Chapter 352: Establishing Dominance

Outside the Brambleford military camp, Prince Augustus stood tall in armor, a sword at his waist, looking every bit like a battle-hardened general.

Tevez stood behind him, looking a little helpless.

With the reavers retreating, Prince Augustus was, of course, overjoyed. But right after, he began thinking about how to reap the biggest benefits from this great victory.

One benefit would be military merits. The other would be the spoils of war.

This time, the reavers had abandoned a large number of warhorses and left behind over two hundred cannons.

However, the Imperial Guards and the Brambleford army didn’t seem willing to share the spoils with Prince Augustus. He knew very well why that was.

Just as Prince Augustus was shouting, Simon walked out of the camp.

Simon looked stern, with no trace of a smile on his face. Seeing him, Prince Augustus suddenly felt a chill down his spine and quickly dropped his arrogant demeanor.

Still, since he’d long been used to acting however he pleased in his domain and was also Simon’s elder, he spoke up anyway, using his seniority:

"Prince Simon, what’s the meaning of the Brambleford army keeping all the cannons to themselves? Are you trying to hog everything? Don’t forget, this is my domain."

Simon looked at him calmly. The two hadn’t seen each other in five or six years, and even back then, they hadn’t been close. He said. "Please be respectful, Uncle. Do you really not know the reason for the war in Preston this time? And how exactly did you respond when it broke out? Do I need to explain all this to you? Or should I tell the Emperor instead?"

Prince Augustus’s expression changed drastically. He snapped. "Simon, what do you mean by that? Don’t think I don’t know you’ve been gathering refugees in my territory. If this gets reported, you won’t get off easy either!"

"Hahaha..." Simon laughed.

"I’m not afraid of being scolded by Father for taking in some disaster victims. I didn’t even claim any military credit. But you, Uncle, selling off relief food and causing the aid to fail, then refusing to go out and fight when the reavers came, are you sure the Emperor won’t strip you of your ’Single-Word Prince’ title over these two issues?"

In the Eldorian Empire. "Single-Word Princes," Like Prince Augustus or Prince Gerad, held higher prestige. Two-Word Princes, like Prince Valemont, had lower status.

If a vassal prince made a serious mistake, the court could demote their title as punishment. After that, any Two-Word Prince would have to bow to a Single-Word Prince.

Already feeling guilty, Prince Augustus was shaken by Simon’s hard stance.

Lancet couldn’t say anything because of Prince Augustus’s status, but Simon wasn’t playing nice at all, leaving him with no moves.

Prince Augustus glanced around and then forced a smile.

"Dear nephew, we’re both members of the royal family. If we undermine each other, it’ll just make outsiders laugh. Fine, fine, I won’t ask for the cannons. But can I at least have some of the horses?"

"No, you can’t," Simon replied firmly.

"I mobilized a lot of men and supplies to save you, Uncle. I’ve heard you never do a losing deal. Well, neither do I."

This Preston campaign came out of nowhere. He had to act fast. Soldiers had died, and they’d spent tons of silver on food, cannonballs, and gunpowder.

Even though he’d persuaded over two hundred thousand refugees to move into his territory, it still wasn’t enough for him.

Prince Augustus, already frustrated, snapped:

"You say no to everything! Don’t push your uncle too far. Don’t forget... This is my domain!"

"So what? Do you want to fight me?" Simon sneered.

Now that the reavers had been driven from the grasslands and he had taken control of Snake Pass, he didn’t need Prince Augustus to guard the western gate anymore.

Once he controlled the pass, the route into the Central Plains from the steppe was in his hands. These vassals should be paying him protection fees, not the other way around. That’s why Simon had no reason to be polite.

He wanted to vent his anger and make it clear that no one could push him around. It was also part of his larger plan.

If he couldn’t put Prince Augustus in his place, how could he freely profit from Prince Augustus’s territory later?

Prince Augustus was about to argue again when Tevez suddenly stopped him.

"Your Highness, Prince Simon misunderstood. The Brambleford army is far too strong; we’re no match for them."

Then he pulled Prince Augustus aside and whispered. "Now’s not the time to offend Prince Simon. Never mind the cannons; he has muskets and hot air balloons now. We’re the ones who need his help. After this battle, the Preston army is seriously weakened. Without those cannons, Prince Lionel on the border could walk all over us."

Prince Augustus’s eyes flickered, and he slowly nodded.

"But what can we do? Did you see how rude Prince Simon was?"

Tevez replied. "Your Highness, Prince Simon was very clear; he wants compensation for sending troops. As long as we offer that, I think he’ll be willing to compromise."

Hearing that, Prince Augustus nodded and turned to Simon. ℴ

"Dear nephew, thank you for coming to Preston’s aid. I know your domain is still underdeveloped and struggling. I’d be willing to trade something for the cannons. Do you need food, or...?"

At that, Simon smiled.

He glanced at Tevez. ’Seems there’s at least one sensible person beside Prince Augustus.’

He said. "Those barbarian cannons aren’t all that useful to me. I can give them to you, Uncle. But as you know, my domain is vast and sparsely populated. I don’t ask for much; just allow me to gather the disaster victims in Preston, and hand over the King and the refugees under him to me as well."

At the mention of the King, Prince Augustus’s expression turned fierce.

"That rebel deserves to die! Now that the reavers have fled, I was just about to take care of him and the rebels who followed him. If you need manpower, I’ll turn them all into slaves and send them to you."

"No need for that," Simon replied.

"I just need your help capturing the King. As for the refugees, I’ll handle them myself."

There were still many refugees under the King. These common people were innocent. If Prince Augustus dealt with them, many would die.

So Simon only wanted Prince Augustus to help defeat the King; he would take care of resettling the refugees himself.

"Of course, of course." Prince Augustus laughed.

To him, those rebels were a threat anyway. He would’ve killed them all if he could. And even if they surrendered, he didn’t have the food to feed them.

So he didn’t mind Simon’s request at all.

Simon nodded. Prince Augustus didn’t yet understand how important population was, and that was exactly what Simon was counting on. If he could add four or five hundred thousand people to his territory through this war, it would all be worth it.