[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela":3,"chapter-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-8":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Exiled from the Start and Dominating the Wasteland with an Intelligence System",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1688608,2155,"Chapter 8 : Chapter 8","exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-8",8,"\u003Cp>Chapter 8. A Pair of Worthies\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wagon wheels no longer rolled over gravel paths, but over rough, reddish soil that grew increasingly coarse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sparse drought-resistant shrubs had replaced the lush woodland, and the air was filled with a dry, arid breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After more than ten days of travel, Eli’s frontier party had completely penetrated deep into the kingdom’s western frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli rode atop his chestnut horse. Even the raven on his shoulder, Coalball, seemed infected by the vastness of the land, occasionally letting out a dull, heavy “caw.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked as far as he could into the distance. The horizon twisted beneath waves of heat, stretching boundlessly in every direction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A feeling beyond words rose in his heart—so the Kingdom of Orlando was truly this vast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the prosperous royal domain to this now unsettling heart of the western frontier,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>they had traveled for over ten days, yet it felt as though they had merely climbed from the belly of some giant beast to its shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The intelligence system really is a cheat code for wilderness travel…” Eli sighed inwardly once again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over these past ten-odd days, relying on the daily use of 【Intelligence Acquisition】,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he had learned where small bands of brigands were gathering and decisively chosen to avoid them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knights and supplies were precious assets. There was no need to waste them in needless fights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aside from that, he had also found a concealed underground water source that had not yet been contaminated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every precisely timed “chance encounter” left the members of the party—especially the veteran Brandon—more and more awestruck by the young master’s “uncanny foresight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whatever lingering doubts they had once harbored had long since vanished, replaced by trust that was nearly blind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And a few days ago, the number of draws had finally hit the pity threshold, rewarding him with a rare piece of intelligence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Purple: Deep within the Forgotten Rift on the western frontier border, in an underground karst cavern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A secret tomb from the era of the ancient Free City-State Alliance, belonging to Bardel, nicknamed “Iron Hand.”】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well now. Was this supposed to be his cue to change classes and become a tomb raider?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He silently etched the place name “Forgotten Rift” and the related information firmly into his memory, listing it as a place to explore in the future—once his strength was sufficient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In addition, the system had also provided several rather informative pieces of intelligence:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It confirmed that at least three other frontier parties had also been dispatched by noble houses from the royal domain and the eastern frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their leaders were, respectively: the second son of House Roman from the royal domain, the illegitimate son of House Medici, and the illegitimate daughter of Duke Russell of the eastern frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the sun sank westward, it dyed the vast wasteland a magnificent yet lonely shade of gold and crimson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The party made camp beneath a wind-sheltered sandstone escarpment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The campfire crackled. In the pot simmered dried meat and drought-resistant tubers gathered along the way, their aroma mingling with the smell of dust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knights quietly polished their weapons and armor as they spoke in low voices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the tempering of Blood Deer blood and more than ten days of working together, their bearing had clearly changed, sharpened by a new edge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Wolf-kin sat around a fire some distance away, eating in silence, while Wolfgang rested with his eyes closed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the largest tent at the center of the camp, candlelight flickered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli sat cross-legged on a thick woolen mat, his eyes gently shut as his mind sank inward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>House Black’s Raven Breathing Technique circulated slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thread after thread of black airflow with a metallic texture flowed and cycled through his meridians like running streams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the washing force of that warm yet violent energy, Louis’s bloodline seemed to be reshaped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could feel the speed of the blood in his body increasing, his meridians opening, as though he were undergoing a transformation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, Eli slowly exhaled, his breath long and steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heat within him gradually settled and returned to stillness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had advanced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>High Black Iron Tier Knight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rising two ranks in just over ten days already qualified as the sort of talent one might find only once in ten thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli could only guess that Blood Deer blood was especially effective for low-tier knights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this world, a knight’s power came from the physical force contained within the body, and only through special breathing techniques could it be mobilized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once one stepped onto the path of knighthood, the hierarchy was strict, divided into six major stages:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Black Iron Knight, Bronze Knight, Silver Knight, Gold Knight, Titled Knight, and Legendary Knight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once one became a Gold Knight, the battle aura within the body could be released outward and condensed into form, allowing one to stand against a hundred foes alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli felt the battle aura surging through his body. It was several times stronger than it had been more than ten days ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tremendous energy brought by that bowl of Blood Deer blood had been like the finest fuel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feeling the fullness of strength within himself and the increased sharpness of his five senses, Eli clenched his fist in satisfaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His starting point might have been low, but his progress had been astonishingly swift.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Estor,” he called.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tent flap was immediately lifted, and Estor stepped inside with his back straight. “Young Master, did you call for me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Go bring Brandon here.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, sir!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Very soon, Brandon’s slightly stooped yet remarkably steady figure appeared inside the tent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After more than ten days of wind, dust, and Eli’s growing trust in him, the numbness that age had ground into the old soldier had completely vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, you wished to see me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brandon, how far are we now from Thorne City, the capital of the western frontier?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brandon thought for a moment, then lowered his head to study the map spread across Eli’s table, examining it carefully by candlelight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord,” he replied, tracing a line across the map with his finger, “at our current speed and direction...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>it should take roughly another five days before we reach the outskirts of Thorne City.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Five days...” Eli rubbed his chin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thorne City was the political and military center of the western frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All Frontier Knights had to complete their final registration there and collect the symbolic frontier charter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More importantly, the earlier one arrived, the more choices one had—and the greater the benefits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I understand. Pass the word. We move faster tomorrow,” Eli said in a low voice. “Our destination is Thorne City.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, a thousand miles away, in the heart of the western frontier—Thorne City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This great city, built from sturdy obsidian and tempered by countless baptisms of war, now seemed under the setting sun to carry an indescribable heaviness and exhaustion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the center of the city, inside the heavily guarded ducal fortress, in a spacious study—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the fire in the hearth blazed brightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind the enormous mahogany desk was an empty seat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It belonged to the Grand Duke of the Western Frontier, Federico La Roche, who also served as the kingdom’s prime minister.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at this moment, he was far away in the royal capital, Orlandia, trapped in the center of a political maelstrom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the desk stood two men burdened with immense responsibility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man on the left was tall and lean, cold in expression, handsome of face, yet deeply worn with fatigue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was Sir Lucius La Roche, younger brother of Duke Federico.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By temporary order, he had been left behind to manage the western frontier’s daily civil affairs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man on the right was like bedrock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wore a fine but weathered suit of plate armor and had not removed it even indoors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marquess Marcus Hohenzollern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was responsible for the western frontier’s military defense, particularly in dealing with the threat from the western city-state alliance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, a long list lay spread open on the desk before them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marcus’s rough finger jabbed irritably at the names on the parchment, producing dull thuds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look at this! Just look at what kind of trash this all is!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marcus’s voice was thick with suppressed anger and deep helplessness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The wine barrel from House Roman? The sickly wretch from House Medici? And this one... that notorious wastrel from House Black?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And even worse, there’s a little girl mixed in there too?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the nobles’ idea of supporting the Frontier Edict?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These are the so-called elites they’re sending to serve the kingdom?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucius La Roche folded his arms, expressionless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he rubbed his brow wearily, and his thoughts drifted uncontrollably back to that summer of blood and fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Queen Irene, his lively niece, had died tragically in the royal capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Princess Lynn had vanished during her flight, her fate still unknown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All signs pointed directly toward the aristocratic bloc of the royal domain, and monstrous rage had swept through the entire western frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a fury, his elder brother Federico La Roche had summoned all his vassals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Joined by the northern frontier, they had marched east with swords pointed at the royal capital, vowing to demand blood for blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a time, the kingdom had stood on the brink of civil war...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, under mediation from the king and the other two grand dukes within the realm, along with pressure from the Free City-State Alliance watching hungrily from without, both sides reached a compromise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Federico La Roche became the kingdom’s prime minister and entered the royal capital, there to protect his grandson, Prince Aiden, until he came of age, while also pursuing the truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The western frontier received substantial compensation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the surface, it looked like a victory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>while the bulk of the western frontier’s army was redeployed eastward and the political situation in the royal capital remained tense,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the wolves of the west—the Free City-State Alliance—seized the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They formed a coalition army and brazenly tore up the fragile peace agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the force of thunder, they smashed through Storm City, the first major stronghold guarding the western frontier’s defensive system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chain reaction followed. The first line of defense collapsed, the defending forces suffered catastrophic losses, and broad stretches of fertile borderland fell into enemy hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The defenders could only retreat to the second defensive line, relying on the surrounding network of fortresses to hold on by sheer force of will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To slow the enemy’s advance,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucius had hardened his heart and carried out what could only be called a brutal scorched-earth strategy—burning villages, filling in wells, torching crops...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the allied armies of the city-states later withdrew because of their overstretched supply lines and internal disputes over plunder,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>what they left behind was utter devastation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And much of it had been his own “masterpiece.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucius’s sorrowful gaze swept past the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately... his brother had shown foresight and evacuated a great many commoners in advance. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the lost land, the withered economy, the pressure of reconstruction...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>all of it weighed heavily upon the shoulders of the man now governing in his brother’s stead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Frontier Edict...” Lucius murmured, staring at the list with a complicated expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother... are you trying to use the ‘garbage’ cast off by their families to fill the buffer zone between both sides?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or to use their lives to wear down the dangers on the fallen lands, buying time for the western frontier to breathe and rebuild?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or... do you truly hope that among this rubbish, one or two miracles might appear?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marcus spoke up. “Miracles? Sir, you think too highly of these pampered noble brats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if the God of Light opens His eyes, the best they can hope for is surviving long enough to reach their fiefs. And you expect them to develop land?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hah. I’d say this is simply the duke’s way of weakening the other nobles.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucius gave a bitter smile. After a long silence, he finally waved a weary hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He swept the list aside to one corner of the desk, as casually as though he were brushing away a pile of unpleasant refuse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Enough... let them do as they please. Let them live or die on their own.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His voice returned to its customary coldness, the cruelty polished into it by reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Marquess Marcus, our efforts should remain focused on rebuilding the defensive lines and pacifying the refugees. As for these... Frontier Knights?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cold curve rose at the corner of his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let them... go and experience what a real battlefield truly is...”\u003C\u002Fp>",2112,"2026-06-06T13:50:45.567Z",1,"novelbin.me","f632b21a456bac7a84443774ae42fbc86eb126f94fe860a34921e95b842412e7","exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-9","exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-7",112,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fexiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-cover.jpg"]