When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

Chapter 676: Sora Castle, a candle in the wind
Fort Sora on the lower Moone River.

The sky was covered with white-gray clouds, and the gloomy humidity pressed down on the heads of the Fran guards, making it impossible for them to raise their heads.

These Frankish soldiers, recruited or hired from the Lilac Corridor, had their thin clothes wet and stuck to their skin, and they shook their heads in pain to avoid flies and mosquitoes.

Occasionally they raised their heads and looked towards the dark castle in the distance, with helplessness and hatred alternating in their eyes.

On the dark blue arrow tower, the bright red flag of the Phoenix was still fluttering in the hot wind. Looking from the top of the city wall, one could always see the shaking heads of the Black Snake Bay warriors and wizards behind the battlements.

It has been almost two months, and the castle has not been destroyed yet.

Compared with the past, there are only many traces of fire and smoke left on the black bricks and stones.

It has to be said that what the southern secret party wizards said about every brick of Sora Castle being made with blood and sweat is not an exaggeration.

The entire castle is built with black rock bricks and stones, bonded together with a large amount of mortar. It is 4.5 meters thick, half a centimeter thicker than the Temple of Avis.

There are even witches guarding the city, as well as red dragons and various wizards.

If it weren't for the Duke of Portosa's surprise attack, which took down the Temple of Avis from the rear, I'm afraid the siege might not have been completed until the rainy season arrived.

But the situation is different now. After the fall of the Temple of Avis, Sora Castle's logistics were cut off and it was surrounded on all sides by the noble coalition forces of the Lilac Corridor.

The number of times red dragon breath appeared on the city wall has dropped rapidly in recent days. It is estimated that before May, they will be able to break through the castle and return home as soon as possible.

Thinking of this, they chewed the hummus and brown bread a little harder.

"Da da da--"

When the soldiers stood up and prepared for the next round of attack, they saw a lightly armed knight with blue feathers galloping towards them in the distance.

The horses' hooves splashed mud, and the guards made way for the knight one after another, looking curiously at the knight's hurried back until the whips of the supervising team hit their backs.

Pushing out the shield carts and siege vehicles covered with crocodile skins, the guards cursed those damned supervisors and prayed silently in their hearts for the mercy of the Holy Father, not letting them die under the breath of the red dragon.

The knight dismounted, walked quickly into the Duke of Portosa's tent, and handed the urgent letter painted red to the Duke.

The Duke, who was drinking red wine with his vest open, first wiped the sweat from his palms on his trousers, then opened the red envelope in confusion. He glanced at it briefly and his face instantly turned several shades redder.

He held the letter in his left hand and slammed his right fist heavily on the armrest of the precious yellow chestnut wood chair. Even the pearl decoration hanging on the chair was shaken. "Is it so difficult to defend a temple for a week? You fought like shit in the field, and now you can't even defend the city. How can we support you?"

The servants around secretly tiptoed and tried to peek at the contents of the letter, but their view was blocked by Count Casi who took a step forward.

"Don't get angry yet. Getting angry is not what piety shows."

"My dear Kazi, come and read the letter he wrote. How can I not be angry?" Putting the letter on the table, the Duke of Portoza's fat fingers tapped the thin letter paper like a rainstorm.

Reluctantly using a handkerchief to wipe the grease off the steak on his hands, Count Cazes read the short letter for help in the daylight.

To sum it up simply, it can be summed up in one word: "Save me!"

"A catapult with a range of 2, he actually thought of it." After standing in front of the silver incense burner with his hands behind his back and sulking for a while, Duke Portosa couldn't help but turn back to the table, "Even if there is, there are so many strongholds outside the city. Even if we want to eliminate them, it will take two or three days, right?

He was so good, first he avoided the battle and gave away the outpost outside the city for nothing, and now he asked for reinforcements after being bombarded by catapults for a day. Am I his babysitter?"

There were many mosquitoes and diseases in Black Snake Bay, and Duke Portosa did not want to stay any longer. He had been attacking Sola Castle for a long time but failed, and finally cut off the food supply. Seeing that the Sola Castle garrison was on the verge of collapse, it was the most critical moment.

He was counting on Ursion to stop the Thousand Valley Army, but it had only been a few days, and letters asking for help came one after another. He was actually asked to withdraw troops to the north at this time.

"I'm not going to give him any reinforcements... I won't give him any reinforcements either!"

If they fail to capture Sola Castle before the Thousand River Valley army arrives, the stalemate will probably last for a long time.

It is unknown how long it will take to recover the materials and manpower consumed in this battle for spices and sugar.

But these nobles of the Lilac Corridor had no choice but to fight.

Although the people of Qianhe Valley proposed the idea of ​​exchanging bonds for trade volume, in the eyes of border nobles such as Portosa, it was nonsense.

What Holy Monarchy and Holy Axis of Thousand River Valley? They all feel like a makeshift team. Being able to issue bonds does not mean you have the ability to repay them.

This kind of scam is common in the Franco-French Kingdom, where finance and commerce are well developed. In the end, it is possible that the saint's grandson will run away with the money.

The Leia Civil War is now coming to an end.

After the Battle of Khan Jin Mountain, the two dukes suffered defeat after defeat, and even split up due to internal strife. They each returned to their fiefdom with part of their troops.

Seeing the two royal dukes lose power, the formerly neutral nobles all stood by the new king.

The new Pope of the Northern Church, Priano, even publicly declared his recognition of Genesis' throne.

If it weren't for the secret plot by Duke Osra of the Thorn Garden in the north, this war would probably have ended by the end of the year.

Next year, or the year after at the latest, the Kingdom of Leia will take action against this small Thousand River Valley.

At this time, you issued a five-year bond. Isn't this just a joke? Except for those old and powerful families who have the resources to be idle, ordinary local nobles don't have the strength to do so.

Especially since these spices and sugar are the lifeblood of the nobles in the Lilac Corridor, and everyone from top to bottom depends on them for their livelihood, they absolutely cannot be handed over to the Thousand River Valley Trading Company.

Bodoza let out a breath of foul air: "Kaqi, do you have any good ideas? I really don't know what to do with this coward."

"Since the port has not been seized, let's send two hundred extraordinary knights over there." Count Kazi spread out a yellowed parchment map, "Then tell them that Sola Castle has been breached. This is the vanguard force. The second batch of reinforcements will arrive soon. It is estimated that they can hold out for a few more days."

"Good idea." Duke Portosa picked up the pen. "...You said it was difficult, and it's difficult for me too. Let's just do the difficult task. No matter how difficult it is, can we not hold on for five days? After the first batch of reinforcements arrives, you continue to hold on. I will never let you down..."

Putting down the pen, Potosa handed the letter to the messenger.

Anyway, the Sola Castle in front of us is already a candle in the wind, and it won’t take long to take it down.

By then, even if Ursion surrendered or failed to hold on, it would be too late for the Thousand Valley army.

As long as we capture Sola Castle and block the northern army's route to the south, the war will be considered a success.

Duke Portosa sat down again, thinking about the tenacious soldiers on the city wall who had defeated the attacks time and time again today, and shook his head compassionately: "Their courage is commendable."

Thinking about the lazy soldiers in his own army, Duke Portosa was furious. He thought for a moment and ordered: "Tell the captains of each company and the knight commander to enforce strict military discipline and take time to test the soldiers, so that they can train while fighting."

(End of this chapter)