nycdaug Chapter 45: Ready to Go and Warning
Chapter 45: Ready to Go and Warning
"How many fishing boats did you gather this time?" Godot asked in a deep voice.
"Brother, I've counted them; there are less than a hundred in total, big and small."
Many of them were small sampans used by fishermen, unable to withstand the wind and waves, and unable to carry the supplies for our soldiers!
"Not enough, not nearly enough!" Godot frowned, pondered for a moment, and continued:
"This inland lake called Donghu is incredibly large! Its waterways are interconnected, but unfortunately, we can't bring our heavy longships in!"
"Taking a detour would take too much time, and time is exactly what we need!"
"Stan, gather your Sea Wolf Warriors and head to the nearby fishing villages. Hurry!"
"clear!"
A bloodthirsty glint flashed in Stan's eyes; plunder and slaughter were etched into his very bones.
At his command, the pirate warriors, who belonged exclusively to Stan, the second leader, set off once again, heading south along the shore of East Lake.
……
The cries and screams were gradually cut off by the giant axe.
Throughout the day, the stench of blood quietly spread along the eastern shore of East Lake.
Several villages fell one after another, and the pirates swept through like a flood.
Several fishing villages were completely massacred.
Godot personally set up the blockade, and not a single villager managed to escape, nor could anyone break through the blockade to reach a distant town to deliver the message.
Godot had his own plans.
More than a month ago, he began making arrangements, sending his subordinates deep into the inland to gather information.
No one expected that Godot would not act according to the wishes of the lords he had colluded with.
The opposition lords allowed him to land freely, intending for him to use Godot as a weapon to wreak havoc on the Saxon faction's territories from the north.
But he is Twilight Bear Godot!
He disregarded the agreement to go north!
He knew that the opposition lords throughout Saxony mostly controlled territories in the central region of Fieldsway.
As long as he doesn't provoke their villages and territories, these self-interested nobles will turn a blind eye and let him plunder others.
The two sides have basically maintained this delicate balance!
In the past, his raids were just small-scale operations, and no one noticed them. But this time, he brought the warriors of the entire tribe with him!
Now, the entire Kare tribe has mobilized fewer than two thousand warriors!
Despite his impressive presence, he couldn't act with impunity across the entire Fieldsway region!
The Fieldsway lords commanded elite heavy infantry and also had a large cavalry force.
Any one of them could completely crush him and his tribe!
Godot was never willing to become a blade in someone else's hand, or a tool for others!
In the past, when these sea warriors raided, they often relied on the seaworthiness of their long ships and small groups of troops to precisely attack the weakly defended coastal villages and caravans!
After completing their looting, they would quickly escape by ship, never engaging in prolonged battles with the main enemy force. This was a typical "hit-and-run" pirate tactic, making it difficult for coastal lords to defend against.
But now, the thousands of tribal warriors are the foundation of his Kare tribe, the elite who fought their way out of the bitter cold islands.
Reckless plundering will only lead to self-destruction, a mistake that Yar must never make.
Godot had already grasped the situation; the relationships between the various city-states of Fieldsway were currently extremely hostile.
Kango Saxony's new policies aimed to unify the entire Fieldsville, which harmed the interests of countless opposition lords, leading to factional divisions and escalating conflicts to an extreme!
As far as he knew, the lord of Ganders Fortress, Cold-Blooded Harald, was the universally acknowledged fence-sitter in Fieldsway!
He was neither willing to completely side with Saxony nor to openly join the opposition.
Swinging between two sides and trying to please both, in the end you end up pleasing neither!
If you're powerful, anyone will try to win you over...
And Godot is confident he can crush this Lord of Ganders Fortress in the wild!
Fieldsway was originally a loose alliance of city-states.
Each lord governs independently, and unless faced with a major crisis involving both sides, the various factions will never put aside their differences and conflicts.
They can't work together at all!
Isolation and lack of support—this was Harald's greatest weakness, and also the perfect opportunity that Godot had been waiting for.
For him, if he could break through the Ganders fortress in one fell swoop, he could hold this stronghold that was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and have a piece of land belonging to the Vanskelli people on this fertile land.
Most importantly, Godot can use this to influence the other tribal forces in the region. Once he takes over this fertile land, those old folks in the region will have no choice but to be tempted.
If the major local tribes participate, he will have a chance to hold the fortified town once he captures it.
Even if it can't be taken immediately, all that's needed is to plunder the area around the stronghold, seizing food and women.
In just half a day, he can retreat back to the bay and return to the sea!
By this time, the opposition lords probably knew he had come ashore.
But they never expected that this landing force would consist of over a thousand elite troops!
As the sun set and night completely enveloped the land, the bloody plunder temporarily came to an end.
Stan, accompanied by his raiders, brought a pale-faced man before Godot.
The man, dressed in tattered clothes, immediately knelt down before Godot, desperately kowtowing and begging for mercy.
"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"
"I'm useful! I'm really useful!"
The man's eyes were filled with a desperate desire to live, and his voice was hoarse and urgent as he pleaded, "I know the entire topography of the East Lake area! I know every path and every bay inside and out!"
I know the location of all the villages along the coast. I can lead you to the richest village…”
Based on the information gathered by his spies, and after some probing, Godot was overjoyed!
Just as the man said, he is indeed a "living map" of the entire East Lake area!
With this mentor, his grand goals became a possibility!
According to the guide's description, combined with the intelligence gathered by the spies over the past month, Godot completely figured out the key:
The villages on the east side of East Lake, such as Gangde Village and Duanpo Village...
These villages are the core source of tax revenue for the Ganders fortress and the foundation of Harald!
These villages are wealthy, but their defenses are extremely weak. If a small force is sent to raid and plunder them, Harald will definitely not stand idly by and will send troops out of the city to rescue them.
A chilling predatory glint flashed in Godot's single eye.
"Brother, what should we do next?" Stan asked anxiously beside Godot.
Godot did not reply immediately. Turning to the trembling guide, Godot raised the dragon bone axe in his hand, pressed it against the man's neck, and asked softly:
"Tell me, how long would it take to cross the nearest fishing village on the east bank of East Lake by boat from here?"
The man was so frightened that he went limp, and a puddle of pale yellow water had already gathered on the ground beneath him.
"M-sir, the closest village from here is Duanpo Village."
"It only takes... less than four... six hours!"
"How long will it take!" Godot roared, bringing his dragon bone axe closer, the sharp blade slicing through the man's neck.
"My lord, no... it won't be more than six hours! Really!"
Godot nodded in satisfaction, and the giant axe in his hand left the man's neck.
The man instinctively touched his itchy neck, and when he saw the blood on his palm, his eyes rolled back and he fainted!
"You spineless landowner, you'll never be allowed into my main hall!"
Godot prepared a glob of phlegm and spat it precisely into the man's face, then coldly ordered:
"Keep an eye on him, don't kill him, he'll be useful later!"
"Stop messing around with those women. There will be plenty of opportunities later. Save your energy!"
"It's getting dark, let's rest here for a few hours," Godot said to his younger brother in a deep voice.
……
In the early hours of the morning, the moonlight was bright and clear.
"We don't have enough boats, you and your men set off first!"
"Once ashore, only a few messengers were left behind..."
"Kill all the other men!"
"Yes, brother!"
"Set off!"
On dozens of small boats, there were about a hundred pirates wearing chainmail and carrying round shields and battle axes.
At Stan's command, all the small boats rowed towards the shadows in the center of the lake...
……
Meanwhile, in Broken Amber Village, at the Three Musketeers' blacksmith shop...
The three of them, including Roger, were already fast asleep.
God's snoring was deafening, but it couldn't wake anyone who was fast asleep.
Just then, a snow-white figure darted in through a crack in the small window.
The newcomer was none other than the little snowy owl that Rogge had rescued!
After Rogge gave it an "experience candy" in a flash of inspiration, the little thing's wings had almost fully recovered.
In the past two days, the little snowy owl has been flying out for a period of time every night.
"Coo coo coo! Coo coo coo..."
The little guy was pressing on Rogge's chest, chirping anxiously...
……