Chapter 237: with translation of chapter title

Aaron.

North of the Giant Fortress, west of the Emmon Mountains, lies Lion Fang City on the Aaron Plains.

From its name alone, one can see it is an extremely important military stronghold, existing solely to defend Aaron against invasion by the Radiant Empire.

Recently, a terrifying rumor has surfaced in the city.

The rumor says that King Dange fears the rising Duke Weilan greatly, and to counter the duke, he actually plans to open the Giant Fortress and invite the Radiant Legion into Aaron.

The rumor is rich in detail, spreading with apparent credibility, and because the topic is extremely sensitive, it quickly spread throughout Lion Fang City.

Lion Fang City garrisons Aaron's most elite First Lion Legion, numbering a full hundred thousand.

Not counting quality, just the numbers alone account for more than half of Aaron's army.

Nominally, the legion's supreme commander is King Dange, but in reality it is led by the five grand marshals.

Naturally, the five grand marshals all bear the surname Dange and are members of the royal family.

The rumor spreads not only among the populace, but naturally also reached their ears.

Thus, the five legion commanders held a secret meeting at Lion Fang Fortress.

Among the five grand marshals, the one with the highest rank and greatest prestige is called Asning Dange.

His rank is marshal, commander of the First Legion, and he is also the paternal uncle of the current King Dange, aged 61, a Four-ring mage.

He asked somewhat angrily, "Have you found out who is spreading this rumor?"

Immediately, a deputy legion commander replied, "We've been investigating; we've captured some peripheral small fry, all saying a mysterious person paid them to spread it, but we don't know the other party's identity."

This person is about forty, a paternal cousin of King Dange, named Willett Dange, currently possessing five-ring battle aura, and is the strongest warrior of the Dange family.

After saying that, a hint of anger appeared on his face: "No matter who spread the rumor, at least seventy or eighty percent of it is true."

He clenched his right hand into a fist and waved it forcefully: "Judging by the secret letter sent from Lion Fang Fortress, Salint probably really intends to ally with the mongrels across the fortress!"

Salint is the name of King Dange. In such internal family meetings, there is little reverence for the king, and calling him by name directly is common.

Marshal Asning glared at him angrily: "It's not settled yet, don't spout nonsense!"

At that moment, another deputy legion commander spoke up—he is yet another paternal cousin of King Dange, named Femi Dange.

He was originally a high-tier mage, but after Duke Weilan publicly shared his cultivation experience, he was promoted to Four-ring.

He spoke loudly: "Uncle, there are no outsiders here; if you have any ideas, you should speak them out—what's the point of keeping them bottled up?!"

Having said that, he directly gave his opinion.

"In my view, Salint is not even a qualified king!"

"Over the past year or so, military spending has dropped by a full thirty percent, and weapon and equipment supplies are insufficient. He has no one around him who actually gets things done; they're all flatterers and lackeys."

"That alone would be bad enough."

"The strongest mage of the All-Natural Alliance is sharing magical expertise, yet he insists on blocking domestic mages from listening."

"Now the duke has again made legendary knowledge public—this should be a great thing, but he's unhappy and even wants to collude with the Radiant Empire to cause trouble; he's simply a lunatic!"

Seeing Asning about to speak up to stop him, Femi immediately said, "Uncle, just let me finish, or I won't feel at ease!"

Asning opened his mouth, but in the end still said nothing.

Because he too is a mage, he also greatly yearns for higher magical knowledge.

Because high-ring mages can live many more years.

So he also feels the king's actions are underhanded.

Femi continued: "In my opinion, if someone is strong, you should acknowledge it; if you truly can't match up, you should accept defeat."

"Duke Weilan is strong—this is a fact acknowledged across the continent!"

"They are not only strong, but especially humble, and willing to share the most precious magical knowledge."

"In my view, with this momentum developing, the Weilan Duchy will soon be able to easily defeat us Aaron."

This remark drew some dissatisfaction from the other four.

The five-ring warrior Willett snapped angrily: "Femi, do you actually hope Aaron will be defeated by Weilan?"

Femi shook his head: "I'm not hoping for that; I'm stating a fact!"

"Besides, even if Aaron were defeated by Weilan, the situation would certainly not be worse than now, and might even be better, because Weilan now has plenty of money and will never default on military pay!"

Asning said: "Femi, are you dreaming? If Aaron loses, the best outcome for us is to go home and retire to old age."

"That would also be good—opening the Giant Fortress and letting the Radiant Empire conquer!"

As soon as he said that, the four grand marshals all fell silent.

Femi sneered: "Uncles, brothers, if Salint truly intends to open the Giant Fortress, do you think we could still remain commanders?"

"Salint will definitely replace us right away. He might even directly kill a large group of heroic warriors unwilling to obey orders, then replace us with his lackeys!"

"Even if he doesn't replace us, once the Radiant Legion enters the Aaron Plains and seizes the key fortresses, our fate will surely be grim!"

Having said that, he looked around at everyone: "Each of our hands is stained with the blood of the Radiant Legion."

That statement was absolutely correct; the faces of the four grand marshals turned pale.

They command a huge legion, having long garrisoned the Giant Fortress and frequently clashed with the Radiant Legion.

Although there has been no major war, small skirmishes and frictions occur constantly, and deaths of dozens or hundreds are common.

The hatred built up over many years is profound; only blood can repay it.

Therefore, if the king intends to open the Giant Fortress, they cannot obey the order, whether for their own lives and property or for the blood feud of their trusted subordinates.

Marshal Asning said coldly: "Femi, Salint wouldn't do such a crazy thing; he wouldn't dare!"

Before his words even finished, Willett beside him let out a cold snort.

"He even did the crazy things of the Night of the Black Blade; what else wouldn't he dare to do?"

As soon as he said that, the marshals fell silent again.

After a long while, Femi spoke: "Uncle Asning, you are our elder."

At this crucial moment, you need to speak up; if that madman really intends to open the giant fortress, what are we supposed to do?!

Note: "giant fortress" is not a proper name; "madman" is generic. No proper nouns.

Yasining tightly gripped the hilt of his command sword at his waist, his finger joints turning blue and white, yet he remained silent for a long time.

Note: Yasining is a person's name; it is not in the glossary, so we must include it as a character and romanize it using Hanyu Pinyin.

Also, the term "command sword" is generic.

「Marshal, say a word! 」

Weilaite also urged.

Finally, Yasining let out a long breath and said what everyone had been holding in their hearts, afraid to say.

「Anything else can be negotiated, but the Giant Fortress must not be opened! 」

「If Salinte dares to issue such a chaotic order, we'll change kings! 」

Those surnamed Dank aren't just Salinte alone; everyone present has the surname Dank.

But saying we'll change kings feels good, but the problem is, who will be the new king?

After becoming the new king, how would we deal with all the troubles inside Aaron?

These problems can't be avoided; they must be resolved.

Weilaite directly proposed: "Who will be king? You, uncle?"

Yasining's heart stirred, but he immediately refused: "No, I can't be king."

He knows his own abilities—he can lead troops in battle, but he can't handle governance.

In peaceful times, he could just take the role, but now at this juncture, being king is no easy task.

If his abilities are lacking, he's likely to be poisoned or stabbed to death in his sleep; in short, there'd be no good ending.

Weilaite immediately said: "Then how about me?"

Before his words even faded, Feimi sneered: "Weilaite, you're just a warrior—do you understand magic?"

Weilaite was speechless.

He doesn't understand, and he doesn't even have any magical power.

Saying it felt satisfying, but when Feimi asked that, he felt guilty.

Feimi then turned to the remaining two marshals: "What about you? What do you think?"

The two also shook their heads, each saying they weren't qualified.

Weilaite only thought Feimi wanted the position, and instantly felt jealous.

"Feimi, you're just a Four‑ring mage—Four‑ring mages are everywhere these days, and you're not qualified."

Feimi spread his hands: "I never said I was qualified."

He glanced around at everyone and said seriously: "If you ask me, not a single person of the Dank family is fit to be king."

That comment was rather puzzling.

If the king isn't chosen from the Dank family, are we supposed to pick an outsider? Feimi immediately revealed the answer.

"What I'm saying is, why not merge Aaron and Weilan outright and simply make Duke Weilan the king of Aaron?"

That statement hit the crowd like a firebomb, leaving the remaining four dizzy and dazed.

Marshal Yasining said without hesitation: "That's impossible!"

Weilaite even growled: "Are you crazy?"

"Feimi, haven't you woken up?"

"I suspect you've secretly taken a bribe from Duke Weilan!"

Feimi listened to everyone's doubts, and only after the four had calmed down a bit did he speak.

"Don't rush, everyone—listen to my explanation."

"First, Duke Weilan is a legendary mage who wields near‑divine power; calling him a god among men is no problem."

"Someone of that strength could easily assassinate any king of the Natural Alliance, yet he hasn't done so."

"This isn't because he hasn't thought of it; it's because of his benevolence and foresight."

"That's unobjectionable; everyone agrees."

The legendary mage's power is comparable to natural thunder, and it has spread throughout the Natural Alliance; no one feels confident confronting Duke Weilan head‑on.

Even ordinary people who don't understand magic can sense the tremendous power of a legendary mage.

In an age when Five‑ring mages are called Sages and Six‑ring mages are called Law Saints, an Eleven‑ring existence suddenly appears—just thinking about it shows it must have reached the utmost level of power.

Feimi continued: "Given the current situation, in the foreseeable future Weilan will surely become the wealthiest and most magically advanced nation in the Natural Alliance."

"A legendary mage can live an extremely long time—far longer than you or me—and as long as he keeps advancing toward a goal, he will inevitably succeed."

"And now everyone can see that Duke Weilan intends to unify the entire Natural Alliance."

"I declare that no one can stop him."

The four marshals—three still had nothing to say, and Weilaite felt a bit unwilling: "The Radiant Empire will surely do everything to stop him."

Feimi immediately glared at him: "The Radiant Empire will certainly do that, but are we supposed to follow Salinte's example, preferring to let our enemy rule Aaron rather than let a fellow alliance duke rule?"

Weilaite spread his hands: "Then naturally it's better for the duke to rule."

The empire is an enemy, but Duke Weilan counts as half a relative; he still knows who's close and who's distant.

Feimi continued: "Third, since the Natural Alliance is bound to unify, and everyone has seen the duke's character—he is ruthless toward enemies but extremely generous toward allies."

"The nobles of Weilan's northern counties are living very prosperous lives."

"Now the Radiant Empire will surely try every means to suppress the duke—this is his most difficult moment. If we are the first to step forward and publicly support him, the duke's reward will definitely satisfy us."

That last sentence moved all four people present.

Marshal Yasining somewhat understood: "Feimi, speak up—why did you come to act as the duke's spokesman?"

Feimi could sense the shift in everyone's hearts, knowing he had essentially persuaded them.

He gave a faint smile: "I've brought someone everyone knows."

Having said that, he clapped his hands.

Then, a mysterious person in a cloak entered the secret chamber.

After entering the secret chamber, the old man lifted the heavy cloak and looked up at everyone.

Everyone immediately recognized him.

"Sang Qiesite!" Weilan exclaimed: "You aren't dead?"

Asning immediately said: "You seem much younger."

Sang Qiesite gave a faint smile: "My former self indeed died, killed by the Salinte King. Now I am no longer the king's strategist; I serve the Duke and work for Aaron's fate."

The Duke promises that if the king abdicates, Aaron and Weilan will unite as one nation, and he will treat the Dang family well, promising an annual permanent stipend of 500,000 lion gold coins, as well as a city as the Dang family's permanent territory.

To be frank, such compensation is not generous; at the very least, it falls far short of Aaron's worth.

Weilan immediately said: "Too little."

Sang Qiesite gave a faint smile: "Not little, General Weilan, because this is a permanent stipend—you and your descendants need not worry about anything and just receive the money for free."

If you manage your family fief well, the territorial income will certainly not be less. And even if your fief is mismanaged and goes bankrupt, this money will not be reduced by a single cent.

Moreover, if you or your descendants have sufficient ability, the Duke will continue to employ you, just as members of the Adrian family still hold key positions in Weilan.

Finally, as a legendary mage, the Duke possesses the secret art that helps people break through to higher rings.

Having said that, Sang Qiesite looked at the old marshal Asning: "The Duke also promises to help everyone present attain at least Three-ring strength."

Upon hearing this, everyone was greatly moved, for this is not only power but also longevity.

In this world, everyone wishes to live longer.

Marshal Asning, already over sixty, upon hearing this, was wholly willing.

If the Duke goes back on his word and refuses to act, he will not agree!

But in negotiations, one must always strive for greater benefits.

He said: "The subsidy is too little; we need to add more."

Weilan also said: "Exactly, and we must stipulate concrete terms—how much each household receives."

Although we all share the Dang surname, each of us has our own household; the accounts must be settled clearly.

Sang Qiesite shrugged: "All right, then let us discuss properly and sign a contract."

Actually, the Duke gave him the maximum annual allowance of two million, but he felt that was too much money.

Because Aaron is essentially a commoner's state, there is no need to lavishly support this group of family members.

Thus, the six of them began to 'pull the saw' in the secret chamber.

The secret talks lasted a full three days, finally reaching an agreement that all commanders could consent to, named the Lion Fang Covenant.

Finally, Sang Qiesite said: "May Mother Nature bless Aaron, and may she also bless the alliance."

(End of chapter)