Chapter 97: The Earl's Death
The lord himself did not delay in Qicha Fortress.
The purpose of entering Qicha Fortress was not to look for evidence, and the garrison of Qicha Fortress would not let him wander around.
He wanted to see Eldred's reaction in order to confirm his analysis.
Now, seeing that Eldred went to Sarleon City, Leon was certain that Eldred was the real murderer of Oden.
This is not a hatred for Rainier. Rainier's incident can only be regarded as a reminder to the lord. The key is to analyze based on Eldred's performance.
Baron Eldred is actually very powerful, and his situation is very special.
His fiefdom is Qicha Fortress, which is the gateway to protect the Fierce Lion City and can even be said to be the military hub of the entire continent. Its geographical location is very important.
There were over a thousand soldiers stationed in the fortress, all of them were Eldred's men - in terms of military strength alone, he was on par with Count Oden.
However, due to frequent wars between the two countries over the past few decades, residents near the Qicha Fortress fled one after another, and it gradually became a pure military fortress.
Without many people living there, the territory could not generate income for Eldred. With the income from the territory alone, he might not even be able to maintain the castle he lived in.
The reason he was able to feed thousands of troops was actually because of the supply from Sarleon City .
It is obvious that Qicha Fortress needs to have enough garrisons to resist the attack of the Bacchus Empire.
Therefore, it was Sarleon that had been providing food and money to Eldred's Seven Forks Fortress to ensure that there were enough garrisons to protect Sarleon's safety.
This is why King Ulric would not easily think that Eldred would rebel. The lifeline of money and food is in the hands of the king. After he rebelled, he would not be able to feed his troops.
But at the same time, no one, including the king, would easily provoke Eldred. After all, he has an army of thousands of people...
This situation is very common. It happened in the frontline areas of many countries. It was normal until modern times.
But there are some things to think about - what if Sarleon is taken by Eldred?
Even if he didn't get Sarleon, Eldred would be self-sufficient if he only got the wealthy towns and villages around Sarleon.
——In Leon’s eyes, this is the motive.
It was motivation enough for Eldred to do anything.
In addition, the Bacchus Empire hid a large number of cavalry corps in the fog, which was naturally for a greater purpose - the strategic intention of the Bacchus Empire was to capture the Fierce Lion City.
Count Oden is a famous general who is best at dealing with cavalry. In this strategic intention, Oden will be the biggest opponent of the Bacchus Empire, so it is best to get rid of him first.
At the same time, Oden's death just happened to create conditions for this strategic goal.
And, Oden would happen to pass by here at this time.
With so many conditions coming together, it is definitely not a coincidence.
And if Eldred wants to cooperate with the Bacchus Empire, he must also give a pledge of allegiance. It just so happens that Oden is going to Qicha Fortress to hand over military affairs, and his troops are also stationed in Qicha Fortress...
Then, inform the Bacchus Empire army of Oden's whereabouts, and stab Oden in the back in the name of "rescue".
This was probably Eldred's token of allegiance.
Only Eldred of Qicha Fortress could launch a surprise attack and kill Oden. No one else has the conditions or the ability to do so.
If Oden was simply defeated by the army of the Bacchus Empire, he could have surrendered to save his life. He would have been captured and could have been redeemed later.
Only a traitor would want to kill Oden - this is not a war of annihilation. If Oden is just captured and redeemed by the Kingdom of the Fierce Lion, Eldred will face Oden's revenge.
Eldred's immediate response to rushing to Sarleon City has confirmed all the analysis - if he didn't do it, he wouldn't have explained it at all.
However, even though he knew all this, killing Eldred was still a problem.
In fact, even if Eldred had not committed treason, the lord would not let him live - since he had killed his son, how could he let his father live?
To cut the grass, you must remove the roots.
However, even if everyone agrees with Leon's reasoning and judgment, there is really nothing they can do to him without any evidence - in fact, even if there is evidence, he may not die.
In the continent of Pendor, and even in medieval Europe, those convicted of heresy would most likely be burned at the stake, but nobles convicted of treason would not necessarily be sentenced to death...
Therefore, Leon was not in a hurry to go to Sarleon City to get involved in the accusation against Eldred. Baron Hereward and Sarah were enough to fight this kind of lawsuit.
Li Ang never liked to argue with others...
Things in this world don't make so much sense.
The lord temporarily left Amy in Qicha Fortress and asked Amy to arrange the lion followers to act as scouts and continuously expand the scouting range.
This is actually equivalent to telling the Bacchus Empire that the Lion Knights have taken over the Qicha Fortress, and you'd better withdraw quickly.
Of course, the Lion Knights were willing to let their followers help Amy explore the surrounding situation - this was to protect Miss Amy's safety.
Only after making sure that the scout range covered the surrounding area of 100 miles did Li Ang slowly leave the Qicha Fortress.
However, although everything was as expected, the lord still encountered a small accident.
Just ten miles away from the west gate of Qicha Fortress, he encountered a group of guys wearing tattered clothes and carrying all kinds of tattered equipment.
There were not many of them, only about sixty or seventy. They seemed to be heading towards the Qicha Fortress, but when they saw Li Ang's flag, they immediately rushed towards him.
This is a group of bandits.
But the problem is, this is next to a front-line fortress... There is no one living within dozens of miles, and there are thousands of defenders in the fortress, and scouts are constantly coming and going!
How could there be bandits in a place like this?
It was probably because the lion followers expanded the scouting range, which alarmed some of the people who were originally ambushing here...
However, although facing sixty or seventy bandits, the lord was accompanied by more than a dozen strong men armed to the teeth, and was obviously not at all at a disadvantage - those bandits did not look rich, and they did not even have complete armor on them.
But just as the two sides were getting closer and closer, when Leon was about to order a charge, his raised hand suddenly froze.
The leader of the gang of bandits across the street was a woman.
A strong woman, not tall, with a big nose and small eyes, wearing leather armor and holding an iron sword, with broad shoulders and a strong back.
This is an acquaintance.
After taking another serious look at the bandits rushing towards him, Li Ang put his hands to his mouth and began to shout loudly.
"Riva! Stop!"
That was Riva, the illegitimate daughter of Count Oden, who once robbed the lord of Holden Village in the Lion Lake City area.
The bandit on the opposite side obviously heard his voice, slowed down with some confusion, and seemed to hesitate for a moment.
But then, the woman started charging again with a determined attitude.
"Catch him! Catch him so we can rush in!"
The woman's voice was quite loud, but it sounded a bit like crying.
"Damn it! Klose, don't move, I know that woman!"
Seeing the bandits rushing over, the lord had no choice but to give instructions, then he took the lead and rushed straight towards Riva.
Riva also rushed over with a sword in hand. This woman was quite skilled. It seemed that she became the bandit leader not by cheating or deceiving people.
Although he wielded the sword without any rules, probably because he was self-taught, his steps and strength were good - enough to beat at least three Ansens.
However, he still couldn't get past Li Ang.
Li Ang only used one sword, and the weapon in her hand was chopped off and she fell to the ground.
It was an iron pickaxe, which was cut into two pieces by the griffin sword.
"Riva, tell your men to stop! I'm Count Oden's friend!"
The lord put away his sword, looked at the sharp iron pick on the ground, and shouted loudly.
Riva looked at Leon suspiciously, then looked at the heavily armored Mettenheim men behind Leon, and raised her hand: "Stop!"
The bandits stopped obediently, but the hostility in Riva's eyes did not disappear.
"Riva, Count Oden told me about you, and you should know me..."
Leon spoke directly and stated his relationship with Oden - the fact that Oden told Leon this was enough to prove that Leon was indeed Oden's friend.
He could vaguely guess Riva's purpose, but he didn't expect that Riva would plan to catch him.
Sure enough, Riva no longer showed any hostility, but instead knelt down directly.
"Lord Leon, I remember you... I know we are no match for you, but you are a noble. Only by capturing you can I enter the Qicha Fortress..."
Riva lost her vicious look and tears started to flow down her cheeks: "Please help me! I want to see Eldred! I want to kill him!"
This time, she no longer pretended to be a noble woman, her behavior and words were completely like a bandit.
"Eldred is not in Qicha Fortress right now... Tell me the details first!"
The lord breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Eldred was scared away, otherwise, what Riva did would basically be tantamount to seeking death.
I really didn't expect that this matter would be related to Riva. Li Ang also wanted to know what happened.
"Eldred deceived me..."
"Lord Leon, I have always hated Oden. He is an irresponsible man..."
"He forgot about my mother... He caused my mother to die in poverty. I didn't even know about him until she died!"
"But he rose step by step to become a baron, an earl, a hero in the eyes of the people, and a world-famous brave shield of the kingdom!"
"But the more this happens... the more I hate him! I want him to fail! I want him to lose the battle!..."
"Eldred asked me to go to the valley to attract his attention, saying that this would lead to his capture by the Bacchus Empire... I do want him to be captured!"
"He saw me and probably wanted to bring his soldiers to protect me..."
"The army of the Bacchus Empire used this opportunity to block his troops, but I didn't want to be caught by the Bacchus, so I ran away..."
"But I didn't expect him to die! I didn't want to kill him!"
"Eldred lied to me!"
Riva was already in tears and was kneeling on the ground crying.
I see……
I see!
Perhaps, if it weren't for Riva, with Oden's abilities, he might have been able to escape successfully.
The lord sighed and thought, perhaps, there is indeed fate in this world.
"How do you know Eldred?"
"I did business with Eldred. He asked me to help his son Rainier find some men, saying that letting them serve as soldiers would give those brothers in the mountains a legitimate identity... Later, when he found out that I was the daughter of an earl, he asked me to help me avenge that irresponsible man... Lord Leon, please help me, I want to kill him!"
"Of course, Riva, I want to kill Eldred, too. I wasn't completely sure at first, but now that I've met you, I know I can definitely kill him."
