Chapter 182:
Chapter 182
In fact, it was Otto who broke the rules of etiquette.
On paper, Otto de Scuderia was a local noble of the Kingdom of Baltin, with the rank of Baron.
And for any lord to look down on an inspector sent by the king was a grave insult.
It was a sign of disrespect for the king’s authority, an act that was punishable by treason.
Of course, that’s a story of the past.
“D-Do you think you can get away with this?”
Count Theodore growled at Camille.
“I am an inspector appointed by His Majesty the King. You pointing a sword at me means that you are….”
“Answer me.”
Camille pressured Count Theodore.
“You will not raise your voice in disrespect to His Majesty.”
At that point.
“Leave it.”
Otto stopped Camille.
“Let’s hear what he has to say.”
“Your Majesty.”
“It’s okay, just let it go.”
“I hear your command.”
Camille sheathed his sword.
“I will surely punish you for your insolence.”
Count Theodore growled at Camille, then turned to glare at Otto.
“Lord Otto. Do you think you can get away with this?”
“What?”
“You have abandoned your loyalty to our king, and have waged a territory war, attacking and annexing other independent fiefdoms.”
“Aren’t wars between independent fiefs the free will of their lords?”
“Of course it is, but you have never reported the outcome of these wars.”
“That is true.”
“Furthermore, you have committed treason by attempting to elevate yourself to the throne.”
“That’s also correct.”
“That’s treason enough, but you’ve also committed tax evasion by reducing your taxes.”
“I admit it.”
What Count Theodore said made complete sense.
If it were done according to the law, Otto’s actions were sufficient to have him sent to the Baltin Kingdom and beheaded under the guillotine.
“However.”
Otto rose from his throne and strode toward Count Theodore.
“For the past 50 years, you’ve been squeezing taxes without providing proper support, and now you’re here making a show. What’s the reason?”
“What?!”
“The Baltin Kingdom has abandoned and neglected the province of Kashmir for fifty years, and now you think you can get any kind of respect.”
“Abandoned and neglected? Ridiculous! That’s not true at all! While it’s true that His Majesty hasn’t been able to focus much on the Kashmir region due to various governmental matters, it doesn’t mean he abandoned or neglected it. In his heart, he always… Ack!”
Count Theodore collapsed, coughing up blood.
He was hit in the head by Otto’s poker.
“This bastard.”
With a fierce expression, Otto glared down at Count Theodore and growled menacingly.
“Who the hell do you think you are to talk shit in front of me?”
“Ak, Aack! You’re about to cross an irreversible river….”
*Smack!*
Otto struck Count Theodore on the head once more with his poker.
“If you came to pick a fight, just say you came to pick a fight. Don’t beat around the bush with the same old excuses.”
“Argh!”
“You need to be beaten to death to come to your senses, sir.”
For a long time Otto beat Count Theodore with the poker.
“Go and tell King Chech IV.”
“Keuuuuuuk.”
“There is no longer an Lota Estate. The Kashmir region no longer belongs to the Baltin Kingdom, but to the Lota Kingdom.”
“Keueoeook.”
“And Otto de Scuderia is no longer a mere noble of the Baltin Kingdom, but the King of the Lota Kingdom. Do you understand?”
“…You will regret this.”
“You still haven’t gotten it through your head. Hey.”
Otto cast a look at his knights.
“I want you to soak all of them, including this one, in a cesspool for a day or so, then load them onto carts and send them back to the Baltin Kingdom.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
That was a declaration of war against the mother kingdom of Baltin.
War was inevitable after the assault on the Inspector and his retinue, and the subsequent soaking in a cesspool.
It was only a matter of time before the armies of the Baltin Kingdom would invade Lota.
This was an event that the Kingdom of Baltin could not look the other way, even if they wanted to.
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A few days later.
“What!”
King Cech IV was furious when he received Count Theodore’s report.
“You mean to tell me that Otto de Scuderia has committed such an outrage against you!”
“Yes, it is true! Huhuhuh!”
Count Theodore was so enraged that tears streamed down his face.
It was bad enough that he was beaten with a poker, but to be humiliated by being thrown into a cesspool….
“Unbelievable, openly committing treason.”
King Cheh IV’s eyes gleamed ominously.
“Then I shall no longer be merciful and tolerant. Hear me!”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Tell our troops who have been stationed at Punhill Fortress to be ready for battle at once, and send additional troops to prepare for a large-scale all-out war! I will never forgive those traitorous rabble!”
“Your will shall be done, Your Majesty!”
Thus, the Baltin Kingdom’s army began to mobilize in earnest to decimate the Kingdom of Lota.
“Count Theodore.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You are not to appear in front of this King for the time being.”
“Yes…?”
Count Theodore’s eyes widened as if he didn’t know what that meant.
“How can you command such a thing? Did I do anything to cause…”
“It is not your fault.”
“….?”
“The stench is so bad that it is unbearable, so you should stay at home and rest for the time being. Until the odor passes.”
“Ah.”
Count Theodore suddenly realized why King Chech IV was so keen to distance himself from him.
After a whole day of being submerged in a cesspool, the stench was unbearable.
No matter how many times he washed himself, the stench would not go away.
Despite dousing himself in perfume….
‘Otto de Scuderia, you bastard! I won’t let you get away with this!’
It was only a matter of time before the kingdom of Baltin would crush the kingdom of Lota, and Count Theodore had no doubt that his own revenge would be realized.
‘I will make sure you are drowned in a cesspool before you are executed, I will make that certain!’
Count Theodore gnashed his teeth in anticipation of his revenge.
A few days later.
*Clomp!* *Clink!* *Clomp!*
The Baltin Kingdom army, having left the Toorong Fortress, advanced along the Serpent’s Path towards the Punhill Fortress.
Their goal was Fortress Chergori in the Kingdom of Lota.
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The Baltinian army assembled at Punhill Fortress numbered nearly 20,000 strong.
They were not conscripts but reserves, elite soldiers trained with rigorous exercises, known for their high level of competence.
In addition, many of them were highly skilled knights, so their strength was formidable.
In contrast, there were not many troops stationed at the Chergori Fortress.
The Fortress was situated in a narrow pass, so its size was very small.
Even if they wanted to add more troops, the small size of the fortress was a clear limitation.
Therefore, the commanders of the Baltin Kingdom believed that capturing the Chergori Fortress would not be too difficult.
They might suffer losses, but by gradually pushing their troops forward, they believed they would eventually break through.
That was the assessment of the Baltin military commanders.
*Whoosh!* *Boom!* *Booom!*
*Boom!* *Booom!* *Boom!*
The Baltin Kingdom army attempted a preemptive attack by bombarding the Chergori Fortress with their cannons.
However, the effectiveness of the bombardment was not as great as they had imagined.
Judging by the lack of screams, the artillery shells that landed inside the fortress did not do much damage to the Lota forces.
Moreover, the fortress gate, where the firepower was concentrated was still intact.
“This! How can the gates of such a small fortress be so durable!”
The Commander of the Baltin Kingdom’s army clicked his tongue at the defenses of Fort Chergori.
He had anticipated some level of damage, even if it didn’t fall completely, but seeing it still standing strong, he began to wonder if he had wasted shells needlessly.
If that was the case…….
“All forces, attack!”
“Waaaaaaaaaa!”
At the Commander’s command, the armies of the Kingdom of Baltin began to rush toward Fort Chergori.
The siege began.
The Baltinian army charged towards Chergori Fortress like a swarm of enraged hornets, and scaled the fortress walls.
Standing atop the walls, the soldiers of the Lota Kingdom unleashed a barrage of attacks against the Baltin Kingdom army, engaging in fierce counterattacks.
And so the first battle was fought, and a week passed.
“What a bunch of wretched bastards, how the hell could they hold out this long?”
The Commander of the Baltin Kingdom’s army vented his frustration as he gazed into the distance at the Chergori Fortress.
Several sieges had been fought over the past week, but the Baltinian army had made no progress.
On the contrary, they had suffered significant losses.
Indeed, the losses suffered by the Baltinian army were staggering.
The losses amounted to 5,000.
Among them, there were a staggering 2,000 fatalities.
In contrast, the Lota Kingdom army showed signs of exhaustion, but did not appear to have suffered much loss.
‘Does this make any sense? Despite having some geographical disadvantage, how could such a small fortress boast such formidable defenses?’
The commander of the Baltin Kingdom Army was in anguish.
It was because the exceptional combat prowess of the Lota Kingdom’s army and the implausible defensive strength of the Chergori Fortress defied common sense.
* * *
Meanwhile, in Fort Chergori….
“…I’m exhausted.”
The words came out of Helmut’s mouth as he rested against the ramparts.
Helmut.
Once a Margrave defending the Magritte Kingdom against the nomads of the Haver Prairie, he was now a vassal of Otto and field commander of the Lota Kingdom.
Not long ago.
Otto summoned Helmut and gave him the following order.
‘Go to Fort Chergori and stop the Baltinian army.’
“How many troops do they have?’
‘About 20,000?’
‘What about the number of….’
‘I will give you 1,000 troops.’
‘Yes?’
‘Why? Is that too many?’
‘Y-Your Majesty, the Baltin Kingdom’s army is over 20,000 strong, and we only have 1,000 men….’
‘Ei. You are sounding feeble even though you can do it.’
‘……’
‘Well, it’s siege battle anyway, and a 20x difference is nothing. Maybe a 30x difference would be difficult.’
“T-That’s a little bit.’
‘What did you say? That you can do it? Alright, then. I’ll take my leave.’
Astonishingly, Otto left Helmut with only a paltry force of 1,000 men and left him the Chergori Fortress.
“What sins did I commit in my previous life….”
Helmut lamented.
After being exploited by the Magritte Kingdom for generations, just when it seemed like life was getting bearable, Otto expect him to defend against 20,000 with a mere 1,000.
It felt like being ordered to buy bread, milk, and meat with just one penny and come back with plenty of change.
But orders are orders.
Helmut made his way to Fort Chergori with plenty of potions, and for a week he managed to fend off the Baltinian army.
Otto’s words that “1,000 is enough” were definitely not empty talk.
“General Commander, the enemy is coming again!”
“…I see.”
Helmut slowly rose to his feet.
*Sparkle!* *Sparkle*1
As Helmut stood up, the green brick embedded in the wall was revealed.
[Marquis’ Resolve]
It was a Holy Relic that increased the durability of the Fortress Walls by 500%, increased the combat power and morale of allies by as little as 10% to as much as 100%, and dramatically increased the chance that ranged attacks from enemies would miss.
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At the same time.
“W… What the fuck is this!”
The commander guarding the Toorong Fortress was greatly bewildered by the sudden turn of events.
The reason was simple.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
“Slay the enemies!”
“For Lota!!!”
Like a raging wave, the troops of the Lota Kingdom were advancing on the virtually empty Toorong Fortress.
‘How is this possible?’
The commander couldn’t wrap his head around it.
Common sense dictates that it would be impossible for the Lota Kingdom to attack Fort Toorong.
For the Lota Kingdom’s army to attack the Toorong Fortress, they would have to first drive out the Baltin Kingdom’s army attacking the Chergori Fortress, then proceed to occupy the Punhill Fortress, and finally navigate the serpent’s path to arrive. It was an extremely difficult and complex process.”
There is no way that the Iota army would have traveled such a harrowing path.
The Lota Kingdom army did not come through the Serpent’s Path.
“They appeared from an entirely different and truly absurd direction.”
It was as if they had entered the territory of the Baltin Kingdom before the war began….
‘There must be a detour!’
That’s all the commander of the Baltin Kingdom army could think.
** ** **
TL/N:
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