Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

A few days later, John was making a snowman in the castle yard when a guard came to report: "Sir, a knight named Jules is here to see you. He claims to be your uncle and he showed a document from Midland."

John thought for a long time before he recalled a bearded face from his childhood memories, which were not very deep to begin with.

Jules, John's second uncle, was lazy and sabotaged in the village in his early years. He was caught by John's grandfather and sent to Windham to study. Later, he graduated with a degree in mathematics from Windham University and went to John's grandfather's fiefdom, Count Milo, to be a mathematics teacher for his son. He finally had a job and was no longer a gangster.

"Please let him in quickly," John quickly ordered the guard.

Soon, the guards brought in a middle-aged man wearing a cloak and aristocratic hunting clothes.

"Hello, John, have you missed your uncle in these years?" Jules came in and gave John a bear hug.

"Uh, watch out, I'm almost 17." John quickly broke free.

"You are a great contributor to our family. When I was 17 years old, I was still studying in college." Jules joked.

"So what brings you all the way here? I remember you are a teacher in some royal noble family. How do you have time to visit my remote territory?" John asked.

"I'm just about to tell you this," Jules said with such excitement that he was almost dancing.

"Didn't you get some forest officer position from General Conseil? After your father told us brothers, we quickly made operations in Wendam and mobilized a lot of relationships in the court. So when the king was preparing to use troops against Balden, the general he used was my employer, Count Milo, the leader of our faction. Your uncles and I also got official positions in the Midland army."

"So why don't you accompany your Count Milo? Why do you come to my place in advance? I don't know what to prepare to welcome you," John asked puzzledly.

"I came here for two reasons. The first is to instruct you to welcome the Midland army and do a good job of welcoming and settling them."

"The second point..." Jules said to John after seeing that there was no one around, "I want to remind you that this second prince is not someone who can make things easy for you."

"Prince? It's normal to be a little spoiled. After all, he basically lives in a palace," John said, waving his hand.

"No, it's more complicated than yours." Jules began to talk about the gossip about the prince.

"This second prince has an abnormal sexual orientation. Of course, many nobles basically have this strange habit. What's more important is that he is cruel and bloodthirsty, and the mercenaries he brings with him are not good people either. Oh, no, they are just a bunch of bastards," Jules said here angrily.

"Mercenaries are all armed, so how can their moral character be high?" John had a very bad impression of mercenaries. Basically, except for the mercenaries in the system, he didn't trust other mercenaries. Who knows if they will take the opportunity to escape or stab you in the back.

"They are not just rude and disrespectful. On the contrary, they are very bad and know how to curry favor with the powerful. Otherwise, why would the second prince hire them? Especially the Forest Brothers. They are no longer bandits. They burn, kill, rob and commit all kinds of evil. They are relatively well-behaved near the royal capital. On the road, they basically either rely on being the second prince's guards to rob or collect money from passing caravans. The second prince doesn't care and lets them do whatever they want." Jules felt annoyed at the thought of being with such people.

"The Earl doesn't care? Won't this damage the image of the army?" John asked doubtfully. He didn't know the Earl well.

"It's not his territory, so why should the Count care? Even if he gets infamous, it will be blamed on the Second Prince. I think the Second Prince won't get the loyalty of the lord even if he goes to Barden. It's really unlucky to have this guy." Obviously, Jules didn't have a good impression of the Second Prince.

"By the way, did the Earl give me any substantial reward?" John rubbed his hands, it would be even better if he could give me a nobleman.

"Don't worry about that. Our family has invested a lot of money in the aristocratic circle over the past few decades, so we still have some connections. Plus, you are protected by General Conseil, so you will definitely have a title. If not, I will just swallow this table." Jules promised confidently.

This also indirectly shows that the power of the court nobles is still very strong and can influence the general national policies. It also shows that this king is powerful enough.

"That's good," said John. He currently needed a title so that he could recruit his own generals and guards.

"Oh, yes, there's one more thing." Jules opened the box.

"I guess you don't have any good clothes, so I brought you a few dresses tailored from the best tailor shop in Windham. You can wear them when you welcome the earl and the second prince, when you have meals, when you go hunting... By the way, I will also teach you a lot of court etiquette, which will be needed everywhere. This is the last chance for our family to make a name for itself." Jules chattered non-stop, constantly instructing John on various things.

"It seems that no matter what our family is like, at least we are still quite united," John thought to himself, and then he placed Jules in a house near the castle and went out for inspection.

Of course, John still has to consider the current predicament. It is still two months away from spring, which means that nearly 2 outsiders will be in his territory for two months. He doesn't need to worry about the Midland regular army, but he must guard against the thousands of mercenaries.

So John wrote in the afternoon and issued an order to guard against mercenaries.

Article 1: All defense facilities in towns and villages must be built as required.

Article 2: Any village is prohibited from hosting mercenary organizations

Article 3: If mercenaries attack, all villages and towns must organize resistance and report to nearby military camps or castles.

Article 4: If any mercenaries commit crimes in the territory, those who bravely stand up for justice will be rewarded.

The first three are very normal, and many lords would do so, but the last one can increase the enthusiasm of the people. In the Middle Ages, more poor people had problems feeding themselves, and it was very difficult for them to stand up for others, especially for mercenaries who killed people without thinking. However, when it comes to their own interests, these honest villagers will turn into wolves and eat people up.

By the way, John set up a few more outposts on the main road of the territory to monitor every move in the territory at any time.

John then continued to inspect the guard of honor, and after visiting the military camp in Johanburg, he returned to the castle and prepared a sumptuous dinner for Jules. However, Jules said that there were not many spices, so he could prepare more, otherwise future banquets would definitely be looked down upon by the nobles.