The interrogation lasted a long time, until Malt had confessed everything he knew.
Aside from the fact that Princest, Disen, and the others were loyal to Baron Reisen, the second most important piece of intelligence was regarding the defensive forces of the Sain Territory.
Baron Reisen Sain himself was an Advanced Peak Knight, said to be just one step away from reaching the Bronze rank.
In addition, he had a Knight Squad, whose captain, Philton Henry, was also an Advanced Level Knight.
Besides the three men on a mission in Mountain Forest Town, the Sain Territory's Knight Squad also had two Intermediate Knights and six Basic Level Knights.
Ronin found a rock by the roadside and sat down.
On his side, even including Malt who had just surrendered, there were only five Transcendents in total.
The Sain Territory still had ten Transcendents, including two Advanced Level Knights.
The increase in Fighting Qi from the Intermediate to the Advanced Level was significant. Even with his extensive combat experience, Macken might not be a match for them.
After comparing their strengths, Ronin felt that if he went to war with the Sain Territory now, his chances of victory were almost zero.
But he knew that the other party already considered Mountain Forest Town to be in the bag. Now that Ronin had become the lord of Mountain Forest Town, Reisen would not let the matter rest easily.
'This hostile neighbor won't be easy to deal with!'
"My Lord, the casualty report is ready."
Just then, the Mage Elron walked over. "Although the battle ended rather quickly, we have seven with minor injuries and three with major ones."
Ronin's expression tightened. Although these men were ordinary people, they were his trusted followers. He was unwilling to lose a single one of them.
"How are the severely injured?"
"I've mostly healed two of them. They should be fine after two weeks of rest. The last one is more serious. His arm was nearly severed, and the bone was damaged. I'm afraid he'll need a month to recover."
"Take me to see them."
Led by Elron, Ronin went to the side of the most severely wounded Guard. Chahar had already bandaged his wound and cut away the blood-soaked sleeve.
"How are you feeling?" Ronin asked with concern.
Being personally attended to by his Lord, the Guard's face showed he was overwhelmed by the honor. His pale face flushed with excitement. "My Lord, the Mage has already treated me. I only need a month, and I'll be able to raise my sword to fight for you again!"
Ronin patted the man's shoulder. "Focus on your recovery."
Then he instructed Chahar, "Take good care of all the men injured in this battle. We can't let our Guards bleed only to suffer afterward."
"Yes, Master!"
"Also, Elron, once you've refined more Mana, treat the severely wounded Guards a few more times as you see fit. Help them recover faster."
"Yes, my Lord!"
Ronin then made his rounds, visiting the other wounded men and praising the Guards for their heroic performance in the battle.
Although it was just a simple gesture of showing his face and expressing concern, the effect was remarkable. The Guards' recognition and reverence for Ronin deepened considerably.
Returning to his original spot, Ronin asked, "What about the casualties from Mountain Forest Town's side?"
"I've tallied those as well."
Elron shook his head. "When I checked, all three Archers were dead, and only five of the twenty Infantrymen survived, all of them severely injured. My Mana is limited, so I didn't treat them."
Compared to Ronin's side, the Infantrymen who came with Princest had suffered devastating casualties.
It could only be said that Ronin's Guards fought too ferociously.
"My Lord, what should we do with Princest and the other two?" Elron asked.
Ronin rubbed his brow. "Disen and the one named Kate are from the Sain Territory, so I certainly can't keep them alive. As for Princest, I'm thinking he might still be of some use."
He stood up and walked over to the prisoners.
Ronin waved his hand, signaling for Macken to withdraw his longsword from Princest's neck.
Princest looked at Ronin, a peculiar light in his eyes. "You've been exceptionally calm from the very beginning. And your way of handling things is completely different from Earl Wiggin's."
Ronin chuckled. "Tell me, what is Earl Wiggin's style?"
"Impulsive, willful, thoughtless, and impatient."
Princest said with a hint of mockery, "This isn't my assessment of him; it's how many people see him."
Ronin thought for a moment. He hadn't interacted much with Wiggin since he'd transmigrated, but the man's behavior did seem to fit that description.
'Who knew, sometimes public opinion is spot on.'
"I'll give you a chance. How about submitting to me?" Ronin asked.
He didn't actually want to take Princest into his service. It was just that figuring out the personnel situation, production capabilities, and surrounding environment of Mountain Forest Town would require a significant amount of time and effort.
If Princest would deign to speak and cooperate with Ronin in understanding and mastering these matters, it would save him a great deal of time.
As for how to deal with Princest after that, he would have to wait and see.
"I will!"
Princest's silent demeanor changed completely. "I can submit to you, but I demand that you knight me in front of all the people of Mountain Forest Town."
Ronin didn't agree immediately, instead pondering the purpose behind this demand.
Was Princest trying to use this method to guarantee his own survival? After all, if Ronin knighted Princest in public, he wouldn't be able to move against him later without a valid reason.
"From what you said earlier, you seem to hold the nobility in contempt, yet now you want me to knight you..."
Ronin didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he agreed decisively. "Fine. I accept your terms, the future Sir Princest."
"Please accept my fealty, Your Excellency Ronin!" Princest endured the pain and knelt on one knee.
This scene made Malt's heart skip a beat. He hadn't expected Princest to survive.
After dealing with Princest, Ronin walked over to Disen and Kate, both of whom were Baron Reisen's men.
"Malt!"
Called out so suddenly, Malt shuddered. His heart began to THUMP THUMP THUMP wildly, and sweat beaded on his forehead. He didn't know if Ronin would spare him for being the first to surrender and provide intelligence.
"My Lord, your orders!" he replied respectfully.
"Take your sword and end the lives of Disen and Kate," Ronin commanded.
Malt froze for a moment, not expecting this baron to order him to kill his former comrades.
But he quickly came to his senses, drew his longsword, and said, "I am willing to serve you!"
"No, don't! You can't kill me!"
Kate was so scared he pissed himself and fainted again, leaving only Disen to beg and threaten, "I am a Knight of Baron Reisen! If you kill me, the Baron will never let you go!"
Ronin remained silent, merely watching as Malt raised his longsword.
"No, you can't kill me!"
A look of terror appeared on Disen's face. "Lord Philton is on his way! If you kill me, he will definitely avenge me!"
"Wait!"
Those words sent a cold sweat down Ronin's back, and he quickly stopped Malt from striking.
"What did you say? Philton is on his way to Mountain Forest Town?"
Disen seemed to have grasped a lifeline. "Princest sent a carrier pigeon with information about you when you were crossing the two mountains up ahead! Lord Philton has been on his way for a while now!"
Ronin's expression changed drastically. His group had already been resting here for at least three hours, and adding the time it took to cross two mountains, at least five hours had passed.
He knew that carrier pigeons were fast and flew in a straight line. The journey from Mountain Forest Town to Sain Ridge probably took thirty minutes at most.
In other words, Philton had already been traveling for about four and a half hours!
Ronin turned to Malt. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"
Malt immediately panicked, dropped the longsword in his hand, and knelt on the ground, frantically trying to explain.
"My Lord, I didn't know about this! Princest despises nobles, and he despises me for my noble birth. There are many things I'm not privy to!"
Ronin looked at Princest.
The man who had just chosen to submit was now staring at Disen with ice-cold eyes. "You useless fool!"
In that instant, Ronin understood. Princest hadn't submitted at all; he was just stalling for time.
As long as Philton arrived, he had a chance to survive.
The one thing he probably hadn't anticipated was Ronin's insistence on killing Disen, which in turn led Disen to reveal this critical information.
For a moment, Ronin's heart was thrown into turmoil.
'Philton, an Advanced Level Knight from the Sain Territory... and there's no way he's coming alone!'
'What do I do?'