boyutpedia Chapter 79: Escape
Chapter 79: Escape
It was three days later when Hilfar gathered his men and found Ashwood Territory.
Over the next three days, Ron produced enough defensive weapons to defend the city.
Thirty-six crossbows and twelve catapults.
It wasn't that Ron didn't want to make more, but he was limited by the conditions of his territory.
If the city wall were on the same level as Harvest Town, he could deploy several times more Eight-Ox Crossbows.
When Hilfar and Tony led their army to Ashwood, they were also taken aback by the city walls before them.
Hilfa simply couldn't comprehend the existence of so many city walls, including the several-kilometer-long earthen wall next to them.
"What exactly is that guy trying to do?"
"So many walls have been built in less than three months! No wonder they are the direct descendants of the Ashwood family."
Tony was overjoyed at the sight and felt much more at ease.
Building such a city wall in three months is not something an ordinary architectural mage could do, unless he inherited the architectural blueprints and wealth accumulated by the Ashwood family over generations.
This trip is just a pretext to arrest people; the real purpose is to seize their property.
Tony quickly issued the order: "Maintain the site and have the construction wizards convert the engineering ladders and battering rams."
Hillfa immediately went to carry it out.
Tony is a newly promoted Sky Knight in the Order of the Scouts, and Hilfa is an Earth Knight. There are four other Earth Knights like him, and fifty official knights remain.
The Order of the Scouts does not have a unit called Knight Apprentice, and they will not even accept people who cannot become full knights before the age of thirty.
The Imperial Knights came this time in a squadron of fifty-six men. They also recruited three hundred infantrymen, who were all the lowest-ranking mercenaries in Gorubakburg. Although they were the lowest-ranking mercenaries, with only a few knight apprentices among them and the rest being militia-level, these veterans were experienced in many battles and were all shrewd and capable.
Upon seeing the walls of Ashwood Territory, one of the squad leaders decisively declared, "This battle is lost."
"Why? Captain, don't we have Lord Knight?"
Facing Ivan, the youngest mercenary in the squad, Captain Russell said irritably, "What do you think those knights recruited us for? To help haul loot?"
"They want us to draw their arrows during the siege, thus depleting the enemy's defensive weapons."
Ivan fell silent, glancing again instinctively at the stone walls, his heart filled with fear.
He also participated in an attack on a lord of the wasteland. On that occasion, they disguised themselves as a bandit group and attacked a lord whose fortified city walls were only made of wood, which were nothing compared to these stone walls.
In that operation, their squad of fifteen lost four men, all of whom died in battle. They were either shot to death by archers on the city wall or crushed to death by stones, with no chance of being saved.
How many lives would they need to lose to breach such a city wall?
Russell's team had this idea, and the other mercenaries felt the same way. Immediately, someone went to find Hillfa while cursing, and Hillfa, without saying a word, cut down more than a dozen members of that team as a sacrifice to the flag.
This immediately intimidated the other mercenaries.
Russell immediately pulled the squad back into their tents.
Russell thought about it all night and finally made a decision: "Later, we'll cover your escape. Don't go back to Gorubak Fortress, go back to your uncle's farm. Never be a mercenary again."
Ivan immediately became anxious: "Captain, I want to fight alongside you to the very end."
"Are you coming with us to our deaths?" Russell said irritably. "If we run away alone, won't those knights do anything to us?"
The camp fell silent. Many of them wanted to escape, but then they thought of Ivan, who was only sixteen and had a bright future ahead of him, while they, the lowest-ranking mercenaries, had no future. As for their families, they were either dead or had run away.
John, the oldest member of the squad, patted Ivan on the shoulder: "Live well, and don't be a mercenary again." Then he went to sleep.
The others went back to sleep one after another, intending to cover Ivan's escape before nightfall.
In the early hours of the morning, the sky was overcast and gray.
Ivan was woken up by Russell.
"This is dry rations. When the time comes, we'll create chaos in the camp and say you ran to Gorubak Fortress. You take advantage of the chaos to run in the opposite direction. Just keep running, don't stop. Once you're safe, seek refuge with the nearest wasteland lord. If that doesn't work, hide for a few days until the war is over, then go back."
Upon hearing Russell's words, and clutching the dry rations in his arms—the rations the team members had prepared over the past few days—Ivan's eyes reddened.
"team leader!"
"Stop being so sentimental. Just stay behind Old John, and he'll take advantage of the chaos to get you out of the camp." After saying that, Russell pulled Ivan up and then pushed him into Old John's arms.
Let's go!
Ivan followed behind Old John, weaving left and right through the camp, and soon arrived at a camp site. There was a dog hole left when they built the wall that day, just big enough for a person to crawl out.
Don't underestimate these mercenaries. They may only be able to win when things are going well, but their ability to survive far surpasses that of regular soldiers.
"You stay here. When the captain's voice calls out, count to 100 and then rush out. Don't look back." After saying this, Old John stuffed a dagger that he had picked up from the battlefield and treasured for many years into Ivan's arms.
Ivan, clutching his dagger and dry rations, waited quietly in the corner.
"Captain! Old John! Old Tom..."
"Someone's deserting!" Russell's voice suddenly rang out in the early morning, alarming the entire camp.
The knights of the Imperial Guard immediately rushed to the two exits to control the entrances, while simultaneously forming two ten-man squads to run in the direction of the sound.
Hilfa asked with a grim face, "What happened?"
Russell calmly replied, "One of our mercenaries ran away."
"Why did this happen?" Shirfa asked, clearly displeased. "Do you want to face military punishment for this?"
Russell, true to his mercenary background, was thick-skinned and unfazed, spreading his hands dismissively: "Sir Knight, I reported it the moment I discovered it. What do you mean by this?"
Just as Hilfa was about to call for Russell to be taken away, the sound of clashing swords rang out from both exits.
"The mercenaries have mutinied and are trying to escape."
Upon hearing this, a glimmer of hope flashed in the eyes of Russell's team, and they hurriedly followed Hilfa toward the exit.
When they arrived, there were only a dozen or so corpses left on the ground. It was impossible for the low-ranking mercenaries to break through the gate guarded by the knights, even with ten times the number of soldiers.
This is the difference between knights and regular soldiers.
The remaining mercenaries lowered their heads, and none of them dared to speak.
But Russell noticed that some people's hands were trembling as they gripped their weapons, not out of fear, but out of anger.
Ivan crawled out of the dog hole and ran into the wilderness without looking back.
He didn't know what lay ahead, only that he couldn't turn back.
As the morning light spread from the east, a gray-white city wall could be vaguely seen on the distant horizon, pointing towards Harvest Town.