Libera's enthusiasm for the operation was limited to the extent that the plan was completed beautifully. Although the general's proposal was a good solution to the contradiction between the king's orders and the actual execution, Libera was not interested, because attacking an undefended city was really no honor for a general.

On the other hand, Vultures and Bius have shown considerable enthusiasm and execution. They carefully planned the ratio of troops for the raid, the route of the march, the mode of attack, and the subsequent arrangements. Even in order to allow the Cretan archers and Frankish heavy infantry to exert sufficient power, they deliberately allowed the soldiers to rest on the spot for three days before reaching the Abdus Line, in order to move on to Durban as soon as the troops were in position. The two Yaqui generals were well aware that the intelligence work of the Dils thief army was quite powerful, and the inexplicable reinforcement would definitely arouse the vigilance of the other party, so they deliberately delayed the arrival of this force, otherwise when this army was resting, the thief army might have been alerted by the news. All this was done in order to achieve the suddenness of the raid, and in fact they did it perfectly, and they began their operations in the early morning of the same day that the Cretan archers and Frankish hoplites arrived, and it took only five days for the 40,000 Yaki soldiers to arrive less than half a day's journey from Durbans.

Libera was satisfied that his troops were able to do this, according to his calculations, once the raid on Durbans began, it would take at least fifteen days from the time the news reached the ears of the thieves to the time when the thieves organized reinforcements. If the opposing army's army is to be large enough to retake Durbans, it will take more time. During this time, there was enough time for the Cretan archers and Frank hoplites to get to Dbans and complete a break, while their own troops used this time to strengthen the city defenses of Durbans as much as possible. After that, Libera's plan was to lead the Yaki army to attack under the pretext of an excuse. In fact, it is to retreat to the Abdus Line, let these mercenaries have a good understanding of the power of the thief army, and it is better to let them lose both. As far as Libera knew, the Frank hoplites, despite their excellent defensive capabilities, were not suitable for fighting in the hot subunits, and would certainly not be an opponent for the thieves for a long time. Durbans still can't hold on, so instead of this, it's better to use these mercenaries who will definitely be lost to consume the strength of the thief army, so as to buy more time for Yaki to recover, anyway, what the king wants is just the news of the recovery of Durbans, and the rest of Libera doesn't care. But he didn't tell the Vulture and Bius about it.

The only thing that worries Libera is the movement of the bandit garrison stationed on the border. They were the ones most likely to sabotage the operation, and if the other side happened to be on the border with cavalry troops, then it was entirely possible that they would rush to the aid of Durbans. Even if you don't sabotage your plan, you may slow down your actions, and then the chances of the Yaki Army will be reduced. Fortunately, according to the intelligence, the thief army has basically not changed recently, but has organized a group of people to help them reclaim the farmland near Durbans.

It seems that the thieves want to change the dilemma of Durbans's lack of food. Libera judged. Since the last battle, Vulture did not hesitate to plunder all the food stocks in Durbans, and almost starved the inhabitants of the city to death, so the thieves tried their best to transport food to barely save the people of Durbans. Although this practice was despised by the generals, it also won the hearts and minds of the thieves in Durbans. However, Libera admits that Vulture's actions have dampened the thieves' motivation to continue northward. Even though the harvest has now been completed, there is still not much food in the storehouses in Durbans. It seems that the thieves decided to let Durbans live a self-reliant life before they would help them reclaim the land.

Unfortunately, Durbans has historically been barren land, and this is not something that can be changed by simple reclamation. Thinking that the efforts of the thieves were in vain after all, Libera couldn't help but sympathize with their misfortune.

"Lord Libera, everything is ready. Do you want to act now? "Bius rode his horse and asked for instructions.

Libera looked at the sky, shook her head, and said, "It's too early, if you start acting now, you'll be in Durbans before dark." We should arrive in Durbans after dark, preferably when people are starting to go to bed. It's better to take this opportunity to give everyone a break. Grab a bite to eat, and you may not be able to eat for a whole day later. ”

"Yes, my lord, I will arrange it immediately." The old general smiled approvingly, and then turned his horse away.

A short rest is invaluable for this long-distance army. The soldiers took a nap on the spot after a full meal. Libera saw that the time was about the same, and then announced the start of the operation.

Libera did not let all 40,000 people arrive at the first time, but personally led 5,000 elites to the front, followed by a large group of men led by Pius and Vultures. Night was gradually enveloping the land, and the light of Durbans was already clearly visible. Libera was about to urge his troops to speed up their movements when the sentry in front hurried back, his face full of horror and panic.

"My lord! Durbans, Durbans"

"Calm down and be clear!" Libera said angrily.

"Yes. My lord, several forts have appeared around Durbans! ”

"What?!" Libera wondered if she had misheard.

According to the sentinel's description, Libera learned that four stone forts had appeared around the northern part of Durbans, and although they were not large, they were cleverly arranged, each of which could cover each other, and there were apparently garrisons inside.

Libera couldn't believe it all. Just a few days ago, there were no such forts on the ground, let alone garrisons.

Libera, of course, could not imagine that the so-called people who were cultivating the wasteland around Durbans were actually the Dils army, and instead of cultivating the land, they were digging up stone as a reserve for building materials. Under Wei Song's command, they had already transported the stones to the intended location, and after receiving the news that the Yaji reinforcements were about to arrive, Wei Song judged that the Yaji army was about to start moving, so he summoned more Diers border garrisons according to the plan, and built four forts in five days according to the production requirements set by Wei Song. Although these forts were far from being able to hold on, and in some places were not yet fully completed, they were far more psychological than practical, and their presence with the garrison meant that Libera's raid plan had failed before it had even begun.

At the moment, Libera has only two options, either to withdraw immediately, or to storm these four fortresses and open the way for an attack on Durbans.

Libera gritted his teeth and ordered the whole army to assault and capture one of the fortresses as quickly as possible, opening the way to attack Durbans.

Libera's judgment could not be regarded as wrong, because in fact, as he thought, the size of the Dils army was not so huge, and the fortress was not strong enough, and it may not be able to hold it under a strong attack, as long as one of them is broken, it can attack Durbans, and once Debans falls, these fortresses will be worthless.

However, Libera was still a bad move, because the Cretan archers and Frankish heavy infantry who were at the back had already been attacked by the cavalry led by Müller. (To be continued.) )