Heart of the Castle

Chapter 446 Arguing, Shaking, Determining
"Your Excellency, I have a different opinion." Just as Earl Ansair finished speaking, a figure stood up from the other side of the table. This noble lord was a thin and thin man in his 50s. The old man is completely bald on the top of his head, and the thick full body armor he wears is a bit too wide, so that the image is somewhat similar to the funny turtle shell badge on his chest.

Earl Ansair's eyes moved. He knew that his authority had been greatly reduced due to the tragic loss of Queensland City this time, but he did not expect that it would be this Lord Turtle Shell who is famous for being able to shrink his head when he can. Stand up against it. "Sir Todd, please tell me." He crossed his fingers in front of his chin and replied calmly.

"Your Excellency the Sheriff, Your Excellency the Archbishop, and all your lords." Lord Turtle Shell glanced at everyone with his small round eyes, and it could be seen that he was trying hard to create a solemn atmosphere, but due to the innate inadequacy of his image, that funny look The appearance instead caused a few low sneers. "First of all, we must admit that we have lost, and we have lost terribly!" He warned in the most serious tone possible, "The despicable trap of the dead has caused us to lose more than half of our troops, and now there are less than two people in the city who can fight. Qian, this amount of strength is not enough to guard the city walls of Queensland. Those demons will soon find the loopholes in our defense, and then attack the city swaggeringly. At that time, who will stop them?"

"Sir Todd, thank you for pointing out the well-known situation." Archbishop Bovais frowned and said to him, "Bless Tomica, we don't need to repeat the seriousness of the situation now, but we need a solution to the current predicament .”

"There is only one way, and that is to break through immediately!" Sir Todd bent his body to the table and said in a low voice, "The demon army just surrounded this city an hour or two ago. I have observed that their camp defense is not solid. It is not difficult to break through with the impact of cavalry."

"But what should we do after the breakthrough? There are tens of thousands of demons. With the high walls of Queensland City, we can still resist them. If we go out to fight in the city, with the only [-] troops remaining in the northern coalition forces, Can you rush through an army of tens of thousands of demons?" Sir Ozzie retorted with the fiery red monster bird crest painted on his chest.

"My lords, when it comes to how to charge forward, the Toud family may not be a big deal, but when it comes to building a solid city defense, I am afraid that apart from the Great Ice Wall of Viscount Leviston of the Dawn of the North, the Toud family must be counted." Twin Rock Castle." Sir Todd bowed to the Griffon Lord sitting next to Earl Ansair, and then continued to analyze, "So I have a say in how to defend the city and how to break through. Queensland City occupies a vast area. At least [-] defenders are needed on the city wall to ensure safety, but this also brings difficulties to the troops besieging the city. Although there are tens of thousands of demon troops, they are mainly concentrated at the four gates of Queensland City. Looks pretty weak."

"Your statement really brought us a new direction of thinking, Lord Toud." Under the white reindeer banner, Lord Pip knocked on the table with the dagger he was playing with, with a sneer on his face covered with fine scars. expression. "It seems that we should put on our wings and fly over the city wall, so that we can find the weak point in the encirclement of the demon army."

Sir Todd was at a loss for words immediately, and then sat down angrily amidst the laughter.

"One defeat does not determine the outcome of a war. We still have the strength to fight again." Baron Frodo, with bloody bandages wrapped around his hands and shoulders, said forcefully, "Even if we succeed in breaking through, the Northern Territory What is the meaning of the blood shed by the sacrificed soldiers when the coalition forces have suffered such heavy losses and the results of the battle will be destroyed in one day?"

"I agree with Lord Frodo." Sir Ozzie stood up and spoke again. "If we abandon Queensland City, the capital of the kingdom that we have finally recovered, what will happen to us defeated troops when His Majesty the King returns triumphantly." end?"

"No matter how you say it, the Toud family will never stay in this place of death!" Sir Toud announced loudly not to be outdone.

"I won't stay either, absolutely not!" Another jazz stood up and agreed.

"Coward! This is an act of treachery!" Lord Frodo's roar shook the winter air.

"Abandoning Queensland will surely incur the wrath of the Dragon King." Sir Ozzie's tone was a little milder, "I remind my lords to proceed with caution."

An angry red spread on Sir Todd's bald head. The old man retorted in a cold tone, "I long to see the snow in the north again. As for the anger of the Dragon King, we will have to go back with our lives." Time to worry about it.”

Sir Todd's opinion aroused more people's approval and disapproval. The venue became noisy. Increase your persuasiveness.

"The king's army in the middle road may not be going smoothly." Lord Pip stabbed his dagger on the table. "Before this, we had no idea that the fall of the four southern counties was actually related to the deceased. Of course, now the county guard is entrusted Thanks to the hasty decision, all the mysteries have been solved."

This implied irony made all the lords in the north focus their attention on Earl Ansair. Although they still had deep fear in their expressions, after all, the reputation of the sword dancer was still there, and the Nine Pillar family of the Kingdom One's majesty is not something that these ordinary lords can offend, but what leaks from his expression is a strong taste of distrust and doubt.

This is a feeling that Earl Ansair has never experienced before. Although he has realized something, his heart is still full of anger, resentment and disappointment. These intense emotions can't even be suppressed from his eyes. , forming a sharp gaze that one dare not look at.Whether it was a suggestion to break out of the siege or a request to stick to it, everyone who was stared at by him felt a tremor, and the noise in the venue gradually subsided, replaced by silence.

"My lords, none of us expected the deceased to appear here, so the responsibility for emergency rescue of Queensland City should not be borne by a certain person." Li Wei's voice broke the silence. This is when the military meeting started. The first time they spoke, they thought that most of the northern lords would choose to evacuate, but the number of people who asked to stick to it exceeded their previous estimates, which surprised and disturbed the young griffin lord. "Queensland City is an important town in the southern part of the kingdom, and it is also near our marching route. After receiving the call for help, we have no reason not to come here." He carefully chose a more neutral position and said.

"Lord Griffin, so you mean that we should stand firm in Queensland City?" Lord Piper pulled the dagger from the table, let it lie on the table and turned it in circles. "Then how long can we resist? One week, two weeks... or one day?" A sarcastic smile hangs on his face like a mask that cannot be peeled off.

"On the contrary, my proposal is to break out of the siege as soon as possible." Li Wei replied with a serious expression, "The coalition forces have suffered heavy losses in the trap of accusing the dead, and now we don't have the necessary material reserves to hold on, such as food, clean water, and horses. Forage, everything is lacking. The soldiers can endure hunger for a while, but the horses have no such possibility. In less than two days, we may need to break through the demon camp on foot."

"Lord Griffon is right, the dawn of the north has pointed out the way for us!" Sir Todd led the way and shouted, but there were very few responders.More people chose the same position as Lord Piper. They neither expressed approval nor disapproval, but exchanged anxious glances with each other, or frowned and looked at the map in front of them.

Baron Frodo jumped up and stared at Levi viciously, as if looking at an enemy, "Viscount Levi, your suggestion has failed the trust of His Majesty the King. If it is pursued, you will be able to bear the responsibility of the Northern Allied Forces." Is it the responsibility of Queensland City to gain and lose after suffering heavy losses?"

There was no fear on Li Wei's face, and he looked back at him with piercing eyes, "Perhaps my suggestion has been neglected, but I know what is futile. Beijing County responded to His Majesty's edict to go out and go out to achieve two goals." He stretched out two fingers, "First of all, the main purpose is to coordinate the offensive of Wang Jun's middle lane and attract the attention of the enemy. We have accomplished this purpose very well, even a little too perfect. We have blocked an attack in Wang Jun's middle lane. A huge disaster. If the trap for the dead is aimed at the middle of the king's army, now we should have received an urgent recall order from His Majesty the king!"

Archbishop Bovais nodded and said, "That's right, the trap of natural disasters and plagues is vicious enough that even Cardinal Enoch Sebasta, a pious man from the Glorious Cathedral, is unable to crack it."

"The second purpose is relatively secondary—to liberate the territory that the kingdom fell into the hands of the demon army. This purpose can no longer be achieved due to the heavy casualties of the northern coalition forces." Li Wei said in a heavy tone, "We Mourning for those who died in Queensland City, but we have to think about those who are still alive. Breaking through the siege and fighting with the whole army is the best option I can think of so far."

"If we give up everything here, I'm afraid we'll never have a chance to take it back with our own strength!" Baron Frodo drew a big circle around with his hands, "All the power that the Northern County can mobilize has been concentrated in In our hands, how can we be willing to give in without a final fight? Lord Viscount Li Wei, isn’t your achievement also achieved by fighting with a knife and a sword? Why have you become cowardly here? Fearless , Isn’t this the teaching of the knight’s motto?”

"The lion's retreat is not cowardice, but to pounce forward again. And even if we all die here, can this city be kept?" Li Wei looked at the map thoughtfully, representing the northern coalition forces. The arrow has penetrated deep into the hinterland of the four southern counties. "Our attack went too smoothly. Now it seems that the enemy is luring us to go deep here." The young griffin lord wryly smiled and pulled the knight's sword out of its sheath. , pointing to a corner of the map.

Lord Frodo's voice choked, but he retorted loudly at once, "The gods are on our side, and if the gods are good, we shall not be defeated."

"The blessing of the Thunderer will only be given to those who are ready, and I think the same is true for other gods." Archbishop Bovawa solemnly warned. "If we pin all our hopes on the blessing of the gods, then the gods will not grant us divine grace."

So silence once again enveloped the venue, only the whistling of the night wind and the crackling of burning torches could be heard.Although Baron Frodo stopped talking, he still frowned, looking aggrieved, whether it was because of the pain in the wound or other reasons; Sir Ozzie looked at Lord Piper thoughtfully, but the latter did not look up, He just kept turning the dagger around, his mouth was like an oyster with a tightly closed shell; Sir Todd, who first proposed to break out, whispered to the two noble lords beside him, and his eyes drifted to Levi from time to time. Over there, however, as soon as he made eye contact with the young Griffon Lord, he immediately flinched back.

In this embarrassing silence, every lord who participated in the military council was thinking hard about the way ahead.Although most of them are not proficient in tactics and strategy, the contrast between the northern coalition army and the demon army is so disparate, just like a group of sheep facing the wolves all over the mountains and plains, and a small boat facing the roar of the ocean.Under such an extremely unfavorable situation, even experienced and strong-willed knights will inevitably feel uneasy. Not only these lords, but also not only in this venue, but also in every corner of Queensland City. There was an atmosphere of turmoil, and many coalition soldiers, three to five, or more than a dozen people gathered together, whispering to each other in low voices.And those knights who should have strictly enforced discipline to stop these bad signs behaved like soldiers, and even appeared a little more surreptitious.

Two men wearing hooded cloaks came to Sir Raymond Dunn's residence in the dark. The hoods were drooped to block their faces, and the iron boots and sword hilts exposed from the cloaks revealed the identity of the two men as knights. .As a matter of course, they were blocked by Sir Tang En's soldiers. The soldiers asked them to take off their hoods to identify themselves, but the leader refused in a low voice, and just said that the soldiers should report.

The soldiers originally thought that Sir Tang En would angrily reject the two of them, but to their great surprise, Sir Tang En, who had been in a bad mood since he was injured, agreed to meet the two of them in his bedroom. Uninvited guests, and let all the guard knights leave the room.

Sir Tang En, who excused that he was seriously wounded and did not attend the military meeting, looked fine. He was even wearing a chain mail shirt, spiked iron gloves, a sheet metal breastplate, a helmet and a heavy weapon. The sword rests on the table within reach.Seeing that the guarding knights had left, he coughed lightly and glanced at the drooping hoods of the two men.

"Take off the rot, there is no one else here, Sir Kebal, and you, Lord Seedorf."

The two looked at each other, then took off their hoods, revealing the faces of Sir Anjou Kebal and the Lord of Long Hill Castle Seedorf. Ready to fight.Sir Kebal, with a blue face and a beard, collected himself and spoke slowly. "Sir Tang En, it seems that your injury is not as serious as the rumors say."

Sir Tang En raised his arm, "The injury is not serious? It should be said that the priest's level of healing magic is very high." He muttered and sat back at the table, "Please sit down, two, now the county Isn’t Master Shou holding a military meeting? Why do you two have the time to come to me?”

Sir Kebal hesitated for a moment. Sir Tang En's attitude made him feel a little uncertain, but when he thought of his purpose of coming, the expression on his face suddenly became stiff. "We are here this time to discuss an important matter with you, Sir Tang En."

"Important matter?" Sir Tang En folded his hands in front of his chest and leaned his body towards the back of the chair. "Is there anything more important than the military meeting now?"

"Of course there are, such as the choices we all have to make. There are only two roads before us now, one is to break through and leave this city that is bound to be destroyed!" Sir Kebal said bluntly.

"However, doing so is tantamount to a complete betrayal of the Kingdom of Arthur and the Northern Allied Forces." Sir Tang En replied in a cold tone.

This answer made Sir Kebal's expression stiff, and his companion, Lord Seedorf, even put his hand on the hilt of the sword under the cloak. "Or will you choose another way, stay here like a loyal servant, until the demon army floods the position you guard like a tide, tearing you and your knights to pieces?" Sir Kebal tried to describe that In a tragic scene, the body leaned towards Sir Tang En.

"Damn the gods! If you want to be tough, you must die!" Sir Tang En cursed through gritted teeth, and at the same time grabbed the epee on the table and held it in front of him. "No, of course I will not die with those people. I have done enough for Arthur's kingdom!"

"So you agree with us?" Sir Kebal's tensed face relaxed, and his fingers were released from the hidden dagger at the same time.If he was sure, he and Seedorf would not be willing to discuss it with others, but with only a hundred light cavalry under their combined command, it would be a daydream to break through the demon army's obstruction.

Sir Tang En pondered for a while, and the expression on his face gradually turned into a sinister smile, "I was thinking about breaking through, but I was not sure, and it would be different with your manpower... Well, I agree with you guys. Let's act together." He lowered his voice and said, "But the first thing we need to do is to kill Lord Ansair, the Sheriff..."

Sir Kebal and Lord Seedorf were obviously taken aback. They looked at each other, and then the former said hesitantly, "Sir Dunn, did we hear you right? You actually said you wanted to kill the sword dancer? He is a dignified man. Earl with a sword! With just the three of us and a dozen or so knights under our command, can we kill Earl Ansair who possesses the peak fighting spirit?"

"Of course we can't deal with it clearly, but I have this." Sir Tang En took out a crystal vial from his side, and showed the crystal clear colorless liquid inside to the two of them. "This thing is called Xiaoyue Condensation, which can only be made by the children of the forest who live in the depths of the Moon Whispering Forest. It is colorless and tasteless, as sweet as water, and when it dissolves the fighting spirit, it does not leave a trace..."

"God of War Balud!" Lord Seedorf exclaimed in surprise, "You managed to get this thing? Didn't this thing become extinct with the children of the forest?"

"There is someone above me." Sir Tang En smiled secretly, and stuffed the crystal bottle back into his arms, "Earl Ansair has a servant who is my man, as long as you give this to the sheriff, it will be so dignified. The sword dancer here is nothing more than a troublesome quasi-knight."

"Your plan sounds very meticulous, but doing so is still very risky." Sir Kebal commented, "The Earl of Ansair lives in the city guard garrison, with a large number of people, and as a command center, people often come and go. If you encounter someone else when you assassinate him, it may cause a lot of trouble... Why do we have to kill Earl Ansair? Isn't it good to just leave here?"

"Do you think the sword dancer will let us deserters go? Or do you think he will die under the siege of the demon army?" Sir Tang En sneered and spat to the side, "The Earl with the sword died in the chaos ? It's not a good habit to pin your hopes on the occurrence of such a small probability event."

"Then why don't we just kill Levi Ston too?" Lord Seedorf showed a ferocious smile, "His mount is really not bad, with that black horse, we have a chance to break out of the encirclement." But much bigger."

"Lord Seedorf, I'm warning you, don't think about making trouble!" Sir Dunn suddenly became furious, and punched the table with a fist, sending sawdust flying, almost knocking off his armor and helmet. "The Griffin Lord himself is troublesome enough, and I can't see through the two people around him at all. One of them is probably a knight who is not inferior to the sword dancer, and the other is a powerful magician. I have never seen it. Even a magister can hardly use dispelling magic that covers such a large area! We just need to make the northern coalition army leaderless, and their chaos can just serve us as the rear guard and delay the devil's pursuit, isn't it?"

Sir Kebal and Lord Seedorf nodded again and again. Now they are convinced by Sir Tang En's plan. It is obvious that this Sir's idea is much more meticulous than their original plan.

"So when do we start?" Lord Seedorf asked.

"In a few more hours, prepare to break through before dawn, and then wait for me to issue an order after I succeed-three short horn sounds, twice in a row. After the two times, you must enter the city guard's garrison, try your best Create chaos, and then fight out with my men. The guards at the east gate have already arranged for my men, they will open the gate for us, and then rush out from the weakest part of the demon camp." Sir Tang En expressed his expression He exhorted them with the same tone of coldness, "...Also, our behavior has actually constituted a betrayal of the kingdom. If any of your knights or soldiers are more brain-dead, they must be shut up forever. ,Understand?"

(End of this chapter)