I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 349 I'm Going Crazy Too
"Sure enough, Seba and Charles reached some agreement or agreement, otherwise this wouldn't have happened."

After learning what happened at Camp One, Chris was deeply moved.

The Retalians reacted too quickly.

It's somewhat unbelievable that the Minesian fleet bombed the port of Omdur, and then the Retelians joined forces with the Minesians... no, perhaps not.

Chris thought about it for a while.

"For the countries of Minicia and Retelia, my presence is a real nuisance..."

Chris thought carefully about what he had done before and after taking over Tavitzky.
Ah, no need to think about it too much. Anyway, after thinking about it briefly, it seems that because of the players' aggressiveness, Chris has left a... well, rather deep impression on both Minicia and Leteria.

In short, both sides consider the Kingdom of Bagnia, as a third party, to be a problem, so they will definitely exclude the latter as a third party before officially starting the war.

This is normal thinking; the only abnormal thing is that they united too quickly.

After the fall of Omdur, the Retelians voluntarily left the province of Omdur, even abandoning the city of Goldshoe, which was very close to Tavitsky, allowing the Minisian army from Omdur to easily retake the city.

Things quickly became very strange. Minicia was in the east, Bagnia was in the south, and the Reterians had retreated to the province of Chivelevka in the south. The three countries seemed to be forming a strange standoff.

"No...no, this situation..."

Chris pondered. This situation seemed unfavorable for Bagnia. Although it had a fortified city to defend itself, and was confident that the two other countries wouldn't actually join forces to attack Bagnia, the current three-way standoff...

“We cannot allow this situation to develop. I don’t know who will benefit from it, but if war becomes the norm, I will definitely lose, and the Tavitsky Plain will be burned to the ground.”

Chris suddenly realized... As the weakest of the three countries, Bagnia absolutely could not sustain a prolonged war, nor could it withstand such continuous blood loss. Even if there were no problem with supplies, the consumption of manpower would be unbearable.

The other two countries, with their large populations, could outlast Baghnia.

“I have to take the initiative… Who should we attack? Minicia. They’ve just arrived in Golden Harvest City and haven’t established a foothold yet.”

However, Leteria couldn't ignore the situation. The three sides were too close together, and with their large cavalry force, they could easily reach Golden Ear City from the province of Chivelevka in a single day or two of forced march if they wanted to intervene.

We're going to take a gamble.

They gambled that their own fighting strength was strong enough, and that there was no tacit understanding or trust between the two sides.

"Secretary!"

"I'm here."

"Assemble the troops and prepare for attack!"

……

Chris is a dictator.

Although he himself lacked the awareness of being a tyrant and considered himself very democratic, it turned out that when Chris made a decision, no one could oppose him.

Dirac Hissos, Isaac, Connie, and Marlowe all opposed Chris's crazy strategy, but to no avail; Chris ignored them all.

The army is rapidly assembling. The First, Second, Third, Eighth, and Ninth Defense Legions, the Highland Legion, and all player warbands are gathering and have received orders.

Five defense corps and the Hegland Corps, totaling more than 12,500 regular troops, plus 5,000 Blue Banner troops, add up to nearly 20,000 combat soldiers. With the addition of logistical support troops and militia, it is not an exaggeration to call it an army of 30,000.

Chris organized these troops into the First Army.
The various player groups and individual players, totaling over ten thousand, formed the Second Army Group, which was the vanguard and marched towards Golden Harvest City, followed by the First Army Group led by Chris.

What should Tavitzky do?
Chris left behind a Blue Flag Army that was not yet fully trained, as well as several hundred players with city shares. They should be able to hold off the Leterian attack... It doesn't matter if they can't, as long as they can delay the attack for a while.

As long as Chris is alive, he won't let anyone go hungry.

As for whether the Retelian army would rush over and join forces with the Minisians to attack Bagnia... Chris knew that if the two were connected, the former would definitely do so. What he needed to do was to defeat the Minisian royal army in Golden Harvest City before the Retelians arrived.

……

Charles Stuart stood on the terrace of his mansion, which originally belonged to the Minnesota nobility, was then seized by the Retalians, and was eventually recaptured by him, so much so that he looked smugly at the city he had just "recaptured."

The wind blowing from afar carried the faint smell of gunpowder from the direction of Omdur, a reminder of his glorious victory a few days prior. He toyed with an exquisite gold cup in his hand, filled with golden rum, a specialty of Minicia.

"Your Highness, the main force of the Third Legion has begun unloading its equipment in Omdur and is expected to complete its assembly and head to Golden Harvest City within two days."

An adjutant reported respectfully.

Charles nodded in satisfaction.

"Very good. Speed ​​up logistics; we need to turn this place into a solid forward base as soon as possible."

He took a sip of the golden liquor; its refreshing taste invigorated him.

"The Retelians were smart enough to run away quickly, saving us a lot of effort. As for that little fox Seba, although the conversation was unpleasant, at least we reached a consensus on this point... Let's swat that buzzing Bagnian fly first."

He recalled his conversation with Seba Reteria's secret messenger, a conversation filled with probing and calculation.

Both sides wanted to tear each other apart immediately, but they were surprisingly in agreement on "eliminating the third-party troublemaker Chris".

The Reteria side was also very sincere. After the defeat at the Battle of Omdur, they decisively abandoned the entire Omdur province and tacitly allowed the Minesians to land on land, preparing to jointly pin the Bagnians to the isolated point of Tavitsky.

The three-way standoff? It's just a temporary illusion.

Once his 50,000-strong army has assembled in Golden Harvest City, and with the possible coordinated action of Seba, the fall of Tavitsky will only be a matter of time.

That will be the real showdown between Minicia and Retelia.

Charles was basking in the superiority of being in control of the situation, completely unaware that the "fly" in his eyes, instead of trembling in the corner waiting to be swatted, had instead revealed its deadly stinger.

"Your Highness..."

Another officer hurried onto the terrace, his face bearing a barely perceptible hint of seriousness.

"The scout team sent to the Tavitsky direction... still hasn't returned. This is the third batch in a row, and the agreed return time has passed."

Charles frowned slightly and placed the gold cup on the railing.

"None of them came back? Not a single one?"

"Yes, Your Highness, the last batch has been gone for more than six hours. Usually, even the furthest scouts should have sent back news by now."

The officer's voice was filled with worry.

“This is too unusual. It’s like…like they disappeared as soon as they entered that area.”

A hint of annoyance replaced Charles's smugness.

"Disappeared? Scouts are the most alert soldiers, how could they all disappear without a trace? Do the Bagnians dare to launch a preemptive strike and kill them all?" The thought had barely crossed his mind when he realized how absurd it was.

Is Chris now willing to leave his turtle shell and face the onslaught of Minicia's army?
"Perhaps we encountered Leterian scouts? Or... perhaps bandits from that region?"

The officer tried to explain, but his tone was clearly unconvincing.

Charles waved his hand impatiently.

"Send more! Send more people, send several more teams, to investigate in different directions. I need to know what those rats, Tavitsky, are doing! Do they dare to..."

His words stopped abruptly.

Because he no longer needed reports from the scouts.

A low, oppressive sound, like muffled thunder rolling across the earth, faintly came from the west.

That wasn't thunder, nor was it an earthquake; it was... the terrifying sound of thousands upon thousands of horses' hooves trampling through the spring mud, and countless footsteps pounding the earth!
Immediately afterwards, a piercing horn blared from the watchtowers on the western outskirts of Jinshui City, shattering the afternoon tranquility!
"Enemy attack!!!"

"Large numbers of enemy troops in the West!!!"

"The Bagnians are represented by the Bagnians' double-headed eagle banner!!"

Screams and alarms spread like wildfire from the city walls, as if the entire Golden Harvest City had been thrown into a boiling oil pot.

Charles lunged to the edge of the terrace, staring wide-eyed incredulously at the western horizon.

Because Golden Harvest City is a small city with a permanent population of less than 30,000, its city walls are not high, only about five meters high. Charles's residence, on the other hand, has two floors, with the first floor being five meters high and the terrace being more than ten meters high.

Therefore, Charles was able to see directly outside the city.

At the edge of the once peaceful plain, a gray wave was sweeping in at an alarming speed, like a flood bursting its banks, ignoring all formations and rushing madly toward the newly established and far from perfected Minisian outpost and sentry posts outside Golden Harvest City!

Following the frenzy of players came a neat array of advancing troops, like a steel jungle. Bagnian banners fluttered, spears stood like a forest, and armor reflected a cold gleam in the thin sunlight.

Chris's First and Second Army Groups, without any probing, pressed forward with all their might, heading straight for the still-unstable Jinsui City.

"Chris...he's gone mad?! How dare he?!"

Charles's handsome face instantly lost its smile, stunned for a moment by this sudden and completely illogical surprise.

However, the next second, a surge of joy rushed into his brain like magma, instantly dispelling all fear.

"A madman... but also a madman who's just throwing his life away!"

A startling light flashed in Charles's eyes, and a ruthless and excited smile spread across his lips.

"He actually dared to come out in full force, away from Tavitsky's turtle shell, and deliberately run into my gun barrel?! Good! Excellent!"

He instantly understood the key point: Chris was making a desperate gamble, trying to wipe out the Minisian army he led before the Retalians could react!

But this also means that Chris has completely exposed his main force in the open field, and behind him is Tavitsky, while to his south, Seba's cavalry is about to arrive!
“Yes, the Retalians…”

Charles turned abruptly and, addressing the stunned adjutants and officers around him, issued an almost roaring order, his voice trembling with excitement.

"Immediately, send the fastest messengers... no, send three teams of messengers to break through from different directions and rush to Chivelevka at all costs!"

Tell Seba Reteria! Chris's main force is right outside Golden Harvest City. Tell him to come here immediately, right now, with his cavalry at full speed!
Tell him this is the best chance to annihilate the Bagnians, quick!!!

"Yes, Your Highness!"

A quick-witted officer immediately took the order, turned around, and ran downstairs.

Charles rushed to the edge of the terrace again, his eyes burning with the intensity of the approaching gray tide and the steel legion following closely behind.

The initial shock and rage were replaced by the overwhelming power of the fighter jets and the belief in victory.

"Chris, do you think I'm one of those unsuspecting target ships in Omdour Harbor?"

He grinned.

"You want a quick victory? I'll drag you out until Seba's iron hooves crush your back!"

Charles took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and began to issue a series of clear and ruthless commands, his voice regaining its kingly authority.

"Send the order to the whole city."

First, all troops outside the city walls, abandon your forward outposts and immediately move towards the city walls. Establish a circular defensive position along the walls, and order the engineers to immediately dig simple trenches and set up barricades outside the walls. I want them to be there like nails, delaying the enemy's approach to the walls!

This is a defensive tactic that the Minieses learned from the Bagnians; although it's not dignified, it's really effective.

"Second, all reserve units within the city should immediately assemble at the west gate, with heavy infantry and spearmen in front and musketeers in formation behind. Prepare to rely on the outer city walls and form ranks to meet the enemy!"

Third, all city defense artillery should be loaded with live ammunition immediately. The target... is the enemy vanguard, those enemy troops with messy flags. Once they enter the firing range, bombard them fiercely!
Fourth, immediately light the beacon fires to warn the direction of Omdur, and order the Third Army Corps to march lightly and hastily at all costs, and to reach Golden Harvest City before sunset tomorrow! Tell them that anyone who is late will be court-martialed!

His orders came down like hailstones, instantly activating the chaotic garrison of Golden Harvest City.

The officers shouted the orders back and forth, and the soldiers, jolted awake from the chaos of the surprise attack, began to frantically act according to instructions.

The Minisian soldiers outside the city abandoned their fragile camps, which lacked a complete defensive system, and desperately retreated towards the city walls.

The troops inside the city quickly assembled towards the west gate, their heavy footsteps and the clanging of armor echoing through the streets.

Charles watched as the defensive formation rapidly took shape below the city, and the wave of players in the distance who had already made contact with the city's guard forces and instantly erupted into a fierce battle cry. He was filled with confidence that he could control the battle.

"Forming a defensive formation with their backs to the city..."

He muttered to himself, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

"Chris, you dare to attack? I'll make you bleed from your head! As long as I hold out for one day... no, maybe just half a day... Seba's cavalry will smash your flank like a hammer, and then it will be your end!"

He seemed to see the dawn of victory.

Chris's frantic attack was nothing more than a foolish move that would hasten its demise. He would wait here, under the walls of Golden Harvest City, to hold back Bagnia's main force, and then, together with Seba, crush this troublesome thorn in their side!
Outside the city, the gray wave of players had crashed hard into Minicia's shrinking defenses.

The sounds of clashing swords, roaring muskets, and dying screams erupted instantly, like a sonata from hell.

Charles watched coldly, a cruel smile playing on his lips. He didn't care about the losses of the outer perimeter guards; they were just pawns used to buy time.

His true line of defense was the main force of the Minisian royal army, which was rapidly taking shape beneath the city walls and backed by the fortified city, as well as the impending, decisive Retalian cavalry!

Charles believed that the large number of Bagnians leaving their homeland must have been discovered by the Retelian scouts, and that the Retelian Empire's formidable cavalry must have already set off and was on its way.

(End of this chapter)