"What are you going to do?!What crime have I committed?Who are you!"

Fabre shouted, but to no avail, two of Forlan's thugs caught him and immobilized him.

Since Rhodes became king at Blackhammer Castle, the operation to eradicate the Queen's secret police has also been carried out rapidly. This net has been laid for three years, and finally it is time to close the net. At least 200 people were arrested on the same day and sent to secret prisons.

"Wait, who are you?"

As the squire was about to be taken away, Chief Knight Virgil stepped forward and stopped Fran. The face is very ugly. There can be no doubt that the search for the secret police was strictly confidential. Even Virgil himself knew no about it. He barricaded several members of the Brotherhood in the doorway, one hand already on the hilt of his sword.

"Lord Knight, we arrest these traitors on the orders of the King of the North. I hope you will not get in the way of our mission. ”

In the face of the angry chief knight, Fran appeared calm. He used his not-so-strong hand to pull away the knight Virgil's arm. And it looks effortless.

"Lord Rhodes' orders?"

Virgil asked, frowning in surprise.

"Yes, Lord Rhodes' order. Your Excellency, I can't explain too much about this matter here, if you want to know the details, you can consult Lord Rhodes yourself. But now, I must take this little squire with me. His origins are not as simple as you think. ”

A small smile tugged at the corners of Fran's mouth. Virgil noticed that his right hand had only four fingers, the ring finger had been broken, and even though the hands were tightly wrapped, they could still be seen to be weather-beaten hands, scars crawling like bugs all over the back of his hands.

For a moment, Virgil was a bit of a mess. He didn't know when his lord would start planning this. Moreover, it can be hidden for so long.

......

Blackhammer Fort Hall.

"We must always be ready for war, you have me as king, and on Kislev's side, Katerina will not stand idly by. With the character of this female tsar, as soon as she hears the news, she will immediately send troops, and she will never be soft, and there is no possibility of negotiation. Her repression of those mobs is a living example of this. So, we must be ready for battle in advance. ”

In the small main hall of the Black Hammer Castle, eight Northern Lords gathered. They were discussing the coming war, and everyone knew in their hearts that it was a protracted civil war. In fact, the forces of the north and the south are not balanced, and the strength of the north is not strong, and the total strength of the nine castles combined is less than one-third of that of the south. The economic strength cannot be matched with that of the South. Once the war drags on, without the Ice Queen launching a general attack, the northern border will also be dragged down alive.

But the situation in the north is not so bad compared to the south, at least, they are united. All the Lords of the North have a common goal and enemy, so they are united and united. And look at the southern camp of Kislev. Although the queen has a strong regular army under her command, the southern lords have different intentions, and they support the queen on the surface, but in fact there is still the possibility of swaying. There are also some local lords who simply use a perfunctory strategy of delay, and before the absolute power is formed, these people belong to the wallgrass, and Rhodes estimates that it will take some effort for Caterina to mobilize these people to join the war. That's the only advantage the North has today.

"North of the Twin Rivers, the garrison must be strengthened. Today, the Overwatch can no longer serve as the gateway to the North. Once the southern army attacked, the watchtower would inevitably be undefensible. ”

Rhodes raised his hand and pointed his sword at another part of the map—Century

"However, the Twin Rivers are not our main battlefield at the moment, and at the moment, the biggest trouble standing in our way south is Erengrad. ”

Rhodes continued, his sword pointing at the city that had been rebuilt from the ruins. Like Blackhammer, New Erengrad was rebuilt five years ago, and today, there is still a gap between Blackhammer and Errengrad in terms of total population and total economic power. Even if the system of Black Hammer Fort is advanced, after all, Errengrad has a large population base and a more advantageous geographical location, so in the past five years, Erengrad's development is still slightly ahead of Black Hammer Castle. Coupled with a fleet to protect the port, the city is still a thriving and important city.

Due to its geographical proximity to the north, it can be said to be part of the north. Therefore, once the northern coalition forces move south, it is necessary to conquer the city first to stabilize the rear. Of course, with the strength of Erengrad's defenders, Rhodes was not worried about not being able to capture it, and Rhodes was more worried about the regular Kislev navy stationed in Erengr. The navy could not decide the final outcome of the war, but it could blockade ports, divert large numbers of troops, and even land from the rear. This is what worries Rhodes the most. After all, there is almost no navy in the entire northern territory, and even if Black Hammer Fort has worked hard and developed a navy for three years, there are still only three ships now. There was no chance of victory in the war with Erengrad's naval fleet.

"His Majesty ...... King"

Just as the lords were discussing countermeasures, a familiar voice sounded outside the door. Virgil, the knight of Blackhammer Castle, was standing in the doorway, looking humble.

"Come in. ”

Rod waved his hand and beckoned.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Hmmm......"

Virgil's eyes swept over the crowd, and he stopped talking.

"Say, it's all your own people. ”

Feeling that the atmosphere on the field was a little awkward, Rod asked Virgil to say it directly. In the place of war, you can't afford to lose the support of these lords, so it is necessary to have a close relationship without any separation. This was done deliberately in order to gain the trust of the lords.

"Hmm...... Okay......" Virgil walked to the throne with a calm face, "Your Majesty, did you have the order to arrest the Kislev secret police in the territory?"

"Well, yes. This is my command. ”

Rod replied calmly -

"As you have all seen, a large number of people have been arrested at Blackhammer Castle this afternoon, and they have not committed any crime, however, I must send for their arrest, for these are the eyeliners that Caterina has planted everywhere. That is, the secret police as we know it. ”

After speaking, the lords looked at each other in surprise. And some lords had calm faces. Because they, like Rhodes, are ready early in the morning to capture these spies and eyeliner.

"If we want to go south, we must settle the rear, and as long as the secret police are still there, they will continue to pass on information to the Queen. So, my advice, it's time for you to take action. Arrest all these secret police scattered throughout the northern border. Of course, this is a long-term job that cannot be done in a short period of time. It's like when we go south to Kislev City, it's not something that can be done in a day or two. ”