Chapter 183: Pine Forest Town (Lower) _1 |
Under the ruthless cold wind, the streets of Pine Forest Town were scarcely populated.
The unbearable price of grain was causing a continuous loss of residents in this small town of the North Territory, resulting in an even more desolate scene.
Reportedly, the hot-tempered Lord had taken more than a thousand soldiers to the Ice Rock City, vowing to bring back those fled subjects.
However, before any subjects were returned, a startling piece of news arrived
The Lord of Pine Forest, Baron Lomba, had been killed in Ice Rock City!
No one knew where this news originated, but it quickly spread across the town. Within a day, almost everyone in Pine Forest knew about it.
But strangely, members of the Lomba family did not confirm the veracity of this piece of information.
Of course, they did not deny it either.
For a while, the streets and alleys, taverns and inns of Pine Forest were all buzzing with discussions about this shocking news.
The word was that the person who had assassinated Baron Lomba was a knight from the Eastern Territory.
The original target of this knight from the East was, in fact, Viscount Angler – the North Territory Lord who had personally dismantled the Pegasus Army. At the time, Baron Lomba was accompanying Viscount Angler. In the ensuing chaos, the assassin accidentally killed the wrong person
Poor Baron Lomba, bewilderingly became the “scapegoat” for Viscount Angler.
However, with the help of Viscount Angler, the assassin was caught and sentenced to hanging. The corpse had been displayed in the square of Ice Rock City for a day and a night.
These detailed accounts further substantiated the news. Most residents of Pine Forest Town had come to believe that their lord had indeed met his unfortunate end in Ice Rock City.
As night fell deeper, the Lomba family castle remained brightly lit.
Family members were gathered in the hall, engaged in fierce argument.
The eldest son of Baron Lomba, White Lomba, was watching his quarrelsome relatives with a gloomy expression, his mind filled with impatience and frustration.
His father’s death caught White off guard, and what’s more, he smelled a strong whiff of conspiracy.
How could it just so happen that an Eastern Territory assassin would strike when his father visited Viscount Angler, and even manage to kill the wrong person?
Unfortunately, the family knight who returned to Pine Forest Town confirmed the identity of the assassin indeed a knight from the Eastern Territory, and a quite famous fourth-rank knight at that.
The assassin had participated in the battle of Silver Moon City and had gone missing after the battle. He indeed had a blood feud with Viscount Angler, making the motive for the assassination very plausible.
However, White still believed that Viscount Angler must have some connection to his father’s death!
After all, his father went to Ice Rock City in the first place to pick a fight with him
Just as White was engrossed in his thoughts, he suddenly heard someone calling his name.
He looked up and saw the butler looking at him with concern: “Young master, are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
“Young master, then you must make a decision quickly?”
“What decision?”
The crowd looked at a vacant-looking White, and they were all speechless. It seemed that their young master had not been listening to them at all
In the end, the butler patiently explained: “Young Master White, due to the recent death of the master, Pine Forest is in total chaos. Furthermore, our best troops are still in Ice Rock City. We have detected that some people with ill-intent have been stirring up the food-deprived commoners, preparing to seize the town’s granaries!”
“So, what should we do next? Please make a decision!”
White’s brow furrowed even tighter in a split second. He hadn’t expected to encounter the early signs of a rebellion in Pine Forest Town at such a critical moment.
The previous slave rebellion had already exhausted the Lomba family. If another uprising among the commoners occurred, particularly at such a sensitive time, White seriously doubted if his family could survive it.
“Notify the whole town that a curfew will be implemented starting tonight ”
Just as White started to speak, he suddenly realized that a commotion had violently brewed outside the castle. Pillars of fire lighting up the dark sky, cries of battle rooting out the tranquil night.
Upon seeing this, all members of the Lomba family were instantly panicked and looked to White for help.
White was equally panicked but attempted to remain calm, ordering the family’s knights to gather the army immediately to suppress the rebellion.
By this time, Pine Forest Town had indeed descended into chaos.
All sorts of rumors sprung up from unknown sources, but they spread like a plague in no time.
Some said the Lomba family was preparing to take the town’s last food storage and flee.
Others said the trolls were about to invade again and this year’s spring ploughing had lost all hope.
There were also rumors that when Baron Lomba went to Ice Rock City, he took all the elite soldiers of the family away, leaving Pine Forest Town defenseless
The town was ridden with fear, restlessness, and growing greed, stirring up the residents who had long suffered from a severe shortage of food.
No one knew who had shouted the first words, who had started the first fire, but this fire quickly swept across Pine Forest Town like a wildfire.
The riot was thus ignited.
As the first glimmers of dawn dispersed the heavy fog in the wild, an army was slowly marching towards Pine Forest Town.
“Viscount, Pine Forest Town is not far ahead, there’s really no need for you to continue on this journey. We are entirely capable of escorting the late Baron’s remains back,” Knight Mark respectfully advised Colin.
This Lomba family knight was particularly wary of the young lord of Ice Rock City. He also found the Baron’s death quite suspicious.
“Ah, Baron Lomba died in Ice Rock City, and I can’t escape the responsibility that comes with it. Let me accompany him to Pine Forest Town. Moreover, given the frequent rebellions in the North Territory, I am also worried about your safety on the journey back,” said Colin.
Inwardly, Knight Mark thought- the biggest calamity has already occurred in your Ice Rock City.
But faced with the strong-willed Viscount Angler, he couldn’t change anything and simply suppressed his worries within his heart, continuing the silent march towards Pine Forest Town.
After a while, a scout knight returned with a report: “Viscount, there is an enormous fire ahead in Pine Forest Town, it seems a rebellion has occurred!”
“What?”
Knight Mark was still in shock, but Colin had already made a decisive decision on the spot:
“Issue my orders to the army, speed up, and suppress the rebellion in the town!”
“Viscount, it should only be a minor slave rebellion. We, the Lomba family, are completely capable of handling it ourselves. There’s no need to trouble you ”
Knight Mark still didn’t want the Angler family’s army to enter Pine Forest Town. However, Colin ignored him and issued the orders regardless.
“Knight Mark, there’s no need for such formality. As fellow vassals of Duke St. Hilde, we should help each other! Dark Cavalry, charge!”
At his command, the already prepared Dark Cavalry rode out like a surging tide, speeding towards Pine Forest Town.
Knight Mark stared blankly at the departing cavalry. The unease in his heart had intensified to the extreme.