her whip blade. She wasn't one to be trifled with; although her ranking in the Special Championship wasn't high, she was still a legitimate titled knight, someone who had fought Roy. Who would dare look down on her? Besides, so what if she lost to Roy? He was the champion. If you're so capable, why don't you go up against him and see if you can win? Didn't you see that Titus White Poplar, constantly shouting about "fighting Roy for hours!", and now he's recognized as the third strongest knight in the Great Knight Territory?

Incidentally, the second strongest is naturally the Blood Knight. His match against Roy was widely considered to have broken records in knightly competition history. After Roy's infected participant regulations were officially implemented, and Roy himself fled the scene, Blood Knight became the one to shoulder the responsibility. He not only had to handle the interviews and advertisements Roy had skipped, but also take on the role of chief member of the newly established Knight Association's Infected Knight Supervisory Committee. However, this guy is rather strange. In interviews, he's constantly asked about his feelings after being defeated by Roy, but he shows no resentment or dissatisfaction; on the contrary, he seems to relish it. It's hard to say whether it's magnanimity or simply naivety.

Moreover, seemingly as Roy's dying wish, he also frequently looked after the Nearl family, taking Roy's place as little Maria's knight mentor. No matter how busy he was, he would always make time to come over every Sunday, and Maria's recent improvement in swordsmanship was indeed largely thanks to him.

But let's leave that aside for now. Zofia's furious gesture of raising her weapon didn't escape the notice of another guest in the house. Their friendship began during the accident at the Major Finals. At the time, what was called the "Roy Originium Arts Incident," actually a massive meltdown of four cities, occurred, and both Zofia and Viviana were present. Viviana's act of using magic to light candles and maintain order won the favor of many, including Zofia. Later, Zofia and several other high knights helped the staff calm and evacuate the audience, which led to their formal introduction. Becoming friends afterwards was a natural progression.

Seeing Zofia's angry expression, Viviana also stood up and asked with some concern:

"What happened, Zofia?"

"Someone is bullying Maria, I have to go home first," Maria said hurriedly, without time to explain, and pushed open the door to leave.

Viviana blinked, and without hesitation, returned to the training room, picked up her Candle Sword, and jogged to catch up with Zofia.

The Knights Guild was three blocks away from Nearl's residence, but at their speed, it would only take them five minutes. Zofia had barely kicked open the door when she noticed the Blood Knight, Dikeopolis, standing innocently and awkwardly in the corner of the room.

She then realized it was Sunday, and the Blood Knight usually came to tutor her around this time. But she wasn't home. Who opened the door for him? Maria?

That shouldn't be the case. If nothing had happened, she should still be lying in bed, not awake yet.

Moreover, since the Blood Knight is here, how could Maria be bullied?

Several questions popped into her head at once, and Zofia asked the Blood Knight:

"Where's Maria? Have you seen her?"

Dikeopolis seemed to have seen a savior, and nodded hurriedly, his honest face beaming with joy, saying:

"In the bedroom!"

"Who bullied her?"

"Uh...this..."

Seeing his hesitant expression, Zofia glanced at him suspiciously, then walked towards the bedroom door, calling out as she went:

"Maria, are you there?"

She pushed open the bedroom door, then stopped in her tracks.

"Good morning, Aunt Zofia."

A familiar greeting superimposed the image of the much more mature figure before her onto the image of the sharp-witted girl she remembered. Zofia froze, staring blankly at Margaret, who was considerably taller than her, before finally managing to utter her first words after three years apart:

"Margaret! Why is the first thing you do when you get back to bully your sister?!"

"She deserved it!" "I fell on my own!"

Two voices rang out at the same time. Margaret, who wanted to educate her younger sister, and Maria, who was afraid that her older sister would be blamed, exchanged a glance and both smiled.

Only the person outside the door looked somewhat bewildered. She quickly stepped forward, squeezed into the bedroom, looked the Radiant Knight up and down, and asked, "Radiant Knight, have you seen Mr. Roy?"

"..." Margaret fell silent for a moment. This wasn't the first person to recognize her and ask her this question.

But she was helpless. She really wanted to come forward and explain, but after all, she was an exile, and returning to Kazimierz without permission was a crime, let alone publishing an explanation in the newspaper or appearing on television to clarify this misunderstanding. And even if she explained to everyone one by one until she was hoarse, it wouldn't make any difference.

No, I can't get angry, or Maria's bottom will slip and fall again!

Roy dealt with Apophis for this very reason: a small rumor from an unscrupulous media outlet can be incredibly difficult for debunkers to explain. It's always better to have oversight of the media.

Taking a deep breath, Margaret decided to clarify the misunderstanding.

.......

At the same time, in the Great Knights' Territory, at the new site of the Supervisory Council.

Following the previous report of the mysterious "Marna robbed a bounty hunter", Grand Knight Russell received another report related to Marna.

However, unlike the somewhat nonsensical report of the last time, this time Russell received a handwritten letter from Marner.

The letter was short, but it made Russell's expression change three times in a row, becoming increasingly serious.

She put down the letter, pressed the bell on the table, and summoned the adjutant outside the door.

"Make three copies of this letter and send them to Silver Spear Pegasus, the National Assembly, and the Business Federation."

"The situation is urgent; we may be going to war."

Volume 1: Chapter 147 Alone at the Military Headquarters

Peace is hard to come by, but can end in an instant. Perhaps on a slightly chilly morning or a quiet afternoon, the first flames rising on the border at the edge of the horizon will not be the sound of children playing or the smoke from a farmer's chimney, but rather the destructive power of imperial cannons.

On the border of Uka, in the Baibo River basin, the headquarters of the Third Army Group of the Ursus Empire.

No noble in Ursus was unaware of the war, and key figures of the pro-war faction like Grand Duke Baikal and Viscount Dunkel were no exception. Yet, they still handed over command of the army to the old general standing in front of the simplified topographical map without complaint.

General Brechester, the nominal supreme commander of the Ursus Empire's Third Army, and one of the core figures relied upon by the Ursus Empire's pro-war faction, could only be described with four adjectives: battle-hardened, undefeated, a veteran of the battlefield, and a war hero.

Those who have served in the military and experienced the battlefield firsthand will surely understand what these descriptions mean. This is not an exaggeration. Brechester was born into a military family in Victoria and received excellent military training from a young age. After the Victorian noble rebellion and the execution of the Lion King, his family, as supporters of the emperor, suffered persecution and criticism in Victoria and were forced to relocate to the Ursus Empire. It was at this time that Brechester truly began to distinguish himself. The previous emperor's enlightened policies allowed people of foreign origin to hold high positions in the Ursus army, and the frequent wars Ursus waged at that time also provided Brechester with the opportunity to rise through the ranks.

In the Ninth Uka War, an artillery sergeant, piloting the Imperial Cannon Forerunner, successfully cut off the supply lines of two conquering knight orders, annihilating them completely.

In the Tenth Uka War, as a remnant of the Third Army, they were ordered to cover the rear, successfully delaying the enemy and minimizing casualties, while also capturing a Grand Master of the Conquest Knights.

During the First Ursus-Victoria War, he served as the commander of the 3rd Armored Airborne Brigade. His adaptability allowed him to successfully coordinate with the Wendigo Army to decapitate the Victorian command during the height of the conflict, significantly influencing the course of the battle.

In the First Ursus-Latland War, he led the Shield Guards to help withstand the gunboat fire, buying precious time for the follow-up troops to relocate and ensuring the survival of the fighting force.

He led troops to suppress the Letanian rebellion in Tepni, the Infected rebellion in Antioch, the Kazimir rebellion in Yakts, and the Ursus rebellion in Romiro...

With outstanding military achievements and remarkable victories, he was invincible.

The Grand Duke of Victoria offered him high sums of money on several occasions, including a promotion in military rank and even a peerage, hoping he would return to Victoria, but he refused them all.

“My upbringing taught me that only the emperor can bestow military ranks and titles upon his loyal subjects, and therefore we swear allegiance only to the emperor. I now have a new emperor, a new master. Duke, you are nothing but a usurper, you are unworthy.”

This statement was published in major newspapers and media outlets of the Ursus Empire and has been passed down as a famous quote of Brechester himself. In addition, his aversion to women, money, and power struggles made him a figure that no faction was willing to easily sway, allowing him to escape the purge of officers during the great rebellion.

He has now officially announced his joining the pro-war faction and even assumed the role of commander-in-chief of this special military operation, which can be described as a unique military operation undertaken by the military alone. This is an unprecedented exception, and for him, the future is also shrouded in mystery.

What prompted him to take this path was unclear even to the Grand Duke of Baikal and Viscount Dunkel, who received his application to join the cause. They only vaguely guessed that he might have heard some rumors about the late emperor's death.

Regardless of the reasons, the addition of such a prominent neutral military figure undoubtedly gave Grand Prince Baikal and Dunkirk more confidence in the success of the operation.

In addition, Brechester's humble attitude was one of the reasons why Grand Duke Baikal felt so comfortable.

"I'm good at fighting, but I don't know anything about things other than fighting, and I don't want to get involved. I'll need your help."

“It is naturally my duty,” Grand Prince Baikal readily agreed. War is politics through bloodshed, and things outside of war are naturally politics as well. What Grand Prince Baikal feared most was that after General Brechester joined the pro-war faction, he would use his enormous influence in the military to get involved in politics and shake his position. Now that Brechester was so cooperative and had voluntarily given up his plans to get involved in politics, leaving it to him to “do the job,” he was naturally overjoyed.

But despite the laughter, there was one more thing he needed to remind Brechester of:

"General, I shouldn't have revealed this information to you, but we are now close comrades-in-arms, and you have the right to know this secret."