Warhammer

The majestic God's Chosen One squatted down hurriedly, grabbed the blanket from the ground, and shouted amid the sheep mother's laughter: "Go, go! Take the child back."

Fiona led the little nun out of the Beast King's tent, and from behind they could hear the joking and playing of Al, the centaur, and the sheep girl.

Her heart was still filled with confusion and fear about the future. She didn't know where the fate of herself and her companions would lead. But for some reason, perhaps because of the dramatic scene just now, she had a little more trust in the boy's ability to fulfill his promise.

Chapter 58: Refugees and Passion

A seemingly endless line of troops was lined up outside the city. Cavalrymen who were maintaining order were constantly galloping on both sides. There were one or two infantrymen every few dozen steps, responsible for maintaining order and checking suspicious persons.

It is said that some southern pirates had disguised themselves as refugees and entered the city, using caravans to carry rats infected with the plague and tried to poison the water sources and warehouses. Fortunately, some wizards saw through the conspiracy of these bastards and captured them on the spot.

But this incident also made all parts of the North alert and no longer accept refugees from the South without any precautions.

The Rabbit Girl and other Shepherd God believers did not look very noticeable in this long queue.

After all, Estalia is a very open and inclusive land, with elves from Osun and the New World, Kislev Cossacks, dwarf rangers, travelers from the Empire, exiled nobles, and so on.

There are also followers of the shepherd god, vampires, the silver-faced skeleton envoys of the Nehekara dynasties, and even travelers and Indian tiger warriors from as far away as Cathay.

Although most of them are concentrated in the two major cities in the north and south, Margarita and Bilbarri, there are also many scattered around. When the warlord Mao Liang Feilong launched the cross-sea waaaagh, they began to evacuate to the north, especially when the war in the south was obviously not in favor of humans.

No one would entrust their life and property to cunning and treacherous pirates and brutal and barbaric greenskins.

The rats have not been directly exposed for the time being. The appearance of the rats is just information that has been spread more or less in various places, and they have not appeared on the battlefield on a large scale.

After all, one hundred and fifty years have passed since the Great War, which is two or nearly three generations according to human lifespan. It has also been more than one hundred years since the Skaven, the best aid for Chaos at the End of Time, who almost destroyed the entire Southern Kingdom, fled to the continent of Lustria after the extinction of the Lizardmen.

In the Old World, the existence of ratmen has almost completely disappeared, and except for colonists and explorers, few people pay attention to this thing.

Skaven?

A branch of Beastmen?

Who cares about that stuff!

Why not take a look at what Marienburg’s famous idol, singer, dancer and star: Miss Ran Jia, is eating today, friends.

The large and small bags of Bunny Girl and others slightly attracted the attention of the rangers, but they were fully prepared. The things they brought had all been consulted by the older generation of Shepherd God believers, and they knew what would and would not appear in an ordinary or even poor Shepherd God tribe.

And Estalia didn't care about this, as long as these beastmen were not saboteurs.

For now, yes.

"Hey! You guys."

A group of cavalry came out of the city of Sahagen and walked towards the end of the crowd, constantly talking to the refugees along the way. When they passed by the group where the bunny girl was, they called out.

“Are you refugees?”

The rabbit girl had to hide herself. Besides, it seemed a bit strange for a young girl who looked like an adult to be the leader in a tribe of shepherd followers that valued tradition and wisdom over force. So her identity was just an ordinary female rabbit who was fostered by the beastmen without parents.

As arranged in advance, the two alert sheepmen walked out, and the hunter looked back at the front without saying a word.

"Sir, we just came out of the forest and are planning to move to the city."

"The tribe encountered a monster, the shaman died, and we have to leave, otherwise we will die too."

"We do have relatives in the city, but not here, in the south. We were originally planning to go to the south..." The two sheep people explained to the officer one after another.

The leader coughed twice, his eyes lit up, and he said in a deep voice: "In that case, we are hiring people. Let the men of your tribe, and if there are women who are willing to go to the battlefield, go with us to the south and join the army to drive out the greenskins."

"Our people will send your old and young to the city for resettlement. Salaries can be paid directly to the tribe. There will be absolutely generous pensions for those who die in battle, notarized by the Goddess Church and distributed personally by the priests."

The leading man spoke a lot, intending to beckon people, not only to the rabbit girl and her friends, but also to others.

However, only a few people were willing to move. Most people remained silent and walked forward in silence along the team.

The sheep people declined politely, saying that they still had to go to Bilbarri to look for any relatives. It was impossible for a male beastman to abandon the tribe and leave.

The man was silent for a while, then suddenly shouted at the team: "Cowards!"

"A bunch of cowards!"

"You have abandoned your homes, your lands and the tombs of your former kings!" He shouted curses at the group of fugitives, and his followers tried to stop him many times but to no avail.

The Estalia people were not good-tempered and booed on the spot. Some even mocked the noble-looking man, "What about you, sir?"

"You are riding a horse with followers behind you. How majestic! Shouldn't you charge ahead and inspire us civilians with your heroic demeanor to defend our homes and mausoleums?"

The crowd burst into laughter. No one wanted to be accused and labeled a coward for abandoning their homes.

What's more, those brave and strong men from all walks of life, farmers, small businessmen, craftsmen, fishermen and other families had already gone to the battlefield with boiling blood. However, under the fanatical but stupid instigation, most of them died in vain in the wilderness and on the road, and only a few could get close to Margarita.

Those who fled had more or less relatives and friends who had sacrificed their lives at the hands of the greenskins. Should the arrogant nobles and merchants still blame them: Is it because women, children, the elderly and the young like them could not muster the strength and courage of men to defend the land and died in battle on their doorsteps?

The nobleman was furious. He drew his sword and pointed it at the man who was speaking. He stared at him with wide eyes and said, "Then remember this! I, Frey Stow Jonathan, a noble from Tolosa (a city in the west of Margarita that has been swept and destroyed by the greenskin army), will immediately return to the south to participate in the battle against the greenskins, because I have the teachings in my heart and the honor in my body!"

"Because I cannot sit idly by and watch the tomb of the former king and the homeland of the Estalia fall!"

"If necessary, I will seek to die on the front lines of this glorious war!"

He rode his horse back and forth on the right side of the team, shouting, "My descendants and my descendants will carve the name of Frey Stow Jonathan on shields for people to sing!"

"And you, my unknown friend, I wish you the best in the north. If one day in the future, we have driven out the enemy, and you hear somewhere that there was a fool named Fred Jonathan who fell in a battle, I hope you can toast me a glass of wine and tell your children and grandchildren about my deeds. This fool did everything I said to you today, standing here outside the city of Sahagen!"

The men's words gradually turned from angry to passionate and inspiring. Many men immediately walked out of the team despite their families' attempts to keep them.

"Sir, I'll go with you!"

"Count me in!"

"Add me!"

The nobleman's hands were shaking with excitement as he gripped the reins. At this moment, he seemed to understand how many great leaders and generals had used inspiring speeches to boost the morale of the army and the people, and how they united in dark moments and fought to the death.

"Towards the tomb of the late king!"

He shouted loudly, and without caring about his subordinates, he rode his horse forward alone. Several of his followers had to stay behind to negotiate with the people who were interested in being hired.

Many more people remain silent because they have seen and experienced too many such inspiring and encouraging speeches and calls.

Many young men, like men today, went to the battlefield with the blessings of their families and priests, joined the expedition to support Margarita, and never returned.

In the end, the war in the South was so inspired by these many small, enthusiastic events that the soldiers marched towards Margarita in groups, but were scattered and destroyed in various places, and the deterioration continues to this day.

Morale is important at many times, especially in desperate times.

It's just redundant. What effect does excessive enthusiasm have on the battlefield? Perhaps history has given the answer countless times.

The passionate souls of countless chivalrous knights of Bretonnia in the past might not have imagined that one hundred and fifty years had passed since the belief in the Lady of the Lake had been exposed, the Great War had been won, and Bretonnia had fallen into division and ideological chaos.

The passion and faith that they once possessed and were proud of turned into recklessness and arrogance that consumed the lives of countless knights and reappeared in the people of their southern neighbors.

At this time, in the Bilbao Parliament, a negotiation that had been deadlocked for a long time due to quarrels was on the verge of breaking down.

Chapter 59: Quarrel and Legion

"As long as Taylor launches an attack and defeats the greenskins in the wilderness, the gateway to Margarita will be opened, and reinforcements can gather continuously and launch an attack!"

"So what is he waiting for?! Margarita is in danger! That's the kingdom's capital!"

Under the gaze of the colossus of the goddess Myrmidia, representatives from the church, nobles, merchants, the military and other parties gathered in the Northern Senate to discuss the first war since the great war that would take place on the homeland of the Estalia. The decisions they made here would affect the fate of the kingdom.

"We must race against time. At this critical moment, we must launch an attack while Margarita is holding back a large number of the greenskins' main forces, eliminate those wandering invaders, and share Margarita's pressure."

"Tyler commands the entire Northern Fire, but he stops at Vering. The goddess and the Estalia people will despise such cowardly behavior!"

The old man spoke generously, his arms dancing up and down, and his white robe with gold edges spun and fluttered with his movements.

This simple clothing originated from the state system reform implemented by the Grand Council of Citizens of Lothern, the first elected Phoenix King "King Worry-Free", who was elected after the orthodox Phoenix King Malekith ascended to the throne.

In the Grand Council, everyone except the Phoenix King, the Everqueen and the priests must wear white robes with gold edges. The robes only have symbols representing the gods they believe in, nothing else, to show that their actions are selfless and not biased towards any position.

Later, it gradually spread to the Old World and was first copied by the Estalia people.

After all, they made their home on the ruins of an elven colony, and had a natural affinity for the style of Ossuun.

"Tyler knows how to fight better than you do, Austin!"

A councilman from the city of Bilbarri stood up and retorted, "We need time now, but this is definitely not the time to attack. The enemy is coming aggressively, and our army and mercenaries are still gathering. If we act rashly, we will most likely suffer heavy losses."

"We cannot afford any defeat at the legion level right now! We must wait and be patient!"

He shouted to the councilors: "Wait for our legions to be assembled! Wait for us to have enough food and fodder! Every extra day, we can gain more strength, every extra day of preparation, we have more hope of victory!"

Some of the participants murmured among themselves, all thinking that what he said made sense, but others could not sit still and stood up to accuse him:

"Margarita is in danger. Are we going to sit back and watch the capital fall?"

"Coward! Kahn, you're a coward!"

"The Temple of the Goddess, the Eagle's Nest, the Harbor of Tranquility... Goddess, I can't believe you are planning to leave all of these to the greenskins to ravage!"

The insults were so noisy that the natural supporters could not sit idly by and watch their own congressmen helpless, so they all came out to fight. The war leader and the chief priest in the north had to hit the bronze pillar with a war hammer to suppress the meaningless quarrel.

......

This happened many times, over several days in a row.

The Northerners did not want to rashly challenge the Greenskin Army before gathering a large enough army.

The southerners are unwilling to sit idly by and watch the capital, the economic, political and cultural center, fall. History shows that all cities occupied by greenskins will eventually become ruins filled with their feces and the ugly totems of the two gods.

The entire South would suffer an unimaginable blow! Their main assets would be lost along with the fall of the giant city!

And, perhaps from now on, the core of the kingdom will move to Bilbarri in the north...

Both sides wanted to delay sending troops, while the other wanted to move as soon as possible. This, coupled with the shadow of the civil war that had occurred not long ago, naturally led to huge differences that were difficult to bridge.

In the Northern Congress, Southerners and war leaders called for a quick southward rescue of Margarita, but were met with indifference and resistance from the Northerners.

Anxious Southerners angrily pointed out that some opponents were deliberately delaying just to see Margarita reduced to ruins.

The implicit accusation that the Bilbarians had long been plotting to take over the capital angered many northern factions, and both sides started to fight each other, verbally abusing each other for hundreds of rounds. More than a dozen off-field duels broke out in one day, causing great anxiety to the Goddess Church, which was responsible for mediating secular conflicts.

Later, a proposal put forward by a northern populist group further deepened the conflict between the North and the South.

After the North sent troops to rescue Margarita, considering that the Invincible Fleet was destroyed in the South, the Kingdom's maritime strength no longer existed, especially this time it was caught off guard by the cross-sea attack and the center was blocked, resulting in the lack of unified dispatch in various parts of the South and a large amount of power was lost in vain.

After the war, perhaps the Eagle's Nest and some of the central organs of the Church of the Goddess of War should be moved to Bilbarri in the north. After all, the Round Table Council of Carcassonne, its northern neighbor, has always had a good relationship with Estalia, and the elves of Osun, across the sea in the west, have little competition with Estalia and can be used for support.

There will not be a situation where the capital is surrounded by a sudden attack and is leaderless.

Although rational people in the North do not support such a proposal that would greatly undermine mutual trust between the North and the South, the emergence of such voices has still led to further deepening of suspicion between the two sides.

The northerners want to regain control of theocracy and royal power!

After a brief but incomparably long quarrel compared to the war, the split finally broke out.

A small group of radical young nobles who were eager to rescue and recover their hometown territories left with their respective troops and the army that hoped to protect their hometown, and more people followed suit the next day.

After the war leader, the Grand Master, failed to persuade the army, he reluctantly announced that he would send the Knights of the Goddess to accompany the army. At the same time, he asked Bilbaly to immediately request reinforcements from the Carcassonne Round Table Council, and forced (using hammers and threats that they would not care about it) the southerners to send representatives to the Round Table Council with the Bilbaly people to apologize for the previous conflict.

Under the dominance of the Grand Master, the Northerners reluctantly began to mobilize their legions, still intending to avoid a decisive battle, but first establishing forward outposts to monitor and control the movements of the greenskins.

A slightly loose but still large army, the most powerful army the Estalia had ever sent out since the great waaaagh, began to march south.

Their goal was to enter the city of Galaz, which was located on the Gedaz River that divided central and western Estalia and was also the main base of the Southern Army that had previously been in confrontation between the North and the South.

Then they opened up to the central wilderness. After the destruction of the Invincible Armada, they lost control of the sea. The three cities along the coastal Abran Avenue (from west to east, Porto Permoz → Ufrik → Tolosa → Margarita) were all under the threat of pirates and greenskin fleets. They could be landed and cut off from the rear at any time. Therefore, the main direction of advance was to cross the river and enter the central wilderness straight to Margarita.

A large number of exiles and refugees from the south, filled with anger and hope to regain their homeland, joined the army heading south, and the team that Bunny Girl was in had already entered Bilbali.

Hunter Fiona explained her intention to the beasts and left. She knew that the boy in the forest could monitor her in some way.

She was going there to complete the mission given to her by Al:

In the largest city in the north, a group of mysterious wizards were found without being exposed.

At this time in the central wilderness, the vanguard of the Estalia had collided with the greenskin skirmishers.

Chapter 60: Offspring, Father

"Father!"

Shouts came from outside the tent.

Al narrowed his eyes and instinctively stood up from between the sheep mother and the horse mother. He gently moved the body lying on the ground and stood up.

Reluctantly, he picked up his clothes and changed them, then sat on the steps, stretched, yawned, rubbed his eyes, and walked out of the tent.

His energetic offspring have been waiting for a long time.