Chapter 36 - Calm

"What do you think, my lord?"

I look at the fortress we build in a week. The fort itself is not perfect, but it will do for the current situation. The fort is made of wood without a single stone.

"This is good. Lord Byron, is the mountain around us can hide the archer if we place them up there?"

"Yes. It was a perfect place to hide our archers."

"Good. We will place three hundred of our archers in there."

"Not all of them?"

"No."

I shake my head and place down the map on the table. I point my finger at our location and say,

"We currently have the advantage of having a mountain around us. The only way they can go to our land is through this place. We need to bait them to attack us here. While we have them in here fighting against our infantry, the archer will rain down their arrow unto them."

"I see. That is a good idea."

"We will use a shield wall tactic. The one that holds the tower shield will be in the front, and the spearman will stand behind them with their spear pointed at the enemy. If they send out their cavalry first, they will meet with a wall of spear ready to kill them all. If they send out their infantry, they will be stuck here trying to break through our formation."

"With the infantry busy trying to break our formation, the archer will shoot them from above. However, why do we only place a few hundred of them on the mountain?"

"I don't want them to know we have an army on the mountain. I want them to think that we only defend one point. That is why I want the rest of the archer to stand above the wall and tower that should be finished in three days. How many archers do we have?"

"We have eight thousand archers fully equipped with bows and arrows."

"There should be a leftover bow, right?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Give some of them to the levies. Pick a hunter from the levy and give them a bow and arrow. I want them to join the archer on the mountain."

"Very well. I will tell the captain to search for any hunter in the levies unit."

"Good."

"My lord. What about our cavalry?"

"Yes. This is something I want to tell you, Lord Byron. I want you to make a surprise attack to the backline of the enemy."

"Oh?"

I picked up a small statue of a horse and put them in the forest, one to the mountain's left and right sides.

"I want you to command half of our troops to attack their flank. We have five thousand men if we include the levies. Please take two thousand men and go to the forest waiting for the signal. I will blow a warhorn, and when you hear it, I want you to attack their backline. I want you to attack their backline and break their formation."

"What about you, my lord?"

"I will stay here and hold the army in this place. When you successfully break their formation, I think the people who fight us will retreat to help their backlines. If they do this, I will command the cavalry here to charge at the enemy and surround them. When they are surrounded, their morale will be dropped, and we will attain victory."

Lord Byron nodded at me before he excused himself to give my order to the other. Daniel Byron, the current lord of the Byron family. He became the Lionheart family's vassal after one of their ancestors saved my ancestor's life when a bear ambushed my ancestor.

Lord Byron is a veteran that protects his land from the barbarian and also monster.

He is a competent commander. I know that he will be doing just fine leading the army to attack the enemy flank.

My role in this fight is to defend the fort while lord Byron does a surprise attack. I need to lure the Blackbriar army into this place where we will surround them. With me holding the frontline, lord Byron will have an easier time wipe out the enemy backline.

With their backline in disarray, the enemy will try to rescue their backline, and when that happens, I will lead the cavalry to attack the retreating army.

I sigh a little before I walk toward my tent and see Yuka sleeping on my sleeping bag.

"Yuka"

"Hmm? What is it, Master?"

"Yuka, I want you to go to the Blackbriar army."

"Do you want me to steal their food?"

"No. Do you still remember the face of the magician the Blackbriar family hired?"

"Yup~."

"I want you to go to that magician and contact me when you see him. I want to use my Darkness Rune."

"I see. You want to kill him from far away?"

"Yes. I cannot let a magician bombard our fort."

"I see. You will see the man's face and use your Darkness Rune to kill him."

"Yes."

"Then I will be going."

"Be careful."

I sit down on my sleeping bag and wait for Yuka to arrive at the enemy base. It is time to decrease enemy morale once again.

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Matthew grinning from ear to ear. He and his army are marching toward the north. He cannot contain his excitement to crush Isaac Lionheart's skull. He knows that he is the culprit for all the misfortune he experiences.

He knows that Isaac is the one that burns all the ships the Blackbriar family has. Matthew knows that he is the one that steals all his money and food. Matthew also knows that he is the one that steals all the weapons, armor, and arrows in the armory.

Matthew will take all of that bastard riches! He will take all of his women and make them his slave!

He keeps thinking about how he will kill Isaac and his family before taking all the women for himself. He knows that he cannot take the land for himself, but he can take anything else.

Matthew is already in his comfort zone. He already forgot about his siege unit. He thinks that having the Fire Mage in his army is enough for him to defeat the Lionheart family as the Fire Mage is known as an Anti-Fortress mage. They can bombard any wall in their way and destroy it with their spell.

Right now, they are resting in the flatland in one of the southern noble territories. Matthew already asked for the landowner's permission. Matthew, currently inside his private tent, has a pleasant conversation with the Fire Mage he hired.

While they are having a conversation about the riches they will get from raiding the Sea Dragon City, something appears above the Fire Mage head.

"What is that?!?" Matthew and his son shouted at the same time while pointing something above the mage head.

The Fire Mage looks at what is above him and widens his eyes.

Matthew shivering from his toe to his head. The being that appears before them is a skeleton-like creature wearing a black robe and holding a scythe in its hand. Before they could do anything, the being swung its weapon, and suddenly Matthew and his son could see a transparent image of the Fire mage appear in the being's hand.

Matthew's face became paler than usual as he knew that it was the soul of the Fire Mage he hired. When he sees the being eat the Fire Mage soul, his face becomes as pale as a corpse.

He wanted to run away from the tent, but his leg did not work, and so his mouth. He can only watch the mighty Fire Mage is dead from this being. When the being looks at him and his son, his pants are wet because he cannot control his bladder.

However, the being did not do anything and disappeared without leaving anything behind.. When he sees the being is gone, Matthew begins to think that this war is bad for him and his family.