"So, how are our advance troops going to attack?　If we stay put, it''s going to mean that we''re going to be jittery."


    Olks has a habit of running his hand over his beard when he is pondering.


    "If you continue along the valley road, you will be attacked by the enemies who are holding the fort ahead of you," he says. We can''t just ignore them and force our way through, it''s going to be a bit of a pain.


    Yes, this Saura fort is just some distance along the valley.


    The enemy is trying to trap us and surround and exterminate us.


    Looking at the situation alone, the enemy must feel that we have been completely trapped.


    The enemy lord, Colt Lentland, is a man with a good head on his shoulders.


    He can mobilize more troops than we can. He''s probably thinking of attacking my province in earnest after dealing a heavy blow here.


    --Come to think of it, something like that happened when the High King was alive. Mori Motonari lured the army of Ouchi led by Sue to Itsukushima and destroyed it. Then he slowly invaded Ouchi''s territory and destroyed it.


    Well, I don''t intend to let that happen.


    I''m going to break this state of affairs.


    Maichel, the map.


    Meisel''s spread shows only the surrounding mountains and valleys enlarged.


    "In fact, I have already found several paths between here and the enemy fortress," he said. The paths are cut along the ridges to make it look like there is no choice but to descend, but you can go around the mountains."


    I relied on counterintelligence and Fleur''s information in that area.


    "The enemy''s strategy is based on the premise that we will be exhausted to take down their forts one by one. If we can capture them early, we can maintain our momentum and avalanche onto the plain.


    I looked at their faces.


    "If the fort ahead of us serves as a weir, we can destroy it before it gets here. Then we can join up with the rearguard coming up behind us and get out to the plains - we win.


    "I understand your intentions. But to go around dropping forts, that''s another daredevil thing to do.


    "I''m sure you can do this much."


    These soldiers are under the influence of the Guideposts of the High King. Their confidence and concentration are increased by 50 percent.


    If we attack them from the frontage, we can take them down without much damage.


    We have also prepared a trumpet for the special operations forces.


    If we let them work in secret, the situation will be even more favorable to us.


    "Understood!　I''m not a man if I don''t show bravery here!"


    Olks shouted.


    "That''s the spirit. I''ll go along with you, so give it everything you''ve got.


    "It is indeed dangerous for the Count to be facing ......."


    Rayon hesitated. It was Rayon''s job to stop him there.


    "I know you will protect me. So I''m not afraid of anything.


    Rayon''s face was now completely warlike.


    "No matter what happens, the White Eagle Squadron will protect the Count!"


    --Special ability [Guidepost of the High King] ranks up!　Double the confidence and concentration. In addition, attack and defense are increased by 30%.


    Oh, and more bonuses!


    You''ve become a very good team.


    "First, the first fort. This one is built in the middle of the valley because it''s supposed to fight enemies who attack the valley road. That means we can go around from higher up. If the elite come in from above, they can take it down quickly. Let''s go."


    The next day. We deliberately tried to take the valley road at noon and lightly engaged the enemy coming down from the fort. This was to make them think that we were going along the valley road.


    And at night. We continue along the ridge.


    There were red ribbons everywhere so that we would not get lost. The lycanthrope''s trumpet had taken on the form of a wolf to help us find our way.


    "Let us Red Bears take care of this. Twenty men should be enough!


    I decided to leave it to Captain Olks.


    The red bears lowered the ladder from the rear of the fort and entered the fort one by one.


    Soon we heard several screams.


    By the time I had also descended the ladder into the fort, Orcus said, "This is the fifteenth head! I heard a voice.


    To tell you the truth, my SS is different in the amount of training. Even a small number of them can show tremendous strength.


    Thirty minutes later, the enemy was almost completely defeated and the general surrendered.


    Tell me what you know about the other forts. Tell me what you know about the other forts or I will kill you.


    Since the trumpeters knew the torture well, they left the torture to them. Soon the enemy told us about the fort.


    Since there was almost no discrepancy with the information we had already gathered, it was not likely that he was lying.


    The enemy has two more forts.


    "We can take down one more fort or two more forts before the end of the day. Let''s keep going!"


    The next fort was opened from the inside by a trumpet.


    This is the same move they used when I was sent to Naglad. A fort is only meaningful if it''s strong. If too many enemy soldiers enter the fort it will turn into a blood-spattered inferno.


    From that fort to the next one, the ridge road was blocked again, but it did not matter if we took a detour. We already knew the way around this area of the mountain.


    The lappers set fire to this fort and used disturbance tactics. All that remained was to attack it with force.


    I''ll leave it to you."


    Meisel Wujer said with a dignified look on his face.


    "I understand. Surrendering in a siege is not enough. You''ll have to fight to the bitter end.


    The troops led by Meisel charge into the enemy without flinching.


    The enemy tries desperately to defend the fort, because if it falls, their plan to buy time in the valley will be completely ruined.


    I also stepped into the fort to inspire my allies.


    "Listen up!　If we take this place down, we can get out of the pass!　We can make a big windfall!　You must win!"


    I cut down three men, too.


    In battle I activate my special ability, the power of the High King. My fighting ability is double the normal one. I''m sorry, but you can''t win with a small army.


    In this clash of wills, our side won.


    Just when we thought we had almost finished conquering the castle, Meisel returned.


    He said, "I have killed the general.


    "Well done. When I get the province of Nagouri, I''ll be sure to add to your territory.


    By the time we had taken the last fortress, the morning had already dawned. We must have fought for more than twelve hours. Even though we had switched the assaulting troops, we were exhausted from all the traveling and other activities.


    Still, it was truly significant that we were able to take down three enemy forts in less than a day''s time.


    We have completely opened up the valley road as a passageway.


    After giving our men a good rest, we set up camp at the exit of the pass.


    Here, we will join up with the allied troops coming from the rear and collide with the main body of the enemy.