Chapter 96: Oaths and Seizing an Army
Inside the carriage, Charlotte puffed up her cheeks, glaring at Renee for a moment before pouncing, claws bared, wanting to settle things and vent her dissatisfaction.
Of course, it wasn't that Renee couldn't overpower her young mistress, but her martial prowess was clearly not meant for such occasions. She simply twisted her body to evade, then laughingly begged for mercy, ultimately ending up pinned to the carriage floor by Charlotte…
Just as the atmosphere started to grow decidedly ambiguous, and Renee even felt something more might happen, Charlotte suddenly spoke, "Renee, you don't trust me enough."
Renee froze for a microsecond, looking at her young mistress with confusion, only to meet Charlotte's earnest eyes.
Renee's father, Wolf Von Derlen, had warned Renee more than once—do not listen, do not look, do not do anything outside the scope of your duties. This was practically the golden rule of the Von Derlen family.
Many in the Green Plains Dukedom were curious why the descendants of the Von Derlen family, who had risen from slavery, always managed to gain the trust and significant appointments from the Duke of Green Plains. Renee's grandfather had even been bestowed a surname and a noble title. Was there some secret? Wolf Von Derlen told Renee the secret was just that simple: besides loyalty, it was only that single phrase.
Renee had also taken this phrase to heart. So, she originally felt that as a mere maidservant, she shouldn't comment too much on Herman Green, an important general under Charlotte.
This had disappointed Charlotte somewhat.
To Charlotte, Renee was, and always would be, the most special person. The first person she remembered after coming to this world was Renee. The person who had constantly accompanied her during her lonely and bewildering times was also Renee. And the person who followed her without hesitation when she decided to pursue her ambitions was also Renee.
If there was only one person in this world who would walk through life with her, Charlotte felt that person would undoubtedly be Renee. And if such a hypothesis were to come true, Charlotte wouldn't consider it a bad ending at all.
However, since they were to spend a lifetime together, Charlotte didn't want her relationship with Renee to be merely that of master and servant. She hoped for a bond where they could open their hearts to each other, holding nothing back, an unrestrained and deeply intimate connection. Ever since they were young, Charlotte had nurtured and treated Renee this way, which was why when they were alone, Renee often playfully joked and wrestled with Charlotte, forgetting her station.
Yet, after all these years together, to suddenly discover that Renee still wore some kind of invisible shackles in front of her – how could Charlotte not feel disappointed?
However, Charlotte also understood that if she didn't explicitly state certain things, even Renee, who spent every day with her, might not fully grasp them.
Facing her young mistress's earnest gaze, the little maidservant felt an inexplicable panic in her heart, her eyes involuntarily darting away. "M-Miss…"
Charlotte pressed her forehead against Renee's, forcing her to maintain eye contact. "Renee, do you remember the oath you swore to me?"
Renee slowly raised her right hand and whispered, "I will forever serve by your side, forever be loyal to you, never withhold my wealth or secrets from you. I will not marry, not bear children, not believe in any gods. If you die, I too shall follow you in death. Your pain is my pain, your joy is my joy, your everything is my everything."
A smile graced Charlotte's lips. She took Renee's small hand, their fingers intertwining, and gently nuzzled Renee's nose with her own. "Renee, you've dedicated your everything to me. Why are you unwilling to believe that I also have complete and unreserved trust in you?"
"No, it's not that…" Renee tried to explain.
Charlotte silenced the little maidservant with a kiss on her lips. "Renee, you are the only person in this world whom I can trust completely and utterly. To me, you are not just my friend, my sister, my lover. I believe what we have is far deeper than any of these."
"I love you, Renee. I know your loyalty to me is absolute, but I, too, love you. In my eyes, you are not just my maid; you are my treasure, a part of my life and soul. Please, believe me."
"I…" Renee gradually understood Charlotte's meaning, her voice trembling slightly. "I… I believe you."
"Renee, when you accepted that rose from my hand," Charlotte gently stroked Renee's long hair.
"All that I am belongs to you—past, present, and future." Renee wrapped her arms around Charlotte's neck, paused for a moment, then added in a small voice, "And you also belong to me."
Charlotte smiled, lowered her head, and kissed Renee deeply, their tongues intertwining. When their lips parted, a glistening thread of saliva connected them.
Renee's face was flushed, and she panted softly.
A thick, amorous atmosphere enveloped them. At this point, things simply had to proceed.
"You help me first this time," Renee whispered, her face crimson. "Every time after you're done, you say you have no strength left and make me wait. It's unbearable for me."
Charlotte pouted unhappily but still conceded, "Alright."
After this private conversation, the relationship between Charlotte and Renee seemed unchanged on the surface. To outsiders, Charlotte was still the highborn young lady, and Renee was still the diligent, quiet little maidservant by her side.
However, in private, Charlotte clearly sensed a change in Renee. Renee dared to speak more freely in front of her young mistress, with fewer inhibitions. She began to willingly complain to Charlotte about people and things she disliked, was willing to lie on the bed with Charlotte watching plays and reading poetry, and was willing to tell Charlotte after their intimacies that she didn't want to fetch water to wash Charlotte, leading to them staying stickily together until the next day.
After another five or six days of travel, the convoy returned to the territory of the Lanwan Viscounty.
Charlotte lay in the carriage, her head pillowed on Renee's lap, her face covered by a thick stack of parchment filled with writing, half-asleep, as if trying to absorb knowledge through physical osmosis.
Renee lifted the parchment from Charlotte's face. "Lord Stanley will be here soon. Miss, you should quickly change into some more presentable clothes."
Charlotte was still wearing the nightgown she had slept in, which had become wrinkled after rolling around in the carriage several times.
"No, my back aches from sitting in the carriage. I don't want to move."
"Is it from the carriage? Or because the mattress last night was too soft?"
Charlotte finally opened her eyes and, annoyed, pinched Renee's teasingly smiling cheek before getting up to change.
Last night, after being intimate with Anna and Adela for half the night, Charlotte had insisted the carriage floor was too hard and wanted to sleep on top of the two fragrant, soft girls. This should have been boudoir gossip, yet Renee remembered it crystal clear.
This wasn't the first time. Charlotte was truly speechless about it. No matter who she was intimate with, Renee could watch the entire process with keen interest and remember the details even better than Charlotte herself.
While changing, Charlotte asked Renee, "Are the arrangements I told you about last night made?"
"Yes, they've been arranged," Renee replied.
That morning, Stanley Mellerfield was conducting his daily drills when he suddenly received a message from a dispatch rider—Charlotte invited him to meet at the Whitesand Fief.
The Whitesand Fief was a knight's territory in the northeastern part of the Lanwan Viscounty. Stanley had little concept of the knightly fiefs in the northern part of the Lanwan Viscounty, only knowing they were very poor, and he had no interest in learning more. The only point Stanley focused on in this message was that Charlotte was back.
It wasn't until he had rushed all the way to the Whitesand Fief that Stanley realized it was close to the border of the Green Plains Dukedom. Charlotte's convoy had just crossed the border and entered the Lanwan Viscounty not long ago.
A lavishly decorated carriage at the head of the convoy caught Stanley's attention. Besides the Duke of Green Plains' crest, it also bore the crest of Count Steng, looking like one of Stanley's own family carriages. The carriage ruts were deep, suggesting it was heavily laden.
Charlotte alighted from an exquisite carriage in the middle of the convoy, her expression grave and serious.
Stanley immediately went to greet her, smiling. "Little Charlotte, back so soon!"
Stanley had assumed Charlotte was eager to meet him because of the incident where he had beaten Herman Green. If it was about that, he wasn't afraid to face Charlotte at all, because Stanley felt he was in the right; in the sparring arena, as long as both parties consented, life and death were determined by fate. He even felt a little displeased seeing Charlotte's stern little face. Who was she putting on this long face for? I'm your uncle, you know.
However, Charlotte's first words left Stanley stunned. "The Gatu Kingdom has raised an army. The Duke of Green Plains is currently mobilizing troops and preparing for war, ready to meet the enemy. This is a mobilization order for you to return immediately and join the battle."
Charlotte produced a dispatch order.
Stanley's mind was still reeling as he took the order. Had the situation in the Dukedom changed so drastically in the mere month or so since he'd left?
Stanley unfolded the order and examined it carefully.
Charlotte wasn't flustered in the slightest. The order was, of course, genuine, and even handwritten by her own father; she had merely exaggerated the severity of the situation.
Before Stanley could finish reading, Charlotte added more fuel to the fire. "I just visited Grandpa Perode and Uncle Chester. Unfortunately, Count Perode is already busy with war preparations, and I couldn't have lunch with him. I believe Count Perode also expects you to return to the Dukedom immediately."
Here, Charlotte paused, nodded slightly, and added with emphasis, "Immediately."
Her demeanor and tone were strikingly similar to the old Count, making Stanley feel dazed for a moment, as if it were truly his father who had spoken those words.
"In that case, I won't detain you," Charlotte said, pointing to the carriage behind her that she had borrowed from Viscount Chester. "You can take this carriage back."
With that, Charlotte directed her guards to unload everything from the carriage—large and small boxes and parcels, looking like gifts from Count Perode to Charlotte.
In truth, Stanley wasn't without his suspicions. For example, it was quite baffling that Jose Mellerfield would urgently recall him to war just as it broke out; the Green Plains Dukedom wasn't lacking a general like him. However, Charlotte's rapid-fire sequence of actions was simply too fast. Any doubts bubbling up in Stanley's mind were smoothed over by the next development.
Moreover, Stanley knew very well that his old man was indeed like that. Although Count Perode constantly found fault with Jose Mellerfield and told everyone he wasn't fit to be the Duke of Green Plains, if an external enemy truly invaded the Dukedom, Count Perode would absolutely throw both his sons onto the battlefield without hesitation. Even if they all died in battle, the old man wouldn't bat an eyelid.
Thus, Stanley boarded the carriage in a daze.
Waving goodbye to Stanley, Charlotte said, "I'll have your luggage and belongings sent back to you."
"Alright, alright," Stanley finally snapped back to his senses.
"Swords and blades on the battlefield have no eyes. You must be careful," Charlotte added.
"Thank you, I will be careful," Stanley said, touched.
The carriage gradually receded into the distance, heading towards the Green Plains Dukedom.
"Let's go, we're heading back," Charlotte said, turning around.
The convoy quickly reached the Lanwan Viscount's castle, where Cecilia and Knight Jack Moore were already waiting outside.
However, Charlotte did not alight from the carriage. Instead, she asked, "Where is Stanley's army?"
"Still stationed by the Lanwan Isthmus," Jack Moore replied.
Charlotte directly pulled Cecilia into the carriage and then said to the attendant driving, "To the Lanwan Isthmus."
The carriage continued to gallop towards the Lanwan Isthmus.
Jack Moore hastily mounted his horse and followed.
"Miss, Knight Herman was severely injured, I…" Cecilia began, then hesitated.
Charlotte shook her head and smiled. "We'll talk about this when we get back. Honestly, you can't be blamed for it."
By afternoon, the carriage finally stopped before the large encampment by the Lanwan Isthmus.
A rather handsome man greeted Charlotte at the camp gate.
"What is your name? And your position?" Charlotte asked as she walked into the camp.
"My name is Antonio Fletcher, adjutant to Lord Stanley," the handsome man replied.
"Good," Charlotte nodded, stopping. "The Gatu Kingdom has mobilized its forces, and Uncle Stanley has been recalled to the Dukedom to participate in the war. My father has ordered this army to remain stationed in the Lanwan Viscounty for defense. Uncle Stanley wants you to select one hundred officers from the army, capable of forming a military backbone, to go to Riverside Castle and rendezvous with him."
"Ah, this…" The adjutant looked astonished.
"This what?" Charlotte frowned and snapped, "Hurry up, don't waste time!"
"Yes, yes, as you command." Though full of questions, the adjutant carried out Charlotte's order. This wasn't just because Charlotte was the Duke of Green Plains' daughter, but also because the adjutant knew Stanley and Charlotte had always been on good terms, so he felt Charlotte's words should be true.
Charlotte's good rapport within the family had once again proven useful.
The adjutant went through the camp, picking out nearly all the officers from the middle ranks upwards, and then hastily departed for Riverside Castle.
Charlotte looked at the sole remaining company commander, a survivor of the selection, and said curiously, "What's your name?"
"Pacino Mellerfield," the company commander replied, kneeling on one knee.
Another Mellerfield. Charlotte felt no ripple of surprise in her heart; the Green Plains Dukedom was teeming with Mellerfields.
Charlotte had deliberately made Stanley's adjutant select core officers to ensure he took Stanley's confidants away. It seemed this Pacino Mellerfield's relationship with Stanley wasn't too good.
Charlotte nodded, then announced in a clear voice, "From this day forward, this army will be divided into three units. The first unit, led by Knight Rayne Nazares, will be responsible for garrisoning Fairy Lake. The second unit, led by Knight Jack Moore, will continue to garrison the Lanwan Isthmus. The third unit, led by this Knight Pacino, will be responsible for garrisoning Ambratu County."
A look of delighted surprise flashed across Pacino's face. He quickly bowed his head. "Yes, milady!"
Rayne Nazares and Jack Moore also responded immediately, "As you command!"