Chapter 295 145 The Enemy at the Gate

Chapter 295 -145- The Enemy at the Gates

"Quick, quick! Wipe the inscription on this stone cannon. The Master Mage said that this big thing must be cleaned before it can be used!"

"Is the stone ready? The bridgehead is urging again. The Earl's Mansion said that the outer wall of the bridgehead must be repaired today!"

Outside North Harbor, the Dorne River.

On the North Harbor Bridge, the only bridge across the north and south of the Dorne River in Castel County, the craftsmen were busy repairing the outer wall outside the bridge under the leadership of the mage apprentice.

North Harbor Bridge.

As the only bridge across the two banks of the Dorne River, its role is as important as the Castel Bridge connecting North Harbor and the mainland.

If the Castel Bridge connecting the north bank of the mainland and North Harbor is the last line of defense to protect North Harbor, then the North Harbor Bridge connecting the north and south of the Dorne River is the only way to determine whether the rebels can continue to move north and completely cut off North Harbor's retreat.

At this moment, the walls on both sides of the North Port Bridge have been renovated, and the craftsmen are busy preparing various fortifications.

There is only one purpose, that is to protect this bridge.

On the tower in the Earl's Mansion.

Charlotte stood in front of the railing, looking at the busy North Port under the shadow of the war, the warships patrolling inside and outside the port, the stone-shooting cannons that were pushed out on the coastal defense sea wall, and the camps and tents on the north bank of the Dorne River. I don't know where my thoughts drifted.

Until the familiar footsteps came, she retracted her gaze, glanced at the people behind her, and chuckled:

"Did another noble surrender?"

Behind him, Viscount Leon-Castell hesitated for a moment and nodded:

"Yes, Lord Earl, news came from the south that the army of Bolde-Violet has taken the castle fortress closest to North Port. I'm afraid that the enemy's vanguard will arrive at the Dorne River tomorrow at the latest."

"Oh? The last castle fortress has also fallen? Which family is it from?"

Charlotte raised her eyebrows slightly.

Viscount Ryan-Castell looked a little embarrassed:

"Lord Earl... is... from our family."

Hearing this, Charlotte turned around and looked at him strangely.

Facing her eyes that seemed to see through everything, the old viscount's scalp suddenly numbed, and he hurriedly said:

"Lord Earl, our Ryan-Castell's loyalty..."

"Don't worry, I won't blame you."

Charlotte interrupted the old viscount's words.

She turned around and looked at the open plains, hills, crisscrossing water systems and scattered villages and towns in the distance of Castel Territory, and then said:

"The speed of the fall of the south was a little beyond my expectations, but I can understand it."

"After all... for aristocratic families, long-term survival is the most important."

"You can't put all your eggs in one basket, and even a broken basket is a spare basket."

Hearing this, Viscount Ryan-Castell's expression became even more embarrassed.

He hesitated for a moment and said:

"My Lord Earl, no matter what the rest of the family chooses, since I have chosen to stand here, I will fight with you until the last moment."

Charlotte glanced at him and nodded:

"I understand. I am already very satisfied that you can help me defend Beigang."

She chuckled again:

"To be honest, compared to those nobles who can only rely on their own directly governed armies to fight against their superior lords, I am already very lucky to be able to raise an army of more than 10,000."

After hearing Charlotte's words, the old viscount was speechless for a moment.

And Charlotte did not continue to talk about this somewhat sensitive topic.

The speed of the fall of the south was indeed beyond her expectations, and this could only be explained by the fact that many nobles did not actually fight to the death.

But Charlotte did not feel too much indignation about this.

No matter how bad the reputation of the third prince was, in front of tens of thousands of troops, the noble territories on the front line had no other choice.

The feudal lords had limited constraints on their subjects. Compared with the monarchs and ministers of the Celestial Empire, they were more like the relationship between company bosses and employees.

The nobles had already fulfilled their obligations by providing her with conscripts and taxes for the war, and even coming to help her in person. She couldn't force them to fight to the death.

To really do the latter, it had to be those monarchs who had successfully strengthened centralization, had a strong personal charm, and were fanatically worshipped and loyal by the nobles.

Even Louis V couldn't do this, and even in the past life history that Charlotte knew, not many people could do it.

"Anything else?"

Charlotte looked at Viscount Leon-Castell and asked.

The old viscount hesitated for a moment and said:

"My Lord, regarding the North Port Bridge... are you really not considering destroying it?"

"Excuse me, the North Port Bridge connects the north and the south. As long as we destroy it and control the Dorne River, we will be invincible... We can completely fight against the third prince."

Charlotte shook her head:

"We can fight, but if we destroy the North Port Bridge, won't our army be unable to move south?"

The old viscount was stunned, and then couldn't help saying:

"You... really plan to counterattack? But our army is too..."

"Wait, are the reinforcements you mentioned real? Not to comfort the nobles of North Port?!"

Charlotte laughed:

"When did I say the reinforcements were fake?"

"Then, what exactly are the reinforcements you are talking about..."

...

The speed of the coalition army was faster than the third prince had imagined.

Or to be more precise, compared with the impoverished Boulder and the forest-filled Violet, the road conditions in Castel, which was better developed, were obviously better, so that the army moved much faster.

Faced with the overwhelming advantage of the coalition army, the nobles of the North almost surrendered along the way. Except for some stubborn and overconfident "clowns", most of the regions could not stop the army from going north.

Only ten days had passed, and the mighty army arrived at the banks of the Dorne River.

The third prince Philip rode on the back of a dragon-scale horse.

Looking at the North Port Bridge across the Dorne River in the distance, and the North Port, which was isolated overseas and connected to the north bank by only a bridge, a trace of greed flashed in his eyes.

The third prince turned around, raised his hand and pointed at the prosperous city in the distance, then smiled to his left and right:

"From now on, this place will no longer be called Castel."

"Notify them, take a day off, and attack tomorrow!"

...

At the same time, the Roman Principality.

The Falling Star Kingdom is in the largest port on the continent, Port Mile.

The fast galleys loaded with stone-throwing cannons and soldiers are also ready to set sail at any time.

Count Yulster stood at the bow of the flagship, gently closed his eyes, and slowly opened them after a long time.

"The time is almost right, notify them, all ships fly the Castel flag, hoist the sails, and prepare to set sail."

He ordered the vampires beside him.