Steampunk Era: Mad Abield
Chapter 984: Section 641: Wild Banquet (Part 3)

Chapter 984: Section 641: Wild Banquet (Part 3)

Svenson’s younger brother stared at the high platform where Lord Malin was speaking eloquently alongside the still somewhat juvenile Crown Prince Daniel. This morning, after just learning the truth, he felt his first pang of disgust toward his family and those familiar nobles.

What on earth are they thinking? How could they do this? They... don’t they know they are digging their own graves?

"My soldiers, I must apologize. I won’t be heading to battle with you today because I’ve accepted a more critical mission. As a key member of the Western Human World Union delegation, I will be traveling to the Eastern Human World."

Lord Malin on the platform didn’t seem angry, but Link, who knew his temperament well, could clearly perceive Malin’s kindness. He was too kind. As long as it wasn’t an enemy, he seemed willing to meet the demands of others, even if they were excessive; he wouldn’t choose to refuse.

The nobles indeed had their reasons to fear Malin’s prestige in the army, but why didn’t they consider that their actions would cost them even more in the military, that the soldiers would come to hate them?

Precisely for this reason, Malin had to step forward... Link listened silently to Malin’s explanation. Although there was still some commotion among the soldiers below, the majority eventually understood Malin’s heartfelt intentions.

But Link didn’t see it that way. Damn Manheim, damn Wallace, their families deserved to be cursed, their kin should die as an apology!

The sins they carried—they truly deserved them... How could families like theirs become part of the royal lineage and its future successors?

Link had cursed these nobles more than once. In his eyes, these people didn’t deserve to be called human. His older brother’s memory had been tampered with; he forgot those things. But Link hadn’t. He and his brother had made an exchange, with one sibling bearing the burden of remembering it all.

Hatred would never be forgotten.

"Soldiers, I promise you, Crown Prince Daniel, like you, is a warrior who despises Chaos. You can trust in him; he will lead you to the battlefield and to victory," Lord Malin continued to speak from the platform.

All nonsense.

Link cursed inwardly, his heart heavy with sorrow—Lord Malin was truly too kind. Why wouldn’t he tell the soldiers the truth? All it would take was a single sentence, and these oblivious nobles would be torn apart by the soldiers.

What a pity. Malin’s kindness had saved them.

Link sighed silently in his heart as he watched Malin’s speech on the platform. The young Svenson brother didn’t want to blame Malin because he understood that Malin’s resolve was unwavering. Malin wanted to give Daniel a chance. But did he realize what consequences his kindness might bring?

Daniel, though he performed well in military school, had those so-called friends... Ha. If Link and his brother ever engaged with them, they could crush them in simulation exercises.

The recent years’ graduates from military school were truly unimpressive. Even Daniel, as the tallest among the dwarfs, no matter how talented, couldn’t replace an entire General Staff officer corps. They were bound to fail disastrously.

And when that moment came, how many soldiers would lose their lives due to their incompetence? How many families would be shattered because of it?

Link couldn’t begin to imagine.

"I will absolutely lead you from one victory to the next, just as Lord Malin has promised," Daniel declared with a smile while waving at the soldiers. His friendliness, however, failed to win their approval. Perhaps Malin’s speech had comforted them, but it didn’t mean they regarded Daniel as a friend rather than an adversary.

Seeing the soldiers’ lackluster morale, the young prince eventually turned to Malin: "Lord, could you recommend some soldiers and commanders you believe to be trustworthy?"

"Isn’t your officer corps suitable enough?" Lord Malin paused briefly, then responded with a laugh.

The soldiers below finally burst out laughing freely—not just them, but many junior officers and even some middle-ranking officers joined in.

Link was among them; for the first time, he felt that the merciful Lord Malin had such an amusing side.

Crown Prince Daniel’s officer corps? What kind of trash was that? Just a bunch of armchair strategists. If any of those useless people had the courage, they wouldn’t still be rotting in the military school. Like the Svenson brothers and numerous young men from their family, upon the outbreak of war, they had withdrawn from school and joined the military.

Doing so had its advantages and drawbacks.

The advantage was that if you survived the war, you’d be automatically considered a graduate of the military school—after all, you’d endured the harshest live combat, and whatever the school offered paled in comparison.

The disadvantage... well, if you died, graduating or not wouldn’t matter anymore.

"Come now, my Lord Malin, do you think I wouldn’t know the caliber of my classmates?" Daniel’s comment elicited laughter from the soldiers, but even more began clapping—his words struck a chord with them.

Malin chuckled and replied, "Then let me start introducing them." With that, the first person he pointed to was Link’s older brother: "Jon Svenson, the elder of the two Svenson brothers I know best. He served under me for two months and is an exceptional battlefield commander. He and his regiment are a crucial force under my command. Wherever there’s danger, I always want to know where his unit is and whether they can be deployed for a counterattack right away. Today, I’m introducing him first because he happens to be closest to me. And besides, this kid has one of the best looks in my officer corps. I’ll save the others for later—otherwise, our Crown Prince might lose his appetite after just one glance. Do any of you big rascals object to that?"

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