Chapter 75: Eve of Ruin

Chapter 75: Eve of Ruin

Montis looked up at the soldier reporting to him and looked back down at the chart on the table before him. There was a slight problem with something. They were currently in Averlin and preparing for the invasion. The scouts have reported a full force at the Elysian Gate and Montis would bet his right hand that the Spider knew they were here.

He had actually lost a few scouts to some rather precise magical bombardment from the Istland mages. Montis had expected such an outcome to a certain extent but still the accuracy reported was concerning. Istland was unique in that its mages were both front line and back line soldiers. While their front line Knight Enchanters were the most famous group considering spell blades were rare professions. However, tactically speaking their back line artillery mages were the most problematic in open warfare.

They must have some really good Mage spotters to have detected his scouts and to so quickly initiate the magical bombardment. It was a difficult feat to pull off, he knew his mages certainly couldn’t pull something like this off. The only saving grace here was that the attack on his scouts had to be quick without any lengthy channelling rituals. So he only lost a few scouts in that strike. In truth this was a good thing, because he traded about five scouts for a glimpse into the enemy's magical capabilities.

If it was up to him, he would have ordered his mages to hold off from attacking and merely stick to observing. If his mages were this responsive he would not have allowed them to fire like that. This was an information leak, plain and simple. He had just effectively probed the enemy defences by sacrificing a handful of scouts.

“Assign five hundred men from the Third Regiment Second Battalion to the garrison here at Averlin. I don’t want us getting trapped in Elysia when we cross the border, or attacked in the rear by the forces from Averlin.

Post the soldiers at the noble estates and hold the nobles at blade point and I mean all of the houses, not just the major houses. Also assign soldiers with wyvern oil and position them around major population areas in the city. Let the soldiers of Averlin know what will happen if they choose the wrong side.” Montis ordered calmly and the soldier saluted before leaving.

Most of the knights are from the lower aristocracy so their families could be leveraged. The wyvern oil was a highly flammable and explosive alchemical substance. It is commonly used in sieges to coat stones and are hurled at or over the walls. The flames burn long and hot, making them ideal improvements to siege weapons. So if they were placed around the city, he could threaten the general population as well. Technically Averlin was an allied power, but they were as much allies as slaves were. The old texts do say when one is counting their foes, they should first start with their slaves. So in reality the Averlin was a liability but it was still better than having to assault Averlin and then the Elysian Gate.

If the Elysians held Averlin they could mount a defence at Averlin, then fall back to the Elysian Gate. Attacking two heavily fortified positions would be an extremely costly affair that would have prolonged the war by several years at least. That would have left Tralis exposed to the other Volerian states. So making Averlin bend the knee was still the right decision in the long run.

“Montis.” Montis heard his Prince’s voice say.

He looked up to see Prince Silas enter the tent, his expression sour but that was his natural state these past few weeks. Although Montis did note that he looked significantly less sour now. Perhaps with the invasion close at hand, he thought his vengeance was close too.

On paper this invasion was doable but there were too many unknowns for Montis’s liking. The main issue was how accurate was their information? Was the Great Beast really a mage? Was their information reliable considering Averlon had the best Spymaster in the region?

“When can we move out?” Silas asked.

“Tomorrow, your highness. We give the troops a day of rest and let the officers get their soldiers organised. I issued a small ration of liquor to steel the nerves of the troops since we are assaulting the Gate tomorrow.” Montis replied.

“Very well.” Silas replied with a nod as he took a seat as an Adjutant poured him a glass of wine.

“We need a decisive victory here, it is time to see what my commandos are truly made of...” Silas said after taking a sip of wine.

“What are your thoughts on their ability to hinder the defences?” Montis asked.

“Sceptical. The Beryl Line was filled with incompetents. The Wardens and Knight Enchanters are professional soldiers. If I were the commander I would have them guard the most crucial sections of the wall. The gate controls will be very well guarded.

Although building siege towers might be an option if we decide to delay. I assigned some mages with concealment spells to examine the wall ahead of time yesterday.” Silas said.

“Is that so? I was not aware of this.” Montis said.

“Yes, it was just an extra precaution. It was to confirm the strength of the wards on the Elysian Gate. They just returned, the wards are faded. Siege towers are on the table now, the Flame Repulsor wards are now gone. So our siege towers won’t be torched the moment they touch the walls.” Silas said.

“But their...” Montis began.

“Yes I know, their mages will blast the towers to bits. At least they would blast the ones we can put up here. We can’t starve them out so a direct assault is our only option. I am having some Mithril Clad Towers shipped over, I would suggest we do a probing attack and if the resistance is too much we pull back and wait for the Mithril Clads.” Silas said.

“Yes, that could work. However, how many Mithril Clads do we have?” Montis asked.

“At the moment three, so I would rather we save them for the siege of the cities. Averlon is a fortress city, we will need the towers if we want a swift victory.” Silas said as the adjutant approached Montis with the jug of wine but Montis waved him off and poured himself water instead.

“We would most certainly lose at least one if we use the Mithril Clads.” Montis said.

“Indeed, but if we can press our advantage it will be worth it. The Elysian Gate is an all or nothing fortification. It's difficult to break through but it’s also difficult to retreat from. If we breach the wall, we can inflict significant casualties on the Elysians.

Our soldiers on average are better armed, better trained and more experienced. If we overcome the fortifications the only problems will be the Wardens and the Knight Enchanters. Besides, no matter how good they are, they are only human. They will tire before long...” Silas replied.

“Very well, I will send out the orders to prepare for a probing attack.” Montis replied with a nod.

“Good...” Silas replied with a nod as he took another sip of wine.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.♚.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

Arias grimaced as he checked his sword, he could hear his heart pounding in his chest. He was terrified, they would be assaulting an ancient and famous fortification tomorrow. He remembers the stories his mother told him, how the ancients were master architects and enchanters. Their walls would stand for a hundred thousand years while the walls they could build now would be lucky to stand for a thousand.

The walls of his hometown had to be rebuilt every hundred years or so, meanwhile the walls of the Capital were timeless. Every time he saw it looked exactly the same, the same gleaming white walls with the banners of House Tralis adorning it.

Arias was seriously cursing his decision to join the army. He was stupid and naive, when the army recuiter came to his town him and bunch of his mates decided to sign up. The promises of glory, a fine uniform and the adoration of the girls was too much of an enticement. Not to mention war was arguably the best way to have a swift promotion track, or so the recruiter said...

“On the topic of cunts. You should wet your dick when we get the chance in Elysia, I heard they have some mighty fine wenches in Elysia.” Conte said.

“Erm... I have a Fiancee back home so...” Arias replied hesitantly.

“You got no idea if you are going home kid... nor do you have any idea what is going on back home either...” Lars said as his tone became more serious.

“What?” Arias asked in confusion.

“He’s saying you might die out here and never see your girl again. He’s also saying your girl might be getting drilled by someone else right now.” Conte said as he refilled his cup.

“What? No that’s...” Arias retorted, sputtering at the thought. His darling wouldn’t... would she?

“Listen here kid, you have no idea if you are going back. She has no idea if you are going back. You were training for what? A year?” Lars asked as he raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, about a year...” Arias replied through gritted teeth.

“You go back home anytime during that time?” Lars asked.

“Yeah... six months in, they gave us a week of leave.” Arias replied.

“So when you got back, you fuck your girl?” Lars asked.

“What?” Arias sputtered in response as he felt his face heat up and he averted his eyes.

“That's a yes, Lars.” Conte said.

“Yeah I know Conte, he couldn’t even look me in the eyes when he replied to me.” Lars replied with a snort.

“Now then she seemed more... eager? Did she make more noise than usual? Bounced on you a little faster or harder? Was she a lot wetter than usual?” Lars asked.

Arias didn’t reply as his mind wandered back to about six months ago. Yes his darling Rosie was more eager... the two of them were like a pair of rabbits in heat when he was back home...

“That’s a yes too.” Conte said and Arias saw Lars roll his eyes at those words.

“Yeah, so let me break it down for you boy. If we are lucky this war will be over in a year. Elysia’s a big place, marching and waiting alone will take months if you add up all the time. If we aren’t lucky this war could take two years or three years depending on how long we have to sit on our asses between fights to repair our shit.

Then when we win, we are going to have to garrison Elysia. You might be stuck in Elysia for another few years after we win. So you are looking at the very minimum a year away from home, so that’s a year and half of you not being in your girl’s bed. Worse case, six to eight years, home leave may not be on the table.

So your girl is going to be lonely up here...” Lars said as he pointed at his head.

“Over here...” Lars said as he pointed at his heart.

“And most of all, down here.” Lars finished as he pointed at his groin.

“So in six months she was already so eager, you think she can last years? Not to mention other guys will be making moves, those pissants who didn’t sign up will be buying her flowers. They will definitely be buying her wine, and what do you think a drunk girl who is horny out of her mind is going to do?” Lars asked as he tapped the side of his head.

“She wouldn’t...” Arias replied as he clenched his fists.

“Yeah she probably won’t at first. But at some point she’s going to crack, she’s lonely too. Then the first time she spreads her legs for someone else, it’s going to feel so good for her.

Then the other guy is going to get in her head, he’s going to tell her that you aren’t coming home. That you’re probably dead. Her bed is going to go colder and colder with each passing day

Then before you know it, your girl is now his girl. So if you sit around here trying to be all faithful, you are going to end up looking like the biggest ass in Terra. You’re going to wade through all the filth and muck while your girl is getting drilled by some limp dick pansy that couldn’t find the stones to fight for his country.

So I suggest you avoid being the biggest ass in Terra by getting some ass. Besides, even if by some miracle, she holds it in. You don’t have to tell her that you bedded a few wenches. You can go back to your little happy ever after.

It’s called covering your bases kid, you feel me?” Lars said and Arias couldn’t even muster the strength to reply.

Rosie wouldn’t... she couldn’t...

“Alright that’s enough of that. If you want your miracle I suggest you get some sleep tonight kid. Put it out of your mind, the last thing you want is you dying tomorrow because you couldn’t sleep.

If you die tomorrow then your girl will really be riding someone else’s dick. She isn’t going to become a spinster for you. You think she’s going to be loyal enough to meet you on the other side?” Conte said.

Arias still didn’t respond, so shaken he was by what he heard. His mind was racing, the thought of his darling Rosie shouting someone else’s name in bed was driving him crazy. His head was lowered and he was so distracted he didn’t even notice that Conte had gotten out of his seat and walked over to him. He only realised when he caught a glimpse of his boots on the ground beneath him. Arias looked up and he saw Conte offer him the bottle of wine.

More wine?