When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

#550 - Andre's assist

Compared to Upper Swire, which still felt the returning cold, Hottam, located on the plains, fully enjoyed the benefits of the Emerald Sea's warm currents.

While the mountain knights of North Mund were still wearing wool linings and tweed robes, the people of Hottam County had already switched to short jackets or dresses made of light wool.

Some, eager to cool off, were even wearing linen shirts and leather vests.

In the past, Flowing Falls Castle in the spring after the thaw would have been bustling with people, citizens enjoying the spring scenery, merchant ships on the Nauan River, and nobles traveling for hunting, all crowding this prosperous area.

But this spring, although the sunlight was still bright and the river water still clear, Flowing Falls Castle was much more desolate.

The sides of Royal Avenue were no longer filled with farmers heading to the market and vendors pushing carts, but with groups of beggars and displaced people.

Especially near the Edict Legions' camps and important castles, many artisans who had been forced to sign indentures and IOUs wore tattered clothes, walking like living corpses on the spring-blooming land.

These people hardly needed any mobilization; just a few words and they were willing to follow the Holy Grandson's Righteous Army, or rather, the current Hottam County rebel army.

Dressed as a beggar with mud smeared on his face, Andre and several companions arrived at a riverside.

This place was originally a noble's hunting ground, and the patrolling forest rangers and knights would never have allowed beggars like Andre to enter.

But today, the few knights who were close confidants of Count Samboli seemed not to see Andre and his group, allowing them to walk straight into the hunting ground.

Breaking through the bushes and picking dodder off his woolen trousers, Andre used his cane to part the weeds, revealing a clearing in the forest with a pond.

On the rocks shaded by trees, a middle-aged man wearing a silk shirt and a black jacket with ripped bubble sleeves sat upright.

Compared to Andre's mud-covered face and relaxed demeanor, this middle-aged noble with slicked-back hair looked much more anxious.

"I didn't expect Count to come; I thought it would be Westerel," Andre said, leaning on his cane and taking off his tattered hat.

Compared to before winter, Andre had gained some weight, indicating that the nobles' support for the rebels was considerable.

Count Samboli clearly had no intention of wasting words with Andre, and he asked directly, "The Shadowless seem to be investigating something, and they're about to investigate Westerel. Do you know what's going on?"

"You're asking me? Who should I ask?" Andre pretended to be depressed. "I'm also being targeted by the Shadowless. They killed one of my loyal subordinates for some reason, just to steal a note I wrote from his hand."

Samboli walked back and forth in the shade of the trees several times. "I have a piece of inside information: Prince Condé is suspected of intercepting a communication between you and the warlock Horn."

In fact, Andre knew very well that it wasn't just inside information; it was clearly an informant planted in Prince Condé's army.

Prince Condé knew to use intelligence personnel to gain advantages and monitor these restless nobles, but did these nobles not know to monitor Prince Condé in return?

For them, these local snakes, it was easy to plant a few people in Prince Condé's labor force or even the Edict Legions.

"We communicate with His Majesty often; it's nothing serious."

"Did you send the other secret letters we sent through Westerel to that Horn to see?"

Andre stared at Samboli, and after a long while, he slowly opened his mouth, "I can guarantee that I didn't, but I'm not sure about Valenteller. You know, he's in cahoots with the Salvation Army."

"Damn it." Samboli originally wanted to scold a few words, but realizing that he and Andre couldn't control the stubborn Valenteller, he could only give up.

With Prince Condé's departure, the great mountain that had been suppressing the local nobles disappeared, and their control returned once again.

Barnifoss, whom Prince Condé had high hopes for to monitor them, treated Prince Condé's expectations as farts.

He almost completely ignored the nobles' outrageous actions.

The Laya Civil War and the schism in the Holy See had caused Barnifoss to lose his two major supports, religious and secular, and he had obediently followed orders.

But along with the first spring breeze of 1446 blowing into Flowing Falls Castle, came not only the warm currents from the ocean, but also the battle reports and edicts of Duke Luel and Duke Nedbach.

The two royal dukes, supported by the local great nobles, forcefully advanced their troops to River Isle, which was almost under the walls of Longsong City.

Although Ginigis had 17 Edict Legions in his hands, the two royal dukes also had 16 Edict Legions.

Prince Condé, who could have played a decisive role, was mired in the quagmire of the Thousand River Valley uprising, having lost 5 Edict Legions and basically losing the possibility of getting to the table.

So the original confrontation between the two sides began to gradually escalate.

For Ginigis, whose foundation was shallow, he could hardly mobilize any troops outside of the Edict Legions and could only use mercenaries.

The two dukes, after promising a series of privileges, received the support of a large number of local nobles and obtained a large number of serfs and powerful infantry.

Within half a year, this sudden civil war would end with the victory of the two brothers.

This meant that the Laya Civil War was about to end, and the Church was about to return.

Even if they didn't attack Prince Condé, Prince Condé wouldn't resist the Holy See's restoration of governance over the churches in the Thousand River Valley, right?

Prince Condé had no say in Barnifoss's promotions, demotions, rewards, and punishments.

Those who could truly intervene were the cathedral canons of the various dioceses, who were mostly members of local noble families.

What Prince Condé wanted to win was the title of Prince of the Thousand River Valley, which meant that the lords of the Thousand River Valley's legal territory had to be loyal to him.

But this didn't mean that he could arbitrarily cleanse the nobles, unless they rebelled or converted.

Otherwise, neither canon law nor the noble law of Laya allowed superior lords to arbitrarily deprive the territories of counts or higher nobles.

This kind of illegal behavior was what the warlock Horn did.

"You haven't really rebelled, have you? Even if you're discovered, you'll only get a fine," Andre said with his usual composure. "I'm in a terrible situation; I'll really be hanged."

Samboli looked at Andre's calm demeanor, on the one hand marveling at his carefree attitude, and on the other hand feeling helpless. "His Highness the Prince may have evidence of my treason in his hands. How could you be so careless?

Alas, this matter is not worth much on the scales, but once it is put on the scales, it will be more than a thousand pounds. He has long wanted to attack me; I'm going to lose a layer of skin this time."

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If the nobles hated Horn because he illegally cleansed the nobles,

then they hated Molliati because she tried to amend the local laws of the Thousand River Valley so that she could legally deprive the nobles of some of their privileges.

The reason why the nobles opposed Prince Condé now was because Prince Condé was doing illegal things under the guise of legality.

The laws of the Thousand River Valley were left by the ancestors and cannot be changed!

Especially the laws involving territory. Prince Condé had sent people to arbitrarily divide fields and land before he even became the Prince of the Thousand River Valley.

If he really became the prince, what would happen?

Prince Condé had 5 Edict Legions standing beside him, and behind him were large and small Laya knights and remnants of the previous dynasty.

"Lord Samboli, we are one, aren't we?" Andre crossed his legs. "I have an idea; will you listen?"

"Speak."

"Instead of you being anxious alone, why not make all the nobles anxious? You spread rumors that Prince Condé has control of everyone's evidence and is preparing to cleanse everyone, wouldn't that be good?"

After foreshadowing for so long, Andre finally revealed his true colors at the last moment.

Don't underestimate his intelligence network. If the nobles could plant informants in Prince Condé's army, wouldn't Andre be able to do the same?

Combining the news that "Gray Knight Vayne intended to surrender and offer evidence of noble collusion but was regarded as sowing discord" with the intelligence that the Shadowless were investigating his handwriting,

Andre almost instantly concluded that Prince Condé was suffering from paranoia.

Given the current desperate situation, although he didn't know how much chance of winning he could add, it was better than doing nothing.

"Joke, even if he is suspicious, can he deprive me of my century-old foundation?" Samboli replied half amused and half disdainfully. "You want to stir up the waters of Hottam County; it's not that easy."

Andre didn't reply, but took out a pocket watch from his arms and looked at the time.

"What? What are you waiting for?" Samboli frowned.

Andre still didn't speak. He looked up at the sky and then down at his pocket watch.

"Speak! You are in front of the Count!" Seeing Andre not replying for a long time, Samboli angrily stepped forward, but as soon as he spoke, he heard a burst of hurried footsteps.

"Lord..." The knight pushed aside the bushes.

Samboli turned his head sharply. "What's wrong?"

"Westerel... Westerel, he, he's dead!" The attendant knight's opening almost made Samboli stagger and fall.

Westerel, the one who helped the nobles contact the Holy Grandson's Righteous Army, was dead!

Right after the Shadowless investigated him!

He turned his head and glared at Andre in disbelief, trembling as he asked with the last glimmer of hope, "Who killed him? Can you find out?"

"It has been found out; it was a black market thug," the attendant knight gasped. "Our people."