News of Silvalier's declaration of war on Avenella spread, immediately shocking the entire kingdom.
Methods such as formal declaration of war are very rare on the chaotic west coast. In comparison, undeclared sneak attacks are more common.
The declaration of war represents the face of the kingdom to a great extent - if the war is not declared, everyone can turn a blind eye and pretend not to have seen it even if the war is defeated. But once the war is declared, the entire country must go all out.
The difference between the two is like a street fight where you punch someone in the face, and a life-or-death duel that is publicized for everyone to watch.
If it loses, the country's status will obviously plummet.
This put great pressure on the entire Avenella. Vavasica's army hurriedly withdrew from the fortress, and thousands of craftsmen and farmers were mobilized from Asinil. Prince Edward sent a message back to obtain a large amount of support supplies from the king. The army crossed the Ellen Fortress and built a simple wooden wall on the border forest with Inznil.
The trees were cut down quickly, and then they were reinforced with iron nails pulled from hemp ropes. In just two weeks, a city wall that had never been seen before was built. Countless archers were deployed on it. Inznir's The same is true for the Sivalier garrison. The road from Ecasta to Inznil is no longer endless. Two wooden walls with the coats of arms of the two countries block everything. The knights are separated by hundreds of meters. They circled back and forth across the border.
Small frictions and provocations continued during this period, but Inznir's defenders did not attack blindly. The collapse of Sivalier's elite cavalry a few months ago made them more interested in Yavinne. The archers of La were very wary, so Sivalier would not act rashly until enough troops were mobilized.
This fact gives Avenella a precious moment of respite - let us turn the time back to the palace of the City Lord of Wavasica on the night before the city wall was built, when the declaration of war was just received.
…
Edward's face was gloomy and gloomy, for reasons that needed no explanation.
The stupidity of King Philip II of Cervalier directly led to Avenella having to face the enemy on both sides. Edward's painstaking efforts to send envoys to try to warn resulted in a complete failure. But when they calm down and think about it, maybe things are far more complicated than they thought.
Sivalier is pro-Raman, as is well known on the West Coast.
As for the fact that the Padrosi attacked Vavasica in order to suppress the Otolo Empire on the other side, they could see that the high-ranking nobles in Sivalier who had been involved in politics for many years and captured them might not necessarily be able to do so. Can't see it anymore.
This is combined with the previous incident where the elite of Sivalier was slaughtered by Avenella. It is very likely that Edward's act of sending the envoy was doomed to fail from the beginning.
Apparently, after learning this fact, the Sivalier people judged that the Padrosi Empire only wanted Wavasika, and felt that they would not attack Sivalier itself. In addition, previous defeats have led to the emergence of domestic opposition voices one after another. It is difficult to guarantee that Sivalier's declaration of war is not a "mistake" by taking advantage of the Padrosi massacre in Inznil to arouse public outrage and attack Yarvenne. La, avenge the shame.
There are always only interests between countries. Edward, who was full of thoughts that the two kingdoms would stand on a common front and not interfere with each other even if they did not fight Padrosi, was unexpectedly defeated by Sivalier.
"Politics is really dirty." Edward shook his head and sighed, while Henry shrugged: "I told you so."
"The Sivaliers are very skilled at playing politics, and they are second to none on the west coast as well as their military strength." Only he and Edward were left in the room. Charles was urgently dispatching troops to the border, while Mira was still there. Accompany Minna.
The sage continued: "But this still cannot change the fact that Philip II is extremely stupid. The Padrosi people will not shake hands with him because of his pro-Raman tendencies. The empire's rule has always been iron-blooded and strong." Cruel, if they capture Wawasika, they will definitely not leave such a large granary next to it."
"Inznir can provide food for Padrosi's army stationed in Huavasika to clamp down on Otolo, and the huge Varsha port makes it easier and faster for Padrosi to transport troops. There is no reason why the empire cannot They may only capture Wavasika and then stop. Their conquest will only be cruel and cold-blooded. The short-sighted and selfish Philip II thinks he has chosen the right camp, but the empire obviously does not need to be on their territory. There is a foreign king.”
"At least it won't be a powerful king." Henry shrugged: "So no matter what, Philip's days as king will not last long."
"Well..." Edward could naturally judge what the sage said, and this was one of the reasons for his distress. The Sivalier nobles who were good at intrigues were unable to see the bigger picture and forgot about Asia. The fact that Vennella and them are at loggerheads - but are the nobles in Avenella much better off?
only the guy drinking water knows it's cold or hot.
Edward has seen too much in his more than twenty years of life. The nobles of Avenella are so similar to the people of Sivalier. Even if he tells everything, the only thing they will do is definitely It was a life-and-death fight with the Sivalier people, completely ignoring the fact that the Padrosi Empire was eyeing them.
"How many people in this country can be relied on?" Edward, who had not loosened his eyebrows since the afternoon, sighed. He had worked hard in the past few months, but the bad habits that had been maintained for two centuries became even stronger. Despite His Royal Highness the Prince's efforts, there are still a large number of established nobles in other areas of Avenella other than Wavasica and Assinil - such as Initzburg, which is the political center of the kingdom - who are dissatisfied with his behavior. Not quite cold.
Not that they would try to stop it, they just wouldn't take it seriously.
The stubborn old nobles are like knots on an old tree that cannot be removed. As an important part of the tree, they maintain the overall existence of the entire tree, but it is precisely because of their existence that the tree must be processed into When wooden strips are used, they will break due to weak links.
The tremendous pressure made Prince Edward think wildly, and Henry stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder at the right time.
"It's not time to despair yet." He nodded and said.
The sage's words were as simple as ever, but they revealed his strong confidence. The prince was stunned for a moment, then repeated several deep breaths and then exhaled, forcing himself to cheer up.
With this person around, it's not time to despair yet.
He thought this in his heart, and then stood up.
"Go summon the officers and bring Charles back to me!" Edward strode forward and shouted loudly.
…
Oil lamps made of spiced tallow illuminated the hall, and because the smell of smoke was so strong, servants opened the windows to prevent those inside from being suffocated.
Because the city lord's mansion was surrounded by walls, it was not too affected by the mountain wind. Some air currents caused the firelight to sway slightly, but it was still bright.
Everyone is here, including Ming Na, who replaced her father and became a knight. After all, the girl also received a noble education, and her views in many places are worthy of reference.
Edward needed every ounce of strength when everyone else was extremely unreliable - so the spacious hall of the city lord's palace was almost packed to capacity.
"I believe you all already know the reason for coming here." Edward looked around and nodded. Henry, Charles, Mira and Minna stood beside the prince, and everyone listened quietly to his words.
"Sivalier issued a declaration of war against us this afternoon. In connection with the previous incident of Padrosi, Avenella, I am afraid we will have to fight one against two." His Royal Highness the Prince nodded seriously, and the people around him The knights and knights were his and Charles's confidants, and these were perhaps the only people in the kingdom who truly wanted to make the country better.
Although the news was already known, many people's faces became serious for a moment, and Edward continued: "One is the strongest kingdom on the west coast, and the other is one of the three great empires of Rigar."
"Our situation is not easy, and that's why I'm asking you to come here."
"We must find an ally for Avenella." Edward stared at the officers seriously.
The mountain wind blew by, the moon rose one round after another, and time passed quickly, but the discussion could never come to a conclusion.
As the Civaliers would have guessed, this Padrosi attack was directed at Avenella. The most basic point in seeking an alliance is that the interests of both parties must be on the same line, and this has directly eliminated many countries.
First, enter the selected countries on the west coast and go to the south. There are multiple kingdoms and principalities bordering Avenella, but these kingdoms and principalities are very short-sighted, and their strength is also quite weak.
The only ally that is worthy of consideration is actually Sivalier, and this is already the case, and no one can change it.
Silence echoed throughout the hall of the city lord's palace. The young knight who had previously proposed to attack Inznil suddenly brightened his eyes, and then put forward his point of view again.
"What if we form an alliance not with the kingdom, but with a race!" The words of the young man who jumped out of the ordinary thinking circle made many people's eyes brighten. Edward also looked at him, and the prince encouraged him to continue speaking with his eyes.
"Elf!" The young noble who received the affirmation continued: "The elves are very powerful in combat and are scattered all over the country. There should be their settlements in many forests on the west coast. As long as we can form an alliance with them -"
"No." A naysaying voice sounded from the other side. The young Jazz was stunned for a moment, then turned his head.
'It's this guy again...' He felt a little dissatisfied, but the other person did have extraordinary knowledge, so Jazz kept his mouth shut. And everyone, including him and Edward, looked at Henry, waiting for the sage's explanation.
"Avenella and the elves cannot reach an alliance because we cannot stand on the same line at all." Henry's words were as to the point as ever, and everyone nodded. If they really calm down and think about it, the relationship between the elves and Avenella There was not much communication between them.
But this was not over yet. The sage shook his head again: "It's not just about interests. There are huge differences between elves and humans in the way they think."
He raised a hand, and then continued: "Elves generally have a life span of more than a thousand years, which is why they have not established an empire or kingdom."
"Human beings with short life spans have always had a sense of crisis that 'if you don't do something, there will be no chance in the future.' Everything must be solved quickly. This is why humans develop rapidly, while elves look no different from thousands of years ago. ."
He paused, and then continued: "Because for elves with long lifespans, there is no need to work hard to find ways to solve something. As long as you keep living, the matter will eventually be solved - or on the contrary, even if you work very hard, Even if you do something well, it may not accompany the long-lived elf until the end of its life."
"If we take the Kingdom of Avenella as an example, in less than two hundred years since its founding, 11 kings have been replaced." Henry glanced at Edward when he said this, and then continued: "What happened in these two centuries Recording all the events is enough to write a thick book - but for elves, two hundred years is not enough for a newborn elf to reach adulthood."
The sage sighed, as if he had some insights: "The long-lived race is much more indifferent emotionally compared to humans. They will not try to fight for anything, nor will they have anything warm and deep. Something that is difficult for short-lived races to understand, just as it is difficult for them to understand us. This nature of elves makes them dislike fighting. In addition, there is no direct connection between Avenella and the elves, this is Not an option."
"..." The persuasive words silenced everyone. This was true for the elves, and obviously the same for races such as dwarves and gnomes.
After all, allies far away were an unrealistic fantasy, so at the end of the discussion, everyone turned their attention back to the map, the huge empire that was only separated from Wawasika by a mountain.
"Is this the only way to do it..." Edward sighed, and everyone else was silent.
Otolo Empire.
This country can be regarded as meeting Avenella's requirements in all aspects, but no one has ever considered it, precisely because Avenella is too small compared to it.
For Otolo, it is not an ally that can be negotiated on an equal footing. Everyone clearly understands that if it simply tells the Otolo Empire about Padrosi's conspiracy, what will this Western power do? What kind of action is that.
——It's very simple, they will send troops directly to capture Huavasica before Padrosi.
There are wolves in front and tigers in the back. If the insignificant Avenella wants to get chestnuts from the fire, it can only rely on talented people.
"It seems that I can only ask you, sir." Edward looked at Henry with a serious face, trying to persuade Otolo through negotiation. The only qualified candidate he could think of was the sage.
"Yes." The tall black-haired sage nodded and agreed to the matter.
The conclusion was drawn and the flickering oil lamp was blown out. Two more days passed, and after a little preparation, early on the third day, Edward and his entourage, traveling lightly, took steps toward Grigori's Cleft.
The members include Edward, Henry, Mira, Minna and three elite Guards infantry.
They disguised themselves as ordinary travelers and headed towards the west - Wavasika did not block the merchants from Otolo to this side. They finally repaired the road, and they did not want to lose it all easily.
There are quite a few businessmen walking here, and among them, the group heading to Otolo looks quite ordinary.
This journey is related to the safety of the country, and they must be cautious.
Cold air blew in from the other side of the Great Rift Valley, and the group of people cheered up and set foot on the road.
