Chapter 105: Battle of North Soqya (Part 1)
"The Lanwan Viscountcy is disadvantaged in terms of troop numbers. If they simply defend passively, they'll pay a considerable price regardless of victory or defeat. If I were the Viscount of Lanwan, while the six city-states of the North Soqya Frontline have yet to fully assemble, taking the initiative to strike and eliminate one or two would undoubtedly be the most correct choice."
"A successful raid would severely dampen the opponent's morale and narrow the troop gap. Even if the raid fails, the Viscount of Lanwan still has the option to withdraw and defend."
"And the Viscount of Lanwan's targets for a raid would undoubtedly be the closest ones: Little Sassinian and Dolrcocha. As the general of Little Sassinian..."
Saying this, Apo shrugged with a wry smile.
"As the general of Little Sassinian, I must admit, the mere thought of the Oran Empire's griffin knights gives me a headache. I simply don't know how to withstand a griffin offensive without suffering heavy casualties."
Matt also frowned upon hearing this. "Didn't we receive the secret weapon specifically designed to counter griffins, shared by Dolrcocha? Is it not effective?"
"It's probably effective, after all, Fidi once used it to defeat the griffin troops of the Lethalia Kingdom. However, we can't rely entirely on it," Apo said. "Such a weapon is inevitably most effective the first time it's used. Once the enemy is prepared, it becomes difficult for it to achieve the desired effect."
"Alright, since you've already considered it..."
Matt nodded and took Apo to find Salius and the other Little Sassinian prisoners of war.
However, Matt didn't take Apo to the slave camp but rather to a construction site in the outer city.
Besides Salius, there were over four hundred extraordinary citizen-soldiers and more than three thousand ordinary citizen-soldiers among the captured prisoners. During the difficult reconstruction period in Little Sassinian, with so much free labor available, the Little Sassinians naturally worked them to the bone. In just over two months, nearly half of the three thousand ordinary citizen-soldiers had died from exhaustion or abuse. Fortunately, the extraordinary ones had better physiques; despite heavy labor under heavy chains, only two or three had perished.
As soon as Apo entered the bustling construction site, the Ambratu citizen-soldier prisoners cast hateful glances his way. Sharp-eyed overseers noticed the abnormality and immediately raised their whips, ready to strike.
Apo waved his hand, signaling the overseers to stand down for the moment. He walked with steady steps through the crowd of prisoners glaring at him, until he reached Salius.
Although Salius had also endured this long period of torment, as an elder, he received slightly better treatment. Thus, he merely looked somewhat haggard, not truly sickly.
"Isn't this General Apo? Why are you here instead of leading your warriors on campaigns?" Salius sat down on a block of stone, looking up at Apo.
It was strange. Back on the battlefield, the inexperienced Salius had been utterly terrified facing Apo. Now, as a prisoner with an even lower status, seeing Apo again, Salius felt no fear.
Apo didn't beat around the bush and stated his purpose directly: "Little Sassinian is about to face a war. Our forces are slightly insufficient. I hope that you, the former citizen-soldiers of Ambratu, can fight alongside me."
Before Salius could speak, an Ambratu citizen-soldier behind him, still in chains, couldn't hold back: "Lord Apo, has it only been a few days, yet you've already grown senile? How dare you expect us, whose city and homes you destroyed, to fight for you?"
Salius signaled the speaker to be quiet for now and asked, "Who is Little Sassinian going to war with?"
Salius knew in his heart that Apo wouldn't come here seeking humiliation for an ordinary war. The Ambratu citizen-soldiers held no goodwill towards Apo, the enemy commander who had defeated them.
As expected, Apo said, "We are going to attack Ambratu."
Silence fell upon the site.
Apo looked around at every Ambratu prisoner and spoke as loudly as possible: "Gentlemen, it was not I who destroyed your city and homes, but your elder, Antanas. It is not I who currently occupies the city-state of Ambratu, but the Viscount of Lanwan. Little Sassinian is preparing to launch an offensive against the Viscount of Lanwan alongside other allied city-states, to retake Ambratu and drive the Oran people out of the Soqya Peninsula. Whether you agree to join our army or not, after this battle, I will grant you your freedom and allow you to return to Ambratu."
"Re-really?" an Ambratu prisoner without chains asked, his voice trembling slightly.
Matt also looked at Apo in astonishment. No other elder would make such a decision to release the Ambratu prisoners. The citizens of Little Sassinian wouldn't try to understand if releasing the prisoners was strategically beneficial; they would only see that the enemies they fought desperately to capture were regaining their freedom.
Yet, Apo made this promise, completely disregarding that these prisoners were proof of his merit, the source of his authority in the Council of Elders, and ignoring the potential backlash he would face from the citizens afterward.
Matt didn't believe Apo hadn't thought of these issues; Apo was no longer the Apo of the past.
"Yes, I guarantee it on my honor," Apo replied without hesitation.
Matt looked at Apo's graying hair and his figure still standing tall and proud. Suddenly, he felt he might have been wrong; perhaps Apo was still the Apo of old.
"However, gentlemen, as Ambratuans, do you truly wish to rely entirely on others to reclaim Ambratu?" Apo continued. "You couldn't defend your homeland, nor can you reclaim it yourselves. In that case, how can you confidently tell outsiders in the future that you are the true masters of Ambratu?"
No one answered. Many prisoners couldn't help but lower their heads, their expressions complex.
"Gentlemen, this is not just my war, nor just the war of Little Sassinian or any other city-state. It should also be your war."
"Gentlemen, I am willing to give you time to hesitate, time to consider. But the enemy will not. I hope you can give me an answer before I march out."
With that, Apo turned and left without lingering.
Matt quickly followed.
"Give these prisoners better food these next two days. They need to replenish their strength before the battle," Apo said to Matt.
To reduce the Ambratu prisoners' ability to resist, the Little Sassinians not only fed them the coarsest food but also never gave them enough. Now, these prisoners were weak-legged and pale-faced, certainly unfit for battle in this state.
"Understood." Matt then hesitated and asked Apo, "You mentioned the Viscount of Lanwan might attack Little Sassinian and Dolrcocha. Should we send a messenger to warn the Dolrcocha Council of Elders?"
"When Elder Pishos went to Dolrcocha, I already told him to remind the Dolrcocha city-state to be vigilant," Apo said.
"That's good. You truly consider everything thoroughly," Matt nodded and said with a smile.
Soqya Peninsula, Badan City-State.
Representatives from Dolrcocha, Little Sassinian, Sudaman, Camela, and Koloro gathered in this prosperous coastal city-state to discuss the formation of the North Soqya Frontline.
Pishos was the representative of Little Sassinian.
As Elder Balotelli of Dolrcocha had previously announced, after Little Sassinian decided to join the North Soqya Frontline, the previously hesitant city-states also chose to join. Thus, the North Soqya Frontline was successfully established.
However, with the establishment of the North Soqya Frontline, another problem immediately arose: who would serve as the commander-in-chief of the allied forces?
The six city-states had been wrangling over this issue for an entire day.
Of course, not every city-state was qualified to demand command. The main contenders were Camela and Badan, the two city-states expected to contribute the most troops, while the other four city-states chose sides.
After another half-day of bickering ended, Pishos walked wearily out of the Badan Council of Elders. Just as he was about to stretch, he heard a familiar voice call out, "Elder Pishos."
Pishos turned around and saw Elder Balotelli of Dolrcocha.
"Elder Pishos, I am hosting a banquet at my estate tonight. Would you honor me with your presence?" Balotelli asked.
"Well..." Pishos hesitated slightly but quickly nodded. "Of course, I can."
Pishos knew very well why Balotelli was inviting him. In the dispute over the command of the allied forces, Balotelli, representing Dolrcocha, firmly stood on Badan's side because a general in Badan named Giovanni Draghi was Balotelli's son-in-law.
Giovanni Draghi, although not like Apo who ventured out in his teens and made a name for the Red Armor Mercenary Corps in his early twenties, was still considered accomplished at a young age. In his thirties, he had led citizen-soldiers out to the Ivy Alliance frontlines multiple times, fought bravely, and achieved repeated military merits, making him a renowned general in Badan.
If Badan secured the command of the allied forces, Giovanni Draghi would most likely be the commander-in-chief.
Balotelli naturally had to fully support his son-in-law.
Sure enough, during a break in the feasting and drinking at the evening banquet, Balotelli smoothly brought up the issue of the allied command.
"I believe Badan not only needs to contribute one-third of the land forces but also supports the main strength of the naval fleet. It is better suited to undertake the command and coordination tasks of the allied forces. What do you think?" Balotelli said.
Pishos pretended not to understand, sipping his wine and vaguely saying, "The navy, ah... Didn't Badan's elders say many of their naval vessels were requisitioned by Fidi? How many ships can they contribute this time?"
Balotelli knew Pishos wouldn't commit without benefits. He clapped his hands, and a maidservant brought a wooden box to Pishos, placing it on the table.
"This is just a small token. It wouldn't be right for you to return empty-handed after visiting," Balotelli said with a smile.
Pishos opened the wooden box and glanced inside; it was filled to the brim with gleaming gold Diels.
Pishos immediately beamed. He was one of those Little Sassinians who had lost almost everything in the Ambratu invasion. For some reason, the Diels issued by Fidi had recently become increasingly valuable. Receiving so many Diels at once naturally delighted Pishos.
However, when he spoke, Pishos still said, "I don't know if Badan is suitable to command the allied forces, and of course, I don't know if Camela is suitable either."
Clearly, Pishos meant he would remain neutral in tomorrow's meeting, supporting neither side.
Balotelli cursed Pishos inwardly as an old fox, wanting to accept his bribe but not wanting to offend Camela, which was also a major city-state.
However, this was enough.
With Little Sassinian remaining neutral and his own firm support, the command of the allied forces would likely fall into Badan's hands.
Balotelli received the promise, Pishos received the money, and both sides were reasonably satisfied.
Over an hour later, Pishos, full and content, patted his belly, carried the money box, and walked out of the estate gifted to him by Balotelli's son-in-law.
Suddenly, Pishos stopped. He remembered Apo's warning to relay – beware of a preemptive strike from the Viscount of Lanwan. The dinner table had actually been a good opportunity to inform Balotelli, but he had forgotten.
Well, no need to rush. There will be plenty of opportunities to tell him after tomorrow's meeting...
Thinking this, Pishos started walking again.
In fact, three days earlier when Pishos arrived in Dolrcocha, he had many opportunities to relay the message. However, partly because Pishos didn't feel the matter was urgent – the North Soqya Frontline hadn't even assembled its troops yet, and in Pishos's conventional thinking, this meant the war hadn't started – and partly because being ordered around by Apo made Pishos feel uncomfortable.
This wasn't just Pishos's feeling; many other Little Sassinian elders felt the same – Apo's prestige among the citizens was now simply too high, even surpassing that of the Council of Elders.
Under the influence of these two psychological factors, Pishos subconsciously didn't take Apo's entrusted matter seriously.
Soqya Peninsula, Dolrcocha City-State.
A messenger raven landed in a simple cage in the courtyard, eagerly pecking at the grain in the food bowl.
A man dressed in linen clothes caught the raven, untied a small metal tube from its leg, opened the tube, and pulled out a slip of paper.
The man scanned the contents of the paper, his expression changing drastically. He quickly ran towards the house.
"Mr. Robin!"
Robin Mancini was organizing the various pieces of intelligence about the war gathered over the past few days when his subordinate rushed in hastily and thrust the slip of paper in front of him.
Robin took the paper and read it while lecturing his subordinate:
"What's the rush? How many times have I told you, no matter what happens, don't panic... Hmm, Miss Charlotte is attacking the city tomorrow, attacking..."
Robin nearly jumped up: "Dolrcocha!"
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