The cold rain pounded on the carport and fell on the fields. Except for the King's Road, the country roads were all mud and potholes.
Under the hazy sky, the queue entering the city was stretched long, like a meandering green snake, moving forward on the flat land. At the front of the queue was the lord Bertolt. His gray hair had already climbed up on him.
His temples, sword marks and knife wounds covered his cheeks, and the years had left many traces on his body ruthlessly, but for the old knight, this was a symbol of his glory.
For many years, this country has not experienced a large-scale war since the last Mogul invasion. Now, they finally face another test. The powerful necromancer Heinrich faces the enemy from the south.
The Kingdom of Knights launched an attack, and tens of thousands of corpses were summoned from the underground. Under the leadership of Heinrich, they swept across the southern border of Bretonnia. Several towns and villages fell, and the dead were resurrected and became the members of the undead army.
One person, continue heading north.
Duke Carcassonne assembled and led the troops in his territory to fight against this dark force, but was torn apart by the necromancer Heinrich with his bare hands. Only then did this dark force attract the attention of all Bretonnia.
King Charles convened an emergency military meeting. As a lord of the kingdom, Bertaud got the letter a week ago.
The season has entered winter. The winter in Bretonnia is not like the northern provinces of the empire, let alone the northern country of Kislev. Here, even in the middle of winter, snowflakes are not common. Instead, there is icy winter rain.
.
It's been a long time since Tarynham came here again, Colonia, the capital of the Kingdom of Bretonnia.
A few hours later, the magnificent city wall stood in front of the two of them.
Lord Berto made a gesture to stop advancing, and the team slowed down and finally formed a straight line. They followed the civilians and caravans into the city. The rain beat on the people, and you could see the fatigue on most of their faces.
And low mood.
Berto drove his horse forward. He did not want to be affected by the low mood of the people around him. Although the world was so dark, as a lord, he must show a positive and sunny side.
Bertol remembered the invasion of Mogul three years ago. At that time, almost all the lords and knights from all over the country came to Cologne. The scene was like a grand military parade. But now, the threat is also there, but to respond
The knights and lords called by the king are somewhat sparse, or they arrive late.
Is it because the Necromancer and the Undead Army are not a threat enough? Or is it for some other reason? Berto doesn’t know, and he doesn’t want to know. As long as the king gives an order, he must arrive as soon as possible.
…
"Ah, Bertolt, I haven't seen you for a long time. Three years? It's been three years. The last time I saw you was after the Mogul invasion ended?"
In the king's hall, King Charles warmly received the lord from the south. It should be said that Bertot's title was not high and his territory was not a rich land, but Charles welcomed him with the warmest attitude, as if they were
Old friends who have not seen each other for many years, or more like father and son than old friends... because Bertolt once saved the king's life in the Battle of Blackwater. Charles will never forget who holds the hand in a desperate situation.
With spears and silver swords, he rushed into the rebel army to protect the king.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
After Berto finished speaking, he lowered his head and saluted.
"Okay, don't go to such trouble, come, come here, let me see you." The king pressed Berto's shoulders, "You have lost weight again!" he said.
Berto didn't answer, just smiled, and then changed the topic to the right track——
"I heard, Heinrich..."
The king interrupted him.
"This matter is very important, very important, so I summon you here. Although this Necromancer has not yet contaminated this place, its danger level is no less than that of the Mogul invasion back then."
"My king, I saw and heard something on the way here. It seems that the other lords haven't arrived yet?"
Berto answered.
Charles shook his head. Like Berto, fatigue climbed on his forehead. He returned to the throne like an old lion and sat down——
"They are all here, but they are still on the way. Of course, you are half right, they are indeed slow. They did not realize the threat of the undead army this time. Three years, just three years of peace have made some people
I’m content with the status quo. Alas..."
The king's sigh had a somewhat sad meaning, but Berto could see that what really made the old king feel tired and powerless was not his appeal, but his age... Yes, he was old, and
The prince seems to be immature yet... He has heard the complicated voices from the outside world, but he is unable to change anything. Public opinion is a double-edged sword, it can inspire people's hearts, and it can also confuse people's hearts.
"Let's not talk about other people. They will all come. If they don't come today, they will come tomorrow. If they don't come tomorrow, they will all gather in a week."
"Is this Tarynham behind you? If I remember correctly."
Charles' eyes passed through Bertot and fell on the young man behind the old lord. Tarynham was shocked by this courtesy. He did not expect that for such a small role, the king would still remember his name.
Talinnam, who was somewhat flattered, quickly saluted, "Yes, Your Majesty. I am Talinnam." He replied.
"A brave squire, the most loyal and brave squire I have ever seen."
The king praised. Talinnam, who was so praised, stood there, not knowing how to respond.
"He's a bit similar to you..."
The king looked at it for a while and said to Berto with a smile.
…
Three days later, the meeting came as scheduled. Although it came a little late, but as King Charles said, it will always come. It was just a little late.
The huge king's palace was still undecorated, with only a long dense carpet extending from the gate to the foot of the king's throne. Almost all the dukes in the kingdom came. In front of this group of proud and powerful dukes, Berto could only
Standing on the periphery, in terms of class, he is just an earl. Above him, there are marquis, and then these grand dukes... However, the disparity in status did not make these grand dukes look at the old knight with contempt.
On the contrary, everyone knew about Berto's achievements in the Battle of the Blackwater River and the Defense of the Eternal Forest, and also knew that the king admired and valued him. Therefore, the Thirteenth Duke looked at him with more respect.
And whether it was respect, disdain, or contempt, it didn't matter to Berto. What he carried out was the king's order, and what he responded to was the king's call. What he fulfilled was his own obligations and responsibilities. Other than that,
, doesn’t matter.
"Everyone is here, let's get started."
When the last Marquis of the South entered the hall, King Charles sat on the throne and spoke loudly.
The scene suddenly became quiet, and the crowd turned their attention to the old king. What they saw was that although Charles had white hair on his temples and dense wrinkles, he was still full of the aura of a king. Every word he said was so weighty.
.
"They came, Breganas was razed to the ground in one night, the corpse was resurrected, stood up again, and joined the army of the Necromancer. Heinrich, the dark Necromancer, every time he captured a place,
Hundreds of people will die, and these dead people will stand up again that day or the next day and become members of the undead army."
The king stared at the marble floor in the hall and said——
"You have all heard the news about the defeat of the Duke of Carcassonne. Yes, he led the knights and soldiers in the territory to resist Heinrich's invasion. However, within one day, thousands of soldiers were slaughtered again. Carcassonne
Matsumoto and his knights were also killed and impaled on stakes outside Breganas."
"This is a blatant provocation!"
Duke Barstow roared angrily.
"So, I summoned you here to discuss countermeasures and fight against this dark necromancer together. Since the founding of Bretonnia, there has never been a moment spent in comfort. It has never happened before, and it will never happen now. Brave knights
Always ready to fight and protect his people. This is our duty and this is our honor!"
King Charles said in a loud voice that he was like a lion, still proud and unyielding despite his old age. The sun shined in through the colorful crystal windows, illuminating the throne and the old king.
"I heard that Heinrich is not an ordinary necromancer. He is elusive and elusive. The marching route of the necromancer army is weird. They don't need supplies, food and water. They can march for a long time and appear in Paris.
Anywhere in Tonya. If we concentrate our forces, we may not be able to catch him, and we may lose more places. Without the protection of knights and lords, the peasants have no ability to defend themselves."
Duke Tancred immediately raised questions. Compared with several other lords, the young lord Quinaris seemed more calm and rational. No one taught him this, but what is certain is that Tancred
Unlike his fathers, he is more calm and calm when encountering problems. Sometimes, he is unbearable calmness.
"In other words, we need more reinforcements to guard the entire border and attack quickly if there is an enemy situation?"
Berto interjected. No one looked down upon him because he was a small lord. On the contrary, several grand dukes paid attention to him.
"If we had."
Tancred replied.
"The problem is there aren't any."
The Duke of Bastogne stated the facts straightforwardly.
"Where are the wood elves? Won't they send troops?"
There were mixed voices of doubt in the hall.
"Don't tell me, the elves won't send troops. When the beastmen invaded Athel Loren, our knights went to the forest to support them. Now, Bretonnia is in trouble, don't tell me, the wood elves won't help? They
Do you want to stand by and watch?"
The voices of doubt grew louder and louder, until Tancred stood up and said loudly——
"I asked them for support, but as you said, the elves refused."
call……
As soon as Tancred finished speaking, hisses spread throughout the hall, and the lords condemned their forest neighbor for his indifference and ruthlessness.
"Why?"
Until Berto stood up and asked questions loudly.
"It's winter now, when the wood elves are at their weakest..."
Tancred replied. His territory borders the forest of Athel Loren, the home of the wood elves. Duke Tancred knows the habits of the wood elves thoroughly.
"Weak? Is this the reason why they avoid fighting? Then, when we are weak, we can stay behind closed doors, right?"
shouted the Duke of Barstow.
"Weakness is just one of them. In fact, the wood elves have still not recovered from the pain of the last Mogul invasion. The forest is still polluted, and it has not been completely eliminated in the past few years."
"In short, it's impossible to count on those elves."
There was a bit of sarcasm in the Duke's words. The old king could tell that this dissatisfaction had long been rooted in his heart and did not happen overnight.