You were made to farm, and now you're the emperor of an empire?

Chapter 187 Annihilating 800 Enemies, Losing 1000 of Our Own

In any war between two armies, there must ultimately be a commander-in-chief.

Frant is a more suitable candidate.

Because the Berchtes family is the most powerful, and Frant has the most extensive war experience.

But Frant was unwilling to take on this position.

Once you become the head coach, you can't slack off anymore.

Frant declined Berchtes's offer, saying Berchtes's forces were too small and he should only be responsible for supporting the operation. Instead, he recommended Count Condé.

Count Condé naturally took control of the army.

The original troop structure was as follows—

盖1000人。维1100人。西1500人。卡800人。贝100人。

They brought so many troops, originally intending to take it all in one fell swoop.

They only suffered heavy losses and realized that no matter how many troops they deployed, they couldn't break through the enemy's defenses, so they had no choice but to switch to a long-term blockade.

However, some of their troops were transferred away by their respective masters during this period.

In fact, if they haven't captured Sig Town by the end of summer, at least three of the five families will withdraw their troops.

We simply can't wait any longer.

They couldn't possibly hold onto a salt mine indefinitely; six months was the maximum they could manage. Seeing that it was fruitless, they naturally had to go back, accepting the loss.

The reason they haven't wavered yet is that Count Condé is envious. His neighbor is too powerful, and he's restless. He's willing to take on the logistics and supplies for the allied forces, allowing them to continue the blockade.

The current troop structure is as follows—

盖700人。维800人。西1100人。卡500人。贝50人。

Count Condé's forces, on the contrary, are increasing, now comprising half of his total strength.

Therefore, this count's influence grew.

Even the most unruly members of the beastly family had to be polite to the count—of course, that didn't stop them from secretly despising the quality of the latter's recruits.

Carter believed that five hundred beast warriors could easily defeat the latter's three thousand conscripts.

However, the five noble families now acknowledge Count Condé's contributions in this battle.

Once the town of Sig is captured, the valley land will belong to Earl Conde, and other families will only be able to share the benefits brought by the salt mine.

……

The allied forces were stationed five miles away from the valley.

The nobles began discussing battle plans.

How to attack? Who will attack?
“I suggest that our Lord Carter lead the way; his family’s beast warriors are renowned for their might,” Verichka said with a grin.

"Then you'd better watch out, lest a wild animal bite your neck while you're asleep!" Carter said coldly.

“The Vericckas are not easily intimidated!” Sir Foucault sneered, long since immune to such intimidating words.

"Enough!" Count Kant shouted, stopping the endless dispute.

Count Condé was in a real predicament.

Verichka was arrogant and sharp-tongued, a haughty personality that had developed since childhood.

But Beast Carter wasn't an elder in Verichka's family, so there was no reason for him to be indulged. He had long wanted to teach this arrogant brat a lesson.

The Beast Clan suffered heavy casualties in the battle of Sky Town, losing as many as forty or fifty clan warriors, which broke Carter's heart and made him look gloomy every day during that period.

Verichka disagreed, believing that Carter looked down on the sacrifices made by the Verichka family.

So only your family has lost someone? Who hasn't lost someone in their family?

No wonder Frant refused the job, Count Condé thought to himself.

Maintaining the balance between the five major families was exhausting for him.

How do we direct them to launch an attack now?

The Carter family was furious, as were the other families, each feeling they had been wronged.

They suffered losses but gained nothing; wasn't that a huge loss?

If they launch another charge like that, they'll probably all shield their teammates in front of them, and everyone will want to act as a backup, making it even harder to win.

Since a coalition is not feasible, individual families will have to attack. Therefore, the Earl said, "Sir Simon, how about you lead the charge in this battle?"

Roman can't afford to delay, and neither can they.

He needed to act quickly and retrieve the people who had been abducted; his poor, kidnapped farmers awaited his rescue.

Moreover, he could no longer tolerate the quarrels of those nobles from other places in front of him!

One person said forty or fifty people died, another said seventy or eighty, completely ignoring the fact that nearly two hundred soldiers in Kangde County had been killed or wounded.

He once voiced his dissatisfaction about this issue, and what he received in return was something that, while not exactly contemptuous, was even more contemptuous than contempt itself—

“My lord, the deaths of your soldiers were due to poor training. If they had been skilled warriors, they wouldn’t have ended up like this…”

That's what they all say.

He never mentioned it again, keeping his anger and frustration to himself.

He also wanted an army like that!
But I don't have any money!

If we can defeat Roman, reclaim the population, bring Sgard into his territory, and acquire the salt mine, we might be able to unlock the secret to the young lord's rapid rise to power and make him a powerful nobleman with influence in the Black Iron Continent.

……

Earl Condé stared at Sir Simon.

The Simon family crest is a "closed door," reflecting the family motto of "silence is golden."

The Simon family rarely voices their opinions unless absolutely necessary, but now they are colluding with the Carter family.

Sir Simon glanced at the Earl.

The latter spoke in a very kind tone, but the knight knew that the earl had not given him the right to refuse.

It was Simon's turn to make his contribution.

In the battle of Sig Town, both sides suffered casualties. It was only later that the Simon family had lost about thirty members, which was only higher than the casualties of the Berchtes family riders.

Were you secretly slacking off?
Sir Simon explained that they rushed too fast and blocked the way, preventing his men from reaching the shore.

Nobody believed that.

Foucault and Steve ridiculed him relentlessly.

But Sir Simon and Bald Carter had completely opposite personalities.

He was incredibly patient, accepting all the sarcasm and ridicule without retaliating. Unlike Bald Carter, who would explode at the slightest provocation.

“My Lord, we’ll do as you say. You’re the commander, so we’ll attack immediately.” Sir Simon was very tactful and hadn’t argued with anyone so far.

His previous actions had already drawn criticism from everyone.

If they dare to make excuses again, they will incur public wrath and be kicked out of the game.

Bald Carter was his ally, but he didn't speak up for him at this moment. Even if they are allies, they still have to sell out when necessary. In the end, someone has to be the one to take the lead.

The Simon family now has the second largest military force after the Kant family, with 1100 men.

The Kant family gained sovereignty over the town of Sig, but they still allowed other nobles to sell salt and share the profits. The Simon family was the strongest competitor.

He was also decisive, directly gathering all the family's infantry and entering the valley.

……

The disparity in troop strength is enormous.

It can be easy to fight, or it can be difficult to fight.

First, when the side with fewer troops sees the enemy's overwhelming strength, morale will waver and spirits will be low.

If an army is poorly trained, it will collapse on its own after a few battles, without needing a fierce offensive.

Then, facing a force several times larger, fighting against overwhelming odds is a huge drain on one's energy and physical strength.

If a fight lasts ten minutes or so, it takes half a day to recover.

They were exhausted, while the enemy could still send out soldiers with plenty of energy to continue fighting, so they were naturally routed.

But the difficulty lies in the fact that it was two thousand soldiers, not two thousand pigs.

People will die on both sides.

Killing 800 enemies while losing 1,000 of your own is considered normal.

(End of this chapter)