Chapter 847: Now Is the Time
Translator: TransN Editor: Meh
Both factions agreed to recover the Eastern Region and destroy the church, which had been incorporated into the plan in the previous meetings.
The only thing still in dispute was when to retaliate against the Kingdom of Dawn.
Roland had made his diplomatic posture very clear to his men, so this time no one tried to compromise on this matter or sweep the problem under the rug. But the officials of the City Hall still wished to negotiate with the Dawn Crown after Roland's enthronement, for they believed that at that time King Roland would be more rightful to stand out for Greycastle, and meanwhile they kept the choice of using force when it was needed. Apparently, they had been persuaded and tempted by the meeting held in the Months of Demons aiming at the future, so they were so eager to support Prince Roland to take the throne officially and become the veritable King of Graycastle. They also wanted to ascend from the local officials to the ministers of a real kingdom.
Lots of men and resources would be required to invade deep into the Kingdom of Dawn, which would doubtlessly affect the enthronement. No king would send out his elite men and hastily hold the ceremony of coronation at the same time. That was disgraceful either to the king or his people.
Of course, it was Roland who had the final say.
In the past three days, he had been watching the discussion without showing any obvious preference which was a sharp contrast to the unyielding attitude he had shown in the letter he had sent to Appen. But thanks to his silence, the attendants finally got a chance to have as many arguments as they wanted.
Roland did not change his original intention but was biding his time.
He was waiting for an opportunity to profit the most while paying the smallest price.
By nightfall, there came someone who knocked on Roland's door.
He let out a slight sigh of relief as he saw the visitor was Andrea.
Finally, she came.
Had she not taken the initiative, Roland would have gone to visit her sooner or later though he was sure that it was not a good choice and he might not be able to achieve anything by doing so.
"Here, have a dried fish," Nightingale said as she showed up and gave a piece of honey fish to Andrea, who might be the only witch who could get a share of snacks from Nightingale with the exception of Wendy.
Was it because of the bond among nobles?
"Thank you," Andrea, who did not seem in the mood for snacks, said as she took the snack and pocketed it. She put her hand on her chest and saluted Roland, "Your Majesty, I..."
She paused, finding the words.
"You want me to save your childhood friend, Otto Luoxi, don't you?" Roland spoke out Andrea's thoughts. He could not allow Andrea to hesitate any longer. If she changed her mind, the three days Roland had spent waiting would be in vain.
Roland also roughly guessed why Andrea could not make up her mind. He was certain that Otto was the one who fell in love with Andrea, who, on the contrary, only just took him as her friend. That was why she did not know how to make her request. To save Otto because he was her childhood playmate? After so many years, Andrea no longer missed her life in the Kingdom of Dawn because of what her father, Earl Quinn, had done to her. Her father did not protect her after he knew she was a witch. Instead, he used an accident to create a fake death for her. Of course, that was not something pleasant to remember.
When Otto visited Neverwinter last winter, Andrea had clearly made known her attitude that she wished not to be involved in her life in the Kingdom of Dawn. She now came to Roland just because of her kindness and her wish to offer some help.
"Yes..." She drew a deep breath and nodded slowly.
"But as you've heard in the meeting. At least over 3,000 men are needed to make Appen yield plus the men that were required to attack the Holy City. The total number will reach about 5,000, which accounts for 80 percent of the First Army."
Regardless of the argument, the City Hall and Adviser Departments finalized a rough plan. There was no river connecting Graycastle and the other two pieces of land, Hermes Plateau and the Kingdom of Dawn. Under such circumstances, they had to rely on carts and men to transport supplies which significantly increased the number of the men engaged in the logistics team. In addition, 20 percent of the First Army must be left to garrison every region of the kingdom so they had to leave for the next battlefield right after they won the first battle. The First Army did not even have extra men to take care of the land they had just conquered. By taking every aspect into account, it turned out that they would be busy all around without making a profit or even worse.
"I just counted the manpower. If you put in the materials... all kinds of cost, like the money for horses, carts, food..." Watching Andrea becoming more embarrassed, Roland attempted to illustrate more facts to make her suffer, but all of a sudden, he paused.
"Your Majesty?" The blonde witch in front of him was slightly surprised.
Roland's abrupt stop was not because he noticed something wrong, but because Nightingale had pinched him hard on his back and then whispered to him in a voice that no one else could hear, "Stop pushing her. Can't you just say what you mean."
"Ahem... I'm alright." Roland coughed. "That's the situation now, but we can turn the tables with some effort. It just depends on the three families and to what extent, they are willing to cooperate."
"The three... families?"
"It's obvious that the new king no longer trusts them. Our action may succeed in saving Otto, but our direct interference will break the relationship between the Moya royalties and Luoxi Family. Even if Appen is overthrown, how could the next king forget this?" Roland touched his chin and went on, "Now I've got strong demons to fight against, so I can't put too much concentration and men into our neighbor country. The future of the Kingdom of Dawn depends on the three families."
Andrea seemed to realize something. She said, "Please go on."
"We need someone to replace the Moya royalty," Roland said word by word.
Andrea was quiet for a moment, and then she said, "I see. Do you have a plan?"
She was a true highborn girl, who could keep calm even in the face of scheming to overthrow a regime. That made the next talk so much easier. Roland went straight to the point and asked, "Are you interested in being the Queen of the Kingdom of Dawn?"
"Your Majesty?" Andrea's face finally changed. The question indeed took her by surprise, "No... I don't want to leave..."
"Why not?"
She bit her lip and said, "No reason...I'm just not interested."
That was something Roland had not expected, not her answer of not wanting to be the Queen of Dawn, but her expression. She was clearly swayed by the considerations of gain and loss, which was something rarely seen with Andrea, whose manner was usually so elegant.
Was there something more precious to her than being a queen?
Roland sipped his tea, his face emotionless. Luckily, he had a second plan.
"How about your father? Is he interested? Will he stand out?"
The Quinn Family was his best choice. In addition to its superior strength among the three families, Andrea, who was loved by Otto and Oro, also played a key role. To some extent, she could speak for the three families.
The people that graduated from Neverwinter's current education system were not enough to run Graycastle, so there was no way for Roland to put men in place to fully control the Kingdom of Dawn. It would be easier to support a regime that was friendly to Graycastle and if Andrea gave her approval of the plan, he would be able to get the neighbor's resources at a low price.
"Of course, the other two families will also benefit. In fact, the coup will make every participant win, and more than that, the threat that hangs over your heads will be completely lifted," Roland said slowly. "In this way, Neverwinter will save the trouble of marching army and investing coins, and all I need to do was to assist the Quinn Family in taking the throne."
Andrea did not hesitate for long this time. After a moment of thought, she gave her promise. "I think... my father will agree."
She paused and corrected herself, "No, he'll definitely agree."
When Andrea gave those words, Roland knew that she had fully understood what he meant.
Now was the time.
"Neverwinter will soon take action. Don't worry... Otto Luoxi won't be detained for too long."