I'm not a lord

Chapter 367: Battle Strength - 40,000 vs. 20,000

"Gentlemen, there is no need to be confused or discouraged. We have only encountered a very minor setback, which will not affect our cause of unifying the North."

As long as we remain united and fight bravely, I believe it's only a matter of time before we defeat those shameful traitors! This autumn, I will join you all for a celebratory drink at Golden Deer Fort!

At the end of the war council, Otto III did not forget to salvage his reputation.

For any political force, winning is a necessity of life.

To maintain an atmosphere of 'being too good to be true', a major defeat must be described as a minor setback. If one is thick-skinned enough, one can even verbally turn defeat into victory, or even win again and again.

However, the naval battle was lost so badly that Otto couldn't immediately reverse the truth.

In any case, as long as he can defeat Lynn and unify the North, this 'minor defeat' is nothing more than an insignificant mark on the timeline.

After the large meeting, Otto called Count Schulz and several other generals to his office for a small meeting.

"The task of defending River Bend Fortress is entrusted to you. Remember, your core mission is to hold the fortress for three weeks, no, even just two weeks. Then Tristan and I, with our 30,000 troops, can launch a pincer attack on Lynn."

According to the intelligence I have, Lynn's cannons are unlikely to pose a significant threat to River Bend's fortified castle. As long as you hold your ground inside, I believe that with your loyalty and bravery, this will not be an insurmountable task.

Important matters require not only large meetings, but also smaller meetings.

Otto specifically summoned these generals who remained at the castle to boost their morale, while also instructing them not to leave the city to engage in battle.

Riverbend Fortress is known as the strongest fortress in the North not only because its walls are high and thick enough, but also because the island in the river it is located on is not very large.

When the water level of the Jinghe River is high, there is not much open space to stand under the castle walls, making it difficult for the attackers to deploy large siege weapons around the walls or to arrange too many siege troops outside the walls.

As long as the defenders do not blindly engage in battle, the army of the cold weapon era has not been able to do much to this castle.

Both Duke Lothair of the Marsh and Otto III were able to capture River Bend Castle with the help of inside agents.

Currently, all the generals in the River Bend garrison are Otto's trusted men from the South. Even if a few low-ranking Northern soldiers want to cause trouble, they won't be able to stir up any real trouble.

After Otto finished speaking, a young general in his early thirties, seeing the rather somber atmosphere, said in a slightly joking tone, "Your Majesty, you can rest assured that even if Lynn took off his pants and danced on the riverbank, we would never be tempted to open the city gates."

Upon hearing this, the generals in the room immediately burst into laughter, and the atmosphere eased considerably.

Otto smiled confidently and said, "Yes, that's how we should do it! As long as you don't encounter any problems within two weeks, we will definitely be able to completely crush Lynn!"

Neil's fleet was indeed defeated, but Otto and Count Tristan still controlled a number of small transport ships capable of crossing the river.

Just before the meeting, Otto had sent a messenger to Tristan, ordering him to leave a small force to guard the Luyuan Territory east of Mirror Iron Territory against Vasa, and to lead the main force to march immediately toward the south bank of the Jinghe River in the northeast.

If Lynn uses most of his land and naval forces to besiege River Bend, Tristan can sneak across the river from Lynn's rear and launch a surprise attack.

Otto said he was going to retreat to Cologne to rest, but he could actually observe the situation on the way and launch a surprise attack at any time.

For a qualified commander, war is never a multiple-choice question, but rather a matter of adjusting strategies according to changes in the situation.

Although Otto has lost control of the Tranquil River waterway, he still has a significant advantage in land forces and a great deal of room for maneuver.

After the joke, Count Schulz said seriously, "Your Majesty, I hope you will allow me to select the troops stationed at River Bend Fortress. I also request that you take Count Arno and his men with you."

It's true that Count Schulz is a 'retreatist,' but now that he has taken on the important task of defending River Bend, he will never slack off.

Ultimately, his reason for advocating a retreat was that he did not want the king to remain at River Bend and risk his life.

Now that Otto has agreed to evacuate, Schulz's position can naturally change accordingly.

He has followed the Otto family for nearly thirty years, with his entire family remaining in the Kingdom of Rui, so his loyalty is beyond question.

After careful consideration, Schulz also believed that there was a possibility of winning this battle.

River Bend has lured Lynn's main force out with its tempting bait; a naval defeat does not mean a land defeat is inevitable.

In terms of troop strength, it's 40,000 to 20,000, so the advantage is still with us!
Otto readily agreed: "No problem, I will take your advice. Although Arno has cleared himself of some suspicion of betrayal, he still has deep ties with Three Rivers and the Marshland. Of course, I will not leave him in River Bend, nor will I allow him to have the opportunity to collude with the soldiers."

More than a year ago, Arno colluded with several mercenary groups in River Bend Castle and betrayed Duke Lothair of the Marsh.

Having learned from Lothair's mistake, Otto was naturally unwilling to make the same mistake again.

Of course, Arno is still somewhat useful for the time being, and can still provide some intelligence, so Otto still classifies him as a 'loyal subject'.

When they are useful, they are loyal and virtuous ministers; when they are useless, they are traitors and rebels. This political logic applies to any era.

Otto subsequently made several military arrangements, such as leaving two troops to garrison the small castles on the north and south sides of River Bend.

River Bend Fort is not just a castle, but a complete regional defense system.

To the north and south of River Bend Fort, there are two other small castles adjacent to the Tranquil River, facing River Bend Fort across the river.

These two castles are connected to River Bend Castle by iron chains, which can be used to build pontoon bridges at any time and to raise the chains to hinder enemy ships.

However, Otto only left 500 soldiers to guard each of the two small castles, clearly not placing much hope in them.

With Lynn controlling the Tranquil River waterway and possessing a large number of cannons, this small castle with its thin walls obviously couldn't play much of a role; delaying them for a few days would be considered a success.

That afternoon, Otto left River Bend Castle in a small transport ship, accompanied by nearly nine thousand infantry and cavalry.

As he retreated, the fleeing naval vessels also scrambled back to River Bend Fort in disarray.

Neil's fleet had at least a hundred ships, and they couldn't all be sunk or captured. If the ships in the later rows turned around in time and used the friendly ships in the earlier rows as cover, the chances of escaping the battlefield were not low. None of these ships lingered at River Bend Fort for long; after a short rest and a breather, they quickly sailed downstream.

They were originally armed merchant ships from various autonomous cities. After their defeat, they naturally went back to their respective homes. Otherwise, why would they stay in River Bend Fort to be bombed?

This is what is meant by a mob; they scatter as soon as they suffer a defeat.

Otto had no desire to stop them and chose to let them leave.

In any case, he signed a commission-based contract with these ships, only paying a small amount of pre-war wages, and there was no need to pay the remaining balance after the defeat.

As the ship approached the shore, Otto couldn't help but look back at the majestic castle bathed in the setting sun and sigh softly.

Even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance, he was unwilling to let Lynn occupy River Bend Fort.

His army was not equipped with artillery, so once the castle was lost, it would be almost impossible to take it back.

Now that things have come to this, Otto has finally begun to reflect on his strategic mistakes.

He gritted his teeth and thought to himself: I should not have underestimated Lynn from the beginning, nor should I have thrown all my main forces into Mirror Iron Territory!

But then he thought again that he hadn't made any obvious mistakes.

The heavy high-interest loans forced him to end the war in the North as soon as possible. If he didn't go to fight Mirror Ironlands, was he supposed to go to Three Rivers and confront Lynn head-on?

If they couldn't even win a naval battle on their own territory, wouldn't Neil's hastily assembled fleet suffer an even worse defeat if they went to enemy territory?
After much thought, he could only attribute his temporary setback to one reason: it wasn't that he wasn't cautious enough, but rather that Lynn's artillery technology was simply too ruthless.

As Otto disembarked, a cool early spring breeze swept by. He tightened his collar and said, "Arno, I have a task for you. You must obtain the gunpowder formula as soon as possible, at all costs. We can't let Lynn have this technology all to himself anymore. It's like two knights dueling on foot, while we fight on foot, and the other side is riding a tall warhorse."

Arno was "fortunate" to be on the same ship as Otto and followed him off the ship, so he immediately replied, "Your Majesty, I am already handling this matter. According to the intelligence gathered by our spies, Lynn's gunpowder workshop should be located in River Marsh County. Please give me some more time."

Otto didn't turn to look at Arno, but simply shook his head slightly as he walked away: "There's no time left, Arno. We don't have much time left. I can only give you another month. If you can't even handle this small matter, then I will not be able to maintain my trust in you."

Otto already possessed the blueprints for the bronze mortar, and the foundry guild in Amber Harbor had already produced a batch of similar products based on the blueprints.

But what use are cannon barrels and shells? The most crucial gunpowder formula remains a mystery.

Arno lowered his head and secretly rolled his eyes, replying in a low voice, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will definitely complete the mission within a month."

After landing, Otto issued orders to the light cavalry reconnaissance force operating on the south bank of the Tranquil River, instructing them to do their best to gather the remaining fleet troops that had landed and to keep an eye out for gunpowder information.

As long as he could get his hands on some finished product, Otto could get the skilled artisans in the Southern Territory to analyze the composition of the gunpowder.

As the early spring sun dipped lower and lower, its crimson rays bathed the quietly flowing river.

In the waters where the largest naval battle in the North took place, Lynn's fleet was still cleaning up the battlefield.

This section of the river is littered with the bodies of sailors and the wreckage of ships, and it will be difficult to restore navigation without spending a day or two cleaning it up.

Captain Hawke of Three Rivers is leading several ships to salvage corpses, wreckage, and spoils of war.

While the battle was a great victory, with over a thousand enemies killed, Lynn's fleet also suffered considerable losses.

Five warships suffered leaks in their hulls during the violent collision, and hundreds of sailors were seriously injured or killed in action.

By this time, Hawke's ship was already lined with two rows of corpses, and judging from their smocks, some of them were sailors from Three Rivers or Golden Deer.

Just as he was leading his men to identify the bodies, a burst of enthusiastic cheers suddenly erupted from a small assault ship nearby:
"Captain, we've recovered the body of Mayor Neil of Amber Harbor. The prisoners say he was the commander of this fleet!"

Hawke immediately rushed to the ship's side and shouted, "Can you confirm the identity of the body? Is it really Neil?"

Although they failed to capture the enemy fleet's supreme commander and couldn't exchange his life for a high bounty or ransom, confirming his body was still a substantial reward, as stipulated in the military contract.

The sailors on the small assault boat shouted back, "His name was embroidered on his collar, and we also found a handkerchief in his trouser pocket with his wife's name on it!"

According to the tradition of the continent of Dievas, a woman should take her husband's surname after marriage. Although most people in the lower classes do not have names, this does not prevent people in the upper class from following this tradition.

Hawke was overjoyed: "Good, very good! Quickly take his body back to the dock and let the prisoners of war in Amber Harbor identify it. If it really is Neil, everyone on your ship will receive a gold shield!"

The small assault ship quickly sailed back to the North Shore docks and reported the great news to the Great King of the North.

Lynn was listening to his secretaries tally the results of the battle when he heard this and instructed, "The body of Mayor Neil of Amber Harbor? Very good spoils of war. Have the General Staff give the soldier who found the body a credit."

The role of a corpse is naturally far less important than that of a living person.

As the head of the Amber Harbor City Council, Neil must know a great deal of secrets about the city and the court, but unfortunately the dead cannot speak.

Chief Secretary Victor stood beside Lynn and suggested, "Your Majesty, Amber Harbor will also be a city loyal to you in the future. I think it is appropriate to preserve this body and return it to Amber Harbor at the right time."

From Victor's perspective, once Riverbend Fortress is captured, half of the Crown Territory will be taken, and preparations for future wars will be necessary.

Although the Amber Harbor City Council is opportunistic, it is undoubtedly an entity that can be courted.

Releasing some friendly information in advance is never a bad thing; it might even sow discord between Amber Harbor and Otto.

For a large, self-governing city with an electoral system, the mayor is both important and not so important.

The life or death of a mayor is not enough to cause Amber Harbor and Lynn to become mortal enemies.

Ultimately, what grudges in politics can't be resolved?
As long as they share common interests, two sides that are enemies today can join hands and form an alliance tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)