READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 75
Chapter 75: The Annexation of Gildoruk (Part 2)
Two months after the establishment of diplomatic relations between Galvate and the Zabeiru Kingdom, the military advanced towards Rekuryaku Castle, where Sosua was holed up.
The commander-in-chief was Yuan Zabeiru, the younger brother of King Jilvol. The staff and soldiers were also seasoned veterans who had supported Hector, forming an elite force of fifty thousand.
The Zabeiru Military, having departed from the royal capital of Miressbelle, marched straight towards Rekuryaku Castle.
On the way to Rekuryaku Castle, the Zabeiru Military encountered no interference.
They had built Koguru Fortress 3 kilometers ahead of Rekuryaku Castle and stationed three thousand mercenaries there, but the mercenaries barely put up a fight and quickly surrendered to the Zabeiru Military.
However, it was quite harsh to blame the mercenaries. The man tasked with building the fortress, Cadorken, had no experience in construction and had built Koguru Fortress by imitation, resulting in a shoddy structure.
The mercenaries stationed there had already given up on their employers at this stage, as the fortress, which was supposed to be a strategic stronghold, was utterly useless. Anyone would abandon a sinking ship.
Without any combat, the Zabeiru Military surrounded Rekuryaku Castle.
Yuan chose not to launch a direct assault but instead prepared for a prolonged siege. At this stage, it was a battle between the fifty thousand Zabeiru troops and the ten thousand Gildoruk forces.
(I knew it would come to this…)
Sosua sighed as she watched the Zabeiru Military encircle Rekuryaku Castle from the castle’s observation deck.
Having already come to terms with her fate, Sosua was not pessimistic about the situation.
(It’s all going according to Jilvol’s plan… Probably, they’ll offer to spare my life if I surrender myself.)
Sosua sighed again after making this judgment.
“Sigh~ It’s over, isn’t it?”
Sosua shrugged as she spoke. It was a statement made in solitude. Despite her resignation, she was still a thirteen-year-old girl. The fear of death was not absent. This was her way of mentally protecting herself from being crushed by that fear.
“Well, even if I surrender, everyone will definitely be killed. Reos and the others might think they’ll be spared because they don’t know the hatred Zabeiru holds, but if I surrender, the Zabeiru Military will gleefully execute them as traitors. Honestly, I don’t like it, and I can’t forgive it… but they’re still the people of Gildoruk… Sigh.”
At this moment, Sosua began to vaguely see the choice she had to make.
“Ah~ Just because I was born into the royal family, this is how it ends~ Well, it can’t be helped. I’ll just have to complain to Father, Mother, and my brothers when I get to the other side.”
Sosua cursed her family, who had left her to face this alone. She knew that Lukult had died in battle after invading Zabeiru with the support of the Flastarl Empire, and she believed that Demitul had been killed as no longer useful after Galvate established diplomatic relations with Zabeiru.
“Why do I have to die for those people… Well, I’ll fulfill my duty as a member of the royal family. The rest is just timing.”
Sosua muttered to herself. It was what you might call a grumble.
◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇
“Commander, it seems they’ve chosen to hole up in the castle after all.”
“Yes, that’s as expected. Just as my brother said.”
Yuan’s voice was filled with respect for Jilvol, as the staff perceived. It was widely known that Yuan held the utmost respect for Jilvol, and thus, no one attempted to drive a wedge between them.
“What did His Majesty say?”
“First, we’ll lay siege. Then, there will likely be a battle.”
“So they’ll make a sortie…?”
“Yes, my brother said to never let our guard down…”
“I see…”
Yuan smirked at the words of one of the staff members.
“What did you all think when you saw Koguru Fortress?”
“Huh?”
“Honestly, that fortress was nothing more than an amateur’s work, right?”
Everyone nodded in agreement with Yuan’s words. As Yuan said, Koguru Fortress was so shoddy that it served no military purpose. The seasoned staff members had seen through it at a glance.
“Yes, with that, it would take only two hours to capture it. And with only mercenaries defending it, they were bound to surrender quickly.”
Baron Feem’s response was met with unanimous agreement. They weren’t underestimating the mercenaries’ strength, but they weren’t overestimating it either. Mercenaries tended to flee or surrender when the battle turned against them, rather than risking their lives.
They didn’t blame them for it. After all, for mercenaries, war was a business, and they had no obligation to share their employer’s fate. If you wanted them to share your fate, you had to build a corresponding level of trust.
“Yes, building a fortress at Koguru’s location wasn’t a mistake. In fact, it shows that someone with some military knowledge decided to build a fortress there.”
“But why did it turn out so flimsy?”
“The decision to build a fortress at Koguru wasn’t made by an amateur. But the person who built it was an amateur.”
“At least it’s clear that Ryoshua wasn’t involved.”
“Of course. If Ryoshua had been involved, he would never have allowed such a fortress.”
The staff members nodded in agreement with Yuan’s words.
“Well, if Ryoshua had been involved, he would have deliberately left weaknesses and secretly informed us about them.”
“Exactly. This suggests that the remnant army’s commander is an amateur.”
“Certainly. Then, if they make a sortie, we can crush them immediately.”
“No, not quite.”
Yuan smirked as he dismissed the staff’s opinion. Understanding his intent, the staff members smirked in the same way.
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