Imperial Crown.

Chapter 365: The Plan of Extermination

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……

Even Raven, who is known for his madness, couldn't help but feel his heart beating faster when he thought of this tactic.

If successful, it could indeed break the deadlock.

But if you fail, the result you will face will be...

completely annihilated!

Wanna take a gamble?

"call……"

Taking a deep breath and letting it out long, Raven calmed himself down.

No matter what tactics, they are just talk before actually seeing the Blue Castle.

They did not stay in Winterspring for long, leaving a small number of auxiliary troops to garrison there. Three days later, Raven and Jonah led their army and set off.

It’s not that Raven didn’t know how to be considerate of Jonah and his Gaoling Army. In fact, this was a joint decision between the two of them.

Spring is coming soon.

When the temperature rises and the permafrost melts, the already poor roads in the Principality of Eivor will become extremely muddy. Marching in such conditions would be simply asking for trouble.

The journey is not far.

On February 1200, 2, Raven finally led the Eagle Army to the outskirts of Blue Castle.

"Is this the Blue Castle..."

Riding on his horse, Raven looked at the towering city walls with a frown on his face.

Even though he had known about the size of the Blue Castle in detail from intelligence, he was still shocked by the capital of the Principality of Eivor when he saw it with his own eyes.

It was a huge star-shaped city, a regular hexagon, with six walls, 6 meters high, and each wall was more than 9 meters long.

Every 50 meters, there is a crossbow - there are as many as 60 crossbows on each city wall!
There is a striking and protruding bastion at the angle between every two city walls, which is enough for the people on top to attack the enemies below the city from a high vantage point without any blind spots.

The Hailan River flows into the city from the northeastern side of the city wall and flows out from the southwest side of the city wall.

And the azure city wall is shining brightly under the sunlight, like a blue beast!
"God..."

Eric lifted his visor in surprise and rubbed his little eye until it turned red.

In his previous imagination, no matter how big Blue Castle was, it would at most be similar to the City of Mon'en.

But now it seems that the size of Blue Castle is three times that of Mon'en City!
Even if all the Eagle Army and Jonah's army were to attack, they might not be able to occupy the walls of Blue Castle!
Attack by force?
How many lives would it take to build such a high city wall?

"..."

Count Jonah remained silent, but his face became extremely gloomy.

He thought of a history.

More than 550 years ago.

At that time, the Principality of Eivor had just been established and the high walls of the northern and southern defense lines had not yet been built, but it was attacked by the Insa Empire.

A total of 20 elite Insa soldiers were in a stalemate with Eivor under the Blue Castle for a whole year!
During this period, Insa tried various tactics, but all failed.

In the end, they had to retreat in a hurry, leaving behind 7 corpses and abandoning the plan to annex Eivor.

It was also after that time that the Principality of Eivor was truly recognized by many human regimes on the continent.

Jonah once very much doubted the authenticity of this history, because the Grand Duke of the Duchy of Eivor at that time was a tyrant who usurped the position of his nephew, "Eivor II".

This man was known for his political shrewdness, greedy character and military incompetence.

Even though he had the merit and prestige of repelling Insa's 20 troops, he was overthrown by his ministers in his later years, leading Eivor into a long period of tyranny, with various families taking turns to be the boss.

It wasn't until about 150 years ago that the Grand Duke position returned to the Eivor family.

How could such a leader possibly resist 20 elite Insa troops?

Now Jonah understood completely.

Blue Castle is indeed not a city that can be easily breached.

Not to mention that his infantry corps has not arrived yet. Even if it did, together with the people under Raven, there would only be about 4 people.

What they were facing was an army of 32 occupying a fortified city!

Just then, a horn sounded, and it was Raven who was going to convene a military meeting.

"Send the order and set up camp." Jonah regained his composure:
"Gimangs, come with me!"

"Yes, sir!"

Kimmens was a viscount - to be more precise, a court viscount in Jonah's service.

Although he had a title, his fiefdom had long been lost, and the "Hopkins" family, who had served Jonah for generations, were both eunuchs and butlers.

When the troops were away, Kimmons became Jonah's adjutant.

He was very proud of this, so he tried to make his posture and expression perfect.

The plate armor on his body was spotless, his right hand was always across his chest, his chest was straightened like a rooster, and his steps were steady, a typical aristocratic pace.

This is nothing in normal times, but in the military camp, it seems as exaggerated as an opera singer.

The worst thing was his expression.

On his face, which was as flabby as a bulldog's, was a face as stiff as a dead person's, with his eyes only half open, and he looked at everyone as if they owed him three or five hundred gold coins and asked for a beating.

With this expression on his face, he followed Jonah to the tent that Raven had just pitched.

There were quite a few people moving things outside, making the place look a bit messy, so Raven just glanced at him and didn't pay much attention to it.

"Baron Raven, I think it's time to formulate a specific strategy for the future." Earl Jonah said straight to the point:
"As you can see, Blue Castle cannot be taken by force, so we must find a way to get the Eivor people to come out of the city and fight us!"

Raven did not respond immediately, but looked at others.

Most of the officers present shared the same opinion and nodded in agreement.

After all, siege is not that easy.

Assuming there are 60 crossbows on one city wall, even if the attack range of these crossbows is limited, basically every point on the battlefield may be hit by simultaneous sniping from at least 6 crossbows.

In this case, it would require huge losses to transport siege equipment to the edge of the city wall.

And with the lessons learned from the previous times, the Eivor people will probably respond more carefully this time. With their manpower and material resources, they can build several times more catapults than Raven's side.

It could be hundreds or even thousands of aircraft.

Hundreds and thousands of boulders were thrown down, causing damage...

"Baron Raven, the Earl is asking for your opinion." Jin Mans said with a little dissatisfaction.

Raven did not look at him, but said to Jonah: "Count Jonah, since you have proposed this direction, you must have a plan in mind, right?"

"That's right." Jonah nodded: "Compared to Eivor, our advantage lies in mobility."

"The Blue Castle is indestructible, so let's attack in other directions!"

Count Jonah stood up and pointed at the map:

"The Aiwo County where the Blue Castle is located is the core of the Aiwo County. With it as the center, the Hendin County to the northwest, the Bolan County to the southwest, and the Kruk County to the southeast together form the Aiwo Plain, the richest area in the entire principality."

“Its economy is the most developed and its population is the most dense.”

"Playing away from home is a disadvantage for us, but also an advantage."

"The enemy's forces have been basically exhausted. We can completely split the troops into small units, with the Aiwo region as the core, and sweep from the outside to the inside."

"Burn down the houses, loot the food, and drive the refugees toward the Blue Castle!"

"In this case, either Blue Castle opens its gates to welcome the refugees and consumes a huge amount of food in the city; or it refuses to let the refugees out of the city and watches them starve to death!"

"Either Blue Castle can't sustain the food consumption, or it's been so excited that it can no longer sit still—

No matter what the situation is, the Eivor people will take the initiative to open the door and fight a decisive battle with us!

This is exactly what we want to achieve!"

After these words were spoken, the entire tent fell silent, with surprise flashing in the officers' eyes.

This is indeed a very effective method.

Moreover, leading the army out to plunder can also generate a lot of revenue, which is beneficial to both the public and private sectors!
Lancha closed his eyes in despair.

Intellectually, this is indeed the best approach the Eagle Army can take at the moment.

But as an Eivor, he was powerless and could only watch his hometown engulfed in a hellish sea of ​​fire!
If I had known earlier, I shouldn't have surrendered.

It would have been better for me to die then than to suffer here now.

“I don’t agree with this tactic.”

what?
Did I tell the truth?
Lancha opened his eyes and saw an unexpected sight.

The faces of the other officers, including Eric, were filled with surprise. Earl Jonah frowned, and behind him, Kimmans showed undisguised disgust on his face.

Everyone's eyes were focused on Raven's face.

"What did you say?" asked Jin Mans.

"I said, I don't agree with this plan." Raven repeated his words calmly.

"But, why!?" Jin Mangs' tone became more serious:

"Baron Raven, although you are the commander-in-chief of this military operation, is there any problem with the Earl's plan? If not, why not use it?" "You must know that denying others will not increase your majesty!"

"Shut up!" Eric stood up.
"Mr. Kimmons, please watch your attitude when you speak!"

Raven smiled in his heart, Eric is indeed a rough but meticulous person.

Although Jin Mangs was a viscount, he called him "Sir".

And the constipated expression on Kimmons' face as if his lungs were poked showed that Eric had hit the nail on the head with just one word.

"Well, since this is a military meeting, of course everyone can speak freely. We in the Eagle Army have never had a tradition of not allowing people to speak." Although the words were meant to be a lesson, Raven smiled and nodded to Eric, then turned to Earl Jonah, completely ignoring Kimmans:

"It's not that your plan is not good enough, it's just that there are some things you haven't considered carefully."

Although it was Jin Mans who was speaking just now, Earl Jonah was genuinely unhappy, otherwise he would have stopped the conversation long ago. So he just nodded and motioned Raven to continue.

"Earl Jonah has already talked about the advantages of this method, so let me talk about its disadvantages." Raven looked away and scanned the entire audience:

"Indeed, what Earl Jonah did is very likely to force the Eivor people to fight a decisive battle with us, but there is a question, have you ever thought about it?"

“Why have we been able to win every battle so far?”

The officers looked at each other and then started talking.

Some people say that it is because the Eagle Army is of better quality, some say that the Wind King’s troops were unexpected, and some say that the Eagle Army is better equipped.

Of course, there was also a lot of hype and praise for Raven's military abilities.

After listening to all of this, Raven nodded:
"Yes, but not entirely right."

“Let me answer my last question with another one.

Why is it that since entering Eivor, especially the Battle of Thorn Ridge, in the last two battles, the enemy can be said to have fled without any effective resistance? "

"Because we dare to fight, they are afraid of fighting."

“Because they have a way out.”

"Now we are at the gates of their city, and we are going to destroy the home they have grown up in. Will they collapse at the first blow like before?"

"There are 32 soldiers in the city. Excluding those who are just there to make up the numbers, we can count them as 16 soldiers - four times our number. With an army of this size, everyone is fearless and brave, and everyone becomes a hero on Thorn Ridge. Can we still win?"

As soon as the word "Thorn Ridge" came out, the officers of the Eagle Army present fell silent.

They were all people who had experienced that war, and they were indelibly impressed by how the soldiers led by Fowler persisted and refused to surrender even when all their men were killed.

Questions arose in their minds - yes, facing an army of more than 10, how could they win?
"Too cowardly, Baron Raven." Jin Mangs couldn't understand that feeling, and said with disdain: "I don't know what you saw on Thorn Ridge, but it must be just an illusion."

"Most of the Eivor army are just serfs. A group of sheep wearing armor are just sheep. But our Cairns army is a fearless pack of wolves and lions, and they are armed to the teeth!"

"You don't even understand this. Have you ever won every victory since you entered Eivor just by luck?"

This time, before Eric could speak, Raven's face darkened:
"hyena!"

"Yes!" The hyena had been holding back his anger for a long time, and immediately walked towards Jinmans upon hearing the order.

A gloomy look flashed across Earl Jonah's eyes: "Baron Raven, what do you mean by this?"

"I can tolerate discussions of opinions at a military meeting," Raven said.

"But I cannot allow attacks and insults to my character!"

Jonah's breath hitched.

Jin Mans shouted: "I am a viscount, you have no right to deal with me!"

"This is the army! I am the commander of this army!" Raven refused to give in.
"According to military discipline, anyone who roars at the barracks and insults his superiors will be lashed 30 times and executed immediately!"

The hyena stepped forward, grabbed Kimmons's shoulder and dragged him out.

Count Jonah lowered his eyelids.

Although he was unhappy in his heart, he would not turn against Raven because of such a thing, not to mention that it was indeed Jin Mangs who lost his voice first.

The sound of the whip hitting flesh rang out again and again, and each blow seemed to hit Count Jonah in the face, causing his cheeks to tremble constantly.

The 30 lashes were quickly completed, and Hyena walked in first, followed by Kimonos who limped in, looking at Raven with eyes full of resentment.

"Mr. Jinmans." Raven said calmly:

"I've already had the beating, so let's just call it a day. But your previous remarks, besides insulting me, also had many other mistakes that I must point out."

Jin Mangs was so angry that he was about to explode.

If the physical humiliation is not enough, are you going to humiliate me mentally as well?

But the whip marks on his back were now painful and itchy, and they were swollen and pressed against his armor, making it difficult for him to breathe. Count Jonah had no intention of standing up for him, so he could only suppress his anger:

"Then let Baron Raven speak!"

He wanted to see what Raven could come up with.

Raven smiled faintly: "Mr. Jinmans, you seem to look down on serfs."

"Do you know how many of the officers here were born as serfs?"

Jin Mangs' heart skipped a beat, and then he realized that most of the officers present were looking at him with sneering expressions.

Raven asked again, "Then do you know why I was able to win the Battle of Iron Birch and defeat Earl Palmer and Marquis Faraday despite being outnumbered 1:7?"

This sentence immediately attracted Count Jonah's curiosity.

The intensity of the battle could be seen from the remains on the battlefield, and he was indeed very curious.

Raven said, "Because at that time, Marquis Faraday's men were in Tiehua County, doing what Count Jonah planned without any plan."

"Iron Birch County is just a relatively poor county in the Principality of Eivor. It has a small population, and most of them are serfs that Mr. Jinmans looks down upon."

"But it was them who, within a month, killed and intercepted one-third of the logistics forces of the Faraday-Palmer coalition, killed thousands of soldiers, and forced Palmer to fight a decisive battle with me!"

"Serfs are also human beings. They will get angry, they will resist, and they will stab you at the critical moment!"

At this point, Raven's expression became more sincere. He looked at Jonah and said, "Right now, our military strength is far inferior to the combined forces of Palmer and Faraday, and the land and population you plan to clear far exceed that of Tiehua County by several times or even 10 times."

"If the Principality of Eivor does not come out for a decisive battle as you planned, but instead drags it out, how many troops do you think we should put into the logistics force to ensure that nothing goes wrong? And how long can we hold out in such a harsh environment where everyone is an enemy?"

Count Jonah fell into deep thought.

He now understood more and more why Raven was able to advance so rapidly and win battles time and again in the Principality of Eivor.

Because Eivor's people are not Raven's enemies.

And Jonah also witnessed this, as evidenced by the bustling scene in Bolan.

The army cannot drive away all the refugees, and many of them will surely flee into the countryside.

The locals are much more familiar with the terrain than outsiders like them.

Just thinking about Jonah, one can think of poisoning, leading people to death, blocking roads and other sinister and despicable means.

Jonah couldn't help but shudder when he thought about the logistics supply route being filled with these hateful, unscrupulous avengers.

There was a sound of armor colliding behind him. It was obvious that Jin Mans wanted to say something, but Jonah immediately raised his hand and looked at Raven seriously and said:
"So, Baron Raven, how do you plan to fight the enemy?"

Raven thought for a moment and responded, "I do have an idea, but I need more information at this point."

"Next, I will send someone to infiltrate the Blue Castle and investigate carefully. Once I have enough intelligence, I will discuss this with the Earl."

Jonah nodded slowly and stood up. "In that case, I won't ask any more questions."

"However, I hope you, Baron Raven, will remember this."

"War...is always full of surprises."

Raven raised his eyebrows slightly. Earl Jonah was not only talking about this war, but also the war that was happening outside the provinces directly under the empire.

Although these two wars were thousands of miles apart, they influenced each other.

If there is no breakthrough here, and something changes on the front battlefield, then...

Raven closed his eyes and suppressed the thoughts that were surging in his mind:

"The meeting is dismissed!"

Next, Raven called William again and asked him and Ernada to repeat the same trick and go to the Blue Castle to gather intelligence.

Their faces were already memorized, and the upper route was difficult to take, but this time, Raven did not intend to let them spy on the nobles' attitudes;

"What do you want information about this kind of thing for?" William was very puzzled.

"Hey, this is too disgusting. Why don't you just find someone else to do it?" Ernada frowned and wanted to refuse.

Snap, snap.

Two money bags fell into their hands.

Ernada stood there in a daze, and William was still frowning.

Then, another purse fell into William's hands.

"We guarantee to complete the mission!" William immediately smiled and pulled Ernada out.

As a result, not long after leaving the tent, William let out a wail!
Raven's lips curled up into a smug smile - the last purse was filled with copper coins.

When you go out, you always have to have some change!
But Raven's good mood did not last long.

As Jonah said, war is full of surprises.

And these accidents happened one after another.

……

(End of this chapter)