Imperial Crown

This is the third day after Anthony's decree was issued.

At first, the nobles thought it was an ordinary locust plague, until those fist-sized locusts flew to their territory following the governor's decree.

Panic began to spread.

The nobles knew that slashing people with a knife would kill them, and that cracking the skulls of the dead would make them lie back in their graves.

But the locusts, the overwhelming locusts, how can we kill them all?

Judra doesn't know the answer to this, and has no time to think about it at the moment.

He was currently in his bedroom in Ironforge, taking care of his second wife.

Just two months ago, Judra celebrated her birthday and officially turned 40.

Time has inevitably left its mark on his face.

Compared to before, there were more wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, the hair on his temples had turned gray, and the skin on his cheeks was slightly drooping, making his face look a bit sad.

But at this moment, he had a smile on his face, sitting on the edge of the bed, holding the hand of his wife who was lying on the bed.

His second wife is not a noble, but the daughter of a merchant in Ironforge Town, and her name is also very common "Lily".

Lily has black hair and an oval-shaped face, and she resembles Denise in a third when she smiles.

Although her face was a little pale, Lily still showed a shy smile. She knew what Judra liked: "Master, you don't have to accompany me like this."

"Now the entire Iron Furnace Territory needs you to take care of it."

Judra gently touched the bulge on the thin quilt: "Now the entire iron stove collar is not as important as you."

Losing a son in middle age is a very sad event, and Judra has not forgotten her son Barney, who was killed by Cerberon.

He admitted that he had some selfish motives for marrying Lily, but as a lord and the head of the Wharton family, he also had the obligation to produce heirs so that the Wharton family would not become extinct.

Lily was a little nervous: "Sorry, Master, I shouldn't have gone out without permission."

She was getting older and her fetus had settled down. She felt too bored staying in the castle, so she decided to go out and relax.

Unexpectedly, we encountered the sudden arrival of locusts. Although the number was small, it still caused panic among the crowd.

In panic, she was hit by someone, but luckily the child in her belly was not affected.

"I will replace you with a better batch of guards." Judra smiled and rubbed his wife's hand: "Don't think about anything, rest in peace, and give birth to our child safely. This is the only thing you have to do. things.”

There was a gentle knock on the door, and the voice of Tetu, the new commander of the personal soldiers, came: "Lord Baron, there are some things that need to be handled by you personally."

Judra frowned slightly, but Lily held his hand tightly and said, "It's okay, Lord Baron, go and do your work."

Standing up and kissing Lily gently on the forehead, Judra left the room and closed the door. After walking far away, she asked: "What on earth is going on?"

"Please take a look." Tetu winked at the attendant next to him.

There was a smell of blood, and the retinue brought out a wooden plate with two lumps of vague flesh and blood on it.

Judra looked disgusted and poked it twice with her finger: "...What is this?"

"These are the chickens and ducks you ordered to raise before." Tetu said.

Hearing this, Judra was startled, rubbed his eyes, and looked carefully again.

Don't tell me, it still looks a bit like it, at least you can see it with a sharp mouth and a flat mouth.

But how did they become like this?

"It's a locust, sir." Tetu said with a grimace: "The chicken pecked a locust to death, but the locust body bit its neck; the duck swallowed three locusts, and then the locust... …”

"Okay, okay, I know you used to be a veterinarian, but you don't have to show off your knowledge all the time." Judra waved her hand, motioning for the retinue to take the plate down, and then let out a long sigh.

Judra, who had always disliked Raven, immediately kept an eye on the Eagle Territory after learning about the locust plague.

Because in the past five years, he has never seen Raven suffer a loss.

He did whatever Raven did, not only buying chickens and ducks in large quantities, but also building a fence on the edge of the territory.

But the chickens and ducks that Lei Wen bought in a big way were no match for Locust, which was a bit beyond his expectation.

"Raven, you sometimes make miscalculations."

After a little gloating, Judra frowned again.

Because his losses are not small.

If the gap in economic strength between him and Raven is taken into account, his losses are even more serious.

All the way to the study, I looked out through the window. I could see locusts everywhere. They were on the walls, in the woods, and in the fields. They were like lilac grains in soup. They were not many, but they were extremely eye-catching.

Although it has not yet reached a large scale, it will surely happen sooner or later.

He thought of the chickens and ducks on the tray again - what would it look like when the locust plague really breaks out?

Judra began to understand why Anthony would divide the power instead of taking charge of the overall situation himself.

Looking at the governor's decree on the desk, Judra rolled her eyes and sighed.

He has read the above content. Raven has become the temporary manager of Alert Area 3, which is the five northwest counties.

Although he didn't want to admit it, Judra knew that in the entire five northwest counties, there was actually no better candidate than Raven.

And he must keep up with Raven's footsteps.

The territories of the two families were adjacent to each other. If not only Raven could help him, but at least one of them would not add insult to injury.

Taking out a pen and paper, Judra leaned on the desk and wrote:

Respected Lords of Eagle Territory, Snow Maple Territory and Holo Territory, Lord Sheriff of Snow Maple County, Baron Raven Ota Griffith, Director of Security Zone No. 3 appointed by His Excellency the Governor.

Yours faithfully and humbly

“Uh…” Judra frowned at herself when she wrote this, but she had to continue writing.

But some people write much more happily than Judra.

“Dear, come and help me take a look.” Mrs. Doreen picked up the letter she had just written and called her female clerk.

While the clerk picked up the letter and read it carefully, Doreen picked up her 5-year-old son Roman and wiped his tears: “What, who bullied you?”

Roman inherited his father’s green pupils, and wiped his mouth with his tender little hands, aggrieved: “My Gaq Knight was eaten by locusts!”

“Gak Knight” is a goblin dummy woven with straw and wood, produced by the Eagle Town Arena, and Roman’s favorite playmate.

"Oh, my poor little guy." Doreen patted her son's back: "Knight Gark will be back, and we won't have to worry about locusts soon."

"Really?" Roman's eyes sparkled.

"Of course it's true."

Rubbing her son's head, Doreen looked at her female clerk: "How is it."

The female clerk opened and closed her mouth, and after a while she said: "Are you really going to write like this?"

In fact, from the perspective of this clerk, Doreen's writing is quite excellent, and her choice of words and sentences is extremely delicate. She not only expressed her desire to seek refuge in the Eagle Territory, but also subtly buried her passionate love and admiration between the lines.

But the problem is that this should be an official document, not a love letter.

Doreen asked back, "Is there any problem?"

The female clerk looked at Doreen's determined eyes and shook her head, "Uh, this... no!"

"Then send it out, now, immediately, right away." Doreen ordered, "Then gather the troops immediately, let Knight Dio stay in the castle, and we will set off the day after tomorrow morning at the latest."

The locust plague has just begun, and the sporadic locusts have caused considerable damage. If the number swells again, to the point where even people can't go out, the communication between the Stone Territory and the outside world may be completely cut off.

Her son is not yet an adult, and Doreen herself is a woman.

Once the Stone Territory becomes an isolated island, Doreen is not sure that she can subdue her knights.

That's why she wrote this frivolous letter, just to arouse Raven's desire to protect her and let her in.

At least there, Doreen doesn't have to worry about safety issues.

The spread of news is always fast and slow, and not all nobles can receive the governor's decree in the first time.

For example, the current viscount of Hippoc County and Binziman County is only 21 years old.

Under the cloudless sky, the air was hot.

The crowds of people were surging on the Taile Street in Binziman City. Outside was a circle of city defense soldiers holding weapons, in the middle were several layers of people, and the innermost layer was responsible for protecting the Viscount's personal guards.

The personal guards formed a circle, in the middle of the circle, there was an execution platform built of logs, dirty and bloody, old and new, flies circling back and forth.

The Viscount sat next to the execution platform.

His light yellow hair was messy like a bird's nest, even with a single ponytail tied behind his head, it still looked extremely untidy.

A pair of eyes, one white and one red, the white one looked like an artificial eye, and the red one looked like it had been punched hard, as if it was filled with blood.

The young Viscount yawned boredly after casually smashing a flying locust.

A tall, bearded man walked through the crowd and saluted in front of the viscount, bowing his head: "My Lord Viscount..."

"Hmm...?"

"Uh, Lord Little Peeler."

Only after hearing the three words "Little Peeler" did the viscount smile: "Tell me, Dalton, what's the matter."

Dalton's mouth twitched: "The death row prisoner was found to have committed suicide in prison this morning."

"Oh, that's a tragedy." Little Peeler sighed: "He should have been sentenced fairly."

"But the execution platform can't be empty, right?"

As he spoke, Little Peeler's eyes wandered among the onlookers, like a butcher selecting a lamb to be slaughtered.

Drawing a circle in the air with his wrist, Little Peeler pointed at a girl who looked 16 or 17 years old: "That's her."

With a scream, the personal soldiers immediately rushed up and controlled the girl and brought her over.

Dalton swallowed his saliva: "But, sir, this person has not committed a crime."

"No?" Little Peeler blinked: "Oh, I remember."

He took off a gold ring from his left hand, stuffed it into the girl's pocket, and took it out and shook it in front of Dalton:

"She stole my ring!"

Little Peeler waved his hand, his voice calm but unquestionable: "Put the person up."

"No, sir Little Peeler, please let me go, my mother is still waiting for me..."

But Little Peeler seemed not to hear it, and his guards did not show any mercy, pulling the girl to the stage, tearing her clothes, and exposing her body to the sun.

Little Peeler jumped onto the execution platform with a thud and took a rustling iron bucket from his guards.

There was a half bucket of locusts with their wings plucked out, and now they were trying to climb up along the smooth edge of the bucket.

The girl trembled on the cross, she no longer cared about shame, and only had the fear of death in her heart.

Two lines of bitter tears flowed from the corners of his eyes.

"Be good, don't cry." Little Pipi licked her cheek with his scarlet tongue: "It will be over soon."

He lifted the iron bucket and pressed it on the girl's belly. The executioner skillfully used chains to secure the iron bucket.

"No...no!!" The girl's face turned pale, and she began to feel locusts crawling on her belly.

"You will like it." Little Peipi smiled slightly, picked up the torch next to it, and placed it at the end of the iron barrel.

bang

Under the scorching flames, the locusts in the barrel exploded completely, causing the entire iron barrel to shake. However, they had no way to escape and could only crawl into the softest position they could find.

"No, no, ah——"

The girl's eyes widened as she screamed fiercely. The sound of teeth-piercing bites and cuts kept coming from the bucket, and blood seeped out from the edge of the iron bucket.

Her limbs began to twitch wildly, and even though her skin was torn and the chains rattled, she still couldn't escape the restraints.

Xiaopipi's breathing began to quicken, and an excited and excited look burst out in his eyes.

The rustling in the barrel suddenly began to decrease, and the barrel that had been falling slightly began to rise slowly.

The screams gradually became weaker, and thick black and red blood flowed from the corner of the girl's mouth and dripped to the ground.

The flesh between her chest and abdomen suddenly began to bulge with ridges, and even the outline of a locust could be seen.

"ah……"

Her chest suddenly rose, the girl opened her mouth and let out a frightening hissing sound.

The next moment, there was a pop, and her full throat suddenly exploded, and a swarm of locusts poured out of it, taking away the last of her life.

The locusts crawled all over the head and began to gnaw at the tender lips and tongue. Some even crawled onto her face, clawing out the eyes that were staring blankly, and then bit them to pieces.

"Hahaha——" Little Peipi threw down the torch, laughed and clapped his hands, as if he had seen the most beautiful scenery in the world.

At this moment, the messenger pushed through the crowd and said: "Sir Little Skinner, this is the governor's decree."

"Read it." Little Peipei took out a dagger from his waist without looking back, cut the plump and softest piece of meat on the girl's body, and placed it on the silver plate handed over by the soldier.

He ate with gusto at first, but when the messenger read "Alert Area No. 3", his expression became serious. He put down his plate, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, stretched out his hand and said, "Give it to me."

Taking the document from the soldier's hand, Little Skin jumped down from the execution platform, walked to his table, and read word for word.

"Raven...heh." Little Peeling stretched out his fingers and rubbed his temples, his eyes, one red and one white, showing clear dissatisfaction.

Indeed, Xiao Peipi can understand that since this position is to be established, only Raven is the most suitable person in the entire northwest five counties.

Comprehensibility is one thing, acceptance is another.

In his opinion, Raven was like a monkey in heat, always showing off his charm and abilities at inappropriate times.

What is "a role model for the younger generation of nobles in Nord Province", "the youngest third-level magician in Nord Province", "a genius politician and business wizard."

It's almost as if one's ears are on fire.

Raven has received so much praise just because the Fox family is helping him praise him.

What's even more annoying is that Slater also inexplicably takes a liking to him.

The re-emergence of the Griffith family began when Hyde went to the Eagle Territory.

God knows if Raven sold Gouzi to Hyde to get the first start-up capital.

"Disgusting guy." Little Pipi slapped the decree on the table.

The name "Little Skinner" comes from the famous "Flayed Duke" Cunningham in the history of the empire. This lord executed at least 4,300 dissidents in his life and subjected them to the cruel punishment of skinning.

People call themselves this because Little Skin regards this Grand Duke as an idol, and he is also implementing Grand Duke Cunningham's philosophy - the strong do not need friends, they only need to use fear and violence to make people surrender.

That's why Little Skin hates Raven.

Raven's methods are too soft, her body is too soft, and coupled with her handsome appearance, she is simply a sissy.

From Little Peel's point of view, if he could flatter the great nobles without any bottom line like Raven, his achievements would only be higher, but he was just unwilling to do that.

"Dalton!"

The knight separated from the crowd and came over: "Little Lord Skinned."

"Let the crowd disperse." Pointing to the girl's body on the execution platform, Little Peipei said: "Tell them, this is the fate of secretly talking about me."

"Then go to my warehouse and get 1, no, 2 level 4 fire attribute magic cores. I will personally edit a book and use these two magic cores as a congratulatory gift to Baron Raven."

Dalton was stunned.

Little Peeling urged: "Baron Raven has always been my idol. He is like an elder brother in my heart. Go quickly, don't delay."

Even though Little Peel said this, Dalton still didn't believe it.

Little Peipi, who likes excitement, once learned from Raven and built a gladiatorial arena, investing more than 20,000 gold coins. However, it only lasted three months before it closed down because he could not make ends meet.

Xiao Peipi has always blamed Raven for this entrepreneurial failure.

But if Dalton has learned any lesson in the past few years, it is to never guess the Viscount’s thoughts, so he immediately nodded in agreement.

Little Peipi kept his word and immediately started writing a letter to Raven.

The words were written in a square and elegant Galen script, and the content was humble and respectful, showing his infinite admiration for Raven.

As Little Peeler wrote, a smile gradually appeared on his lips.

This was not submission, but a trick. He wanted to make Raven think that he was completely harmless.

In this way, when the time came, he could stab Raven hard when he was off guard.

"The dagger from behind is the most difficult to defend against."

...

On the same afternoon, in Eagle City, in the conference room.

Raven's civil servants gathered together.

Old Gordon sat on Raven's left, followed by Kuman and Fili.

There was also a new face, Koru - he was the political officer of Holo Territory, 44 years old this year, with a square face, a dignified posture, and a noble temperament.

The red bow tie on his chest was particularly conspicuous.

He was the former ruler of Holo Territory and the butler of the Vernon family, and he had received a very good education.

There was also a white-bearded old man, Junasheng, in the corner.

This former refugee leader, now the clerk of Eagle City, is in charge of recording the meeting.

"Lord Baron, this is a great event." Philip licked his lips: "The military power, financial power, and command power of the entire Northwest Five Counties! Oh my God, I can't imagine how huge this power is."

"Mr. Philip, as a subordinate of Lord Baron, I must remind you." Koulu straightened his tie: "Lord Baron called us here to discuss countermeasures, not to listen to our empty words and flattery."

Philip blushed and looked a little embarrassed: "I am congratulating Lord Baron, not bragging! Is it a mistake to show your loyalty in your eyes, Mr. Koulu?"

"I think that sharing the worries of Lord Baron is true loyalty." Koulu retorted.

Before Philip could refute, Raven raised his hand and said: "Okay, loyalty can be expressed in many ways, but what I want now is your ability."

"Tell me, what should we do next?"

The meeting room suddenly became quiet.

Fili thought for a moment and said, "Baron, I think you should take advantage of this opportunity to demonstrate your authority in this locust plague."

"I disagree with Mr. Fili's opinion." Koulu said immediately.

Faced with frequent interruptions, Fili was a little annoyed: "Then Mr. Koulu must have an idea?"

"Yes." Koulu did not hesitate at all.

He was the last one to enter the core circle of Raven among all the people present, so he had to say something shocking to leave a deep impression on Baron Raven.

The power to manage the people's livelihood in Holo Territory is indeed not small, but what he wants is a title that can be passed down from generation to generation.

"It is true that the Baron has gained great power this time, but power corresponds to responsibility."

"Everyone here has enjoyed the taste of power, and everyone knows that no one will divide their authority for no reason."

"Governor Anthony's actions are enough to show that the scale of the locust plague is beyond control, and he wants to get rid of some of the responsibility."

At this point, Kolu bowed to Raven: "Baron, please forgive me for speaking frankly."

"The locust plague is so severe that even the governor can't resist it. No matter how much you do, it will be useless. The more you do, the more mistakes you make. So it's better not to exercise this authority."

Raven nodded gently, and what Kolu said was what he thought in his heart.

Seeing that Raven agreed with Kolu, Philip was a little anxious.

Among the people present, except for old Gordon, he was the most senior one. Now he was suppressed by a newcomer, and he couldn't help feeling a little aggrieved.

After a little thought, Philip said, "Baron, I think Mr. Koulu's words are reasonable, but not entirely correct."

"Now that the division of the warning zone is a foregone conclusion, you can't treat this decree as non-existent just because you don't exercise your authority. If you do nothing, you will not only be suspected of disobeying orders, but also be ridiculed for your cowardice."

"Moreover, power is something that expires. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity must be seized."

"So, you might as well issue a few orders that are beneficial but not costly."

Hearing Philip's words, Raven laughed, "You two are both right."

"But there is a question, that is, what kind of decree is beneficial but not costly?"

Philip was stunned for a moment, he hadn't thought of that step yet.

And Koulu didn't tease Philip again.

He came to show himself, not to make enemies. Since he had won the praise of the Baron, he didn't have to go too far.

Raven continued, "If you can't figure it out, just wait and think about it."

"Today, I called you here not only to discuss countermeasures, but also to execute an order for you."

"Now it seems that the locust plague is much more serious than we expected."

"So when you go back, you must immediately organize people to rush to harvest the food in the territory, and you must complete it before the locust plague officially arrives."

Fili, Kuman, and Koru all looked depressed, but they all nodded.

It is now early July, and the main crop in Raven's territory is spring wheat, which is about 20 days away from maturity.

Harvesting at this time will at least lose 30-50% of the yield.

But even so, it is much better than the locust plague that eats up all the fields.

At this moment, Kuman's eyes lit up: "By the way, Baron, this is a benefit without spending any money."

"There must be nobles who are short-sighted, hesitant about harvesting food in advance, or simply can't think of it. Issuing this order of yours can not only show your lofty vision, but also reflect your responsibility, and it will not Touching too many people’s interests!”

Upon hearing this, Raven and Old Gordon smiled at each other.

It seems that these officials under him are somewhat capable.

The abilities of Fili and Cuman slowly emerged, and the newcomer Kolu also had a superior vision. Not to mention how talented they were, they were all chosen at the moment.

Clearing his throat, Raven said: "Gordon, prepare a statement for me and release it simultaneously through the Mercenary Guild and the Skyhawk platform."

"Order to have all the nobles in the five northwest counties start harvesting grain immediately."

"The armies of each noble family are still under their own command, and I will not interfere. However, all nobles must announce and share the situation and trends of the locust plague at all times through the Sky Eagle platform and other means."

Old Gordon wrote down these key points one by one, and finally pushed up his monocle and said, "Then I will draft this statement first."

In fact, there are many details that Lei Wen did not give instructions. For example, the writing should be as modest and low-key as possible, but it should not appear that Lei Wen is really giving in. It should show responsibility, but also should not let people take advantage of it and force them to come. Raven is responsible.

But for many years, master and servant have a tacit understanding.

After talking about some details, Raven announced the adjournment of the meeting and began to communicate with Denise on the Skyhawk platform.

"Dear Aunt Denise, how's the journey going?"

Seconds later, Denise's response came: "Into Savery County now."

A smile appeared at the corner of Raven's mouth. Now that he has arrived in Savery County, it is only a few steps away from Xuefeng County...

etc!

The smile froze on his face, and Raven's brows furrowed tightly.

According to the established route, Denise should start from Hodges County, go all the way west, and return to Xuefeng County via Wilt and Shippok counties.

But how did she get to Savery County in the north?

Next, several messages from Raven fell into disarray.

…