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Chapter 531 Persuasion

?The Governor of Venice, feeling threatened, warned the soldiers to hold their tongues, which led them to fall silent.

Howard then summoned the Governor of Milan, who had also been on the high ground, to verify this account.

The Governor of Milan, a commercial governor, was generally not expected to speak ill of another commercial governor in front of the nobility.

This was an industry norm or, more accurately, an unspoken understanding.

However, the Governor of Milan had previously waged war against the Governor of Venice, emerging victorious, which had reduced their relationship to a freezing point.

Thus, considering the already strained relationship with the Governor of Venice, the Governor of Milan saw little reason to hold back.

The mutual disdain was evident as both parties voiced the truth.

"We, the governors of the commercial republics, prioritize business over military affairs," said the Governor of Milan.

"Take me, for instance. Honestly, my knowledge is quite limited. Although I can understand how artillery is loaded, I wouldn't dare to suggest how to do it faster. The same goes for him. Claiming to supervise the artillery was merely a self-aggrandizing act."

Howard inquired, "So, you're saying the Governor of Venice didn't contribute anything beneficial to the battle?"

"Exactly," the Governor of Milan confirmed.

"We don't really understand these matters, so we just observe."

The Governor of Venice retorted, "Nonsense! I was earnestly contributing to the battle. How can you just dismiss that?"

Howard then summoned Resarite, the commander-in-chief of the recent battle, to assess the Governor of Venice's performance.

Resarite, known for his straightforwardness, remarked, "He didn't even know how the artillery should be loaded. How could he supervise? He was simply too scared to join the fight and pretended to be busy on the high ground."

The Duke of Savoy sneered, "Such a coward, yet he dares to covet the soldiers' spoils of war."

As the Governor of Venice was about to respond, Nora intervened, "I believe the generous Governor of Venice is certainly no coward. So, he must have been merely looking at the spoils."

After a pause, Nora gave the Governor of Venice a meaningful glance, emphasizing her words, "Therefore, the Governor of Venice will now leave the distribution of the spoils. I invite you to join me for a cup of tea."

The Governor of Venice shot a venomous look at the Duke of Savoy and said bitterly, "You'll remember this." He then accompanied Nora to have tea.

Half an hour later, the distribution of the spoils of war was completed, and the soldiers, having received their share of the booty, were jubilant.

The Duke of Savoy playfully punched Howard in the chest, saying, "Little brother, you've got your ways. After the unfortunate incident of my good friend, Duke Jiakai, I always suspected you of foul play and held a grudge. "

"But now, I see you as a reasonable, rule-abiding, and honorable noble. Heh, we should interact more in the future. My Savoy region also has a couple of coastal provinces, and we hold some sway in the trade with Renonia."

Howard expressed his gratitude to the Duke of Savoy and then departed.

Beyond the main area of the spoils' distribution, there were other places where the loot was being sorted – like circles within circles, or rather like one stall after another in a marketplace.

By the time all the spoils were distributed, it was already five in the afternoon.

Under Resarite's decision, the group set out for the Grobinden region.

This decision took into consideration the overall military strength of Castile and the distribution of their scattered forces.

The coalition of nobles and Aragon were not closely connected, and even with intelligence transmitted via sea routes, it still required five to six days, or sometimes even seven, for information to be relayed.

Considering the possibility of bad weather, this duration could extend even longer.

However, the overall situation was starting to improve.

Castile was unable to swiftly conclude battles on both the eastern and western fronts.

The longer the war dragged on, the more pronounced Castile's internal problems would become, increasing the likelihood of their withdrawal from the conflict.

Nora had previously made it clear that as long as the King of Castile withdrew from the succession war, she would not make any demands.

In other words, Nora was willing to accept an unconditional peace if Castile chose to cease hostilities.

However, a force that many had overlooked was the second prince from the Ing Empire and his wife, Mary, who had crossed the sea.

The prince's military strength was limited, but unopposed, he had now reached the vicinity of Munich, preparing to attack this fortress currently under Oli Kingdom's control.

Other nobles within the empire remained indifferent to this matter.

Despite their reluctance to see the elder prince victorious, they had no intention of raising arms against him.

Instead, it was the Fran Kingdom that issued a warning to Castile.

The old king of Fran had passed away, and the bold Charles ascended to the throne.

This Charles, who embodied the spirit of a knight and had once offered assistance to Howard despite never having met him, was now the king of Fran.

However, Charles's bold warning to Charles V of Castile was not due to any relation with Howard, but rather a consideration from Fran Kingdom's national perspective, not wishing to see the emergence of a superpower.

Yet, Fran did not send troops.

Castile's foreign minister, Heede, who had once met Howard, dismissed the warning letter from Fran's diplomat with contempt, casually letting it flutter to the ground.

The document drifted left and right in the air before finally landing on the floor.

Despite the unsuccessful mission to Lagusa, Charles V greatly appreciated Heede's abilities.

He elevated Heede to the rank of an earl and even appointed him as the national foreign minister of Castile.

There was considerable dissatisfaction among the nobility within Castile.

For instance, Duke Anthony of the Catalan region, who had previously battled against Howard's coalition, strongly disagreed with Charles V's decisions.

He was not alone in his sentiments.

It was puzzling why Fransi, the king's chief of espionage, appeared in Anthony's army.

Speculations varied: some thought it was to intimidate Anthony, others to prevent his rebellion, or even that the king planned to assassinate Anthony.

Regardless, the situation was undoubtedly mysterious.

Heede, indeed a capable man, managed to convey a message of Castile's disdain for Fran through his dismissive actions.

While his behavior angered the diplomat from Fran, it simultaneously portrayed a stance of Castile not fearing Fran, making Fran hesitant to make any rash moves.

However, this incident stirred much debate within Castile.

The nobility, judging Heede's actions based on status and standpoint, heavily criticized him.

They accused Heede of unnecessarily escalating hostility with Fran and called for a change in the foreign minister.

Charles V, aware of these internal discussions, was eager to achieve a military victory to silence the discontent among the nobles.

Meanwhile, Howard briefly left the army, confidently leaving the command entirely to Resarite.

His departure was to approach Munich, intending to negotiate with the second prince from Ing.

Bosiden volunteered to negotiate on Howard's behalf, but Nora rejected the offer, stating that Howard's personal involvement as a duke would demonstrate greater sincerity and likely elicit a more favorable response from the prince.

Bosiden recognized a change in Nora.

She had transformed from her previous persona of a cold but unconventional and sharp-tongued secretary to a similarly cold figure, but now her every action and thought pattern seemed steeped in conservatism, resembling an outdated and rigid monarch.

Bosiden shared his thoughts with Alonso, who responded, "An emperor? She's not an emperor. Aren't we fighting this war to help her become one?"

Bosiden chuckled at the literal interpretation, "It was just a metaphor. Never mind if you don't get it."

The wife of the second prince was a woman of great spirit and well-known in the Ing Empire.

In a remarkably short time, she had secured the support of local mercenaries for the prince, hiring a bloodthirsty mercenary group with promissory notes.

This significantly bolstered the size of the prince's army.

Upon hearing this news, Nora grew concerned for Howard.

After a journey of four to five days, Howard arrived before the second prince, who was seated on a temporarily placed, opulent golden chair.

Beside him sat a captivating figure of beauty and allure – his wife, Mary.

Howard began to discuss the legitimacy of the empire's successor, but Mary rudely interrupted him, causing Howard to frown in displeasure.

Mary asked, "You're Howard, right? The Duke of Lagusa and Croatia?"

Suppressing his irritation, Howard replied in a low tone, "As I already mentioned, I am the Duke of Lagusa and Croatia, and also hold the earldoms of Nok and Luka."

The second prince shared a knowing smile with his wife. Mary scoffed, "Hmm, the Renaissance, it all started from your end."

Howard did not regret mentioning Nok and Luka, as he believed such information was not hard to investigate.

He felt Mary was feigning ignorance, her inquiry masking a disdain for the new culture and those who embraced it.

Looking at Mary, Howard said, "I've heard people say you despise the new culture. I didn't believe it at first, but now I do."

Mary, growing impatient, retorted, "Can you say something useful?"