Count Alonzo von Volder sat in his study reading a letter from his older sister Lucretia. In her letter she asked him to help protect a legacy that was meant for her children.
The history of house Volder was long and proud, even longer than the empire itself. They had been kings once, ruling over what was now the Everwinter empire's West and then during the great unification, they lost their place and the family's head was now given the title of Duke.
It was all good for at least fifty years and then they revolted as soon as the old emperor was gone.
The result, was an overwhelming and shameful defeat and thus the surviving members lost their place as a ducal family and in an act of mercy they were relegated to be minor lords.
Their tenacity however was unwavering, generation after generations they worked hard till their head had reached the title of Count, they had even outlived their conquerors as the previous dynasty had also perished in a civil war...
...well not all of them, the Caligula's were still alive and well even though they were just a branch of the previous imperial line.
" What are your orders? " A shadowy figure asked .
" There are two options, we can go through a proxy and let the Caligula's end themselves by causing something major or we can use a pawn , someone who already has a problem with our obstacle, someone who would derive joy in destroying this obstacle and someone who has the means to do it perfectly.
Do you know who i am talking about? "
" Yes I do, Baron Scofield. " The figure replied. " Out of all other Barons and lords, he is one of the few that can field an army above ten thousand."
" Yes you're right, his iron mines gives him a reason to have such amount even though it is incomparable to the hundreds of thousands that people of our standing could field but for now it would be enough.
Send a rat to him, make sure that he knows that it is from Maximilian Scorpia. "
Three weeks later their plan came to fruition a masked assassin rushed attacked Baron Scofield, the assassin had no chance as he was immediately cut down.
The most notable thing he did was that before he made his attempt he uttered a line,
" Lord Scorpia sends his regards. " Thereby implicating Max in a web of lies.
Baron Scofield capitalizing on this opportunity gathered half of his forces and tasked his first son to take command of this army and bring "justice" to Maximilian Scorpia.
But before they marched he sent two letters, an intent of war sent to Duke Caligula stating the reason for the impending conflict , it was just a formality.
The next was the official declaration of war which was sent to Maximilian.
In the Everwinter empire, there are countless ways to gain an upgrade in title, either you buy it or you were given it by your liege or you took someone else's lands to increase your standing through battle.
...
When Maximilian actually got the declaration of war he wasn't all that bothered, it was bound to happen one day.
He knew that he wasn't responsible for the assassination attempt, either Baron Scofield orchestrated it or someone else was pulling the strings from the shadows.
But still the entire region of Valum went into overdrive, the weapons factories were now working all day to supply weapons and ammo for the soldiers, curfews were placed and the already tightened security was tightened up more.
Food was sufficient, to last up to a year but for it to be sufficient, the grain quota for the brewery was greatly reduced.
Checkpoints were placed in roads leading to the town, watchtowers were placed in positions where the enemy could infiltrate.
Two teams would man each tower and have two machine guns, the Maxim machine gun was placed on the tower while the MG42 which was more mobile was placed below.
The soldiers were also armed with the SR-1 rifles, this was enough to hold off any enemy till reinforcements came and if it came to melee combat, they still had their Katanas.
Exactly a month after the declaration of war, just as the sun was rising, scouts who were patrolling the sounding areas rode quickly through the southern border.
" The enemies are approaching." they shouted as they ride through.
All twenty soldiers who were stationed at this watchtower immediately perked up, this was going to be the first time that they were going to be facing combat with the new weapons, they had went through series of training for both field and urban scenarios.
Orders were barked, " prepare to engage. "
The men readied theirselves nervous of the outcome of the battle, training was one thing but this was real.
...
" Young master, there is a watchtower up ahead, but there are few men there, I counted twenty if them. " A knight riding beside the young Lord .
The young Lord, Paz Scofield immediately ordered," send a probing force, maybe five hundred men.
I heard Lord Scorpia was quite formidable against Thagalia so we won't be taking any chances."
So five hundred men were quickly deployed,it was unknown the total amount of mages that were present, all that was known was that they were hostile and they were approaching quickly.
" Johnson. "
" Yes Sergeant. "
" You got a ninety percent proficiency in your shooting test right? "
" Yes Sergeant. " Johnson replied, subconsciously puffing out his chest.
" Good, I want you to target anyone who looks important.
The rest of you, no one must pass here. Keep their mages occupied and keep them away from the machine guns...."
"...they are coming Sergeant. "
Johnson immediately took position at the top close to the maxim machine gunner and at the range of one thousand meters, Johnson immediately let out two shots which took but a second to hit the leading knight.
One hit to the chest and one penetrated an exposed part of his neck.