Section 18 Countermeasures

"Look, what is that?" A deputy general pointed at the head of the city. Following the direction he pointed, he saw multiple "X"-shaped wooden frames erected on the head of the city, and a person was also hanging on each rack.

"Oh no, it's the one we were captured before!" Someone recognized the identity of the person on the shelf.

"What should I do, General? Retreat so that the soldiers will not see the tragedy." Someone suggested.

"No, let the soldiers see. See what consequences will be after becoming prisoners. Break their last fantasy." Rudolf replied.

An equally bloody and cruel thing happened on the top of the city. Ashurufate easily found a voluntary executioner from the militia - the violence and actions of the Paro people under the city had angered everyone. Now people's hearts are as cold as iron and no longer have any compassion.

The tragic voice of the victim echoed for a long time. Because they were more energetic and more vital than the executed prisoners at the city, they were more tortured and had more variety. It was not until dusk that the prisoner took his last breath and Paro's army retreated.

The first thing Rudolph did when he returned to the camp was to find his own engineer.

"How is the progress?"

"Everything goes well, Lord General. If you work day and night, you might be able to speed up a little more."

"If you dig at night, you may be noticed by the enemy. After all, the sound of gunpowder explosion is very loud." Rudolf thought carefully. "This is the case, it's OK at night, but it must be guaranteed to be digging manually at night."

"General, what do you plan to do after digging it? There are three options. The first is to use gunpowder to blast the city under the city... I am 70% or 80% sure to collapse the city wall. The second is to dig a passage to the city and let the soldiers come out to sneak attack and seize the city gate at night. The third is to dig a passage to the city, but you can rush out during the day and in the face of fierce battles. These three differences mean that I can dig in a targeted manner and increase the progress."

"Oh, let's talk about it, what's the difference."

"The first type, I don't need to care about the size of the tunnel, ventilation, etc. As long as you can climb in and stuff gunpowder in, the fastest speed. The second type requires a little attention to the width and height of the tunnel, after all, it requires people to lurk for a while. The third type, you need to pay attention to this issue, because it requires people to hide in it fully armed for a period of time to wait for the best time. So the spacious ones to dig are the slowest naturally."

"Of course, the risk is also proportional. The first type is only 70% to 80% sure that I can collapse the city wall. The second type is... If you accidentally find the enemy when you crawl out at night, it will be dangerous... The third type is the most reliable, and it doesn't matter if you are discovered by the enemy, but the speed of digging tunnels is the slowest."

"Although I like the first one, I am too sure of 70%. It's better to dig slowly and delay for a few more days, but you must succeed in one go!"

The engineer retreated. Now Rudolph can finally adjust his mood. He carefully calculated the time issue. As long as winter can capture Derek, then wait for the spring weather to be a little warmer... it should be fine. He has used various methods to issue orders to the defenders of the border castle defense line, allowing them to control the rations and collect supplies on the spot. In any case, it is absolutely fine to persist until spring. Some castles with sufficient supplies can even persist until early summer.

In fact, even without the magician and the newly invented excavation technology, he was sure to forcibly capture Derek by head attack. But this kind of mission could not be done with the infantry and unreliable mercenaries recruited among the civilians - they could only use the enemy's physical strength as consumables - they had to rely on the Knights at critical moments. But he did not want to spend the elite Knights on this flesh-and-blood-like battlefield.

Casillos has not been completely pacified yet, and Saint Gene's main force is still trying to capture the fortress group on the border. Although the battle is critical at the moment, it is definitely not the last one. You cannot shed all your blood here.

In another large tent not far from his tent, Master Corneg, a high-level priest from the True God Church, was conducting a mysterious ceremony.

The tent was dark, filled with the smell of some special spice.

Several candles provide the minimum lighting. Although the tent is sealed and the wind outside cannot blow in, the candles still sway as if there is wind blowing them.

A faint light illuminated the strange arrangements in the room. A scroll emitting mysterious light was now suspended above a boiling pot. Master Corniger used his finger to pour a small pinch of powder into the pot. This was a key step in the entire spell ritual. Any mistake would cause the scroll's power to get out of control, and no one would want to see that consequence.

Master Konig read a string of prayers. These originally ordinary prayers are now given mysterious power. Each syllable seems to have life, circling in the air and refuses to dissipate. But this is the real power contained in the prayer of light. Ordinary people think that these prayers are just meaningless religious poems and Scriptures, but only high-level priests know that when they truly exert their power, they can completely destroy the essence of life.

The scroll reacted. A ball of dark aura rose from the scroll. Master Corniger could feel his hair twisting and fluttering as if he had gained life. If it weren't for the help of two assistants, he might have been overwhelmed by the pressure, thus completely messing up the ceremony.

The spark of energy began to leaps around the scroll. With a brief spell, the magic energy was released and the dark aura dissipated. Now, the most powerful guardian force placed on the scroll was removed.

Master Corniger smiled before reaching out to wipe the sweat from his forehead. Although he had the perfect right method and many experiences, he had exhausted his energy to remove the protection from this reel. This was not even the entire defense of the reel.

According to the correct procedure, it will take five to ten days to complete this work, and all protective forces will be lifted bit by bit.

But such a powerful defense is worth it! The magic contained in the scroll is the most sacred power infused by the gods of the Star Realm, which can instantly erase a city from the surface. In fact, using its power to break through Derek's walls is simply useless, and killing chickens with a slaughter.

When Master Cornig set out for Paro, the Bishop gave him two such scrolls. One of them had been used on the walls of Fros, allowing Paro's army to capture Casillos's royal city without any effort.

Master Corniger left the boiler and needed to relax. Such high-intensity casting consumed too much of his physical strength and energy. To ensure safety, he had to rest for a day tomorrow and continue to remove defense the day after tomorrow. When this reel can be used safely, it will be the end of Derek Castle.

Of course, there must be a small problem before this. Those moles are very annoying - they also seem to be likely to break through the castle. And in time, it is still a little early to be completely removed from the reel.

...

"We must strengthen our defense." Ashrufat spoke.

There were four participants in this small meeting: Ashu Rufate, Leo, William Daly, and Thomas who was lying in bed and unable to move.

After today's events and after a brief revenge, everyone's heart was very heavy. Everyone knows that after today's terrible scene of torture and killing prisoners, two strong emotions of anger and fear have filled the hearts of the soldiers of the two armies. Tomorrow's battle will definitely be extremely terrible and bloody.

"The main problems now are two. The first is that our catapult carts are insufficient, and the second is that the bow and arrow are not lethal enough! Today I found some lightly wounded soldiers wrapped in bandages in the enemy, and they were obviously injured by arrows. But they were mixed with ordinary soldiers. There is no doubt that this is insufficient power of bow and arrow. This is especially true for people with good armor."

"Ashurufate, you may not know... the archers' bows are all self-produced," Leo explained. "The quality is uneven. You can't expect each of them to have a strong bow. We just hope they can disrupt the enemies and eliminate those light and unarmored enemies. We can't expect more."

"But it's really insufficient now," Ash Rufate replied. "This battle requires each of us to put all our strength into it."

"What are you going to do?"

"Put the cannons we seized onto the city walls. Then let the archers who have poor bows or arm strength take all the crossbows or muskets - our warehouse has many captured muskets and crossbows, and ammunition is sufficient. If the number of people is insufficient, let some militias also take muskets."

"But...these weapons militia will not use them."

"Mustguns and crossbows do not require training, especially muskets. Didn't the Greyhounds quickly master muskets? And we captured a lot of musketeers. We could let the prisoners teach militia to use muskets. If the prisoners dared to refuse..." A fearful smile appeared on Ash Rufate's face. "They would not refuse."

"But the musket can only shoot in a straight line. You must look up to shoot at the enemy under the city. In this way, will our casualties increase greatly?" Leo questioned again.

"No need to do this. We have the musketeer go up the arrow tower and shoot from the arrow. The musketeer is loading for too long, so we can change this. Let a skilled gunman be equipped with ten musketeers, and then arrange ten assistants behind him to reload. In this way, the shooting accuracy and shooting speed will be very high, one shot per shot!"

"Where is the gunner? Cannons are not weapons that can be mastered by just learning a few times." William Daly asked.

"We have prisoners, let them operate. Each cannon is arranged to monitor several knights. If these prisoners dare to play any tricks, they will be executed on the spot!"

"But this violates the honor of the Knight..." William Daly argued, but he wouldn't say it immediately. After what happened today, what else would you talk about the honor of the Knight?! Now, the soldiers of both armies were red.

"And, I think it's possible to soak the arrow part of the arrow in the feces!" Ashrufate continued. "After doing this, even a very minor abrasion can easily cause fatal diseases."
Chapter completed!