After leaving the barracks near the Tuyan Reservoir, Griffith rode along the road in the direction of Old Town. He arrived at the Old Town at dusk on the 16th and found that the city guards of the Old Town had been concentrated. There are a lot of supplies piled up around the port, and the scene is very busy.

All he received from General Valence was to rush to the headquarters of the city defense in the old town, leave the horses with the scouts there, and sail himself along the west side of the river to the two brigades of the 1st Army in Verona as observers, and to report the situation to the old town side.

On the surface, it's still a simple task.

However, Griffith, who had suffered a loss once, was careful along the way, for fear of encountering another trap. He soon discovered that the military had no intention of caring about him, and that the few officers were busy clearing the port unloading area in Old Town and moving supplies.

The echo crystal signal throughout the area was so noisy that it was difficult to hear even the time of the astrological tower.

He waited at the headquarters for more than an hour, and finally waited for an officer to hand him over.

"You can go to the arsenal and pick up some weapons, there's nothing good left, don't get your hopes up," said the busy officer, "I'm glad to see that you have a nice piece of chain mail, and our warehouse here is empty of running rats, nothing." ”

"Why?"

"All the supplies have been transferred to the Eastern Front," replied the officer, "and all the armor and weapons were shipped in preparation for the decisive battle at the beginning of last year, and only a little more weapons have been replenished so far." ”

Griffith nodded in understanding, "Is there any other order or war briefing?" What happened?"

"I don't know," the officer shook his head, "we suddenly received an order to assemble and arm all the city defense troops, and then mobilize the militia and tidy up the port and warehouses. ”

After the officer finished speaking, he stood up and pointed out the location of the arsenal to Griffith, and said as he pointed the way: "If you have time, go and help us look at the city defenses, and then report to the superiors, they have never fought, and the equipment is not complete, so it is useless at all, so why waste time mobilizing?"

Griffith arrives at the quartermaster office with a warrant and finds no clothes, boots, no armor, no equipment, not even a quartermaster.

A technical sergeant sat there blankly. He saw Griffith come in and greeted him warmly:

"Hello, I'm Senamon, an engineer technical sergeant of the 12th Legion, and I have just been transferred here. The quartermaster has gone to the port, let me take care of him here,

"As you can see, there's really nothing to manage. ”

Griffith wandered around the empty warehouse and found a short spear, and some daggers and axes, not even a saber. Technical Sergeant Senamon registered and spread his hands: "That's all, our equipment is also very tight, especially armor, not even boots are enough. It's up to you to save face from above for the legions that are going to send you to Verona.

"You'll have to pay us back when you leave the old town and return to Bayeran! ”

Griffith took the gear, dug it into his pocket, and discharged two shiny silvers onto the table, "Haven't you sent something new in the past two days?"

Senamon took away the silver coins on the table and said with a serious expression: "Let's take a look in two days, it is said that a batch of halberds and tiger guns will be sent to match the gun array of the city defense army." ”

The halberd is good. Griffith immediately took it to heart, and then asked:

"How's the Hell's going on with the Legion of Verona, has there been any news lately?"

Senamon pouted contemptuously: "Their legion is now an empty shelf, and the experienced veterans have been dismissed. The general lives in his own territory, and there are only two brigades of less than a thousand people where you are going. Commander Magrius was their commander. ”

"What are they going to do?"

"I don't know, I heard that it is going to be transferred to the north to attack a large group of rebels," Technical Sergeant Senamon thought for a moment, "Some people suspect that the local noble coalition army can't defeat the rebels, and some of them may defect in the past. The sergeant like you should also be sent here to understand some actual conditions. ”

"Anyone, who has found something suspicious?" asked Griffith, wary.

The technical sergeant touched his nose and said, "I guessed." Of course, the superiors must have doubts.

"Have you seen the local city guards and garrisons, the armies that are not part of our system, but are directly managed by local officers and nobles.

"They're almost like beggars. I saw that they did not have enough to eat, and often went to steal potatoes from the fields and chickens from the knight's house, and then they were hung up and whipped.

"How can such an army be relied upon?"

......

Griffith sailed up the river that night and boarded the wagon that delivered supplies to Magrius' army.

There was a mess along the way, and many refugees-like people fled from afar. They told them that a rebel army was coming from the north, but no one could tell what was happening.

At noon on March 19, Griffith finally arrived at the barracks of the Verona Legion Brigade.

As soon as he arrived, he heard the news of Sonya's attack.

What is even more striking is that the camping group can enter a safer area by crossing the not wide Bet River, but they stay there motionless for the night, and in the early morning of the 18th, the horse thieves under the banner of the rebels have cut off the road between the Baron's castle and the ferry, besieging them, and they can't walk if they want to.

Griffith couldn't understand the situation at first, and thought it was a fabricated rumor. According to his common sense, Sonia and the others were not numerous, they were lightly armed, and they were protected by powerful transcendents, so there was no doubt that they should break out of the encirclement and join the reinforcements as soon as possible.

This is ridiculous!

There are often some strange examples in military history, where an army that can clearly jump out of the encirclement inexplicably stops at the last moment of escape, sits in a city of sorrow, and sings the song of destruction in unison.

Griffith laughed at the examples at Holmonwood, thinking to himself that guy was stupid.

I didn't expect this kind of thing to happen to me.

Griffith's poor communications left Griffith unprepared for the siege.

He was worried. From the 18th to the present, Sonia and the others have been surrounded all day, and they don't know if they have been besieged or injured......

Griffith immediately came to the camp of Magrius:

"When will the Commander lead the attack?"

"Tomorrow morning. The officer on duty replied to him cheerfully.

Sonya's situation is dangerous, and it's good to put pressure on the rebels as soon as possible. Griffith was happy in his heart, and then asked, "Did the scouts scout the nearby terrain?"

"Where is the time," said the quartermaster, shrugging his shoulders, "Baron Bate's castle is on the plain, and there are no ambushes nearby. Do you want a map here, give you a copy. ”

This map is a military version, and it is quite finely done. According to the map, the two legions led by Magrius marched quickly and occupied the opposite bank of the river southeast of Bate Manor, and needed to cross the Willow River to set foot on the opposite bank. It was not the rainy season, the river was not deep, and with the strength of the legion's infantry, even wading through the water and attacking on foot could break through the defenses of the rebels on the opposite bank.

The rebels arced to cut off the area east of Bate's Manor. They had at least three camps on the high ground from the north bank of the Willow River to the west bank of the Bet River, and were besieging several nearby noble domains.

On the Verona side, in addition to the Magrius brigade, an engineering unit was arriving from the coast, armed with light trebuchets and some ballistas, ready to storm the rebel lines. This reinforcement from the east, covered by some light infantry and local militia, walked slowly.

Griffith was not a combatant in this force and could act according to his habits.

Since leaving the Eastern Battlefield, Griffith has experienced a series of intrigues, ambushes, and traps. Although he still maintained the instinct and habit of obeying orders, he increasingly felt that there were limits to being a good obedient soldier. He began to realize that many of the things he took for granted were contradictory and absurd, and that it was necessary to make creative and independent judgments based on his own experience and knowledge.

He did not intend to rest in the barracks until tomorrow morning, but planned to hurry up and investigate the geography and the rebel situation in the vicinity.

At this time, it was just in time for the meal. The infantry of the brigade lined up in long lines, quietly waiting for their meals.

Although the supply of the army improved a lot after the end of the war, black bread, which was easy to keep while on the march, was still a staple food for everyone. The side dish is a stew of potatoes, tomatoes, and turnips, which looks like it has just been pulled out of the ground. There was no meat in the soup, so the cooks could only pour a lot of lard into it.

Griffith waited in line for five minutes, and when it was his turn, he opened the iron lunch box he had with him and filled it with soup, and then took two large pieces of hard bread and walked to the commander who was eating.

The commanders and officers gathered around a table at the headquarters, munching on their bread. When Griffith walked in, one of the lieutenants beside the commander barely raised his head: "What's the matter, Captain II?"

"Sir," Griffith saluted the officer solemnly, "I have noticed that the upper reaches of the Bate River are a field of hills and woodlands, not far from us. I feared that the rebel forces were hidden there, and that flash floods might form after the snow melted in the spring, so I suggested that the area be reconnoitred. ”

The officers who were eating stopped and stared at him with inexplicable eyes.

"What, military democracy, the Eastern Legion," a squadron leader shrugged his shoulders and turned to Griffith, "Second Squad Leader, no matter what the rules of your East are, with us, the commander decides, and the soldiers obey, understand?"

"Then let's go and see~" The commander put down his spoon, "I've decided, it's up to you to scout that area, and the results of the scouting must be sent to me tomorrow morning." ”

The officers sitting around the table immediately smiled with satisfaction.

Griffith looked at the officers in the tent and said slowly, "Can you give me some men and horses?"

"Do you think I have extra men and horses here?" asked the Commander, "What's the problem?"

"No more. Lost company, Commander, Chiefs," Griffith saluted again with a calm expression, and turned to exit the tent.

Although Commander Magrius didn't give himself a good face, there was nothing surprising about it. Griffith was still only a minor non-commissioned officer, and a vassal of the great nobles from the center, and it would be strange if the local legions of Verona were polite to him.

It was still a few hours before dark, so Griffith could reach the foot of the mountain to the north before sunset, and complete the pre-battle reconnaissance of the entire battlefield.

He moved along the east bank of the Bate River along the way, and had a preliminary understanding of the situation in Bate Manor and the general situation of the nearby bandits, and had an intuitive understanding of the plain that was about to become a battlefield.

If more rebels had not been hidden in the mountains and forests, there would have been no suspense in tomorrow's battle. He could rest at the foot of the mountain for a while, return to the camp before dawn, and work together to relieve Sonia and the others.