Unknown Knight

The use of new trucks did speed up the travel of merchants. It took only two days for the caravan to reach Ismorola Castle, where four large carts full of grain were waiting for them. This was a plan secretly discussed by Aix and King Ragnar. Since they had decided to negotiate peace, they had to show sincerity. These four carts of grain were King Ragnar's sincerity.

After obtaining signatures and confirmation from the nobles guarding the city, the caravan set off directly with four carts of food without stopping. It only took one day for everyone to reach the outskirts of Kulau City.

When the city lord Rodelaboye heard the news, he personally went out of the city to greet him. Aix had helped him a lot this time. If he couldn't raise enough food and grass, he probably wouldn't be able to be the city lord anymore. He seemed to have met the benefactor who saved his family's lives. He held Aix's hands tightly and said:

"Oh my, we are still brothers. You have really helped me a lot!"

Aix said calmly:

"Brother, you are too kind. I originally wanted to collect more food, maybe 10 or 8 kilograms, to help you deal with the emergency. But you also know that big wars have just ended in various places. I spent several times more effort and money in a short period of time, but I only collected kilograms."

"That's enough. It's 20,000 kilograms more than originally ordered. Don't worry, I'll pay you four times the price for the excess. I won't let you suffer any loss."

Rodelaboye waved his hand and invited Aix to the city. He had been unlucky recently and had been harassed by King Yarogerk. This time, he mobilized all his connections to raise food and fodder, but only raised 6 kilograms. Many people even took advantage of his misfortune and ignored his letters. Only Aix helped him a lot and saved his life. When he saw Aix's food cart, he almost cried.

That night, at the Lord's Mansion of Kulau City.

Although Rodelaboye was in financial difficulty recently, he still tried his best to prepare a banquet to entertain Aix and his party.

Looking at the somewhat shabby food and wine on the table, Aix didn't care. He just complained that there were too few drinks, so he ordered someone to bring a few cans of sweet wormwood, a specialty brought from Wochelze City.

The two of them clinked glasses and started drinking after a few rounds. Rodelaboye didn't know the power of this secret wine, so he drank a few more glasses and soon became drunk and a little out of control. He held Ax's hand and started complaining.

It turned out that since the last defeat of the Khergit Khanate and the Kingdom of Vaegir, King Yarogerk had been looking for trouble with this Rodelaboye. The reason was that he was the first to lead his army and was eager to make a contribution, so he was the first to be ambushed by the Khergits, causing him to suffer the most losses in this battle. At the same time, his troops were also the first to be defeated in an organized manner, which triggered a chain reaction and caused the entire kingdom's army to collapse.

Actually, this can't be blamed entirely on him. He was just the first to bear the brunt of the disaster and his luck was bad. Even if King Yarogelk took over, he might not be able to hold on. However, the situation was difficult to predict due to the internal and external difficulties. If he failed again, he knew very well that King Yarogelk might pull him out to take the blame in order to divert attention.

Although Aix had helped him raise the required amount of food and solved his current difficulties, judging from the development of the war situation, he was still facing many crises and the danger was unpredictable.

After listening to Rodlaboye's chatter for a long time, Aix remained expressionless on the surface, but was very happy in his heart. He was just worrying about how to meet the King of the Kingdom of Yarogelk to help King Ragnar reach a reconciliation with him. Now, the opportunity has come.

So he cleared his throat and said with a long hum:

"Well, I have a plan that can help you out of this predicament. Should I tell you?"

"Speak, speak, there is nothing you and I can't say. As long as I can save my brother this time, I will do whatever you ask me to do."

Aix smiled slightly, which was exactly the attitude he wanted, and then asked him:

"Brother, what do you think is the key to this battle?"

Rodelaboye thought for a moment and said:

"The key to this battle is how our country can break the dilemma of fighting on two fronts. Right now, the army of the Khergit Khanate has been unable to attack for a long time and is already tired. Although our army suffered heavy losses last time, we can still fight them. However, the Nord Kingdom has been invading our border and may launch a large-scale attack at any time. This is why King Yarogerk is timid and dare not give it a try."

Aix couldn't help but give Rodlaboye a thumbs up sincerely. Although this military commander might not be that good, he still had a strategic vision. He continued his words:

"Brother really has a broad vision and a broad perspective. What if these two fronts become one?"

"What do you mean?" Rodlaboye pointed in the direction where Aix was delivering the food.

Aix nodded to him in tacit understanding.

The next day, outside the Lord's Hall of Castle Loma.

The guard at the gate shouted at the top of his voice:

"The good man of Suno, the Lord of Talboliya, Count Aix, is here to see you!"

Aix walked to the audience place with confidence, bowed without being servile or overbearing, and said:

"Meet the respected King."

"I heard that it was you who helped to raise 6 kilograms of food, which was a great help to our army. Thank you very much!"

Aix looked up and took a closer look at the King of Vigia. He saw that although his eyes were bright, his face was stiff and his eye sockets were sunken, which was obviously caused by long-term lack of rest. Then he smiled and said:

"I don't deserve your thanks, Your Highness. I was just asked to help broker the deal."

"Oh, I wonder who entrusted you with this? What is the matter?" King Yarogerk was obviously interested and leaned forward to say.

"I was entrusted by His Royal Highness King Ragnar of the Nordic Kingdom to tell you a few words." Aix said calmly.

"What is it? Please tell me, Your Excellency," said King Yarogelk.

"His Royal Highness King Ragnar asked me to ask Your Highness: 'Which is more important, Kudan City or Ismorola Castle?'" Aix remained calm.

"What are you talking about!" The Kingdom of Yalogerk was a little annoyed by this tepid conversation, and then said angrily:

"Although these two territories are different in size, they are both sacred and inviolable territories of my kingdom!"

Aix smiled and continued:

"So, Your Highness, which one do you think is more of a threat to your country, the Nordic Kingdom or the Khergit Khanate?"

After Aix said this, King Yarogerk fell silent. Aix then went to the place where the map was hung in the hall and pointed to the Ismorola Castle and said:

"Your Highness, please look, this place is important to your country, but it is even more important to the Nordic Kingdom. It not only cuts the Nordic Kingdom into two parts, north and south, but is also only a day's journey from the capital, Sagos. A day's journey with no strategic location is like a sword on the neck of the Nordic Kingdom. What the Nordic Kingdom did this time was just to remove the sword from its neck. Is that wrong?"

Seeing that King Yarogerk remained silent, Aix continued:

"As we all know, the Nord Kingdom made its fortune through maritime trade and has no interest in expanding its territory on land. But that doesn't mean they don't worry about hidden dangers on land. Your country has been holding a sharp knife to the neck of the Nord Kingdom for a long time. Can the Nord Kingdom turn a blind eye?"

"Since they have no interest in land expansion, why do they continue to attack our Jerber Castle?" asked King Yarogelk.

After hearing this, Aix smiled and said:

"Your Highness, do you know how many troops are there in the army attacking Fort Jerbo?"

"More than 300 people?"

"How did they attack? Did they just surround us without attacking?"

Seeing that King Yarogerk fell silent again, Aix continued:

"As far as I know, even the Lord of Iaia in the nearby city of Wocheze can easily gather an army of 1000 people. Such an army can capture the Djerb Castle, which has less than 200 defenders, in one day. Why didn't His Highness the King of Ragnar do the same? Isn't it worth your consideration? Isn't this a kind gesture?

As far as I know, the Khergit Khanate's Sera Khan has different ideas. They are determined to capture Kudan this time. Everyone knows that the Khergits are plunderers. Once they capture Kudan, it will be like opening the door to your country. They can attack and plunder any territory of your country at will. Do you still think that these two territories are equally important?"

King Yarogerk was silent for a while, then he stared at Aix with burning eyes and said:

"How do I know if King Ragnar is sincere in wanting to resolve the issue between the two countries? Will he attack our territory again when I am least prepared?"

Knowing that King Yarogerk was already interested, Aix smiled and continued:

"I heard that there is a kind of leopard called seal in the Nord Sea, and they only eat fish from the sea. I also heard that there is a kind of bear called brown bear in the Vigia Forest, and they only eat fish from the river. So, Your Highness, will the seal in the sea run to the land and compete with the brown bear for fish?"

Seeing King Yarogerk fall into deep thought again, Aix paused for a moment and continued:

"Isn't it a sign of sincerity that King Ragnar has sent your country the food it needs most? As long as Your Highness agrees to reconcile the two countries, King Ragnar only needs a messenger to lift the siege of Jerber Castle.

Once a settlement is reached, Your Highness can deal with the Kugits, who are a serious threat to you, with peace of mind, and the Kingdom of Nord can continue to conduct maritime trade with peace of mind, without having to worry about your country gathering a large army in Fort Ismorola and suddenly attacking the capital of Sagos. Isn't this a win-win situation for both countries? Your Highness. "

When Aix saw a smile on King Yarogelk's stiff face, he knew that the matter was basically settled, so he said no more and waited for his reply.

After a while, King Yarogerk said with a smile:

"Nothing else?"

"Oh and if your country needs it, the Nord Kingdom can provide you with food, as long as Your Highness can pay the right price." Aix replied humorously.

After hearing what Aix said, King Yarogerk laughed, then walked up to Aix, looked at him for a long time, and then said to him:

"As far as I know, you are a newly promoted noble of the Kingdom of Swadia. Why would you work for King Ragnar?"

Aix chuckled and said:

"Your Highness, I am a businessman. What I need most is the friendship of a noble person like Your Highness. I hope that after our two countries reach an agreement, Your Highness will allow me to purchase goods from your country and sell the goods I bring with me."

King Yarogelk's hearty laughter was heard again in the lord's hall.