Fortunately, Henwell politely rejects Duke Kolen’s overtures, firmly stating that his family belongs to the duchy.

  He reminds everyone that he was personally knighted by the grand duke himself, and his loyalty to Vorry is his duty.

  Duke Kolen just chuckles and drops the subject.

  Still, Henwell gives Kolen—or maybe Roderick—a bit of face by returning another two thousand-plus square kilometers.

  That leaves Henwell holding onto nearly twelve thousand square kilometers of Ika territory.

  He’s done handing over any more nd, no matter what compensation the duchy offers.

  Because this territory is the very reason Henwell fought this war in the first pce.

  On one hand, it pushes a wedge between Ika and Ogiro.

  On the other, it borders directly with the Lumir Duchy.

  This allows Lumir’s trade caravans to reach Peace Haven without detouring through Ika.

  The ultimate goal is to turn Peace Haven into the crossroads of trade for four nations.

  The sly old fox, Duke Kolen, already sees where Henwell’s going.

  “Henwell, you really think bordering Lumir is all good? Becoming a trade hub does bring profits, that’s true.”

  ”But a votile trade center? I doubt it’ll ever truly thrive. I know your army is strong, and you know the kingdom’s two elite corps won’t stay pinned down in the southeast forever. But stirring up trouble is very easy. You don’t need elite troops to attack caravans.”

  Henwell grins, sidestepping the point: “Duke Kolen, you know what a trade center breeds most easily? Bandits. Because of the profits, no matter how many you kill, more will flock in, desperate enough to risk everything for a piece of the pie.”

  Duke Kolen raises an eyebrow: “What, are you threatening me? You’ll have your troops disguise themselves as bandits and raid the kingdom’s vilges?”

  Henwell bursts out ughing: “Hahaha… How could that be? I may be rough around the edges, but I’m still a noble. I wouldn’t stoop to such low, shameless acts!”

  Then his expression darkens with menace: “What I want to tell you is this, I spend a fortune maintaining my army. If I can’t make money, then to keep my rule, I’ll have to take it by force!”

  ”It won’t be my troops disguising themselves as bandits, it’ll be me, turning into a bandit myself! And I’ve got a big appetite. Once I turn bandit, I won’t settle for the petty cash of caravans or vilges.”

  ”My motto is simple: whoever’s got the money, that’s who I’m coming for! And the nobles of Ika Kingdom have the wealth. The cities of Ika Kingdom have the wealth!”

  Duke Kolen chuckles softly: “Heh… So you’re pnning to fight the Ika Kingdom to the bitter end?”

  Henwell shrugs: “I don’t want to! I came here with goodwill, hoping to make money so everyone profits. But if I’m left with no way out, starving to death, I’ll turn the whole pce to ashes!”

  ”Trade is Peace Haven’s lifeblood. Anyone who messes with it, I’ll fight to the death, no matter the cost! I’m ready to bet everything on this, but how much is the Ika Kingdom willing to pay in this game?”

  Duke Kolen shakes his head: “You sound like a gambler. Pushing so hard isn’t exactly wise.”

  Henwell sighs: “Ah, Duke Kolen, you have to understand, I’m just a poor bastard. I can only move forward. Not an inch back. Backing down means death. So to survive, I’ll do whatever it takes!”

  ”You all have grand families and fortunes; why make life hard for a desperate man like me? I can’t guarantee much, but I swear, once the Ika Kingdom loses this tiny, insignificant piece of nd, their tax revenue from the southeast won’t drop one bit.”

  Duke Kolen shakes his head firmly: “The kingdom won’t give up its territory. Prepare for war.”

  Henwell raises his chin: “Then so be it.”

  Back home, Henwell immediately begins reorganizing his forces, preparing to pull two mixed regiments from the north.

  If the duchy won’t back him, he sees no need to defend their borders anymore.

  The duchy’s envoys urge Henwell to keep his cool.

  At the same time, they send word back to Silver Peak City, where the powerful nobles will decide the next move.

  Right now, the duchy faces two options.

  One: to end the war quickly by agreeing to Ika Kingdom’s demands.

  The duchy would carve out a sizable territory from its own nds as compensation for Henwell.

  But this option is a hard no.

  If that happens, Henwell would be completely unrestrained—and worse, his influence would reach deep into the duchy’s heartnd.

  The other choice is to keep fighting, pressuring the Ika Kingdom to back down.

  But the Ika Kingdom, the most dominant power on the continent, only fought the war to fulfill some specific mission.

  Now that mission’s done, they don’t want to continue.

  That doesn’t mean the duchy can truly stand against the Ika Kingdom’s full might.

  There’s actually a third option: uniterally strike a deal with the Ika Kingdom, ignoring the conflict over Peace Haven.

  Letting Ika attack Peace Haven while the duchy steps aside.

  But that would be political suicide for the Vorry Duchy.

  It means completely abandoning any cim or protection over Peace Haven.

  In other words, Vorry loses all legal authority over the city.

  Essentially slicing Peace Haven right out of their domain.

  For the duchy, that’s a political catastrophe.

  For Henwell? Not much of a loss at all.

  As long as the Vorry Duchy dares to abandon its legal cim over Peace Haven, the Ogiro Kingdom will boldly step up and recognize Peace Haven’s allegiance outright.

  They’d even be willing to send troops and go to war with the Ika Kingdom over it.

  Meanwhile, the Ika Kingdom would call off the fighting and officially grant Henwell the title of Marquis of the Southeast Garrison.

  Both kingdoms would be ready to appud the duchy for making such a move.

  So this isn’t even a real option for the duchy, no one would dare bring it up.

  In the end, the duchy grits its teeth, decring that if the Ika Kingdom sparks war again, it will fight to the bitter end.

  Back in Golden Capital, the council debates how to handle the territory Peace Haven has seized.

  Going after Peace Haven alone is clearly unrealistic.

  But if they want to keep gaining ground there, they’ll have to commit a much rger offensive force.

  At that moment, the kingdom’s third prince suddenly asks, “Everyone, what kind of man do you think Henwell is? No one can deny he’s ambitious as hell. So why are we still stubbornly fighting him? This guy is going to become a cancer for Vorry, not a threat to the kingdom.”

  ”Since he’s shown his worth and his rift with Vorry these past two years, why not give him a little shove? Let his power grow. The kingdom can hand over those territories as bait to feed this beast, making him stronger. Next time he’s hungry, he’ll have to hunt closer to home.”

  ”And this beast’s appetite will only grow, targeting easier prey. Vorry and Ogiro are far easier marks than us. So no matter who he tears into ter, we’ll have, without realizing it, pushed this beast onto our side!”