That's not how you use a witch!

Chapter 21 Crying loudly to grab milk!

Based on his past life's experience, Ronan's interrogation process was indeed as reasonable as possible, but due to the lack of physical evidence, the key evidence relied almost entirely on oral confessions.

Although there are a series of procedures such as separate testimonies, anonymous identification, and cross-verification, even the most meticulous measures can have oversights.

Scarlett, by using her "Master of Illusions" ability to transform into various small insects, can approach the fleeing soldiers undetected and obtain private information that might not even be obtained during interrogation.

"Fermi and Iron Nail were pushed out to take the blame by the officer. They had been beaten by the officer many times. For them, indefinite labor was better than going back to be beaten to death by that officer in retaliation."

And that knight named Grant, he didn't commit arson, murder, looting, or any of the other crimes you're accusing him of; he even nearly starved to death because he refused to steal food. He was ostracized by the others simply because he didn't fit in."

Based on her own observations, Scarlett helped Ronan correct the wrongful convictions one by one.

"These are the few cases; the other judgments were quite fair. You're definitely capable, at least better than those pot-bellied judges in the capital."

"No need for mutual flattery, your observations are very insightful. Thank you, Miss Ranger, you've been a great help."

Ronan looked at the ranger who was sitting at the table with his legs crossed, "Since it's a collaboration, how about you consider becoming a witch in Thorn Territory? Although we don't have a contract, I promise you can live openly in my territory like Madale, without having to hide like before."

"Thank you for your kindness, but I've grown accustomed to this kind of life. Besides, for your enemies, a witch lurking in the shadows is always more troublesome than one in the open, so I'll continue to assist you in secret."

Scarlett, quite naturally, poured herself a cup of tea and then drank it all in one gulp.

"Alright, Medall is coming back soon, I'll head out now. It wouldn't be appropriate for her to see this."

After saying that, she transformed into a sparrow and hopped back onto the tree branch outside the window.

"Ronan, I'm well-rested. Mr. Vance is expected to arrive this afternoon."

The next moment, Madame walked in through the door.

The girl wrinkled her nose and sniffed, her expression becoming serious and confused.

"Ronan, has anyone else been here just now?"

"Holy crap, do women really have a sixth sense..." Ronan coughed lightly, his expression unchanging. "Of course not. Um, I just realized there were some issues with the previous verdicts. Let's re-examine these people!"

"oh."

Meidel glanced at the teapot and teacups that were out of place, and casually put them back in their original positions. Sensing that the teapot's weight was noticeably off, she looked around with a more serious expression, but found nothing amiss.

The girl didn't take this little incident to heart and focused on helping Ronan with his retrial.

Several isolated cases of wrongful convictions were all overturned, and the victims were all moved to tears of gratitude, saying that they could never repay the lord's kindness in their lifetime.

Especially the knight named Grant, who knelt on the ground crying after receiving the verdict of not guilty.

"Thank you for your wise decision, sir! If you do not despise me, I am willing to become your disciple..."

"No need for that. If you're really grateful, then help me develop my territory."

Ronan waved his hand, then paused for a moment after seeing his name. "Wait, your name is Grant Wimbledon? Don't you have a father named Vance Wimbledon?"

"Yes! Vance Wimbledon is indeed my father!"

Grant's eyes lit up. "You know him?"

"nonsense……"

Ronan looked at him with the kind of concern one would have for a mentally challenged child, and gestured for the militiamen on duty to take him to a separate room to settle him in.

This guy is really something else. Even though his father's territory is right next door, he's never mentioned it—if it weren't for the name matching, Ronan would have wondered if he was even his biological son!

In the afternoon, the elderly Vance finally saw his youngest son, whom he hadn't seen for a long time.

The scene of the father and son reuniting was extremely touching; the two hugged each other and cried for a full ten minutes.

Vance cried and said, "Son, you've lost so much weight." Grant nodded repeatedly, wanting to say the same thing, but he was too embarrassed to say it when he was holding his father, whom he couldn't even wrap his arms around.

If Ronan hadn't reminded them to take it easy, the burly Vance probably would have strangled the skinny Grant on the spot, which would have turned into a tragedy.

"My dear nephew, thank you so much!"

After catching up, Vance bowed deeply to Ronan.

Given his physique, the fact that he bent over so deeply shows the depth of his sincerity.

"I don't know how to repay you. No matter what happens in the future, just call me anytime! If something happens in Thorn Territory, it means something happens in Mountain Territory!"

"Uncle, don't be so polite. I just did what I thought was right. Without the help of the mountain lord, I wouldn't have been able to deal with so many defeated soldiers."

Ronan didn't mince words. "Let's get straight to the point. Our current situation isn't much safer; on the contrary, it's still very dangerous."

He relayed Hodway's intelligence about the rebels to Vance and had Bart report on the retreating soldiers as well.

"The registration work has been completed. The Thorn Territory and the Mountain Territory have received a total of 4132 defeated soldiers and refugees. Apart from more than 40 serious criminals who are about to be executed, they are currently being temporarily settled in the reclamation area of ​​the Thorn Territory. There is also a large amount of weapons and equipment, which are expected to be able to arm 2000 people after repair and maintenance."

Bart's expression was a mixture of joy and worry. "The gains this time are great, but there are also many problems that have followed."

The sheer number of defeated soldiers is consuming a huge amount of food, and the combined output of both territories is barely enough. We need to allocate an additional portion of the budget to purchasing food.

Furthermore, hygiene is also a problem; many of them contracted various diseases during their exile. Although your series of isolation measures have been very effective, cross-infection is still inevitable, and we still need a large quantity of medicine.

Finally, managing so many people is also very difficult. How to assign them tasks, how to keep them settled down—these are all troublesome issues…

Vance, on the other hand, expressed his concerns from the perspective of the macro situation:

While the iron trade between the Thorn Territory and the Mountain Territory was going smoothly and the finances could cover the costs of absorbing the defeated soldiers, an increase in trade volume could easily attract the attention of neighboring powers.

It would be dangerous if someone with ulterior motives accused him of "raising a private army," "hoarding weapons," or "plotting a rebellion."

Therefore, Vance advised that the process of dealing with the defeated soldiers should be carried out discreetly, even if some casualties were caused by hunger or disease, it was better than having someone seize on a minor flaw.

If all else fails, you can manually reduce the workforce by weeding out the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled, and only supporting the valuable young and able-bodied laborers.

Ronan's opinion was completely the opposite:

"We shouldn't keep a low profile; on the contrary, we should spread the news loudly. We must let the entire Westerlands know that we have held off a band of nearly two thousand fleeing soldiers at great cost, saving many territories from the ravages of war, and then eagerly claim credit and rewards from the Duke of the Westerlands!"

Vance was dumbfounded. They hadn't lost a single soldier, so where did they go?

Moreover, the total number of defeated soldiers was more than four thousand, so how did he reduce it to less than two thousand?

Ronan smiled slightly and explained his intention:

The truth will eventually come out. No matter how careful you are, the fact that you swallowed the defeated soldiers will be discovered sooner or later, and you will inevitably be accused of a crime on trumped-up charges.

Instead of delaying one's own development to buy time, it's better to proactively occupy the public opinion front.

The key issue is never whether they did it or not, but to what extent they did it.

By obfuscating the matter and claiming it was about "dispersing the rebels and resettling a small number of refugees," the nature of the event would be completely changed—and that's exactly what Ronan excels at.

Then, taking credit for it would be like telling everyone: I am a hero who worked hard and paid a huge price to quell the war. Now I am perfectly justified in crying out for milk!

In this way, the doubts of other lords can be dispelled, and the food can be obtained while standing still. Furthermore, the approval of superiors can provide a layer of legal protection.

This can't even be called a win-win situation—it's like Qin Shi Huang turning the millstone around and winning in circles!

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