A Rescue Plan
A Rescue Plan
This would be the first time the First Army of Border Town fought a battle far away from the Western Region. Unlike the previous cases of defensive warfare, there were sure to be problems caused by unfamiliarity with the terrain. It was unclear how well they would fight without being able to set the battlefield. Roland felt that he could not be at ease if he did not go—though his military knowledge was heavily limited, his understanding of firearms was certainly ahead of the times.
However, there was no one to manage the Western Region when he left Border Town. If this news spread to Longsong Stronghold, a few noble families might have some devious ideas. And if someone leaked this news to Timothy, both the front and back lines would suffer—Timothy would probably not pay too much attention if it were just a few witches, but if he heard that Roland was near the king's city, he would certainly mobilize his main forces. Moreover, even if he decided to spare Roland and instead ordered his forces to attack the Western Region, it would yet be a disaster for Roland.
All in all, compared to a frontline defeat, a capitulation in his backyard would be far worse.
Eventually, Roland decided to remain in Border Town.
The primary task of the First Army was to protect the witches, while the second was to lead refugees on to the ships in batches. Conversely, it was not part of their main agenda to engage in head-on battle with Timothy's patrol team in the king's city or the church's Judgement Army. So long as they performed their relief work well and without incident, they might never have to fire a gun.
Of course, Roland had to draw up a rescue plan that was as complete as possible.
That afternoon, Roland summoned over Carter, Iron Axe, Brian and the Witch Union members.
There was only a vague impression of the topography around the king's city in the prince's childhood memory. However, this would not be much of a problem. Roland got Soraya to draw a simple map on the dining table in the parlor before he assigned instructions to Iron Axe and Brian.
"This central diamond represents the king's city, while this blue line represents the canal," Roland explained as he contemplated, "You'll have two tasks. The first is to protect the witches while they treat the refugees, and then escort everyone back to Border Town. The second is to stop the demonic plague from spreading in the king's city. I'll tell you now that this plague is likely to have been created by the church."
"Wh-what?" Brian stared at him in bewilderment, while Carter's forehead began to furrow. Only Iron Axe remained completely expressionless—as a Mojin Clan member from Sand Nation who worshipped the Three Gods of Nature, he did not revere the church or the "one and only God" it proclaims. This made Roland feel very relieved.
"After annexing the Kingdom of Everwinter, the church has begun to attack the Kingdom of Wolfheart. I believe that if the latter collapses as well, the Kingdom of Dawn and the Kingdom of Graycastle will become their targets sooner or later. In fact, I would question the Royal Decree on the Selection of Crown Prince itself." The prince subsequently gave a simple account of how the church simultaneously provided the pill to Timothy, Garcia, and himself. "From this point alone, we can see that they aren't supporting a particular person, but are instead encouraging us to fight among ourselves. Furthermore, the people who consume the pill won't turn into veteran soldiers, but will instead become paralyzed and die after the effect wears off. The current epidemic is the same. Shortly after the demonic plague began to spread in the king's city, the church has already claimed to have an antidote. Ironically, they still haven't distributed it to the people."
"The light shone into Hell is the brightest." Iron Axe remarked.
"Indeed. To pose as a savior of the world, the best thing to do is to appear when people are most in distress. The greater the sense of contrast, the deeper the people's impression of the church. Those who perished halfway were simply deemed as sacrifices whose faiths weren't devout enough." Roland articulated. "So, apart from rescuing the refugees in the Eastern Region, we'll also have to foil the church's conspiracy."
"What should we do?" Brian inhaled deeply.
"Try not to be noticed, and keep them in oblivion as you complete the tasks." Roland pointed at a large open space to the south of an outskirt pier along the canal. "This area should be full of crop fields and is thus very suitable for hiding. Try to find a high spot in the area to build a sentry post that overlooks the pier. The soldiers responsible for fetching the refugees will disguise as caravan mercenaries and escort the treated refugees onboard. I'll contact Margaret the merchant to prepare as many ships as she can, so that we won't have only two fleets for this mission."
Whether it was Longsong Stronghold or the king's city of Graycastle, the patrol strength of a large city rarely extended to its fringes. The guaranteed surveillance range was fundamentally determined by the height of the city wall—the distance that could be seen standing on the city wall was equivalent to the range that could be monitored. By this measure, the area to the south of the pier was outside the church's surveillance range, and therefore Roland's troops were unlikely to be noticed by the guards if they set up base here.
"How will the disease be treated?" Iron Axe asked.
"We'll mainly depend on the replicas created by Lily." Roland gave a general explanation of the young girl's strange ability. "She won't need to enter the refugee camps to treat these people, as she can turn any microbe into a replica—in other words, your job is to gather river water for her to purify and serve the water to those who are infected."
"Just... like that?" Iron Axe was surprised.
"Take note of two things." The prince held up two fingers. "First, ensure that everyone on board has drunk the purified water. Second, don't use boiled drinking water to produce the purified water—in fact, the purified water should be as dirty as possible. The more microbes it contains, the more replicas that can be produced. You mightn't have understood, but just do as I say."
"Is it the same for the patients in the king's city?"
"More or less. But we can't use our men to send the cure as that'll be too conspicuous. This part will be handled by Theo," Roland replied, "As long as the money is right, even the Rats of Black Street can do an efficient job."
"Your Highness, but these Rats aren't reliable. If they smell profits elsewhere, they may stab us in the back at any time," Carter suggested.
"Therefore, although you should do your best for the second task, it isn't necessary to complete." The prince stood up and continued, "If you sense that something's not right, the First Army shall immediately evacuate the witches. It'll be a victory as long as we bring the refugees back smoothly. We'll simply treat as many people in the king's city as we can. The plan to defeat the church doesn't solely depend on the purified water to actualize. So long as we make it clear that the truth isn't like what they declared—that 'only the holy medicine can treat the demonic plague'—their act will fail."
"Finally, I shall announce the people selected for this expedition to the king's city." Raising his voice, he shouted, "Iron Axe!"
"Yes!"
"You'll lead 240 musketeers to protect the witches, control the canal piers, and eliminate potential threats. You must ensure that the witches and the Eastern Region refugees are safely brought back."
"Yes, Your Highness!" Iron Axe immediately stood at attention and saluted.
"Brian!"
"Yes!" The young knight held his head high and raised his chest.
"You'll lead 60 soldiers to disguise as caravan mercenaries, send the cure to the camps, escort the refugees on board, and maintain order on the ships.
"I sincerely obey Your Highness' orders!"
"Next will be the witches. The ones who'll be going to the king's city are Lily, Nightingale, Echo, Lightning, and Wendy." Roland then lowered his voice and continued, "I'll expatiate your task later. Most importantly, take good care of yourselves and come back safely."
"Don't worry, Your Highness." Nightingale beat her chest and asserted. "There's me around."
Roland nodded. "My final and most important point is... when the contingent arrives in the king's city, you may only stay for three days at most. When the time's up, no matter the situation, you must return to Border Town." He enunciated his word clearly. "If the church is intent on withering the resistance of the Kingdom of Graycastle, it'll certainly not just create an epidemic in the king's city. The Western Region will likely become one of their targets. That's why you can't stay in the king's city for more than three days, understood?"
''Yes, Your Highness!" Iron Axe and Brian replied in unison.
"Great. Then begin to carry out the plan."
"Hold on... Your Highness, what about me?" Carter raised his hand and asked.
"You'll lead the remaining First Army soldiers to guard Border Town, that's all." Roland gave him a pat on his shoulders.
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