For the next ten or so days, Claude could only stay in Squirrel Village with a frown.
Even though the investigation team cleared Claude and Durioro of the charges of treason, it didn't help his plan to save Skri at all.
The nobles at frontline command were slapped in the face by the investigation team sent by the Ministry of the Army. They no longer claimed that Claude and Durioro were traitors. However, they stopped the supply of supplies to 1st Ranger Tribe and asked the tribe leader to go to the frontline command to claim it himself.
First Brigade's jarl was Claude. Second Brigade's jarl, Hemklin, was still recuperating in the camp's infirmary. Third Brigade's jarl, Hacklem, was injured too early and was sent to the infirmary under frontline command. He didn't participate in the defense of Count Klaus' castle. Third Brigade was under the command of Battalion Commander Skri.
Fourth Band's chief was Captain Kurdwacker. He was also the person in charge of battalion headquarters after Major Skri's arrest.
Major Skri had a premonition when he decided to lead 1st Ranger Tribe away from Count Krylaus' castle. So, he ordered Claude to lead 1st Band to Squirrel Village and assist Durioro's garrison in defending the mountain pass.
Apart from that order, he also transferred the veterans of the other three bands to fill in for 1st Band.
Of the less than three bands in 1st Ranger Tribe, Claude's 1st Band was the strongest. Be it in terms of manpower or equipment, they were all fully staffed and they even had a cannon company.
Originally, the supplies of 1st Band were to be sent to Squirrel Village by the battalion headquarters in Rosha. But now that frontline command's logistics department had stopped supplying 1st Ranger Tribe, Kurdwacker had no choice but to go to frontline command to apply for it.
The moment he arrived, he was detained by the nobles and asked to write a report on Claude and Skri's conspiracy to evacuate Count Krylaus' castle and give up on the kingdom's territory.
He gritted his teeth and said that he was new to 1st Ranger Tribe and didn't know anything. He was only temporarily managing 1st Ranger Tribe in Skri's place and wouldn't write anything.
The nobles didn't know what to do with him and could only make a fuss about the supplies. They checked how many soldiers 1st Ranger Tribe had left in Rosha and only gave them enough supplies to keep Claude's First Band out.
Frontline command's logistics department stated that since the war was over, they needed to verify the strength and equipment of the various troops.
As Claude's band was stationed in Squirrel Village and wasn't at battalion headquarters, 1st Ranger Tribe didn't have a battalion commander in charge, so Claude had to personally head to the logistics department to verify the situation. That was to prevent any embezzlement or waste of resources.
The document was very formal, but Captain Kurdwacker secretly sent someone to inform Claude not to go to HQ and that they were trying to trick him.
Claude didn't plan on going. He wasn't an idiot, but what was he supposed to do about the supplies his band needed?
Fortunately, Durioro's garrison had stocked up on supplies for the past three months. He was able to replenish some at the last minute and solve his urgent problem.
Lying on his lover's bed at night, Claude's thoughts were all over the place.
Claude's experiences over the past few days had left him deeply moved.
The reason why the nobles at HQ didn't dare to send more men to Squirrel Village was simple. It was Claude's territory and he had a full band of soldiers under him. They were strong and obedient.
Although the nobles in the frontline command had jurisdiction over nearly a million troops, they did not have the authority to mobilize the troops. Therefore, they did not have the confidence to come looking for him because they could only mobilize a small team of guards at most. If they came looking for trouble with him with such a small number of troops, it would be like sending themselves to their doorstep.
That was the real reason they had no choice but to trick him into going to HQ. Once he went there, he would fall into their hands and his life would no longer be in his hands.
If the nobles at HQ had the authority to mobilize troops, they definitely wouldn't have waited for the investigation team from the Ministry of the Army to investigate the two cases.
They would have ordered their troops to rush over and grind him and Durioro into dust. When the dust settled, they could pin whatever crime they wanted on the dead.
He felt that he was rather lucky. If he didn't have such a large force, the noble officers at the frontline command could've easily sent two men to escort him there. He would've been like a fish on the chopping block if he fell into their hands.
Even if he did as they planned and framed Major Skri and Lieutenant-Colonel Ledefonk, he wouldn't be taken seriously.
Once his value was used up, he believed that the nobles wouldn't arrange a good ending for him.
The biggest possibility was that he would be silenced, killed himself, or choked to death by a piece of bread. In the eyes of those noble officers, as a captain of the kingdom and a recipient of the Knight's Medal, his fate was not much better than that of an ant …
From that, it could be seen that having the authority to control one's own strength was the best way to protect oneself in this world.
In the past, he thought too much about it. He thought that after learning magic and gaining citizenship, he would be able to live a carefree life after he retired.
Now that he thought about it, he found it laughable. There were many things that didn't have anything to do with him just because he didn't provoke them. There was a popular saying on the internet in his past life: getting shot while lying down.
Major Skerry, for example, had been arrested, and had borne all the charges.
Claude was fine at first, but the nobles wanted to find a way out of him and implicate the former battalion commander, Major Ledefonk, so they set their sights on him.
As the saying went, disaster came from the heavens while he was sitting at home.
Apart from facing it bravely and resisting tenaciously, there was no other way to deal with it.
There was also Captain Durioro. If it wasn't for the fact that the nobles in frontline command harmed the interests of the merchant nobles, he wouldn't have stood on the same side as Claude.
Compared to Claude, who was a country bumpkin, Durioro was far more adept at dealing with such schemes. He could even be considered a master at manipulating people with his sleeves.
Take the deaths of Becky Milo and First Lieutenant Giprick for example. One was clearly killed by him and the other committed suicide.
Yet, with Claude's help, Captain Durioro made it seem as if the two of them had nothing to do with each other and even obtained the approval of the military justice.
Even the thought of it terrified him. Only after experiencing this incident did he realize that there was a hidden truth hidden behind the facts that were made known to the public.
If he didn't want to be the one being lied to, he would have to gain more power and authority to ensure that his interests wouldn't be harmed.
At first, Claude thought that he would be satisfied with just becoming a captain and that he would be able to flaunt it in front of his neighbors when he returned to Whitestag.
But now, he felt that he was too weak and could easily be beaten to death by some noble officer who didn't like him.
If it wasn't for the herbalism teacher Maria backing him up, perhaps Captain Durioro and the other merchant nobles wouldn't have stood on his side and would've just watched from the sidelines.
Although Captain Durioro was only the commander of a local garrison camp and a captain of the garrison force, there was no way he could compare to an official captain of the kingdom. His military rank was naturally one level lower.
But in terms of power and influence, Captain Durioro was much more capable than Claude. He had more allies and influence in the dark.
The alliance formed by these business aristocrats could compete with the old aristocratic families, and could even make the high and mighty royal families rely on their wealth.
After seeing how Captain Durioro was distorting the truth, Claude couldn't help but raise his guard against the captain.
Even though Captain Durioro was on the same side as him and they were good friends, working together to fight against the noble officers and the old noble houses behind them, Claude still had to be wary of them.
He still had to be wary of nobles like Captain Durioro in case they sold him out one day and he had to count the money for them.
In his previous life, Claude had heard his boss say that there were no eternal enemies or friends in the business world. There were only eternal benefits.
That was why everyone wore a mask of hypocrisy and chatted with each other to do business. However, they would calculate their own gains and losses very clearly and only sign contracts after confirming their gains.
Claude felt that Captain Durioro and the other merchant nobles were similar to the businessmen his boss talked about in his previous life.
It was just that he had his boss to look after him in his previous life. Coupled with the fact that he didn't like to socialize in the business world, he could do whatever he liked under his boss' protection. If he wanted to vent his frustrations, he could go to the red-light places with his boss and act like a veteran. He didn't have to pretend to be a gentleman to deal with others.
This world wasn't the same as his previous one and he didn't have his boss to protect him. He could only face everything on his own.
Learning to interact with the merchant nobles and people of high society to climb up wasn't a matter of whether he liked it or not.
Rather, it was the only way he could build a safe environment for his loved ones and trusted subordinates.
All in all, he had to learn to be his own boss and gain more power and authority.
"Why aren't you sleeping yet? Is something on your mind?" Sheila's soft body wrapped around him and interrupted his thoughts.
"Yeah, I'll sleep right away," he said as he hugged his lover. "The war is over and I miss home.
It's been almost five years since I've gone back and I'm a little emotional. That's why I haven't been able to sleep lately. "
Early in the morning, Claude got out of bed feeling refreshed and had his breakfast. Only then did he bid farewell to his lover reluctantly and mounted a mountain horse for the return journey.
When he returned to Squirrel Village, he saw Siegfried, Captain Durioro's adjutant, standing at the entrance of the village. He was overjoyed to see Claude return. "Sir Claude, you're finally back. Our superior has been nagging all morning about how you didn't even give him your address when you went to meet your lover. He couldn't find you even if he wanted to.
He told me to wait here and invite you to his office as soon as you returned. "
Claude got off his horse. "What happened?"
"Our superior received a messenger hawk early in the morning and was overjoyed. He told me to find you.
Then, he remembered that you told him you went to find his hunter girlfriend and would only return this morning.
He could only order me to wait for you at the entrance of the village. "Siegfried took the reins from Claude's horse.
"Alright, I got it. I'll go find your superior now," Claude said.
When he arrived at Durioro's office, he saw him chugging glass after glass of wine. His face was completely red.
Seeing Claude return, Durioro jumped up excitedly and waved the secret letter in his hand. "Brother, we won! Prince Hansbach has returned to the frontline command center and has taken over all authority.
None of the old nobles' lackeys dare to disobey the prince's orders. "
Happiness came so suddenly that Claude couldn't help but be overjoyed.
With the prince back at the frontline command center, everything would be in order and Major Skriti would be freed.
He hurriedly asked, "Why wasn't there any news a few days ago?
When did the prince return to the frontline command center? "
"The secret letter says that the eldest prince seemed to have suddenly appeared at the frontline headquarters last night. According to his guards, the eldest prince took his guards out of the capital to hunt in the nearby suburbs eleven days ago. No one noticed that the eldest prince's destination was the frontline.
After leaving the Royal City, I spurred on my horse and rushed to the frontline day and night. At the same time, I hid my identity and pretended to be a messenger delivering a secret message to the frontline, so no one noticed me along the way … "Captain Duriolo replied as he looked at the secret letter.
Claude picked up the fruit wine on the table and poured himself a glass. After finishing it in one gulp, he exhaled. "Now, we can really relax. The nobles at the frontline command center won't be able to get up and run around after the prince's return.
I just don't know when Major Skree will be released? "
Captain Durioro nodded. "It should be fine. This secret letter my friend sent me says that this morning, the eldest prince ordered the communications department to send a messenger hawk to all the corps commanders at the frontline, requesting them to arrive at the frontline command center within three days.
At the same time, he ordered a division of the royal guard to head to Pacathia to guard the area around the frontline command center.
I think the First Prince's purpose in doing this is to carry out a great purge … "
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m.