Chapter 114: All tricks

"We're back!" At the entrance of the Great Tang Group, where only the sign remained, an old worker who had followed the scout troops to the Northern Ridge excitedly raised his arms and shouted.

Escorting a motley assortment of items, the scout troops returned out of the blue to the place from which they had set out just over a dozen days ago.

When they had departed, it was an imposing crowd, comprising 360 musketeers from three infantry companies, over 30 elite rangers led by Luff, more than a hundred temporary artillerymen, as well as over 40 cavalry under Tagg's command. The team also included six C64-model field breech-loading cannons, and more than 40 corresponding carts.

The return was likewise a long procession, but it was clear that most of the people had not returned to Brunas.

The most numerous in this team were carts, one after another, as Tang Mo had brought back more than 130 captured warhorses and dozens of carts to his own base.

There was no choice, in order to bring all 40 cannons back for recasting, Tang Mo had to bring back the corresponding carts as well.

Of course, among the many carts were also the severely wounded, as well as the seized loot and prisoners, and the iron and copper mines that had been excavated and smelted by Northern Ridge these days.

In short, what had set out as a combat unit had now become a convoy transporting spoils of war on the return.

The reason why only 40 cannons were sent back was mainly that Earl Fisello had purchased some Shireck field cannons and almost all of the munitions.

He had never fought such a lavish battle before, and now his Northern Ridge Legion possessed 59 cannons, including six of the C64-model field breech-loading cannons.

Such artillery was enough to chill any adversary, especially since, apart from the expensive breech-loading cannons, the munitions were also plentifully grim.

With so many cannons, Fisello could hold the position more confidently, helping Tang Mo steady the rear, while Tang Mo himself could sweep northwards more courageously and boldly.

At this very moment, the highest-ranking frontline commander in the southern part of Suthers was still Tang Mo's old acquaintance—the Viscount Romel who had fled in panic from under his very nose, sprinting back to his own country.

Everyone who knew him was aware that he was little more than a buffoon... Well, such inept nobility was in fact quite common in this world.

Usually, everybody was a buffoon, similarly incompetent and unreliable, so it was not obvious, and thus life muddled along just the same.

But now, when faced with a gifted newcomer as the adversary, it highlighted just how disappointingly inept these pitiful nobles really were.

Viscount Romel had fled back home in a mad rush, and the first thing he did was to try to absolve himself of blame, shifting all responsibility for the military defeat onto Tucci, who would never be able to defend himself again.

He first wrote a letter to the capital, explaining to his king the process of the defeat: blaming Tucci's greed for glory and reckless advancement, for not heeding his, Romel's, advice, leading to the chaotic dispersal of the troops at the crossroads due to enemy cannon fire, which ultimately resulted in the loss.

Then there was he, Viscount Romel, wise and valiant, who risked his life to bring back the defeated army, a silver lining in an unfortunate situation, barely managing to preserve the young blood of the kingdom.

Truth be told, just reading the content of the letter almost moved Romel himself. Thus satisfied, he sent off the letter, then began to gather the scattered troops in a pretentious manner.

When Tang Mo was still over 100 kilometers away from the King City of Suthers Kingdom, wild rumors began spreading within the city, and even the forces defending it started to desert.

The pandemonium served as a mighty blow to the Suthers Kingdom, prompting the King of Suthers, despite the repeated requests of the Shireck Consortium envoy, to hastily send out his own envoy bearing a white flag to find Tang Mo leading the 'Brunas 300' warriors.

The envoy from Suthers didn't even bother with trying to struggle, suggesting that as long as Tang Mo agreed to halt the zero-cost shopping spree with his 300 locust-like warriors, the Suthers Kingdom was willing to pay an immediate ransom of 63,100 Gold Coins...

Why exactly 63,100 Gold Coins? That was because it was all the King and nobles within the King City could scrape together at the moment...

Thus, the two parties happily reached a preliminary agreement: All of Tang Mo's looted goods from the zero-cost shopping would be considered legitimate spoils of war, with no future claims from Suthers.

Suthers would pay an additional 63,100 Gold Coins as compensation for the fatigue incurred by Tang Mo's fresh troops. Plus, they would pay damages for those injured or killed during the campaign.

Under the assurance that Suthers would not hold its civilians accountable for looting noble property, Tang Mo would cease providing cover and support for the civilians' attacks on the nobility.

Tang Mo's troops would immediately withdraw to the south of the Crystal River, and Suthers promised to seriously consider ceding the territories south of the Crystal River to the Leite Kingdom in the negotiations for a comprehensive end to the war.

By that time, the situation within the Leite Kingdom had also seen a massive shift. The Suthers forces, having lost their logistical support and running out of both ammo and provisions, completely abandoned the plan to attack the King City of the Leite Kingdom and began a full retreat.

Previously, the strategically encircled Suthers forces had not panicked, reallocating their troops in hopes of reopening their cut-off supply lines.

But the Northern Ridge Legion that lay before them was like a nail hammered into place, withstanding vicious attacks from the Suthers forces without budging an inch.

Despite changing commanders three times and relentless assault by five legions, Fisello's forces suffered no major casualties.

The mere presence of 59 heavy artillery pieces was enough to bolster Fisello's forces and give them an overwhelming edge in stymieing the Suthers forces' breakout attempts.

The ammunition for the Shireck field guns was practically 'infinite.' What Fisello had stockpiled earlier, plus what was captured on the battlefield, was enough for the Northern Ridge Legion to waste for a good while.

And the domestic news that finally seeped through the defenses sent the Suthers forces into complete disarray as they experienced what 'besieged on all sides' truly meant.

The news brought word that the Leite forces had invaded deep into Suthers territory, causing havoc, looting, and arson; noble estates were up in flames, and the enemy's strength was reported at a minimum of 8,000 men—and not a single one less!

This vague and unsettling news made the homesick Suthers forces utterly chaotic; the military hierarchy built by the nobility and their retainers lost all will to fight and began to worry about their own estates.

What they didn't know was that this so-called 'Great Northern Ridge Army' of eight thousand was actually just a bunch of civilians role-playing zero-cost shopping with their Shireck Flintlock Guns.

Hence, when the organized Suthers forces began retreating from the outskirts of the Leite King City, a sense of relief finally swept over the city.

Unbeknownst to anyone, the young man who had stirred the pot was sitting atop a carriage roof at that very moment, a withered straw dangling from his mouth, grinning foolishly at the carts of Gold Coins trailing before him, heading for the Northern Ridge.