Chapter 513: Chapter 486: Three Major Cities

Although Mist City had been occupied by the Noble Alliance Army, Bruno hadn’t appointed anyone to govern it, so the city descended into a period of chaos.

The various noble houses carved up their own territories, with most engaging in the trafficking of Peasant Slaves and the plundering of wealth and supplies.

Ronin didn’t approve, but in the context of the times, the Noble Alliance Army’s actions were to be expected.

To them, war meant not only glory, but also wealth. If you didn’t loot, someone else would.

Ronin also had his own territory within Mist City—several of the larger, more affluent districts, as had been decided among the nobles.

However, he reined in his subordinates. He forbade them from kicking down the doors of Mist City’s residents to steal their wealth like common bandits, and even arranged for men to pacify the populace and maintain order.

While this behavior was rather unconventional and made him seem like he wasn’t part of the group, with Ronin’s current Power, what did it matter if he didn’t fit in?

Besides, he hadn’t told the other nobles not to do as they pleased.

As for rewarding the officers and soldiers for their victory, Ridder, Macken, and the others had already drawn up a plan. All they had to do was distribute the rewards accordingly.

Gold Coins, Armor, Weapons, land, houses—Ronin had abundant resources to hand out.

However, there was one task Ronin couldn’t avoid: he had to screen the populace for any members of the Alien Races who might have infiltrated the city. At the same time, any merchant guilds, families, or other groups with close ties to the enemy Kingdom had to be detained and dealt with separately.

Deep in the night, Ronin reviewed the recent war, searching for areas where he could have performed better. The most pressing need, he concluded, was intelligence gathering.

Had he known in advance that so many of the Alien Races were hiding in Mist City, he would have been better prepared.

In light of this, Ronin decided to have Sophia contact Harmon. While Harmon continued gathering major intelligence, he was to build a network in the cities south of Mist City. Ronin hoped that by the next siege, they would have internal intelligence feeding them information.

Beyond the lack of intelligence, he also came to a new understanding of Carlos’s role in battle.

A Giant Dragon had its advantages. For example, it could lead the charge, turning the top of the city walls into a sea of fire with a single Flame Breath. Against a city without powerful defenses, that alone could be enough for an army to breach the walls.

But a Giant Dragon also had its disadvantages. When surrounded, its massive body made it an easy target.

Ronin had actually asked Carlos if he could shrink his body to become more agile.

Unfortunately, Carlos would only gain the ability to change his size after becoming one of the Legendary Creatures. He would even be able to speak at that point.

However, given the immense number of Energy Essences Carlos required to advance, his ascension to a Legendary Creature was not something that would happen in just a year or two.

While he was handling affairs in Mist City, Viscount Willis’s funeral was held in Black Jade Bay, and Ronin was invited to attend.

This family, which owned the Black Jade Ore and possessed immense wealth, no longer had Willis at its helm. However, his son was a Golden Knight and was proving to be quite capable.

Furthermore, with Willis’s son-in-law, the Meteor Knight Edmond, still around, outsiders wouldn’t dare to target the family so easily.

Of course, their situation was certainly not as secure as when Willis and Nikola were alive.

So, during the funeral, the new Patriarch, William Black Jade, approached Ronin and revealed his desire to form a marriage alliance with the Wushan Clan.

In hindsight, Viscount Willis’s suggestion to introduce his granddaughter to Bretton before the assault on Mist City hadn’t been a spur-of-the-moment idea. He must have discussed it with his son long before, otherwise William wouldn’t be making this proposal now.

It was, in fact, quite understandable.

Lurans, the long-renowned Thunderbolt Marquis, had recovered his former Power, which meant the Wushan Clan was destined to step onto a much grander stage.

More importantly, there was Ronin: the Kingdom’s new Marquis, a Proud Sun Knight, a Dragon rider, and holder of a string of other titles.

With those two at the helm, the Wushan Clan was sure to become a behemoth in the future.

A marriage alliance with such a family was something every noble house would desire.

In truth, quite a few nobles had already come knocking on the gates of Wushan Castle, but Willis had been the first to approach Ronin personally.

Ronin obliged and met with William’s daughter, Lilia.

The sixteen-year-old girl was rather quiet, but her talent for Magic was indeed impressive, likely on par with Erin. She was already on the verge of breaking through to become a Senior Mage.

Coincidentally, Bretton was also sixteen. Now an Advanced Level Knight, his own talent was equally outstanding.

In that respect, Lilia and Bretton seemed like a good match.

Moreover, William had offered a portion of the operating rights to the Black Jade Ore as a dowry. The terms were excellent, and there was a high probability the match could be made.

However, a matter like this was best left for Lurans, Wiggin, and Dianey to decide.

Ronin could at most offer his opinion; it clearly wasn’t his place to make the final decision.

Thus, William decided that once things here were settled, he would take Lilia to visit Wushan Castle.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was past mid-September.

An envoy from the Tricia Kingdom arrived in Mist City, bringing several cartloads of money, treasures, and Extraordinary items in a plea for a truce.

This was already in line with Bruno’s decision, so Commander Gushan accepted the supplies and agreed to their request for a three-month truce.

However, when they tried to ransom back their more powerful Knights, such as Count Ural and Viscount Placido, Gushan rejected them without hesitation.

After all, the war had only just begun. While a truce suited both sides, releasing these men could cause untold trouble in the future.

It wouldn’t be worth it to let Count Ural go for a bit of money, only for him to kill one of their own nobles on the battlefield later. The loss would far outweigh the gain.

Even though it was a truce, they couldn’t afford to relax their defenses.

Many nobles returned to their own lands but left their troops stationed in Mist City.

Ronin was no exception. Mist City was now their forward base, so he stationed Ridder there, tasking him with keeping an eye on Watchtower Castle.

Carlos soared through the sky, carrying Ronin back toward Moonlight Valley.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Ronin had been gone for nearly half a month, and Blanche missed him every day. Sometimes, she was tempted to ride a Griffin to the front lines just to see him.

However, she also had to manage the affairs of Moonlight Valley. After some thought, she gave up the idea, figuring that if she had that kind of time, she might as well visit the Wubei Territory instead.

As the Marchioness, it was her right to inspect her husband’s territory, something Ronin had approved of.

Now that Ronin had returned, the two of them naturally shared an intimate reunion.

After their passion subsided, Ronin held Blanche as they rested. Listening to his wife recount the various odds and ends of the territory, he felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

"Ronin, Jenny sent a letter. She said Uncle Simon has made progress with the steam train and steamships. Also, the construction of Wubei Port is moving faster than expected. They estimate a trial run by the end of the year, with official completion around May or June of next year."

Blanche snuggled into Ronin’s embrace and said with a smile, "Oh, right! Wubei City is also starting to take shape. The number of people working and living there has reached one hundred thousand. Just as you planned, Purple Thunder City, Moonlight City, and Wubei City have all reached the one-hundred-thousand population mark."

"That’s wonderful news!"

Ronin was a little surprised. "I don’t recall a large influx of outsiders into Wubei City. Where did the extra twenty thousand or so people come from?"

"The entire Wubei Territory has over two hundred thousand people now. The grain harvests have been good for the past two years, so population growth has been rapid. The net increase in the Wubei Territory alone has been over thirty thousand."

Blanche explained, "The Wubei Territory currently has two major centers of employment. One is the coal mine in Swamp Town, which requires a lot of manual labor, and the other is the construction of Wubei City."

"The demand for labor attracts people to these two places to make a living. So, it’s not true that the Wubei Territory has no influx of outsiders."

Ronin couldn’t help but look at her in surprise. "Impressive. How do you know all this in such detail?"

"I’ve been very diligent!"

Blanche stuck out her tongue playfully. "Besides my Magic Cultivation, I go to the Wubei Territory whenever I have free time," she said proudly. "It’s a way for me to learn more about your past, and I can also study how you manage a territory so I can apply it in Moonlight Valley."

"Excellent. You truly are my great stewardess!"

Ronin chuckled and leaned down, beginning a new round of exploration. "To reward your diligence, I’ll have to be diligent myself!"

"Ah! No, please! Tonight has been... enough!"

"How can there ever be enough of this?"

Passion once again filled the room.

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