'No, I slept well. It's a wonderful morning. Well, I'm sure the enemy didn't get any sleep at all.
　You have a bad character. Tonino. So how long do you think it would take you to drop it in your estimation?
　'Well, considering the enemy's fatigue, I'm sure he'll be down in a week. That's two weeks to go. The soldiers, siege weapons and rations can be supplied later. No, the enemy is an idiot~ a siege battle with no hope of resupplying.

　Carlo and Tonino leave the Tabernacle.
　The terrier citadel has been attacking since the night.
　The enemy must be very tired.

　''Come on, let's cheer up today!




　Second day of the siege




　Shit, I'm sleepy...
　Gram stretches absent.

　'You didn't let me sleep in yesterday,'

　Last night, as Ron and Gram had read, Domorgal's army had launched a night attack.
　However, there was very little attack on the city walls, and the enemy was just drumming and shouting loudly where our arrows couldn't reach them.

　Nevertheless, we couldn't not respond, and we could hardly sleep last night.
　As a countermeasure, we decided to divide the soldiers into two groups and take turns during the day and at night... but still, there was no way I could sleep soundly under the circumstances of being attacked by the enemy army.


　'Oh, God. The accuracy of your arrows is going down........
　Gram looks at the trajectory of the arrows his men are firing and sighs.

　But it can't be helped. The lack of sleep makes it hard to concentrate.

　But if the hit rate of the arrows goes down, so does the number of soldiers coming up.
　That's the strain on the infantry.

　Naturally, the infantrymen are no different in their lack of sleep.

　''Oh, God!　Don't get frustrated!　Get the flamethrower. That one, I'll burn it down.
　Finally, Ron decides to throw in a flaming cannon.
　One after another, the enemy soldiers burn.

　But the flamethrower only lasts ten seconds.
　Since they need to refuel immediately, the enemy rises to take advantage of the gap.
　The enemy's offensive shows no signs of weakening.

　"d*mn, but this is where it's time to hold on. Aim for it, General!
　Josef swings his sword as he speaks of his desire. His activity is more spectacular than the other centurions.

　''I can't lose, either.''
　Ron holds the spear in his right hand and the sword in his left.

　'Well, I'm going to make you bleed.





　The projectiles and ballistae of Rosais' army roar and send black powder flying.
　The siege tower is hit but it doesn't break in one hit.

　Four shots hit and it finally collapsed.

　'It's been soaked with water to increase its fire resistance it seems to be reinforced in various ways. I thought it would be a piece of cake if I had a fire secret potion.
　Bartolo sighed.

　The enemy's siege tower was reinforced in places with iron.
　The surface was completely covered with the skin of the beast and it was easy to see that water was dripping down.

　The most troublesome thing is the wards hanging on the siege towers.
　It seems that one siege tower has three sorcerers attached to it, building wards to protect it.

　You have to go get the sorcerers. We won't get anywhere if we don't destroy it.
　Copy that. We're going to destroy it.

　That said, it was Tetra who appeared.
　When Tetra waved her staff, something like particles of light scattered from the siege tower.

　The wards were destroyed.
　The bombs are concentrated there. The siege tower was destroyed.

　''As expected!　Isn't a single shot amazing, Tetra-dono. But the enemy soldiers are also coming up here, so it's dangerous.......dangerous!

　Just as they were climbing up the ramparts, the soldier suddenly jumped up and attacked Tetra.
　But Tetra calmly waved his staff.

　Fresh blood splatters and the enemy soldier's head flies through the air.

　
　Yeah. Isn't it cool?

　The sheath on the tip of Tetra's staff had come off, revealing the blade.
　It could be seen that it was made of iron.

　'Could it be some kind of swordsmanship lesson?
　'Naturally. I learned from Almus.
　Well, that's what I'm talking about. I'm counting on you.
　Yes, sir.

　Tetra stuck out her thumb.







　'Hey, Ron!　They've got a bridge over the water moat!　The Hammer's coming!　Hurry up and blast me with the explosive spear!
　'Wait a minute!　I'm busy right now!

　Ron instructed his men as they tore through the enemies in the vicinity in a great panic, and ordered them to blow up the Castle-breaking Hammer.
　It was not long before a spear was heading towards the Hammer.

　But the hammering endured.
　The hammer was covered by a steel roof.

　In addition, the roof seemed to be covered with dozens of wards and cursed stones, so the impact was barely felt by the soldiers below.

　'An iron roof?　You've got to be kidding me!　Uh, feet!　Tear down the bridge.

　As Ron ordered, the explosive spear was thrown and hit the bridge beautifully.
　The bridge was easily destroyed and the breaking hammer sank into the water moat.

　That's a relief.
　But .....

　'Breakers........there's a lot more of them.......'
　Looking at the row of broken hammer in a row, Ron almost cried.

　The stock of explosive spears is adequate, but........
　Limits exist.

　This time, it's also significant that the flamethrowers have taken out a number of them.

　''What if they run out........''


　In addition, the attacks on the siege towers also increase in intensity.
　Occasionally, the enemy's stone thrower will destroy our ballista and the stone thrower as well.

　''Alright, warding is released. Hurry up with the fire potion!
　At Lulu's command, an explosive spear is released from the ballista and hits the siege tower.
　The siege tower collapses and the archers on it fall to the ground.

　That's where the arrows of the archers concentrate.
　It is our policy to focus on the archers as much as possible. If the archers die, it will be easier to do this too.




　The morning's battle showed Rosais' troops were outnumbered in some places, but they were superior in the overall war situation.



　''Hmm.''
　Almus had read a letter.
　It was a letter delivered by hawk mail. From the looseness of Almus' cheeks, he could tell that it was good news.

　'Lord Bartolo, Lord Pelum, go and fetch Lord Ordovis.
　Almus ordered Tetra.
　Immediately the three were summoned.

　'Yes, sir? 'The Patriarch?'
　Phase one of the mission was a success. It was a resounding success. The enemy is completely unaware of it.

　The three of them also loosened their cheeks at Almus' words.

　'At this rate, we should receive a second report this evening. ''General,''
　Yeah, if we make it to the second stage, we'll win.



　Meanwhile, three hours later, Carlo and Tonino received another hawk flight.
　This one was bad news.

　'Do, Dres village has fallen!

　The news reached Tonino that the village of Dres, his supply base, had been taken by surprise and fallen by five hundred cavalrymen of the Lossies army.

　Tonino's hands were shaking. That meant that the supply line had been cut off.
　But Tonino calms down as much as possible.

　The enemy seems to be cavalry. The question is where did they spring up and come out from, but they probably crossed Romano's forest. I can't think of any other route of entry other than that.

　From Tonino's point of view, it's impossible to cross a forest like that. It is said that if you go over there, you will be haunted by gryphons, and we have been taught from a young age that the gryphons will come to eat us if we do not behave well.

　I'm surprised the soldiers obeyed that. Come to think of it, I had heard that the general this time was a gryphon's son. I thought it was just a rumor, and my guard around the forest remained thin. It was completely my own fault.

　But one thing that bothered me was how Dres Village could have fallen so easily.
　They had three hundred troops stationed there, and they had built a strong fortress. They had prepared for it reasonably well.
　Since the supply lines would be important in this war, Tonino had made sure that Dres Village was well defended so that there was no danger of an emergency.
　If there's a difference between five hundred and three hundred troops, it wouldn't be surprising if it took at least three days to fall.


　And five hundred cavalry is also funny. King Rosais' country should have had only around one hundred and fifty cavalry at most.
　Something is wrong.

　Tonino immediately summoned the great families, other generals, and a thousand captains and held a meeting to discuss whether or not to retreat.

　The conclusion was soon reached. No.

　As long as the supply routes were cut off, even temporarily, it was common sense in the law of war to retreat for safety reasons.
　But in this war, politics are involved. Therefore, the option of retreating is not an option. You must not take it.
　Most of the wealthy families participating in this war are Carloites.
　This war, with Carlo's succession at stake, is not going to be an easy one to wage.

　The defeat in this war will determine the future of the great families.
　It is very unlikely that the next king, who is not Carlo, will treat them well.
　No, he'll just guarantee us some territory. Some of the weaker, more powerful families will definitely be demolished.

　At least they would do so themselves.

　Our lives, our territory, our property, our honor.
　

　There is one option that can be taken. We will immediately retake Dres Village and rebuild our supply routes.
　The enemy is a small army and the ground advantage is here.
　We have a good chance of winning.


　"We can do it. I'll send two thousand light infantry and two hundred cavalrymen. Ahh it will only be a matter of time before we have some cavalry. King Domorgal was so afraid of the Kingdom of Roselle that he only lent us a little....


　Although the enemy is cavalry, we are sending two thousand infantry and two hundred cavalry. The difference in strength is four and a quarter times greater. Without a doubt, we can take back Dres Village.
　In the first place, cavalry are useless in a siege battle, and the cavalry of King Rosais's country is not much to begin with.

　They'll probably try to settle this on the plains, but we have two hundred cavalry as well.
　It's a good enough counterbalance, and the decisive factor in the war in the Adelunian Peninsula is heavy infantry.
　The enemy doesn't have that.

　In this war, we can't turn back with the slightest effort.
　After all, it's not your career, but rather Carlo's throne and the supremacy of King Domorgal's country that is at stake.



　The afternoon of that day was not much different from the morning.
　However, it should be noted that only those above the thousand captains of Rosais' army were a little more upbeat, and those above the thousand captains of King Domorgal's kingdom were depressed.



　And then the battle of the night.


　''It's still the same May...''
　'It's true. Captain Sennin. By the way, did you see how I fought at noon?
　'Yeah, I saw that. Also, I'm annoyed, so shut up. I'm sleepy.

　Ron and Josef stare at the enemy forces.
　The enemy doesn't seem to be attacking, only beating drums and shouting.

　But the situation of being surrounded by the enemy is really mind-numbing.

　'It's tough to fight a siege. It's better as long as we have enough food to eat.'
　This will be hell if this turns into a long game.

　But it's not going to be a long game, though.

　"By the way, I don't know the plan, sir. What kind of plan, captain!
　Of course not. A centurion. Well, you'll find out tomorrow...

　An owl was reflected in Ron's eyes.
　The owl perched on Ron's shoulder.

　Seo-yeon?
　Owl nodded quietly.

　Owl ordered five or six of them, but the only sorcerer who can ride them is Sooyoung.
　Originally, it takes years to build up trust in order to perform a soul-loader... So-yeon seems to have a natural talent for soul-loaders, and he rode it easily.

　Ron removes the letter that is strapped to the owl's leg.

　Then be careful. Well, it's the middle of the night, so it won't be easy to find them.

　The owl flew away to blend into the dark night.


　'Captain Thousand, what is it?　It's,
　I haven't opened it yet. I think it's good to hear.

　Ron said and took the letter to Alms.





　I read the letter that Sojourn had brought me.
　After I finished reading it, I carefully folded it and put it in my pocket.


　''Okay, our victory is confirmed. Tomorrow ... probably a chase match.

　I feel my cheeks loosen.
　Finally, the messy siege is over.


　"Ron. "Ron, get the other generals on the phone. "Ron, contact the other generals and tell them we're going on the offensive.
　Yes, sir!

　Ron runs off.
　Bartolo laughs at the sight of him.

　'Seriously, I didn't think we'd make it. The enemy won't hear from us until tomorrow morning. The enemy will be surprised.
　Yeah. I'm going to avenge you. You want a drink?
　Nice.






　Well, it's a nice morning. Yeah, it is. The enemy will be very sleepy. So, Carlo. Let's have another good siege today, shall we?
　Yes. Tonino. I can't wait to get home. Honestly. I can't wait a week.

　They were greeted with a brisk morning.

　Just as they were getting dressed, a soldier came running in at full speed.

　'What is it?'　So fast.
　'Oh my God!　The city of Blouse has fallen!
　No, no, no, no, no. Don't make bad jokes!

　The city of Braus is the place where the mansions of the great families of King Domorgal's country, which adjoins the As territory, are located.
　The Braus family is one of the top five houses in King Domorgal's country, and is the foremost Carlo school.
　You can say that Carlo school = Braus school.

　Hahaha, Tonino laughs and checks the soldier's complexion.　
　He doesn't seem to be joking.

　''Uh ... seriously?　I mean, if that information is correct, wouldn't that mean all of the hinterland has been taken by the enemy?

　This was replaced by a not-so-fresh morning.