The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

The war had already begun, and the Knight Order of the Duchy of Sapphire participated, mainly to harass the enemy, restraining more of the Eagle Kingdom's Knight Orders.

Therefore, after resting for a day in Comb City, the fleets set sail, attacking the predetermined Sardine Bay Area.

Marquis Zhilíng also dispatched a large number of his followers to join the fleets of the Duchy of Sapphire and attack the Sardine Bay Area. On the fleet of the Tulip Family, Earl Qing Shi, one of Marquis Zhilíng's followers, and his associated Knight Order, which included nearly a thousand Knights, were present.

"Herbert, this is my second son, Liszt. He is Viscount Black Horse Island, an Elite Earth Knight," Earl Li Weiliam introduced to Earl Qing Shi who had just boarded the ship.

"A very handsome young man, looks very young. Liszt, how old are you?" Earl Qing Shi, Herbert, asked.

"Seventeen years old, Earl Qing Shi."

In the Continental Kingdom, noble titles are not named after places, but are related to the titles of their territories. For example, Marquis Zhilíng's title "Zhilíng" means the feathers of a wild pheasant, derived from his territory, the Rooster Pheasant Hills, and the central city of his land is also called Comb City.

It was the same for Earl Qing Shi. His territory was Qing Shi Valley, which was covered with a kind of green rock.

As for his full name, it was Herbert Tie Chuilan.

Tie Chuilan is a type of flower.

The surnaming convention in the Continental Kingdom is not much different from that of the Duchy of Sapphire—in the serf class among the commoners, there are basically no surnames; in the wealthier freeman class, they have lowly surnames; some small nobles extend these lowly surnames or change to more common ones.

Only the mid- and high-ranking nobles can have beautiful words such as flowers, grains, or metals as their surnames.

Although there are no explicit rules about surnames, commoners who dare to use nice words as surnames would be punished by their landlords. Even some small nobles who used lovely words as surnames were attacked by the high nobility and even destroyed.

Earl Qing Shi seemed like a straightforward person and directly asked, "Being an Elite Earth Knight at seventeen, you have good talent. As the second son of Earl Li Weiliam, did you earn the title of Viscount Black Horse Island through your own achievements on the battlefield?"

"Yes."

"When did you join the battlefield?"

"This year."

"This year?" Earl Qing Shi was surprised.

Earl Li Weiliam said indifferently, "Herbert, you should know that the Duchy of Sapphire has encountered a rebellion. Liszt made meritorious deeds in the Battle of Iron Hoof Island, advancing from Baron to Viscount Black Horse Island."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"I've heard of the Battle of Iron Hoof Island. To be promoted to Viscount after a single battle means your son must have performed exceptionally well," Qing Shi remarked.

"He has an Intermediate Earth Attribute Magical Beast as a pet, which has captured castles multiple times in battle, and displayed outstanding performance in the final decisive battle, winning the appreciation of Prince Anthony."

"Li Weiliam, will he inherit your title?" Herbert suddenly asked.

Liszt answered for himself, "Earl Qing Shi, my older brother Levis is the heir, and he is also an Elite Earth Knight."

"It's enviable to have so many outstanding offspring in the family."

After exchanging pleasantries, Herbert and Li Weiliam entered the cabin together while Liszt stayed at the bow. He still needed to train the Eight Tiny Ones and Douson, as they were about to enter the battlefield, and he was still somewhat concerned about their obedience and discipline since they were all immature juveniles.

They hadn't even reached the age of one year and so far could only use the Rock Spike Magic.

…

Just as Captain Layden had said.

The Coral Island fleet had just arrived at the coastline, and without experiencing a single battle, they already possessed a small port, complete with a city and a castle that were barely larger than a small town.

The Lord of this territory, upon hearing of the invaders' attack, had fled his domain early on.

Thus, the knights of the Coral Island Knights and the Qing Shi Knight Order disembarked at the port. Using this place as a springboard, they launched their invasion into the Sardine Bay Area. Soldiers value speed, and without any pause or preparation, the knights of the Knight Order entered a state of war.

Li Si Te had no time to contemplate the suddenness of the war; he mounted a Landwalker Bird and followed at the Earl's side. Looting towns, cities, besieging castles, and clashing with the Knight Orders that came to resist.

Without much strategy, it was just primal, savage charging, charging, and more charging. In previous Pioneer Mandate battles, the Coral Island Knights seldom attacked named castles because they were easy to defend but hard to attack. However, this time with Douson and the Eight Tiny Ones aiding, they bulldozed their way through.

In just a day and a half, the Coral Island Knights, now separated from the Qing Shi Knight Order, had penetrated three hundred kilometers inland and reached a named castle by the river—the River Bay Fort.

"Douson, prepare for the siege!"

"Eight Tiny Ones, follow Douson's lead!"

"On my command, Rock Spike!"

The Earl swept through the battlefield, and Li Si Te personally directed the Blizzard Beast, starting the dismantling of River Bay Fort; meanwhile, the other knights from the Knight Order shot arrows relentlessly to suppress any counterattack from the fort.

Moments later.

A wall of River Bay Fort thunderously collapsed, and Viscount Jonas charged at the forefront towards the breach in the castle. Soon after, all knights swarmed into River Bay Fort and within less than ten minutes, the viscount's castle fell to the might of the Coral Island Knights' strong attack.

The Viscount Lord died in battle.

"Take captive all the Earth Knights and tally the resources of the castle," instructed Earl Li Weiliam, who hadn't taken part in the battle and had been strolling through the fight, now began directing the mopping up, "Captain Mickey, send out the Rats to contact the nearby Mercenary Corps, and let's proceed with the resource trade. Additionally, keep a close eye on the Knight Orders of the surrounding domains and be ready for battle at any moment."

"Yes, my lord!"

Unlike previous captures used for ransom, this time the Grand Duke allowed his followers to recruit captives themselves, so none of the Earth Knights taken in war were disabled; they were all subjects for recruitment.

The Earl was only interested in Elite Earth Knights, particularly those who were younger, had lower titles or had no titles at all. It wasn't Liszt's turn to select Elite Earth Knights yet. His target was the younger Earth Knights, preferably single ones.

Such Earth Knights, once recruited to his own territory and arranged with marriages, would soon breed loyalty.

Earl Li Weiliam gazed at the bound Earth Knights.

He spoke slowly, "You are now my captives, and your lives are in my hands. Now, I grant you the right to choose. One, write to your families, your Lords, to pay a ransom that satisfies me, and you may return; two, if you cannot afford the ransom, you may pledge your loyalty to me and my followers!"

Over forty uninjured Earth Knights glanced at each other, disheveled—they were familiar with the options of capture and loyalty in continental wars, but the Grand Duchy of Sapphire typically did not accept loyalty pledges from captives, leaving them pondering why this time was different.

Twenty-one knights elected to pay the ransom.

The remaining twenty-six knights chose loyalty.

First, the Earl made his selection, taking only three young Elite Earth Knights; then, it was the turn of three Viscounts to choose in turns. Liszt had the highest military achievements, placing him in the first position to choose one knight. He looked over the remaining Earth Knights. Among them, there were only two elites—one old and one middle-aged.

Without a doubt, he chose the middle-aged Elite Earth Knight.

"Tell me your name," Liszt commanded, clad in a resplendent suit of Mithril Armor, his demeanor authoritative. Despite his youth, during the battle, these knights had clearly seen that he was surrounded by a host of powerful Magical Beasts.

Thus.

The excitement was evident in the middle-aged Elite Earth Knight's eyes, "My lord, my name is Veddry Woodkindle, thirty-seven years old. I have been an Elite Earth Knight for eight years and hold no titles."