The Lord Of Blood Hill

Chapter 646: Knight Lynd

Lynd and Potter are seeds Henwell planted when he first walked the Path of Honor.As Henwell slowly rose to power, he began putting more resources into developing them.

During the Marriage Alliance War, Lynd and Potter were already knights, and both earned major military merit.

Afterward, Lynd was ennobled as a knight, though he received no land.

But once he had the title of knight, the path opened up. A knight could form his own private army.

Later, during the Southern Counteroffensive against Ogiro, the two fought as commanders of noble private armies and won more battlefield merit.

Afterward, their combined forces already exceeded a thousand men.

By the time the War of Transformation arrived, Lynd had more than two thousand men under him.

Because of this, after Henwell's wedding, Melissa helped mediate behind the scenes.

When Lawrence was promoted to viscount, Lynd also took the chance to obtain the status of a knight lord.

His territory is only a little over ten square kilometers, but land changes everything.

Peace Haven soon sent people over. With their help, Lynd's territory was built into an important trade relay between Peace Haven and the Eastern Territory.

In just a few short years, that tiny territory became astonishingly prosperous.

The tax income Lynd collects as its lord is enough to make Viscount Lawrence jealous.

Supported by that enormous revenue, Lynd, as a mere knight lord, formed a full-strength warband.

Officially, this elite warband of nearly six thousand men exists to maintain the trade route and protect the local people.

In fact, everyone understands that this is Peace Haven projecting armed deterrence in support of its trade.

Lynd's territory may be small, but even a full legion would not be enough to take it.

Since no conflict has ever broken out there, no one knows exactly how strong Lynd's warband is.

Although Lynd was raised up by Henwell, Henwell has never placed many restrictions on him.

He gave Lynd full autonomy and never treated him like a subordinate to be ordered around at will.

When dealing with Lynd, Henwell acts more like a collaborator.

Lynd himself is no fool. Even setting aside the fact that Henwell once saved his life, Lynd knows how much he owes him.

He went from a commoner to a knight lord with heavy troops and vast daily income in a little over ten years. That can't be explained by ability alone.

There are many people more capable than him. Everything he has today rests on Henwell.

Whether he likes it or not, the moment he met Henwell more than ten years ago, when Henwell was still walking the Path of Honor, and accepted Henwell's help, his fate became bound to Henwell and to Peace Haven.

So Lynd understands clearly that he is a member of Peace Haven and must put Peace Haven's interests first.

Now, after the attached military liaison from Peace Haven's Military Intelligence Office finishes speaking, Lynd barely hesitates.

"We have to take this risk!"

"Tomorrow I will take one hundred cavalry, follow Lawrence's intention, disguise ourselves as bandits, and chase Baron of Waterhill."

"Military Liaison Herson, you will take the remaining nine hundred cavalry. Once Lawrence leads his men away, follow behind them."

"Potter, after we leave, work with the others and start mobilizing the troops."

"Once we send word back, immediately enter a state of war. Lead the troops into the fortress, hold it, and wait for rescue."

Since Lynd, the chief officer, has already given the order, everyone immediately rises, accepts it, and leaves to make arrangements.

The next day, Knight Lynd takes more than a hundred cavalry and pursues Pacino's convoy.

Two days later, Knight Lynd reaches the designated location and finishes all preparations.

During this period, Lawrence also sends men to contact him and confirm the details of the operation again.

That afternoon, a convoy of a dozen large wagons appears in the distance on the official road. It carries a noble banner and travels at an unhurried pace.

Pacino is deeply uneasy. He wants to send his child away, but he also fears someone might intercept the boy and use his son to threaten him.

After learning that the situation has turned bad, he has wanted to turn back more than once, but in the end he grit his teeth and forced himself to keep going.

From this point on, another half month of travel will bring him into the jurisdiction of Cloud Tree City.

Henwell has a reliable ally there. Count Doyle of the Gilbert family was raised up by Henwell himself.

Pacino, who understands how the noble system works, knows that Count Doyle is already bound to Peace Haven.

Others may betray Henwell, but this kind of binding relationship means Doyle must depend on Henwell.

He depends not on Peace Haven, but on Henwell himself.

Just as Pacino is worrying over the road ahead, one of his subordinates reports that someone up ahead has delivered an item.

After seeing the token bearing Peace Haven's emblem, Pacino hesitates for a moment, then orders the man brought over.

Lynd hands over his sword and comes before the carriage.

"Baron, may we speak alone?"

Pacino hesitates again. If this man means him harm, facing him alone would be very dangerous.

Lynd sees his concern. He raises a finger, and fighting spirit bursts out, piercing straight through the carriage's protective steel plate.

"Baron, I am a Battle Knight. If I wanted to harm you, I wouldn't need to go through all this trouble. None of your men could stop me."

Pacino takes a deep breath, steadies himself, and waves for his guards to withdraw.

Lynd says quietly, "Your Excellency, my name is Lynd. I am a knight lord under Viscount Lawrence."

"But I am also Lord Henwell's subordinate. He raised me to this position with his own hands."

"I have only one question. Does Your Excellency hold important information related to Peace Haven or to Lord Henwell?"

Pacino stares at Lynd for a long time, then nods.

"Yes. But I won't tell you..."

Lynd raises a hand to interrupt him. "I don't need to know the contents. I only need to know how important it is."

Pacino says gravely, "It concerns life and death."

Then Pacino adds, "The lives and deaths of many people."

Lynd nods. "Good. From this point on, Baron Pacino, please trust me."

"Viscount Lawrence wants me to kill you. He says this is a secret order from Duke Marcus."

"But I assumed he wanted to frame me and use this chance to remove my forces."

Pacino cuts in, "It may not be that! Duke Marcus and the others seem to be doing something behind Henwell's back!"

Lynd shakes his head. "Whether this comes from the duke or not, the urgent problem is how we deal with Viscount Lawrence and his men, who will soon catch up."

"I don't need Baron Pacino's help. I only need your trust. Do not take the chance to run."

"Otherwise, there will be no way for us to protect you on the road ahead."

"If we are lucky, we can reach Peace Haven without fighting."

"If we are unlucky, then from today onward, the whole journey will be filled with danger."

Pacino smiles bitterly.

"Heh... No need to think about it. My luck is definitely terrible. Otherwise, I would not have been dragged into this mess."