Chapter 69: I Have No Choice But to Change the Game Myself. (5)
“Profit! Annihilation! What happened to the supply troops!”
Inside the lavish barracks, Count Tamos Digald was fuming and pacing like a caged animal.
Perdium had already given up the fight and was holed up in the castle.
Now, they had to launch a siege, but without the supply troops, they couldn’t drag things out.
“That foolish Baron Fabro! I shouldn’t have entrusted the troops to him! Being ambushed by a nobody like Perdium?!”
Fabro was the leader of the largest faction among Digald’s retainers.
So, even though he was a bit of a loser, Tamos had no choice but to trust him with the supply troops, never anticipating such a colossal mistake.
In fact, he couldn’t even imagine Perdium launching an ambush in the first place.
“What on earth do those guys have to launch an ambush!”
The smaller the forces, the harder it is to pull off such bold strategies. That’s common sense.
The risk of failure is just too great.
Any sensible commander wouldn’t even think of attempting it.
“Ugh, damn it! If this goes on, even if we win, there won’t be any troops to manage the captured territory!”
The entire supply troop was Digald’s army, so the blow was significant.
The attempt to save resources by moving them to the rear turned out to be the worst move of all.
“Calm down, Count.”
Beside Tamos sat a tall, stern-looking man with his arms crossed.
His name was Viktor.
He was a talented individual that Count Desmond had painstakingly nurtured.
“How can I calm down? Most of the rocks for the catapult were being moved by the supply troops. There’s hardly anything left here.”
“That’s somewhat unfortunate, but we only need to breach one or two sections of the castle wall. The siege tower and the main forces are still intact, so there’s no problem.”
“B-but, doesn’t it get difficult if it takes too long? We only have a few days’ worth of food left.”
Tamos harbored a vague fear of the siege.
He had no experience in war, so tactics and strategies didn’t register in his mind.
“I initially planned to finish it in one go. Perdium isn’t properly prepared for defense anyway.”
“Hmm, how do you know that?”
Tamos was puzzled. Viktor responded with a face full of amusement.
“It’s the product of experience. Just know that it will end quickly, so there’s no need to worry at all.”
“Ahem, well, if that’s the case, then I’m fine with it. Haha.”
After all, their forces were overwhelmingly superior. Whether they swept through in a confrontation or laid siege, it would end easily.
Tamos smiled while inwardly cursing.
‘What a cocky guy. Talking like that to a Count like me. Just a mere Knight, how dare he.’
“How dare you speak to me like that, a Count? You’re just a lowly knight,” he scoffed.
As the conversation with Viktor continued, his frustrations piled up, but he couldn’t let it show.
The one actually commanding the main troops was Viktor, not Tamos.
“Ahem, then can we finish this before Count Rages shows up to support them?”
“They won’t be coming.”
Amelia was already stationed at the crucial passage from Perdium to Count Rages’ territory.
“Hehe, Count Desmond has prepared meticulously. That foolish Perdium should have clung to another lord as soon as they got the Runestone.”
Tamos grinned slyly as he continued speaking.
“But still, to trample on Perdium before it gets even bigger, Gilmore’s death wasn’t in vain. That nuisance finally did his duty as a son and departed. Oh, what a commendable guy.”
Gilmore’s death didn’t concern him. Kids could always be had again.
What mattered was the fact that once this war ended, he could become a great lord himself.
‘It’s a pity we’ll have to split the Forest of Monsters, but there’s nothing that can be done now.’
Desmond demanded half the rights to develop the Forest of Monsters in exchange for lending troops.
Since his own territory, Digald, couldn’t take down Perdium alone, Tamos reluctantly accepted, almost like biting the bullet.
Of course, once he got the Runestone and became powerful, he planned to find a way to drive Desmond out.
Imagining the future, Tamos smiled brightly and subtly said,
“Ahem, but with this, I wonder if we’ll have enough troops to stabilize Perdium properly. Even if we conscript immediately, it’ll take time…”
“I will lend you some troops after the occupation.”
“Haha, thank you. I shall surely repay Count Desmond’s kindness.”
Tamos looked relieved and smiled happily again.
Viktor returned the smile but hid his murderous glare behind it.
‘What a pitiful fool. The moment Perdium is occupied, you’ll be dead too.’
Tamos was set to be dealt with as having tragically died in the war.
That would leave only Tamos’ second son as the heir of the Digald territory.
How to handle that brat would be up to Count Desmond.
‘It’s good that the supply troops were annihilated.’
They were going to be wiped out anyway, so having Perdium take them out was like getting a freebie.
‘But this is unexpected. Could it be Randolf? Or is it Zvalter after all? Either way, it doesn’t matter. They’ll all be dead anyway.’
Viktor shook off his thoughts and rose from his seat.
“I’ll be on my way. I’ll arrive at Perdium soon, so prepare yourself.”
“Ahem, understood.”
Stepping outside the tent, Viktor slowly scanned the camp.
The massive army, numbering 6,000, consisted of elite troops, each one unmatched elsewhere.
There was even a siege tower, outrageously expensive and rare in small territories.
“With this, I should be able to sweep Raybold away at once.”
This impressive force was enough to even consider taking on Raybold, a prominent lord in the North.
Perdium didn’t even register on his radar.
It was just a matter of easily handling it, like sipping tea after a meal, and returning home.
No matter how much Perdium struggled, it couldn’t escape its already predetermined fate.
“And thus, another family meets its doom.”
Viktor muttered without any particular emotion.
She muttered without enthusiasm.
Count Desmond sending her meant one thing: to definitively and completely choke the life out of the enemy.
He had more than enough ability for that.
After all, he was the best knight in the North.
*
“I caught another one.”
Bernap reported with his head bowed in front of Amelia.
Amelia sat under the tent, wearing a bored expression.
“How many have there been so far?”
“Five.”
“Make sure to keep an eye on the other areas too. Don’t miss a single one.”
“Understood.”
“I’m dying of boredom.”
Amelia had been blocking every path leading to the Roges territory and crushing Perdium’s troops.
Reluctantly responding to Count Desmond’s request, it was rather infuriating to waste time coming out to catch mere messengers.
Even sitting still seemed to make her increasingly irritable.
“Nyaaang.”
Bastet seemed bored too, yawning repeatedly in her arms.
Bernap hung his head with a gloomy expression.
‘Ah, I want to play too.’
Around Amelia, the maids were fanning her. They had also brought fruits of all kinds within reach.
Despite catching messengers, she was essentially just sitting around like she was on a picnic.
After a while, soldiers came carrying another messenger’s corpse.
Seeing this, Amelia muttered in annoyance.
“Hah, why did they send so many? Count Perdium is oddly persistent.”
It made sense given that the territory was in a precarious situation, but it was ultimately an ineffective struggle.
“If it doesn’t seem feasible, he should know when to give up like a man. Honestly, sons and fathers are no different. Tsk tsk.”
Amelia already knew that war had broken out.
It was a bit disappointing for her. She wanted to personally behead Ghislaine.
“The Runestone is also a shame. It won’t be easy to take it back once Count Desmond settles in.”
The Runestone was indeed the biggest disappointment.
But even so, her forces couldn’t defeat Count Desmond yet.
“Well, I can just wait for the opportunity to snatch it later.”
The greedy, persistent Amelia would never just give up the Runestone.
While she was enjoying her leisure and planning for the future, one of her followers ran up, shouting.
“Young lady! Urgent news!”
“What is it?”
With an irritated gaze, her follower bowed deeply and handed her a letter.
“Digald’s supply unit has been annihilated?”
Amelia frowned as she read the letter.
“Hmm, so they intend to hold out?”
Having wiped out the supply unit, it seemed the besieging side was waiting for the defenders to retreat while holed up inside the castle. If reinforcements came, there was a chance of victory.
But to someone who was busy butchering messengers to prevent any reinforcements, it was merely a laughable plan.
By the time news reached Count Roges, everything would already be over.
“Risking their lives on such a slim hope against a large army? Please, are they hoping to hold out by strength of will, or something?”
It made her laugh in disbelief.
If it were her, she would act entirely differently.
She would abandon the territory and the castle altogether and pull her troops out for guerrilla warfare.
In a situation where supplies had been cut, relentlessly harassing the area would leave Desmond with no choice but to withdraw, since he had so much to lose.
It must be because he wasn’t there.
Count Perdium’s pride in trying to protect the territory residents until the end seemed incredibly inefficient to Amelia.
If they could just win the war, they could reclaim the territory residents right away. They just needed to hold out for a little while.
“You’re so soft-hearted. Don’t you realize that leads to more people meeting their death?”
To her, it was no different from suggesting they all just die together.
Amelia was about to casually toss aside the letter but briefly paused.
“Something feels off. I smell something suspicious.”
Anything related to Perdium, or that Ghislaine guy, never went according to plan.
“What smell?”
Ignoring the confused Bernap, Amelia hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“Send more kids over to Perdium. As soon as the war results come in, have them rush back. Make sure we know exactly how things are progressing.”
“Is it really necessary for you to worry? With that kind of troop difference, winning would be hard enough.”
She shot an annoyed look at Bernap.
“Send them. Something feels off.”
“…Understood.”
A strange premonition kept tickling the back of her neck.
‘Ghislaine wouldn’t just sit still. Does he really follow normal strategies and do as he’s told? No way.’
Amelia had been robbed of 20,000 gold and had even tried to assassinate him, but failed.
Using the halt of support to Perdium as an excuse, she had tried to narrow Ghislaine’s influence, but that plan fell through too.
Despite her dislike for him, she wasn’t foolish enough to ignore the facts her experience had taught her.
‘If it’s him, he must be up to some unimaginable schemes again.’
That ominous premonition kept jabbing at her.
Amelia shook her head to dispel the uneasy feeling.
“Anyway, move quickly. Just in case, send multiple people to keep an eye on things.”
Bernap nodded.
“Still, launching a bold ambush and cutting off supplies is quite impressive. That’s not something most would consider.”
“True.”
Amelia replied apathetically, but Bernap, encouraged by her acknowledgment, continued.
“It must have been Count Perdium, right? Or maybe Knight Commander Randolf? The two could have gone together.”
Then Amelia burst out laughing.
“Why do you say that?”
“Do you really think those two did it?”
“Isn’t it obvious? They’re the only ones who could pull it off.”
Amelia scoffed.
“Randolf may be brave and reckless, but he can’t do anything beyond swinging a sword on the battlefield. He wouldn’t even think of ambushing to cut off supplies. If he attempted, it would probably be clumsy and he might get caught and fail.”
“So, it must be Count Perdium?”
“Count Perdium is a decent commander, but he’s not the type to recklessly gamble with his soldiers’ lives. That’s why he’s been able to hold the northern fortress for so long.”
“Then who could it be? Don’t tell me…”
They only succeeded in the ambush because the odds were in their favor, but objectively it was still a ridiculous gamble.
And there was indeed a madman who had no qualms about doing such things, who just so happened to be with Perdium.
With a sly grin curling the corner of her mouth, Amelia coldly said, “Right. It’s definitely that bastard Ghislaine.”
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