Game of Thrones: I am Dothraki, not a barbarian

Chapter 156 Attack on Stonehelm City

A campfire was lit in the center of the camp, and a whole goat was slowly turned over the fire, its golden fat dripping into the flames and sizzling.

Baqu took a knife and cut a slit in the crispy skin, and the meat juice flowed out. It was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and a unique aroma of mutton wafted out.

Once the mutton was roasted, Baqu grabbed the iron shovel and took the whole sheep off the fire, placing it on a large wooden platter in front of Lahaluo. Lahaluo removed the sheep's leg, waved his hand, and Baqu proceeded to cut off the ribs, shoulders, and other parts of the sheep, distributing them to the generals present according to their rank.

“My blood will stop the bleeding,” Zheko said, cutting off a piece of mutton and stuffing it into his mouth. The juice dripped onto his beard, which he wiped away casually. Pointing at Baqu, he asked, “Are there people from the Summer Islands in Karasari?”

“You’re mistaken,” Rahalo chuckled. “Bachu is actually a Dothraki. He was the one who lit the gunpowder and blew Robert away in the Battle of Pentos. Although he made the greatest contribution, he was also blown up like this.”

Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this. Baqu grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, and held up a piece of mutton. "Kao is right," he said, "just like this mutton, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside!"

Lahalo glanced around at everyone and asked, "Where's Bono? Why isn't he here?"

“Bono has gone out to raid with his Cass. He’s been disobeying orders ever since the landing,” Zheko said.

Zheko had already told Lahalo the details. Back then, he only had 10,000 warriors, and he could only struggle to hold out against the 30,000 men of the five Kadoc tribes.

After Drogo's death, Bono led ten thousand warriors to join Zheko, which allowed him to turn the tide of the battle.

But Bono, relying on his achievements, gradually became arrogant and showed signs of replacing Dzeko.

However, because Dzeko had sworn not to take action, he and Rahalo hit it off and decided to use Rahalo to eliminate this destabilizing factor.

Lazar casually threw the cleanly gnawing lamb ribs on the ground and roared, "My blood, should we kill him?"

"I don't need you, I'll do it myself."

Rahalo's face darkened. He stuck the knife into the lamb leg and was about to continue speaking when a commotion suddenly broke out at the edge of the camp.

The Shield of Pentos helped Lanoso over; his clothes were torn, his left shoulder was covered in blood, and his face was pale.

He staggered to the campfire and plopped down on the ground. Rahalo told someone to hand a leg of lamb to Lanoso, "Eat something first, then tell me what happened."

Lanoso didn't touch the leg of lamb, but said, "Kao, they stole the IOU and said it was forged." The movement aggravated his wound, and he gritted his teeth, drawing in a sharp breath. "Gurian's guards attacked me while they were trying to seize the IOU. I'm sorry, I failed my mission..."

Lahalo ordered alcohol and bandages to be brought to Lanoso to clean his wounds. The artisans of Rhys were now able to distill high-proof alcohol, and the casualty rate in Karasa due to infection had been greatly reduced.

"The fault doesn't lie with you. Besides, the IOU was made in triplicate, and the bank has copies on file. The most important thing is that you're safe."

"Lanoso, finish the lamb leg and go back to your tent to recover. I'll retrieve the IOU and, while I'm at it, avenge the sword wound you suffered!"

Rahalo stood up and said in a deep voice, "Since Gulian refuses to return the money and has injured my envoy, then don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Send the order: the entire army is to march!"

...

Stonehelm is situated beside a waterfall on the upper reaches of the Slaine River, surrounded by water on three sides, and connected to the outside world by only a narrow land road.

The city walls are made of gray stone blocks, tall and sturdy, and the city gates are made of ironwood, a foot thick, which have not rotted over generations.

More than five thousand Dothraki cavalrymen lined up below the city, their hooves pawing the ground, battle banners fluttering, drums thundering, and dust billowing.

Looking out into the distance, the black and white swan banners of the Gurian family fluttered in the wind atop the city walls, while archers stood ready behind the crenellations.

Rahalo spurred his horse forward and shouted, "Gulian Sven, come out and face your creditor!"

Behind the battlements, Gulian poked half his head out, stroked his gray beard, spat, and said, "Go back to the other side of the sea, you barbarians! Your IOUs are forged!"

"Debts must be repaid! It's only right and proper! Gulian! Not only have you failed to repay your debts, but you've also injured my messenger. Today, I'll teach you what justice truly is!"

"Justice?" Gulian laughed loudly. "What do you savages know about justice! Justice is the strongest stone wall and iron gate in the world! Come on, I guarantee you barbarians will be smashed until your heads are bleeding!"

The defenders on the city wall laughed loudly: "These barbarians don't even know how to wear armor, yet they want to attack the city?"

The two armies exchanged insults across the moat, arrows crisscrossing in the air, but both sides remained out of range, causing no real damage. With a wave of his hand, Lahaluo ordered Baqu to lead his engineers to lift the curtains from the carriages, revealing the wooden or iron components inside.

The engineers skillfully assembled the wooden beams, iron shafts, and protective covers piece by piece, and in less than an hour, the three huge detachable battering rams were completed.

Moreover, the engineers covered the top of the battering ram with several layers of soaked wool felt, followed by wet cowhide, and finally coated the top with a mixture of mud, lime and grease.

Sixty soldiers, protected by thirty heavy infantrymen, raised large shields and pushed battering rams as they advanced toward the city gate.

The battering rams were not moving fast. The soldiers inside picked up shovels and dug a narrow trench in the ground, about the width of the shovels, which stretched from the Dothraki army formation all the way to the city gate.

"Why are they so slow?" the guard captain asked, puzzled.

"Haha!" Gulian's confidence soared. "It seems those steppe barbarians don't even know how to use a battering ram!"

After a long time, the battering ram finally reached the range of the arrows, and the horns on the city wall sounded, with hundreds of bows being drawn at the same time.

"Fire arrows!"

Arrows rained down like a storm, but the heavy infantry of the Shield of Pentos immediately formed a shield wall, protecting the warriors inside the battering ram.

A few arrows pierced the defenses and struck two soldiers in the calves, who were immediately pulled into the battering ram, whereupon others quickly took their place.

Gulian frowned and said, "Prepare the logs!"

Thick logs rolled down the city wall and crashed into the battering rams. The rams skillfully adjusted their direction to avoid most of the logs, but one ram was hit, causing one of its wooden beams to collapse and its speed to slow down significantly.

"Ready!" Gulian shouted, "Pour in the oil! Light the fire!"

Several barrels of boiling oil were poured down from the city wall, the viscous black liquid covering the top of the battering ram. Then, torches were thrown down one after another.

The flames instantly ignited the grease, billowing black smoke into the air, making the entire battering rig resemble a moving volcano.

"Burn them!" Gurian shouted excitedly, "Burn those barbarians!"

However, to the astonishment of the defenders, although the surface of the battering ram was ablaze, the flames were only burning on the top layer of the ram; the iron and wooden structures below did not catch fire, and the sparks were quickly extinguished by the soldiers inside.

Inside the battering ram, the temperature did rise, and sweat dripped down the soldiers' faces from time to time, but it was still bearable for the time being.

"Their battering rams are fireproof!" Gulian shouted incredulously. "Pour more oil! Pour it all in!"

The battering rams quickly rushed through the burning area and arrived below the city gate. Like laying eggs, they left behind iron barrels, opened the lids, and revealed the gunpowder inside.

Before the second wave of oil could fall, except for one battering ram that was almost completely destroyed and left behind, the other two battering rams sped away at several times their original speed.

As the engineers retreated, they scattered gunpowder powder into the ditches, creating a continuous black line.

Of course, the scene inside the city gate cannot be seen on the city wall unless the crenellations are opened.

"The barbarians have retreated!" Gulian triumphantly raised his longsword. "They've finally realized that Stonehelm is not a city they can conquer!"

"My lord, we've won!" the captain of the guard shouted excitedly. "Those barbarians are nothing but scum!"

After the soldiers retreated to a safe distance, Baqu lit a torch and threw it into the ditch.

Immediately afterwards, a fiery snake sped along the ditch, heading straight for the city gate.

The city wall suddenly fell silent as the guards watched the strange line of fire disappear below the city gate with curiosity.

"What kind of witchcraft is this?"

Before Gulian could finish speaking, a deafening explosion completely drowned out his voice.

(End of this chapter)