The heart of the glorious empire - Warsawshire, the imperial capital.

Outside the tall and majestic southern city gate, the tragic siege battle has been going on for many days.

8,000 Taranto warriors, under the supervision and urging of the officers, launched a fierce assault on the city wall like crazy, regardless of casualties.

A fairly skilled warrior had just climbed to the top of the city, and before he could see his surroundings clearly, a bolt of crossbow bolts came in a lightning bolt.

His well-made armor did not provide any protection, and was shot through like papier-mâché. The crossbow bolt was not exhausted, and it actually came out of his back and flew far out of the city.

The warrior froze, looking down in disbelief and touching the wound on his chest. After staggering for a while, he finally couldn't hold it anymore, and planted a high city on his back.

On the other side, a dozen or so Taranto warriors were lucky, not only rushing to the head of the city, but also seizing a small position, forming a group and standing firm.

They were shouting loudly, fighting to the death, covering the steady stream of their companions who were crawling up from the city.

Suddenly, a large scorching fireball flew from not far away and smashed headlong into the middle of the team.

The scorching flames, along with a powerful explosion, engulfed these brave warriors in an instant. A dozen or so lives that were still alive a moment ago have now turned into charred black corpses of different shapes on the ground.

The soldiers of the imperial capital who defended the city didn't care so much, and took the opportunity to flock to fill the vacancy at the head of the city.

At the rear of the Taranto army below, a small group of magicians raised their staffs in unison and chanted incantations in their mouths. Several fireballs then rose into the air, returning color to the defenders at the head of the city.

But before the fireball could approach the city walls, an egg-shaped transparent light curtain flashed. Several fireballs exploded out of thin air, dazzling the blind, but failing to do the slightest damage to the defenders.

In the imperial capital, in the main hall of the imperial palace, King Beckenbauer is sitting on the dragon chair.

The ministers stood below, divided into two columns, left and right. Listening to the narration of the soldiers who kept coming to report the latest battle situation outside, his face was both nervous and anxious, but also full of excitement and anticipation.

King Beckenbauer's face was impassive, but the nervousness and excitement in his heart were no different from those of his ministers.

But comparatively speaking, he is much more confident than the ministers.

Because he had expected it.

It can even be said that this is what he and someone want, and they have been guiding the situation to this side, consciously or unconsciously.

Risks and benefits are proportional in most cases. In the province of Burgundy, His Majesty the King and his glorious empire have won a bet.

Now, it's the second game!

King Beckenbauer knew that the situation outside was already dangerous, and the soldiers of the Taranto rebels frequently broke through the killing obstacles of the front line and rushed to the top of the city. Although untenable, they were soon driven down again or killed at the head of the city. But either way, it's a red flag.

His Majesty could only sit on the dragon chair in the palace and listen to the battle report from the front, and could do nothing.

Commanding armies in battle and guarding the city, he is an amateur. Rather than commanding blindly, it is better to hide in the rear and let the generals play freely.

In fact, the generals who stayed in the imperial capital didn't have much ability, and how to fight the battle to defend the city was also the first time in their lives. But behind everyone, there is an absolute insider.

Anticipating the possibility of today's scenario, Anthony had already written down the rules and tricks of defending the city in detail and handed them over to the generals with the troops.

The general followed the map and paid attention to a few key points that Anthony reminded him of, but he also did the same.

The situation may be changeable in the field, but the defense of the city comes and goes only with those few tricks. Although the mechanical operation of the defending generals was less mechanical, it did not leave much flaw. After fighting for many days, it actually made Frankie, who is famous in the mainland, not take much advantage. The general's confidence was also greatly increased and he was very excited.

His Majesty knew very well that the garrison in the imperial capital was still weak after all, and under the fierce onslaught of the rebels regardless of casualties, they were both wounded and tired. If this continues, there will be three more days at most, and the imperial capital will fall.

But His Majesty was not worried, but relieved.

Just because Anthony said, let them hold on for ten days.

Ten days, just hold on for ten days. The rest is left to him.

And today, it's the 10th day!

"Spread my will, so that the generals should not be stingy with the arrow scrolls, although they should be free to use their hands and feet. Even if the treasury is emptied, as long as it is held today, it will all be a meritorious man! ”

……

Grand Duke Kochis pulled his beard and paced back and forth quickly.

For a few days, the Duke looked like he had aged a decade. The wrinkles on the face were many and deep, and the beard and hair became thinner. I don't know if it fell by itself because of too much sorrow, or if it was pulled down by the Duke's life.

"Alas~ It seems that this time the Duke is wrong."

Grand Duke Curcis finally stopped, let out a bitter sigh, his eyes full of remorse.

Similar to the previous days, Frankie is still sitting in the handsome position, his face calm as ever.

Without waiting for the other party to talk, the Duke took it himself.

"I really didn't expect that damn Anthony to really have a plan. Isn't he far away in Burgundy? Could it be that when he passed through the imperial capital, he had already expected that today's situation would not be possible? Is this a fairy or a monster? ”

The Duke was close to the bottom of his mouth, and he couldn't care about any manners and demeanor, so he directly burst into foul language.

What kind of virtue were the armies of the various provinces of the empire, Archduke Curchis knew very well. Even the imperial capital is no better.

Suddenly, the army was overwhelmed, and the remaining troops were in a hurry, the dispatch was unbalanced, and there were flaws everywhere. The prepared army of their own army, under the command of the famous general of Riga, saw the opportunity to break the city in one fell swoop.

Then the army commander drove straight in, took control of the key points in the imperial capital, and captured members of the royal family and important ministers of the empire. Then there was the defense of the fortified city, and the confrontation with Anthony, who arrived later.

This is the script in the heart of the Duke.

Why is the reality completely different from what he thinks?

The defenders on the city wall are in their own positions, all kinds of defensive weapons are sufficient and complete, the means of attack are clearly layered, and the mutual cooperation is also full of tacit understanding.

It's as if it's been practiced countless times in advance. If it wasn't prepared, the Grand Duke wouldn't believe it.

Frankie said indifferently: "Anticipating the enemy's opportunity and planning early is one of the basic qualities of a good commander. Despite his young age, Anthony's talent as a leader is beyond doubt, and there is no need to be too surprised that he can do this. ”

After a pause, he continued, "But to say that things are like gods, it is not necessarily. In my opinion, he should have anticipated several of the most likely changes in the situation and made tactical arrangements accordingly. Once one of these situations really appears, it will naturally seem to be at ease. To outsiders, it's like counting everything that will happen in the future. ”

General Riga's explanation was that he hoped that Grand Duke Kochis would not deify the enemy. But the irritability and apprehension in the heart of the Duke did not diminish in the slightest.

"I thought that as soon as the 1st Royal Cavalry Regiment went, there would be no more defense in the imperial capital. Unexpectedly, Beckenbauer actually brought the forbidden army to defend the city. ”

Grand Duke Curcis said hatefully, almost crushing his teeth.

Fifteen hundred forbidden troops, three hundred royal magicians, this is all the power against Taranto's nine thousand army.

However, as the heart of the empire, the imperial capital has been operated by the royal family for many years, and it has been built with high walls and thick walls, complete with crossbow arrows, magic cannons and other weapons to defend the city, and is guarded by a large magic array.

With such a strong city, as long as the defenders did not make mistakes themselves, it would be difficult for the Taranto rebels to defeat it in a hurry, no matter how well prepared they were.

For today's Taranto army, time is life, how can they afford to drag it?

"Why don't we go north?"

Even though the situation was critical, Grand Duke Kochis said it softly and hesitantly, completely unconfident.

A few days earlier, Frankie had proposed that the army be moved to a large open space north of the imperial capital and in the province of Hanover, where it would take advantage of the difficult terrain to fight guerrilla warfare, maneuver with the enemy, and delay time.

It's a pity that this proposal was vetoed by himself.

For one, he didn't believe that Anthony was so wicked that he could anticipate everything in every way. If you can easily occupy the imperial capital, there is naturally no need to go to the barren mountains and mountains to drink the northwest wind.

Another reason that can't be said is that it has to do with Frankie.

Although the two have been working together seamlessly, they each have their own thoughts and goals.

From his point of view, as long as Taranto's army always exists, it is a thorn in the enemy's heart, making it impossible for them to fully cope with the attack of the Riga Empire.

However, from the point of view of Grand Duke Kochis, there is not much difference between the danger of fighting guerrilla warfare and attacking the imperial capital, but in terms of merit, there is a world of difference. Let him choose, of course he would rather fight again in the imperial capital.

This matter is not right or wrong, but if he failed to successfully conquer the imperial capital, there is no doubt that Grand Duke Kochis made the wrong choice.

Frankie glanced up at him, his face still unwavering, but there was a hint of sympathy and pity in his eyes.

"It's useless, I'm leaving now, it's too late."

As if to verify the brightness of the famous general of Riga, as soon as he finished speaking, a soldier hurriedly walked in from outside the big tent.

The soldier knelt down on one knee and saluted, his voice trembling with a hint of fear.

"Report! The banner of Anthony, the great general of the Brilliant Empire, appeared in the east of our army, less than 60 miles away from here! ”