However, before the butler left the territory of the Schilt family, Roland had already received a letter from the Second Army of Stronghold by bird.
An hour later, Pérot's letter for help also arrived at the town castle.
Due to the limited information carried by the flying messenger, Roland connected the contents of the two notes and confirmed a surprising piece of news.
The four noble families of the Western Region had rebelled!
Who gave them the confidence to rebel right under their noses?
Roland immediately summoned Carter and Iron Axe and slapped the note in front of them.
"Your Highness, this is..."
"A message from Stronghold," Roland said angrily. Winter was coming to an end, and the new year would come in three days. There were many things to do in the construction of the city, and he also needed to guide the completion of the Three Supplies equipment in the town. These nobles really didn't know how to write the word "death" to make trouble for him at this time!
According to the secret letter, the nobles in the city first led a group of squires to attack the city guards. By the time the patrolling guards on the city wall realized something was wrong, the lifting and lowering mechanism of the north city gate suspension bridge had fallen into the nobles' control. They had to light the beacon and rely on the city wall to defend in place.
The other members of the Second Army who saw the beacon signal divided the ten groups of about 50 people in the camp into two teams according to the emergency response protocol. One team set out for the north city gate, and the other rushed to the castle of Stronghold. Pérot's secret letter was sent by the second team after they exchanged fire with the enemy in the castle area. Only then did they realize that the enemy they encountered was the local nobles.
"Pérot Hull mentioned that the attackers who besieged the castle carried the flag of the four noble families. They must have planned this rebellion." Carter frowned after reading the note. "And the nobles must have a new backbone to unite these scattered people."
Indeed, the four noble families... or the five noble families under the Duke Ryan were all great nobles on equal footing. The fact that they could put aside their prejudices and cooperate with each other meant that there was a bigger force involved in this muddy water. Otherwise, the Earls would not be convinced of each other's strength, even if they fought for more than ten years.
At this time, there were only one or two possibilities left who had the leisure to intervene in the Western Region.
"You mean … Timothy of King's City?" Iron Axe looked at the Chief Knight. As a member of the Mojin Tribe, he was not as sensitive to the political situation in Graycastle as Carter was.
"I wouldn't be surprised if it's the church." Roland curled his lips. "From what they did at Fallen Dragon Ridge, it's obvious that it's only a matter of time before they attack the Western Region."
"The problem is … the second letter mentioned that the enemy seemed to have firearms in their ranks." Carter frowned. "Did they already know the gunpowder formula?"
"Snow powder is no longer a secret to both the Church and Timothy, but if they want to use it flexibly, they still have a long way to go." The Prince gently knocked on the table. "I'm just curious, even if they have the support of the forces behind them, distant water can't put out a nearby fire. Border Town is the closest place to Stronghold, so where did they get the confidence to fight against the soldiers of the First Army?"
"It's probably because of the Months of the Demons." Iron Axe thought for a moment and replied. "Last time, although you used Thunder to defeat the Duke's Knight Regiment, you didn't show outstanding siege ability. Now the roads are blocked by heavy snow, and the border is invaded by demonic beasts. For them, this is the best guarantee for a successful rebellion. You won't have the strength to attack Longsong Stronghold until at least two months later. "
"Then they'll be blocked by the towering walls and mountains?"
"Yes." Iron Axe couldn't help but grin. "They also have the weapons you have, plus the unclimbable walls, and even the reinforcements from the forces behind them. It's not impossible to defeat you at the foot of the wall. I think they think so."
"But they know nothing about the power of Border Town." Roland stood up. "Iron Axe!"
"Please give the order, Your Highness!" He immediately stood up.
"The First Army is now ready to go. We'll set off tomorrow morning," the Prince said loudly. "500 people with six field cannons. You'll arrange the specific troops."
"Yes!" Iron Axe gave a standard military salute.
Now the size of Border Town's First Army was more than four times larger than the original 500 militia. The whole army had more than 2,200 people, and the wheels were basically in place. Their firepower output was not the same as before. And thanks to the improvement of the soldiers' cultural level, the First Army's efficiency in carrying out orders had also greatly improved. As long as the preparation order was issued, there would be special personnel in the army to allocate ammunition and rations according to the number of soldiers and the number of days. The logistics work of 500 people could be completed in almost one day. Compared to the Knight and the mercenary corps, who needed half a month to prepare for the expedition, this could be called an incredible speed.
And they would set off on the town's 11 paddle steamers and directly arrive at Longsong Stronghold. After entering mass production, a ship with a reinforced concrete foundation would be launched every five days. This was under the condition that the construction speed was deliberately slowed down. The only thing limiting its number was the crew and the steam engine.
"Carter!"
"At your command, Your Highness," the Chief Knight said with his head held high.
"You stay in Border Town."
The Knight's mouth instantly drooped. "Wh … What? No, Your Highness, how can you leave me here again! "
"It's the Months of the Demons now. The demonic beasts are a bigger threat than the nobles." Roland was unmoved. "Guard my town well."
After the two left, he sighed. "This time, the witches also need to go with me."
"I'll follow you wherever you go," Nightingale said with a smile.
Considering that the opponent might be the church, before all the members of the First Army were equipped with God's Stones of Retaliation, only witches could effectively deal with the Pure Witches' sneak attacks. Roland finally decided on the list of six witches: Vendy, Lightning, Maggie, Sylvie, Nana, and Nightingale. If he added the three combat witches from Sleeping Island, it would be difficult for the Pure Witches to threaten him.
Roland walked to the window and looked out at the snow-capped mountains and snow-covered fields.
If the Impassable Mountain Range was regarded as the walls of Longsong Stronghold, then the Barbarian Land to the north of the mountain range was equivalent to the territory of the four big families, which was also a place where his power could not reach. Elk, Wild Rose, Maple Leaf, Wolf … They had operated in their respective territories for hundreds of years and formed their own laws and customs. Even the Ryan Family, the overlord of the Western Region, rarely interfered. He had originally planned to slowly divide and absorb these nobles' territories after building the city, but this rebellion gave him an opportunity to annex the vast land and population in the suburbs of Longsong Stronghold.
He did not intend to let this group of nobles go. (To be continued.)
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