Chapter 353: Nowhere To Be Found

At dawn, a ray of sunlight pierced through the morning mist, shining on the Brambeford soldiers marching north.

Yesterday, the agreement to crush the King was made with Prince Augustus. The next day, Benjamin led the army north as planned to seize the key fortress, Snake Pass.

With Fern’s fate uncertain, this was the best moment to attack Snake Pass. They had to move fast and end the fight before the Order reacted.

So, under Simon’s orders, the Brambleford army, after only two days of rest, set out once more for battle.

Simon himself stayed behind in Preston with Lancet and Prince Augustus to defeat the King and reclaim the southern cities of Preston.

"This victory in Preston is largely thanks to Your Highness. The Emperor will surely be pleased. And with Your Highness’s wedding coming soon, it’s double the celebration."

As the Brambleford army headed north in the morning, the Preston troops and Imperial Guards marched south without stopping.

Although the siege of Preston was lifted, rebel forces were still active inside the province. Lancet had imperial orders to assist Prince Augustus in dealing with the rebels led by the King.

After reorganizing the remaining troops, the Imperial Guards and sixty thousand Preston soldiers moved out to suppress the rebellion. Simon joined them with Timothy’s heavy cavalry and two thousand musket soldiers.

After the incident at Prince Gerad’s Guards, Simon had learned his lesson; he no longer trusted anyone easily.

He would only rest easy when Prince Augustus delivered exactly what was promised.

Once Benjamin captured Snake Pass, Simon planned to use the Guard scandal as leverage against Prince Gerad. That was a strong bargaining chip. If he wasn’t compensated properly, he might just take that accusation straight to the court.

After all, once he controlled Snake Pass, the northern border would be secure for the time being. At that point, the vassal princes, who were barely holding together due to the reaver threat, would probably start turning on each other. With this scandal in hand, Simon could make sure his southern neighbor stayed obedient.

As for Prince Augustus, after this attack by the reavers, he was in bad shape and no longer a real threat. That meant things were finally calming down around Simon’s territory.

While lost in thought, Lancet’s voice broke his focus.

"Your Highness, you give me too much credit. The Imperial Guards deserve most of the merit in the Preston victory. The Brambleford army merely offered support."

"Your Highness, please don’t make things harder for this old man," Lancet added with a smile. "The Imperial Guards didn’t earn credit in this battle; they earned blame. I’m not a prince like you. Too much credit would only poison me. So please, don’t try to promote me in court."

Simon’s eyes flickered. Aiden had mentioned this matter briefly.

He wasn’t politically clueless anymore. He understood what Lancet meant and sighed.

"If that’s the case, then I’ll do as you wish, General. But taking all the credit alone doesn’t seem very wise either. I understand what it means when merit overshadows the ruler."

"When you held Dunmere, Your Highness had no way out. At a time like that, you deserve all the credit you can get." Lancet replied with hidden meaning.

Aiden, following behind Simon, said. "General Lancet really understands things. It’s just that our prince doesn’t see it clearly yet."

Simon frowned. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand; he just didn’t want to talk about it. Of course, he knew what his subordinates were thinking.

That’s exactly why he had to keep it hidden. Nothing stays secret forever. No matter what his goals were, becoming stronger was all that mattered. Everything else would fall into place with time.

Noticing Simon’s expression darken, Lancet chuckled and changed the topic.

"Your Highness, after the cannons, these muskets might be the next hot weapon all the vassal princes want to get their hands on."

Simon smiled faintly.

"That depends on Father’s decision."

After this battle, Simon knew his status in the Eldorian Empire would rise again.

In Alaric’s eyes, he was now a key figure, possibly even on par with the current Prince Gerad.

Prince Gerad was currently a Third-rank Prince, while Simon was just a One-rank Prince. There was still a big difference in rank.

Using his higher status, Prince Gerad had been pulling strings behind the scenes for years.

This time, Simon planned to get something back. He was now more aware than ever that he didn’t have many people he could rely on.

The army slowly moved along the official road. Over the next half-month, with steady pressure from the combined forces, the southern cities of Preston were retaken one after another.

Under the might of the three armies, more than three hundred thousand civilians surrendered.

With this string of victories, the King’s rebel forces began to collapse. After the final rebel-held city was captured, all lost cities in Preston were reclaimed.

But one thing puzzled everyone: they couldn’t find the King. It seemed he had fled even before the army moved out.

"Your Highness, we questioned the disaster victims. They said they hadn’t seen the King since the reavers were defeated." Aiden said as he walked past a cannon on the battlefield.

"Gone, huh?"

Simon looked at the thin, frightened civilians. Their eyes were filled with terror, afraid they might be killed.

"Maybe he ran off early," Lancet said.

"Your Highness shouldn’t be surprised. The King was never a man of principle. He was never going to die with the people. We checked; all the silver and jewels in the cities were taken. Looks like he really did run."

Simon snorted. He had underestimated how shameless the King could be.

"Post his portrait everywhere. I want to see where he thinks he can hide."

"Yes, My Lord." Aiden nodded.

As they were speaking, Prince Augustus waddled over with his big belly.

"Dear nephew, General Lancet, thank you both for your great help. Without you, who knows how long these rebels would’ve lasted?"

"You’re too kind, Your Highness," Lancet replied.

"The Preston army fought bravely in this campaign. The credit is all yours."

Prince Augustus laughed heartily at that, completely unashamed.

"In that case, I hope you’ll put in a good word for me when we return to court!"

"Of course, of course," Lancet said politely, though he felt disdain inside.

Looking at the crowds of refugees, Simon added. "I’ll also speak well of Uncle before the Emperor. But what about these civilians?"

Prince Augustus understood immediately. He had seen the Brambleford army’s firepower with his own eyes; just one cannon volley and the rebels in the city surrendered quickly.

He was still jealous of their muskets, so he didn’t dare break his promise.

"These rebels should all be made into slaves. Since you’re short on manpower, I’ll leave these three hundred thousand people to your care, dear nephew."

Simon nodded. Now he could finally relax. With the refugees he had gathered earlier, he had nearly five hundred thousand new people.

He gave Aiden a look, and Aiden immediately ordered Timothy to escort the civilians to Cardiff City.