The sky was overcast, and the wind with the smell of damp soil was blowing from the northern mountain range. The yellow autumn leaves and grass were swept up by the wind, spinning and slapping against the clean windows of the train. Philip stood in the command post of the tactical section of the Iron Throne, watching the wilderness and woods that were constantly receding outside the window. His eyes were calm.
Time would make a person mature, especially when time was spent on the battlefield. No matter how inexperienced a person was, they would eventually become a steady general. The once young and sharp Knight Cecil had now become the highest commander of the Empire's army. His steady and reliable temperament had become the greatest reward for this young man. He stood there quietly. Compared to four years ago, he seemed to have retracted his sharpness a lot.
The technicians were busy in front of the control panel of the Iron Throne, controlling the operation of this huge war machine while maintaining constant communication with the frontline and rear. A technician copied some data from a nearby equipment and came to Philip. "General, a report from the engineering train. The track has been closed and the temporary stop is ready. The Iron Throne can move at full speed."
Philip nodded. "Full speed ahead. What's the situation at Longwind Stronghold?"
"Typhon's people have not made any moves. General Maryland is still on alert."
Philip grunted and said nothing more.
He did not expect that the old-fashioned Knight Maryland, who once charged at the magic-powered warships in the Firmrock Stronghold, would use a series of unexpected stratagems to scare the Typhon's people at the border. The old-fashioned knight with a brain like stone had finally learned to be resourceful in the face of the world turned upside down. Although he did not have the details of the series of operations at Longwind Stronghold, it was not difficult for him to guess what General Maryland had done based on the information he received.
But such means could not protect the border for long. To really stop the Typhon's people, they still had to rely on the 'mobile stronghold' like the Iron Throne.
As the supreme commander of the army, Philip was personally leading a team to the Longwind Stronghold on the newly repaired Iron Throne. They were already halfway there.
With the speed of this train and the currently unobstructed railway line, it wouldn't take long to reach the destination.
The sky in the distance became even darker, and the dark clouds covered the eastern border. A heavy rain was brewing, and according to the Druil's calculations, the rain would cover the entire Changfeng Defense Line.
But that did not affect the Iron Throne. As a new mobile fortress, the armored train did not care about most of the wind and rain on the land.
…
The cold wind blew on the outer wall of the tall tower of Winterwolf Fortress, making the black flag flutter in the wind. The Knight on duty stood guard dutifully. Many of them couldn't help but look in the direction of Longwind Fortress. However, they could only look in the direction of Longwind Fortress.
The order from the Imperial City to withdraw had been issued for a few days. The Imperial Knight Regiment and the Mage Regiment were ordered to stay at the east side of Winterwolf Fortress. Although the atmosphere was still very tense, the experienced veterans had already judged the situation: this battle was probably not going to happen.
On the outer wall of the sentry tower, a sentry mage canceled the Eagle Eye spell to ease the fatigue from the long-term monitoring. Another sentry mage took over at the right time. The rune of the Eagle Eye spell once again appeared in the air above the sentry tower. The replaced mage rubbed his eyes and muttered somewhat sullenly, "Well, well, the Army-Level Crystal Array has been sent up, and now they are not going to fight …"
"This is an order. The officers have their own considerations." The combat mage who was recuperating next to him opened his eyes and said expressionlessly, "And didn't you see those positions? Cecil's people are obviously ready. They have dug a bunch of holes, are you still going to jump into them? "
"… Sigh … Soldiers like us shouldn't think about the things that the higher-ups are thinking about." The sentry mage shook his head. A cold wind blew, and he could not help but shrink his neck. "Hiss … It's really autumn. It's getting colder and colder."
"Yes … Autumn is here." The combat mage stood up and snapped his fingers, summoning a wind barrier to cover the top of the sentry tower. He then looked down at the direction of the main building of the fortress. "If General Andesha gives the order to retreat before the end of the month, we can still make it back home in time for the Requiem Festival."
A fallen leaf flew past the sentry's field of vision. It fluttered in the wind and fell into the inner wall of the fortress, landing on the window sill of the commander of the fortress.
Andesha's gray hair was blown by the autumn wind. The young Wolf General raised her hand and brushed the gray hair away from her face. Her eyes revealed a trace of unwillingness and gloom.
Her adjutant stood in front of her and lowered his head to remind her. "General, His Majesty's order has been passed down for a few days. The Iron River Knight Regiment cannot stay in the Winterwolf Fortress forever. You should at least order them to return to the camp in the east. Otherwise, the Parliament of Nobles will blame you for this problem …"
"The people in the Parliament will never know how tense the situation at the border is." Andesha stood up in annoyance and interrupted her adjutant. "And I still feel that something is wrong … Everything is too logical. There is nothing wrong with logic, but my intuition is warning me …"
As a commander of a legion, Andesha knew that she should not use 'intuition' to explain the problem. If she was an astrologer or a necromancer, it would not be a big problem. But she was an extraordinary Knight. She needed to maintain her rationality and prudence. However, ever since Cecil's army increased the number of troops at the defensive line, and ever since the border was in a state of stalemate, her anxiety had become more and more serious. Now that the Iron River Knight Regiment was ordered to retreat, her intuition was warning her even more.
It was as if there was a voice in the dark telling her that she was missing a crucial point that could change history.
The adjutant saw that his superior was not in her usual state. After a moment of silence and deliberation, the usually calm Knight said, "General, perhaps you need to take a look at the recent records of Longwind Fortress and the layout of their positions?"
Andesha was silent for a moment, then suddenly nodded. "Bring me the records. And also the records of Cecil's large caravans purchasing goods from several trading towns."
"Yes, ma —" The adjutant nodded, but before he could finish his sentence, there was a sudden rush of footsteps and a few noises outside the door. A slightly shrill voice shouted in the corridor. "I want to see General Andesha! Urgent! Urgent! "
"Who is it?" Andesha raised her head and said loudly, "Let him in."
The door was opened by the guards, and a middle-aged man wearing a scholar's robe stumbled into the room. He held a handful of papers in his hand and had the insignia of the Empire on his chest. He seemed to have clashed with the guards when he barged in, and he looked rather miserable. But when he waved the papers in front of Andesha, his voice was still loud and clear. "General! There is something wrong with Cecil's defensive line! We might have been fooled! "
Andesha took a closer look and recognized that he was one of the advisors of Winterwolf Fortress. After the reformation of the army, Emperor Rosetta had set up a special group of advisors in the army. These advisors were usually battlemages or priests who had both experience and knowledge on the battlefield. They were better at thinking than ordinary soldiers and generals, and more familiar with the battlefield than purely civil officials. They used their experience and strategies to analyze all kinds of information, and they gave suggestions to the highest commander of the army. They were the most important personnel in the modern Typhon army.
Some of the old Knight commanders did not like these advisors who were always chattering to them, but Andesha had always valued the opinions of the advisors. She had even thought of several ways to improve the advisors and submitted them to the emperor so that they could play a more active role in the army. When she saw one of the advisors looking for her in such a hurry, her expression immediately turned serious. "Sir, what happened?"
"General, there is something wrong with Cecil's defensive line. They … Ahem, they might be stalling for time." The middle-aged man immediately came to Andesha and spread the papers on the table. It was a list of items. "Look, these are the records of their reinforcements, these are their fortifications, and these are their supplies. We have gathered information from the side and speculated about the flow of supplies. Take a look, take a look at these numbers!"
"They look normal." Andesha took a closer look and frowned. "But … I feel that something is wrong."
"Of course not! There is nothing wrong with these numbers, but there is something wrong with their changes! " The middle-aged man shouted. "It's too stable, and the changes are too regular. If a line is drawn between the increase of soldiers and the flow of supplies, then the two lines are almost straight, especially in the area of supplies. This is the most difficult to gather information, and the most difficult information to gather is impossible to be accurate. If it is accurate and shows a regular pattern, then it must be fake. The enemy is deliberately showing it to us!"
A light flashed in Andesha's mind, and she finally knew where the faint uneasiness came from.
"Too stupid … I'm too stupid …"
The young Wolf General muttered in a low voice. Suddenly, he remembered something his father once said to him.
The most cunning enemy is not the one who hides all his secrets, but the one who shows you everything, and you can't tell what is real and what is fake.
She suddenly stood up and spoke quickly. "Winter Wolf First Knight Regiment, travel light and advance to Palamel Highlands. I will personally lead the team. Order the Iron River Knight Regiment to gather at the Triangular Plains. Black Flag Magician Regiment to be on standby. Preheat all the magic crystals and prepare to attack! "
The adjutant replied loudly, "Yes!"
He did not ask the general what to do if she made a mistake. As the Wolf General and the heir of the Wendell family, this seemingly young lady had already thought of all the consequences when she gave the order. If there was really a mistake in her judgment, she would do her best to withdraw the First Knight Regiment and bear all the responsibility.
He also did not question whether the general's action of 'disobeying the Emperor's order' was appropriate. Since the day the Winter Wolf Regiment was established, the 'Wolf General' was given a certain amount of authority to make decisions at the frontline. When there was an emergency and there was no time to contact the Empire, the Wolf General had the authority to make decisions.
As for whether Cecil's people would be angered by this, or whether they would use the name of 'righteousness' to pressure the Empire, the adjutant did not think too much about it.
The Empire was the backing of every soldier of the Typhon, and the soldiers were sent to the frontline to fight, not to retire.
A well-equipped Iron River Knight Regiment with almost a third of its members being Extraordinaries was quickly organized. Under the gloomy weather and the cold autumn wind, they left Winterwolf Fort and moved along the 'Winding Corridor' in the southern part of the plains towards the Palamel Highlands. The Iron River Knight Regiment, one of the most elite Knight Regiments of the Typhon Empire, quickly gathered at the Triangular Plains in front of Winterwolf Fort. Their vanguard was pointed at Longwind Stronghold in the distance. Thousands of specially trained battlemages also arrived at the assembly point, waiting for news from the First Knight Regiment.
The bleak cold wind blew across the plains, and the war flags fluttered in the wind. The Griffin Knight Regiment under the name of the Knight Regiment circled in the sky and let out a loud cry. Andesha put on her family's winged helmet and rode past the Knight Regiment's formation. She pulled out her longsword and shouted, "Advance! Palamel Highlands! Advance! "
… …
The armored Griffin flew past the clouds and bypassed the Typhon scouts under the cover of the dark clouds. On the back of the armored Griffin, the Knight Cecil with his goggles bent down and quickly sent the news back to the commander of the Longwind Stronghold.
Typhon's Great Knight Regiment suddenly launched an attack on the Palamel Highlands.
Maryland stood in the command room and stared at the map in front of him. He stared at the direction of the arrows on the map.
The direction that the Typhon Knight Regiment was pointing at … … a fake base.
They had seen through it before the Iron Throne arrived.
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