A horn blew ahead, signaling the marching column of soldiers to halt. Stopping his mount, Arthur scratched under his chainmail coif and glanced at Jeren. "Have we reached Piltash already?"

"We should have, lord." Jeren replied as he gazed ahead. "But they don't seem to be calling to set up camp, so something must have happened."

"The city's probably been abandoned just like the last one, Harran or whatever it was called." Foster added as he stretched atop his mount.

"The last Bernish city was called Arran. Harran was the first city we besieged after defeating the Bernish-Agelian army." Jeren corrected him. "But it's not entirely unlikely for it to be abandoned like Arran. It would certainly be a stroke of luck if it was."

Arthur didn't necessarily agree with that sentiment. When they arrived at Arran a few weeks ago, the city was a ghost town with less than a thousand people remaining. Ideally, the army could take Piltash without a siege, but if it was abandoned, that would bring about its own problems.

If there weren't any people to rule over, there was hardly any reason for him to be there. Not to mention, it would slow down his plans considerably if he didn't have a labor force to tax.

"Some of the men are saying that the reason Arran was abandoned was due to you, young master." Foster said, his voice full of fervor.

Arthur laughed, feeling satisfied that his attempts to win over the hearts and minds of the soldiers were paying off. "And how is it my fault the city was abandoned?"

"They said it was because you took the city of Nosin so quickly that it caused the people of Bern to flee from your path in fear." Foster explained proudly.

Of course, Foster's words were all blatant flattery. It was clear to everyone by now that something strange was going on with Bern and Agelia, so Arthur simply accepted the praise. He couldn't help but laugh and nod to the true benefactor that caused Nosin to fall so quickly.

Kyren had discovered the hidden escape tunnel when he was scouting the city. Apparently, when the lord of Nosin fled to Agelia, he didn't take all of his servants with him, and Kyren overheard them plotting their escape once the city was surrounded. Unfortunately for the servants, and fortunately for Arthur, the exit to the tunnel wasn't far from where the Ollerinian camp was stationed.

Thus, all he had to do was be near the tunnel's exit when the servants came out and pretend it was all a happy coincidence. Once the servants were captured, the city of Nosin soon followed.

Of course, most wrote it off as simple luck, but the soldiers were common men, simple and superstitious. Because of Arthur's 'luck', they were one step closer to returning safely to their families, so it didn't matter how Arthur did it. To them, all that mattered was that he had prevented a long, drawn-out battle that might've resulted in their deaths.

"There's no call to be at the ready, so there shouldn't be any danger." Arthur declared as he whipped Aithon's reins. "Let's go see what the hold-up is."

Along the way, soldiers happily greeted him here and there, to which Arthur returned the gesture with a nod and a benevolent smile. Once he arrived at the head of the column, he found his uncle Garren beside Baron Iken. The pair stared off into the distance, exchanging some words between them.

Arthur pulled up beside them and followed their eyes. "What's going on?"

Garren ignored him entirely as if he didn't exist. It was how his uncle had treated him for the past few months after their little verbal spat. However, Arthur much preferred the current silent treatment compared to the constant quips of the past, so he had no complaints.

Baron Iken glanced at him and nodded before returning his gaze ahead. "The scouts reported that they hung a white flag over the gatehouse so it would seem that Piltash intends to surrender without a fight. I imagine you're rather pleased with such an outcome."

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Arthur squinted his eyes, but they were still miles away, and all he could make out was a gray blob that he assumed to be the city walls. When he finally gave up on seeing his new city from such a distance, he saw a cloud of dust being kicked up, and a group of mounted soldiers came into view.

It took the soldiers a couple of minutes to reach them, but once they did, it was clear that one amongst them stood out from the rest. The odd one out was a man with lightly tanned skin who fashioned a rather modern-looking, well-kept chinstrap with slicked-back black hair in the style of a pompadour.

However, his looks weren't what drew Arthur's attention. Instead, it was the absurd number of glistening jewels the man wore. He was covered from head to toe in jewelry, and even the poor tuft beneath him wasn't spared the man's gaudy sense of fashion.

The tuft's saddle was encrusted with jewels, and what Arthur could only hope was gold leafing as the sheer weight of that much gold would break the poor animal's back. Even the wealthiest nobles in Ollerin didn't openly display so much wealth, and the man certainly didn't look Bernish, so Arthur grew curious about his identity. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long.

Foster leaned over and whispered into his ear. "He's Innihanan. The crest on his hand shows that he is a direct descendant of the Hussan family."

Arthur nodded and grew even more curious about what an Innihanan was doing in Piltash. Finally, one of the soldiers opened his mouth to speak, but the Innihanan man pulled ahead of him, placed his palm on his chest in what Arthur assumed to be an Innihanan greeting, and spoke.

"Welcome! Welcome! Brave men of Ollerin!" The man cheered flamboyantly as he grew closer. "My humble name is Poe of House Hussan, and I've been delegated to speak for those who reside in the city of Piltash."

Arthur's eyebrow rose at the theatrics, feeling a bit stunned by it all, but his worry grew as the man's words sank in. "Why is an Innihanan speaking for a Bernish city?"

Poe's eyes darted to him as a grand smile displayed several golden teeth. "You must be the heroic young lord, Arthur Revan. It's my utmost pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Now Arthur was genuinely stunned. He wasn't so famous to be known outside of Revan. At least, he believed that to be so until now. "You know of me?"

"Of course! Of course!" Poe cheered as he clapped his hands enthusiastically, causing his many golden bracelets to rattle and ring. "How could I not know of the young hero who so valiantly and effortlessly carved a warpath through Bern. I'm sure the minstrels in Ollerin will write many songs of your future deeds, so it's best I befriend you now while you're still small. Haha!"

Arthur couldn't help but be surprised by the man's brusque statement. However, he still didn't think word had spread about him just yet, and even if it did, he could hardly be considered a young hero. Even if the emperor played up his part in the war as justification for granting him Helagaust, it shouldn't be to such an extent.

"Lord Poe, I believe lord Arthur asked why you were chosen to speak for the people of Piltash." Baron Iken reminded the man as Arthur's mind ran through several possibilities.

"Ah!" Poe lightly tapped his forehead as his jewelry jingled. "Forgive me, but it's obvious, no? You all have such pointy swords and the will to use them. However, Poe of Hussan is Innihanan and a friend to all, so it only makes sense for me to speak for the few poor souls that remain in Piltash."

Arthur snapped back to reality with those words. "You said few poor souls? Was the city abandoned?"

"Sadly, it would appear so." Poe shrugged helplessly. "When I arrived a month ago, there were still many, much less than usual, but still many. Yet, most fled as news of Nosin's fall reached this far-off place. I believe most went to the free city of Bucker across Pick Bay, while many still left by ship for Agelia.

"The city's all but deserted, and the few that remain have neither the will nor the strength to stand against such a powerful force. That's why they elected the handsome and friendly Poe of Hussan to see if you could spare their pitiful lives."

Arthur sighed as his fears became reality. A lord with few subjects was a penniless lord, and he'd be no different if he couldn't attract more people to inhabit his lands. Unfortunately, this would also delay his industrialization plans.

He never intended to emulate a feat as grand as the Meiji Restoration, but just some basic assembly lines churning out simple products could've produced enough profit to continue his research. Now, he would have to delay until more people migrated to his lands.

Of course, it wasn't all negative. For one thing, Arthur was less likely to be lynched if the remaining population was small. Especially now that he had Fenric's Chosen serving under him. It also gave him greater control over who was coming and going inside his territory since it was almost inevitable that Duke Yor and Elyria would send assassins after him at some point, so that was definitely a positive, too.

Yet despite all that, he couldn't help but feel somewhat bitter. He could only hope that Piltash fared better than Arran in its desolation as the people fled.