Lord: I can see loyalty.

I'm currently reading Chapter 165, "The Knight of Ulysses," and I'm completely engrossed in it.

In the western border, at Frido Port, in the Frido Stone Tower.

Inside the hall, Vio sat in the high-backed chair that once belonged to Philip, holding the intelligence sent by Timothy, his brows slightly furrowed.

He had already learned that Ulysses had been expanding his army for the past few months, with five hundred "pirate knights"...

This is no small amount.

"Your Excellency."

Vincent's voice came from outside the door, with a slightly strange tone.

"There is a man who claims to be an envoy of Ulysses, saying he wants to see you."

Vio looked up, his face showing a rare surprise.

"Let him in."

The door was pushed open, and a well-dressed, arrogant middle-aged man strode in.

He wore a dark knight's coat with the symbol of Olympus embroidered on his chest: a sword and a sea monster.

His gaze swept across the hall, finally landing on Vio, a barely perceptible hint of contempt flashing in his eyes.

"The Earl of the Southern Border." He bowed slightly, a gesture of respect, but his demeanor remained arrogant. "I have come on the orders of my patriarch, Baron Ulysses, to deliver a few words."

Vio leaned back in his chair, not getting up, but just looking at him calmly.

This pirate named Ulysses really put on a convincing act; his aristocratic manners were quite impressive.

"Speak."

The envoy cleared his throat and said loudly, "Baron Ulysses asked me to tell you that the western border has been the territory of the kingdom since ancient times. Now you have led your army to invade without authorization, which has seriously violated the laws of the kingdom."

"Considering your youth and ignorance, Lord Ulysses, as the noble with the largest territory in the Western Territory, and temporarily acting in the name of the Western Territory, is willing to give you a chance—immediately withdraw from the Western Territory and return all occupied lands, and this matter can be dropped; otherwise…"

He paused, a cold smile playing on his lips.

"Otherwise, Baron Ulysses, as the most legitimate noble in the central West, will formally declare war on you."

The hall was quiet for a moment.

Then, Vio suddenly let out a cold laugh.

The smile was slight, yet it froze the envoy's disdainful expression on his face.

"A mere pirate," Vio said slowly, his voice soft but clear, "dares to call himself a nobleman of the western border of Rovia?"

The messenger's face flushed instantly; he himself was one of Ulysses's pirates.

"How dare you...!"

"What's wrong?" Vio remained leaning back in his chair, his gaze calm as still water. "Do I need to tell you how he got that baronial title? He forced a count to obtain it, and he dares to call himself legitimate?"

The messenger's lips trembled, but he could not utter a word.

Vio waved his hand.

"Get out of here. I won't kill the messenger." He paused, his eyes growing even more meaningful. "Go back and tell Ulysses to prepare for his death. Soon, I will go to his Eagle's Beak Cliff and personally take his head."

The messenger gritted his teeth, glared fiercely at Vio, and then turned and strode away.

His boots slammed against the floor with a dull thud, carrying an barely suppressed rage.

……

Eagle's Beak Castle, in the central part of the western border.

Ulysses sat in the main seat, his face as gloomy as a ferocious sea beast.

On both sides of the hall sat several well-dressed middle-aged men.

They were all true nobles from the central West, some hereditary barons, others local lords, who had now joined Ulysses's ranks, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

The messenger's voice still echoed in my ears:

"That count also said... prepare to die."

"Bang!"

Ulysses slammed his fist on the armrest, as if he wanted to tear Vio apart from a thousand miles away.

"You're really asking for it!" he gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing with anger. "I didn't want to take action, but he forced me to!"

The nobles on either side simply shrank back, not daring to utter a sound. Only one of the more pointed-faced nobles, sitting closest to Ulysses, quickly spoke up:

"Lord Ulysses, please calm your anger! That Earl of the Southern Border is ungrateful; he'll regret it sooner or later!"

Ulysses took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and looked down at a thin man in charge of intelligence.

"Speak, what did you find out?"

The thin man stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, according to our extensive inquiries, the main force in the Southern Territory is the Azure Peak Knights, with approximately two hundred elite soldiers."

Ulysses was stunned, and the atmosphere in the room became somewhat tense.

After a moment, Ulysses suddenly burst out laughing.

"Two, two hundred?" He stood up abruptly, barely managing to suppress a smile. "Just two hundred?"

The nobles were also stunned, then their expressions turned to surprise and delight. The pointed-faced nobleman grinned from ear to ear and quickly stepped forward.

"So it was only two hundred knights? That's less than half of our forces! Your Excellency, you were being far too cautious!"

Another nobleman realized what was happening and quickly chimed in, "That's right, sir, you're overthinking it! With only two hundred men, it seems Philip and Derek are truly incompetent!"

Ulysses' lips curled into a smile, about to speak, when the thin man, sensing something amiss, quickly added:

"But sir, there's more..."

"What else?"

But the sharp-faced nobleman next to him rolled his eyes and laughed again.

"Two thousand militiamen?" he scoffed. "They're nothing but a bunch of peasants dragged from the fields. How can they compare to our meticulously trained five hundred knights? Besides..."

He turned to Ulysses and said obsequiously, "Baron, don't forget, you are now the master of the central West."

"We'll recruit soldiers on our own territory; why would we be worried about not having enough men? Our forces will be larger than, not smaller than, those in the Southern Territory!"

Ulysses raised his eyebrows slightly and nodded in satisfaction.

"Well said."

He stood up, walked to the window, and gazed at the seemingly peaceful central territory of the West, his eyes revealing an undisguised ambition.

That's right, the so-called militia were just cannon fodder pulled out from among the civilians, even less capable than the pirates under their command.

Moreover, he is now the true master of the Western Territory, and gathering two thousand soldiers is no problem at all!

"With his meager forces, he dares to challenge me? Once my knights and militia are assembled, it will be the day Vio dies!"

Many nobles echoed this sentiment, and laughter resounded throughout the hall.

Only a middle-aged nobleman with a thick beard, sitting in the corner, remained silent.

His brows furrowed, and a hint of worry flashed in his eyes.

His name was Marcus, and he was merely the lord of a small town in the central West, a hereditary knight.

Unlike a few nobles, he and several others were forced to join Ulysses after pirates stormed his castle and threatened them with their families.

He was also well aware of the fighting prowess of the true knights in the Southern Territory.

How did Philip lose? How did Derek die? Why did Timothy defect? ​​Their crushing defeats certainly weren't accidental.

Most importantly, the suggestion made by that damned, pointy-faced nobleman…

Let these true nobles gather men in their own territories to serve as soldiers for this wicked pirate king.

Not to mention that doing so would damage his reputation in the territory, more importantly, this act was tantamount to betraying the kingdom!

Marcus knew he wasn't a good person, but he wasn't a thief who betrayed the kingdom either!

"Marcus." Ulysses suddenly turned his head, noticing the odd expression on Marcus's face. "What's wrong? Do you have some insights?"

Marcus's heart tightened, but he remained calm. He stood up, bowed slightly, and tried to make his tone sound gentle:

"My lord, I was just thinking... those knights in the Southern Territory are said to be quite extraordinary. You've seen what happened to Philip and Derek. Shouldn't we be more cautious?"

Ulysses frowned slightly.

The pointed-faced nobleman immediately jumped out: "Marcus, what do you mean by this? Boosting the enemy's morale while diminishing our own? You scoundrel, could it be that you...?"

Marcus quickly defended himself, "I just felt..."

"Alright," Ulysses waved his hand, interrupting him. "What you said makes sense. I'll consider it."

Marcus breathed a sigh of relief, bowed slightly, and sat back down.

But he knew in his heart that Ulysses hadn't listened at all.

The meeting ended quickly.

The nobles left one by one, except for the one with the pointed face. He leaned close to Ulysses and whispered:

"Sir, that Marcus, I think there's something very wrong with him."

Ulysses glanced at him.

"How so?"

"You know that this guy has always been loyal to the kingdom," the pointed-faced nobleman said in a gloomy tone.

"When we asked him to send troops this time, he made excuses and kept saying things like 'Be careful of the southern border.' It's all just a pretext. Keeping someone like that around will only cause trouble sooner or later..."

Ulysses was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Have someone keep an eye on him; you're in charge," he said. "Report to me immediately if anything happens."

The pointed-faced nobleman smiled triumphantly and nodded repeatedly.

"Your Excellency is wise!"

Outside the window, the sun was setting.

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