Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 567 Siege (19)
[Kings' Castle]
Major Fritz rushed down from the old castle and headed straight for the Big Wild Goose Bridge, only lingering briefly at the Old Water Gate.

The military police responsible for guarding the old water gate were so nervous that they started asking the quartermaster for passes—this was not a good sign.

Although the main battlefield was not in Zhuwangbao, even the most oblivious soldiers and civilians in the city could vaguely sense that the siege had reached a critical juncture.

The Dayan Bridge was brightly lit as engineers were urgently dismantling the only passage between the new and old city.

Fritz found Brigadier General Cornelius, who was fully armed, at the bridgehead.

This was the first time Fritz had seen Jason Cornelis in armor, the latter leaning on a simple sword, gazing at the distant island of Margit.

“Commander,” Fritz quickly raised his hand in salute.

Seeing Fritz approach, Cornelius withdrew his gaze and nodded slightly, "Major."

“A force of seven, eight, or nine hundred men is ready and can land on the island now,” Fritz reported rapidly. “Captain Leiden is awaiting your orders.”

Cornelius did not give an immediate reply, but instead sighed, "What a pity."

“Unfortunately… what do you mean?” Fritz asked cautiously.

"There's been quite a commotion on the island. It seems the rebels have been 'moving stones onto the city walls' quite a bit," Cornelius said, both pleased and regretful. "Let me test you, Major. At this point, if you still had a thousand men available, where would you use them?"

“I am slow-witted,” Fritz said, not wanting to waste time, so he gave up on answering and said, “Please enlighten me.”

“If we had a thousand men left, we should have stormed the rebel trenches outside the city; if we had two thousand men left, we should have raided the rebel camp,” Cornelius shook his head. “Unfortunately, we don’t.”

Cornelius changed the subject, pondering, "However, even if we could, we might not be able to break through the rebels' defenses. The rebel commander in charge of the siege is very cautious; he'd rather waste manpower and time to surround the new city first, not wanting to leave us any opportunities. He's confident that we're outnumbered and determined to drag us into a war of attrition... This style is quite unfamiliar..."

Fritz remained silent.

Cornelius set aside his questions, gripped the sword that had once hung at Ned Smith's waist, and calmly ordered, "Send Captain Leiden to set off. Have him warn the rebels in the bishop's castle to be careful of their desperate attempt to seize the Domoncos Monastery."

Fritz pressed his boot heels together to indicate that he had noted it down. "Are there any other orders to deliver to the two lieutenant colonels?"

“What else could it be?” Cornelius understood what the students meant, but he just smiled. “Should we tell them that we’re dismantling the bridge and that they have to hold out until dawn no matter what?”

Fritz hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

"There's no need for such nonsense. I trust Lieutenant Colonel Lordwick and Lieutenant Colonel Montecouccoli's abilities and integrity."

Fritz raised his hand in salute, but did not leave. "What about the Palatines who took over the defenses of the new city? Can they be trusted?"

“In any case, we cannot waste our precious troops on a sit-in,” Cornelius said magnanimously. “So, we can only hope that Grove Magnus has not misjudged us.”

Fritz frowned and said in a deep voice, "That guy has been trying to escape all along. If we hadn't been holding him back, he would have run off to Guitu City long ago. I don't trust him, nor do I trust his people."

Cornelius gently patted the young man on the shoulder: "At this juncture, it is our people who are trying to escape."

……

Meanwhile, outside the new city of Kingsburg, in a stronghold, the reserve officers stationed there were all perched on the walls, gazing longingly in the direction of Magitek Island.

Houdel and his two companions were also among them. Instead of squeezing in with the others, they found a spot on the side where the view wasn't great, but there were fewer people, so they could whisper among themselves.

In reality, even with the best view, it's meaningless.

Because of the obstruction of the river embankment, the reserve officers had no way of seeing Margit Island.

But the crowd still couldn't resist sticking their heads out of the wall, searching for every flash of light on the horizon and listening to the sounds coming from afar.

Until the thunder and lightning subsided.

"Is it quiet now?" Xiao Ma Jia asked anxiously, whispering in her ear, "Is it over?"

“How could it be so fast?” Claude scoffed. “Those provincial guys are too weak.”

"Then what's going on? Why is there no sound?"

“Who knows?” Claude shrugged. “There are all sorts of strange things on the battlefield. It’s normal to take a break when you’re tired of fighting before continuing.”

“In short,” Houdel interjected sullenly, “a fight has broken out, and it has nothing to do with us.”

"Then why did you bring us here? And give us weapons?" Little Ma Jia asked, utterly confused. "And why won't you let us sleep?"

“If the baby face didn’t say anything, who would know?” Houdel scoffed. “You didn’t ask either, did you?”

The magnetic voice that suddenly rang in their ears startled the three of them, sending a chill down their spines.

Before they knew it, the baby-faced man had walked up behind them.

Houdel and his two companions immediately fell silent.

“Disrespectful to teachers,” the baby-faced man said with a smile, “you’ll lose one point.”

“Yes,” Houdel said, already fed up with the situation, “but can you tell us why we’re being kept here tonight?”

“No,” the baby-faced man replied curtly, “It’s a matter of great importance, and you’re not qualified to know.”

The three trainees seemed to have been doused with cold water, and immediately became listless.

However, the baby-faced man, whose hopes had been dashed, still let slip a hint: "Shouldn't you know Richard Mason better than I do? The major never wastes anything; he must have his reasons for putting you here."

The baby-faced man glanced at the Kings' Castle in the night and said quietly, "Perhaps, thanks to you, I can become one of the first people to break into the Kings' Castle."

"Huh?" Little Ma Jiaya, whether she didn't understand or didn't hear clearly, subconsciously widened her eyes. "Break into the Fortress of Kings?"

This immediately drew the attention of the students nearby.

“Loud noise,” the baby-faced man said with a smile, “one point will be deducted from your score.”

Little Ma Jiya had no way to express her suffering, so she could only shut her mouth and give a salute.

"You mean...?" Claude tried to keep his voice down, but his excitement was still palpable. "Maybe we can take over Kingsburg tonight?"

“I didn’t say that,” the baby-faced man chuckled.

“That is…” Claude thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, “Entering the city?”

"Who knows?" the baby-faced man replied casually. "Maybe if we're lucky."

Claude got the answer he wanted, grabbed Hodel's shoulder and shook him violently. "Did you hear that, monkey?"

Houdel remained completely unmoved, like a pillar, no matter how much Claude shook him, because he remembered what the baby-faced man had said when they first met.

“Squad leader,” Houdel asked cautiously, “your home…is in Kingsburg?”

The baby-faced man raised an eyebrow, sized up Houdel, and after a moment, sighed softly, "Thanks to you all, maybe I'll be able to go home soon..."

Having grown accustomed to the baby-faced man's signature wicked smile, the fact that he was showing genuine emotion for the first time left the three of them somewhat bewildered.

“That’s good,” Claude scratched his head. “You still have a home, unlike me and the monkey, neither of us has a home.”

“That’s right, that’s right,” Little Ma Jiya chimed in from the side.

Houdel immediately elbowed each of the men on either side.

The baby-faced man chuckled dryly, nodded to the three of them, and turned to leave.

But after taking only one step, he turned back and addressed the three men—especially Houdel—with earnest words:

"Don't waste your energy fighting with certain people. If the fight is over, then focus on your studies. Once you've gone to school, your lives will be completely different. As for those people, ignore them; they'll be weeded out sooner or later."

Claude and Maggie nodded, looking bewildered.

Houdel's attention, however, was elsewhere. "Screen out? You mean, not everyone can graduate?"

"Who told you everyone can graduate?" The baby-faced man flashed his signature smile again. "Otherwise, why would I deduct points from your grades?"

……

Meanwhile, on the "King's Castle," Groni Misha saw a light appear on the other side of the trench.

The lights then began to flicker on and off rhythmically.

That was the agreed-upon signal.

[I guess I still can't make promises I'll keep. (T_T)]
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