The sound of a brass horn came from afar, breaking the midday tranquility, as if foreshadowing something. The birds in the courtyard also stopped chirping, and for a moment, the castle hall seemed solemn and沉闷.
Duke Willien Berg knew the moment of决战had arrived.
He shifted his gaze from the portrait of His Majesty Tifieko, turning to look at a exquisite suit of full body armor – the armor inherited from his grandfather, which he had repaired and polished many times. Each piece of armor was浸入了grease, almost equivalent to another layer of skin.
On the right arm armor was engraved a line of small characters, which was the family's advice: "Loyalty, do not forget."
He wore this armor when he captured the rebellious old duke alive in the midst of the 혼란, and was appointed by His Majesty as the new guardian of the Eastern Border.
Although Tifieko had already陨落, the duty of guarding would not be broken because of this.
He would never betray this honor.
“Your Grace, the Fourth Prince’s troops are approaching Goldenspike City. No large firearms were found in the队伍,” an subordinate walked into the hall and reported to him.
“Very good,” Willien nodded. “Notify the others to get into position. I’ll be there shortly.”
“Yes, sir!”
Then he took off his coat, walked to the armor, and said to his chief knight, Gerlina, “Armor me.”
“Yes,” the woman rolled up her sleeves and began to undress him. Those rough hands, covered with calluses, were now like soft water, gently removing his coat and lining. It was hard to imagine that in battle, Gerlina also used these hands to grip a long spear, piercing through enemies, armor and shield together.
Whenever he saw it, this scene intoxicated him.
“Do you... regret it?”
“Of course not, sir,” Gerlina replied calmly. “The day you decided to appoint a woman as your chief knight, I decided to follow you forever. No matter what happens, I will fulfill my responsibility.”
“But this time the enemy is stronger than ever. If possible –” The Duke's words were interrupted by the suddenly tightened belt around his waist.
“Since you know the opponent is strong, why did you reject the Dawn Lord’s alliance? Not only did you not agree, but you also drove the envoy out of Goldenspike City in public. They will definitely blame you for not knowing what’s good for you.”
“Tsk, let’s not talk about whether Gleaming City’s help can withstand the Fourth Prince’s army. Just asking me to provide a harbor for their troops to be stationed permanently is too much.” Willien撇嘴said. “The Eastern Border is territory granted to me by His Majesty. What’s the difference between giving it to Anpein Moa and giving it to Roland Wimbledon? If I really agree to them, it would be betraying His Majesty’s trust.”
“Then my answer is the same,” Gerlina said without hesitation. “Loyalty is not a quality unique to the Berg family, sir. Please don’t mention those words again, otherwise it will be no different from an insult to me.”
Willien was silent for a long time before he said, “It’s a pity that most nobles have forgotten this... I understand. You come with me. Although the opponent is strong, I won’t let them take Goldenspike City easily – I have been waiting for this 결战for a long time.”
“Yes, sir.” The female knight轻笑起来.
“Bell!” he shouted the shuji officer's name. “Come here!”
A bald middle-aged man quickly walked in from outside the hall. “Sir, what are your orders?”
“Remember this for me: Roland Wimbledon, the Slayer King’s minions, after a night of rest, officially launched an attack on Goldenspike City today. Willien Berg, the Guardian of the Eastern Border and Duke of Goldenspike, in the name of the late king, is determined to stop the enemy’s advance here. His chief knight, Gerlina Wayne, is also accompanying him, and her courage and loyalty are beyond doubt – may the gods bless them.” Willien paused. “Of course... if you think this record is a bit subjective, you don’t have to write the last sentence.”
Bell nodded and quickly recorded the lord's statement in his notebook with a charcoal pencil. “I think it’s okay to add it, sir. There is no absolutely objective record in this world. I am the shuji officer of Goldenspike City, and it's not strange to have a little bias, or rather,
this is part of objectivity.”
“Then leave it in, but no matter what the outcome is later, you must record it truthfully, understand?” Willien stressed. “It is your mission to completely transmit the cause and course of this event.”
“Please rest assured, sir,” the shuji officer bowed. “I will definitely make the world remember this history.”
Willien stopped talking, picked up the steel sword hanging on the wall, and walked out of the castle without looking back.
……
The two climbed onto the city wall watchtower. The bonfire had already been lit, and grease was bubbling in the pot, emitting a pungent smell. The soldiers were busy stacking rolling stones and logs on the battlements.
Based on the experience of the war in the capital, Roland’s most threatening siege weapon was a snow powder weapon called artillery, which had a range far exceeding catapults. Until the fall of the city, His Majesty had not been able to copy similar products. On the day the capital was breached, Tifieko entrusted the snow powder formula, weapon principles, and manufacturing methods to Willien, and his purpose was self-evident.
After taking over, the Duke invested a considerable amount of energy and money, and also found some xiànzhi methods. For example, the artillery itself was very heavy and needed to rely on flat terrain to exert its power. In addition, its erection process was very slow and needed to rely on the protection of firearms. In other words, it was more suitable for defense than offense.
In order to welcome this war that would come sooner or later, Willien had made full preparations. In addition to widening the city walls and adding barbs, he also sent people to dig up all the roads in the suburbs and fill the farmland with river water to turn it into swamps. Many hidden stakes were also set up in the Three Bays River, making it difficult for inland river ships above the size of single-masted ships to pass. Two years of preparation had completely changed the surrounding environment. Now, not to mention vehicles and horses, even walking with heavy objects was quite difficult.
Although the price was quite heavy – the断导致 of the roads led to the disappearance of the prosperity of the commercial city, and the reduction of farmland area led to a sharp decline in population, the benefits were also obvious. At least in the slowly approaching队伍, he did not see a single artillery piece.
Obviously, the other party had also realized that without first repairing a road, it would be almost impossible to drag the artillery to the front of the city wall.
What followed would undoubtedly be a hard battle.
The enemy's firearms had a very fast rate of fire, but there was no cover under the city, and with the barbed wire on the city wall, it would not be easy to climb up. On the contrary, he had four catapults and two large cannons set up in the city, especially the latter, which could attack enemy troops within a thousand paces. With this ebb and flow, the outcome was still unknown.
“They are coming,” Gerlina reminded.
Following her voice, a batch of soldiers in brown cloth robes stepped out of the队伍and moved towards the city gate – they were not fast, but their steps were particularly firm. Soon, this group of people lost the整性of the队伍due to the muddy ground, scattered in groups of three or five, like old farmers耕种in the field. In addition to the gray-black long guns on their backs, there were also barrel-shaped objects as thick as thighs, but judging from their weight, they were definitely not a type of artillery.
Willien estimated the distance, raised a red flag, and waved it down.
“Boulder cannons, fire!”