Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 10 Fall
The mountains were shattered, the highlands stained with blood were irrigated by an unprecedented river, countless guns and crossbows were broken, and corpses piled up.

On the towering, continuous cliffs, there once stood a sturdy, colossal city. Now, thick smoke billows, the city is submerged by floodwaters, its walls entangled by tree roots, reduced to ruins.

A group of silver creatures flew in from the distant sky, and a deafening roar immediately resounded within the city. Tree roots tumbled, and giant trees tens of meters tall rose from the ground, opening their eyes. Surrounding the mountain wall thousands of meters high, there were at least a thousand withered tree guards.

There are even evolved ultimate units, with tree roots wrapped around city wall stones, constantly keeping their eyes on the sky.

As the other party slowly approached and realized it was their own Silver Pegasus, they fell silent once more.

"Reporting to the General, the Holy City is very satisfied with this battle and hopes that you will continue westward from the border city, occupy the plains, and reclaim the Fal Forest."

Standing atop the city wall at this moment are two people: an old man in a red robe, surrounded by wooden rattan armor, a natural defensive shield that is indestructible; and a little girl in her teens, pure and ethereal, with pupil-less eyes that are weathered and ruthless.

The old man's name was Lloyd, the leader of the Red Tree tribe and the marshal of the Esidor Empire's expedition.

The winged horse landed on the city wall, and the messenger conveyed the holy city's decree to the general.

Lloyd didn't answer after hearing this, but just glanced at the little girl beside him: "The Kingdom of Elton has been at peace for too long, and it's become corrupt internally, with rampant bureaucracy. This surprise attack on the border city, although aided by the flood, was largely due to the enemy's lack of weaponry and the commander's desertion."

Elton is, after all, the place where the White Feather descended thousands of years ago, and has a good strategic depth. If a stalemate occurs, the other side will definitely be able to bring out a powerful force.

"It would be better to seize the opportunity of victory to force them to sign a treaty and reclaim the Fal Forest."

The little girl appeared young, but she was actually Isabel, the young patriarch of the Holy Unicorn Clan. Her eyes seemed to possess magic, instantly revealing the mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas spanning a hundred miles, manifesting an endless forest at the end, before abruptly ending.

"The Fal Forest was originally the territory of the Empire. The despicable Eltonians seized it after a temporary alliance was formed. Now it is simply being returned to its rightful owner."

"As for the awakening of the Eltonians? I think the Grand Marshal is worrying unnecessarily. At the beginning of the year, I went to the capital of the kingdom. The Apocalypse Training Grounds had been abandoned for a long time. There wasn't even a decent warhorse. Apart from the Royal Guard, which still had some strength, the rest were no match for them."

What could they possibly use to resist the surging tide of withered tree guards? Could they possibly rely on these poorly fed soldiers who couldn't even hold a bow and arrow properly?

"Moreover, this war is not only about taking back the Fal Forest, but also about a greater mission. I'm sure the Holy City Elders have already given instructions before we set out."

Despite her small size, Isabel possessed immense authority, her word was law, and she brooked no argument.

Lloyd frowned. Although he was the commander-in-chief of this army, Isabel was more trusted by the Elders and had a special operations team composed of holy unicorns who only obeyed the Elders' orders.

"In that case, send a few druids toward Fal Forest. A centaur and wood elf squad will infiltrate enemy territory to gather intelligence."

Isabel nodded. Treants are not mobile enough to be effective as vanguards; they are better suited for defending or attacking cities.

However, the fall of the border city was too sudden. It is estimated that Gildar (the main city) in the Fal Forest has not yet received the news. Let the druids lead the Silver Pegasus army to launch a surprise attack, and they may be able to take it in the chaos.

Even if we can't take it, it doesn't matter. Once the Treant army is fully prepared, we can sweep through and Gilda will be powerless to resist.

They occupied the border city, the only land route between the Kingdom of Elton and the Empire of Isildur, a perfect opportunity to advance or retreat.

Looking at the colossal wall hundreds of meters high and the dozens of magically enhanced towers rising and falling, Isabel couldn't help but shake her head. Elton could even lose such a fortified city; it was a sign of national subjugation. What awakening could they possibly be talking about? It was a joke.

With the two commanders reaching an agreement, the city gates opened towards the plains.

A massive army of silver pegasus and centaurs marched northwest, stretching for thousands of meters. Several druid heroes transformed into eagles, deer, and giant bears, leading their respective troops forward.

The earth trembled.

……

Reports came from the front lines that the border city had fallen, and the capital was terrified.

"The Isidore Empire is treacherous and has launched a surprise attack on the border. They call themselves the sons of the sacred tree and love nature, but they are even less trustworthy than the barbarians of the south."

"The border region has been abandoned for a long time and is only guarded by a few impoverished noble families. I'm afraid they can hardly withstand the onslaught of the army."

"The most urgent task is for the capital to issue an order to summon all the nobles and teach them a lesson!"

Hearing that Isildur's army was approaching, panic and chaos gripped the people, but those of higher status were already planning their escape route. Forrest entered the tent: "Wood and his men openly proclaim that they are protecting Cangmu, but secretly they have prepared an escape route and are ready to evacuate if the situation turns against them."

Su Mu was not surprised at all: "Although Cangmu Town is not on the front line of the border, it is not far away. If the enemy's Silver Pegasus army launches a surprise attack, they will definitely suffer. Wood and Franz will not wait to die."

Forrest frowned and tentatively asked, "Then we..."

"We'll stay put and focus on production. Those who want to leave don't need to stay, and those who want to stay will get half again as much pay."

Forrest wanted to say something, but seeing Su Mu's resolute expression, he didn't say anything more and went to make the arrangements.

Su Mu knew what he was thinking. Although Cangmu Town was relatively far from the border, given the overwhelming military force of the Esidor Empire, it was very likely that the flames of war would reach this place. After all, it was a small forest farm, which had strategic significance.

They had finally gained control of the forest, but the Isidore Empire wouldn't care. If they were caught, they would only become slaves.

However, Su Mu knew some of the plot developments. Although the Kingdom of Elton was corrupt, it was not so weak and helpless. The army of Isidore would encounter obstacles in the Fal Forest.

What he needed to do was to quickly produce timber, exchange it for resources, and build castles and armies.

In chaotic times, only force is the truth.

Now, he's going to meet the newly recruited archers; he has some ambitions for training this squad.

……

In the Forest of Fal, Peyton Garfield (the Forest Knight Commander) is directing his men to move dry timber and place it at key passages, connecting the fire lines of the various forests.

Not only that, he also spent a lot of money to hire a fire elemental from Elemental City to help him implement his next plan.

One of his subordinates advised, "Knight Commander, the Fal Forest is fertile land in the North, the Duchy's largest timber production base, and also Duke Salman's territory. If it is burned down, I'm afraid..."

Peyton remained unmoved: "What's the point of staying? To supply Lloyd with provisions and provisions? The bastion troops are unmatched in combat in the forest, not to mention their rangers and sentries are masters at listening to the sounds of nature. Then we'll have nowhere to run."

"Hurry up, make the fire elementals work harder, burn it all up, and give the Isildur vanguard a big gift!"

The Duke's son, Salman the Younger, fearing the enemy, had already fled with his loot, leaving the duty of guarding the town to the Forest Knight Commander, the famous hero of the North.

Knowing he had no chance of winning against fortified troops in the forest, Peyton set fire to the mountains and implemented a scorched-earth strategy. He then led his most mobile cavalry and swordsmen in a surprise attack, delivering a heavy blow to the enemy.

Dozens of fire elementals floated above the forest, wielding giant flaming serpents and crashing them down into the center of the forest.

Normally, the forest farm has fire-prevention magic arrays, but they were all removed at this moment. The ground was covered with fuel that aided combustion, and flames immediately roared up, setting the entire forest ablaze.

Peyton threw his knight's sword, which stuck into the hard boulder. With a wave of his hands, a storm arose, amplifying the already raging flames to another level, turning the entire sky red.

Even a high-level water mage would find it difficult to extinguish the fire at this point.

The wind howled, the clouds dispersed, and the sky cleared!
Peyton is not only a frontline fighter, but also a master of advanced air magic.

He and his cavalry stood on the high ground, overlooking the entire forest. Through the thick smoke and flames, they spotted the Silver Pegasus squad rushing towards them, who were utterly shocked.

Peyton raised his longsword, its silver gleam spreading across the cavalry ranks.

[Swift Acceleration: Increases troop movement speed and agility (affected by advanced air magic, speed increased by 5)]

Review: Basic air magic; everyone who's used it raves about it.

"Wind Brigade, Glory!"

"glory!"

"kill!"

(End of this chapter)