PS: I don't think anyone noticed I secretly added a chapter, right?
PS2: Thank you to FH56, Dragonhawk Chestnut, I don't want my account to be stolen again, such as Annex 2, ndjlcyx, Steiner Loves Goldie, A Passerby Who Doesn't Know the Truth, and Bohemian Poet for their generous rewards.
Old World, Brittany, late autumn. Outside Blackstone Stronghold in the Grey Mountains.
The knight's army set up camp here.
After half a day of bloody battle, the knights and serfs were exhausted. The army chose to set up camp here to rest, collect the corpses, and bury them properly. Most of the knights' remains would be cremated and their ashes would be placed in Moore's cemetery. Death Moore's power would protect them from being disturbed by necromancy. The serfs, on the other hand, didn't have that right and would be buried on the spot.
After the great battle, the human infantrymen were very tired. Most of them were leaning against the wall, lying down, chatting, and eating.
The humans were tired, but the dwarves weren't.
King of Eight Peaks, Bellegar Ironhammer, proudly boasted about how he and his army had turned the tide of the battle. The dwarves gathered together and sang loudly, drinking barley wine to celebrate their victory and singing the names of Glanny, Grimnir, and Valaya.
They were about to have a new home. After countless years of exile, House Angran finally had a new base of operations!
After Bellegar's inspection, the facilities in Blackstone Stronghold were complete. Many of the mechanisms and devices left behind by the dwarves could still be used. Kemmler only used Blackstone Stronghold as a foothold and didn't explore the depths of the stronghold.
Now, the countless treasures inside belonged to the army. There were innumerable treasures in Dragonrock. The entire palace was filled with mountains of gold and silver. The dwarves also discovered a rich vein of pig iron below the stronghold. According to Bellegar, this was the capital they would use to attack Eight Peaks in the future.
A rough estimate put the amount of gold and silver stored here at more than 50 thousand crowns.
Laing ordered that no one was allowed to directly take these treasures. As one of the vampires' strongholds, these treasures were more or less tainted with the vampires' corruption.
Bellegar patted his chest and said that there was no problem. He would summon the souls of the ancestors of the Angran clan and perform a large-scale ritual to purify the gold and silver. After that, the dwarves and Brittany would split the loot 40-60. The dwarves would get 40% and the Brittany would get 60%.
Many knights were dissatisfied with the distribution of wealth. They believed that the Brittany should pay for the military expenses, food, and maintenance of the Blackstone Stronghold. They believed that the reason why the Brittany attacked Blackstone Stronghold was to find a foothold for the Brittany, and now the Brittany wanted to give them 60% of the profits?!
That was a conservative estimate of 50 thousand crowns' worth of wealth!
You should at least give us 80%, right?!
The opinions of the knights were suppressed by François and Laing. Without the large-scale sacrificial ceremony of the dwarves, how could we use the gold and silver that had been corrupted by the vampires? Leave that troublesome matter to the dwarves. They were more than happy to take care of the loot.
The knights had no right to question Laing and François' decision, especially after the victory. They could only agree.
In the evening, the commander of the knights' army and the king of the Angran clan came to the tent for a meal and a meeting. François was in a good mood after the victory. Under the yellow magic chandelier and candlesticks in the tent, the duke laughed heartily and took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Bellegar. "Thank you, Sir Bellegar. If it weren't for you and your army, we wouldn't have been able to win this glorious victory."
"Oh, you should be thanking the dwarves. With their help, victory will come naturally." Bellegar, who was sitting on a stool, raised his large glass of beer and clinked it with François' glass. "Of course, you should still thank Laing for his request. If he didn't ask the dwarves for help seriously and sincerely, we wouldn't have won this victory. The dwarves aren't the kind of people to help. I was touched by his sincerity, so I gave him face. "
The knights present smiled awkwardly, thinking that the dwarf was really shameless.
Anyway, since the dwarves' cannons were powerful and they won a great victory, the knights were too lazy to argue with Bellegar.
Bellegar and his Angran clan had made a great contribution in this battle, and the leaders of the knights' army knew it.
Why did the necromancer, Heinrich Kaimler, choose to go out of the city with the dwarves' army instead of defending Blackstone Stronghold to the death?
It was precisely because of the dwarven cannons that the Angran clan made a dozen dwarven cannons and accordion cannons that became the main weapon of siege. Also, there were the dwarven musketeers.
The undead didn't have long-range weapons. Defending Blackstone Stronghold to the death? How could they defend it? Watching the city walls being bombarded by the dwarven cannons and accordion cannons like they were shooting targets, and then being shot to death by the longbowmen, forest rangers, and dwarven thunder musketeers on the city walls?
If they really fought like that, Laing and the others would laugh out loud. Laing's cannons and ammunition could continuously bombard the entire Blackstone Stronghold for three days and three nights without stopping. He had been preparing for this since the beginning of the year.
Kaimler and Matthew Bard knew that the battle they chose to defend Blackstone Stronghold was exactly what the dwarves and humans who were good at sieges, tunnel warfare, and narrow terrain were looking for. The undead army wouldn't be able to use their advantage in numbers, so they were forced to go out of the city and fight.
The banquet was very sumptuous. Buckets of grains, meat, vegetables, fruits, and seafood were sent to the tent and cooked by the army's chef.
After toasting each other and eating their fill, the knights began to discuss business. François put down his glass of red wine and said, "It's a pity that we couldn't completely kill Kaimler today. We still have another battle to fight. We can't let Kaimler and his graveyard army continue to run amok on the land the Lady gave us! He and his story must be completely ended on this land. "
The knights nodded. Everyone was silent. In order to fight against Kaimler and his graveyard army, the knights had sacrificed too much.
"That undead Chaos Warrior is really strong. I don't know where Kaimler dug out such a powerful Chaos Champion's corpse and a group of undead warriors' corpses, but we still have to find a way to defeat those undead warriors." Kalad sat in the middle of the left side of the round table. He continued, "If we can't find a way to deal with those undead warriors, we might have to pay a huge price to win."
"Geoffrey also died in battle," Antelm said in a low voice.
"That Chaos Warrior can't be defeated even with the combined strength of the duke and Count Laing. Unless we ask for support from Sir Berchemund or the Green Knight, I can't think of a way to defeat such a strong enemy." Sir Jerrold focused his attention on Gul.
"The Green Knight's whereabouts have always been mysterious. Sir Berchemund led the Red Dragon Knight Brotherhood to set up a defense at the border of Bastogne, blocking Kaimler and his graveyard army's path into the Bastogne Plains," Duke Montfort Forcade said.
"The army is tired. Whether it's the knights or the soldiers, they've all gone through a huge battle. We have many wounded that need to be taken care of, so we still need time to rest." Laing frowned. "We can't catch up with the undead, so we can't follow Kaimler around the Grey Mountains. We have to figure out where Kaimler and his army might escape to. While we're at it, I suggest we ask Her Highness Morgiana for help immediately and ask her how to deal with the strong enemy we've encountered."
"Sir Laing's suggestion is pertinent. I second it."
"I second it."
"I second it as well."
All the knights agreed. Bellegar also said, "Yes, you humans have to think of a way too."
The waiters took the cutlery and food away and cleaned the table. Only Bellegar was still eating and drinking. Everyone was used to it. Dwarves always had a big appetite.
A huge map was placed on the table. François, Laing, Forcade, and Antelm gathered together. They carefully identified the strongholds and human settlements along the Grey Mountains and discussed where Kaimler might attack next.
"After suffering heavy losses and injuries, Kaimler and his graveyard army have one last chance. If he fails again, the only thing waiting for him is destruction." François stroked his goatee. His golden beard had just been combed and looked very beautiful. As a Grail Knight and a Sanctum Grand Knight, he didn't feel tired. "So, there's only one chance. Where will he attack?"
"Will he return to Gisoleiox?" Forcade, Duke of Montfort said. "The Duchy of Gisoleiox has a complicated territory. It's bordered by the Pale Sisters Mountains to the north, the Grey Mountains to the east, and the Ardennes Forest to the west. In this situation, he can easily hide."
"Or, he might choose to join Mu Xilon's Black Knight," Kaladin said. Kalad also expressed his opinion. He said seriously, "They may also withdraw Muxilon."
"Yes." François also thought about where Kaimler might escape to. He gradually had an answer in his heart.
The tent fell into silence for a while. Everyone put forward many possibilities. Some knights even thought that Kaimler would try to escape to the Empire through the Axe Pass, or go south along the Grey Mountains and escape to Tyrell through the Asoloren Forest.
After a fruitless discussion, François looked up at Jerrold and asked, "How long do we need to rest before we set off?"
"The army needs to rest until the morning of the day after tomorrow. Otherwise, the soldiers and knights won't be able to recover from the battle. The warhorses also need to rest," Jerrold replied.
François looked at the sky outside the tent. It was a full moon. Duke Winford knew Kaimler well. He was an old rival. Through analysis, he had already guessed where Kaimler would go.
He turned to Laing and asked, "Laing, if we want to contact Her Highness Morgiana, how long will it take?"
Laing took out a round jade cup from his bosom and said, "Now."
"Very good. Then we will set off in the morning of the day after tomorrow and head to La Messenell Monastery!" François waved his hand. His blue eyes seemed to be burning with flames. "We will fight Kaimler there!"
That lunatic, he will definitely stake it all on this.
That's good. Father's vengeance, our family's vengeance, the grudge between me and Kaimler for more than twenty years will come to an end there!
La Messenell Monastery, the place where all wars began, will also be the place where Kaimler's vengeance will end.
"Yes!" All the knights replied loudly.
"Laing, I'll leave the matter of contacting Her Highness Morgiana to you!" François continued.
"Understood!" Laing nodded.
"Dismissed!"
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