A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

Another day passed, and the heavy trumpets sounded on the battlefield again, and the corpses of the Gastadians dropped on the ground, and once again receded from the city wall like a tide.

The tall city walls are still firmly guarding this place, stopping the enemies of Aaron Landis and guarding the people of Aaron Landis.

Black blood was deposited on the city wall, which was formed layer after layer of countless blood splashed on the wall these days.No matter how strong it is, the boulders thrown by the catapults in the distance will smash it into potholes.

However, even if it was stained with a layer of blood, there were many potholes, those not only did not erase the majesty of the city wall, but made it more vicissitudes and solemn heaviness.

As time goes by, the royal city of Aaron Landis still stands proudly on the ground.

Time and time again the Gastadians fell before it.

And it stands still.

After receiving the news of the fall of Judas City, Tyre didn't waste any time and started to attack the city the next day.

The offensive is fierce, and often lasts for a whole day without giving the Aaron Landis any respite.

However, several days passed, and there was still no progress in the siege.

Aside from the town guards, Aaron Landis defended the city with less than [-] troops, and stubbornly resisted the Gastade army, which was more than ten times larger than himself.

Under the command of Heymos, they did not give the Gastadians any chance.

"Heymos... is worthy of the name 'Black Knight'. He is ruthless to the enemy, but he is also ruthless to himself."

Once again the siege failed, Tyre said with emotion.

At the beginning, he was also slightly surprised by Heymos' strategy of "clearing the wall and clearing the field".

Originally, the defenders of those towns were somewhat troublesome on their way into the royal city, and would cause them some small losses, but Heymos did this so that they did not have any encounters on the road, and they drove straight in.

Some generals of Gastad even laughed at the black knight, saying that he was timid before fighting. Before they fought, this black knight who had been blown into the sky before was frightened into a tortoise.

Although he didn't think that a strong person like Heymos did such a thing out of cowardice, but for a moment he didn't understand what Heymos' purpose was.

It wasn't until he received the news that the city of Judas had been taken back by the Prince's troops that he reacted abruptly.

The road to transport the food of the army was cut off from behind!

And they marched all the way, but because Heymos forced the residents of those towns to move away with their supplies, they didn't plunder any food at all.

He didn't think much of it in the front, but when the crown prince cut off his back, Heymos's seemingly timid and self-destructive approach immediately exerted a huge advantage.

The food and grass in the rear were cut off, and the army was surrounded by emptiness, so it was difficult to plunder supplies. Once the army's food was exhausted, the consequences...

Tire originally thought about capturing some Aaron Landisians from the surrounding towns, tying them up as shields, and forcing them to open the way for the army to attack the city.

If the defenders can't bear to attack, they can attack the city wall.

This method was almost tried and tested when attacking Kanal, and even the royal city of Kanal was broken because of this trick.

However, Heymos emptied all the nearby towns and drove all the Aaronlandis people far away, and Tyre couldn't catch anyone at all.

...These two princes seemed to have an invisible tacit understanding with each other, so they joined forces and slapped him hard.

……

Although the defense of the royal city was fairly stable, the head of the royal knights still had a bad face at the moment.

"I heard that almost no one from Prince Garlan responded to his summoning order."

He sat there in armor, his square face with sharp edges and corners sank, giving people a sense of authority.

"The group of villains who see the wind and the wind must have seen that the situation of Aaron Landis is not good, so they stand still and want to wait for the opportunity! Doesn't Aaron Landis even have a loyal courtier now? Yet--?"

"Not entirely."

Although Ximuer also had a sullen face, he reluctantly said something fairly.

"There are also some people who are not loyal enough, but have doubts about Prince Garlan, and dare not entrust the army rashly. After all, it is the first time that the prince is on the battlefield, and he has not established enough prestige, so it is difficult for people to convince……"

Having said this, the priest fell silent.

He raised his hand in silence, and lightly flicked off a speck of dust that had just fallen from the shoulders of his clean and tidy priestly uniform.

In Aaron Landis, it is difficult for a king without outstanding military exploits to make everyone surrender.

According to the original plan, King Kamos planned to take the crown prince to the battlefield from the beginning of spring next year, let him slowly accumulate meritorious deeds, and build up enough prestige among everyone bit by bit...

Who knows, in an instant, the world is turned upside down.

The silence of the priest made the head of Sage, who was still angry at first, also fell silent.

Indeed, not to mention those sloppy guys, even loyal courtiers will definitely have feelings for a young crown prince who has hardly seen him and has never really proved himself on the battlefield, and is even a minor. doubt.

It is only natural that they hesitate.

Loyalty does not mean foolish loyalty.

Sighing, Sa Ge raised his head, looked at the opposite side, and couldn't help frowning.

"Your Highness Heymos, you don't seem to be worried at all."

He looked at the prince who sat at the table and quietly finished his dinner and was currently wiping his fingers with a snow-white towel, and asked unhappily.

"Nothing to worry about."

Putting down the towel, Heymos picked up the hot tea beside him and took a sip.

"That's Garlan."

He said, an understatement.

His answer stunned Sage for a while, and he was speechless for a while, not knowing how to answer.

…………

..............................

For three full days after Garlan issued the summoning order, the city of Judas remained silent, and no one came.

As a result, the so-called summoning order of the crown prince became a joke in the eyes of those who secretly watched the crown prince's every move.

The news even spread like wildfire, and quickly spread to Aaron Landis, and became a joke among the nobles of other countries after dinner.

There are many people who ridicule the prince's self-righteousness, his infancy, and his whimsy.

wise?Upright?Kind?

These things are useless in a war where the weak prey on the strong, and powerful forces can easily trample them to pieces.

The so-called "wise prince" can only be at a loss when he arrives on the battlefield, and he doesn't even have the ability to be convincing.

……

Not only people outside were watching the jokes, but everyone in Judas City also became anxious as time went by.

All day long, Xinyas circled around the room like ants on a hot pan.

Turning to the evening, he finally couldn't bear it anymore, and rushed to Garlan angrily.

"My lord brother! I'm going to catch all those disobedient guys to you!"

he shouted angrily.

Those bastards dare not listen to his brother's words, it's a shock!

You must know that as soon as he received the summons from his elder brother, he led his troops here day and night without saying a word.

Xin Yasi took it for granted that as soon as the Garlan summoning order came out, everyone should rush over as soon as he did.

did not expect--

Although no one came to Judas City for three whole days, there was no sign of anxiety on Garlan's face.

Facing the angry Xinyas, he smiled slightly, and casually threw a large pear from the fruit plate on the table beside him.

"Eat this, lower the fire."

Garland said with a smile.

"……Oh."

Seeing his elder brother smiling at him, the burly boy who was furious a moment ago scratched his head, sat down obediently, and obediently gnawed a big pear beside Garlan like a big baby.

Garlan sat, turned his head, and looked through the window at the quiet city wall where no one entered or exited.

He looked very calm, completely free of the anxiety that others had guessed, but no one could guess what he was thinking at the moment.

And at the moment on the city wall, Kaihos is patrolling with Vata.

Since that night, in order to avoid accidents from happening again, Kaihos, Vata, and Xinyas must have someone to accompany Prince Garlan at any time.

Now that Xinyas was following Garlan, they came out to rectify the army and inspect the city walls.

Along the way, Vata looked at the quiet city wall and was also very worried.

After walking for a while, he finally couldn't bear it, and spoke to Keyhos.

"Master Kehoes, the prince is doing this... Is he a little too anxious?"

he asked with a frown.

"Well... I say this, not because I think the prince has no ability... We all know the prince's ability, but the others don't know."

Although Vata doesn't like the malicious ridicule of the prince from the outside world, there is one thing he agrees with.

That is, the so-called wise name has no role in war.

"Do you also think that no one will respond to the prince's call?"

"Uh, I just think... we understand how powerful Prince Garlan is, but this strength cannot be reflected on the battlefield. His prestige is not enough, so..."

The weak eat the strong.

Although he recognized the strength of the prince's heart, but on the battlefield, only strength is everything.

Just like all the people in the world will only pray to the god of war, not to Shamash on the battlefield.

Vata's hesitant words didn't make Kejos angry.

He glanced at the slave-born general behind him, raised the corner of his mouth, and smiled.

"'On the battlefield, only strong power can make everyone yearn for and surrender'...not just you, I am afraid that everyone in this world thinks so now."

he said, looking calm.

Vata waited for him to continue, but Kaihos suddenly closed his mouth, turned his head, and glanced outside the city wall.

"Someone is coming," he said.

Vata was stunned, and followed Kaihos' gaze.

On the horizon, there was a somewhat messy army coming towards Judas City in the setting sun.

The first army to enter the city of Judas caused a lot of discussion among the people who came to watch.

The formation of this army is scattered, people gather or disperse in twos and threes, they don't even have a uniform uniform, some wear leather armor, some wear armor, some carry bows, some carry swords, some The ones carrying prods and even hammers look messy.

Even the people in Judas City can tell that this is a chaotic motley crew.

After waiting for three or four days, such an army came?

What kind of fighting power can such a motley army have?

The appearance of this miscellaneous army disappointed them who had been expecting it. After looking at each other in blank dismay, they shook their heads and dispersed.

"mercenary?"

After receiving the report from Kejos, Garlan asked in surprise.

"I didn't hire any mercenaries."

Mercenaries are irregular troops who help them fight or do things after collecting property from their employers.

Since the mercenary regiments are purely paid for their work and have no loyalty, they are an uncertain factor on the battlefield. Therefore, on the official large-scale national battlefields, very few countries hire these legions to participate in the war.

Since the mercenary regiment is not a regular army, even if it participates in a war between countries, it will be regarded as abandoned sons and cannon fodder, so they will hardly accept employment in this kind of war.

"Prince, the leader of this mercenary group wants to see you."

"Understood, let him in."

Garlan was also a little curious as to why the early mercenary group would take the initiative to come to Judas City.

As soon as the leader entered, Garlan was taken aback.

It's not him, it's her.

The leader of this mercenary group was actually a woman who looked only in her 20s.

The young female leader had neat short hair and was wearing a close-fitting flexible leather armor with a long sword behind her back and a dagger stuck in her thigh belt.

Although she is a woman, she exudes a fierce aura and looks heroic.

Seeing Garlan, the sharp-eyed female leader was in a daze for a moment. She looked as if she was remembering something, and her eyes softened when she looked at Garlan.

She bent down and knelt in front of Garlan, looking up at him softly.

She said, "Your Highness, please allow me to kiss you."

"what?"

Garlan was taken aback by the female leader who spoke such bold words when they met for the first time.

The female leader smiled.

"It's not the face, how dare I offend you, I just want to kiss your hand."

She said with a smile, then reached out and took Garlan's right hand with both hands.

She closed her eyes, and kissed the back of Garlan's hand with an extremely pious expression.

Garlan was stunned for a moment.

Something flashed in his mind, the female leader kissing him with her eyes closed overlapped with the girl kissing the back of his hand deep in his memory.

"...Kerry? Are you Kerry from Venal City?"

The female leader let go of Garlan's hand, and she looked up at Garlan with a smile on her face.

"I'm glad you still remember me, my prince."

At this moment, even Kaihos, who was standing aside, showed a look of astonishment, carefully looking at the female leader in front of him.

Is she... the little girl who was rescued from the cult by the prince back then?

"Like my uncle, I became a mercenary."

"Because of the cult and the flood, many of the children you rescued became orphans. However, because of your kind deeds, a temple was built there, adopted us, and prevented us from being displaced."

"When everyone grows up, some of them and I set up this mercenary group to make a living."

Kneeling on one knee, Keli put one hand on her chest and stared at her prince.

Her gaze was gentle yet firm.

"My prince, you protected me when I was young and everyone. Now, we have all grown up, so it's our turn."

"Although it's just a weak mercenary group, with only a little strength."

she says,

"However, Your Highness, we also want to use this meager strength to protect you."

Keli lowered her head and said she was a little nervous.

She knew that the prince might not see her own strength.

But she still wanted to protect the prince with all her strength, so she rushed here desperately.

"……it is good."

The voice from above made Kelly feel a little excited, and she raised her head excitedly.

The boy smiled at her.

The smile is the same as the bright smile of that child many years ago, and it has not changed in any way.

"Kerry, I'm very happy, you are willing to lend me your strength."

"...don't dare to take it."

Kelly nodded.

At this moment, there seemed to be a surge of warmth in her chest.

very nice.

she thinks.

Her prince hasn't changed at all.

very nice……

At this moment, a local soldier from Judas City suddenly rushed over.

"Lord Kehoes, there is another person coming from the city gate."

He gasped, "The people...the people are scared."

"Huh? Scared? Did the army disturb the people when it first arrived?"

Xin Yas immediately said dissatisfied.

"My elder brother clearly issued an order that no one is allowed to disturb the public."

"No, they didn't disturb the people, but everyone was very scared."

"what are you talking about?"

"Lion..." the soldier stammered, "A huge lion has come in."

Garlan and Kaihos exchanged glances, and immediately walked outside quickly.

……

Garlan hurriedly rode his horse to the city gate.

After getting off the horse, he just walked a few steps forward when suddenly a huge monster rushed over from the front and threw him to the ground.

The surrounding people screamed in surprise, but everyone following Garlan remained calm.

Immediately afterwards, those who screamed saw the big lion that threw their crown prince to the ground rubbing against Garlan's head and chest, and licking Garlan's face from time to time. Twice.

No matter how you look at it, it looks like a big cat trying to act coquettishly, completely without the majestic appearance when it stood there just now.

Even though he yelled twice, the voice did not have the aura of the king of beasts roaring the mountains and forests, and it still made people feel a little bit wronged.

Only then did the frightened people remember.

There has always been a rumor about their crown prince.

It is rumored that Prince Garlan is the favored son of the sun god Shamash, so Shamash sent his own lion to guard the prince.

Therefore, Prince Garlan has always had a lion beside him.

Nega was still nudging against Garlan's body in aggrieved manner, a chubby little fat man ran up to him, jumped up, and jumped in front of Garlan.

"Ahh~~Prince, I'm so worried about you."

Completely ignoring that it was in public, Tal opened his mouth and started howling.

"I just said, why don't you take me with you when you come out? You can see that you have lost a lot of weight. You must not have eaten or slept well. Lord Kehoes is so careless. He can't take good care of you at all."

Looking at the prince who had lost weight, Tal felt extremely distressed.

The blond knight lying innocently next to him touched his nose, pretending not to hear.

"Tal, how did you come here with Nega?"

"Ah, by the way, Prince, I did what you ordered. I gave the things to Her Majesty Heymos, and Lord Ximuer arranged for people to send us over."

As soon as Garlan asked, Tal couldn't care less about criticizing Kayhos's carelessness, and started talking endlessly.

"Also, don't worry, Nega came here in a carriage and didn't scare anyone."

Having said that, he patted his chest hard.

"By the way, prince, I'm here, don't be afraid, I'm here, whoever wants to harm you, I will definitely kill him first... Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

A hand stretched out from behind, grabbed the little fat man's head, and threw Tull aside amid Tull's howling in pain.

"You're still in good spirits, Rory, go on and on."

The man who threw Tal aside said dissatisfiedly.

It was a slender young man, with slightly long black oblique bangs slipping from the corners of his eyes.

He has a handsome face, eyes like peach blossoms, and when he picks up his eyes slightly, it makes people feel that the romantic charm is piled up in the corners of his eyes.

He was wearing a blue short robe with a tight waist, and no other leather armor except for the hand and foot guards and the chest guard on the left chest.

Seeing this handsome young man, Garlan was a little surprised.

"Sullos?"

The black-haired bard bent down with a smile on his face, and stretched out his hand to Garlan, who was thrown to the ground by the lion, in a polite and graceful gesture.

"It's been a while, Your Highness."

He used his melodious and melodious voice, and Garlan's most familiar accent, speaking like singing.

"I'm glad that Goddess Avdomir is still guarding you, keeping your beauty as before."

Holding Shuros' hand, Garlan stood up.

He couldn't help laughing at the familiar tone of the bard.

"You came to help me?"

"Have you forgotten? Before leaving, I once said that no matter where I am, as long as I hear your call, I will return to you immediately."

"Really, I'm very happy, I have an extra marksman by my side."

"No, my Highness the Crown Prince is not a sharpshooter."

The bard smiled slyly.

"Don't you think there are too many people here?"

Following the direction Shuros pointed, Garlan looked over and couldn't help blinking his eyes.

In addition to dozens of cavalry who escorted Tal and Nega over, there were more than 100 people standing there. When Garlan looked over, they all bowed their heads and knelt down.

And the temperament of these more than 100 people is very similar to that of Schulos, and most of them are dressed as rangers.

"Your Highness, they are all friends I have met during my travels over the years. Most of them are rangers who traveled on the mainland. You know, birds of a feather flock together. Although the friends I have met are a little worse than me, they are all capable. Still pretty good."

Schloss flicked his hair skillfully and handsomely, showing off triumphantly.

Bards are also known as rangers.

As people who walk alone on the mainland, their single-player combat effectiveness is generally not weak, especially those well-known rangers, whose single-player combat effectiveness can be regarded as top-notch.

For example, Schulos is known as a sharpshooter among rangers.

In fact, not all of the more than 100 people who came here were Shulos' friends. He just called a dozen of his friends to help out on the way after hearing the news of Garlan's summoning order.

Unexpectedly, those well-known rangers heard the news and rushed over from all over the place.

Regarding the invasion of their own country by the Gastadians and the fall of the land, these rangers, who are not weak in combat but also have the perceptual thinking of Wenqing, have long been filled with anger, and they are full of grief and indignation.

It's just that they are all stragglers, and they have no way to resist the invaders. They can only watch the Gastadians wreak havoc in their own country.

Later, when I heard that the famous sharpshooter Shulos in the ranger was going to rush to the crown prince with his friends, they rushed over without saying a word and brought their own dry food.

Their purpose is very simple, to drive the invaders out of their own country.

Garlan looked at the group of people and touched his chin.

So, can the ranger unit that Schulos summoned for him be used as a special forces unit?

Looking at those rangers who are all capable and powerful at first glance, he pondered in his heart.