章 238: Reckless Attack

Translator: Cinder Translations

...

Biddeburg, located between the Portley Territory and the Adlara Territory, is a formidable castle. Its owner, Viscount Brett Sean, is a vassal of the Kent family. After a conflict erupted between the two major factions of the Northwest Bay, Earl Morley Melken and Viscount Dylan Johnston immediately combined forces to surround Biddeburg.

Viscount Sean had prepared in advance, storing a large amount of food in the castle, repairing defensive equipment, and recruiting and training a substantial number of troops. With these preparations, he commanded the castle garrison to hold the fortress firmly, repeatedly thwarting the coalition's assaults.

Morley Melken and Dylan Johnston had no choice but to seek help from other lords within the alliance, which led to Pryce Parker's letter to the lords.

Naturally, the people in Biddeburg would not sit idly by either. They sent messenger pigeons to Earl Kent, requesting that he gather allies to help relieve the siege.

Military forces from both sides began to gradually converge on this location.

In a village near Biddeburg, the members of the anti-Kent alliance selected it as their temporary command post.

"I say! We should send a battle challenge to the other side right now and arrange for a proper fight tomorrow!"

In the largest house in the village, a young man impatiently pounded the table.

"Don't rush! Let's first see what the other side does and react accordingly."

Morley Melken advised, inwardly complaining that Winfred Heller's son was far too combative, unlike his father who advocated "non-violence." It was said that Earl Heller initially wanted to wait and see, but this young man eagerly urged several of his elders, leading the Heller family to get involved.

Now, it was this young upstart leading the troops. Could it be that his father had been sidelined?

Earl Melken also wanted to end the conflict at his doorstep quickly and get rid of the thorn that was Biddeburg, but with enemy reinforcements approaching, he had to be cautious.

The others in the room echoed Earl Melken's sentiments.

"Hmph!"

Derrick Heller snorted in dissatisfaction. To him, these old men were far too conservative, their minds rusted.

"I must remind everyone that spring plowing is about to begin. If we don't let the soldiers return home to farm soon, there won't be any harvest come autumn!"

Pryce Parker, sitting at the head of the table, said, "Nephew Derrick, we are well aware of this. That's why I gathered everyone here, hoping to crush the Kent family in one decisive blow to avoid prolonged warfare. If we are to settle this in one battle, we must maximize our strength."

Derrick asked, "We already have over 6,000 troops. What more do we need? What are you waiting for?"

"We are waiting for the people of the Grayman family and the Ganard family. They still have over 1,000 troops on the way. With them, our chances of victory will be even greater!"

Derrick sneered, "I've heard the Grayman family doesn't even have a knight. What use could they be?"

Earl Park shook his head, "Even a small contribution is valuable. Besides, do not underestimate them. Do you think your family alone could eliminate the Northwest Bay pirates within a few months?"

Derrick tossed his hair, "Hmph, they're just some rogue pirate bands left behind after Edward left. What's so difficult about wiping out these rabble?"

The people in the room looked awkwardly at Earl Park.

As the initiator of the alliance, Pryce Parker felt somewhat offended.

He slammed the table and said in a commanding voice, "All in favor of waiting for the Grayman and Ganard troops to arrive before launching an attack, raise your hands!"

Except for Derrick Heller, everyone else in the room raised their right hand.

Earl Park nodded in satisfaction and turned to Derrick, saying, "Nephew Derrick, it seems everyone thinks this way. Do you still want to insist on your opinion?"

Seeing that no one supported him, Derrick felt very angry inside, but he suppressed his anger and asked, "Fine, I respect everyone's opinion. But when will the people from the Grayman and Ganard families arrive? If they don't come for a month, are we supposed to keep waiting? By then, the Kent family might have attacked us already!"

Earl Park saw that the young man had softened a bit, so he also eased his tone, stroking his beard, and said, "You don't need to worry about that. I've already received a message from their fast riders. Their troops are on the way and should arrive by tomorrow afternoon."

...

At this moment, Biddeburg was experiencing the final calm before a major battle. The coalition had gathered over 6,000 troops and camped to the east of the castle, isolating Biddeburg from the reinforcements of the Kent family.

The Kent family had also gathered nearly 5,000 troops and camped not far from the coalition's eastern side, waiting for additional forces to arrive. Due to their presence, the coalition had halted their siege. With less than a thousand capable soldiers inside Biddeburg, they could not form a pincer attack with their reinforcements.

Both sides were adding the final touches to their armies, waiting for the moment the spark would ignite.

By noon the next day, Earl Parker was discussing battle strategies with others when a soldier stumbled in, panic-stricken.

"Lord Park, my lord!" The soldier seemed flustered.

The count glared at him in displeasure. "What are you panicking for? What happened?"

"Viscount Derrick Heller, he... the viscount has led his troops to attack the enemy!"

"What?"

Pryce Parker and the others in the hall were both shocked and angry. The count had the soldier repeat himself to ensure he hadn't misheard.

"That brat! How could he be so reckless?"

They thought he had settled down yesterday, but it turned out to be an act!

The soldier who brought the news added, "It seems the enemy camp caught fire, causing a commotion. The viscount saw it as an opportunity and led the attack!"

"Oh?"

Earl Park immediately led the others out of the building and looked eastward. The soldier was right; several columns of smoke were rising in the east, indicating a fire!

He smacked his palm. "Sigh! Didn't he think that it might be a trap? What if the enemy has set up an ambush in the camp?"

There was no time to waste. Whether it was a trap or not, he had to take action.

He glanced around at everyone and quickly made a decision, "Everyone, gather the soldiers into the formations we discussed and trained for. Advance towards the enemy camp and support Viscount Derrick Heller."

"Yes!"

The others responded and quickly dispersed to gather their respective troops.

(End of the Chapter)