Resist？

"Madam, the gift is ready."

This day is the Assumption of Mary in Christian culture, so nobles usually are supposed to attend the holiday mass.

However, most nobles don't even know today is a holiday.

For Joan, the de facto mistress of Gothingen, today is the day she visits Bovendon village on behalf of Damian to communicate the needs of both parties.

Damian's friend Grace prepared a carefully chosen social gift for her.

To be honest, Joan has rarely experienced such occasions. According to the customs of an ordinary knight's family, Joan was sent to live with relatives next door from a young age.

Most noble relationships are rather superficial because they didn't grow up together. Being absent during the critical moments of a child's growth, it's no wonder Arthas mercilessly wielded the patricidal sword.

During her time living with relatives, Joan was initially trained according to the template of a lady. She had to learn weaving, sewing, and lady etiquette. But Joan clearly had no talent for it. After breaking dozens of weaving needles, she was unceremoniously expelled from the weaving room by her aunt.

However, during a family pig slaughter, Joan exhibited a fierce talent. She used a sharpened stick to kill a black pig that had left her uncle helpless. From then on, Joan joined the boys, learning horseback combat and practicing swordsmanship.

As for lady etiquette, Joan knew none of it. She only knew the standard etiquette of male nobles.

"Thank you very much. Without you, I wouldn't know how to handle such occasions," Joan gratefully said to Grace, who smiled and said it was nothing.

After all, there were almost no noble women in Gothingen, and Joan and Grace were the only ones who could talk to each other, so they quickly became close friends.

In fact, most noble women's lives were just a process of moving from their own home to foster homes and then to betrothed homes. If they couldn't marry for various reasons, they would probably end their lives alone in a monastery.

Grace waved and then went back to her room.

She was now responsible for the free city's trade planning, deciding when to start and close the market, and how to contact more merchants. For Grace, who had lost her family, being busy helped her forget the hardships of her hometown.

Lifting her hair, Grace felt a bit regretful. She came from an ordinary merchant family and was not qualified to marry Damian. If possible, she could only try to be a 'Danish wife,' a half-legal mistress.

"Miss Grace, I've found out why the master suddenly left. It is said that an order came from the principality's capital, Nancy, requiring the countess to go to the capital for the grand duke's autumn defense. All the nobles in the territory are troubled by this."

"Is that so…" Grace's thoughts were scattered.

…

Actually, Joan knew about this too.

The entire Gothingen County was abuzz with the news.

All the knights were indignant. Regardless of the situation, Gothingen County, on the northeastern border of the Lozarengia Principality, was relatively poor.

Moreover, Gothingen County had just experienced the tragic Green-skin War, a minister's rebellion, and an invasion from a neighboring county. It could be said that Gothingen's difficult post-war situation would take years to recover from.

However, the grand duke specifically chose Gothingen County, making it hard not to suspect they were being targeted by the principality.

By rights, the countess's brother, Adler, was the chief wardrobe steward of the court, and this shouldn't have happened.

But it did.

Defending autumn in one's own home and in the capital of the principality were completely different experiences. If the territory were occupied during this time, who would compensate for the losses?

According to the law, Grand Duke Diodoric must be responsible, forcing the aggressors to return the occupied castles and villages.

However, whether the law would be enforced depended on the people involved.

Grand Duke Diodoric was relatively weak-willed.

If you donated to monasteries and built churches, he would gladly reward you generously. But if you expected him to step in and resolve disputes among the nobles, that was unlikely.

The grand duke disliked confrontation, and his subordinates would tacitly conceal conflicts.

So during this time, knights used various excuses, like holidays and family visits, to encourage Damian to lead the resistance against the principality's unreasonable demands.

Why not encourage Conosa?

The knights didn't trust her. What if she listened to her brother Adler and agreed to the demands?

Knight Joan went to Bovendon village to discuss how to deal with the situation with Amelia.

She wore chain mail, accompanied by two knight attendants and eight soldiers, escorting a cart loaded with gifts.

Damian had no ability to build roads, so they traveled purely on rural dirt paths. In the lush forest, they could see small shrines built by devout followers along the roadside.

Joan walked south along the riverside path, occasionally seeing fishermen in small boats, farmers cutting wood in the forest, and carpenters specialized in cutting wood, all under Damian's supervision.

So, when they saw the lady bearing Damian's banner passing by, they came to pay their respects, seeking peace of mind and hoping for the noble's generosity.

Unfortunately, Joan had a typical knight's temperament. She just nodded slightly to the farmers and continued on her way.

If not under Damian's jurisdiction, travelers and merchants on the road would not show Joan the same respect as the farmers and carpenters did.

After over an hour of travel, Joan arrived at the rebuilt Bovendon village.

Human resilience is astonishing.

In just over two months, even with most of Damian's family killed in the war and new graves still standing in the church, Bovendon village was nearly rebuilt.

This was partly because Damian, as the forest warden, allowed his people to enter the forest to cut wood, but also due to the villagers' strong desire to survive.

When Joan arrived with gifts at the village entrance, Amelia hurried out to greet her.

Following etiquette, she welcomed her brother's wife, Joan, into her home.

However, since Joan's marriage was not formal, the reception was simple.

Of course, Joan and Amelia, both female knights from knightly families, shared the same attributes and got along well.

When they entered the house, they saw Damian's father, Old Marty, sighing on a bench in the yard.

Amelia quickly whispered, "My father is complaining why Damian didn't firmly oppose the grand duke's order."

"Damian… doesn't have that much authority," Joan said loudly, looking at Old Marty.

Hearing this, Old Marty sighed even more deeply.

"Come inside."

Amelia pulled Joan inside. According to traditional etiquette, hosting a relative involved sitting on the best bed in the bedroom.

The maid took dried fruits, apples, and other food from the cabinet and placed them on the table.

Amelia's finances were tight; the money Damian gave her was all used for rebuilding the territory, so she couldn't even afford honey or white bread.

Joan noticed this and warmly said, "Damian just harvested a beehive in the northern forest. I'll have someone bring it to you tomorrow."

Amelia shook her head slightly, focusing on the current situation: "Honey is just a sweet treat. If we lose our heads, what good is honey? Tell me honestly, is Damian really planning to yield to the principality's decision?"

"Well…" Joan felt awkward.

Caught between Conosa and Damian, she shouldn't speak too much.

It seems that sensing some thoughts from her hesitation, Amelia became agitated, slapping the table and standing up angrily: " we should all rise up against the grand duke! If Grand Duke Diodoric doesn't protect us according to the feudal contract, we shouldn't let him control us. Let's become independent!"

"Yes, resist!"

Old Marty suddenly joined in, excitedly saying, "I've already discussed with several nearby families. If Damian raises an army, we'll follow immediately!"