Lord of Caldera

Chapter 153

Sylas needed someone who valued honor over personal gain and could uphold their promises. The only person that came to mind was the very knight he had just released.

"I wasn't thinking clearly," Bjorn admitted.

"It happens."

Sylas rose from his seat and turned to the soldiers, many of whom still looked stunned by the victory.

"Soldiers!"

Sylas's booming voice captured everyone's attention, and he spoke calmly.

"We have won."

"..."

"We have won without shedding a single drop of our own blood."

He avoided complicated words, instead reinforcing the simple fact that they had won. Slowly, a spark returned to the soldiers' eyes.

"We have won!"

They won. No one among them had died, yet they had won. It didn't matter if it was a trick or whatever—victory was theirs.

"There is hope," they thought.

It was not a matter of dying like mere fodder. They would survive and tread upon their old homeland in Veldaine. They would see the young master ascend as the rightful heir. A spark of hope spread like wildfire in each heart.

"Just as we have won today, we will keep winning! Rejoice, soldiers, for our victory!"

With a thunderous roar, the soldiers raised their spears. This was no longer the desperate cry of a doomed battalion. It was the shout of those who intended to live and see their king. Sylas's lips curled into a smile at the sight.

Several days had passed since their victory. The occupation had been remarkably quiet, thanks to the fact that not a single drop of blood had been spilled between soldiers and the residents. After securing accommodations for his troops, Sylas fulfilled the first promise he'd made to the people of the territory.

"The tax rate will be reduced to one-quarter. All other miscellaneous taxes are abolished."

"Wow!"

"Yes. At least three times as large."

"And their walls are probably just as fortified as ours."

"They used to be on the front line, so they're not to be compared with this place."

Toby looked incredulous at Bjorn's confident answers. Was he being serious? After one last attempt at patience, Toby asked, "Then there must be some kind of weakness or strategy for taking them, right?"

"Hmm, none come to mind at the moment." Find adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

"What? Then why are you suggesting an attack?!"

Unable to hold back, Toby shouted. This wasn't just any fight—it was a siege. And it wasn't some token castle like this one, but a well-fortified structure. Yet Bjorn was proposing an attack with less than half the enemy's forces?

"You know how brutal real sieges can get!"

The empire's history books tell a story of an old war veteran who retired to his hometown, visited by his former student, now a general. The student asked for advice on sieges.

"Master, how should I approach a siege?"

The old general replied simply, "Don't, you fool."

Unable to accept the advice, the student left. During a subsequent war, he led successful sieges on five castles. Years later, as he prepared to retire, a young general asked him the same question.

"How do you handle a siege, General?"

The former student replied, "Never attempt it."

Whether true or not, this story illustrates the harshness of sieges. They require ten times the forces, extensive siege weaponry, and provisions for long encirclements. Even after such efforts, there's often little to gain.

"And now you want us to charge in with less than half their number?"

"I didn't mean we should go for a direct assault," Bjorn replied calmly, trying to ease Toby's agitation.

"But if we don't make the first move, my uncle will never budge. Time will just drag on for a year or two with no progress."

"Didn't you say they have at least three times the troops? With such a large army, you think he'll just sit there?"

Bjorn was the rightful heir. If his uncle had taken the position by questionable means, Bjorn would be the first person he'd want to eliminate. He should want to act quickly, especially given that Bjorn had already raised a banner of defiance.