Chapter 161
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Erin arrived at Laguna port with his fleet . He wasn't particularly proud as he thought that he lost a lot of men in his last battle . He was quite surprised that people still cheered for them when he lost so many of his men .
The Laguna port, only today regained some of its lost vitality after news of Erin's win . However, the faces of common men were still desolate because they knew that war was coming and they would be ones who would feel the most effects of war .
One of the men gossiped, "Why is Duke's personal knight order waiting at the port? And what is the reason that they have suddenly opened the ports? Do you know anything about it?"
The Old man stroked his beard and spoke, "Well the rumor is, Vice-admiral Erin won his battle against Duke Rose and he was successfully able to bring 2 of their ships in a deadly raid near southern seas . This was partly possible because Admiral Shannon had another plan since he believed it would be very hard to raid Count John as he was on alert after Evan's assassination . And this is also the reason why they are waiting at the port, ready to greet Admiral Erin . "
The other man furrowed his brows with cynicism and asked, "Isn't it just propaganda by duke fjord to soothe the masses for this loss and the war he started? You know I read those newspapers from the North-frontier domain as well to get their perspective . They also said that Lord Grim and Darius ran which is true according to many people in the navy . They were quite disgusted with the behavior of Lord Grim and Darius . One of my friends also left the navy in anger because they stained his honor . "
The Old man nodded his head but spoke calmly, "However you have to think Logically as well . Not with emotions . Duke Fjord wouldn't have opened the port for everyone if he was lying . "
The other man thought about it and agreed, "I guess that's true as well . "
The Old man spoke after watching some movement among the knights, "See there is movement within the knights, I guess the scout has already spotted the fleet and they are now getting ready to greet them . "
The captain of the knight gave his orders and made his men get ready to welcome them, "Get Ready to welcome Admiral Erin . I don't want any mistakes from you guys . "
As soon as Erin arrived at the port, there was a big welcome for them by the Fjord's personal guards which was a honor only state guests and people equal to Duke fjord would get .
The sour mood after the previous defeat was slowly getting washed away after Erin's successful operation and watching Duke Rose's two ships first hand .
A lot of commoners were quite surprised after watching the news ships with their fleet coming into the port .
The man spoke after carefully watching the ships, "It seems they were correct when they said they were able to raid two of their ships and get their hands on the ballista's . Those ballistas are quite well protected this time around . Just look at the number of soldiers on that ship . "
Another man added in after watching them gossip, "Yes, in the end it was shannons disciple who was successful in acquiring those ships right under Rose's nose . "
The Old man spoke to them, "See I told you, I was quite confident because Duke Fjord was already prepared before his arrival . And I have one more reason why Lord's Operation was successful . "
The new man asked, "Why do you say so?"
The Old man smiled and spoke with an all-knowing tone, "Because he had already hired all the important craftsmen in the domain yesterday and this also gave many people a lot of hints . "
He continued, "And As I said, they wouldn't have opened the port this early if they wanted to hide something . "
The Man spoke with a grave tone after understanding the consequences of such a thing, "If what you are saying is correct then they intend to replicate those weapons to regain superiority in the easter waters just like the old days . I hope my friends who left the navy remain safe . "
Erin left the ship and headed to the captain of guards . However, Erin was immediately greeted by Shannon .
Shannon greeted Erin after he came down from the ship, He was quite happy with his safe arrival and spoke, "It is good that you are fine, kid . You have now become a big man after this raid . "
Erin shook his head and spoke, "It would not have been possible without you, master . And this time I lost a lot of my men . "
Shannon sighed and spoke, "Nah, you earned this victory, you wouldn't have won if you hadn't executed all the orders on the right time according to your own judgment . And remember war is brutal so it would be better if you stopped attaching your emotions with your men as it would only hurt you more . I know about it as I have experienced it first hand . However, it would be your decision in the end . Take that Pirate Blake for example, he attaches a lot of importance to his men and hence it became his weakness for years however this has also increased his hatred and determination to finish Duke Fjord and take his revenge . So this a two-edged sword . "
Erin sighed and gave his answer, "I understand master, I will keep these words in mind . However, I still can't do what you expect me to do right now at this stage . Meanwhile, What happened to you master, you don't look good currently?"
Shannon sighed as he looked at his own shadow in Erin and spoke, "It's ok . You will grow with wars eventually . As for my mood, We suffered the biggest defeat in our history under my leadership so you can understand . "
He continued, "In total, We lost 5000+ plus men this time around . We really underestimated that count and that pirate when it came to the firepower of those ballistas . Anyway lets go, I don't even want to speak on this topic, Duke is waiting for us . We will talk later on . "
After Shannon and Erin left, People were allowed to watch the ships in small numbers .
The commoners gossiped as they saw the ballistas, "So it is really true that Lord Erin was able to capture those ballistas from Duke Rose . It seems we aren't fated to lose this war just yet . As expected from captain Shannon as his experience came in handy . "
The Old man spoke after watching the expressions of Shannon and Erin, "True, However, I am worried about the truffle between Lord Shannon and Darius/ Grim duo . "
The other guy nodded and agreed, "I guess the same is true for Lord Fjord as well . He might be really worried about both of them as both of them control a part of the army and have quite a lot of influence under them . "
The Old man spoke, "Anyway, I expect the sparks between both Duke Fjord and Count John to continue after this battle, no one of the two will yield knowing the personality of lords . I expect a few big battles like the previous one . "
The man spoke after hearing about their personalities and the situation of war, "Well, it is their honor which is at stake currently . So it's expected that none of them will subdue to one another . "
The mood of the port though low was still a bit cheerful as some good news was given to the populace and spread in the city from the port . Many people started heading to the port for confirming the battle reports .
Heading to the palace, Erin heard about the events which took place and understood what happened while he wasn't present .
