Lord: I Grind EXP with Warband Panel

Kemal was clearly supposed to be retreating. A retreat meant moving away from the enemy. With Monroe and the Gray Dwarf army to the east, Kemal should have fled west with his troops.

Nothing wrong with that thinking!

King Monroe was rather baffled at the moment.

In Monroe’s plan, Kemal was supposed to flee west, eventually be caught by the human army, and then the Gray Dwarves would move in to tie them down.

What if they couldn’t catch up? Impossible. The marching speed of that human army was likely faster than some irregular cavalry units.

You couldn’t blame Monroe for this. A person’s worldview is largely shaped by their environment.

Among the Gray Dwarves, Monroe had naturally developed a purely pragmatic, profit-driven mindset.

He did consider that Kemal might be coming for revenge.

But what was the point of that?

Monroe didn’t understand. He wasn’t just bragging—he was allied with the Human Alliance now. As long as he could pin Kemal down, Kemal’s defeat was certain.

And once Kemal was defeated, wouldn’t the Beastman Empire just fall apart?

Monroe’s brow furrowed, but he still couldn’t grasp the key to the situation.

It was Floyd, standing to the side, who had a faint guess.

‘Does Kemal intend to charge in and use the Emperor’s blood to show all the races of the Empire the Gray Dwarves’ true colors?’

The Dark Giant had spent time in the Elf Empire before, so he was naturally influenced by it.

The Elf Empire was nothing like the Beastman Empire; it was a society that placed extreme importance on legitimacy and status.

Floyd looked at King Monroe.

‘Monroe probably still thinks I came to him because those two Royal Cities fell.’

‘That was part of the reason, of course, but what was more important was the slogan Monroe had shouted.’

‘It seems this fellow doesn’t even know the difference between outright rebellion and “purging the court of treacherous ministers.”‘

‘The Beastman Empire may be teetering on the brink, but no one has truly rebelled yet. The Royal Family still has some lingering prestige, and faith in the Beast God is spread throughout the grasslands.’

‘The moment the Beastman Emperor dies at Monroe’s hands, any claim of “purging the court” will become a joke.’

However, though Floyd thought this, he said nothing aloud.

‘It’s true the Royal Family has lingering prestige, but that’s all it is—lingering.’

‘For now, I’ll follow Monroe and build up my own reputation. Once Monroe kills the Beastman Emperor, I’ll take my troops and leave. Then, in a swift reversal, I’ll start denouncing Monroe and raise the banner of “purging the court” myself. Wouldn’t that be perfect?’

‘After all, the Dark Giants didn’t fail to become a Royal Family because they lacked strength.’

The kings of two of the world’s most cunning and scheming races were each making their own selfish calculations.

Monroe thought for a long time but still couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Nevertheless, a sense of unease lingered, so he turned to the messenger Knight.

“Later, go to my treasury and retrieve the charts from chest number five. Deliver them quickly to that human noble. I will write a letter shortly to be delivered with them,” King Monroe said.

The charts King Monroe spoke of were, of course, a map showing how to cross the Demon Beast Mountain Range and reach the Inner World Dwarf Kingdom.

It was only a partial map, however, showing the interior of the Demon Beast Mountain Range. The Gray Dwarf Race had used it during their escape back then, and unexpectedly, it was now proving useful.

In any case, as long as Beast Emperor Kemal’s army was crushed, his opportunity would arrive.

Since that was the case, he might as well get that human noble to the battlefield faster.

…

The Gray Dwarf Race was not the only one to receive news of Beast Emperor Kemal’s retreat.

Don’t be fooled by Marquis Oscillate’s considerable political talent; he had actually built his career on military achievements.

Not two days after the Beast Emperor’s retreat, the Marquis had already sensed something was amiss. He immediately dispatched troops to investigate, and the result did not disappoint him.

Bronze Pass, which had stood unbroken for two months, was now as fragile as paper—it crumbled at the first push!

The Marquis immediately realized that Kemal was on the run.

At this thought, even the usually calm and collected Marquis Oscillate felt a surge of excitement and nervousness.

Of course he was nervous; it would be a lie to say otherwise. That was the Beast Emperor! The emperor of the Beastmen! The Franks and the Beastmen were mortal enemies.

To participate in a military operation to kill the Beast Emperor—surely no Frank could resist such a temptation. This was a golden opportunity to have one’s name recorded in the annals of history.

The Marquis’s excitement didn’t last long. He knew that the key to intercepting Beast Emperor Kemal lay not with him, but with Robson on the eastern front.

Oscillate had been dealing with Marshal Grantham’s affairs, but after this development, how could he possibly spare a thought for that? He immediately led his army through Bronze Pass and had a specially trained Dragonhawk carry the news back to the kingdom at top speed.

By the time the message reached the Royal Capital and was delivered to the Crystal Palace, it was already morning.

Chancellor Daniel was on duty at the time.

This was a result of Louis III’s earlier reforms. To expand the power of the Inner Court, Louis III had specifically stationed several of his favored ministers just outside his own palace so they could be summoned at a moment’s notice.

It just so happened to be Daniel’s turn this month.

Daniel was something of a junior Marquis Edward, skilled in both civil and military matters. Recently, he had been closely monitoring the situation in the Beastman Empire.

At that moment, the message from Robson and the report from the central front arrived almost simultaneously.

After Daniel finished reading the letters, his face lit up with joy, and his heart pounded with shock and excitement!

…

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Chancellor Daniel requests an urgent audience.”

Louis III was still deep in sleep when he was woken by a handmaiden.

Lately, he felt his health deteriorating. Once in bed, he had no desire to get up, lacking the drive he once had.

However, with Daniel here, Louis III still had to go out and see what was happening.

Louis III knew that the entire kingdom was at a critical juncture.

Daniel was always a prudent man. If it wasn’t something major, he would never have come to the Royal Palace at such an ungodly hour.

With the help of his handmaidens, Louis III dressed and walked out of his bedchambers, heading straight for the rear garden.

Daniel had already been waiting there for a long time.

“My dear minister, what is so important?”

“Has the matter with George been handled properly?” Louis III asked.

Hearing this, Daniel shook his head.

The matter with Marquis George was simply that Louis III had made him empty promises, after which the Marquis had been tricked into going abroad and had only recently returned.

Apparently, someone abroad had enlightened him, because Marquis George had suddenly come to his senses and wanted to demand some actual benefits from Louis III.

Back and forth it went, and now the relationship between the northern faction and the Royal Family had grown somewhat stiff.

But Louis III didn’t care about that. The issue with Marquis George was ultimately a minor affair. ‘Once the business on the central front is settled and the Royal Family’s prestige reaches its zenith, what does a mere George even matter?’

If it were Oscillate, Louis III might have been a bit wary, but Marquis George…

It wasn’t that he was incompetent, just that he was far from being a threat.

Louis III lay back on his throne, his head groggy from waking up so early.

But Daniel’s next words made Louis III’s heart surge with excitement.

“Your Majesty, Kemal… has withdrawn his army!”