Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 550 Siege (Part Two)

"Damn it!" Gaisa Adonis echoed his subordinates' sentiments as they faced the polygonal fortress outside the western city of Kingsburg. "We're too late after all!"

Brigadier General Skul Mechren, standing nearby, remained silent.

Captain Woods, who accompanied the two generals to inspect the front lines, was clearly oblivious to the situation and was still intently explaining the terrain:

"...The new urban area on the west bank originally only had city walls and no moat. But as you can see, the city walls are now basically surrounded by trenches and rammed earth walls."

"If I'm not mistaken, there should be another breastwork behind this rammed earth wall, right at the foot of the city wall—that's what we were taught in school."

Woods looked a little bitter: "There might even be a trench, because I did the math, and with the volume of this rammed earth wall, it's far from enough to take soil just from the trench in front."

"Why do we need to guess?" Gaisa frowned, displeased. "Send a few people over tonight to take a look, and we'll know everything."

Woods shrank back in his anger after being scolded, and dared not utter a word.

Seeing this, Loson sighed inwardly and spoke up to defend his junior: "This kind of reconnaissance may result in casualties. We dare not make a decision without you and General Skull present."

Hearing Loson's words, Geisa became even more displeased, and his tone turned stern. "What's there to be afraid of making a decision about?! You're a colonel now! Don't you know what it means to be in charge independently?"

Now, Losang didn't dare to say a word.

“Alright, Adonis,” Skul Mecklen, who had been silent until now, couldn’t bear to see his old subordinates being reprimanded in public, so he spoke up to smooth things over. “They’ve only recently become majors and captains. Before, they just had to obey orders. Now that they have to make decisions, it’s normal for them to be nervous.”

Skool spoke up, and Geisa seized the opportunity to back down. He crossed his arms, glared at Woods Frank, and said nothing more.

In fact, Gaisa knew that this was not a big deal and there was no need to scold Woods and Loson.

However, he had a lot of pent-up anger inside, and when the major and captain ran into him, it was just bad luck.

“You two, remember this from now on,” Skulel cleared his throat, raised the invisible paddle, and lightly tapped Rosson and Woods on the backside. “Don’t always think about doing the ‘right’ thing. You’re soldiers; the most important thing is to do what ‘wins the game.’ Don’t always wait for others to give you orders…”

As he was speaking, Skull suddenly realized that his admonition seemed more appropriate to him, so he coughed lightly and changed the subject: "Captain Woods, please continue your report."

“Report?” Woods snapped out of his reverie. “Oh! Report! Where were we…right, Fortress, speaking of Fortress.”

Woods swallowed hard and pointed to both ends of the city wall: "In addition to the main fort in front of the city gate, Chief Cornelius also built a secondary fort at the water gate and on the riverbank. Furthermore, bastions were extended from the city wall as a supplement."

"These past few days I've selected several points outside the new city for on-site inspections, confirming that no matter which attack route we take, it will all be within the range of artillery fire from inside the city—Chief Cornelius not only cleared the firing line, but even altered the original terrain in some directions."

“The main fort’s defenses are particularly formidable,” Woods said, pointing to the area in front of the fort. “Do you see the color of the soil around the main fort? It’s all fresh soil. The area around the main fort looks flat, but it’s actually all gentle slopes. Once you walk up, you’ll be right in front of the concealment wall, the triangular bunker, and the main fort’s firing line.”

Woods bit his lip and forced a conclusion: "I'm pretty sure that's a kill zone designed by Chief Cornelius. So, under no circumstances should I recommend a direct assault on that fortress."

The atmosphere was already a bit awkward today, and the officers present were all very careful, afraid of offending General Gaisa.

Captain Woods's words made the atmosphere even more tense. The other officers accompanying the inspection fell silent, not daring to make a sound.

“[Palatu profanity],” Gaisa Adonis himself broke the silence first, gritting his teeth and saying hatefully, “These bastards from the United Provinces, after all these years, they still only know this one set of turtle sword techniques! From the foot of the mountain to Palatour, it’s always the same move, aren’t they ashamed! [Palatu profanity]!”

The officers present looked at each other, unsure of how to respond.

However, after hurling his insults, Gaisa suddenly burst into laughter.

He turned to his men and said sincerely, "But I have to admit, their 'turtle sword technique' is really not bad... Cornelius, that bastard, did a great job, giving us a tough problem."

Seeing the carefree and unrestrained smile on someone's face, the officers present all breathed a sigh of relief—to be honest, this was the Gaisa Adonis they knew.

The irritable general who used to instill fear in everyone had truly exhausted them.

Gesa stroked his bald head and asked, "Has the letter urging surrender been sent in?"

“It’s been sent in,” Loson replied quickly.

"What's the reaction?" Gaisa asked Loson.

Loson looked troubled. "Minister Cornelius has not yet replied."

“I’m not asking Cornelius—that guy’s a rock in the Oathbreaker’s latrine, stinking and hard, and thinks he’s superior to everyone else,” Gaisa asked with a laugh. “I’m asking about the reaction of the rest of the city. Didn’t anyone secretly slack off the walls to show their loyalty?”

“Well… so far no ‘insider’ has contacted us,” Losang thought for a moment and joked, “so if you ask me, there must be another trench behind that rammed earth wall.”

Gaisa laughed heartily, and the officers present also laughed along.

Seeing that the atmosphere was gradually easing, Woods Frank seized the opportunity, mustered his courage, and interjected, "Actually... Secretary Cornelius could have done an even better job."

Gaisa's smile froze on his face, his eyebrows furrowed, and everyone's hearts leaped into their throats. Woods also suddenly became the center of attention, making him extremely uncomfortable.

“Explain,” Gaisa stared at his old subordinate, “Captain.”

"Yes, sir!" Woods instinctively saluted, gesturing wildly. "Judging from the direction and depth of the trenches, Chief Secretary Cornelius must have a plan to divert Ten Arrows River water into them. After all, trenches are commonly used in foothills, so it's not surprising that the Chief Secretary wants to copy the experience of the United Provinces."

"However, it may be because they did not plan the construction schedule well, or more likely because we launched our offensive earlier than they expected."

Woods glanced furtively at Senior Loson, who had just spoken up for him. "The harassment by our light cavalry has also slowed down their progress... In short, the trenches on the west bank are not yet finished, at least not quite in the ideal state."

Gaisa chuckled. "What, Captain? Are you saying we're not too late?"

“It’s late compared to yesterday,” Woods said with a determined voice, “but it’s not too late compared to tomorrow!”

Gaisa glared at him. "You brat, are you here to lecture me? Speak your mind!"

Facing the gazes of everyone present, Woods steeled himself and answered loudly, "I suggest we launch an attack immediately!"

Skul Mecklen frowned and questioned in a deep voice, "Captain, do you know that there's only one battalion... oh, no, one company at the front right now? The main force is still behind, and most importantly, the artillery isn't even in position yet. Are you suggesting that a single battalion of light infantry launch a siege on its own?"

Woods was a little overwhelmed and retorted in a low voice, "We weren't ready, but the enemy wasn't ready either."

Skull glanced at the trenches and earthen walls outside the new city walls. "I don't think this is what you call unprepared."

“Chief Cornelius is well prepared on the West Coast,” Woods paused, then said emphatically, “but only on the West Coast.”

Most of the officers present immediately understood Captain Woods's implied meaning, especially the two generals.

Gaisamo stroked the broken scar on his left cheek and questioned, "But the walls of the old city are much stronger than the walls on the west bank. The stones used are not even in the same grade. And there is a moat over there."

“That’s right. The walls of the old city have been reinforced over the past hundred years, making them higher, thicker, and stronger. They also have a moat. The walls of the new city are simply incomparable to them,” Woods first affirmed his former superior’s statement, then changed the subject, “Minister Cornelius thinks so too! That’s why he has focused his resources on strengthening the West Bank.”

Captain Woods spoke more and more fluently: "I think that instead of trying to gnaw on the trenches and fortifications on the west bank, we should go to the other side and deal with the old-fashioned walls and moats."

"Didn't Cornelius build any more fortifications on the east bank?" Skul asked astutely.

“They must have planned a star-shaped fortress, but right now it’s just a rough outline,” Woods said, looking a little frustrated. “It’s still under construction.”

“Still under construction?” Gaisa looked at Loson Gyula with a mixture of surprise and anger.

“Your subordinate is incompetent,” Loson said helplessly, bowing apologetically. “The bridge thirty kilometers upstream was blown up by General Cornelius’s men…”

“Not only the fixed bridge, but also the materials used to build the pontoon bridge have been either confiscated or destroyed by the Director General,” Woods chimed in, scratching his head. “We are trying to figure out a solution.”

Gaisa glanced down at the scorched earth beneath his horse's hooves—the small mound where the new army officers were now located had once been a grove of trees, now burned and felled, cleaner than his head.

In the harvested fields outside the city, the windbreaks that farmers used to plant along roadsides and between fields to demarcate their land have disappeared.

Looking around, the area around the Kings' Castle seemed exceptionally desolate, with only a solitary city, even more bleak than the Hed Grassland.

Gaisa sighed, without blaming Loson and Woods.

“Captain, there’s no bridge,” Skull said, not readily believing Woods, and pressed on seriously, “How do you know about the other side?”

"I sent men to swim across the river to scout out the enemy's situation, and they confirmed that the artillery fortification on the east bank was only in its initial stages and was still under construction."

"Oh?" Skull became increasingly suspicious. "Surveying by swimming isn't dangerous? You're making that decision so easily?"

Woods paused for a moment, then answered softly, "I sent myself across the river."

Skul remained silent.

“Send someone else next time,” Gaisa said with a grim face, giving Captain Woods a vicious glare.

"Yes." Woods, covered in sweat, raised his hand in salute.

“There’s no bridge,” Gaisa continued coldly. “How do you plan to cross the river? And how do you plan to ‘launch an attack immediately’?”

"The east bank is just the main direction I suggested, but launching an attack immediately does not mean directly attacking the walls of the old city."

"Where do you want to hit?"

Woods pointed to the distant island in the middle of the lake: "There—Margate Island!"

[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, donations, and comments. Thank you everyone!]