Lord: Stripped of My Inheritance from the Start

Chapter 500: Chapter 473: Preparations for War

After Ronin had Tom take Melis away to rest, he summoned Oduro.

Although Placido had decided to surrender and explained the method, Ronin still planned to do some things his own way.

He picked up a pen and wrote a line on a piece of paper—

After the war begins, anyone who does not wish to die need only lay down their weapons and squat in the southwest corner of Watchtower Castle to be spared.

After he finished writing, Ronin handed the paper to Oduro. "Get Tom, and find a few others who can write. Have them copy this a few hundred times."

Oduro glanced at the contents and seemed to understand. He couldn’t help but praise, "My Lord, this method of yours will definitely shake the morale of Watchtower Castle."

He still didn’t know that the woman who had just been here was Placido of Watchtower Castle’s sister.

Ronin smiled and said, "Go on. And make sure they write it neatly. Don’t write something so sloppy you can’t even read it yourselves!"

"Understood, my lord!"

Oduro was in a bit of a bind. There weren’t many literate men in the army, and even fewer who had good handwriting.

Although a few hundred copies was a lot, if it came down to it, he and Tom would just have to write more themselves.

When Tom was given the job, he was immediately a little embarrassed.

He felt like the Lord was deliberately making things difficult for him. After all, his handwriting was truly indescribable.

But there was nothing to be done. The Lord had assigned him specifically, so he couldn’t get out of it. He could only grip his pen and try his best to write neatly.

「At midnight.」

Ridder returned to the West Wind Hill camp on a Griffin. Upon learning that Ronin had arrived, he immediately came to report.

He reported on Bruno’s letter of appointment, as well as the actions of Garrett and the other nobles.

Ronin naturally had no objections to Ridder’s stance; going to war was in his interest.

What he hadn’t expected was that Bruno would appoint him as a military advisor, placing him in the Alliance Army’s command echelon alongside Garrett and Gushan.

However, such an appointment was clearly useless.

In the subsequent battle plan, Garrett had assigned West Wind Hill the task of capturing Watchtower Castle, and then assisting Melonika’s forces from Gray Valley in taking Flame Fortress.

There was nothing wrong with the plan itself, but this way, Ronin wouldn’t even be going to the main battlefield. What kind of military advisor would he be?

’This must have been Garrett’s deliberate arrangement.’

Ronin couldn’t be bothered to go anyway. For him, it was enough to take what was rightfully his and look after the Wushan Territory’s Knight Order.

He had no particular relationship with the others, and they hadn’t expressed any need for his support. If he went proactively, they might even think he was trying to steal their glory.

"Since our commander-in-chief has ordered a full-scale attack the day after tomorrow, we’ll follow his orders."

Ronin said with a smile, "Have the Knight Order prepare for battle tomorrow. I’ll also be making a move."

He hadn’t thought Garrett would alter Bruno’s decision.

It wasn’t just him; Gushan, Ibn, Willis, and the others hadn’t expected it either.

The reason was that Garrett had managed the affairs of Red Pine Castle for many years, which led the nobles to not even consider such a possibility.

Besides, they couldn’t see anything wrong with the letter of appointment itself.

In the Golden Feather Palace, His Majesty the King found it a bit strange that Garrett hadn’t returned yet. However, he considered that his decision would surely affect the man’s mood, so it was possible Garrett was traveling slowly, or even taking some time to clear his head.

It was just like the last time he returned from Moonlight Valley. The journey by Griffin should have only taken half a day, but Garrett had dragged it out for two or three.

「Early the next morning.」

Having recovered her Spiritual Power and Magic Power, Melis bid Ronin farewell.

Wearing a veil, she activated an Earth Traveling Skill Scroll again in the dense forest near Watchtower Castle. Ronin sensed her passing underground into Watchtower Castle.

This was Seventh-level Magic. Dean Miloslav had relied on it to escape Ossen Count’s pursuit back then.

If not for his Spiritual Sense, Ronin wouldn’t have been able to detect her tracks even with his Wind of Inquiry. This showed that the Earth Travel Skill was truly unique when it came to Invisibility and escaping.

Back at the camp, Oduro and Tom had already moved the seven or eight hundred "Surrender Letters" they had written overnight onto a table.

It was a good thing they now had paper produced in Mountain Forest Town; otherwise, that much sheepskin would have cost a small fortune.

Ronin flipped through a stack and couldn’t help but tsk twice. "You really need to practice your handwriting. Look at this, it’s all crooked and slanted like leaves scattered by the wind."

Tom couldn’t help but scratch his head, laughing awkwardly.

"Alright, you two can go assist Ridder with tomorrow’s battle preparations. You’re not needed here anymore."

The two of them left in a hurry, as if granted a pardon.

Ronin stored the letters in his Space Ring, then climbed onto Carlos’s back and flew above Watchtower Castle once more.

The soldiers of Watchtower Castle hadn’t seen the Giant Dragon for the past few days, and the pressure on them had lessened considerably.

But now, that enormous figure had reappeared, and the fear that had been gradually fading washed over them once again.

War was coming, yet this Giant Dragon hadn’t left.

In other words, their enemy was very likely the big guy in the sky!

Placido also walked out of his room, gazing at the Giant Dragon’s silhouette in the sky. He didn’t understand why the other party was still putting on a show of force when he had already chosen to surrender.

’Is it possible he’s just keeping up the act to save the Carmen Clan’s face?’

Melis appeared at Placido’s side at some point. Her spirit had been overdrawn, and she was extremely exhausted.

"What kind of person do you think Ronin is?" Placido asked.

Melis shook her head. "It’s hard to say, but I feel he’s different from any other noble I’ve met. He seems to have his own way of thinking."

As the two were talking, sheets of paper drifted down from the sky like snowflakes, scattering into every corner of Watchtower Castle. Many Guards and Knights couldn’t resist picking them up to take a closer look.

Placido was very surprised. He had a soldier bring him one of the sheets, and after reading the words written on it, he froze for a moment.

After a long moment, he gave a helpless laugh. "You were right. He certainly does have his own way of thinking."

"He isn’t following the plan we agreed upon at all."

Melis suddenly recalled the way Ronin had carefully sized her up. Looking back now, his gaze seemed rather scrutinizing.

"Could it be... he’s worried we’re feigning surrender?"

"Haha, that’s certainly a possibility. This young Marquis is quite cautious and meticulous."

Placido folded the paper. As he did, he glanced at it a couple of times in surprise—it wasn’t sheepskin.

"It’s clear he doesn’t just want our people; he wants the men from the Likard Knight Order too."

Melis pondered for a moment and nodded. "After this move of his, I’m afraid many of the men have already lost their will to fight. The moment we’re at a disadvantage, they’ll probably just go squat in the southwest corner."

"The time has come to show our value!"

A corner of Placido’s mouth curled up. "In that case, I have all the more reason to inspire the Warriors’ fighting spirit. At least when the battle begins, they’ll still have the courage to hold their swords."

Ronin’s move, while weakening their fighting spirit, also made the Carmen Clan’s defeat seem more reasonable.

Placido not only had to inform Count Ural of Ronin’s tactic, but he would also report how he himself had inspired the soldiers’ fighting spirit.

That way, he would face less infamy for his surrender. After all, he would have done everything he was supposed to, wouldn’t he?