Chapter 112: Final Preparations
In the end, the group was able to persuade a total of six families to have a conversation with them concerning the topic. The first one they approached was the Clarkson family. After some back and forth discussions, Alex agreed to help them. However he was not prepared to provide a lot of men, neither were they well trained. He provided a total of 20 soldiers, consisting of 15 footmen and 5 archers. However as every little helped James thanked him deeply for his help and promised to repay his kindness back after everything was done.
From the other five families, two decided not to help after hearing the story. They agreed that the cause of the fight was just, however they did not see any gains that they would receive. The other families provided a total of 48 men in total. With this James' power increased by a total of 68, compared to what he started before. Including these men, his small army total strength of 357 men.
The only question James now had was if the new head of the Anderson family would keep on helping him. He knew that he could trust Warren on helping him out. However he had not met the new head of the family and did not know what kind of a character he would have.
Meeting up with Warren after a few days, James inquired about the situation in the household. He first asked about the aftermath of the assassination and if they were able to find the witch that was responsible for this. It turned out that the witch had build up a reputation in the Silver City. The only way to protect oneself was to wear a God stone of retaliation. Otherwise the witch could hunt you down at any moment.
As for the situation in the family, it had calmed down a bit. However there were still some problems that had to be fixed. Still deciding to ask, James wondered if Warren was still able to help him in his campaign to take down the Herewealth. Without and thought, Warren was willing to help. He knew that when required, he could expect the help of James. Because of this he was willing to help him without any thought.
The only question that remained was would the new head be willing to help them. For this, they made their way to the Warren household again. The new head of the family was Warrens Uncle. He was not really a supporter of warfare and fighting. His focus was more on the business side of the family.
The meeting went less than they had expected. Initially the new head, Peter Warren, did not want to help with the efforts of James. With the assignation of the previous head, the family was currently in a state of chaos. Because of this, he wanted to reserve his troops in case something else happened. However with the help of Warren and the persuasion of James, they were able to secure some men.
"I will not send my nephew there without any protection. For this, you get 22 men that would serve as his body guard. But of course if something would happen and they were forced to fight, that be it." Peter said with a grin on his face. He also added, "Of course, the weakening of the Herewealth family will also be beneficial for the business. For this I will give you another 5 men. Making a total of 27 men. The rest, I require in the household to keep watch in this difficult times."
Not being able to counter argue, James was happy that he still received these men. With this, he was now able to march towards the Herewealth family. There was a significant army behind him as it stands.
Making his way to the campground, James saw that a large army station there. From his latest calculations, they surpassed a force of 400 men already. Feeling proud, he looked to his friends, who were also looking at the scene with joy and surprise.
At this time, in order to form a certain unity between the men, James had to address them. For this the group made their way to the campground. They first called all the officers and knights, to help them round up all the other soldiers.
Standing in front of all these men, James was not sure how to address them. This was his first time standing in such a large group. As his nerves were getting the best of him, he tried to address them, "Men, I know that many of you do not know the reason why we are fighting and the reason why. But I promise that…" James was lost in words as he did not know what to say. Looking around lost, he tried to improve the situation. "The tyranny of the Herewealth family has…" Again, he forgot what he wanted to say. He should have practiced a speech before appearing in front of the men.
Seeing that the situation was getting worse, Francis decided to step up, "Many of you do now know me, nor the reason for us to march upon the Herewealth family. However, I can tell you this; There Herewealth family is known in the lands for their dishonorable and despicable acts. For this they have amassed a wealth that would rival that of the kingdom. For this, I can tell you the following. If we defeat the Herewealth family, the road to their treasury will be wide open. The ones that contributed the most in this battle will therefore also be compensated plenty. So I tell you this, if you do not fight for a righteous cause, I am sure that you are fighting for the money, and our target has enough to make you all rich as a noble!"
With those words, the crowd started to cheer. It was true that many soldiers choose to be one because of the monetary gains they could have. And currently they were targeting one which had plenty of it. For this everyone got excited.
Seeing the situation getting stable, James walked forward and looked into the direction of the King's City. It was finally time for them to act and march onwards to their final destination, there Herewealth family's homestead. With that, James shouted an order for the men to move out.
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