Chapter 167: Worry-Free Rearguard
With a lone army deep in enemy territory, it was a classic case of “surrounding Wei to rescue Zhao.”
This, according to the blonde girl, was what Queen Victoria was up to at this very moment.
The military of Ethanbel Royal City didn’t dare to directly confront the Holy Church. This was something Captain Selamus of the Fourth Knights Order was absolutely certain about. The root of this caution lay in the complex and fragile debt relationship between the Royal City and the Currency Exchange, a predicament ingrained by the now-deceased Empress, who was none other than Viki’s mother.
I vaguely recalled that a few years back, Order Royal City had been all glitz and glamour on the surface but was actually drowning in debt. The Empress, driven by a desire for revenge against the royal family, poured a fortune into nurturing tigers, selling state assets to empty the treasury, and leaving the entire Ethanbel in tatters. It was Viki who later motivated the Church to secretly assist, almost uprooting the entire Lex family, including the finance ministers…
However, at that time, Queen Ethanbel was in a precarious position, with barely a handful of trustworthy advisors. Even with the tiger’s teeth extracted, she found herself unable to fend off counterattacks and, on top of that, had to maintain the fragile trust that had just been reestablished with the Currency Exchange. Under such immense pressure, Viki had to resort to what seemed to be the only feasible solution at the time—temporarily handing over much of the kingdom’s financial system, including the treasury management to the clergy sent by the Holy City and Currency Exchange.
This way, the Church’s authority could intimidate the discontented Lex family and those weaklings in the Ethanbel royal family, who were still scheming to regain financial control through underhanded tactics. Furthermore, it ensured the money flow of the entire kingdom was completely transparent to the Church, quelling the suspicions of some old foxes over at the Currency Exchange and encouraging them to get their hands dirty.
However, the biggest drawback of this approach was that more than half the council members eventually became what we dubbed the “Church faction,” including high-ranking members from some of the kingdom’s ancient and influential noble families. Their connections with the Church deepened, yet they were currently significant supporters of Queen Elizabeth, working together to boost the kingdom’s economy.
So…
If Her Majesty the Queen suddenly decided to change her stance and truly take on the Church, it wouldn’t just be a troublesome situation—it would be a complete disaster! Her reason for this expedition was stated as “debt collection,” and everyone in the council pretty much had a shared consensus that this was an opportunity for the Valen Empire to rob them blind. They were all eagerly waiting to see how much treasure the Queen could bring back. But if the news she brought back involved her officially turning against the Church—no, they probably wouldn’t even get the chance to hear about it; the fire in the royal backyard would start burning before the battle was done, and by that time, Viki as queen would be as good as finished.
So, no fighting was possible, which was exactly why the Fourth Knights Order could afford to ignore the many agreements reached between Ethanbel and the Valen Empire, deciding to “strike at the heart” while bypassing the royal guards. They were confident that Her Majesty wouldn’t dare, couldn’t dare to take action and barely paid attention to the movements of the royal guards, which was indeed the case.
But…
While they couldn’t fight, they could definitely get sneaky.
This was something those “upright” knights hadn’t anticipated or even considered. They were certain the royal guards wouldn’t dare to engage, but they underestimated Queen Ethanbel’s cleverness in playing the rogue.
After the war began—or perhaps even before it started—this crafty woman had anticipated every possible scenario and arranged for it step by step, to the point that as soon as Baihao City was engulfed in flames, the guards swiftly responded, gathering in droves toward Moon Mountain Gorge, led by Little Reikmon himself, likely already assembling at the foot of the mountain—they were definitely not there to arm-wrestle with the Fourth Knights Order.
Viki’s plan was simple and straightforward: you fight your battle, I’ll get my money.
What’s that? You say you don’t want to pay me now or can’t afford to?
No worries.
Look here, if the Imperial Palace doesn’t give me my money, I won’t be able to hand it over to the Currency Exchange. But the debts over there aren’t gonna wait for anyone. Since the Rossius family took over the Currency Exchange, interest rates have been adjusted, making conditions even stricter. You’re all in a mess now, and I don’t believe any of your verbal guarantees—I heard that the Emperor has already run away! I’m just dropping by to intercept him. You want to fight the Northern Army? Get to it! Don’t stand in my way at Moon Mountain Gorge; I just want to make a trip to the palace to see if His Majesty Kaynse really has made a run for it. I’m not doing anything else.
As for why I chose this timing—what can I say? It was already planned. Who knew you guys would suddenly attack Baihao City? I was actually gonna ask if you were doing this on purpose, trying to frame me and Duke Skarlij for secretly teaming up to rebel against the Church?
Got evidence?
I’m just here to collect my debts—they’ve owed me for nearly two years and haven’t paid me back! Is that unreasonable?
If I hit them, it’s their fault; if they’re not going to pay, then I’ll just take it back myself! Why should the Holy Church protect such a scoundrel at this time?
He doesn’t even believe in deities; they worship the Moon!
We couldn’t possibly witness such a conversation, it was all the blonde girl’s vibrant retelling. When she got to the part about being sneaky, her little thief-like expression was so animated it seemed genuine. Viki obviously wouldn’t use a sarcastic tone to negotiate with the other party; in reality, she wouldn’t show her face at all—“I’m in Black Fort; you even asked me directly, where’s Lady Catherine? I genuinely have no clue.”
Well, Viki planned to make everyone at the Church think she was in Black Fort, and once Baihao City was locked down, she’d have no idea what was happening outside nor participate in any plans from the “Northern Rebels.” She’d just focus on helping you look for the lady and, not finding her, you guys ended up losing, and the city was taken back by the Northern Army. I’d already been thanking my lucky stars that those fierce wolves hadn’t troubled me, and I was just trying to find a way to slip away from the city.
So you see, the royal guards’ siege of Moon Mountain Gorge was indeed part of my premeditated plan, not a last-minute move. You can’t say I had malicious intentions. Once the war started and the city erupted into chaos, I had no chance to do anything else. Getting out successfully is a win in itself! What channels could I possibly use to give orders to the royal guards already far away at Moon Mountain Gorge? Don’t blame me; you guys launched a surprise attack first, and that threw all my plans into disarray.
All these excuses were thoroughly prepared…
And after such a “stir,” the nearly ten thousand knights of the Fourth Knights Order stationed at Moon Mountain Gorge were completely unable to break free, offering no support to Baihao City or the eastern battlefield because the moment they left, the royal forces would begin attacking the palace. It was a clear situation.
They couldn’t let the palace fall, nor could they allow His Majesty Kaynse to fall into someone else’s hands. If Kaynse were to d*e, then everything would have been in vain. Captain Selamus, Bishop Anseier, and others would all suffer the painful consequences of their rashness and recklessness, paying dearly for their failure.
While we certainly wouldn’t dare fight you, flaunting ourselves right in front of Chielis City, you guys also wouldn’t dare to leave so easily. Let’s just linger at Moon Mountain Gorge for now, and we’ll wait for our Queen’s orders to retreat—unless you want to send someone to negotiate with the Northern Army and arrange for them to release her from the city?
With this, the blonde girl had only shared part of it with me; she could only grasp these bits and pieces. Before she could finish, my mother had arrived with several generals from the Shanter Army, led by two members of the Sword of Kanli.
At that moment, the blonde girl had already changed into a dress and put on a crown, appearing somewhat respectable. She no longer spoke with humor and jest but became serious. She began offering some advice to Lady Catherine regarding supplies and rescue efforts, before quickly informing her of the rear guard being secure and being bold in mobilizing troops, and following Bishop Tarlasya’s earlier instructions, we intended to follow the signals he left behind to rescue my father from the east.
