Chaos in the Count’s Domain

"Sir Count! I have an important piece of information!"

"The informant from Jadestone City told me that Duke Samara was fostering hidden forces."

"It seems that many nobles took his side and a full-blown rebellion is about to start!"

Blanc said urgently upon entering the Count's study.

"Calm down Blanc, although it is indeed quite shocking and mysterious that Duke Samara was able to grow his forces under the noses of the Lockridge royal family, it does not mean that they will be successful."

"The royal family was indeed caught off guard but they are doing their utmost right now in order to rally the loyalist faction's forces."

"Unlucky as it may seem, our territory will be involved first in one of the many battles to come."

"We will hold the rebels off and hopefully, be able to hold out until the reinforcements arrive."

"Call Helena right now, I have to discuss this with her. You're dismissed." The count replied.

Blanc calmed down a little upon hearing that the Count had already been informed of the news earlier and some arrangements were already in place so he left the study and went to find Helena.

After finding Helena, Blanc told her that the Count needed to talk with her regarding the upcoming war.

He then proceeded to Adelaine's room to explain the situation to her.

"Adelaine, please listen carefully, In the coming days it seems that war will be upon Sir Count's domain."

"Your father ordered me to tell you that you are not to roam around the domain until safety is guaranteed."

"Also, if possible, stay in your room most of the time so we can locate you immediately in case there is an emergency." Blanc said in a serious manner.

"I see...I understand Big Bro Blanc...I hope that this situation can be resolved soon." Adelaine replied in a concerned manner.

Seeing that Adelaine realized the importance of the situation, Blanc was satisfied.

He left Adelaine's room and proceeded to do his remaining tasks.

Blanc went to find his mother in order to make preparations regarding the evacuation of the Count's civilians and personnel.

Meanwhile, in the Count's study, Helena smashed the table.

"What?! That ugly wretched duke! I knew he looked like someone who was up to no good! Just that ugly and fat face of his reeks of evilness!" Helena cursed.

"Helena! Pay attention to your words! As a lady, you should not be saying words like those!" The count reprimanded Helena.

"Yes, I'm sorry Father...I will leave now and talk to the Captain about the situation, we will make arrangements for the upcoming battle." Helena replied.

Helena quickly left to talk to the Captain of Count Laurelei's knights regarding their battle plan.

A few days passed.

Blanc, together with his mother, and the other personnel of the Count, began to execute their operations regarding the safety of the civilians.

"If your name is called, please board the carriage, this caravan is headed towards the Kingdom Capital for your safety."

"You have 2 hours to prepare and bring what you need. Although only a limited amount of food will be supplied to everyone, there will be enough to go around until the caravan reaches the capital."

"From the third block of houses, Madam Eloisa's family, please board carriage number three…"

Blanc started shouting instructions together with his mother and the other non-combat personnel of the Count.

Meanwhile, in a forest near the Count's territory, Helena and her comrades are waiting for the rebel forces to arrive.

They knew that an ambush was the most effective tactic in this location.

The forest they were hiding in was full of dense shrubbery and fully-grown trees.

As long as they hide perfectly and wait for the enemy to arrive in this location, they would be able to deal a lot of damage to the rebel forces even if they cannot totally wipe them out.

"Get in position! The rebel forces should be here soon!" The knight captain ordered.

Helena complied with the captain's commands and remained vigilant as she stayed in her designated position.

While waiting for the enemy to arrive, thoughts about her father, Blanc, Adelaine, and everyone at the manor surfaced in Helena's mind.

"What am I thinking? There's no way I will die against these rebel losers."

"I'm sure we'll meet each other again."

She quickly dismissed her negative thoughts because she didn't want to think that she would die here.

She still had dreams about being the strongest warrior alive so how could she die against these rebel dogs?

A few hours passed and the enemy finally arrived at the ambush point.

Helena and her comrades were waiting for the knight captain's signal and finally, after a few more moments...

"Don't let these rebel dogs taint the peace of the domain and the country! Chaaaaargeee!!"

The knight captain shouted his warcry as Helena and the other knights charged at the rebel forces from the shrubbery.

"Die you stupid rebel dogs! Take that you f&^ker! and you! How dare you attack our lands! Die!!"

Helena shouted profanities at the top of her lungs as she cut down enemy forces one after the other.

Before the enemy could regroup and retaliate, the knight captain immediately ordered a retreat.

Helena and her comrades were out of sight before the rebel forces could even process what happened.

The rebel forces tried to chase Helena's group but they didn't know the landscape so they failed.

Similar tactics happened a couple more times in different locations within the Count's domain.

Due to the superb maneuvers and commands of the captain, coupled with knowing the landscape of the territory, the Count's forces managed to hold back the rebel forces for a whole week even though they were massively outnumbered.

However, in the end, the soldiers including Helena are just humans.

After a week of continuous fighting against the rebel forces, Helena and the Count's forces started to show signs of collapse due to fatigue.

"Die! Haahhh… there's no end to them!" Helena cursed.

"Helena watch out!" The knight captain exclaimed.

*Thwang!*

Two arrows struck Helena on her back and she fell unconscious due to the mixed fatigue and pain.

"Damn it! Schneid (vice-captain)! Save her!" The knight captain ordered.

Luckily, Helena was dragged out from the battlefield in time and was brought to the infirmary for treatment.

Blanc's mother heard about the tragic news and she immediately went to relay the information to Blanc.

"Blanc! Helena was struck by arrows during battle! She's currently in the infirmary but her situation seems dire! Go! You can leave the evacuation up to me. Go to where Helena is and check her condition!"

Blanc's pupils constricted into vertical slits upon hearing the news about Helena.

"What?! Please be careful mother, I will come back as soon as Helena's situation has stabilized."

Blanc replied.

"Go, don't worry about us we'll take care of ourselves. Be safe my son!"

Blanc left his mother and anxiously sprinted to the infirmary to check on Helena's condition.

"Uaaahhh!! Big sister.. please be okay...I promise that I'll be obedient from now on...I promise that I'll always listen to you... please, big sister... Don't leave me..."

Pitiful cries resounded in the infirmary as Adelaine was crying her heart out beside the unconscious Helena.

*huff* *huff*

"How's Helena's condition?" Blanc asked in a hurry after clumsily opening the infirmary door.

"Currently, Lady Helena's condition has somewhat stabilized and we have successfully removed the arrows in her body. However, we cannot determine when she will wake up." The doctor replied.

Helena's condition is indeed dire, although she is not in urgent danger due to the arrowheads, she will surely be killed if she cannot wake up by the time the rebel forces successfully capture the manor.

Blanc still breathed a sigh of relief though.

Everything should be fine as long as Helena is not in urgent danger anymore.

He will just think of a solution if Helena is still unconscious by the time the enemy forces break through.

Hopefully, the knights can hold on until the reinforcements arrive from the loyalist forces.

Unfortunately for him, this was truly optimistic thinking. They gravely underestimated the impact of losing Helena on the frontlines.