Lord: I Grind EXP with Warband Panel

After receiving Valentino’s assurance, Robson was no longer in such a hurry.

The entire Qimo Fortress was a huge enterprise, and there were many things to move.

Fortunately, Robson had acquired some mules and horses long ago, which now came in handy.

He could use this time to ensure the military reforms and the new officers settled in properly.

After all, everyone was new to their posts. Many of the officers were former peasants and still needed to familiarize themselves with their duties. The common soldiers weren’t very familiar with their officers either, so they all needed to get to know one another.

What surprised Robson was that the ones who had made the most progress during this time were neither the officers nor the cavalry, but the mages.

Ever since Robson had "persuaded" Falan, Falan seemed to have had a breakthrough and thought things through.

To get the Magic Corps into shape more quickly, Robson had Falan organize a math crash course. Of course, it wasn’t actually called that, as this world didn’t have a formal concept of mathematics.

All that could be said was that mages truly had a talent for math; those suited for research were indeed a different breed.

Falan completed much of the academic instruction with very little effort.

The results were naturally remarkable; the entire Mage Corps’ casting speed had tripled.

It was worth mentioning that to accelerate the formation of his ideal Earth and Wood Mage Corps, Robson had Falan list out many spells. Robson and Falan then spent an entire night selecting a few low-cost ones.

These spells were mostly related to clearing paths, building bridges, and erecting walls.

Moreover, according to Falan, in his era, there were indeed War Mages who served the army. Unfortunately, the so-called War Mage system was still a far cry from the Earth and Wood Mages Robson envisioned.

Of course, this knowledge was all strictly confidential. Basically, every mage signed a non-disclosure agreement to prevent any leaks.

After Robson’s last "persuasion," Falan not only had no objections to the matter but had even taken the initiative.

...

In his room, Robson heard two bird calls, and then the door opened.

A woman with a fine figure entered, a Southern Thrusting Sword at her waist. Perched on her shoulder was a fiery-red, three-tailed bird.

It was Valentino, dressed in a standard Swordsmanship Uniform, accompanied by the recently evolved Huang Na. Without her armor, Valentino’s feminine charm was even more apparent. Privately, some gossips had dubbed her the kingdom’s Northern Pearl. While this was certainly done to curry favor with a count, it was undeniable that Valentino had the assets to back it up.

After all, her genes were impeccable. Her mother was the daughter of a Marquis Clan, her maternal grandmother was a princess of the Southern Kingdom, her maternal grandfather was a Marquis, and her father was a Count. Furthermore, after reaching the Silver rank, a human’s genes would subtly change.

Even as they aged, they could maintain their youthful appearance. Those Gold and Silver rankers who looked old and decrepit only did so out of daily necessity. Louis III’s Queen, for instance, had always maintained the appearance of a woman in her twenties.

Since Huang Na had advanced to her juvenile stage, she no longer looked like a fiery-red "native chicken." Her true form had become a strange-looking, three-tailed bird.

But what Robson found strange was that, as far as he knew, this wasn’t what a juvenile phoenix was supposed to look like.

Even upon reaching its youth stage, a phoenix was said to look like a slightly larger native chicken. Only when it truly reached adulthood would it take on the more graceful form people imagined.

Robson had specifically asked Valentino about it, but she said she didn’t know either.

Valentino was considered well-read from her time at the Southern King’s Academy. If even she didn’t know, then there was nothing Robson could do.

At least, according to Valentino, the Flame Magic Huang Na produced was much stronger than that of ordinary juvenile phoenixes. Although its raw power had decreased, its area of effect had more than doubled.

Hearing this, Robson could only attribute it to the Mount & Blade system, which had probably made some changes to Huang Na.

’This is actually for the best. If she had kept her original form, me having a phoenix beast as a mount might have attracted some unwanted attention.’

’Especially from Earl Leo’s original family.’

’In Huang Na’s current state, she doesn’t even need to change her form. Even if that phoenix expert, Earl Leo, were reborn, he probably wouldn’t recognize Huang Na as a phoenix.’

"Is there something you need, Earl?" Robson paused what he was doing. He was packing his clothes, the army’s rosters and accounts, and most importantly, a map of the entire Western Front.

"It’s nothing. I’ve been here for a while, and it’s time for me to leave. I came to say goodbye," Valentino said.

"After all, there are some matters back at Mold Castle that require my attention, so I have to hurry back."

Robson nodded, unable to stop himself from complaining internally. ’So you finally realized you’ve been here for a while.’

If Valentino hadn’t mentioned it, Robson would have almost forgotten that she commanded a large contingent of troops herself.

"Do you need an escort?" Robson asked.

Valentino shook her head.

"No need. I’ve arranged for Griffin Knights to pick me up."

Robson clicked his tongue. ’What a filthy rich noble. Griffin Knights... just the name sounds rare. Lord Robson wants some too.’

’Of course, that’s just a thought. The funds needed to raise Griffin Knights are no small amount.’

Within the Frank Kingdom, most Earl Clans could field a complete Knight Order, but only the royal family, Marquis George’s Wei Man Clan, and Marquis Oscillate’s the Edward family possessed a Griffin Knight Order.

And even though they had Griffin Knight Orders, they wouldn’t dare deploy them recklessly. After all, the Beastman Empire’s main strength was its racial diversity.

Especially the Beastman Empire’s Thunder Eagle Warriors, which were known for being plentiful, tough, and durable.

The three great families would never send their Griffin Knight Orders into a meat grinder unless it was a critical moment.

The Griffin Knights Robson usually used were actually cast-offs from the kingdom. They weren’t great in a fight, but they could be used as scouts.

What Robson currently lacked most were scout cavalry. As a Commander-in-Chief, reconnaissance and surveying the terrain were top priorities. For every battlefield, he had to memorize the local geography and topography until he knew it like the back of his hand.

If griffins weren’t so scarce, Robson would have wanted to learn how to ride one himself.

"Were you about to say goodbye?" Seeing Robson open his mouth, Valentino asked with a smile in her eyes.

"It won’t be long, actually. The forces at Mold Castle have already assembled. We’ll probably see each other again in a couple of days," Valentino said with a laugh.

It was clear that Valentino was quite satisfied with her trip these past few days.

This was mainly because Robson, relying on the emotional intelligence from his past life and a few random jokes, had made her feel very relaxed during her stay.

Ever since returning from King’s College, Valentino’s life had been a whirlwind. She had hurriedly arranged her father’s funeral with no time to grieve, rushed to Marquis Oscillate to declare her stance, and then, with the Marquis’s help, dealt with a group of her childhood "aunts and uncles."

With no time to rest, the war with the Beastmen became imminent. The King’s mobilization orders were being issued daily, and Valentino had to quickly mobilize the soldiers in her domain, as well as the nobles of the entire province, to send a large army to the battlefield.

Soon after arriving at the battlefield, she was immediately thrown into high-intensity combat.

These past days, Valentino had not had a moment’s rest. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Coming to Qimo Fortress was, in truth, a way to take a break during a lull in the war, under the pretext of checking out a potential fiancé. However, Robson’s sense of humor had made the trip unexpectedly interesting.

"If that’s the case, then that’s for the best," Robson said, also smiling and nodding.

His interactions with her over the past few days had broken down some of his old preconceptions. Originally, Robson had assumed that a nineteen-year-old count would be extraordinary in every way.

But now it seemed that wasn’t entirely the case. At least, Robson felt that Valentino was much easier to understand than the girls from his previous world.

At least when it came to emotions, that is.