Hanne

Chapter 87 Veiled in Flames

The guardsmen rotated shifts as the night watch ended. Dawn had arrived, and the golden light breaking through the darkness marked the third day since Lord Lansius had set foot in the fields of Korimor.

The Lord refused to sleep in the castle and chose instead to spend the night in a humble cabin just outside the gates. He wanted to keep his troops' morale high and reassure the people of Korimor that they were not completely under siege.

Inside the cabin, the Lord and Lady sat on ...

Chapter 86 Testing the Waters

Korimor Castle

Inside the stone-walled chamber of Korimor Castle, a place that had witnessed countless strife, regime changes, and treachery, Lord Lansius sat alone facing a stone table. A silver platter glistened in the midday sun streaming through the narrow windows. Despite the food situation, the staff had done their best to provide a savory menu for their new Lord.

Carla stood guard. In Margo's absence, she had become the de facto food and wine tester. Living with the staff o...

Chapter 85 The Sons of Nicopola

Previous Chapter

The Nicopolan Envoys

The three envoys had been waiting in the midday sun. They had asked to find some shade, but the guards and knights gave only a lukewarm response. Thus, they settled to wait in an awkward and heavy atmosphere.

Suddenly, a young man exited, looked around fiercely at the three envoys, and spoke to one of the knights. “The lord is willing...

Chapter 84 White Pieces

Previous Chapter

Dawn had just broken when Sir Michael and Hugo slipped through the city gate and arrived outside the cabin. The cool wind was blowing, and the grass was wet with morning dew.

Sir Harold finally emerged from inside and invited them in. “The lord wishes to see you.”

“Am I allowed to bring my sword?” Sir Michael asked, as he was not part of House Lansiu...

Chapter 83 Sinews of War (Book 3)

Welcome to Book 3. 😍

This marks the beginning of Book III.

Before you read: I want to remind you that this is the free web version. So don't expect professionally edited chapter; misspells, typos, or errors are common.

⚠️ Attention: Book III is going to be stubbed early January 2025

⚠️ Chapter 83 - 124 will be affected (taken down)

Chapter 83 - Sinews of War

Plains of Korimor, Daniell...

Chapter 82 Tarracan Man

The day had yet to grow hot when a formation of men assembled just outside Korelia. Lord Jorge led the formation, flanked by a modest number of cavalry. The horses had been either ransomed or loaned from Korelia, all backed by Lord Jorge's guarantee.

Lord Robert was also present, leading his smaller cavalry at some distance. The sight was impressive if not grand. The last time these forces had assembled here, they had been enemies. Now, they were allies.

"My Lords, the success of ...

Chapter 81 The Whispers in the Wind

Audrey

After the meeting with Sir Morton, Audrey finally understood why Isolte, her Knight Master, had chosen her—a scrawny little servant from the outskirts of Elandia. She had assumed it was because she was born Centurian.

Located where the old capital of the first Imperium used to be, Centuria was worlds apart from the eastern part of the Imperium. Its people considered themselves more cultured than the rest of the human realm. The Centurians were reserved in attitude, never ...

Chapter 80 Periculum In Mora

Korelia City

Despite the looming military crisis and Sir Harold's departure, construction projects in Korelia continued to thrive. As Lord Lansius' highest-ranking staff member, Sir Justin was naturally involved in overseeing the main projects. Along with Calub and their team.

On behalf of their Lord, they supervised a workforce comprising five hundred workers from Korelia and an additional one thousand five hundred, overseeing everything from labor allocation to raw material supp...

Character List + Map 🍁🎃🍂

List of Named Recurring Characters in Horizon of War as of the Elven Calendar Year 4425.

1. Mother Arryn, Marc, and Tanya - Lansius' Family in Bellandia

2. Stefi, a Squire, born Stephania in west Centuria

3. Young Lord Arte and Lord Maurice of Arvena - the Earl of Arvena

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Midlandia

1. Anci, (Left) the youngest of Sir Peter's Squire trio...

Chapter 79 Lull Before the Storm

Felicity

The blonde Lady, still occupying the Master Chamber in the castle, was disassembling a new crossbow. Her desk was cluttered with tools, various cords, and spare parts for the trigger.

She wanted a more comfortable grip, and Hannei had given her the idea for a pistol grip. The only problem lay in modifying the trigger, so she experimented to create some parts with the help of a smith.

Today, the parts arrived and she was about to reassemble the trigger when she felt ...

Chapter 78 Korelia City

Korelia Castle

The court of Korelia was abuzz with a shocking revelation: Lady Audrey declared the captured man to be her cousin. Anticipating denial, the Lord of Korelia approached the man. A tall knight promptly pinned Lord Omin to the floor.

Lord Lansius glanced at Lady Audrey, who nodded to indicate her seriousness. He then knelt and seized Omin by the chin. "We've never met before. I'm Lansius. Should I call you Omin or brother-in-law?"

Omin shuddered uncontrollably, hi...

Chapter 21-2 Bonus : A Lady Named Audrey

Note:  This is a new bonus chapter to show more scenes between Lansius and Audrey after they reunited in Toruna. Many readers have requested this, and I hope you find it a good read. 🤗

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A gentle breeze swept through the mansion's private yard adjacent to the garden. The sun was still cool, and the cold breeze was abundant—a perfect time for training.

Inhaling deeply, Lansius filled his lungs with the earthy scent of the changing seasons. He d...

Chapter 77 Unexpected

Chateau de Cascasonne

"Tanya, help me with the cabbage," Mother Arryn called from the kitchen.

"I'm still fixing my gardening basket," Tanya replied.

"It can wait. We can't have a house without fermented cabbage," her mother said sternly.

Tanya groaned, set aside her work, and headed to the kitchen. "If only they'd let us carry our stuff."

"Don't be ridiculous. It's good enough that your husband managed to get us out of Arvena," said Arryn, as she placed finely s...

Chapter 76 Dancing Shadows

Just for precaution. This chapter contains a small, toned-down explicit scene.

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Fleeting memories of conversations with Hannei about women's fertility came into Lansius' mind uninvited. He began to realize that her concerns likely stemmed from the fear that it might be difficult for them to have children. 2023-09-08 10:39:40 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 75 Fates Entwined

Korelia Castle

As the aftermath of the war largely subsided, the Lord of Korelia resumed his court. For three days, the court and council focused on matters of war, hostages, the new masons' guild, accommodations for a thousand laborers, and new alliances. However, today Lansius would address a lighter matter vying for his attention.

Hand in hand, Cecile and Calub stood before Lansius, seeking his approval for their marriage. Rather than make an immediate decision, he invited them...

Chapter 74 Forgotten Tome

Audrey, Eastern Mansion

Two weeks after the battle, Lansius discovered he could exert force with his left wrist again. The physician was confident that the bone had mended, noting that the recovery was faster and better than they had hoped. Many, including Audrey, believed his quick recovery was due to the precious duck egg, a notion that humbled Lansius.

On the mansion's upper floor, Audrey watched as Lansius tested his recovered hand, practicing with an ornamental halberd.

Chapter 73 Chateau de Cascasonne

Eastern Mansion

The cold breeze around dawn awoke Cecile from slumber. She tried to rub her eyes but felt that it was prickly to the touch. That didn't slow her down from her morning routine. She rose from her bed and approached the wooden table and basin, where she carefully washed her face with cold water.

Her roommates had awakened and lit another rushlight to illuminate their room. They took turns washing their faces and slowly changed into their work clothes.

The two we...

Chapter 72 False Saint

Battle fatigue had finally caught up to Lansius. After the meeting with Sir Michael and Hugo concluded, he fell asleep on the daybed. However, it was not a peaceful rest; he found himself suddenly thrust back onto the battlefield in a dream.

The scene was vivid, with blackened men running and trampling over each other as flames chased after them. Lansius was startled awake, his body covered in sweat.

"My Lord?" Margo came to look after Lansius, pouring a drink into a cup and offer...

Chapter 71 Prepare for Peace

Hi everyone! Today, I want to make a very special Patreon shout-out to my mentor and dear friend, known as Fowl on Royal Road. I'd be thrilled if you could check out his work: Casual Heroing ❤️

It boasts over 4,000 followers and has recently undergone a major rewrite that has only made it one of the best ongoing stories in Royal Road.

Honestly, he's a mo...

Chapter 70 The Empire of the Steppes

The Lord of Korelia yawned and stretched out. He had just dictated a letter to Batu, officially informing him about the Market Post route and urging the nomadic tribes to produce more yurts. He also conveyed his wish to purchase or borrow more yurts to house the one-thousand captured men intended to work in the stone quarry.

The yurts alone wouldn’t be enough, but they would be a welcomed addition. Right now, all Korelia had was the shaft in the quarries that could be used as makeshif...

Chapter 69 Blooming

Sterling was recovering in the guest chamber inside the castle, one of the fortunate ones who survived the cold grip of death. The night before, many had succumbed to their injuries. Even among those who seemed to be recovering, a few were suddenly overcome by fever and died.

He was lucky that the Saint Candidate had treated him; otherwise, the pain and swelling in his crushed leg would have been unbearable. The afflicted limb was now wrapped tightly, supported by wooden planks to keep ...

Chapter 68 Two Paths

Eastern Mansion

One hundred troops, bolstered by the militia, were mobilized under Sir Justin's command. Sir Harold to lead the column and greet the approaching relief force from White Lake. It was an unusual sight, as the siege had already been lifted, and Korelia had been freed.

Still, the townsfolk made merriment of it and greeted the forty knights like heroes for coming to their aid.

While the forty knights from White Lake entered Korelia, two hundred men, along wit...

Chapter 67 One-eyed Knight

Lord Lansius had made his intention clear to counterattack and seize Korimor, causing cold sweat to form on Hugo's back.

"My Lord, I'm with you, but is this even possible?" asked the deputy.

Lansius looked him in the eye and asked, "Do you think we can't make it?"

"We don't even have two hundred men to spare. That's hardly enough for a siege." Hugo recalled the report on the troops they had left.

Out of 400 core troops, 150 were either dead, wounded, or too shaken to f...

Chapter 66 Solidus

P.S: Ok we're trying something new today. If anyone found it hard to read let me know. Pateron won't allow me to put tables so I'm using pictures instead.

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With lunch concluded, Sir Harold excused himself to attend to security matters. There were numerous concerns to be addressed, as the Eastern Mansion was only lightly defended. So,...

Chapter 65 Punitive Strike

Many things happened in Korelia after the war. Tending to the wounded was a top priority, followed by burial and mourning. On behalf of the Lord, his retinue had dedicated several places as hospices in town to treat the wounded.

Following yesterday’s battle, Three Hills and Korelia agreed to mend relations. Thus, they were technically at peace. The war had ended.

Despite the grand scale of the fire tactics that scorched the western plains, casualties were surprisingly limited. T...

Chapter 64 Five Fates

The room inside the guardhouse was bathed in the soft glow from a small chandelier. There Hugo sat in silence. He had emerged from the battle relatively unscathed, save for some minor lacerations that had since dried. He was alone, his only companions a humble jug of water and a smaller jug of wine that sat on the wooden table.

Despite the near-miraculous victory they had achieved, he was surprisingly restless. As a squire, Hugo had always compared himself to Lord Lansius, believing the...

Chapter 63 Settled

The scent of smoke and charred vegetation filled the air, while ash rained down like grim snowflakes, blanketing the ground with a layer of grey dust. The once verdant steppe had transformed into a smoldering wasteland.

Lansius and his knights had been searching for Audrey for quite some time. They had crossed paths with straggling groups several times, but nobody was in the mood to start a fight.

After riding across the western plains, the scout finally found traces of carts that...

Update Notes 6 August 🍹⛱️🌴

Two things to note.

1. Patreon-wide problems have affected all its users, myself included. Since last week there are many patrons who disappear without traces, no cancel, no nothing, just vanish (which explained why the numbers keep going down). 😨

This happened because Patreon for some reason decided to move their bank to Ireland. It makes many banks to flag funds transfer to Patreon as fraudulent, etc.

You can read more about this: 2023-07-26 11:05:01 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 62 The Blunt Stick

The Encampment

The camp for the six-thousand was swallowed by thick black smoke. Fire encroached from the southern side, growing stronger by the minute. Suddenly, thirty-four horsemen appeared. They had crossed a small stream, wetting their horses and attire in an effort to shield themselves from the heat.

Many donned wet scarves to protect their nostrils and mouths as they navigated the path of blackened, burnt grass. Despite the surrounding sea of fire and smoke, they were kept ...

Slight Extra🌴🌺 for Chapter 41

Sometimes I'm too focused on 'show, don't tell,' but it can be frustrating. So, I consulted my draft and added several bits of extra to improve the scene. 😅

This particular scene takes place after Lansius got into an unsatisfying chat with Audrey, and before he rides into the forest and meets Felis. I hope this extra is able to shed some light on what Audrey is doing behind Lansius' back.

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“Cecile, ensure our staff treats the messenger well. I’l...