Volume 3, Chapter 35 – Movements of All Sides

While Tianyin gradually accepted Xingyu Muxi’s intentional teachings and watched from the perspective of a bystander as the Kingdom and the Stronghold fought over the Northern Fortress, the situation at the Northern Fortress itself was also rapidly evolving.

At the Northern Fortress.

In the following days, the two hundred thousand Kingdom soldiers led by the knight girl Fisiel fought more than a hundred battles of various scales against Grinrui’s beastman army.

These battles ranged from small skirmishes between scouts probing for information, to clashes between patrol squads on the outskirts, all the way up to minor officers taking small groups of soldiers to actively engage the enemy.

However, although both sides engaged in numerous small and medium battles these past few days, the higher-ups of both armies were surprisingly restrained.

Naturally, there were reasons for such restraint.

On the Stronghold’s side, Grinrui had lost a considerable amount of supplies and troops following the unexpected defeat on the first day. And since they still didn’t know the exact number of the Kingdom’s forces, they didn’t dare make reckless moves.

Moreover, the reason Grinrui wasn’t seeking unnecessary trouble was because after that defeat, several beastman legions of about one hundred thousand soldiers each, deployed earlier by the old beastman, were already taking secret shortcuts to provide support.

This was the main factor allowing Grinrui to restrain his restless beastman troops.

Meanwhile, on the Kingdom’s side, although the ambush at the Northern Fortress had been beautifully executed and they had seized countless supplies abandoned by the fleeing beastmen, the upper command led by Fisiel was holding back the army, whose morale was soaring from victory.

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The reason was that they were simply waiting for reinforcement orders from the Kingdom.

Even though the first battle ended in a perfect victory, Fisiel understood very clearly that even after capturing a great number of beastman strategic resources, if they remained stationed alone at the Northern Fortress without follow-up reinforcements, this army might hold on for a while, but they would eventually collapse.

Of course, before departing, Fisiel already asked her superiors about reinforcements. The answer she received was extremely disappointing. But for the sake of the two hundred thousand soldiers under her command, Fisiel refused to give up hope.

Therefore, because the high command of both factions had their own considerations, the armies of the Kingdom and the Stronghold did not escalate to large-scale, uncontrollable battles for the time being.

And occupying the Northern Fortress, the Kingdom army also used these few days to repair the fortress defenses.

Unfortunately, the Northern Fortress was simply too massive. Even if the Kingdom allocated half its forces to repair work, their progress over these few days was negligible.

During the downtime while waiting for the Kingdom’s order regarding reinforcements, Fisiel also spent time speaking with Yeluo, the girl who claimed to be the chieftain of the half-beasts.

The girl’s wish to save all half-beastkin earned Fisiel’s goodwill as a paladin, and the two had a very harmonious exchange over the past few days.

Moreover, during their conversations, Fisiel was surprised to discover that although Yeluo was a half-beast, she seemed to understand beastmen extremely well.

From beastmen’s personalities, customs, and common preferences, to the mindset and behavioral patterns of the ruling class, even the conduct and principles of beastman generals and commanders, Yeluo seemed intimately familiar with all of it.

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This seemingly innate understanding of beastmen gave Fisiel great confidence in defeating the beastmen despite the disadvantage in numbers.

Even so, despite having a natural advantage, Fisiel still dared not act rashly.

Meanwhile, the beastman army also waited quietly for reinforcements to arrive.

At the same time, in the Kingdom Faction, in the royal capital of the Storm Kingdom, Storm City, a meeting regarding the Northern Fortress was taking place in the palace.

The meeting was clearly divided into two factions: those in favor of sending reinforcements and those opposed.

Among those supporting reinforcements were mostly the Kingdom’s battle-hardened military commanders and several renowned paladins.

On the opposing side, those who advocated against sending reinforcements, there were military commanders as well, but the majority were highly prestigious nobles of the Kingdom Faction.

Additionally, the representatives sent by the rulers of other empires and kingdoms also stood with the no-reinforcement faction.

And because it seemed that the rulers themselves were aligned with the no-reinforcement stance, the faction in favor of supporting the Northern Fortress appeared significantly weaker.

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“Why… Why are we not sending reinforcements to the troops at the Northern Fortress? I really don’t understand. Do none of you know how important the Northern Fortress is?!”

“Of course we know. But according to reliable intelligence, the beastmen only sent around a mere hundred thousand soldiers to take the Northern Fortress. Sending two hundred thousand of ours was already more than enough!”

“Since when was it a hundred thousand? It was clearly three hundred thousand!”

“And what does that matter? The commander leading that army is a legendary paladin, the one most likely to become the next King of Knights. With her there, what’s three hundred thousand beastmen?”

“She can do it. But what about the two hundred thousand soldiers under her command? You’re condemning the lives of those soldiers who are fighting for the Kingdom!”

The two factions argued intensely, the debate almost turning chaotic.

After a long bout of noise, a majestic voice suddenly echoed through the hall.

“Enough! Everyone, stop arguing!”

The speaker was a stern-faced middle-aged man with a thick beard. He was none other than the King of the Storm Kingdom.

“According to the latest reports, the beastmen have already sent an envoy to negotiate regarding the Northern Fortress.”

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Once the hall had quieted down, the Storm King continued in a calm, unhurried tone.

“Negotiate?”

“Those filthy, shameless beastmen know how to negotiate?!”

Upon hearing this news, the more aggressive commanders practically exploded, shouting in disbelief.

The Storm King gestured for silence.

“Everyone, the results of the negotiation have just come in. Regarding the Northern Fortress, the beastmen wish to temporarily borrow it. The specific reason will be explained later. But as for sending reinforcements…”

The Storm King paused briefly.

“Since the beastmen are only borrowing it temporarily, we do not need to send reinforcements. And Paladin Fisiel’s mission will be adjusted as well. Instead of defending the Northern Fortress from the beastmen, she will now monitor the beastmen’s activities there.”