While the old Storm Sword Saint had greater range and more experience in the cultivation of his domain, Lorist had gained considerable insight into the situation and a deeper understanding of what it meant to fight a Sword Saint from their previous encounter. The overlap of their two domains made both the Storm Sword Saint and Lorist feel as though they had fallen into a giant pot of thick porridge, neither able to exert control over their own domain. In Lorist's understanding, it was as though they had entered a space with several times normal gravity, reducing every movement by both himself and his enemy to a suppressed slow motion.
This comeback challenge from the Storm Sword Saint presented Lorist with an excellent opportunity. Their previous clash had left both sides heavily injured, but it had also allowed Lorist to discover a possible path to victory. The overlapping domains forced both the Storm Sword Saint and himself to execute sword techniques at a sluggish pace, but that couldn't diminish the internal force contained within his fists and palms. He could defeat the Storm Sword Saint through close-quarters and body-to-body combat instead of trading sword strikes with the old man.
On the thirty-third of August, the transport fleet from the Northland arrived at Hidden Gold Bay. The riders of the Furious Bear Knights had spent over half a month at sea, and they disembarked with legs wobbling beneath them. Within the
This time, the Furious Bear Knights had escorted five hundred land-type bronze cannons, eight hundred thunderbolt catapults, and a vast quantity of family-produced gunpowder to
In June, Shwade Fortress, built by Schwade in the filled reef area of the Romani Cape, was officially completed. It had taken over a year, employing more than a hundred thousand young male prisoners as labor, at a cost of over one million gold Forde. This enormous expenditure gave the Norton Family's Northern Sea Fleet a sturdy and well-equipped staging base, controlling the vital sea route along the Golden Coastline of the Sunlight Sea to Hidden Gold Bay. This meant that the Lightning Strike Fleet under Senbawood no longer needed to return to Shilowas Island for resupply — they had a fully equipped base for rest and replenishment.
Having completed the task of building the fortress castle, Schwade immediately received Lorist's second order: to select suitable candidates from his guard battalion and the Northern Fleet's naval assault teams to form three artillery battalions. Using the dozens of bronze cannons positioned on the fortress walls, he was to spend over a month urgently training crews to a passing standard, then return to Morant City.
Now Schwade led the three artillery battalions aboard ship and took over the five hundred land-type bronze cannons that had been transported. Together with the existing hundred-plus, each artillery battalion now had a full complement of two hundred cannons. After a brief period of familiarization, they would march to the front line alongside the Flying Tiger Corps. In the coming decisive battle against the Commercial Alliance's armed forces, they would be the dazzling protagonists on the battlefield.
Due to the discomfort from the long sea voyage, the Furious Bear Knights spent an additional three days recuperating. They didn't leave Morant City until the second of September. Under Lorist's command, they marched to the front line together with the Flying Tiger Corps and the three artillery battalions, their destination being Bruvia City.
By now, Bruvia City was surrounded on all sides by military camps. Standing on the city walls, one could see an endless ocean of tents and countless banners fluttering in the distance. However, the east, south, and west directions were all controlled by the Commercial Alliance's armed forces. Only the northern side housed the camps of the Norton Family's armed forces, the Free Union's four garrison corps, and the White Lion Legion that had come from the Andinak Kingdom as reinforcements.
Inside the main command tent of the Commercial Alliance's armed forces, the senior members of the trading companies had been arguing for three days. Grand Duke Comberlyte had a terrible headache. The reason was simple — the moment the Commercial Alliance's forces had arrived at Bruvia City, the Norton Family's forces had sent a messenger bearing a challenge letter penned personally by Lorist. This time, the Norton Family had no interest in a siege battle with the Commercial Alliance; they wanted a field battle to settle things. The date of the challenge was the same as the Storm Sword Saint's duel against Lorist — October the tenth.
What the Commercial Alliance's senior commanders were debating was whether to accept the Norton Family's challenge. Neither Bruvia City itself nor the surrounding camps had any defensive fortifications established. The Norton Family's forces seemed so confident that the Commercial Alliance would accept the challenge that they hadn't even bothered to strengthen their defenses.
Why accept the challenge and let the enemy delay a month to gather more troops? Just fight our way straight to Morant City.
Grand Duke Comberlyte smiled bitterly, waving the letter and telling everyone this was a personal challenge from Duke Norton, not some letter from an unknown nobody. He was adhering to the tradition of noble warfare that had prevailed on the Galentea Continent for nearly a thousand years — even if the Commercial Alliance refused the challenge, they would still have to leave the other side sufficient time to prepare defensive positions before launching an attack on the agreed-upon date...
If it were a challenge from an unknown nobody, the Commercial Alliance's forces could simply treat it as flatulence — whoever had the bigger fist was in the right, and they would fight first and talk later. Only the victor had the right to speak; no one cared about the howling of a beaten dog. But Duke Norton was different. Don't forget he had another identity as a newly appointed Sword Saint. If the Commercial Alliance's forces were the first to break the rules, Duke Norton would have the perfect excuse to strike directly at the Commercial Alliance's senior leaders. He wouldn't even need to resort to assassination — he could simply lead a night raid himself, and whoever he targeted would have no chance of escape.
Was there such a thing? The Commercial Alliance's senior commanders in the main tent all looked at each other in dismay. Only a handful who understood the traditional customs and rules of noble warfare were explaining the gravity of the situation to those who still hadn't grasped it. As a Sword Saint, he could not simply charge alone against a well-arranged battle formation in broad daylight — that would be suicide. Even a Sword Saint couldn't escape once several formations closed in on him. But if a Sword Saint led his own formation to charge against the enemy's formation, the effect would be far more than one plus one — no one could withstand it.
If it were at night, darkness would become the Sword Saint's domain. Launching a night raid would be simplicity itself — ordinary camp defenses would be completely unable to stop a charge led by a Sword Saint. Whoever went up would die, and there would be no escape. This was exactly why a Sword Saint was called a "nation-guarding Sword Saint." If the Commercial Alliance did not have the Storm Sword Saint, no amount of troops would dare oppose the Norton Family, let alone attack the Free Union.
That's right — we have our own Storm Sword Saint too! If we bring him to the front lines, we won't need to bother with Duke Norton's challenge! Some of the Commercial Alliance's senior commanders suddenly had an epiphany and immediately realized the value of the Storm Sword Saint.
So the reason Duke Norton was quoting the traditional customs and rules of noble warfare to them was precisely because the Commercial Alliance had its own Sword Saint to act as a deterrent. Otherwise, he wouldn't have waited until the Commercial Alliance's army arrived at Bruvia City — he might have marched into Commercial Alliance territory long ago. Without the Storm Sword Saint, the Commercial Alliance couldn't even talk about launching an offensive; their very survival in defense would depend on the enemy's goodwill. Their only option would have been to beg the Andinak Kingdom for a peace agreement as quickly as possible to preserve their lives and fortunes.
Who would have thought the Storm Sword Saint was this important to them! At that moment, many of the trading companies' senior commanders who had just realized this were all asking, "Where is the Storm Sword Saint?"
"That, well, Master Magrute is still in the rear. He says he needs to prepare for his duel with the Blood Sword Saint, Duke Norton, and won't arrive at the Mana Hill Plains until before October the tenth..." Grand Duke Qikede, president of the Qikede Trading Company, informed everyone with a grim expression, delivering rather unwelcome news.
"..."
"Why? Doesn't the Blood Sword Saint, Duke Norton, also need to prepare for his duel with Master Magrute, the Storm Sword Saint? Didn't the news from Morant City say he was strutting his way to the front lines with the Flying Tiger Corps and other troops? If we don't take Bruvia City now and destroy the Norton Family forces in front of us, once Duke Norton arrives we'll have to pay a much heavier price in casualties to defeat the enemy..." A vice-corps commander of one of the trading companies' forces shouted in fury. He was a former mercenary and had no understanding of what these damned noble warfare traditions and rules actually meant.
Grand Duke Peterson stood up. "Stop talking nonsense. Duke Norton sent us a challenge letter, which means he acknowledges the noble title conferred upon us by the Commercial Alliance. He treats us as nobles and shows us respect. But if we don't follow the traditional customs and rules of noble warfare, and do as that brainless idiot suggests — ignore the letter, take Bruvia City first, and destroy the enemies before us — that would be the same as admitting we aren't nobles and have no obligation to follow any noble warfare traditions. The consequence would be that Duke Norton would have no reason to hold back his Sword Saint identity. He could strike directly at us, treating us like bandits and brigands. You can imagine the result for yourselves, and no one would seek justice on our behalf, because it would be entirely our own fault for seeking death..."
"But — but don't we still have the Storm Sword Saint? Wouldn't Duke Norton worry about Master Magrute doing the same to the Norton Family's forces?"
"Idiot. We'd be the ones breaking the rules first. What reason would Master Magrute have to stand up for us? And by then we'd already be finished. Even if the Storm Sword Saint were willing to avenge us, what good would that do for those of us who are already dead..."
"..."
Grand Duke Comberlyte finally slammed his fist on the table in anger. Why was it that when the Commercial Alliance adopted its expansionist policy, using war to open trade routes and secure interests for the trading companies, they swept through all the kingdoms and duchies in the central and southern regions of the continent, but the moment they turned north, everything went wrong? The Andinak Kingdom was clearly on its last breath, yet the Norton Family had popped up out of nowhere, forcing the Commercial Alliance's forces to suffer setback after setback, until now they had propped up an entire Free Union.
They had been backed into a corner with no room to retreat. If this war was lost, it would mean the Free Union had successfully replaced the Commercial Alliance, and the Commercial Alliance would fracture from this defeat, never again able to rally hundreds of thousands of troops.
The tent fell silent. Grand Duke Comberlyte heaved a long sigh and spoke slowly: "Duke Norton's letter is both a challenge and a warning. If you look carefully at the date, you should understand — October tenth is the day Master Magrute faces the Blood Sword Saint, Duke Norton. By setting the date for the battle between his family's forces and our Commercial Alliance forces on October tenth as well, he's making it clear that as long as we follow the rules, he won't move against us. And after October tenth, regardless of who wins or loses, he won't cause us any trouble..."
"But — are we really just going to sit in camp for a month with our three hundred thousand troops?" someone said reluctantly. With their clearly superior military strength and numbers far exceeding the enemy, having to stand in a standoff with the enemy at the front line for over a month — it felt incredibly frustrating.
Grand Duke Comberlyte shook his head helplessly. "Gentlemen, what I want to tell you is that we are nobles now, and we should learn the rules of nobility. Following the rules benefits us too — at the very least, if we're captured on the battlefield, we'll receive noble treatment. After the war, we can pay a ransom and go home, rather than being hanged from a gallows like bandits and brigands. The enemies we face now aren't the weak kingdoms and duchies of the central and southern regions, where we didn't need to follow any rules. The Norton Family's forces are different from our previous enemies. Duke Norton is a newly appointed Sword Saint — breaking the rules in front of him is something none of us can afford. Angering a Sword Saint would be a very unwise decision."
"If only Master Magrute, the Storm Sword Saint, could come to the front line sooner..."
Grand Duke Comberlyte smiled bitterly. "Gentlemen, while Master Magrute is the Sword Saint that our Commercial Alliance patronizes, he is not exactly reliable. We'd best not pin all our hopes on him..."
"Surely not? Our Commercial Alliance pays nearly a million gold Forde per year as his stipend. Does Master Magrute demand even more?"
*Sigh*..." Grand Duke Comberlyte sighed again. "I won't hide it from you any longer. This time, we asked Master Magrute to challenge Duke Norton, and he initially refused our request. Eventually, after much persuasion, Master Magrute finally agreed, but he attached new conditions. Regardless of whether he won or lost against Duke Norton, as long as he tied up Duke Norton so he couldn't attend to the battlefield, his mission would be considered fulfilled. In return, we would cede a province from the Union's territory after the war and grant it to him as his personal domain..."
"..."
"How dare he make such demands? Was our stipend money thrown into the sea?" someone said indignantly. Being a Sword Saint who was simply patronized and hung up on a pedestal — no one would object to that. But being both a Sword Saint and a lord made many people feel deeply unsettled. This wasn't about being equals — it was a clear subordination of all the other lords beneath him, precisely because he was also a Sword Saint.
"We have no other choice. If he refuses, we won't be able to attack the Mana Hill Plains or retake Morant City." Grand Duke Peterson stepped forward to take the blame on behalf of Grand Duke Comberlyte. "This was a joint decision by our seven major trading companies. With Master Magrute pinning down and suppressing Duke Norton, we need not worry about the threat of this newly appointed Sword Saint. Let the challenge proceed. We have the advantage in troop numbers, and our high-end combat power exceeds the enemy's several times over. If the enemy fights us in a siege, the Commercial Alliance's forces might suffer heavy casualties. But in a field battle, the outcome is obvious. Defeating the enemy squarely and honorably will make the traitors in Morant City tremble with fear and regret their choices."
...