Chapter 402 - 398: A Change in the Situation
Chapter 402: Chapter 398: A Change in the Situation
After Duane garrisoned Lange Valley Castle, he summoned Knight Brison.
The forces from Sharp Stone Territory weren’t strong. Rather than dragging them along to attack Scorching Wind Territory, it was better to let them take their men to control Berick’s army while also guarding Lange Valley.
It was now mid-March. If the farmers tilled and plowed the fields now, they could still get some grain sown in time for a small harvest later.
Thus, overseeing the welfare of the people here became the second task Duane gave to Brison. If necessary, he could bring the Civil Servant from Sharp Stone Territory to preside over local affairs.
Of course, Brison was only temporarily in charge here.
The ultimate fate of Lange Valley would have to be decided after the war, once Duane had consulted with Count Kais and Baron Uriel.
But as Duane’s troops were preparing to set out that afternoon, a Silver Gale flew back from Scorching Wind Territory with a message—
Enemy reinforcements had arrived. However, details like who was leading them or whether there were any Ascension Level Warriors were completely unknown.
All that was known was that three large ships had arrived, flying the Blazing Battleaxe Banner of the Akutas Kingdom.
Three large ships could hold at most three to five hundred men, so the number of reinforcements wasn’t large.
To defend Scorching Wind Territory against Duane’s army with such numbers, either most of these men had to be elites, or they were simply making an appearance to let Freddy know the Kingdom hadn’t abandoned him.
In Duane’s view, however, the former was more likely.
’Could the war truly be turning in the Akutas Kingdom’s favor?’
He decided to have Cruz arrange for someone to return to Star Sea City with a letter for Count Kais, asking him to send over all the latest battlefield intelligence.
In fact, the pressure on Akutas had indeed eased.
After the Kingdom’s major Legions and the Holy Radiance Court’s Knight Orders—along with Count Kudro’s army and in coordination with several nobles from Avalon Province—attacked Lintao City and occupied several of its major cities, Marquis Hoffman of the Kasa Kingdom dispatched two large armies from Spearhead Territory. One crossed Three Realms Lake and made a beeline for Count Kudro’s main camp, forcing the Count to withdraw his troops to defend it. The other army was sent to reinforce Lintao Territory.
At the same time, the Kasa Kingdom’s army in the western Golden Plain was mobilizing toward the east—the Pruck Kingdom’s border.
Although King Aurelian didn’t explicitly declare war on the Pruck Kingdom, his move forced King Eric to take the threat seriously.
With no other choice, he could only dispatch two Kingdom Legions and the Knight Order led by Severus to the border.
This left only two Kingdom Legions to continue the attack on Lintao Territory, in coordination with Earl Orlando and the armies of several other nobles.
This, however, led to an embarrassing situation.
The Kingdom’s allied forces were stopped in their tracks by Lintao Territory, now bolstered by supplies from the Kasa Kingdom. The two sides were locked in a stalemate.
Inside his study in Cyan Snake Fortress, King Eric shattered his desk with a furious blow—a first for him. In his hand, he clutched a letter from His Majesty King Aurelian of the Kasa Kingdom, a reply concerning the recent events.
The letter was explicit: Marquis Sean Smith was the Kasa Kingdom’s most valued business partner. King Aurelian was unwilling to see a good friend come under attack, and he certainly didn’t want to see their alliance rupture over this matter. He "advised" the Pruck Kingdom to focus its main efforts on the western front. The sooner they captured the Golden Coast, the sooner their armies could march on Sun Stealer Castle and carve up Akutas.
Although the letter didn’t explicitly threaten to attack the Pruck Kingdom, the menace between the lines was completely undisguised.
Eric had believed he could conquer Lintao Territory in a blitzkrieg, but he had clearly miscalculated.
First, the Kasa Kingdom hadn’t declared war at the agreed-upon time; they had started early.
Second, the Akutas Kingdom offered basically no resistance to the Kasa Kingdom’s invasion. The Golden Plain was, for all intents and purposes, willingly abandoned. Akutas’s main forces were focused on dealing with the Pruck, Asando, and Fidun Kingdoms instead.
’It seems Kasa and Akutas must have secretly negotiated terms long ago,’ Eric realized. ’Akutas directly gave up the Golden Plain in exchange for Kasa backing off.’
’And the Kasa Kingdom can just use this opportunity to let Akutas drain the strength of the other three kingdoms, while it profits from their conflict.’
"Despicable Aurelian! Your shameful actions disgust me!"
Eric cursed angrily.
He knew that even if his entire army attacked the Golden Coast now, the Kasa Kingdom would surely send troops to stop them the moment they marched on Sun Stealer Castle.
"I’ve been played!"
Eric looked to Clement, who stood nearby. "What about our offensives against the Asando and Fidun Kingdoms?"
Clement replied in a low voice, "Progress is slow, but we are still pushing into their heartland. Judges Andrews and Nerva have been laying the groundwork there for a long time. We don’t know where King Tyron procured his ’Sun-Stealer Legion,’ but they are still struggling to halt our advance."
"Tell them the situation here has changed. They need to pick up the pace! We’re not just fighting Akutas anymore; we need to put pressure on the Kasa Kingdom as well!"
Eric’s voice was grave. "We only have one chance. If we don’t inflict a heavy blow on the Akutas Kingdom now, it will be even more difficult to deal with them later if they formally ally with Kasa!"
"You speak the truth!"
Bishop Clement understood. He added, "I hear Duane’s advance in the Starfall Islands is proceeding very smoothly. He’s already occupied Star Sea City and captured Duke Eldrin."
This should have been cause for celebration, but hearing it only made King Eric more agitated.
The campaign in the Starfall Islands was going too smoothly—so smoothly he could hardly believe it was real. ’How could it be so fast?’
’A portion of the Sun-Stealer Legion went to reinforce Scorching Wind Territory,’ Eric mused. ’Perhaps they will inflict some losses on Duane.’
Eric thought for a moment, then called out, "Dave, go and write a letter to Count Kais for me. Tell him to relay information about the Sun-Stealer Legion to Duane. Also, if Duane can take Scorching Wind Territory and control the entire Starfall Islands, he is to land at Twin Bay on the southern coast of the Akutas Kingdom."
He added, "Tell him about the possible alliance between the Kasa and Akutas Kingdoms. Make it clear to them that if they want to completely control the Starfall Islands, they must utterly dismantle the Akutas Kingdom!"
"As compensation for this additional mission, I can raise their noble titles. I will also grant them a share of the Magic Crystal Stones and the Black Iron Secret Realm from Lintao Territory!"
His original plan had been to first swallow Lintao Territory, then besiege Akutas. After the war, he would turn his attention to weakening the Silent Shore and Black Forest Island. Finally, once the situation was stable, he would march north to attack the Kasa Kingdom.
But now, he was stalled on the very first step.
Under these circumstances, he needed to leverage the power of Duane and Count Kais, bringing their formidable fighting force into the main theater of war.
If this war was lost, not only would King Eric’s prestige suffer, but the entire Kingdom could be forced onto the back foot.
This was because the already powerful Kasa Kingdom had grown even stronger.
However, the king’s message was sent too late. Or perhaps, they simply hadn’t anticipated how quickly Duane was advancing.
After a five-day forced march, Duane’s army had already arrived outside Scorching Wind City.
They made camp, and after a brief rest, they would begin the final battle for the Starfall Islands.