"Please state your condition, Lord Count."
Very formally Mónica asked what condition André proposed.
"My condition is very simple, Miss Mónica: I want you to join the army of the County of Solomon."
André threw it out just like that, and Raúl, who was behind him, said nothing to oppose it; he only limited himself to observing Mónica waiting for her answer.
Mónica was surprised; the disbelief on her face was evident.
She looked directly at André to see if she could capture something from it.
That a woman had joined the army—no case was remembered in the Kingdom of Antares.
She had heard of the fame of Alexia, the general of the Liberty Empire, and had always wanted to be like her.
She had studied military tactics compiled from books from all over the world with the hope of one day demonstrating her worth.
She never imagined that it would be her grandfather's enemy who would give her the opportunity.
"Are you speaking seriously, Lord Count? If this is a joke I will hate you for the rest of my life."
Mónica looked at André waiting for his confirmation; nervousness, anticipation, and even a little fear for the answer André would give her could be seen.
"Very seriously, Mónica. You only have to nod and you will be officially enlisted in the ranks of the Solomon army."
André confirmed his words, causing Mónica's face to shine with joy.
"I am willing, my lord. Even if it is in the post of private soldier I am willing to join your army."
Very excited, Mónica gave her answer to André's proposal.
"You need not worry; your position in the army will not be so low.
I will grant you the rank of colonel of the army, but you will have to recruit your subordinates yourself.
I will take charge of providing you with budget, equipment, and method of training and instruction."
Mónica was happy upon hearing these words.
"I do not know how many soldiers I have to recruit, my lord."
"For now it will be 5,000. We will talk about it in the future.
Then let us proceed with our current plans: proceed immediately with the surrender and liberate the hostages."
Then Mónica lost her enthusiasm again upon remembering why they were seated there, even more so when her grandfather had just died.
"Very well, give me time to inform my people.
After a while we will open the city gates and surrender officially.
Then I withdraw; I have work to do."
Mónica accepted André's arrangement at once and, without further delay, returned to London City to carry out the preparations.
Watching her departure, André could not help but sigh and then say:
"For a girl of barely 20 years she has a strength and a mental maturity worthy of admiration.
The weight she is carrying on top of her right now is very heavy and yet she behaves with full calm in the face of this adversity."
"I believe she resembles you a great deal, my lord, both in the circumstances and in her behavior."
"Very well, let us return to our camp and wait for news from London City."
André decisively changed the subject and headed to his own camp.
One hour later the gates of London City were opened and white flags were raised on the towers of the wall.
André directed his army into London City, where he was received by Mónica and some important persons of the city.
Among them was General Armond, who lowered his head with extreme shame.
"We give welcome to Lord Count André Solomon, legitimate heir of the previous County of Blair.
We present our respect to the new lord."
Mónica and the group of nobles who gave him welcome bowed to demonstrate their loyalty toward André.
"Good, I have seen your loyalty, but keep in mind that none of your families is free of guilt.
In the following days an audit will be carried out to account for your properties, of which half will be taken from you as war damages.
Very well, that is all for now. General Armond, we need to speak in private."
André did not give them opportunity for reply and headed toward the center of the city, followed by General Armond and the high commands of his army.
In a small hall in the mansion of the Duke of Blair, seated on a fine armchair, André was looking at General Armond, who was kneeling in front of him.
Without waiting for André to speak, the general knelt and confessed his guilt.
"I am sorry, my lord, for my incompetence. I have ruined your plans.
I have no excuses for something like this; I was simply deceived by the enemy and was sadly defeated."
André's posture became straight while he thought of the words he would say next.
"I have no plans to blame you, since it is your first error since you assumed the post.
But that made me think of something very important: General Armond, I believe you do not have the wood for the army."
"My lord, please do not remove me from the army.
For what I most want, I ask you for an opportunity.
If you throw me out of the army I will have nothing to do, then my family will suffer the consequences.
I promise you that I will not commit an error of this kind again; I will fulfill all your orders to the letter."
The general turned pale when he heard André's words.
Then he put his forehead on the floor and began to beg in a loud voice.
"Who said that I am throwing you out?
It is simply a reorganization; you should have let me finish speaking."
André was angry at the general's interruption and spoke to him harshly.
"I am sorry, my lord, for my incompetence. I will listen attentively to what you have to say."
The general was content as long as they did not throw him out, so he fell silent and waited for the words André would say.
"I said that you were not suitable for the army, so I will remove you from the post and put you in charge of the new unit that is being formed.
From now on you will no longer be the general of the Solomon army.
Rejoice; you will be promoted to commander-general of the police of the County of Solomon."
André made a pause and continued speaking.
"From now on you will be in charge of the public security of my entire territory.
Your mission will be to enforce the law in the entire county.
I hope you do not disappoint me this time."
"Rest assured, my lord, I will strive to the maximum to fulfill my duty."
General Armond was not foolish, so he realized the importance of the post he had just received.
It could be said that now he was not under Raúl, considering himself in equal position to the latter.
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