Chapter 44
Chapter 44: Button Family
The Button Family has been operating in Button Territory for over a hundred years. This is where they rose to power and also their last dignity.
But the castle in Button City is not called Button Castle; instead, it is named Homan Castle after a person.
The reason why it’s called Homan Castle dates back decades ago, to an old man who was famous in the capital of the Andor Empire—the guardian of the empire’s border, the strongest member of the Button Family, Sky Knight Homan Button.
In that era of war, the Button Family’s title climbed to Marquis, but after Homan’s death, no more strong Great Knights emerged from the Button Family.
Eventually, the Button Family gradually declined, becoming a branch of a Count family, with only the small Button Territory remaining.
Inside Homan Castle, all the core members of the Button Family were gathered. According to the Button Family’s rules, anyone whose strength reached that of a Great Knight (21-40) could participate in the discussion.
At this moment, nearly thirty people were seated in the hall. Over the years, the Button Family had been low-key and dormant, slowly accumulating some strength.
Sitting in the seat of honor, Viscount Karl Button, dressed in casual clothes, clapped his hands, and the noisy hall instantly quieted down, with all eyes focused on him.
Karl Button cleared his throat lightly, his gaze sweeping over each person’s face before he spoke, “Recently, according to the news from the border, an iron mine has been discovered at the border between the Cologne Empire and our territory. I have sent someone to survey it, and the reserves are estimated to be about eight million tons.”
“Buzz—”
Viscount Karl Button’s words ignited the hall like a barrel of explosives, and the previously quiet hall suddenly became noisy.
Everyone was discussing in a flurry and shocked. Their eyes filled with joy and greed.
“But!” Karl Button coldly shouted, his expression becoming grim and ugly, “But the Count of the Cologne Empire, Eagle Lord Sivey, wants to compete with us for this iron mine. This is the border map he sent.”
Karl Button said, and with a “swish,” he unfolded a border map on the conference table, and everyone curiously gathered around the map to watch.
They were utterly stunned by Eagle Lord’s audacious action. To their disbelief, the iron mine at the border had been redefined artificially with a new boundary line, now falling within Eagle Territory.
“How could this happen?” someone exclaimed loudly.
“This is outrageous!” another shouted.
“By the rules, this iron mine is ours. How dare he attempt to seize it?”
…
The hall was filled with an uproar, the crowd’s anger and dissatisfaction plainly evident. Karl Button surveyed the agitated assembly with a satisfied nod; this was exactly the reaction he had hoped for.
“He is declaring war on us,” Viscount Button’s voice rang out, growing colder with each word, “thinking that our small Viscount territory is nothing more than a speck of land he can bully!” His tone was as chilling as a winter night’s wind.
“But can we let him bully us?”
“No!” The knights in the hall roared angrily.
“The Button family has been dormant for so many years, and we have finally found an opportunity for a comeback. We absolutely cannot let him interfere with us,” Viscount Button nodded slightly before continuing:
“Eagle Lord is an Earth Knight himself, and he has an old Earth Knight named Clement under his command. They pose as our greatest threat. The rest of his equipped knights are not a concern.”
“To ensure our victory in this war, I have secured the support of three Earth Knights from the Count, in exchange for one-third of the iron mine’s mining rights.”
“They have now set off from the Count’s territory and will arrive at the border in a few days,” Viscount Button announced. He paused, then raised his hand to pat the shoulder of the young knight beside him, a proud smile spreading across his face.
“Jett, my son, come forward and show everyone,” he said.
“Yes, my lord father,” Jett responded.
Jett, then respectfully performed a knight’s salute, then walked to the center of the meeting hall.
He looked around at the people in the hall, and then, under everyone’s curious gaze, a faint blue Qi surged into the sky, even his eyes were ignited with blue Qi flames.
The concentration of Qi reached the point where it sprayed out from his eye sockets, which was the symbol of an Earth Knight.
The entire hall erupted into enthusiastic applause after a brief moment of silence.
“My goodness, Jett has advanced to an Earth Knight? How old is he, twenty-one?” someone exclaimed in astonishment.
“Congratulations to Viscount!”
“With Jett and the iron mine, the rise of our Button Family will be unstoppable!”
…
The atmosphere in the meeting hall grew increasingly lively. Initially, there was apprehension upon learning about the two Earth Knights in Eagle Territory.
However, Viscount Button not only brought three Earth Knights from the Count but also revealed that Jett had advanced, making a total of four Earth Knights.
With superiority in both high-end and low-end forces, there was nothing left to fear.
Maybe they could capture the Eagle Lord and demand ransom from the Cologne Empire!
As for the possibility of triggering a national war? That was simply out of the question. At most, they might face retaliation from the Golden Lion Duke, but the king would never initiate a national war over a Count.
And the Duke’s retaliation wasn’t a significant concern for them, given the distance of the borderlands from the capital and the numerous restrictions in place.
Moreover, didn’t their Button Family have powerful nobles backing them?
“Ahem—”
Viscount Button coughed once, and the bustling hall quieted down again.
“Everyone, go back and prepare yourselves, gather the militia and guards. When those three lords arrive, we will mobilize. If Eagle Lord doesn’t know what’s good for him, we’ll go back and forth in his Eagle Territory, turning his land into ashes!”
Actually, immediate mobilization was the best choice, but it would take time to gather the militia, and three Earth Knights were coming. They couldn’t just send them to the battlefield immediately; wouldn’t it be nice to have good wine and food ready?
After receiving Viscount’s orders, everyone dispersed to make preparations, leaving only Button and his son in the hall.
“Jett, you’ve grown up too. In the future, you will eventually inherit my position. From the perspective of a lord, do you have any opinions?”
Now that there was no one else in the meeting hall, Karl Button put away his air of confidence and turned to look at his son with a frown.
“Opinions? I think this battle is sure to be won. Father, do you have any concerns?”
“This person is not a brainless fool. He is familiar with the characteristics of the Andor Empire, and he must also know that we will definitely seek reinforcements from our superior territories.”
“This battle is not so easy. And there may be some conspiracies and tricks involved.”
“Father, no matter what conspiracies and tricks they might have, they could never predict that I have already been promoted to an Earth Knight,” Jett said decisively. He was around the same age as the Eagle Count, perhaps even a few years older, yet the latter was already a Count and had been an Earth Knight for some years.
For Jett, who considered himself a genius, this situation was undoubtedly unsettling—like a thorn lodged in his heart.
Viscount Button did not comment on Jett’s statement. Instead, he straightened Jett’s slightly askew collar and nodded with a hum. “Then you should go and prepare thoroughly. Don’t take it lightly.”
“The Button Family are stronger than them in both high-end and low-end forces. Please rest assured, Father.”
After saying this, Jett placed one hand over his chest and performed a knight’s salute again before leaving the room.
Leaving behind Viscount Button, who still felt somewhat uneasy in the meeting hall, lost in thought.
Viscount Button even wondered if Clement, the old knight, could possibly break through to become a Sky Knight, but then he shook his head.
Clement was already very old, and he could never break through to become a Sky Knight in his lifetime.
…
The chilling wind swept into the meeting hall, lifting the map on the table and making a “whooshing” sound, inexplicably causing some irritation.
Viscount Button smoothed out the map with his hand, tightly grasping the longsword at his waist, suppressing the slight unease in his heart, and his gaze became even more determined.
In the face of absolute strength, no matter what conspiracies and tricks they had, they would appear pale and powerless!
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Oh you poor unfortunate soul