I will be crowned king

It is the 22nd day of the seventh month in the calendar of the saints, one hundred and three years ago, in Hongyue Town.

After waiting for the arrival of the Hantu Corps, the Ranger Corps stationed at Junqishan finally officially set off, advancing along the Hongyue Trunk Road towards the Hongyue Town Fortress on the border.

Seemingly infected by the impending victory, all the soldiers in the army completely swept away the pain and fatigue caused by the fierce battles in the past ten days, held high the battle flag, and marched in high spirits.

Including the captives of Fernando's army, the size of the entire army exceeded 100,000. Not to mention keeping a low profile, the defenders of the Red Moon Town Fortress were aware of the momentum of this army almost as soon as they were about to take action, and learned that the front line was defeated. , news of the suicide of Commander Fernando Herred - shot in the back of the head.

Since almost all the Garland Army had been dispatched to reinforce Fernando, there were less than 2,000 troops left in the fortress. The garrison chief was ready to surrender as soon as he received the news. After all, with just their few men, they wanted to stop 60,000 people. A large army, no matter how you think about it, it’s all nonsense.

This is indeed the case. Before the defenders could react, Cavalry Colonel Charles Sanders, who finally got back on his horse - literally - led the cavalry division to advance quickly, bypassing the fortress and controlling the defenders' retreat. By the way, He also served as a messenger for Ser Gloria.

The content of the letter was very simple, telling the defenders not to panic, not to retreat rashly, to continue to hold on to the fortress, and to try to ensure that there would be no casualties.

If you retreat without permission...then you have to retreat.

Looking at the letter in his hand, the garrison commander had a wry smile on his face, but since Sir Gloria said so, based on my understanding of him over the years, it was probably just another deal?

……………………

"Yes, it's a deal."

Sir Gloria walked in quite calmly and had no intention of hiding anything: "Now Red Moon Town is in our hands, and you Clovis people want to take it back, and take it back as intact as possible."

"You really can speak..." Karl looked at the guy in front of him in surprise, and couldn't help but said: "Have you never thought that you are also our prisoner, and you don't even have personal freedom?"

"Why can't you speak up? As long as you have capital, even a slave can become a businessman, right?"

Sir Garland smiled slightly and looked at the figure sitting next to Anson: "This must be Colonel Carl Bain, the chief of staff of the army who guarded the flag hill for dozens of days and blocked Lord Fernando. Thank you for meeting him."

"That's what I said... But I only witnessed the last battle between you and Fernando; suddenly raising the bloody swallow-tailed flag at the critical moment is indeed a clever move."

"Cough cough cough..."

Although he always behaved calmly and calmly in front of his subordinates, being pointed out so directly by the enemy made Karl feel a little embarrassed despite his shamelessness: "This... is all over, there is nothing to say."

"On the contrary, from the bottom of my heart, I think your move is absolutely brilliant." Sir Garland's expression suddenly became much more serious: "A good commander should assess the situation, make full use of all information and resources, and turn disadvantages into his own advantages. , mobilize the enemy instead of being affected by the enemy...at least that's what I think."

"But it is a pity that this view is not very popular in the empire. In the eyes of most knights, bloodline and family background are still more important; a civilian who has not awakened the power of blood cannot become an excellent commander no matter how experienced he is. …Your existence is simply the best counterattack against this concept!”

The chief of staff looked at the extremely enthusiastic Sir Gloriosa, and really couldn't figure out what medicine he was selling in the gourd - how currying favor with an outsider like himself would help him.

"The small talk will be paused for now. Please answer our questions." Anson had to bring the topic back on track: "Sir Gloria, you don't seem to have the capital to trade with us now."

"On the contrary, I have it." Sir Gloria smiled very playfully: "And it happens to be what you need most."

"What?"

"It's very simple, an opportunity that is fair enough to announce your victory to Clovis... and even the entire world of order." He opened his arms and kept focusing on the subtle changes in Anson's expression:

"Your Excellency, Commander-in-Chief, I have gotten to know you. To be more precise, I got to know you seriously after you won the Holy War in the New World. You single-handedly changed the attitude of the Holy See of Order towards the New World. Your skills and abilities are far beyond ordinary. comparable."

"Sorry, if you still want to gossip, you can do it now..."

"But according to my observation, you are not an adventurous person." Sir Gloria suddenly interrupted: "Hantu, Israel, the New World...Iser Guards Corps, the Empire's Expeditionary Force, the Holy War Army...yours The opponent gets stronger every time, but each time your response strategy seems very...cautious if viewed with hindsight."

"But you are so cautious, but you have chosen a very bold and risky tactic this time."

He smiled and raised his right hand: "Don't rush to refute me, because you and I know the answer well. Although you won in the end, in fact Mr. Fernando had at least two chances to defeat you, and he pinned all his hopes on A group of new recruits formed a siege network, hoping that my subordinates could fight independently to fend off an enemy at least twice my size, hoping to transfer me out of Hongyue Town... You succeeded, but the success was very dangerous."

"Why? The answer to this question is very simple in my eyes. You have no choice. A victory that is indisputable and convincing enough is extremely important to you. It is so important that it is worth taking risks for it."

"And the Red Moon Town Fortress is the most important trophy of this victory."

Some well-founded analysis and inference made Sir Gloria's expression much more confident, and his eyes became much sharper.

Unfortunately, he didn't see what he wanted. The commander-in-chief in front of him remained unmoved from beginning to end, as if he was listening to someone else's story.

"It makes sense, but you still haven't made it clear why you are trading with me." Anson said in a deep voice:

"With the troops I have on hand, it will be easy to capture Hongyue Town. The battle is over."

"Yes, and the winner has been decided." Sir Garland agreed: "But the most exciting thing about a good play is often not its twists and turns, but the shocking scenes, isn't it?"

"And you can provide all this and let the empire lose to us beautifully?"

Karl lost no time in sarcastically saying: "Making a deal with us with a disastrous defeat and an intact fortress?"

"Yes, your summary is very accurate." Sir Gloria nodded as if he could not hear his sarcasm. "The defenders of the Red Moon Town Fortress are my subordinates. I can guarantee that the result will be absolutely shocking."

"When our entire legion is safely withdrawn from the empire, within a month, your victory will spread throughout most of the world of order, and everyone will know that Anson Bach, the ruler of Clovis, regained the Red Moon Town in just ten days. "

"What's the price?" Anson asked, "How could you suddenly become so kind and decide to help us again?"

"Of course not, my conditions are very simple." Sir Garland was still very frank: "Fernando Herred...his death is an eternal secret."

After the words fell, the room suddenly became dead silent, and the three of them looked at each other in shock.

The silence lasted for two minutes, and Karl finally couldn't help it anymore: "Just, that's it?"

"That's it." Sir Gloria smiled and nodded.

"...Okay, I won't ask you more about what you want to do." The chief of staff raised his brows: "Of course we will keep our promise... Assuming that we have accepted... what help will it be to you? I mean... Why should we tell others the…truth about this?”

Karl did feel quite strange. He originally thought that even if the other party didn't open his mouth, he would put forward some conditions that would make Anson embarrassed, but the result was quite inexplicable.

"It is very obvious that I have indeed considered the possibility that you will leak information. This is also the original intention of my proposed transaction, and I must also ensure that you will not leak relevant information. After all, it can almost be said that it concerns me personally. Even the lives of dozens of related people." Sir Garland nodded:

"After much thought, it seems that the safest way is for both parties to hold the other party's 'hostage', just in case."

"I see, so the 'trade' you brought is not a condition, but a 'hostage'." Anson sneered: "You are not here to trade, but to seal the deal."

"Your Excellency Anson Bach, you are truly a smart man. Dealing with you makes me feel extremely comfortable from head to toe."

Sir Garland nodded unabashedly: "Yes, in order to prevent you from leaking the news, I had no choice but to seize on the 'Fake Battle of Red Moon Town' to avoid something that threatens me. Personal safety concerns."

"Of course, you don't have to accept my 'threat', but in that case, I'm afraid what you will gain when you besiege the fortress will not be the intact Red Moon Town, but the ruins of Red Moon Town."

"Is it?"

"Believe it or not, it's up to you. The people stationed there are my subordinates. I can make them cooperate with the show, and I can also make them destroy the fortress."

Sir Gloria smiled: "Yes, you can kill us all, but what you are capturing now is a full 50,000-strong imperial army...and it is a fully-equipped army, and its morale and organization have not completely collapsed. Wan Dajun, a massacre on this scale... cannot be accomplished by talking lightly."

"You are a smart man, Your Excellency Ansen Bach, and smart winners are often very good at getting losers to cooperate with them to end a war and win a satisfactory victory."

After the words fell, Karl on the side subconsciously touched the cigarette case with his right hand, then stopped, and glanced at Anson.

"Deal." Anson agreed simply:

"Sir Gloria, I will help you hide some of your 'little secrets', and this time I will do what I say."

"Then I also guarantee that the world will know that Anson Bach and his army relied entirely on their own strength, relying on genius strategies and unrivaled offensives to recapture the Red Moon Town Fortress." Sir Garland immediately agreed. :

"Don't worry, as a reputable collaborator, you don't have to worry that I will break the agreement and tacit understanding between us without authorization; for some guys who know things that they shouldn't know, I will also make sure that they keep their eyes shut forever. Your mouth will not reveal a single word that is not good for you."

This was almost a statement that clearly stated that he would kill people and silence him. Carl's hair stood on end after hearing it. He could not help but lament that the imperial knight who was still holding on to Red Moon Town was treated as a tool and thrown away after use.

In comparison, those bastard bosses who made themselves take the blame in the past seemed to be quite conscientious - at least they did not silence themselves.

But Sir Garland didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with what he said, and he added with great consideration for his collaborators: "Just in case, I suggest you start marching immediately and spread the news that you are preparing to attack the city. , so that it is convenient for me to pass the message to the Red Moon Guards through you to ensure that there will be no accidents like soldiers who run away from the battle."

"Thanks for the reminder, you are really a very considerate trader."

"No matter where you are, credibility is always important when doing business." Sir Garland looked at the two of them seriously:

"This is the most basic moral principle for being a human being, isn't it?"

…………………………

Outside the heavily fortified Red Moon Town Fortress, the phalanxes of the Ranger Corps and the Hantu Corps were lined up along the perimeter of the city fortifications. There were dozens of dense columns of soldiers advancing slowly, like a torrent shaking the earth.

Between the columns, thousands of skirmishers filled the gaps, like chains connecting the steel chariots, making the already shocking military formation look even more dazzling.

The artillerymen from the two legions gathered behind the phalanx and were on standby. A series of dazzling war machines were quietly waiting on standby, ready to show their power to the enemy and companions at any time and at any time.

Anson, who was dressed in a general's military uniform and a three-cornered hat, was standing under the Clovis flag, holding Fernando's saber in both hands and looking at the fortress; all the senior officers of the two legions gathered beside him, and also They all put on the most glamorous-looking clothes they could find at the moment, and those who couldn't find them tried their best to tidy up their clothes.

On both sides of the military flag were all the cavalrymen of Hantu and the Ranger Corps. At this time, they were trotting around the military formation, raising clouds of smoke and dust, shaking the earth.

Everything is showing the invincibility of the army to both the enemy and ourselves; in comparison, even the diamond-shaped short and thick city walls of Hongyue Town and the layers of defenses built along the hills and mountains seem like that. So small, as long as this army waved its hand, it would be destroyed silently in an instant.

Under the gaze of everyone, Anson pulled out the saber in his hand and pointed the tip directly in the direction of the fortress.

After the deafening roar, Hongyue Town fell into a sea of ​​fire.