Lord of Winter: Beginning with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 691: Chapter 392: Raymond and Calvin

The torrential rain pressed against the eaves, beating on the bronze rain gutters with a dull thudding sound.

Inside the house, only a single fireplace was lit, the weak light unable to illuminate the beams.

The Second Prince, Kaelin, sat at the desk, his shoulders slightly hunched.

He had been staring at the military and political list for a long time, his sutured stump aching intermittently, like the cold moisture seeping into his bones.

The feathered pen in his hand gently struck out the third name on the list.

It was the commander of the Twenty-Third Legion, who had once sworn allegiance with his own mouth, and they had once fought side by side.

But today’s intelligence reported that the main force stationed outside the Royal Capital submitted a transfer request to the Ministry of Finance controlled by the Fourth Prince this morning.

Kaelin stared at the name smudged by ink, his throat constricted as if being choked.

Compared to the significant loss of strength, the feeling of being abandoned bit by bit was more piercing.

Like a tree hollowed out by termites, still standing yet ready to fall at any moment.

A gentle knock on the door interrupted the dead silence.

"Your Highness," the personal attendant lowered his voice but couldn’t hide his panic, "Duke Raymond requests an audience."

The feathered pen slipped from Kaelin’s fingers and rolled across the desk.

He abruptly raised his head, first bewildered, then incredulous.

Raymond? The titan who could make the Nobility yield in both the Empire’s north and south?

At this moment, he should be far away in the Gray Rock Province.

How could he appear in the palace amidst the storm?

The shock lasted only a moment, quickly replaced by an almost greedy joy.

When everyone was preparing to leave him, this Duke braved the storm to see him.

"Quick! Let him in!" Kaelin stood up suddenly, the chair screeching against the stone floor, "Guard the door, don’t let anyone approach!"

Thunder rolled across the palace roof as if heralding the start of this secret conversation.

When Raymond stepped into the side hall, the air seemed to weigh a bit heavier.

He shook off the rain on his shoulders, took off the soaked black cloak, and casually hung it on the iron hook by the door.

Underneath was dark leather armor without a family crest, simple yet exuding a dangerous aura.

Despite the chilly rain clinging to his body, his posture remained straight, like hardwood that wouldn’t bend even in a storm.

Kaelin almost couldn’t wait to greet him: "Duke, why would you... How dare you come to the Imperial Capital at this time?"

Raymond did not answer; his gaze fell on the list with names crossed out, pausing for half a second.

"Your Highness," his tone calm yet cutting like a knife through a wound, "Rotten meat must be cut off."

He lifted his eyes to add, "Keeping it will only drag the whole body to death."

Kaelin’s breath halted for a moment.

Raymond walked forward a few steps, pulled out a chair, and sat down, his actions leisurely as if in his own mansion.

"Those fence-sitters leaving is a good thing," he continued, "At least now you can finally see who is still usable and who has long been someone else’s man."

Kaelin clenched his molars, his voice tight, "The legions... were not supposed to be this way. The Twenty-Third Legion turned to the Fourth Prince because of the civil servants’ intimidation and enticement..."

"It’s more than intimidation and enticement," Raymond cut him off directly, "It’s grabbing the lifeline."

He reached out, pushing the list back in front of Kaelin.

"The Fourth Prince controls the Ministry of Finance, as well as the Audit Office. He uses supplies, military expenses, audits to grind these old-fashioned military commanders’ families into the ground."

"Without supplies, they can’t last two months. Without audit exemptions, their family account books won’t hold till next year. Without combat merit documentation, their sons and nephews won’t pass the noble title exams."

Raymond looked up at Kaelin: "These old commanders never truly pledged loyalty to anyone. They are loyal to their families. The Fourth Prince gives them the means to stabilize their families, which you can’t... Of course, they would turn."

Silence lingered between them for a moment.

Raymond leaned back against the chair, summing up crisply, "The current Military Affairs Department is an empty shell. You can’t mobilize any complete legion."

Thunder rolled across the roof once more.

Raymond, as if foreseeing this, took another scroll of parchment from beside the chair and slapped it onto the desk.

Not a list, but an Empire frontier defense map full of dust, corners worn.

"Your Highness, not being able to mobilize the Royal Capital’s troops doesn’t mean you have no army."

Kaelin stared at the old map, his brow slowly furrowing.

Raymond lifted his hand, pointing to the region bordering the Jade Federation in the west: "The Thirty-First Legion."

He then pointed to the southern barren border line: "The Eleventh Legion."

"These two legions have been embroiled in years of border skirmishes with Magical Beasts and Alien Races. Troops forged in real battles." Raymond’s fingertips paused on the map, his tone calm yet assured, "Combat effectiveness, the strongest of all regular legions in the Empire."

He paused: "Also the most forgotten by the Imperial Capital."

Kaelin’s breath tightened slightly but he didn’t interrupt.

Raymond continued, "They are too far from the political center, viewed by the Ministry of Finance as a money pit.

Annual military pay is delayed where possible, reduced where possible. Do you know how worn their equipment is? Old blades from ten years ago, barely functional if stitched together, would count as good.

These fellows have long hated the civil servants in the Imperial Capital who only know to use audit forms to withhold resources, and the Fourth Prince’s hand."

He looked up at Kaelin, his gaze like a sharp dagger: "They don’t care if orders from the Imperial Capital comply or who fights for what in the palace. They only understand two things: whether they get resources, whether they are respected."

"An old military adage says: ’Generals in the field do not take orders from sovereigns’." Raymond quietly repeated, "These people are more independent than you think. As long as you feed them, they will help you tear through the northern defenses of the Imperial Capital."