I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 397 Half

Early in the morning, Monokuma woke up (logged in), brushed his teeth and washed his face, then leisurely left his military tent with a large tea mug and went to the mess hall for breakfast.

Although the army's food supplies were slightly insufficient, not even enough for a month, the expeditionary force's food rations were not reduced in the slightest.

At least when Monokuma went to get food, he could see in the queue that both players and ordinary NPC soldiers could each get a large bowl of rice, noodles, or flatbread as staple food, as well as unlimited vegetable soup and half a bowl of oily pork.

However, Monokuma couldn't enjoy his breakfast in peace today. He had only eaten half of it when he was notified that he had to attend a meeting.

"A meeting? A meeting... Ah, I feel like I'm actually at work."

Monokuma was impatient but couldn't refuse, so he could only mutter as he walked toward the center of the military camp.

As the most capable fighter in the Han-Tang Warriors, Black Bear's residence was not far from the expeditionary force's headquarters; he arrived in just over ten minutes.

Upon entering, the place was packed with people; basically all the leaders of the expeditionary force were there, and even Elena was there.

Upon seeing Elena, Monokuma thought for a moment and then understood what had happened.

"Alright, everyone's here, we can start the meeting."

Lin Ruoyu, sitting in the center of the conference room, tapped the table and announced the start of the meeting.

Monokuma's gaze unconsciously drifted towards Elena, the future Queen of Bagnia, who was standing by the conference table, her expression calm yet revealing a hint of barely concealed tension.

Lin Ruoyu looked around, his gaze lingering briefly on the black and white bear before turning to Elena.

"Miss Elena, please begin. Tell us why you have called this emergency meeting."

Monokuma curled his lip in disdain. Lin Ruoyu knew the situation, but he was pretending not to know and acting with the NPC... Well, according to the "plot", the player shouldn't know what Elena did.

Upon hearing this, Elena nodded slightly, took a step forward, and her clear voice rang out in the slightly crowded tent.

"Commanders."

She began, her gaze sweeping over the serious faces of every player present.

"Time is of the essence, so I'll get straight to the point. Last night, I wasn't idle. I used some of the connections my family had built up in the Kingdom of Minicia, especially in White Rock City, and successfully made contact with two very important nobles in the city... Sir Doron and Baron Harry."

The players waited quietly inside the tent, which puzzled Elena, but she had no choice but to continue.

"Not everyone in White Rock City is loyal to the Minisian royal family. These two nobles have intricate connections with the Tia family and have done many... less honorable things in private, some of which have even crossed the royal family's bottom line."

While the evidence I possess may not be enough to make Charles want to take action against them, it will certainly disgust him.

She paused, observing the reactions of the crowd, and saw focus and contemplation.

"Of course, such threats alone were not enough. In addition, I clearly showed them the real pressure of our expeditionary force besieging the city..."

I told them that the ship in Minicia had already begun to sink. Meanwhile…

Elena straightened her back, her voice carrying a hint of the majesty of a future princess.

“I promised them that if they were willing to abandon darkness and embrace the light, the gates of the Kingdom of Bagnia would be open to them.”

As the future Queen of Bagnia, my promise represents the will of the kingdom's future. They can preserve their family, their wealth, and perhaps even gain a more advantageous position in the new order.

…the exposed threat, the real military pressure, and the enticement to turn to Bagnia,”

Elena's voice was firm and resolute.

"The effect is remarkable. Just before dawn, they sent secret messengers to deliver the same message to me: today, today alone, they will launch a rebellion in White Rock City!"

The players remained silent, and this strange silence made even the passionate Elena feel uneasy and uncomfortable.

Was there something going on that she wasn't aware of?
The commanders of the expeditionary force are acting strangely!
Seeing Elena's reaction, many people in the tent laughed... they were all a bunch of funny people.

However, at least they remembered the important matter at hand, and after a brief laugh, they stopped talking.

Elena continued.

"Their plan was to create chaos and take control of at least one city gate while the situation was in disarray."

Elena spoke faster.

"They need us to make a supportive gesture as soon as we see the signal outside the city, or even launch a feint attack to attract the attention of the defenders, so as to create an opportunity for them to completely control the city gates."

Once the city gates fall into our hands, our main force can advance unimpeded!

She took a deep breath and emphasized her words.

"But that's not all. I hope you can rescue the male members of the Tia family in the process. Carlos and Fernando have informed me of the exact location where the hostages are being held via messenger."

Deep within the dungeon of the old fortress north of the city, the messenger also provided the dungeon's guard rotation schedule and approximate numbers of guards, as well as a relatively concealed infiltration route map.

Elena took out a small roll of parchment with frayed edges from her bosom and solemnly placed it on the table in front of Lin Ruoyu.

"This is the information they provided, including the location, the guard situation, and my initial assessment of the route."

At this point, Elena didn't continue speaking; she looked around expectantly.

The promises that needed to be made were already made yesterday, and all the bargaining chips we can offer are for the future, so Elena has nothing to say now.

Lin Ruoyu glanced at the other battle leaders, who all nodded. He stood up and took the parchment Elena had placed on the table... At the same time, Elena let out a sigh of relief.

Energetic, she continued.

"Generals, we need an absolutely elite and swift squad to infiltrate or forcefully storm the old fortress at the same time the chaos erupts at the city gates, and rescue the hostages before the defenders can react or resort to desperate measures!"
They are few in number, but likely under close guard.

Lin Ruoyu's gaze lingered on the small piece of parchment for a moment.

"No problem, we will organize an elite team immediately."

Lin Ruoyu's steady and powerful voice broke the silence.

"When will those two nobles make their move?"

"The shouts of battle are the signal."

No sooner had he finished speaking than someone burst into the tent, shouting in shock at the people inside the military uniform.

"Something has happened in White Rock City! We've seen the Minieses fighting each other on the city walls!"

"Quickly, act now! The opportunity has arrived!"

……

The traitor within White Rock City acted even faster than anyone in the meeting room had anticipated, catching the expeditionary force completely off guard.

Fortunately, the players were very efficient and highly subjective. While some went to report the situation, many players charged towards White Rock City in groups.

Although I don't know what happened yet, it would be foolish not to take advantage of a good deal. Now that I've found an opportunity, of course I should just go for it.

Therefore, before the troops sent by Lin Ruoyu and others approached Baiyan City, some players occupied the city gate that had been opened by an inside agent.

The city gates opened, and the Minisian guards inside White Rock, still loyal to Charles, were widows who had lost their sons... There was no hope left.

……

When Little Knife Stabs the Buttocks and the players of the Over-the-Mountain Tiger Battle Group passed through the city gate of White Rock City, the inside of the city gate was already a scene of carnage.

The rebels, dressed in Miniese military uniforms but with white cloth wrapped around their arms, fought fiercely with the loyal royal guards in the narrow streets and squares.

The shouts of battle, screams of agony, the clash of weapons, and the crackling of burning houses were deafening.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, gunpowder, and burnt wood. "Bang...bang bang bang..."

A series of flintlock volleys rang out from behind the barricades, lead bullets whistling over the players' heads or striking their lamellar armor with dull thuds and sparks.

One player who charged too far ahead screamed and collapsed as a burst of blood erupted from his chest.

"Damn... there are muskets! Spread out and find cover!"

Xiao Dao was experienced in stabbing buttocks, so he immediately ducked behind an overturned carriage and shouted.

The players behind him reacted quickly, seeking cover or rolling on the spot.

Just then, seven or eight rebel soldiers with white cloth wrapped around their arms rushed out from a nearby alley. The leader shouted at the direction where the knife had been stabbed in the buttocks.

"This way... there are fortifications and musketeers at the street corner ahead. If you go this way, you can go around to the city center!"

Xiao Daozai, without hesitation, believed the guidance of the surrendered soldiers; his mission was to rescue people.

"We'll keep fighting here and draw the enemy's attention. Ah Ku, you take the brothers and follow them... Where's the Tiger Crouching Cannon? Has it arrived yet... Drag it up for me!"

Amidst the furious shouts of "Little knife stabbing butt," some players broke away from the group and followed the surrendering soldiers, while the remaining players huffed and puffed as they carried a small tiger crouching cannon up from behind and quickly set it up behind the wagon cover.

"put!"

With a loud bang that wasn't deafening but was extremely intimidating, the ground-mounted Tiger Crouching Cannon fired a hundred lead bullets, which rained down on the hastily erected barricades a few dozen steps away.

Wood chips, gravel, and severed limbs flew amidst the defenders' screams, and the sporadic but continuous gunfire fell silent.

"kill……"

Taking advantage of the momentary chaos, Xiao Dao was the first to leap out from behind cover, charging towards the broken barricades like a human tank. In just over ten seconds, he reached the enemy.

Xiao Dao shouted and swung a large knife in a wide arc, sweeping across the air with a piercing sound. The blade grazed the neck of a soldier who had just struggled to his feet, and blood spurted into the sky.

The players and defectors behind him surged through the breach like a burst dam.

The battle quickly escalated into a street fighting meat grinder.

The remaining Minisian defenders in the city displayed a chilling frenzy in the face of the knife.

Some soldiers hide on the second floor of the building, desperately sniping with crossbow bolts and stones. When the player enters the building, they will throw torches down and set the building on fire, attempting to take everyone down with them.

Some men, dressed in ornate armor and clearly resembling noble officers, with bloodshot eyes, brandished overly decorated longswords and hysterically shouted "For His Majesty Charles!" as they launched a desperate counter-charge with their last dozen or so guards.

Like moths drawn to a flame, they crashed into the iron wall formed by players and rebels, instantly overwhelmed and cut down, leaving only a few futile shouts.

However, not everyone is so stubborn, or only a small percentage of people are so stubborn.

As the players advanced with unstoppable momentum, especially when they saw noble officers being cut down like wheat, panic spread like a plague.

More ordinary Minisian soldiers began to break down, dropping their weapons, kneeling on the blood-stained and muddy streets, raising their hands above their heads, and shouting surrender in a tearful Minisian or broken Bagnian.

A fat nobleman, dressed in a silk robe and pale with fright, even scrambled out of the burning shop, clutching the leg from which the knife had stabbed his buttocks, screaming in Baghnia with tears streaming down his face.

“Warrior, esteemed warrior, I am Baron Peel, I surrender, I can pay the ransom…”

Xiao Dao stabbed him in the buttocks and kicked him away in disgust, yelling.

"Get out of my way, I don't have time to collect junk right now..."

It wasn't Xiao Dao's responsibility to gather the surrendered people; his goal was clear... the governor's mansion located in the center of the city.

Guided by the surrendered rebels, Xiaodaozai led a team of elite players, cutting through the chaotic streets like a sharp knife, heading straight for the massive building complex.

The gates of the governor's mansion had been opened, and several guards' corpses lay at the entrance, clearly having been cleared away beforehand.

"Quick, to the dungeon!"

Xiao Daozai rushed in first, stabbing his buttocks.

The Governor's Palace also experienced fighting, but on a much smaller scale.

Scattered guard corpses lay in the corridor, and some men dressed as servants huddled trembling in corners. As long as these unfortunate souls didn't draw their weapons, no one paid them any attention.

Following the route marked on Elena's intelligence report, the players zigzaggled through several corridors and three courtyards before rushing down the cold, damp stone steps at a certain corner, heading straight into the depths of the dungeon.

The iron gate at the dungeon entrance had been violently smashed open, and a strong stench of blood and an atmosphere of despair rushed out.

The scene before them made the players who rushed in gasp in shock.

In the dim torchlight, more than a dozen corpses lay scattered haphazardly in the dungeon corridor.

They were all dressed in fine but worn aristocratic clothing, and it was clear that these corpses were male members of the Tia family. Most of their fatal wounds were from sword cuts and spear thrusts, and their deaths were extremely gruesome.

Several soldiers, dressed in the armor of the elite Miniese Guard and covered in blood, were being held down on the ground or pinned against the wall by a group of players who had previously taken a detour.

Bloodstained keychains lay scattered on the ground. Clearly, a brutal massacre and counter-massacre had just ended here moments before the players stormed in.

"Boss, this isn't my fault."

With a bloodstain on his face, "Call Me Cool" immediately pointed at the guards who were being held down and hastily shifted the blame when he saw Xiao Dao Ci's buttocks and the others rush in.

"These bastards were already killing people before I even got in. We were quick, but we only managed to take half of them..."

Xiao Dao's gaze swept over the unseeing corpses of nobles on the ground, then turned to the prison cells.

Inside, there were also seventeen or eighteen living members of the Tia family. Most of them were listless, with dull expressions and pale, bloodless faces, obviously having not seen the sun for a long time. However, they were not thin, indicating that they were being fed well.

These people are now watching in horror the hellish scene outside.

Xiao Dao's gaze finally settled on an elderly man who was being carefully helped out by a player.

The old man had white hair and beard, and his face vaguely resembled Elena's, but he looked extremely haggard at the moment. There was a shallow but bleeding wound on his abdomen, which was obviously cut hastily.

He coughed violently, his eyes cloudy and sorrowful.

"Which one is Count Tia?"

"Little Knife Stabs Buttocks" asked in a rough voice.

Aku quickly pointed to the elderly man who had been helped out.

"This is old man Tia. Fortunately, our men intervened quickly, and he only suffered minor injuries. But his eldest son, his youngest son, and several other adults are all over there..."

He pointed to several corpses on the ground that were dressed in relatively more luxurious clothes.

Count Tia, Elena's father, survived, but his eldest son, brothers, and more than half of the male members of his family died.
Xiao Daozai paused for a moment, looked at Count Tia's empty and desperate eyes, then at the cold corpses on the ground, and scratched his helmet.

Is this task complete, or only half complete?

What bad luck.

Well, that's it. I only spent twenty minutes rushing from outside the city to here, which is fast enough. And yet half of them still died. It's not my fault.

Outside the castle, the shouts of battle from White Rock City were gradually subsiding, and the flags of the expeditionary force began to be raised on some high points.

But the bloodshed and sorrow permeating the dungeon of the old fortress in the north of the city, like a cold tide, silently told the cruel price behind this victory.

Elena's long-awaited "rescue" ultimately ended with the blood of half of her loved ones.

(End of this chapter)