Chapter 211: Chapter 176: Retreat (2)
The allied forces were only five thousand strong, after all. How were Sunset Fortress, Vanguard Fortress, and O’Neil Fortress breached back then?
They had tens of thousands of men, and they still fell just like that.
And this Beastman army was the entire Purple Blood Orc Legion!
Earl Wei Man’s words sounded nice and all. If Thermopylae held, they knew what to do. But what if it didn’t?
If it didn’t hold, they would all be trapped outside the pass. Marquis Oscillate would take a huge risk to save Prince Noah, but he wouldn’t come to save them.
Besides, Marquis Oscillate could barely protect himself right now. Where would he find any spare troops?
The Beastmen over there weren’t to be trifled with either. If it weren’t for Marquis Oscillate’s extensive experience, Thermopylae would be facing more than just twenty thousand Beastmen.
"We have one piece of good news. The day after tomorrow, a Knight Order from Marquis Oscillate will arrive at Thermopylae." Seeing the state of the room, Earl Wei Man could only offer this ambiguous piece of information.
Why was it ambiguous? Because this Knight Order wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
Rumor had it that this was one of the two great Knight Orders of the Edward family. In reality, only Earl Wei Man knew the truth.
’The two great Knight Orders? What bullshit. It’s just a rumor Marquis Oscillate deliberately spread to win people over. After all, where would Marquis Oscillate find a spare Knight Team to send out right now?’
Marquis Oscillate’s official correspondence never mentioned the specific name or strength of this Knight Order.
Judging by their turtle-like pace, Earl Wei Man even suspected they might just be a Cavalry Team.
The primary purpose of this news was likely to appease Earl Wei Man—or perhaps his subordinates—to tell them not to panic, that the Marquis had it all planned, and that they should carry on with their duties with peace of mind.
What if everyone discovered they were fake once the troops arrived?
It wouldn’t matter at all. A few mishaps during a march were completely normal. In the end, Marquis Oscillate had never officially acknowledged what kind of army this was.
If Marquis Oscillate were ruthless enough, he could just order this Cavalry Team to charge the Beastman Corps. Even if the attack failed, no one could really complain.
Earl Wei Man, on the other hand, would likely be accused of failing to cooperate with the Marquis.
Earl Wei Man’s words were like a stone dropped into a deep pond; the deathly silent council of nobles finally showed some signs of life.
While it was commonplace for Franks to die for their country, who would give up a chance to survive?
Just as Earl Wei Man was hoping this news would buy them some time, someone stood up to question him. Unfortunately, no one there was a fool.
"My Lord Earl, is this Knight Order the Bright Knight Order or the Guard Knight Order?" the Viscount asked.
Earl Wei Man frowned. ’The Guard Knight Order? Why don’t you just say the King is leading the charge with the Royal Guard Knight Order himself?’
Earl Wei Man had no intention of addressing such an outrageous remark. Years of experience told him the best course of action was to forcefully shut it down and dismiss the council, letting them guess for themselves.
People aren’t fools, but they always hope things will turn out the way they want.
Rather than waste his breath giving a flimsy explanation full of holes, it was better to let them fill in the blanks and delude themselves.
Just as Earl Wei Man was about to announce the council’s dismissal, a Soldier burst in. He was covered in blood, short in stature, with several javelins sticking out of his back.
The atmosphere in the room instantly grew tense to a breaking point, and Earl Wei Man’s heart began to race with panic.
Clearly, this was a standard Griffin Knight.
’How did they let him in?’ Earl Wei Man’s heart leaped into his throat. He cursed himself for being so preoccupied lately that he hadn’t had time to teach the new guards a few secrets of court politics.
For example, that real news, especially during a crisis like this, should never be delivered directly in front of everyone.
There was nothing to be done. Many of Earl Wei Man’s old guards had died helping Prince Noah break out. These new recruits hadn’t received the long-term training of a noble family’s household; they were useless at anything besides guarding their lord.
’I hope it’s good news,’ Earl Wei Man wished.
’Even if it’s not good news, as long as we haven’t been completely overrun, as long as we still have a position, I still have a chance.’
’Perhaps I can even use this to publicize the urgency of the war and make the army speed up.’
Earl Wei Man was already starting to delude himself.
The Griffin Knight had been pursued by the Beastmen’s Thunderhawks. After breaking through their heavy blockade, he had finally reached his destination, only to enter the camp and find everyone staring at him.
"General..."
"You, come here. What’s the news? Hand it over," Earl Wei Man said, looking at the Griffin Knight.
’I wonder if it’s too late to control the situation now.’
"Yes, sir!"
The Griffin Knight obeyed, handing over the letter in his hand.
Earl Wei Man took the letter, so tense he could feel his own anxiety. Inside the council room, practically every noble had their eyes fixed on him.
Earl Wei Man pulled the letter from the envelope.
’Hm? We won?’
Earl Wei Man hadn’t read the contents; he looked at the signature first.
This, too, was a unique aspect of the Frank Kingdom’s military culture.
Generally, letters between nobles were very elaborate. Even in urgent military reports, there would be a great deal of meaningless vocabulary.
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