"Please spare us!"
"We are innocent!"
"We swear allegiance to Fenris!"
The vassals of Marquis Rodrick's household, pale with terror as the army approached, fell to their knees.
They had never imagined their castle could be captured. They were confident that the overwhelming difference in numbers would guarantee their victory in this war.
Yet, their castle had been seized in the blink of an eye, and the invaders were now upon them. They hadn't even had a chance to escape.
Ghislain looked at them with a casual demeanor and said, "Take them away."
With that single command, all the vassals, who had been responsible for Rodrick's affairs, were dragged away.
"Argh! The Marquis will never forgive you!"
The vassals spat curses as they were hauled off, but Ghislain was unfazed.
After all, Marquis Rodrick was already moving to kill him.
With Linderstein under his control, the entire administration of the Marquis territory was paralyzed. That meant the supplies heading to Rodrick's army were now cut off.
Studying a map, Ghislain muttered, "Hungry soldiers can't fight properly."
The surrounding territories had already been plundered by Ghislain and his raiders. The few regions that still had resources had sent most of their supplies to Rodrick's forces.
Now, the only provisions left for Rodrick's army were what they had brought at the start of their campaign.
While they likely carried a significant amount given the size of the army, without resupply, they would find it increasingly difficult to sustain themselves as time went on.
After dealing with the Marquis's heirs and vassals, a knight approached Ghislain and reported, "The enemy has arrived."
"Good. It's time to give them a taste of shock and awe."
Ghislain smirked and climbed the castle walls. Sure enough, an army of 40,000 had set up camp in front of the fortress.
"Wow, they really brought a lot of men."
It was even more than the Desmond army he had fought before.
Of course, Fenris had grown much stronger since then, but confronting such a large force head-on would still be dangerous—and unnecessary.
"Everyone, prepare."
At Ghislain's command, the knights and soldiers swiftly gathered around the 100 medium-sized catapults.
Meanwhile, the sight of Linderstein, now under Fenris's control, left the Rodrick soldiers dumbfounded.
"Our castle was captured? And so quickly?"
"We were told they didn't have any siege weapons!"
They had heard that the Fenris army was entirely cavalry, so they had anticipated their speed.
But no one had imagined that cavalry could move so quickly while hauling siege weapons.
The commander of Rodrick's 2nd Corps, Count Glasgow, shouted in a mix of anger, frustration, and disbelief, "What in the world happened for them to lose the castle so quickly? You idiots!"
With 40,000 men, their progress had been slow, but Count Glasgow hadn't been worried. After all, cavalry alone shouldn't have been able to capture a castle like Linderstein.
Yet, before they could even arrive, the castle had fallen to Fenris. It was incomprehensible.
Though he raged and cursed, his strategists had no answers.
They were all thinking the same thing.
After managing to calm himself, Count Glasgow examined the fortress.
"Those things set up on the walls… Are those catapults?"
There were 100 massive contraptions lined up on the walls.
Linderstein's walls were vast and wide, leaving plenty of room for siege weapons. But who would go to such trouble in the middle of a war?
Moreover, the structures looked strange, as if only their skeletal framework had been assembled. They resembled catapults, but their exact nature was unclear.
"Judging by the damage, they must have used siege weapons…"
Parts of the walls were shattered, with rubble piled up in some areas.
If Count Fenris, a Master, had led his knights into the castle and initiated chaos, it would have been difficult for the defenders to hold out.
It was baffling how they had breached those walls, though.
"I've never heard of siege weapons like those. Is this some sort of trick to confuse us?"
The structures were suspicious, but the idea that cavalry could move so quickly while carrying siege weapons was hard to believe.
There had to be some kind of deception involved. Surely, those strange machines on the walls weren't real catapults but a ploy to keep them cautious and hesitant.
A strategist approached Count Glasgow and asked, "We don't have any siege weapons. What should we do?"
The siege weapons had been taken by the 1st Corps to capture Fenris.
The 2nd Corps was originally supposed to head near the capital, where they expected to secure food and reinforcements for their battle against the Duchy.
Count Glasgow stroked his beard and said, "We'll figure out what happened once we retake the castle. We won't need siege weapons for that."
With an army of 40,000, they could overwhelm most territories in an instant.
Normally, capturing Linderstein without siege weapons would have been impossible, but the walls were already breached in several places.
The rubble was haphazardly patched up, but it was still low enough for soldiers to climb over.
"Focus our efforts on the breached sections. The enemy has only 10,000 troops. A castle with holes in it isn't a proper castle."
Once their entire army was inside the castle, they could retake it in no time.
Of course, it wouldn't be easy. Even with breaches, the walls hadn't completely disappeared.
"The Fenris forces will focus on defending the breached sections. That's where the fiercest fighting will take place. Deploy our troops in waves to break through."
With the enemy forced to concentrate their forces on narrow gaps, they couldn't take full advantage of their numbers. But by attacking in shifts, the larger army would eventually exhaust the smaller one.
"Kill as many of the enemy as possible. Dismount the cavalry and send them in as infantry. We don't have much time, so accept the casualties. Securing the supply lines takes priority."
With such a large army, Rodrick's forces were consuming provisions at an alarming rate. They only had a few days' worth of food left.
As long as the castle remained under enemy control, their supply lines would remain cut. They had to retake Linderstein as quickly as possible.
A strategist cautiously asked, "Could those things on the walls be new weapons?"
"I've never heard of such weapons before. They're probably trying to buy time by making us second-guess ourselves."
"That seems plausible."
History had plenty of examples of strange contraptions being used to confuse enemies in wartime, especially by forces like Fenris, who needed to stall for time.
Count Glasgow clicked his tongue as he looked at the walls.
"Tch, Count Fenris is a cunning one. But I didn't think he'd capture the castle so quickly. As expected of a Master. This is going to be a headache."
He was curious about how the walls had been breached, but there was no time to investigate. For now, he had no choice but to throw his soldiers into the fight.
This was far from the original plan, and the losses would be significant, but there was no other option.
"Advance the entire army! The enemy is all cavalry! They have no archers, and the walls are breached! We can get in! Retake the fortress as quickly as possible!"
"Hurrah!"
At Count Glasgow's command, the 40,000-strong army surged toward the castle.
Their morale was high, bolstered by the belief that their numbers would overwhelm the enemy.
As the tide of soldiers surged toward the fortress, Ghislain lightly waved his hand.
"Fire."
At his signal, the 100 medium-sized catapults unleashed a barrage of stones.
Boom!
The soldiers charging the castle widened their eyes. These weren't mere decoys resembling catapults—they were real.
Caught off guard, they watched as 100 stones rained down on them.
Boom! Crash! Boom!
"Arghhh!"
"It's catapults! They're real catapults!"
"There are 100 of them!"
Hundreds of soldiers in the vanguard were crushed under the falling stones in an instant.
While this was a small number compared to their total force of 40,000, the problem was that they were completely unprepared for this kind of attack.
The Rodrick soldiers had never faced such a massive barrage from catapults. Stunned, their advance slowed.
Fenris didn't waste the opportunity. Their catapults were remarkably fast at reloading.
Boom!
Before the Rodrick forces could gather their wits, another volley of 100 stones rained down.
Crash! Boom! Boom!
"Arghhh!"
"Don't stop! Keep running!"
"We need to get closer to avoid the attacks!"
Some knights, regaining their composure, urged the soldiers forward. The troops gritted their teeth and pressed on, even as the command structure of the Rodrick forces remained in disarray.
Boom! Crash! Boom!
Countless stones flew through the air. Thousands of Rodrick soldiers fell victim to the relentless barrage from the 100 catapults in mere moments.
Still, with an army of 40,000 advancing simultaneously, even such a massive bombardment couldn't completely halt their progress.
"We've made it! Push forward! If we push hard enough, we can break through!"
Encouraged by shouts from commanders scattered throughout the ranks, the soldiers ran with renewed hope.
Finally, the vanguard reached a range where the catapults could no longer target them. Since the enemy consisted entirely of cavalry, they would need to descend toward the breached sections of the wall to engage.
To the Rodrick forces, this seemed like a better situation. In melee combat, the side with superior numbers would always have the advantage.
However, the Fenris troops remained motionless atop the walls. Ghislain raised his hand and gave a short command.
"Next attack."
Fenris soldiers, clad in full Galbanium armor, pulled something from their belts.
Click! Click! Click!
They unfolded what had been triply compacted into bows. These were Galbanium collapsible bows, crafted with the help of elves and used by Fenris mounted archers.
Drawing arrows from nearby quivers, every Fenris soldier pulled back their strings.
Ghislain's command came shortly after.
"Fire."
Whoosh!
A rain of 10,000 arrows soared toward the advancing Rodrick forces.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"Arghhh!"
"Archers! They're all firing arrows!"
"What the hell! They said they didn't have archers!"
The advancing soldiers screamed as they fell helplessly. Just as they thought they had escaped the catapult bombardment, now they were met with a storm of arrows.
They had been told the enemy had no archers. It was all a lie.
While it wasn't impossible for mounted archers to use bows, 10,000 fully armored archers? Such a force was unheard of, and no one had ever warned of it.
"Damn it! All the intelligence was wrong! Their archery is way too precise!"
Even the knights, as stunned as the soldiers, were at a loss.
These weren't just haphazardly loosed arrows.
The soldiers of Fenris, despite their numbers, precisely calculated distance and direction, focusing their fire into concentrated volleys.
Distrust of their commanders began to grow in the hearts of the Rodrick soldiers.
"They said there weren't any! But they have catapults and archers!"
Distrust of Fenris grew as well.
"Where did they find soldiers like these?"
Their amazement was understandable.
The Fenris Mobile Army had undergone harsh training to master every type of weapon.
They were cavalry, archers, and, when necessary, infantry, shield-bearers, and spearmen.
Clad in full Galbanium armor, they could fight like knights against regular soldiers.
Equipped with siege weapons as well, they had become the elite of the elite, capable of fighting in any situation or environment.
"Lord... Lord Count! We need to issue a retreat order!"
One of Rodrick's staff officers, snapping out of his daze, quickly shouted.
The soldiers were being slaughtered one after another with no preparation or defense. If this continued, the entire army would be annihilated in this battle.
Count Glasgow screamed the order like a man on fire.
"Retreat! Retreat immediately!"
Toot!
The sound of the retreat horn sent soldiers scrambling in a panic. Yet even retreating wasn't easy.
Arrows continued to rain down from the walls without pause.
"Retreat! Fall back quickly!"
Shouts echoed everywhere as the soldiers desperately tried to withdraw. Despite their efforts, countless soldiers continued to fall under the relentless barrage of arrows.
The soldiers farther back had an easier time retreating, but most of those at the front—who had been leading the charge—were killed.
The survivors who managed to get beyond the range of the catapults collapsed, gasping for breath. Many couldn't even recall how they had made it out alive.
Count Glasgow, trembling, asked in a broken voice, "What… what are the casualties?"
The staff officers quickly worked to assess the situation. One of them returned shortly, speaking with difficulty.
"Approximately... 10,000 casualties."
"..."
An army of 10,000 was enough to make anyone a formidable lord. It was a force of enormous significance.
And yet, such a massive number had been lost in a single, brief assault.
Count Fenris, a Master, hadn't even participated. This devastating loss was caused solely by those strange catapults and simple arrow volleys.
"Ugh…"
Count Glasgow clutched his head. What kind of fool would send soldiers charging headfirst into an enemy equipped with siege weapons and archers?
Even if they sent 100,000 troops, they would still be annihilated.
And yet, that fool was standing right here—himself.
But Count Glasgow wasn't entirely to blame.
The reports had all stated that Fenris's forces consisted entirely of cavalry. Otherwise, they couldn't have reached this place from the North so quickly.
Who could have imagined that cavalry could also excel at archery while hauling siege weapons?
"Argh! What are those monsters!"
It was a situation that defied his understanding of warfare.
Fenris troops weren't even bothering to defend the breached sections of the wall. They were openly mocking the Rodrick army.
"Arghhh! Fenris! Count Fenris!"
Count Glasgow ranted and raved, tearing at his hair, his bloodshot eyes glaring wildly. Finally, he turned to his staff officers with trembling voice.
"W-what do we do now?"
His voice was filled with despair.
He couldn't think of a single way to breach the castle.
[T/L: Please support me and read 385 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]