Lord: I Grind EXP with Warband Panel

Chapter 315: Chapter 73: Spoils of War

"Ais, you’ve come at just the right time.

Take this and check it over. See if there are any discrepancies."

Ais had just walked in when Robson handed him a few sheets of paper.

"What’s this?" Ais asked, looking down at the papers with a puzzled expression.

"This is a tally of our soldiers’ kill counts, compiled from reports from the logistics department and our non-commissioned officers."

"I need you to double-check it," Robson said.

’Of course, this "verification" was just for show.’

’Robson’s most powerful tool for data analysis was his own Warband System.’

’He had simply taken some Magic Letter Paper from the Griffin Knights and, with the Extraordinary memory of a Sixth-rank Mage, transcribed the data directly onto the page.’

’This was why Robson dared to implement a system based on military merit; he controlled all the data. Robson knew just how absurdly powerful this ability was.’

’One could say that if he used it correctly, the ultimate authority over the entire merit system would be firmly in his hands. He could even achieve the zero-corruption state of an idealized government!’

’In fact, Robson’s plans for his future territory were essentially an extension of this merit-based system.’

’With a bit of ideological guidance, every facet of his future domain would revolve firmly around him, Lord Robson.’

’At that point, his ability to mobilize his people and marshal resources would allow him to overwhelm nearly any other power of this era!’

’Of course, that was all predicated on him using this system to establish a power on the scale of the Frank Kingdom. Otherwise, with just his current territory, he might as well forget about it.’

’For now, at least, he, Lord Robson, remained loyal to the Frankish Royal Family and still had faith in them.’

’It couldn’t be helped. It wasn’t that Robson, a transmigrator, lacked ambition. The main issue was that the kingdom’s political situation was simply too stable. On the surface, the only element of instability was Marshal Grantham, but the Marshal was too weak on his own. There were already signs that the Marquis would soon intervene. The moment the war between the Frank Kingdom and the Beastman Empire concluded, the military merit faction’s days would be numbered. This was all true unless... unless Marshal Grantham was a master of political unity, capable of rallying the entire military merit faction. Then, using his own military prowess, he could flip the game board and purge the court!’

’Of course, that was just a ridiculous fantasy. One only had to look at Count Sriphine to see that while the military merit faction might not be a completely disorganized mess, it wasn’t far off. Besides, international forces would be stationed here for a long time to come. No matter how formidable Grantham was, he couldn’t possibly stand against the entire Human World.’

’In such a stable political climate, any rebellion would just be paving the way for someone else to take the throne. In the face of the larger tides of the era, the power of a single individual was ultimately insignificant.’

"A statistics report? My lord, you’ve already prepared it? I thought you didn’t concern yourself with these matters. I was just about to send someone to investigate," Ais said, taking the documents from Robson and beginning to leaf through them.

’Perhaps it was the influence of his past life, but hearing Ais’s words, Robson found himself scrutinizing the man.’

’Tallying military merit was no small thing. The authority to grant rewards and mete out punishment was always the most fundamental power within an army.’

’But seeing Ais’s earnest expression, Robson laughed at his own foolishness. How could someone like Ais, who came from a background of pure peasantry, possibly have such ambitions?’

’He was probably just eager to prove himself after being newly promoted.’

"You don’t need to worry about these things. From now on, I will handle them all personally," Robson said.

"As you command, my lord." Ais nodded.

In truth, just as Robson had thought, Ais was simply trying to prove his worth.

Looking at the detailed list in his hands, Ais felt a sense of warmth. Other lords paid their armies no mind, but their own lord frequently checked in on his soldiers and knew them intimately.

Perhaps without even realizing it himself, Ais had already had the idea planted in his mind: Lord Robson knew his army like the back of his hand.

"So, what brings you here now?" Robson asked, looking at Ais.

"Oh, right. My lord, we’ve finished clearing the battlefield," Ais reported.

"Clearing the battlefield? You’ve already sorted through everything?" Robson was surprised. While his army was second to none in a fight, their administrative skills left much to be desired.

’Improving the administrative capabilities of his non-commissioned officers was a key goal for the future,’ Robson thought.

"Er... not exactly. That will probably take some more time."

"It’s just that our soldiers found something... unusual. I felt it might be very important, so I wanted to ask you to come take a look," Ais said.

"Something important? Then lead the way. I’ll go see what this is all about."

.....

Led by Ais, Robson soon arrived at a tent in the rear of the camp. It was heavily guarded by soldiers.