Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 53 Conspiracy
Su Mu led his troops north, encountering refugees fleeing from disaster and bandits causing chaos along the way.

【Bandit (Neutral Tier 1 Unit): Attack 3, Defense 2, Damage 1-2, Health 5, Speed ​​4, Small Size】

Intimidation: Deals -1 morale damage to units with lower health.

These men, riding on horseback, circled the refugees, brandishing their knives and howling wildly. Although there were only a few dozen of them, they terrified more than a hundred merchants and farmers into immobility.

Just as they were about to charge the refugees, a stone arrow shot from afar, knocking their leader and his horse to the ground, where he was clearly doomed.

Seeing this, the remaining bandits scattered like birds and beasts, but they were no match for the divine arrows of the Earth Bow, and were shot to death on their escape route.

"Don't panic. The area around Whitestone City is too dangerous right now. Everyone should try to seek refuge in strong towns! Don't go any further north."

The crowd was abuzz with discussion. They were well aware of the danger to the north, but the surrounding villages and towns had been ravaged by White Stone City. Where could they find a town with the power to protect them?
"May I ask, sir archer, how far is your city? Could you provide us with a temporary place to stay?"

"Cangmu Town is a forest town personally appointed by the Marquis, heavily guarded, so it's naturally secure. You can find it by heading southeast for about a hundred miles."

If you really have nowhere to go, you can stay at Kuraki temporarily!

Guided by the Bow of the Earth, some of the refugees believed and headed towards Kuraki. Others, however, had their own ideas and continued along their original path.

There appeared to be several strong, plainclothes men among them, deep in thought, walking along with the refugee tide into the distance.

After Earthbow rejoined the team, Orling led everyone on their journey.

"It seems that White Stone City wants to disrupt the surrounding situation and let bandits and thieves run rampant."

Su Mu nodded: "The more this is the case, the more it shows that Baishi City is weak and they can't control the situation."

Oling thought about Longlit Castle carefully: "Although I hate Longlit Castle, it is indeed a formidable city. Even with catapults and earth elemental heroes, it would take at least a long time to besiege it."

The dwarves alone couldn't have taken this city; they would have been slaughtered by the archers on the towers. The Kyle family must have brought all their troops and provided full support to breach the poorly defended Longlet Castle.

Even so, I don't think they necessarily have the strength to take over the city; they'll probably just plunder and then flee.

Ouling's idea coincided with Su Mu's.

Even with its deep reserves and long-term planning, White Stone City couldn't possibly amass such a large army all at once. The enemy's success was due to two factors: first, they launched a surprise attack; second, they had a foolish regent who cooperated. Otherwise, even if they wiped out their troops, they wouldn't have been able to capture the city.

"Let's go, speed up our march toward White Stone City, and while we're at it, send a message to the Angry Bear Clan through a scout, telling them that White Stone City has rebelled and urgently needs our support!"

Although the Angry Bear Clan is also located in the Xilin Plain, they are situated further north, adjacent to the Northern Dry Grass Snowfield.

Logically speaking, if Salim were looking for someone to cooperate with, the Angry Bear would be the best choice. However, due to the Grand Duke's son's cowardly behavior, the Argylls, who were already dissatisfied with the Northern nobles, became even more disgusted with him, so cooperation was impossible.

The last time I went to help guard the town, it was only because of the Kingdom's army; there won't be a next time.

This was something Ivan told Sumu himself, and it also represents the attitude of the Angry Bear family.

Who would have thought that Rex's shameless attempt to curry favor with the Grand Duke would result in the loss of his own city?

"At this point, there's no room for prejudice. Garfield's fortress has been breached, so naturally, we need to find someone to help us first."

Rescuing refugees was just a side effect; the key was that they came across a makeshift arms factory where they could seemingly purchase auxiliary equipment.

[Rudimentary Armory: Allows heroes to purchase war machines here; a production time is required after a deposit is paid.]

Seeing the factory owner's robust physique, Su Mu still paid the deposit and asked him to expedite the production of the catapult and supply wagon.

……

After another half day, the group finally arrived at the vicinity of White Stone City, where they encountered several groups of bandits, all of whom were easily dealt with.

These ordinary level 1 soldiers no longer pose a threat to them; the only troublesome ones are the guards of Whitestone City.

"So, have you found out anything?"

"The people of Whitestone City seemed to have received some news as well, and were in a state of panic, disapproving of the Kyle family's actions, and scattered and fled. However, the city gates were tightly closed, and only a few people left."

I consulted several well-informed merchants, and they said that there were very few guards maintaining order in the town, and the streets were in chaos.

Some say that a foreign tribe, with a considerable military force, has infiltrated the snowy region.

Such pre-battle inquiries often contain a mix of truth and falsehood, or even deliberate smokescreens released by White Stone City, requiring careful discernment.

However, Su Mu wasn't in a hurry. He didn't have any catapults yet, making it quite difficult to attack White Stone City. "Let's hide first and see what White Stone City does!"

Nothing happened overnight, but even more people fled. After all, the fortress only had inner walls, and there were many farmers in the suburbs. Now, no one dared to stay.

The Hillin Plains are located in the heart of the Kingdom of Elton, and there is still a foundation for its rule. Although the Kyle family can force soldiers to rebel, they cannot control the common people.

"Soldiers from inside the city are chasing after the fleeing civilians; they've already come some distance out!"

"Let's go and have a look!"

Su Mu led his Earthbow troops out to attack, and they were surprised to see the troops leaving the city from below the hillside.

【石像鬼（塔楼2级1阶兵种）：攻击力6（9），防御力6（9），杀伤力2-3，生命16，速度6，体型中等。

Element: Earth
Flying units are immune to petrification.

Assessment: These creatures, created by alchemists, usually reside on the rooftops of the tower.

Although I knew that White Stone City had a unit that could recruit towers, I didn't expect it to appear at this time and be used to defend the city.

Using the Qi Observation Technique, it can be observed that the opponent has a hero in command, and the attack and defense bonuses are not high, so it seems that the person left behind is not very strong.

Since that's the case, how could he not take advantage of the opportunity? He ordered the Earth Bow to slowly move closer, and once it was in a suitable position, he ordered an attack.

"shooting!"

"Rapid Acceleration!"

"The Slowing Technique!"

With one increase and one decrease, the Earth Bow appeared on the battlefield with lightning speed. The gargoyle had no time to run away and was stuck in the mud, breaking into pieces along with the stone arrow.

After the smoke and dust cleared, Su Mu walked to the front of the formation and squeezed the crystal heart that was covered by the stone skin. It had now completely cracked and turned into several stubborn stones.

This unit type is quite interesting. They belong to a non-living race, purely alchemical creations. They cannot be drained of blood, petrified, or resurrected. Yet, they can be affected by morale and are unable to resist magic such as blindness, which is somewhat puzzling.

Su Mu was not an expert in alchemy, and although he had some interest in it, he could not study it in detail.

But dead gargoyles are good gargoyles; judging from the scattered stones on the ground, at least thirty gargoyles were killed.

Although the heroes of White Stone City were trying their best to gather their troops, not a single gargoyle could escape. Moreover, the number of aliens they were using to suppress the refugees was so small that Su Mu was certain that the enemy town had very few defenders left.

He stood on the edge of the city defense tower, looking out over the city wall.

A human hero in a white robe stood atop the wall, but he wore an arcane hat, suggesting he was an alchemist.

Scattered around the edge of the city wall were some halberdiers, while behind them stood merciless stone figures overseeing the battle; the scene was anything but harmonious.

Halberdier (Castle Tier 1, Tier 2 Unit): Attack 6, Defense 5, Damage 2-3, Health 10, Speed ​​5, Small Size.

Element: None
[Barricades: Ignore the charges of cavalry (cavalry of all races)]

Stone Golem (Tertiary 1, Tower Level 3): Attack 7, Defense 10, Damage 4-5, Health 30, Speed ​​3, Medium Size.

Element: Earth
Basic Spell Resistance: Resists 50% of magical damage.

"The last gargoyles have been wiped out, leaving only these two types of troops. No wonder they only dare to defend the city."

“Write some words of persuasion to surrender on a strip of cloth, shoot it with an arrow, expose the true face of White Stone City, tell them that the kingdom’s army has returned, and if they surrender, they will not be killed, only the ringleaders will be executed.”

But if they continue to resist, they will be killed without mercy!

Since precise aiming is no longer required, the archers' range is greatly increased without consuming magical ammunition, making this a breeze for the Earth Bow.

The enemy's defensive arrow towers did retaliate a few times, but they didn't cause much damage. With the healing tents there, not a single person died.

However, the banners urging surrender were shot into the city, causing a commotion. The city walls were forced to send men to quell the unrest, and the number of guards was further reduced.

Su Mu, however, was not in a hurry.

"Once the catapults arrive, we'll take Whitestone City in one fell swoop!"

(End of this chapter)