Declaring war and following through with it are two different things. While Ashton was hell-bent on fighting the Morgans and making them pay for whatever they had done to countless people, he did not have enough soldiers to face off against more than ten thousand soldiers that the Morgans had under their command.
That was only taking into consideration their own forces. Nevertheless, they were also going to call in favours from other barons which could increase the strength of their forces by up to forty to fifty thousand soldiers.
But that was only a part of his problems. He would need more rations, weapons, armours everything that an army would need to fight for an uncertain amount of time. However, he didn't have any of it.
Whatever little food he had, already had the names of the citizens written on it, and despite how much he needed the food for his soldiers, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Honestly, he felt annoyed that the werewolves he had sworn to kill, were now being viewed as... people by him.
"I can't even ask Jonathan for help, considering what Peter informed me regarding the 'proof'. he is more likely to stay neutral because of Mera. Which sucks big time." Ashton sighed in defeat, "At least the soldiers are readily helping around the city so it took some of the burdens off the shoulders of my warriors."
Although the soldiers he had enslaved were a bit hesitant to help the 'enemy' at first, once they realised Ashton was going to treat them just like he was treating the rest of his people, most of them readily decided to help him out. Thanks to that, Livan was slowly but surely making its way back to its former glory.
However, it wasn't all sunshine there. While the people of Livan were happy about their current situation, none of them wanted a war to break out at their doorstep. They had suffered too much already, but if their lord wanted them to fight, they'll do so without any questions.
But they weren't the only ones who didn't want a war. Sheera had been surprisingly vocal about Ashton's decision and with her were the rest of the soldiers. After all, in their eyes, Ashton was still a child who had a lot to learn in front of him. As a result, they respected Sheera's opinions more than his.
The only ones who had been in his complete support were Irina, Verina, Virgil and the rest of his squad. They were the only ones who knew about his strength and capabilities first-hand and trusted him with their lives, as most of them were in one way or another indebted to him. While in the sister's case, he was someone important to them.
Irina and Verina even offered their troops to fight alongside him and they were sure Alucard wouldn't refuse either. However, Ashton had to decline their generous offer.
Even if Alucard himself was to come there, he would have to come through Deja and if Jonathan was compromised, then it was unlikely he would allow a passage to them.
That being said, seven of them would not have been able to win a war by themselves. Thus Ashton decided to send Peter off with a different set of instructions. Rather than sending an open threat to the Morgans, Ashton decided to extend an olive branch toward them.
In exchange for their soldiers, Ashton wanted money. He couldn't directly ask them for resources as it would let them know that he was not prepared for an all-out war and hence they would have a crucial edge over him. It was something Ashton couldn't afford them to have thus he took the peaceful route.
It was only a temporary arrangement while he gathered resources and established his territory. Ashton's main goal was to establish a workshop along with Baiter using the money he would get from Morgans.
Once that was accomplished he could slowly establish Livan as a commerce centre with Baiter's weapons and pieces of equipment being the centre of attraction.
Ashton had already garnered the attention of both werewolves and vampires with baiter's weapons. Now all he had to do was to claim the potential customers and he wouldn't have to worry about getting the resources he required in order to take on Morgans, Gruntas and Mera.
But it was a long term goal and for now, he needed something to keep those bastards away from him and his city.
[Aren't you forgetting something?]
"What? Do I have a quest or something?"
[No, but you're forgetting about something crucial. You do have an army.]
"I doubt Sven and Celeste can be counted as an army..."
[Hm... maybe I should check whether those intelligence points are working or not.]
"... what do you want anyways?"
[I want you to help realise your true potential! That way, you'll be stronger and I wouldn't have to worry about dying because of a certified moron.]
Ashton decided it was best to listen to what this bastard had to say. Despite having their differences, Ashton knew he could trust him more than anyone else. Having their lifelines linked wasn't the worst thing that could happen to him.
"Maybe it would be better if you spoon-feed me the answer for once rather than play 'riddle me this'."
[Honestly... if I had arms, I would have smacked some sense in you. How did you forget about Wraith Wolves?]
"What about them?"
[Honestly, do you even read things written within your status plate? You should do it one of these days, it's really helpful and it saves me from wanting to die.]
Ashton did what Astaroth asked of him. He opened the tab but couldn't see anything different. All he could see was the information about his stats, skills, and titles.
"Hm... I can't see anything different."
[Click on the titles and you'll know.]
"Wait, what is this?"
[The permit of your authority over Wraith Wolves dungeon and Eastern Palace dumbass!]