61: Knowing When to Advance and Retreat

Derek understood the meaning from the look in his eyes.

But... this isn’t the capital, where one can rise to the position of a powerful noble simply by tossing accusations.

Derek sneered. This marquis probably spent too much time playing court intrigues.

“Betrayal of the country? Then I should first ask the Holy Cross Kingdom whether they are willing to pardon my crimes.”

Derek was very clear about his current position. The Derek who was a mere knight yesterday had now become a powerful noble.

From the moment the king delegated power, and after Augusta repelled the Holy Cross Kingdom’s attack,

Derek, now a viscount, was part of an elite group that everyone envied—powerful nobles.

If you ask the king of the Holy Cross Kingdom whether he’d accept Derek if he defected now,

you can be sure the Kingdom would lose not only the Saint Myrrh Province but even the Northern Provinces.

Just wait and see how King Locke will choose.

Marquis Hussein, now realizing this, had a brief moment where his face changed.

He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Derek had already turned around.

“Assassins? I’ll kill them right here. I don’t need evidence, that’s the job of the sheriff.

I only have criminals here, and I’ll make my judgment. Anyone who tries to kill me, that’s you.”

The knights of Augusta showed no hesitation, immediately whipping with their horse whips.

The cracking sound of the whips silenced the soldiers kneeling on the ground from the First Northern Legion, and also quieted the restless nobles.

But Derek’s methods were far from finished.

“Recently, with the heavy snow and icy roads, one hundred soldiers from the First Northern Legion died from falling.

And for the next week, anyone who dares to leave the barracks will meet the same fate.

No matter whether they’re soldiers… or your lordship.”

The knights were just as merciless, smashing the heads of the First Northern Legion soldiers into the ground with loud crashes.

Soon, these unfortunate souls were all dead from falling.

Marquis Hussein’s smile froze on his face. He had never encountered such a situation before.

His experience in court intrigue was utterly useless now.

And with a little thought, he knew the king would rather believe it was an accident, that the soldiers slipped to their deaths, than suspect the viscount had done it.

The scene was dead silent, only the crack of the whips could be heard, and even the assassins who were being whipped had forgotten to scream.

The northern nobles, who had previously protested their innocence in front of Count Pereira, quietly retreated, feeling their legs weaken, afraid they might catch Derek’s attention.

Compared to that, perhaps having their shops smashed wasn’t such a bad thing.

They were willing to take a few more hits if it would calm the viscount down.

Perhaps it was Derek’s usual smoothness that made it hard for others to see his sharp edges.

Before Wang Mang usurped the throne, his polite and respectful demeanor was that of a lowly underling.

Now, when he flared up, politeness was seen as humility, but when it came to violence, it was rightful.

Even the king wasn’t merely a monarch, but a subject in this grand game.

Loyalty was a mandatory requirement for lower nobles; backstabbers were expelled.

But for middle and high-ranking nobles, loyalty was just a bargaining chip, not a necessity.

Conspiracy and betrayal were the main themes of upper-class noble life.

If loyalty were truly all-powerful, there wouldn’t have been a civil war, nor would the Kingdom of Locke exist today.

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If the first king could do it, why couldn’t Derek?

It’s very difficult to brainwash a time traveler into fully adopting the so-called knightly virtues.

Derek’s loyalty could also be measured.

Having seen through the relationship between the king and the nobles, he acted this way because he wasn’t bound by the rules.

On the other hand, Marquis Hussein, who nominally had a higher rank, was bound by restrictions and dared not act openly.

Intrigue could never be shown in public.

Sadly, most people will never understand this principle in their lifetime.

Derek stepped over the bodies, the mixed blood and brain matter inevitably soiling his boots.

But he walked right on top of them, even rubbing his boots hard on the carpet.

“Count Pereira, Marquis Hussein, a small accident, sorry to have kept you waiting.”

With his demeanor, if not for the bloodstains still fresh on the ground, one might think nothing had happened.

He had just given a harsh warning to Marquis Hussein, yet now he smiled as if meeting an old friend.

His manners and attitude were impeccable, every muscle of his face perfectly displaying a flawless smile.

Marquis Hussein’s smile was stiff. Though he prided himself on seeing many big events, he couldn’t adjust to this brutal style, unable to accept the brain matter and blood spilling right in front of him.

At this moment, he truly realized that the political landscape in the north was entirely different from that of the capital.

However, anyone who could crawl out of the capital’s dirty politics was not someone easily knocked down.

Everyone knew that the conquest of the barbarians was a golden opportunity. Why did Marquis Hussein get this chance?

He came to the north at great personal cost, aiming to make his mark.

So, Marquis Hussein quickly adjusted his mindset, telling himself he must not view the northern region and its nobles with his previous perspective.

“At least before I adapt here, I can’t make any big moves.”

Knowing when to advance and retreat was an advantage.

Of course, once he adapts to the rules of the north, understands how to survive here, he would still fight for what he deserves.

Like I said, there are definitely fools among the nobles, but not all of them are fools.

Especially those who crawled out of the court’s mud, they are sharp to the bone.

After adjusting his mindset, Marquis Hussein softened his smile, looking less stiff.

He even took a step aside to make room for Derek, offering a gesture of goodwill.

This action made others take a second look.

Knowing when to bend, when to retreat—such people are far harder to deal with than fools.

But Derek never relied on the stupidity of his opponents, and in fact, he hoped Marquis Hussein would be smart.

At least, the struggle wouldn’t be the main theme of Saint Myrrh Province.

Internal strife was inevitable, but the greatest enemy was the Holy Cross Kingdom, then the barbarian kingdoms, and only then the nobles.

Loyalty could change, but without sufficient reward, no one would willingly abandon such an expensive chip.

Those who didn’t understand this should just get lost early to avoid dragging the team down.

The previous Marquis Hussein might not have understood this,

but now… perhaps he had?

The specifics would be clear by how he acted later.

Now, the atmosphere was extremely quiet. The nobles and officers, who had once been hostile, no longer cared about fighting for dominance.

With the three powerful figures seated, no one dared to speak, afraid that even the slightest movement would draw the attention of the big shots.