In the inner city of Rock Fortress, a group of knights and soldiers with bright armor were walking through the wide town streets. Above this group, the flag of Count Pompeii of the Holy Spirit Plain was flying in the air, with golden and red embroidery thread on the flag. It glows with eye-catching brilliance in the sun, gorgeous and majestic.
Sir Maryland stood on the city wall in the inner city, looking down at the army as it marched in formation. After a long time, he said softly: "This is probably the last batch of assistance we can count on."
p>"It's better than nothing," Viscount Carroll, standing next to Sir Maryland, said solemnly, "After all, Count Pompeii knew what it would mean once this fortress was breached."
The team entering the city was not the cavalry brigade sent by the royal family, but Count Pompeii’s private army. The appearance of this army meant that the Earl finally got rid of the news that had been constantly heard recently. Sensing the urgency of the situation in the message, he made a decision.
The Fortress of the Rock is located on the edge of the Earl of Pompeii's territory. Nominally, the land on which the fortress is located belongs to the Pompeii family, but in fact the fortress is directly controlled by the royal family, including the soldiers in the fortress. They were all directly loyal to the king and had their own farms, mines, and mills around the fortress. The Earl of Pompeii had no obligation to support or support the fortress, but it was obvious that the count knew that once the fortress was occupied by Cecil If the family is defeated, his territory will be in danger.
The news that "the ancestors did not follow the ancestral system" had already spread through the southern nobles who had taken refuge in the fortress. Count Pompeii could not guarantee that Cecil's army would stop after they laid down the Rock Fortress. There was no guarantee that Cecil's troops who had captured the fortress would first loot the surrounding areas to make up for the war losses - although at the beginning, he seemed to firmly believe that there was nothing the Cecil people could do against the Rock Fortress, so he felt quite at ease. Meaning, but after some efforts of Sir Maryland, he finally sent his own army to support here, and this team was the only reinforcement that Sir Maryland could bring.
"It is completely unknown how much combat effectiveness these veteran soldiers who are pampered in the Holy Spirit Plains can exert," Sir Maryland sighed, "But as you said, it is better than nothing - these people are at least You can control the trebuchet, or hide behind the wall and shoot bows and arrows."
Viscount Carroll hesitated, and finally couldn't help but ask: "Is there any new news from the south recently?"< /p>
“I sent three groups of spies, disguised as merchants and hunters, and only one group came back,” Sir Maryland said with a heavy face. “Now I can only confirm that the Cecil people are sending troops here. , but there is no way to find out the situation further south..."
"They really didn't give up..." Viscount Carroll's heart sank, "They will come sooner or later."
Looking at Viscount Carroll, who looked defeated and even had a hint of fear in front of him, Sir Maryland could only sigh helplessly in his heart.
He has feelings for the fortress he is stationed in.He had great confidence, even though he heard many terrible stories about Cecil's army from these southern nobles who had taken refuge, he still had confidence in his fortress - in his opinion, these southern nobles were really frightened. They were so scared that the enemy's terrifying impression had been infinitely magnified in their hearts. Sir Maryland was a man who had experienced many battlefields. He knew this kind of scared people quite well, so he filtered out the exaggerated words in these noble words. After the ingredients, he was not intimidated by Cecil's army.
But this does not mean that he will take the threats he is about to face lightly.
The Cecil people will not be "like gods" as described by the southern nobles, but they are definitely not a force that can be underestimated. Facing the menacing Cecil army, the Rock Fortress will surely After a hard battle, according to Sir Maryland's deduction, the Cecil people's "Sky Fire Explosion" should not be able to break through the magic barrier of the fortress in a short period of time, but the defenders of the fortress have no way to repel those who can launch it from a long distance. The Cecil man who attacks continuously with magic.
This battle should turn into a protracted offensive, or to put it more depressingly - a long and unilateral bombardment of the Rock Fortress by the Cecils, and the Rock Fortress The defenders will have difficulty taking the initiative to attack.
Sir Maryland is not afraid of the protracted and arduous battle. What he is really worried about is the current isolation and helplessness of Rock Fortress and the deteriorating situation in this country.
As long as this deteriorating situation does not improve, no matter how long the Rock Fortress can hold on, it will eventually be unable to hold on.
He patted Viscount Carroll on the shoulder: "Go back, we need to relax and drink two glasses of wine to relieve our nerves."
They left the city wall, Came to the hall of the fortress castle area.
As soon as he opened the door of the hall, Sir Maryland saw Viscount Mary Oran, wearing a loose nightgown, standing in the middle of the hall holding a glass of wine, talking drunkenly to the maid in the hall. , and not far away was Viscount Consisco walking around. The latter's face was full of anxiety, and judging from his face, he probably drank a lot.
"Oh! Sir! And my friend Viscount Carroll," Mari Olan saw the person who came in through the door. He immediately raised his glass and said loudly, "Salute to you - you You should really try this."
"Olan, you drank too much," Carol frowned slightly, looking at this person who has become more and more inappropriate in recent days, with a helpless tone." And why are you wearing a nightgown in the hall?"
"This is inside the castle. You can wear a nightgown anywhere in the castle..." Mari Olan laughed, "Don't worry, I'm awake. Very..."
Viscount Consisco walked over and walked past Mari Olan, who was already a little delirious. His eyes were full of sadness and congestion caused by excessive drinking for many days: " Sir, there are southern..."
Sir Maryland waved his hand before the other party finished speaking: "There is no good news."
Viscount Carroll looked at the two friends in front of him with disappointment - one was bohemian and the other was depressed. , the aristocratic calmness and dignity have almost disappeared from them.
Not only these two friends, almost all of the other nobles who fled from the south to the fortress were no better.
These viscounts and barons gathered in banquet halls, or lurked in bars and brothels in the city, squandering their remaining money, consuming worthless energy, eating and drinking. There was almost no sign of hope at all in the debauchery.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but raise his head and look for someone in the hall. Soon, the slightly thin figure of Dame Luo Penni Glen appeared in his sight.
The countess just sat quietly in a corner, chatting quietly with one of her knights. Although there was also a faint anxiety on her face, her calm look was really different from others. different.
For many days, this situation also fell into the eyes of Sir Maryland. This high-ranking knight looked at the situation of other nobles in the hall and couldn't help shaking his head and muttering in a low voice: "It's better to A widow..."
Viscount Carroll, who was next to him, heard the knight's mumbling, but didn't hear him clearly. But just as he was about to ask, he saw the door of the hall being pushed open again. .
A knight in armor hurriedly ran into the hall. The sound of the impact of steel boots and the ground suddenly echoed in the hall. People nearby fell silent and looked at him with surprise and uncertainty. This knight suddenly ran in.
"General! General!" the knight shouted loudly and ran to Sir Maryland. "A small group of fleeing people came outside the city-they claimed to be from the Gulen area!"< /p>
Glen area?
The southern nobles in the hall immediately subconsciously looked at Countess Ropenny Grant, who was sitting in the corner. In their sight, the countess also raised her head and said with astonishment. His eyes looked at the knight standing in front of Sir Maryland.
Sir Maryland saw this scene in his eyes, and then turned to look at the knight who reported the news: "Where are they?"
"In the barracks under the outer wall," the knight replied Said, "We didn't let them enter the city - and there was a group of soldiers watching."
Sir Maryland nodded imperceptibly: This is necessary caution.
The Cecil people have obviously blocked the southern region. At least in the buffer zone between the Rock Fortress and the southern border, there are already blockades arranged by the Cecil people everywhere. The experienced personnel sent out from the fortress None of the spies can break through this blockade. Anyone who can escape from the southern region at this time... is very suspicious no matter how you look at it.
"Bring them to the main hall," Sir Maryland made a quick decision and looked back at the southern nobles who had gradually gathered in the hall.The tribesmen glanced at each other and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I invite everyone to go - maybe we can finally get clear news from the south."
Soon, the Maryland knights and the southern nobles came to the castle area. The main hall, and soon after they entered the hall and took their seats on the high platform, a small group of soldiers walked in with a few ragged and scarred people.
Those people had obviously gone through an ordeal. Their clothes were in tatters, they were covered with dirt and bruises, and their embarrassed posture reminded the southern nobles at the scene how they looked not long ago in Maryland. Jazz also sighed secretly, and then asked aloud: "Who are you? Are you brought from Gulen?"
Most of those ragged people looked scared and nervous. , only one person stood in the center and remained calm. That was a tall middle-aged man. He turned his head as if he had not heard Sir Maryland's words. He seemed to be looking for someone in the hall. Finally, his eyes fell on The middle-aged man immediately bowed to Dame Luo Penny Grant, with a choked voice: "Mistress, I finally see you!"
Lo Penny Grant also Recognizing the person in front of her, she stood up from her seat and said in an unbelievable tone: "This is my housekeeper!"
"Madam, are you sure?" Sir Maryland said with some suspicion She glanced at the middle-aged man in ragged clothes and with a dirty face, "Is he really your housekeeper?"
"Of course I can confirm it," Luo Penni Grant immediately responded, and she scanned everyone on the scene. "I didn't take a sip of wine!"
"Okay, I understand," Sir Maryland nodded and looked at the middle-aged man standing at the bottom of the steps, "Mr. Butler, can you take me with you?" News from the south?"
"They are coming! Mistress and adults, the Cecils are coming!" the steward said with a look of pain in his voice. , "They have already occupied Grant Castle, as well as the Consco and Carroll areas, and they are coming here!"