Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords.

Chapter 419, Chapter 418: Danger
In fact, given Debei's current national strength, it simply cannot afford the military expenses and supplies to support the expeditionary force in waging a protracted war of attrition against these Gulf people within the territory of the Gulf Empire.

Therefore, the best course of action in this war is to achieve a swift victory, ideally decisively eliminating the Persian Gulf Empire's fighting force in one fell swoop.

This is a point that the entire high command of the expeditionary force is well aware of, and it is also a consensus among the entire high command of the expeditionary force.

However, the opposing commander-in-chief was like an old fox, seemingly having seen through the expeditionary force's weaknesses, and dispersed the main force to various important military nodes in the southern provinces.

If the expeditionary force wanted a quick victory, it would inevitably have to divide its forces.

Because it was a three-nation alliance, breaking up and forming separate legions between the three countries would inevitably create obstacles. Therefore, each of the three countries sent its own armies to attack.

Therefore, the mages of Tylersey did not break up their units to support the other allied forces. Apart from half of the mages who remained at Whale Harbor, the rest, along with five thousand magic swordsmen and three legions borrowed from Bernard, attacked Fog City.

This is an important city of the Persian Gulf Empire, built against the cliff. Not to mention the steep cliffs all around, the city walls alone are 38 meters high, and the city is defended by a garrison of up to 50,000 men, with more than a dozen fire mages from the temple assisting in the defense.

"This is truly an encounter with the undead... How can these Gulf people maintain such high morale despite being hit by so many spells?!"

The Muslim held a telescope, looking at the distant city walls where shouts of battle still echoed, and couldn't quite understand the problem.

The entire city of Fog was bombarded by the magic of their fifty mages for ten days. Although the enemy also had a group of priests proficient in fire element, their numbers were clearly inferior to theirs, and they were unable to intercept all the magic.

The enemy has lost tens of thousands of people to spells during this period, but their morale remains high.

The dragon knight fought so easily, but it was so difficult for them.

The entire Fog-Covered City has now become a meat grinder, where countless lives perish every day.

Blood was cheaper than water here, and there was so much of it that the entire city wall was painted red.

The opponent also had an old mage whose cultivation was even higher than his, which prevented him from giving his all to aid the battlefield. Otherwise, once his magic power was exhausted, the opponent would definitely find an opportunity to cause trouble.

"Ansuna, what did the military say?" The Muslim turned to look at the tall female mage next to him, who had a beauty mark at the corner of her eye.

Just a short while ago, a communication came in from the military headquarters.

“Bernard warned us to be careful of their gryphon riders’ sneak attacks.” Ansuna hung the communication magic stone back on her waist. “Just this morning, the Holy Sith army was ambushed from the rear by a group of gryphon riders equipped with special magical gear. If they hadn’t brought out the Zhaid Golems, they might have suffered heavy losses.”

“If Lord Li Wei were here, this war might have ended long ago,” the Muslim said, shaking his head.

The enemy captured Shiling Fortress so quickly that they had only just arrived in Wulong City and hadn't even had time to scout the enemy's situation when they received this exciting news from the military headquarters.

They had initially been eager to boost morale and take over Fog City in one fell swoop, but unexpectedly, the battle had turned into a war of attrition.

However, there was no way to take this military node in a short time. The enemy was defending the city and had to spare energy to prevent being attacked.

These Persian Gulf soldiers have an exceptionally strong will.

It was so outstanding that even Muslims had to admire it.

However, taking Mist-shrouded City is only a matter of time. They, Taylor, have sent a full fifty mages here. If the fighting continues, unless every enemy is a fearless paladin, their morale will soon be crushed by the relentless bombardment of magic.

……

Inside Whale Harbor, the main hall of a castle has been transformed into a military headquarters.

Rows of embroidered and carved mahogany tables were placed in the hall, piled high with stacks of documents and papers, and military advisors moved about among them in a continuous stream.

Several of the expeditionary force's advisors and Bernard were gathered around a huge terrain sand table in the center, the most valuable item brought back by the Griffin Riders after their day and night surveys.

“These Gulf people are more resilient than we thought.” An advisor said, looking at the five castles that were almost interlocking on the sand table. “Currently, apart from that dragon knight, the other four legions are locked in a stalemate. Although the situation is still relatively good, it will inevitably waste a lot of time.”

“If this Dragon Knight had led his men to assist from the flank, our expeditionary force would have quickly taken control of the next four important cities. But instead, they resorted to such despicable means.” One of the advisors gritted his teeth in anger.

Infecting soldiers with diseases by having prostitutes contract them is a method that many people would think of, but the key point is that it is extremely shameless and would surely bring eternal infamy if done.

But to everyone's surprise, these people from the Persian Gulf actually did it.

“This is war, and war is all about winning and losing, nothing else,” Bernard said. “Fortunately, this disease is not fatal.”

In fact, the governor had secretly communicated with Li Wei alone and learned that none of the soldiers at Gaoyabao had contracted the disease. He was amazed by the strict discipline of Gaoyabao and was also secretly relieved.

"Commander, the intelligence brought back by the Griffin Knights indicates that the enemy has begun sending reinforcements towards the four cities. Should we also send troops to support them?"

Baijing Port was the base of the expeditionary force, so more than half of the expeditionary force's soldiers were stationed there. At this moment, facing the enemy's reinforcements, the staff began to consider whether to send more soldiers to support them.

"Don't you find it strange?" Bernard didn't answer, but instead asked a completely unrelated question.

The advisors exchanged glances, then adopted a humble and eager-to-learn attitude.

"These people from the Persian Gulf, they didn't send reinforcements earlier or later, but only when the allied soldiers at Gaoyabao in Shiling Fort were infected with the disease. Do you think it's necessary to make such a big fuss just to hold these few military nodes?" Bernard took a sip of the cold tea handed to him by the waiter and smiled slightly.

"Could the reinforcements just be a bluff to draw our attention? Or do they actually have other intentions?" the staff speculated.

“That’s true, and that’s not true either.” The one-armed governor pointed to the white clouds in the sky, as if explaining or teaching: “You can see the existence of clouds, but you can’t touch them with your hands. You can’t say that they have a physical body, nor can you say that they are illusory.”

Whether the enemy's reinforcements are a bluff or not depends entirely on how we handle it. If we send reinforcements, the enemy's reinforcements are most likely fake; otherwise, they are real.

This cryptic and incomprehensible lecture prompted the staff to begin to ponder deeply.

"Their real target is Whale Harbor!" someone suddenly exclaimed.

“If we send reinforcements, the strength of Whale Harbor will inevitably be weakened, and the enemy will send people to attack the supply depot. If we don’t send support, the enemy can safely attack our allied forces from both inside and outside.” The advisors looked at the one-armed governor and realized once again that they were still too inexperienced in front of him.

“That’s right.” Bernard nodded with a smile.

"Sir, what should we do?" the advisors asked.

Are we just going to let them stand here and watch the enemy reinforce without doing anything?

For the first time, they experienced how formidable the opposing commander was. Fortunately, they also had Bernard, a seasoned governor.

"Once you know their intentions, it's not difficult to deal with them. The worst thing about war is often knowing nothing about the enemy's objectives." Bernard's face still held a calm expression that reassured everyone.
"Dispatch three legions to strictly guard the warehouses storing supplies, have the griffon riders patrol in shifts day and night, and then send out suitable personnel to reinforce the other four battlefields."

The enemy's attack on Whale Harbor was most likely aimed at their supplies; as for retaking Whale Harbor, they wouldn't be that foolish.

Even though White Whale Harbor's military strength has been greatly weakened due to the reinforcements, it cannot be taken in a short time. This amount of time is enough for the allied forces outside to return.

"Yes, sir!" The officers saluted with heartfelt respect.

Bernard looked out the window, his hand in his pocket holding the communication magic stone, his eyes flickering as if he were deep in thought.

……

War has broken out in the southern provinces of the Persian Gulf Empire. Countless civilians are afraid of being affected. Those with relatives to rely on have fled to the city, while those without can only stay at home and pray that the soldiers will not come to their villages.

Especially in recent days, the situation has escalated to the point that farmers have even seen squads of elite soldiers passing by on the main road in front of the village.

They even saw the renowned Half-Moon Warriors of the Empire and those high-ranking priests and fire mages, while valiant eagle warriors occasionally swept across the sky.

Many speculated that the front lines had suffered a defeat, which was why they were sending large numbers of reinforcements.

But to be honest, they don't really care which side wins. They're just used to their old lives and are afraid that things will get even worse in the future, so they pray that their soldiers will win.

But if the new group doesn't do anything to these hardworking farmers even if they win, then they don't care who wins or loses. They only care if the winner can be understanding and lower the taxes.

The ten days of reinforcements from all sides became the last calm before the storm.

But this tranquility did not last long. On a bright, moonlit night, the sleeping White Whale Harbor seemed to awaken like a disturbed beast.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

Countless desperate shouts echoed over the military camp. The Debei soldiers, who had been waiting for their turn, poured out of the houses. Their orderly steps and the clanging of their armor resounded throughout White Whale Harbor. The few remaining civilians in White Whale Harbor were so frightened that they rushed to their doors, peeking out through the cracks to secretly observe what was happening outside.

But when the officers assembled their troops, ready to wield the swords of the Debe men against the attacking enemy, they were all dumbfounded.

In the sky, a group of air riders riding strange mounts circled above Whale Harbor. They were extremely fast and agile. As soon as a group of griffin riders took off, these air riders left only a series of mocking laughs in the air before flying away into the distance.

The enraged griffin riders tried to give chase, but found that no matter how hard they tried, they could not close the distance between them and could only watch helplessly as the Gulf people's air cavalry disappeared into the distance.

Meanwhile, chaos erupted in the expeditionary force's military command hall.

"Commander, Lord Muslim has sent word that, unlike the 8,000 reinforcements reported in the intelligence, 30,000 enemy soldiers have appeared outside Mist-Covered City! They include a large number of air cavalry and cavalry, a group of fire elemental mages, and even more soldiers coming from afar."

The counselors were sweating profusely as they kept reporting the messages coming from the communication magic stone.

"We've been tricked!" The staff's voices were dry. "The enemy's real target isn't reinforcements, nor the supplies at Whale Harbor, but the Talsey mages who are out there alone!!"

"How on earth did they manage to hide so many soldiers?!" a staff officer roared in frustration, his face filled with despair.

Even including their reinforcements, Fogvere City only has a little over 70,000 soldiers, plus 50 mages and 5,000 magic swordsmen.

The enemy's reinforcements of 30,000 soldiers, plus the city's 50,000 defenders, only amounted to 80,000, not much more than that.

However, it should be noted that the enemy is continuously reinforcing Fog City, clearly intending to crush these mages within Fog City.

Even if they send reinforcements now, it will take at least seven or eight days for them to arrive, and seven or eight days is enough time to change many more things.

If these fifty mages and seventy thousand warriors were to die in Mist-shrouded City, it would be an unacceptable and devastating loss for the expeditionary force, enough to cripple them.

But even in this tense situation, the staff saw their governor actually smile.

……

Inside Wirz Castle, a classically decorated study.

Looking at the decoration of this study alone, apart from the large number of books, there is nothing extremely luxurious about it, and it is quite inconspicuous. However, it is actually the "brain" of the main force in the Persian Gulf.

Howard leaned back in his chair, with a young woman in a white dress, her alluring figure barely concealed, standing behind him. Her slender fingers were gently pressing the old man's temples to soothe his nerves.

Howard's health is not what it used to be. Otherwise, according to his habits when he was young, the alluring body of a young girl would always excite his mind and put him in a very clear state. This state would allow him to think about problems without being affected by external things and distractions.

“The enemy’s dragon knights and mages are indeed formidable; their combined strength is almost unmatched.” The old man’s calm voice flowed gently through the study like water: “But there is no need to worry about this. War is not a mindless head-on collision, but requires careful thought.”

"As long as you separate them and deal with them one by one, it won't feel very difficult."

The officers from the Persian Gulf listened attentively.

(End of this chapter)