Chapter 54: Chapter 54: Fortress Personnel Appointment

Robson sat in his chair, his brow furrowed.

’What is this woman trying to pull now?’

Having witnessed the tragic fate of the North City nobles, Robson was now quite wary of Valentino.

This time, appointing Robson as the nominal Commander-in-Chief had been done without any prior notice, and he had no idea what she was planning.

Valentino watched as Robson’s brow furrowed and then relaxed, and she was inwardly surprised.

She had already looked into Robson’s background; he was merely the second son of a Baron Clan, and he had only earned his title of Knight a short while ago.

With that kind of status, his clan certainly wouldn’t have spent much effort training him.

But this man was remarkable. Not only did he excel on the battlefield, but his performance in the struggles between nobles was also commendable.

Valentino was certain that Robson knew the true reason behind everything that had happened today, and she figured he could probably see through her little tricks.

"How do you feel I handled matters today, Sir Knight?" Far from feeling embarrassed by her thoughts, Valentino flashed a charming smile at Robson.

She had no choice; she needed something from him.

In war, everything else was illusory; only the soldiers under one’s command were real. Moreover, she had heard from her maternal grandfather that quite a few people were indebted to this Robson. Never mind those further afield; even among people she knew, like Viscount Riman and the North City nobles, she couldn’t just force them to obey.

"The Earl is wise to have kept the enemy at bay. However, my army suffered heavy losses in today’s battle, and our colleagues from North City are not faring well either. I wonder what the Earl plans to do next?" Robson asked. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

’Whether the Earl is wise or not is secondary. And what do I care how the North City nobles are doing?’

’But the fact that my, Lord Robson’s, army suffered heavy losses is very real, and that’s what truly matters!’

His words were a reminder to Valentino: wasn’t it time to make good on her pre-war promises? Shouldn’t Lord Robson’s heroic performance in battle be rewarded?

Failing to fulfill promises was bad for one’s reputation, and failing to reward brave warriors was bad for morale.

’After all, he, Robson, was only thinking of the Earl’s best interests!’

"Rest assured, Sir Knight. Although the current situation is somewhat dire, it is generally under control. There is, however, one matter that I need you to handle... Have you any thoughts on the position of Commander-in-Chief of Qimo Castle?" Valentino asked.

Hearing this, even though Robson had been prepared for it, he was still quite astonished.

’Commander-in-Chief of a fortress?’

Although Qimo Castle wasn’t a particularly important defensive stronghold, becoming its Commander-in-Chief required the rank of at least a Viscount.

’Otherwise, once I get there, everyone under my command would just be looking at each other, completely insubordinate. How could I possibly manage that?’

Don’t be fooled by how polite everyone was to Robson now; that was because he had strength and stood on the same level as them!

The higher you stand, the more people there will be scrutinizing you.

Thinking of this, Robson felt a sense of clarity. No wonder Valentino had appointed him Commander-in-Chief of the army; it was to pave the way for this promotion.

"Earl, it’s not that I wish to refuse, but in my current position, I’m afraid it would be difficult to command respect..." Robson frowned, feigning great difficulty.

’Of course I can accept the position, but the preparations have to be settled first.’

’Once I actually take over, I’ll be miles away from Valentino, and arranging logistics will be a problem.’

"Rest assured, Sir Knight. With your current merits, you have already earned enough to be enfeoffed as a Baron. It’s only a matter of time.

I will also have my Uncle Leo coordinate with you to build good relations with the nobles at Qimo Fortress ahead of time," Valentino said.

"Be that as it may, for a fortress of that size, my current troop numbers... It’s not that I want to refuse, I truly lack the strength for the task," Robson sighed.

"Qimo Fortress still has 1,000 soldiers from my Fengman Clan on garrison duty. We will arrange another thousand soldiers for you later. I believe that with your skills, Sir Knight, these soldiers will quickly become battle-ready warriors," Valentino said.

Robson took a sip of water. This already met his expectations, but if he could get more, he was certainly going to ask for it. Planning ahead was the surest way to stay on top.

"A few thousand soldiers can hold out for a while, that’s no problem, but I’ve heard that the walls of Qimo Castle are old, and the soldiers’ weapons are in disrepair from age."

Listening to Robson rattle off his menu of demands, Valentino almost lost her composure. It took all her years of training to restrain herself.

"Does Sir Knight have any other requests? Why not list them all at once and get it over with?" Valentino was practically gritting her teeth.

"Oh, and speaking of which, winter is coming. We can’t let the soldiers freeze, and those Beastmen have much higher endurance than we do..."

"Sigh, when you think about it, being a commander is really not easy. I’m so worried for the Earl..." Robson sighed, a look of deep concern on his face.

At this moment, Valentino’s anger was practically written on her face.

’Worried for me? If you’re so worried, then just accept the post already!’

To be honest, if she wasn’t so short on capable men, she would never have considered Robson.

For one, Robson’s rank was indeed too low. For another, Robson was a sharp sword; he and the soldiers under his command were just as effective, and who knew how many merits they could win for her on the battlefield.

But she had no choice. She was a newcomer here and hadn’t established her network of connections. Many of her father’s old subordinates weren’t in the area, and the only person she could rely on, Viscount Leo, had lost all of his troops just a short while ago...

But that being said, Robson was now quickly making his way onto her blacklist.

’This subordinate is too sharp; I can’t fool him at all. If it were Walker, he’d probably think getting promoted was a great thing and would even thank me in the end.’

"Of course, of course. I will arrange for all of it," Valentino said.

"Oh! Right..."

"Sir Knight, don’t push it!"

Valentino was truly at her breaking point. Even if she was a Count, her resources couldn’t withstand such demands; her defensive zone wasn’t limited to just Qimo Castle.

"Not at all, the Earl misunderstands. I was just going to ask when I should submit my application to the Marquis," Robson said with a smile. Seeing that he had reached Valentino’s limit, Robson tactfully stopped talking.

In the future, even if he wasn’t in Mold, he would still be in Valentino’s defensive zone. It was as Valentino had said: don’t push things too far. Best to stay on good terms for the future.

As for the application, that was just a side matter. The Marquis was very hands-off with his subordinates; in fact, the management of the Noble Alliance Army was very lax in general.

Valentino’s expression relaxed slightly. It wasn’t that her self-control was lacking; she considered herself to be worldly and experienced.

’But other nobles make their demands as they go. Who else is like Robson, asking for everything upfront?’

Valentino rubbed her brow. At present, she really had no way to handle Robson.

The methods she had used to control the North City nobles would definitely not work on Robson.

If she used force, never mind whether Robson would then slack off on the job, his current public reputation alone meant Valentino couldn’t touch him whenever she pleased.

The Fengman Clan’s territory was already in an awkward position, neither truly southern nor northern. Moreover, Valentino had not yet fully inherited her father’s resources, so she naturally didn’t dare to do anything too outrageous.

"I will implement Sir Knight’s requests, and I will arrange for everything Qimo Fortress is lacking.

I hope you can be there early for the operation tomorrow, Sir Knight. I won’t see you out." Valentino leaned back wearily in her chair, her eyes closing as she felt a wave of drowsiness.

She had been dealing with various affairs for six consecutive days without rest. If not for her strength as a Silver-rank Warrior, she would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago.