Chapter 1388 - 747: Decision-Making_2

Chapter 1388: Chapter 747: Decision-Making_2

But everything was suppressed by the Lord, all those issues were shelved, and the main force was focused on dealing with the evil cult.

The simplest was when the Bastia Order of Knights came fighting, and it was settled by paying them off.

Now the Lord’s mention of this shift indicates what the upcoming direction will be.

And Lance didn’t bother to hide his intentions, very openly revealing his goal.

"Today, I have gathered you here to tell you that I will reclaim the entirety of Hamlet next."

This development excited the military personnel since they enjoy this honor and ought to fight for Hamlet; only war can forge their glory.

The others had little to say about it, as they couldn’t change the Lord’s strategy on such a significant direction.

"Military personnel stay, the rest go back quickly and sort out the detailed situation during Extreme Darkness and Blood Moon. This relates to the formulation of subsequent policies."

"Yes!"

The crowd responded, and more than half of the conference room departed, leaving only Barton, Reynard, and the others.

Lance disliked dawdling when conducting business, so once the primary mission was decided, he began explaining the situation on the map.

"Hamlet’s east side is the sea, the north has ruins, the northwest is the mountain range, so..."

From the map, it’s clear that the areas occupied by Hamlet mainly lie to the west, southwest, and south.

Among these, Bastia primarily sits in the west, also covering a large area, with the strongest military fortifications, though much of it is highland and mountainous.

Ovando, on the other hand, is to the southwest, the throat of Hamlet’s old route to the outside world, precisely why it was controlled by the imperial emperor to seal off Hamlet. However, things have changed now.

The first two are well-known to all, while to the south, there aren’t any Earls but rather three Barons.

The strength of the territories has nothing to do with ranks, but with courage.

Bastia wasn’t originally an Earl’s domain; it was because he repelled the Barbarian Tribes, maintaining a peaceful border for over a decade, forcing the emperor to confer him as Earl.

Meanwhile, the three in the south took advantage of Hamlet’s decline during a great catastrophe to annex and grow; in reality, their territories are larger than a Viscount’s.

Hence, the difference between nominal title and actual control is vast. The Empire’s feudal aristocracy has minimal restraint, especially when the entire Hamlet Region is far from the Empire’s core, belonging to the Northern Territory border, making this situation even more apparent.

But these fellows do not need to face external threats, so their war preparations are usual, mainly relying on the system of noble warfare.

The main force includes those noble knights with fiefdoms, supplemented by serf soldiers recruited at the onset of war.

Intelligence estimates suggest the three can muster about fifty-plus noble knights, each accompanied by one or two squires; some will join father and son onto the field, barely reaching two hundred mounted.

Add to this the local lords, who should have some cavalry or archers, estimating one hundred each, that totals three hundred. ℯℯ𝘭.

This suggests their three families have a war potential of two hundred knights, one hundred cavalry, two hundred archers.

The combined core force is only around five hundred strong.

But after years of peace without major battles, Bastia has neglected war readiness, causing issues; they likely wouldn’t fare any better, with some combat power needing further deduction.

Regarding serf soldiers, based on the population, the three families could pull out two to three thousand, or fiercely up to five thousand is possible.

However, this is the collective calculation for all three; can they really work together?

The intrigue among nobles is never scarce...

"All these are estimations based on intelligence, only for reference; the real situation might be more complex, as I can’t say for sure if any Transcendents will be involved, that’s an uncontrollable variable."

Saying this, Lance raised his head to signal everyone, "Let’s hear it, what are your thoughts?"

"Bastia’s terrain is primarily mountainous, with fortified cities, and better prepared for war; I think we should first deal with the easy targets and leave the hard bones for last."

"But wouldn’t we be giving Bastia more time to prepare by doing so? If we take down Bastia first and carry the momentum of victory straight through to Ovando, the rest won’t pose much of a threat."

"Indeed, if Bastia can truly consolidate the territory’s strength, those with their own interests may not unite even given the time..."

Opinions were shared and discussed among the parties, and Lance also pondered.

Considering future battles would involve more artillery, he sensed this was a chance to truly stage a large-scale battle, not just fighting skeletons but clashing with the true core of the noble system, the knights.

Only by crushing them can we truly symbolize the arrival of a new era.

"I want to fight a real tough battle."

When Lance spoke, everyone paused their arguments and looked toward the Lord, awaiting orders.

"The forces in the entire south, even united, are only five thousand strong, mostly serf soldiers; my Hamlet possesses three thousand professional soldiers, more than enough to handle them.

This time we will"

"My lord, shouldn’t we leave some soldiers behind to ensure safety? Especially around the ruins, with wilderness attacks on the rise."

Someone reminded, not to forget there’s a "bomb" among us; pulling everyone out might lead to instability.

"The military is always for external affairs; there are police, armed police, reserves, and militia for internal issues, leave these matters to them."

Lance’s confidence was simple; he never planned to send out the Honor Guard but left them internally.

While preparing to reclaim the territory, Lance also intended to sort out internal matters properly.

As no one knows Hamlet better than him, many matters previously overlooked for concentrated efforts need addressing.

"Now the entire military is on leave, and the operation time is set for three days later when the leave ends, with the operation codename ’Spring Cleaning’. We will clean the house for a good year."

Having little interest in mundane human wars, Lance decided to employ the simplest strategy by just rolling over the opposition.

"Let me reiterate, our primary mission henceforth is to reclaim all of Hamlet. I don’t care who stands in our way, crush them for me!"

"Yes!"

"Now let’s have a chat about the remnants of the evil cult that infiltrated here..."

In military matters, Lance always held the reins, neither Grendel nor Baldwin intervened.

However, launching a military campaign undeniably requires support from all sides.

Otherwise, there’s no such saying as "soldiers march on their stomachs," and information operations precede military ones.

Talks of Hamlet Region’s occupation history, the suffering of Hamlet’s People under noble rule, their oppression—somehow these topics began to spread.

Yet that wasn’t enough; Lance was waiting.

Waiting for those remnants of the evil cult to appear—he even suppressed news about those guys, ensuring most remained unaware.

Lance prepared to let those guys rush in, giving the Hamlet’s People on holiday a small shock, as long as the situation was controlled.

He acted so simply because Hamlet had been without those lands for far too long.

Over a decade by now meant a change of generations, and the current Hamlet’s People were from elsewhere.

In essence, there was little relation between the parties; from the common people’s perspective, it was hard to grasp why Lord paused and then started war again.

Thus, a thank-you was in order for the evil cult, even as it provided him a reason.

Nothing works better than an evil cult; those supporting the cult’s invasion must be the bad ones.

This highlights the importance of justified warfare; he needs broad support.

And soon, Laura and others returning from reconnaissance brought back news to Hamlet...