Warhammer Divine Throne-Chapter 654 - 288, Aftermath of the Battle_2

Brittania does not have the financial resources to mass-produce steam tanks like the Empire. However, after witnessing the Empire's advanced technology, Laine was determined to equip his own army with sufficient firearms and accelerate the construction of the musket battalion and artillery team.

At the same time, he was extremely envious of the steam tanks, one of the Empire's ultimate weapons. Before the Great Holy War, the steam tanks were jointly built by a renowned Master of Engineering from the Southern Realm and the Dwarf Engineer Association. There were twelve prototype steam tanks, each with a different internal structure.

Currently, the Empire still has eight left, all controlled in the hands of the Emperor. Besides, the engineers from the Nuer Gunpowder Academy and the Brunswick Royal Engineering College have also endeavored to replicate some steam tanks. Naturally, these replicas are not as invincible as the prototype steam tanks but are still powerful war machines.

The secret for making steam tanks is strictly kept in Ludwig's Temple at the Nuer Gunpowder Academy.

"Compared to the Empire, we're already comprehensively lagging behind in many areas." Francois and Laine walked down the city wall, the cheers of the Prince-Electors and the roars of the Imperial Army on the wall felt a bit jarring for the Duke and Count. Francois sighed and said, "Since the Dor Tower incident, for three hundred years, Brittania has made almost no progress in technology. The knightly nobility believes the Holy Grail is everything, not realizing that the Empire has long completed firearm equipment and countless war machine innovations. His Majesty Ludwig's vigorous promotion of firearms has made the Imperial Army increasingly formidable, while we still rely on catapults and peasant archers. Yes, our knights still have a significant combat advantage over the Imperial Knights, but..."

"But war isn't just about knights," Laine also sighed softly.

"Indeed, war can never be solely reliant on knights. Our Holy Grail Knights are not afraid of those cannons and steam tanks, but Holy Grail Knights are very few," Francois nodded.

The two stepped onto the battlefield. The Imperial Army was clearing the battlefield and settling captives. Everywhere were surrendering captured peasants and knights. Seeing the two Holy Grail Knights enter the battlefield, many knights looked ashamed, and the peasants pleaded for forgiveness.

In this battle, Casvan failed despite his hard-fought efforts. He had used the prestige he accumulated over decades to achieve Karl Franz's rise to fame in one battle.

Amidst the throngs of hundreds of Imperial Knights, Karl Franz was inspecting the battlefield. The Emperor was riding a robust half-elf warhorse. Seeing Laine and Francois appear, the Emperor smiled, "Good morning, Mr. Francois, Lord Laine."

"Good morning, Your Majesty Franz. I hope you will treat the captives well and not humiliate them," Laine sighed slightly, speaking calmly.

"Oh! Of course, I promised," the Emperor was momentarily stunned, then nodded immediately, "Please understand, the Empire didn't want this war. We were on active defense."

"Heh," Laine was somewhat sarcastic and self-mocking. Karl Franz had meticulously crafted a trap for Casvan to fall into, then claimed victory from a righteous position, gaining both popular support and political capital from this war.

Compared to the over-a-hundred-year-old Richard, the excellence of the thirty-something-year-old Emperor Karl Franz was perfectly evident.

"Let go of me!" A beautiful Lake God Prophet was bound up by several Imperial soldiers. Her hands were tied behind her back, then brought before the Emperor, "My Lord, we've captured a Lake God Prophet!"

"May the Lady curse you!" Bound in ropes, the Lake God Prophet tried her best to evade the hands of many Imperial soldiers who took advantage of her, angrily yelling, "Imperial scum!"

"Release her," Laine said to Karl Franz, "The Lake God Prophet is under protection."

"The Lake God Prophet is under protection, but you need to pay sufficient ransom." The Toscan Prince-Elector Umberto Corleone showed respect to Laine and Francois. He himself, having gone through a fierce battle, hadn't spilled a drop of blood. His splendid plate armor and tall plume were still bright, "The ransom for a Lake God Prophet is five hundred gold marks; for the sake of you two, three hundred gold marks, fixed price."

"May the Lady curse you! Get your filthy hands off me!" The Lake God Prophet, appearing to be about thirty years old, was maturely beautiful. Most Lake God Prophets remain youthful and beautiful all their lives, only rapidly aging in their last few years before wilting at the shrine of the Lake Fairy or the Holy Land, merging with nature.

"Forget it; let this Lady Lake God Prophet go for free." Karl Franz did not want to entangle over this issue any further and wanted to give Laine some face. Laine's strength was something he witnessed firsthand. In fact, the Empire's victory in this war was achieved precariously. If Holy Grail Knights had led, the outcome might have been completely different. Maybe the Toscan Prince-Elector wouldn't have held out until his arrival. The steel plates of the steam tank were tough to breach for Ranger Knights and Kingdom Knights, but quite a few Holy Grail Knights could tear through them.

The Emperor knew all too well that despite the Empire's might, there was a fatal issue.

Lack of organized groups of high-end combat power.

The Empire, as the most powerful country in the Old World, had many legendary powerhouses. However, its highest-level combat power was very scattered.

Each Holy Grail Knight was a powerful, faith-steady, and loyal living saint. Those at the same level as the Holy Grail Knights were much stronger than ordinary people. A command from the Lake Fairy or the Lake God Witch could mobilize the Holy Grail Knights en masse to fight for the Goddess.

Carl Franz, as the Emperor of the Empire, could not do the same. The high-end combat power of the Empire was very scattered and everyone had their own agenda, making it very difficult to unify them. Heilberg was already the best swordsman in the Rick Guard, yet he couldn't match even an ordinary Holy Grail Knight. Griffin Legion's champion Rog was knocked down by Laine with one hammer.

To fight against the darkness, the power of the Holy Grail Knights was exceedingly necessary.

Selling a favor to Laine and Francois here would be beneficial without any harm.

The Emperor waved his hand, and the Lake God Prophet was released from the Imperial soldiers. She gave a hateful look at the Imperial people who had taken advantage of her moments ago and hurriedly went behind Laine and Francois.

The other knights weren't so lucky. They were taken away in groups, destined to be imprisoned in the jails of Hemgart and Brunswick, awaiting ransom.

"Where is Casvan?" Laine asked.

"Casvan? Ransom is twenty thousand gold marks. Whenever the ransom is paid, we will release him," General Kurt Heilberg of the Empire said in a deep voice.

This ransom amount was calculated after much deliberation by the Empire; it was a sum that allowed them to make a significant profit yet would not be beyond Casvan's ability to pay. The Empire believed that with over a thousand years of accumulation in the Paragon Duchy, they shouldn't be unable to come up with twenty thousand gold marks, equivalent to twenty thousand gold crowns.

"No, I'm not talking about that. I want to know where Lord Casvan is now?" Laine shook his head. He certainly would not pay that amount; he just had some matters he wished to discuss with Casvan.

The Duke of Paragon was conservatively inclined. He disliked Laine's close relations with the Wood Elves and Dwarfs, especially as Casvan had suffered losses in trade with the Wood Elves.

At the same time, Casvan also employed Dwarfs to build weapons and houses for him, but these Dwarfs' skills were greatly inferior to the Rune Artisans and Dwarf Engineers recruited by Laine; indeed, most of the Dwarfs he could hire were those who couldn't make it in the Empire—Imperial Dwarfs.

So, Casvan and Laine had a very strained relationship, making it virtually impossible to establish an equal dialogue.

Now, the opportunity had arrived.

"This..." Kurt Heilberg was hesitating. What if... with Laine's formidable strength...

"Take Lord Laine there, Heilberg," Karl Franz readily agreed, "I agreed."

"Yes!" With the Emperor's order, Heilberg said no more, "Lord Laine, please follow me."

"Alright."

Laine followed Heilberg into the Imperial camp, where he saw the dispirited, imprisoned Casvan, "Hello, Lord Casvan."

"Laine Macado?! It's you! Have you come to mock me?" Casvan, locked in an iron cage without shackles or handcuffs, looked much older. Upon seeing Laine, he angrily said through the iron window, "Are you not satisfied witnessing my defeat, and now you come to take the opportunity to humiliate me?"

"No, I've come to you because there are some things I wish to discuss with you."

"Some... special things."