nycdaug Chapter 65 Arrival at Ganders Fortress
Chapter 65 Arrival at Ganders Fortress
Inside the council chamber of the main castle in Ganders Fortress.
The firewood in the fireplace was crackling and popping, with sparks occasionally flying from the orange flames.
Two long shadows were cast on the stone wall.
The garrison commander, Sigurd, stood before the table, clad in chainmail, having just come down from his patrol of the city walls.
"Sir, Olsen is blocking the main castle gate again with his men, urging us to attack! If we don't fight, he'll go back to defend the village!"
"We can't just watch the pirates burn down the villages in our territory one by one!"
Protecting the villagers and providing them with safe haven is the lord's oath and our duty!
Sigurd crossed his arms over his chest, his face full of anxiety.
The old man in front of him was wearing a dark gray linen robe with simple silver thread patterns embroidered on the collar and cuffs, markings that were exclusive to the lord's retainers.
He had his back to the fireplace, most of his face hidden in shadow.
"The situation is unclear; we cannot engage in combat."
"Commander Sigs, I will reiterate this one last time: before the Lord left, he left an ironclad order that at all times, the sole duty of the fortress garrison is to defend the castle to the death."
"Hold on to the death?"
The garrison commander, Sigurd, slammed his hand on the table, the heavy oak table emitting a dull thud.
He was a burly man with broad shoulders and back, and his fists were clenched so tightly they cracked.
"Am I supposed to just watch as villages outside are looted one after another?"
"Several villages west of East Lake are gone!"
"Men and children were hacked to death in the village, and women were abducted."
The returning cavalry scout reported that there wasn't even a living dog in the village!
His voice suddenly rose, filled with unspeakable anger:
"To this day, not even the forty militiamen conscripted from Duanpo Village have arrived at the fortress!"
I sent cavalry to scout the area; the village was deathly silent, so it's most likely gone too!
"If the villages outside the castle are all gone, what will the thousands of people inside this castle eat and drink?"
Steward Terry slowly raised his head, his eyes remaining calm:
"The lord is about to return."
Moreover, I have already sent people to notify the remaining villagers to move to the fortress...
"But you, Sigurd, have you considered the Lord's feelings?"
"Even if the lord himself is stationed here, he will first find out the details of the pirates and carefully consider the matter before deciding to go into battle."
"Have you calculated how many capable soldiers we have right now?"
Sigurd's chest heaved as he gritted his teeth and uttered the number: "Six hundred and seventeen people."
The foreman raised his voice a few decibels: "But four hundred of them are militiamen conscripted from various villages!"
"And what about the pirates?"
"You think there are only three hundred people?"
They were able to plunder several villages on the west bank of East Lake within three days, and even wipe out Duanpo Village without a sound!
This is definitely not something a single pirate force could accomplish! They had at least five hundred men, maybe even more!
Terry pointed to the location of Broken Amber Village on the map:
"When the people of Duanpo Village came to ask for help, I sent out scout cavalry."
"They reported this morning that there were only a little over a hundred pirates looting the village."
To everyone's surprise, by the afternoon, the number of pirates had suddenly increased to three hundred!
"Nobody knows how many more people are behind them!"
Sigurd clenched his fists even tighter.
He knew better than anyone that most of those militiamen were farmers who had just put down their hoes, and if they really went to the battlefield, it would be no different for them to die.
"The situation is unclear, we cannot easily launch an attack. We must wait for the lord to return."
After all, the real elites are all around you, sir!
Terry's gaze was sharp as a knife.
"Without my order, no one is allowed to leave the city to fight. You are only allowed to enter, not leave!"
Everything awaits the Lord's return to decide!
For a moment, the council chamber fell into a deathly silence, with only the flickering flames in the fireplace...
……
Outside the fortress of Ganders, on a winding mountain road.
After a difficult journey, Rogge and his party finally arrived outside the castle at dusk.
The golden glow of the sunset spilled onto the stone walls of the Ganders fortress, casting a brownish-yellow hue on the cold rocks.
This is a typical mountain fortress.
Surrounded by rolling hills and sparse woods, the castle has only one relatively flat clearing.
Here, cavalry cannot operate at all, and any enemy that wants to attack this place can only rely on infantry to advance.
More than ten arrow towers are scattered across the stone wall, forming a crossfire network with no blind spots.
This castle territory is easy to defend and difficult to attack. It is a strategic choke point controlling this mountainous area and is a place that military strategists must fight for.
The main city gate was tightly closed, and in front of the gate was a moat three zhang wide, which was dry and connected only by a huge drawbridge that could be retracted.
At this moment, the city wall was filled with figures, soldiers holding bows and arrows and spears, looking as if they were facing a formidable enemy.
Rogge thought to himself that it seemed the fortress had already learned of the pirates' whereabouts, otherwise they wouldn't be so heavily guarded.
Anya walked at the front of the group. Just as they reached the entrance to the suspension bridge, a dozen militiamen wearing chainmail and carrying spears blocked their way.
The squad leader, gripping his sword hilt, glanced warily at Rogge and his group of over thirty men, and sternly ordered them to stop:
"Halt! Wartime control! Unauthorized personnel are not permitted to approach!"
Anya removed her hood, revealing her face, and stated her identity and purpose.
"We are villagers from Duanpo Village. Our village has been attacked by pirates!"
"It's urgent! I need to see the city lord... or the sheriff!"
When the squad leader heard that they were from Duanpo Village, he paused for a moment, then looked Anya up and down.
"People from Duanpo Village? I just heard that Duanpo Village has been ravaged by pirates..."
"You wait here, I'll go inform them!"
……
The waiting time felt exceptionally long.
The sun had completely set, and darkness fell.
After a long time, the squad leader finally returned, followed by a middle-aged man with a haggard face.
The man was a villager from Duanpo Village whom Old Yar had sent to seek help.
After their identities as villagers of Anya Duanpo Village were confirmed, they were allowed into the city fortress.
"Neither the lord nor the sheriff is in the territory. Follow me to the main castle; the steward is waiting for you!" the squad leader instructed in a deep voice.
Crossing the drawbridge and entering the city gate, Rogge was greeted by a stench of sweat, mold, and excrement. He frowned inwardly.
The once spacious inner city square and narrow streets were now packed with people.
At first glance, Rogge saw mostly villagers dressed in coarse cloth and carrying simple weapons.
He secretly guessed that these must be conscripted militiamen from various villages.
We made our way toward the main castle, passing through crowded and narrow streets, and finally arrived at the open space in front of the main castle.
The main castle is the tallest building in the entire fortress, and its walls appear extremely thick.
At this moment, dozens of figures gathered at the entrance of the main castle. They were all burly men, but their faces were full of anxiety and anger.
They were shouting loudly around the guards at the gate, their emotions running high.
Rogge's gaze swept across the crowd, then suddenly stopped.
He spotted several familiar figures in the crowd!
One of them was Yar'osen from the village of Gonde. His face was flushed red as he shouted at the guards at the gate:
"If we don't fight, they want us to go back and defend the village! What does it mean to not let us leave the city?"
Two girls always followed Olsen.
One of them stood out even in the crowded throng.
Roger was deeply impressed by her; she was Aino, who had defeated two men from Broken Amber Village in the previous duel!
At this moment, she no longer had her usual proud demeanor; her face was full of worry.
Rogge recalled the scene he had seen when he passed through the village of Gander during the day.
Looking at Olsen's angry expression at this moment,
Roger did not proactively inform these people of the bad news.
For a moment, a thousand words were stuck in my throat, and in the end, they turned into a silent sigh.
……