395: Chapter 44, Master of Drawing Cakes_1 395: Chapter 44, Master of Drawing Cakes_1 After a long and dusty journey, they finally arrived at the Flying Bear Fort.
Looking at the towering walls before him, Hudson’s mood greatly improved.
Beyond the main city, there were about a dozen other castles nearby, all closely connected to the Flying Bear Fort.
Compared to the main city, these castles clearly lacked the aged charm.
It was apparent that these had been hastily built.
Clearly, the Elvin family had put effort into the city’s defence.
Unfortunately, their luck wasn’t good, and their primary forces were lost early on the battlefield.
“Welcome, Earl Hudson and Viscount Rakel!”
A refreshing voice emanated from the welcoming party.
However, judging from the full armor donned by the visitor, and the fully armed troops behind, they were not here to welcome, but to retreat.
It seemed they had been eager for this transfer of duty, unwilling to remain at the frontline any longer.
“You flatter us!
What’s this about?”
Hudson asked, pretending not to know.
Addressing the elephant in the room, the middle-aged officer felt somewhat awkward.
Cycle of duty and withdrawal was standard, but rushing to flee looked somewhat desperate.
They had no choice.
The fall of Bertelli Fortress had terrified the defenders of the Flying Bear Fort.
The Leibron family had tried their utmost to resist, but could not halt the advancement of the Orc Army.
How could they fare any better?
The calm now was because the Orcs had previously consolidated their forces to fully attack the Bertelli Fortress.
Before the defence battle of Bertelli Fortress broke out, the defenders of the Flying Bear Fort were also frequently attacked.
The two legions stationed here had been ravaged by the Orcs.
Finally, relief through a duty shift came.
If they didn’t flee soon, and the Orc Army arrived, they wouldn’t be able to flee even if they wanted to.
“Your Excellency, how we have awaited your arrival.
We have been exhausted from days of constant battle, fearing problems at the fortress.
Now that you are here, we can retreat and rest, and get a good sleep.
The Flying Bear Fort is yours now!
Lady Earl Hudson, Viscount Rakel, we’ll take our leave first, until we meet again after the war…”
After the pleasantries, the middle-aged officer eagerly led his team away, leaving no chance for pleas to stay.
Hudson was speechless at this scene.
However, after watching the departing troops, he soon understood.
Obviously, they knew only about the fall of Bertelli Fortress, completely unaware of the heavy price paid by the Bearman Imperial Court.
They assumed the enemy would soon attack and overreacted accordingly.
There was definitely no use explaining, and Hudson had no interest in convincing them to stay.
The war had just begun.
Everything seemed fine for now, but who knew when they would fall.
Making friends in this situation would only add to troubles.
Watching the two legions depart, Hudson sensed their teams were considerably shorter than the average legion.
In times of war, a main warfare army being understrength had only one explanation: casualties on the battlefield.
One could tell a lot from a small detail.
The heavy casualties were definitely not limited to the defenders of the Flying Bear Fort.
It was likely that the defenders along the entire frontline were horribly beleaguered by the Orcs.
The stay-behind force of the Elvin family was still present.
Just because their family head had died didn’t mean they were relieved of their duties.
Unless they planned to abandon their inherited titles and territories, they couldn’t evade the Lord’s duty to guard the land.
As a member of the Noble Consortium, Hudson knew well how closed-off this group was.
Once you gave up your base, it was almost impossible to regain it.
Staying behind was a matter of life and death, whereas starting again was certain doom.
Even if one could let go of everything, the outcome wouldn’t be much better.
Without the status of a noble, unprotected by the laws of the game, they would be sitting ducks ripe for the picking.
There was a difference between voluntarily renouncing and becoming exiled.
The latter was due to losing their fief and the death of the family head.
The successors wanted to inherit the territories but could not.
Legally though, they were still the rightful heirs.
Theoretically, as long as the Moxi Duchy could reclaim the lost territories, they could inherit them.
Observing the Elvin’s choice, it appeared to follow a similar path.
The new family head was fully committed to defending the city.
If successful, everyone would be overjoyed.
If they failed, they would arrange for the younger generation to leave, sacrificing the new head and the remaining family’s private army, waiting for the day the duchy reclaimed the lost lands to retake everything they lost.
Upon taking control of the city’s defense from the youthful Viscount William, Hudson, with his group of trusted military officers, began inspecting the city.
When it came to their lives, they dared not be negligent.
…
In Dapes City, the arrival of good news slightly improved King Chris the Ninth’s gloomy disposition.
If this news had arrived before Bertelli Fortress fell, he would have definitely thrown a celebration.
But it was all too late now.
Tactical victory couldn’t make up for strategic error.
The greatest significance of the “victory” now was to boost morale.
“Has the battle result been verified?
Did they really annihilate a Mongolian Cavalry Corps?”
Chris the Ninth asked with concern.
Exaggerating battle reports had become the norm.
The duchy needed to pacify the public, and if they didn’t cover up some details, the repeated defeats would be unbearable for anyone.
This time was an exception.
The achievement of annihilating a Mongolian Cavalry Corps was enormous.
Any embellishments would make it seem too fake.
“Your Majesty, our Military Department has repeatedly verified the battle achievements.
The Layton County Legion and the Newly formed Twenty-Third Army really did annihilate a Bimon cavalry corps on their way.”