Felicia Royal City was a grand city in the southwest of the former Crisen Empire. Geographically, it faced the Broken Cloud Mountains to the north and the Sunset Mountains to the south. Felicia Royal City was situated in a valley between the two mountains. This was a land blessed by nature. It was fertile and rich in resources, and the Podorog Province where the city was located was one of the most important economic provinces of the former Crisen Empire.
Felice King City had a circumference of nearly ten miles. The city walls were more than nine meters tall, only about half a meter lower than the imperial capital. There was a tower every hundred meters, and it was known as the city wall with the strongest defense in the former Christen Empire. However, when the second prince had led his troops across the Broken Cloud Mountains and the Great Snowy Mountains, and attacked Felicia Royal City in a snowy night, he had taken over the entire city in a single night. This told everyone a simple truth. The strength of a city's defenses did not depend on the city walls, but on the responsibility of the soldiers.
There were no secret tunnels leading into the city, and there were no infiltrators. The city guards did not relax, and they patrolled the city walls no matter how heavy the snowstorm was. There was a tower every hundred meters, and each tower had four levels, with three ballistae on each level. This meant that there were twenty-four ballistae every hundred meters, and they could effectively cover an area of two hundred meters in front of the city walls. Perhaps the defensive strength of the soldiers on the city walls could be underestimated, but the threat of the ballistae in the towers could not be ignored.
Assault! Three days later, Loriste made the same decision as Bofinger and Malek. There was no helping it. The winter and snowstorm did not make the guards of Felicia Royal City relax their guard. They also had good winter clothing for winter activities. It seemed that the Visia Merchant Group had done a good job in terms of the treatment of the merchant group's armed forces.
However, an assault was not about charging in at once. That would be suicidal. Loriste did not want to wait another ten days for the catapults to be loaded onto the sleds before attacking the city. It was already the 25th of January. By the time the catapults arrived, it would be February when the snow melted. Launching a siege on a muddy spring day was a painful torture for both the attacking side and the defending side. It would be better to take down Felicia's Royal City earlier, and perhaps the casualties of the family's armed forces would be lower.
Loriste was prepared to launch a surprise attack in the wee hours of the morning. That period of time was the darkest, and it was also the time when the city guards were the most relaxed. If they had the cover of a snowstorm, it would be even better. First, it would block the line of sight of the ballistae in the towers, and second, it would hide the attackers from approaching. As long as he could get close to the city wall, Laurist was confident that he could take down a section of the city wall and a few towers. As long as the Norton Family's armed forces entered the city, the fall of Felix Kingdom would be a foregone conclusion.
The biggest difference between Laurist and other nobles was that he liked to lead the charge, and it was the same this time. He rejected the advice of Bofinger and the others, and said that with his skills, he believed that he could use the fastest method to eliminate the enemies in the two towers to the left and right of the city gate in the shortest time possible. Then, he would seize the city gate and lead his troops into the city. If he let others go, they might be discovered by the enemy and end up in a tug-of-war, wasting time and increasing the number of casualties …
All the higher-ups of the family lowered their heads in shame, and could not say anything in response. This was the truth. Apart from Great Swordmaster Seuss and Redi, who could withstand a few dozen blows from Laurist, no one else could withstand more than ten blows from him. To a family knight, it was a disgrace to let the head of the family lead the charge. However, since they were not as skilled as him, there was nothing they could do. They could only let Laurist take the risk.
The first wave consisted of Laurist, Great Swordmaster Seuss, Redi, and Aire. Laurist and Great Swordmaster Seuss were in charge of seizing the two towers to the left and right of the north gate, while Redi and Aire were in charge of receiving Joost and the guards in the second wave. After the guards entered the city, Aire would lead some men to open the city gates, while Joost would stand guard on the city walls. Redi would lead the guards to continue attacking along the city walls, aiming to take over the west, south, and east gates.
The three divisions of the Monolith Army were already lying in ambush outside the other three gates. Thus, Ferocious Tiger Ross of the Flying Tiger Army obtained the honor of being the first to enter the city. After Aire opened the north gate, the Flying Tiger Army would immediately attack the barracks in the west and try to force the enemy to surrender. Meanwhile, a division of the Monolith Army would first occupy the entire city walls under Malek's lead, closing the gates and beating the dogs.
Bofinger was very unlucky. He was sent out to command the divisions in the other three directions. After Malek took over the city walls, he would enter the city to maintain order or act as reinforcements. Laurist was prepared to ignore the inner city. He would first occupy the four surrounding areas before launching an attack on the inner city. Perhaps he would not even need to attack then, as the enemy would see that the situation was hopeless and surrender …
On the night of the 30th of January, it was snowing lightly. The sky was dark, and the cold wind was howling.
All the soldiers of the Norton Family had rested early to conserve their energy. They would launch a surprise attack on the capital of Felicia the next morning. Laurist was woken up by Genolio at three in the morning. He first ate something to fill his stomach before putting on his equipment. Very soon, Great Swordsman Theseus, Redi, and Aire walked into the tent. All of them were fully armed. They wore grey fur coats and hats, black gauze blindfolds and white face masks, and even had a white cloak draped over their bodies.
When they walked out of the tent, the sky was dark. Snowflakes danced wildly in the air, and the cold wind howled mournfully as it swept across the white plains. With a light breath, a chill seeped into one's heart, and one could not help but shiver.
Laurist stomped his feet twice and took a few deep breaths. He looked at the restless barracks and the dark figures beside him and asked softly, "Is everyone ready?"
After getting an affirmative answer, Laurist nodded and said, "Then, let's go."
There was no need for any lofty sentiments or passionate words to motivate them. Four silhouettes stepped on skis and brandished poles as they silently swept across the snowy plains like phantoms, heading straight for Felicia's capital city. It would take a long time if they were to walk across the knee-deep snow for more than twenty miles. They might not even reach the capital in half a day. However, with the help of the skis, the capital of Felicia appeared in front of the four in less than half an hour.
The biggest advantage of a surprise attack in winter was that the cold would freeze the wide moat, and the snow would connect it to the plains. If it was summer or autumn, then the moat that was ten meters wide would be a natural moat in front of the attackers. It was unknown how many casualties the attackers would have to pay to reach the edge of the city walls.
With a light push, the skis carried the four grey figures across the flat moat, and in the blink of an eye, they reached the bottom of the city walls. Laurist perked up his ears to listen. There was no movement on the city walls, only the howling of the wind. With a light gesture, the four of them took off their skis quietly and stretched their wrists. Laurist pulled out two black daggers from a leather pouch on his back and made preparations to ascend the city walls.
The surface of the city walls in winter had a thin layer of ice, making it abnormally smooth. However, the daggers infused with hidden force were like leather. With a slight press, the blades would disappear, and the handle that was left on the outside became a small winding ladder. The nine meter tall city walls were not something twelve daggers could reach. Laurist stuck close to the city walls like a gecko. Behind him, Aire took off his leather pouch and handed it to Laurist.
Just as they were about to reach the top of the city walls, the sound of feet stepping on snow and the flickering light of fire came from above. It was obvious that the patrol team guarding the city walls had arrived. It was five in the morning, the darkest hour. None of the soldiers in the patrol team were willing to extend their heads to look below the city walls. They only cared about following the torch at the front, and no one was even willing to speak …
After the patrol team passed by, Laurist silently emerged from the bottom of the city walls. He landed lightly behind the last patrol member and walked forward, following his footsteps. The patrol member seemed to have sensed something and turned to look behind him. As the last member of the team, he should have been able to vaguely see the city walls covered in white snow under the dark night sky. However, he did not expect to see a black figure that was almost sticking to his back. He was shocked, and just as he was about to scream, he felt a chill in his chest. He could no longer make a sound, and the world spun around him, and he did not know what happened next …
Laurist's group of four was on the left side of the northern city gate. When the patrol team passed by on the city walls, Laurist followed behind them. The patrol team was only forty meters away from the tower on the left. Just as the soldier holding the torch at the front of the patrol team and the captain beside him walked into the small door of the tower, Laurist took care of the thirty or so patrol members behind him with each step, and they were all lying on the ground on the city walls.
This floor of the tower was divided into two halves. One half was a corridor that led to the small door on the other side of the city wall, while the other half was a semicircular staircase that went up and down. There should have been two sentries on duty on this floor, but the weather was so cold that no one knew where the two sentries went to sleep. The patrol member with the torch and the captain beside him did not think much of it. They walked to a brazier at the side of the corridor to warm themselves up.
The captain turned around and said: "You guys should warm yourselves up too. Rest here for a while and continue patrolling … …"
The captain was stunned because the patrol members were no longer behind him. There was only a figure dressed differently from them.
"You … …" The sword flashed and disappeared. The captain and the patrol member with the torch fell to the ground. Laurist rushed forward and gently placed the two corpses on the ground to prevent them from waking up the enemies on the tower.
Redi and Aire's figures flashed through the small door behind him. Laurist asked softly: "Where's swordsman Hugh?"
Redi did not reply. He pointed to the tower on the right side of the city gate, signaling Hugh to go and seize that tower.
Laurist nodded: "Follow the plan."
Redi and Ell nodded and picked up the torches on the ground. They walked out and drew two circles with the torches in their hands. After a while, they drew two more circles. Very soon, there was a slight commotion below the city walls. Figures appeared from the darkness and came to the bottom of the city walls. Aire threw down the rope ladder that he used to bring up the city walls, and the figures below the city walls started to climb up. Jost was the first to reach the top of the city walls, followed by two guards who also carried a large rope ladder on their backs. Very soon, three rope ladders were hung on the city walls, and more and more guards came up.
Laurist had already killed all the guards on the four floors of the tower. Perhaps it was because it had been a long time since the city walls were heavily guarded from the outside, but once they entered the tower, they realized that it was just the surface of a sheep's dung egg. Whether it was the patrols or the guards on duty, their vigilance had long since dropped to a complete mess. The twelve guards on each of the three floors above the tower were sleeping like dead pigs. The firing windows of the ballistae had been blocked by thick wooden planks, and Laurist suspected that even thunder outside wouldn't be able to wake them up.
There were no sentries at the top of the tower, and there were fourteen guards at the bottom of the tower. It seemed like the two sentries who were supposed to be on guard at the passageway of the wall were also sleeping here, and Lollister just happened to take care of them. Half a squad of fifty guards were sent to the War God's Kingdom by Laurist while they were asleep. One could not blame Laurist for being ruthless, but there was no way to capture them alive. If even one of them were to sound the alarm, the enemy would be alerted. In order to prevent any unforeseen events, the best way to deal with it was to kill them. A dead enemy was the best enemy.
Redi was prepared to bring his guards to attack the next tower, while Aire was prepared to bring his guards to take over the city gates. Laurist appeared in front of them, reeking of blood and killing intent: "Wait, let me take over the city gates. Aire, you and Redi will take over the towers on the city walls, and we can coordinate with each other. You can also disguise yourselves as patrols and set off. "
Redi's eyes lit up, and he quickly gathered forty guards. They formed two rows, raised their torches, and swaggered towards the next tower with Aire. There were still thirty guards on the city walls, and Laurist signaled for them to enter the tower first, in case they were discovered by the enemy. The guards at the bottom of the city walls continued to climb up. However, all the guards on the city walls maintained their silence, quietly climbing up the city walls and entering the towers.
A figure appeared at the small entrance of the tower on the right of the city gates, holding a torch in his hand and drawing two semicircles in front of his chest. Laurist heaved a sigh of relief. Grandmaster Hugh had also taken over the tower on the other side.
"Thirty men, go and guard that tower. At the same time, ask Grandmaster Hugh if he attacks the next tower, then we will continue to send reinforcements." Laurist said.
The thirty guards quickly ran towards the tower on the right side of the city gates. Laurist felt that relying on three rope ladders was too slow. He looked at the twenty or so guards beside him and said to Joost: "Joost, you stay here and guard. I will go down and take over the city gates first. You stay here and watch me send the signal for the guards to go down."
Although his own guards were more suited for special operations than the Flying Tiger Legion and Monolith Legion, and had undergone special training in ambushes, sneak attacks, and assassination, Laurist was still worried that bringing them down would alert the enemy's defenses. That was why he decided to go down and take a look first.
Laurist walked down the stone stairs at the city walls. The stairs were not far from the city gates, less than fifty meters away. However, when Laurist reached the city gates, he found that there was not a single guard at the city gates. There was only a huge bonfire there. The sky was about to brighten, and the bonfire was no longer burning. All that was left was a pile of ashes and a few wisps of smoke.
"Hey, I'm talking to you. What are you doing? Coming down from the city walls and looking around?" A reprimanding voice came from the city gates.
"Ah, nothing." Laurist hurriedly walked towards the city gates. "Captain told me to come down and get some food for him …"
"Oh, go look in this bonfire. There might be a few cassava left over from last night buried underneath," the voice said. It was obvious that he thought Laurist was a guard on the city walls.
Leurist walked to the bonfire in front of the city gate and stole a glance. He saw about twenty or so guards sleeping soundly inside the city gate. The outermost one was probably the one who had spoken. At this moment, he was wearing a sheepskin and leaning against the city wall, his eyes closed as he dozed off.
This idea was really not bad. They could build a big fire in front of the city gate, and the guards could hide in the fire to warm themselves up. They could also have a good night's sleep, and it wouldn't affect the work of the guards. It was really killing two birds with one stone.
"Don't take all of them. Leave a few for me," the guard who was dozing against the wall said with his eyes closed.
"Alright," Laurist replied. He approached the city gates step by step and grabbed the hilt of his sword with his right hand.
At this moment, a sharp and hoarse horn suddenly sounded from the city walls, tearing apart the peace before dawn. The horn was immediately cut off, and a scream came from afar.
The guard leaning against the city walls immediately jumped up and shouted, "There's an alarm! Everyone, get up!" “
…
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