industrial lord

Chapter 736 Death Comes
Everyone has their own nightmares. Rudolf was surrounded by the Gallic army on his first battlefield, and Frederick attacked him from both sides on his second. Now, Preben is appearing in his rear, stirring up the fear in his heart.

For five whole days, Julmand and the Flensburg garrison waited anxiously for the Rhine army to attack, but there was no movement at all. Many people believed that they were searching for secret passages outside the city, preparing to launch an attack from those passages.

Yulmand thought it was very likely. Although the branch passages of the secret passage were dug by the mage corps, it would be difficult if they found the main passage.

To prevent this, he had to order the abandonment of all secret passages.

"Still haven't found it?!" Rudolf jumped up from his chair. "Five days and still haven't found it?"

Seeing that Rudolf was about to lose his temper, Rank quickly advised, "Your Majesty, Preben should have already fled and headed towards Hawthorn Village and Stork Harbor."

Pistor quickly added, "Your Majesty, there's no need to worry about supplies. Just have the garrison surrounding the area collect grain."

He finished speaking with a sense of smug satisfaction. The earlier division of troops was only for the sake of self-interest, but now that the camp was short of food, it came in handy and could be considered a considerable military achievement.

Rudolf paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Alright, send troops to protect this grain requisition operation. Once the supplies arrive, begin a full-scale attack on the city."

Shu Yun Stiga immediately offered a different opinion: "Your Majesty, I suggest that we do not wait for the supplies to arrive, but should immediately attack the city to put pressure on Yulmand and prevent him from sending troops to attack the supply line again."

Pisto, not wanting anyone to share the credit for this logistical supply, agreed, saying, "Your Majesty, Julmander's forces are not many. The more urgent the battle in Flensburg, the safer the logistical line will be."

But everyone underestimated Rudolf's fear. He firmly said, "No, we must ensure the safety of logistics and the rear. Flensburg will not run away. A few days' delay is not a problem. We just need to keep the pressure on."

The group exchanged glances; the decision could only be described as conservative, but not wrong.

The Rhine army soon besieged the city again. Yulmand's expression turned serious. This number was too small. Last time there were tens of thousands of people, but this time there were only two or three thousand. Could there be a trap?

The Rhine army, whose expressions were even more serious, had captured the bridgehead and several bunkers a few days earlier.

These days and nights they have been exchanging fire with the castle's defenders, sometimes sniping, sometimes firing volleys, with casualties on both sides.

They were just waiting for the main force to arrive, but for the past few days they'd only been making routine inquiries, being told to wait a little longer, and now only this small number of people have shown up.
“Barefoot,” Yulmand muttered to himself, frowning. “Could it be that Wesson is trying to lure our limited forces outside the castle?”

Preben chimed in, "I've said it several times already. Wesson isn't in the camp. I sneaked in while Becher and the others were out there trying to catch me. I even searched the toilets."

Yulmand shook his head and said, "What if he's giving orders via radio?"

Preben was speechless.

Yulmand continued, "Why don't you just take care of Rudolf and his gang while you're at it?"

Preben shook his head and said, "Hergel is hiding in the military camp. I don't have the confidence to assassinate him under his nose; that's his specialty."

"Besides, what if they really call Wesson if we kill Rudolf?"

Yulmand's lips twitched slightly as he said, "We still can't let our guard down."

"I have an agreement with someone to kill Rudolf."

Prebe knew that an unknown force was supporting him with a large amount of logistical supplies and weapons, but he never expected the conditions to be like this.

“I’ll help you out before I go back north,” Preben said. “Killing him will be difficult, but hurting him won’t be a problem.”

"Take care of yourself from now on."

Yulmand nodded.

Today, the Rhine Alliance army is attacking a large fortress located between two already captured fortresses. If captured, the three fortresses can be combined to threaten the western city walls and towers.

Yulmand simply ordered the garrison to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy, and then retreated back to the castle through the tunnels.

These bunkers were lost several times, but each time they were recaptured; the secrets behind this were known only to a few high-ranking officers.

Yulmand was not concerned with the battle in the west; he was simply looking into the distance.

Black smoke rose in the distance. In this era, military requisitioning of grain and robbery were synonymous, and the only means were swords and blood.

Over the next few days, thick smoke drifted further and further away with the north wind. On a gloomy morning, smoke billowed from the direction of the Rhine Alliance camp as the entire army launched its attack.

The bunkers outside the moat have all been captured, and preparations are underway.

Yulmand gave a cold smile and said to one of the people next to him, "Let's quiet down outside."

An officer saluted and left. After a while, a yellowish-green gas emerged from the bunker.

Each bunker has a pipe leading into the castle, behind which are many tanks filled with "bleaching gas" bought at a high price from the Duchy of Wessen.

Death has arrived.

Yulmand never used any methods such as poisonous smoke, and the Rhine soldiers who captured the castle were caught off guard, instantly surrounded by pungent gases spewing from various hidden vents.

Some people fell to the ground on the spot, while others fled the bunker only to be shot dead by soldiers on the city wall.

When Rudolf arrived with his army, the soldiers stationed in the bunker had been mostly wiped out, with only a few strong ones escaping.

Yulmand sent a priest as an envoy, allowing the Rhine army to send unarmed men to remove the bodies.

Rudolf stood there stunned for a full five minutes.

Meanwhile, on a sailing ship in the eastern sea, three kings sat together, with a huge map spread out on the round table in the middle, marking the area around the Kingdom of Danma and the southern city of Hanma, as well as the location of their armies.

Kosdorf pointed to Flensburg and said, "Latest intelligence indicates that the Rhine Alliance's forces have made no progress here."

King Snellman of the Kingdom of Suomi said disdainfully, "Yurmand is a man of some standing if he can hold you off. Rudolf is nothing but a nobody; he has never won a battle."

"If the three of us pounce on them together, even if Weisen comes, he'll have to fall."

Ignoring his boastful words, Casimir pointed to the area around Florence and said, "I will clear out the surrounding troops first. You two must act quickly and capture or kill Rudolf before the Wessen army can react."

Snellman sneered and said, "Is the Wesson Army really that terrifying?"

"If Wesson is really that terrible, he's probably at your house right now, sleeping with your wife and playing with your daughter."

Casimir ignored him. Snellman had been holed up in the far east of the North Sea and had only ever met the security guards of the Dawn Merchant Guild. He lacked a direct understanding of the Duchy of Wessen, which was why he dared to make such boastful claims.

Kosdorf was better; at least he knew he needed to act quickly and finish off Rudolf before Wessen's army could move.

Now Kosdorf and Snellman are eyeing lands like Hanma City in the northeast of the Rhine Alliance. Kazimir only needs Rudolf to agree that the land east of the Elbe River will forever belong to the Kingdom of Piast, and the Duchy of Wesen will not interfere.

Kosdorf, not one to mince words, told Casimir, "I have ordered the coastal ports to prepare supplies, so your men can resupply and rest upon arrival."

Kazimir said, "My fifty thousand winged cavalry are divided into units of ten thousand men each, with one unit departing each day and a day's interval between them."

The distance from the army's garrison in the Kingdom of Piast to Flensburg was about 400 kilometers. Casimir decided to launch a surprise attack at a speed of 50 kilometers per day, resting for one or two days in between, and finally entering the battlefield after three days of rest.

Snellman also said, "That's enough time for my ship to transport 60,000 people over there. I'll give them a good beating then."

Kosdorf nodded and said, "The main force of my army will also head south and arrive at the same time."

This plan had already been discussed in previous communications, and now it has been officially confirmed.

Kazimir was somewhat worried, however, as the 3rd Division of the Wesen Army was not far from the border of the Kingdom of Piast. He wondered if they were really there to collect a debt, or if Wesen had anticipated his actions.

But it doesn't matter, there's a river in between, as long as the river defense fleet prevents them from crossing, everything will be fine.

Seeing his worried expression, Snellman chuckled and asked, "You're not really worried that Wesson is sleeping with your wife, are you?"

At that moment, Frederick sneezed.

(End of this chapter)