章節 230: C230
On the coastline, the screams of the sea monsters trapped in the sea of people were incessant. This was the power of the militia system: during peacetime, people engaged in production, but during war, they became soldiers armed with butchering knives.
Upon hearing of the sea monsters' attack on Cornwall, Scathach hurried over to aid in the defense. Even she couldn't help but be shocked when she witnessed the scene before her. While she had seen powerful heroes and armies with many heroes, she had never seen such powerful civilians.
Has anyone ever seen a country full of heroes? It's hard to say. However, that king may have been capable of achieving such a feat. In fact, given enough time, it's possible that he could have created a country where everyone was a hero.
...
Shirou sat in the center of the northern frontline fortifications, dealing with one matter after another with a serious expression. Guenivere had already briefed him on what had happened in Cornwall, but he didn't seem worried in the slightest. After all, Cornwall was his stronghold, and he was well aware of its advantages and weaknesses.
Cornwall's biggest advantage was its location facing the sea, which allowed for the development of a thriving maritime economy. However, this same location also made it vulnerable to sea attacks. In anticipation of such threats, Shirou had constructed military fortifications along the coast long ago.
To further bolster Cornwall's defenses, over 80,000 residents had received military training, with the exception of the elderly, women, and children. Additionally, several defense forces had been equipped with innate skills. Unless Vortigern's army could defeat him first, there was no real threat to Cornwall.
However, he let Scathach deal with the sea monsters first before heading to Ireland and focusing on the situation in the north.
The war had been ongoing for more than a month, and Shirou's soldiers had already suffered over a thousand casualties. Strategic resources were also being rapidly depleted, with the fastest resource being consumed being Gáe Bolg. The stockpile of Gáe Bolgs that had been accumulated over the past two years was diminishing at an alarming rate. Though Shirou was mentally prepared for this, he couldn't help but feel a twinge in his eyelids when he saw it happening.
Without a doubt, the only person on the island capable of withstanding Vortigern's attacks head-on was Shirou. Even if all the other kings combined their forces, they wouldn't be able to withstand a single wave of Vortigern's assault.
Their ability to withstand Vortigern's attacks for ten years in the north wasn't due to any other factor but rather because Vortigern wasn't as powerful as he is now and Hadrian's Wall was still standing at that time.
In contrast to the other kings, Shirou had started from scratch and slowly accumulated his power over time. The difference between the two was as stark as night and day. However, the rapid depletion of resources was causing Shirou a great deal of pain.
Thankfully, there had been several pieces of good news over the past month. Firstly, Gaheris had successfully led the kings of Northern Ireland into Scotland. Meanwhile, Gawain, Lamorak, and others, along with King Ban and Bors, had launched attacks on the southern territories of Scotland by both land and sea, as well as on the Saxons across the sea from Scotland.
The kings were expanding their armies and simultaneously guarding their cities while invading Scotland, forming a pincer attack from the north and south. They hadn't dared to attempt this before because it was currently a Little Ice Age, and there wasn't enough food to sustain such a campaign.
However, with Shirou constantly selling food to them, they no longer had to worry and were eagerly eyeing Scotland's fertile land. As a result, they became more and more frenzied and aggressive in their attacks.
As long as Shirou's side didn't collapse, it was only a matter of time before Vortigern would be defeated. After releasing the bards, there were also movements from the Saxons. Without a doubt, those who were dissatisfied with Vortigern began to make unusual moves.
It was normal for dissatisfied parties to make unusual moves, as he couldn't even satisfy his army and was now tasked with defending Caerleon while also attacking other cities around it.
Unfortunately for Vortigern, Caerleon was already being watched by Scathach before and was now being watched by Artoria. Whenever there was any movement, Artoria would lead her troops to attack, making it even more difficult for Vortigern to maintain control.
Although Artoria wasn't Scathach's equal in terms of martial arts, she was still strong and possessed a great deal of destructive power. While Scathach usually killed her opponents by stabbing them with her spear and using the Primordial Runes, Artoria had a different approach. She fired a beam of light directly at her targets.
Artoria, who was still alive, had a remarkably high upper limit for her magical energy thanks to the Red Dragon Factor and Red Dragon Heart. Her mana replenishment speed was also comparable to Shirou, who was using the Evil Flower.
This development hit the Saxons hard. They had originally followed Vortigern to be able to plunder land and eat their fill, but now he couldn't even provide for them and was even treating them as food for the beasts. In addition, the bards were singing about the beauty of Cornwall, and Shirou's wisdom was becoming increasingly apparent.
As a result, dissension arose among the Saxons.
Some of the Saxons had already surrendered and pledged allegiance to Shirou. However, he was wary of accepting their surrender, as he suspected that it might be a trick by Vortigern. The act of faking a surrender was already commonplace during his world's ancient times, so he had to be cautious.
Shirou chose not to accept the Saxons' surrender and instead only sent his bards to spread the beauty of Cornwall to them. He knew that when the time was right, the Saxons would begin to revolt on their own.
Vortigern attempted to spread false rumors about Shirou by sending Saxon bards, but Shirou summoned them and treated them generously. He gave them benefits and allowed them to leave with the intention of spreading good things about him.
Both sides engaged in a war of propaganda, but in this silent battle, Shirou had the upper hand. According to Artoria's report and Merlin's Clairvoyance, the Saxons in Caerleon were indeed starting to stir.
This was good news.
...
In Caerleon, Meksis received a bard he had secretly inserted and asked with a gentle smile, "Have you found it?"
"I'm sorry, lord Meksis. I couldn't make too many moves and was only able to find a single hair." The bard produced a golden strand of hair.
"Just a single hair... but it will suffice." Meksis took the hair and said with a gentle smile, "Go to Camelot. The king will achieve victory, and you will be appropriately rewarded with a beautiful life."
"Thank you, Lord Meksis!" The bard left happily. Meksis was a man of his word, and his promises would undoubtedly be fulfilled.
"Just a single hair... but it can still extract the concept."
"Your Majesty, if only a god could fulfill your wish, I would make you a true god... but as a fairy of this island, perhaps what I am doing is truly a mistake," he continued, looking at the moonlight outside the window. He sighed for a moment, then stood up and his expression became firm.
"Nevertheless, I have made my decision. I will do everything in my power to help you achieve your wish, even if it means going against my own kind."
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