In the eighth month of the 1781 calendar of the Galinthea Continent, the Andenac Kingdom's Northern Four Families Alliance and the Northeastern Grassland's Fisablon Family raided the Sabaji Principality. This marked the beginning of the Andenac Kingdom's invasion of the Central Four Principalities.
On the 17th of August, Duke Sabaji abandoned the Meishan Castle and fled to the Falkner Duchy. The cavalry of the alliance of the four northern families and the House of Fisablon reached the city of Pedero, the capital of the Principality of Folonto. The Samora Province of the Principality of Falkor and the Fleetwood Province of the Principality of Folonto were attacked and looted by the cavalry.
On the 7th of September, the Andenac Kingdom's King Ognesero led the White Lion Legion to Chikseth Province and met up with the Northern Four Families Alliance and the Fisablon Family.
The Grand Duke of Forendo recruited the people of the kingdom and spent more than two months digging 431 trenches from Fulbright Province to Pedero City. He built more than a thousand earthen walls to defend against the Andenac Kingdom's army. This was the first time in the history of the Galinthia Continent that trenches were the main defensive strategy.
On the night of the 3rd of November, after more than a month of confrontation, the Andenac Kingdom's army flooded the trenches with water from the Nibaraku River. The Second Garrison Legion of the Forendo Duchy was caught off guard and lost almost half of its members. The survivors were all captured. Their commander, Viscount Sanskro, committed suicide and drowned himself.
Even when the Andenac Kingdom's army continued to flood the trenches, the Forendo Garrison Legion refused to give up. They relied on the low earthen walls to resist the enemy's advance. In the end, they failed due to heavy casualties.
On the 24th of November, the Grand Duke of Forendo announced that they would abandon Pedero City. He led the First and Third Garrison Legions and left Pedero Province for the Handa Duchy. They were prepared to continue their resistance there. The Mountain Legion of the Forendo Duchy, however, remained in the Pedero Hills for guerrilla warfare due to the Golden Knight Noori's insistence.
Before leaving the capital of Pedero City, the Grand Duke of Forendo did not burn the grain stored in the city warehouse. Instead, he left it for the invading Andenac Kingdom's army. This move moved the Ogseelo King. Due to the benevolence of the Grand Duke of Forendor, the royal army that entered Pedro City maintained good military discipline and did not offend the citizens.
Due to the Folonto Duchy's trench defense being breached, the neighboring Falkner Duchy lost its flanks. Its empty rear could easily be outflanked by the Andinac Kingdom's cavalry. Grand Duke Falkel had no choice but to give up his duchy territory and lead four duchy legions to the Handa Duchy.
Before he left, Duke Falkor swore that he would never let the enemy step into his city and family castle to show his determination to fight the Andinac Kingdom to the end. When winter came, he chased the residents out of their homes. Then, he burned his family castle and the capital of the duchy, Falkor, to the ground. As a result, nearly a hundred thousand residents of Falemose became homeless and became refugees.
This unwise act of Grand Duke Falkel's had alienated the Falkel family from the rest of the duchy. The first to abandon Duke Falkel were the four legions of soldiers he planned to bring to the Handa Principality to continue fighting against the Andinac Kingdom's army. Along the way, there were many large-scale escapes of soldiers, so much so that Grand Duke Facker had no choice but to treat the legion's soldiers as prisoners. After strict supervision, the frequent escapes were finally stopped.
But when he arrived at the Handa Principality, Grand Duke Falkel realized that almost half of the original four legions had left. Many knights and low-level officials who were loyal to the Falkel family had also left without saying goodbye. The remaining soldiers were not even enough to form two full legions. Only then did Grand Duke Falkel regret the decision he had made.
Excerpt from "The Rise of the Raging Bear Dynasty". Written by Imperial Knight Professor Gaishausen, Dean of the Faculty of Literature and History of Dawn Academy, renowned military scholar, expert in the study of war history, Galinthia Continent Calendar, October 2317.
…
On the 27th day of the eleventh month of the year 1781, the army of the Andinak Kingdom occupied the undefended capital of the Forrendo Principality, Pedero.
"This is the famous Summer Palace, ranked fifth among the top ten palaces of the empire?" Loriste asked curiously as he looked at the exquisitely decorated and historic palace.
"Yes." The second prince, who was standing beside him, was also very emotional. "When I was five and seven, my father used to bring me here to escape the heat. The scenery in summer was completely different from the winter now. It was like heaven on earth. The fragrance of flowers filled the air, the shade of trees, and all kinds of green grass formed a variety of patterns of different shades. It was very layered. To me at that time, this was my dream paradise … We rolled and played on the grass, free, catching lambs and ponies, and no one disturbed us. Unlike in the palace, where there were attendants reminding you to pay attention to etiquette and not let the reputation of the Christen Royal Family be damaged … "
Loriste scratched the back of his head a little awkwardly. He did not expect his casual question to make the second prince fall into childhood memories. Now, the crowd that was walking into the palace stopped, unable to move forward. The second prince's eyes were blurred, and the expression on his face showed that he was reminiscing about his lost childhood.
Fortunately, the second prince came to his senses quickly and laughed self-deprecatingly. "I'm sorry that I was reminiscing about the past just now. The memory of escaping the heat here when I was young is really deep."
Grand Duke Fisabulun, who was following behind Loriste, smiled understandingly. "It's alright. We can also take a good look at this famous Summer Palace. To be honest, it's my first time here as well. It's a little overwhelming. The Summer Palace is indeed exquisite and luxurious. "
…
On the 33rd of November, news from the Falkor Duchy reached the second prince. The second prince was furious and swore that he would never forgive Grand Duke Falkor and his family who burned down the city of Falkor and burned all the food stored in various towns in the Falkor Duchy that could not be taken away. The news showed that the three provinces of the Falkor Duchy had fallen into chaos and produced a large number of refugees. If measures were not taken immediately, there would be a large number of casualties after the arrival of winter. The situation was very serious.
The second prince immediately summoned Loriste, Grand Duke Fisabulun, Count Filim, and Count Şahin to discuss how to deal with the tense situation in the Falkor Duchy. In the second prince's mind, he originally planned to let the 300,000 troops stay in Perorina for the winter, and then continue to attack the Handa Duchy next year. Now that the four grand duchies of the four central duchies were gathered in the Handa Duchy, as long as they defeated the allied forces of the four central duchies gathered in the Handa Duchy, the strategy to destroy the four central duchies would be completely achieved, and he would be able to incorporate 11 provinces into the kingdom's territory.
Selfishly, the second prince did not want Loriste and the rest to touch the Falkor Duchy. Before he arrived with the White Lion Legion, the armed forces of the four northern families, the two legions of House Fisabulun, and the allied forces of the nobles had destroyed the occupied Sabagi Duchy. Even he was shocked to see it.
Therefore, as soon as the army reunited, the second prince started to enforce military discipline, strictly forbidding private plundering and migration of people. He even caught two nobles who disobeyed orders and secretly sent troops to rob the manors of the nobles in the Fulondor Duchy. Not only did he strip them of their titles, he even hung them and the hundreds of armed squires who went with them outside the military camp to teach all the nobles a good lesson.
When the second prince heard that Grand Duke Falkor had also brought his four legions to the Handa Duchy a few days ago, he did not pay much attention to it. He was secretly delighted that the four grand duchies were together, and he did not need to split his troops to attack them. When he defeated them next year, the four central duchies would be settled in one go. This would save him a lot of trouble. Even if the Handra Principality and the three Archdukes' armies added up to more than 300,000 soldiers, would they be able to defend against the invincible vanguard of his army?
At that time, the second prince thought that Grand Duke Falkor would seal up the warehouse and leave with his troops like Grand Duke Falkor. He thought that the White Lion Legion could send out a division to slowly occupy the various towns and fortresses in the Falkor Duchy. But he never thought that the Grand Duke Falkor would make such a drastic move, turning the entire Falkor three provinces into a mess for him to clean up.
The second prince hated Grand Duke Falkel to the core. No matter what, he was the king of the Andinac Kingdom. He couldn't just watch as hundreds of thousands of refugees froze and starved to death. However, it was a little difficult to send troops to support them. Grand Duke Falkel didn't know what to do. This was not only a problem for hundreds of thousands of mouths to feed, but also a large amount of resources for the hundreds of thousands of refugees to survive the winter. Winter was coming soon. Where could he find the resources in such a short time?
The rations that Grand Duke Falkor left in Pedra City, plus the logistical supplies that were sent from the rear, were enough for the 300,000 soldiers to survive the winter comfortably. But now that there were hundreds of thousands of refugees in the Falkor Duchy, even if the army reduced the consumption of resources to support these refugees, it would not be enough for them to survive the long winter.
But if he did not help them, it was not a matter of whether he could bear to do so, but it would affect his reputation. After all, it was the second prince who led the army to attack the four central duchies. Now that Grand Duke Falkor had run away, the second prince became the victor, and the territory belonged to the second prince. Later generations would not blame Grand Duke Falkor for causing all this disaster, but they would blame the second prince for not helping them. If recorded in history books, he would be described as cruel and heartless. This was not a good reputation.
The second prince had already gained a reputation for being cruel when he purged the entire kingdom's noble class in the imperial capital. But those nobles were rebels, after all. The second prince's treatment of them was understandable. As long as he had the last laugh, it would be described as a wise move. But if these hundreds of thousands of refugees were to die, then His Royal Highness would never be able to take off the label of cruelty and cruelty.
So the second prince was really in a dilemma. He wanted to help, but he was powerless. If he did not help, his reputation would be tarnished. Even if he unified the former Crisen Empire in the future and became the emperor of prosperity, this unexpected disaster would still leave a stain on his legendary career.
"Your Majesty, let me go. The Flying Tiger Legion is a cavalry. They are fast, and we can make the best use of the time. "Loriste stood up and volunteered.
"What are you going to do?" the second prince asked.
"Relocate the refugees." Laurist replied without hesitation, "The winter and the rainy season are too long. If we let these hundreds of thousands of refugees spend the winter in the wilderness, we won't be able to make it through. We won't be able to ensure that they have enough food and materials to protect them from the cold. Not to mention the difficulty of long-distance transportation, once winter arrives and the supplies are cut off, the consequences will be unimaginable. When these refugees are starving, the three provinces of the Falkor Duchy will be done for.
Besides, these refugees are not farmers. Most of them are townspeople. They ended up like this because that bastard Falkor burned their homes and supplies. Even if there is no city next spring, they will still be refugees. And we can't conjure a city, let alone spend money to build one for them at this time. So I think the best solution is to help them relocate to another city. " “
"Then where are you going to relocate them to?" The second prince asked.
"The capital city of Wendebri." Loriste answered, "Everyone knows that the capital city of Wendebri used to be the largest livestock trading center in the former empire. It was also the largest city in the northeast. But since the empire's civil war broke out, there has been a huge loss of population. The city that could accommodate 300,000 residents now only has 50,000 to 60,000 permanent residents. Most of the houses and buildings are empty.
Most importantly, these hundreds of thousands of refugees are craftsmen living in the town. They don't have fields to farm, so they rely on their skills to support themselves and their families. So, they are going to fill the gap in the capital city of Wendebri. If they move to the capital city, they will be able to adapt to the life of the townspeople. Then, they will be able to set up workshops and shops, and the city will prosper again. " “
The second prince was not satisfied. He knew that Loriste was right, but the problem was that the capital city of Wendebri was under the jurisdiction of the Norton family. Loriste was also the governor of this city. It was all that damned oath! He hadn't allowed them to move the citizens of the four central duchies, but who knew that Laurist would take advantage of this loophole and come in? He even made it sound so righteous. It was obvious that he wanted to increase the strength of the Norton family.
The second prince touched his forehead with his left hand, feeling a bit of a headache, but he had to agree to Laurist's request. "What do you need? “
"Let Count Filim's Pegasus Legion go with me to the Falkel duchy to provide reinforcements. They're light cavalry, and they're faster. They can arrive earlier to maintain order. The sooner the better." Laurist said, "In addition, you only need to help us prepare enough rations for two hundred thousand people for half a month."
The second prince did not expect so little rations, but he was still unwilling to do as Laurist said. "I can give you the rations, but why do you need the help of the Pegasus Legion? Wasn't it the same for Duke Fisablen's 3rd Border Ranger Corps? “
"This …" Before Laurist could speak, Duke Fisablon had already stood up.
"Your Majesty, you can't do that. You know that the 3rd Border Ranger Corps were once captives of the Norton family's armed forces, so they have a grudge against them. If you let them go, there will be a lot of conflict and affect the rescue. Also, without the 3rd Border Ranger Corps, the reserve corps made up of barbarian cavalry will be unruly and difficult to control. They will not listen to orders, and it will be easy for them to get into trouble. For the sake of military discipline and safety, let's let Count Filim's Pegasus Legion go. “
Huh? Strange, why is that old fox speaking up for me? Laurist was puzzled.
By then, the second prince had already made his decision. "Alright, let the Flying Tiger Corps and Pegasus Legion go to the three provinces of the Falkel duchy to rescue the hundreds of thousands of refugees. Locke, Count Filim, the two of you must complete this mission. Do not cause any major deaths during the migration or rescue process. "
Laurist and Count Filim straightened their bodies. "Yes, Your Majesty."
…
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