"Have you ever wanted to be the king of Hitarus?"

Minox remembered in the saddle the whispers of the Reynolds Black Swan to him at the ball, and he was not sure what the other party really meant by this temptation. At that time, www.biquge.info the Duke could only reply in a mocking tone that the king was a very hard and troublesome job, and he would reluctantly take it on unless his brothers did not want to do it.

"Your Highness, we will soon cross the border." The squire reminded him.

"I see, we're going to spend the night in Gluhitana tonight."

April 11 in the continental Gregorian calendar, Hitaros, Corinth.

"The front-line post has lost contact with us all?!" General Ginny Angus, who was in charge of all Corinth's defenses, was furious at his officers.

"None of the outposts came to report during the scheduled contact time." This is what the subordinates can only explain.

"Herald, this is your part of responsibility, you have to find a way to deal with this situation."

"This ......," the staff members looked at each other helplessly.

"Let's all go down and run errands!" The general waved his hand at them in annoyance.

When all the staff members retreated, the general muttered: "A group of rice buckets that rely on nepotism." He also seems to have forgotten how he got such a position in the first place. He was not originally a soldier, but an ordinary bureaucrat in charge of taxation and finance. But if you continue to work in the middle of the bureaucracy in Haiswa, you will probably never be able to absorb the wealth you have today. In fact, since the Duke of Minox had been deprived of military affairs on the northern frontier by the king in recent years, he, who was in the position of deputy, took advantage of the opportunity to gain a lot of benefits. The general is 47 years old, not too tall and swelled by fat, and his small eyes will inadvertently reveal a greedy fierce light. If someone makes him feel that it is in his way, he must get rid of it as soon as possible. But he will never do it in person, but through many indirect small means to achieve his goal.

Most of the large amount of money that Canites allocated to the army, except for the meagre supplies for the mercenaries, fell into the pockets of the high-ranking officers of Hitarus, led by Genie Angus. However, the fat-headed, big-eared general was not satisfied, and he continued to complain that he had gained too little, but also hoped that one day he would be able to achieve higher status and wealth.

Of course, this general is not useless, he is still quite capable in management and operation. But when faced with professional military problems, he appears dull and incompetent. At this moment, although he was somewhat aware of some potential dangers, he hoped in his heart that this was just a small accident. In normal times, he rarely interferes in professional military affairs, and is usually handled by his subordinates, but now it is difficult for him to make a decision.

The hidden danger of the organizational system of the entire Corinthithia Army is obvious, and the young officers with a practical spirit do not receive strong support; And the experienced veterans are either disheartened or in the same league as the upper echelons; The non-commissioned officers at the bottom lacked both guidance and respect; The soldiers were not at all prepared to face a strong enemy. Such a situation can be said to be dangerous, but it is masked by the so-called orderliness on the surface.

On the other hand, the Lenosk army was completely prepared. This time the commander of the vanguard was Duke Alexander Ivanovich Meshkin, and this was the first time that the young duke had played as a commander-in-chief. Although he already has a lot of actual combat experience, it is obviously a rather severe test for him to command an army of up to 35,000 people in his current hands.

"We are the vanguard of pioneers." General Pelce Gran said to his men.

He was not surprised by this, and if he was replaced by a local general in Reynosk, he would probably complain that Duke Meshkin had arranged for him to die. But Pelce did not mind this, and the Tsar's trust in him was built from such difficult tasks. He and his men were desperately in need of merit, and Duke Meshkin sent him such an opportunity. Although the Duke was somewhat partial to his own people, he did not let this blind him to his strategic vision.

"But we're not going to do it brutely, don't think that the Pharansis don't use their brains to fight." Pelce called Dick into his tent.

That night, a detachment of troops who had retreated from the front post came to the city of Corinth. Many of them were familiar companions of the mercenaries stationed here, and they naturally reported the news. General Ginny Angus needed to know what was going on on the border, so he allowed them to enter the city. However, out of an abundance of caution, the team was temporarily disarmed and imprisoned.

In the early morning of 12 April, Corinthian scouts spotted a Reynosk army approaching Corinth. According to the traditional organization of the Renosque Army, as long as you count how many Holuvig they have, you can roughly figure out how many of them there are. And each Khruvig will have a separate swallowtail flag.

At morning tea, General Ginny Angus received a shocking number - 200 Holuvig. This means that at least 80,000 Reynolds troops have surrounded the fortress. And his men are only more than 20,000 men.

There are only two things the Hitaros can do, one is to urgently call for help from Haiswa; The second is to mobilize all the forces that can be mobilized to organize the defense. As a result, the mercenary army, which had to be subject to further review, was rearmed and put into the front line of combat.

At noon on April 12, the first wave of the offensive was launched by the Reynosk Army.

More than a dozen large stone throwers were erected in the vast steppe, and with their first salvo, the Renoskes charged the Corinthian fortress. Under the cover of the hoplites with tower shields, the cattle covered chariots advanced violently towards the target.

The Hitaros only found themselves slack in their armament at this time, and they had absolutely no weapons to suppress the opponent's catapults. Not only were the trebuchets in the city shorter, but they were also unusable due to lack of funds to maintain, and they didn't even have enough stones to supply the trebuchets. The staff looked at General Ginny Angus's twitching facial muscles at the news, but they couldn't squeak - they had also gotten a lot of money out of military funds.

The Renosk army made a bizarre move in choosing a point of attack, and after advancing some distance, they began to turn to the west, bypassing the defenses to the north of the fortress. Geneangus was not aware of the impact of the change on his side, and he did not even give instructions to send additional troops to the west. By the time the Reynolds infantry jumped out of the charging cart and began to set up the siege ladder, he had no time to think about it.

The Hitaros placed on the western wall of the fortress were basically local volunteers, and these people lacked combat experience. Although the volunteers' will to fight is very strong, their opponents have much more experience than them. And the side did not adjust its tactics in time to give them more support, so the battle soon fell into a stalemate.

"Perhaps, we will be able to capture Corinth this way." Duke Meshkin said, looking at the battle on the city wall.

"You're right, but wouldn't it be better to win at a smaller cost?" Peer replied from the side.

"For such a foolish general, such a plan is enough." The young duke expressed no interest in the rest of the battle and handed over command of the front to Pelce.

Just as the Renoskes were trying to gain a foothold on the city walls, some of the Hitaros troops on the northern wall left their defense area and came in to the west. They appeared just in time, and just as the Renosks were about to get a little respite, they broke through the defenses that the Renoskes had not yet built on the walls. The Renoskes were instantly disintegrated, they shouted and retreated, and many were forced to retreat to the edge of the city wall and fall.

"Collect the troops, retreat!" Seeing that his side was so ugly, Pelce had to give such an order.

This was the end of the Renoske's offensive for the day, which made Ginny Angus quite happy, and he knew that all he could do was to delay time, and only by waiting for the army of Prince Minox or Prince Nathaniels to come to the aid of the army could it be possible to repel the Renosk army. Either way, it was a small win today. At this moment, Geneangras knew that this was the time to reward him and let the soldiers die for him. Therefore, he quickly ordered to personally reward the sergeants who reinforced the western defense line today.

"Your heroic and decisive actions today have saved the day, and we are in desperate need of your example. As the Supreme Commander of this fortress, I would like to salute you. Ginny Angus said with a smile on his face to the mercenaries waiting for the reward.

"Your Excellency the General is really an award, and he and his brothers have just done their duty."

"You're so modest, I haven't asked for your name yet."

"DiCriss de Alfonso." The mercenary officer replied word for word, "I hope you remember it below." ”

Ginny Angus was slightly stunned by this, because it was clearly the name of an Iberian aristocracy. If it was a normal time, he would have immediately shouted at the other party for daring to tease him, but at this moment, unlike in the past, he didn't have the heart to deal with such a personal matter with a lowly mercenary.

"Ah, ah, I made a note, if we can repel the enemy this time, how about I promote you to centurion?"

"If it's really thanks to you, I believe that I will be able to borrow your strength in the next place and have a bright future." Dick said to the general with a smile. The two looked at each other and laughed. Dick knew exactly what was going on in his heart, but I'm afraid Ginny Angus didn't know what Dick was thinking.

When Dick left the stronghold commander's office and answered the barracks, the mercenaries gathered around.

"What kind of reward do you get?" This is what everyone is most concerned about.

"An empty promise, plus such a bag of things." Dick pulled out a money bag.

"Silver?" The mercenaries speculated.

"Perhaps." Dick smiled, untied the string of the money bag, and poured out the contents.

"Cut, is this a call for Hanako?" Everyone felt a little upset, and Dick poured out a pile of rusty copper.

"We're working hard for them, and this group of Hitaros is actually using this kind of goods to send us away!" Someone shouted like this.

"Keep your voice quiet, if you let the gendarmes hear you, you'll get in trouble again."

"Those sissies will be just fake tigers, and they will definitely be a group of soft eggs when they really go to the battlefield."

"Forget it, forget it, be quiet."

Dick didn't say anything, just threw down the coppers and prepared to get up and leave. The mercenaries looked at him, and suddenly they all fell silent, and when Dick was about to walk to the door, finally someone couldn't help but say, "Dick, don't you have anything to say?" ”

"What can I say?" Dick turned, "We're just mercenaries. ”

"Even mercenaries have the right to get their fair share."

"Oh, that's great, but what if your employer defaults? Let's not forget that it's not ordinary people who hire us, it's the country of Hitarus. ”

"We can change employers, and Lao Tzu won't work for them."

"Do you think the Hitaros are going to let you just slap your ass and walk away at this time?"

"Then you say you should do it?"

"Since you want to change employers, let's just change them in the war." Dick laughed.

The mercenaries gasped, and it was easy for them to leave their employers behind and run away when the battle was unfavorable, as there were few after-effects. However, if there is a sudden defection on the battlefield, it is a different concept. The betrayed patron will certainly not give up, and the side that accepts the defection may sacrifice them if necessary.

"This is just a joke, don't take it seriously, but please remember that there are only two principles in what we do: first, cherish your own life; Second, don't get along with anyone and money. Okay, I still have night shifts to do, so I'll take my leave. Dick waved at them.

Everyone looked at his back as he left leisurely with suspicion.

It was a good day with a bright moon in the sky, and the moonlight sprinkled the entire grassland. To be honest, this is certainly not a good weather for launching a night attack, so the Hitaros side has not sent more troops on night duty because of the current enemy. General Ginny Angus wanted his men to recuperate for what might be an even more ferocious enemy offensive tomorrow.

And his opponent was clearly not acting as he expected. Duke Meshkin and his army were already in armor, waiting in silence behind a high slope a mile away from the fortress of Corinth. The Renoskes were given the order to proceed directly to Corinth after receiving the signal of fire from the dragon knights.

"Isn't there any news from General Gran and his men?" The Duke asked.

When the staff replied that he was not yet, the duke got off his horse and said that he would go up the slope to have a look. With a few guards, he walked up the high slope. On the night of April, there is still a cold breeze in the evening breeze, which brings the smell of grass on the vast grassland into people's noses, which is a little itchy. Duke Meshkin looked at the moonlit fortress of Corinth in the distance, but he remembered someone else. Your Highness Princess, watch me give you all of Hitarus as a gift.

At this moment, he saw the fire signal from the dragon knight in the sky, and the duke immediately pulled himself out of his thoughts.

"Attack with all your troops, target Corinth!" He shouted so loudly.

A few seconds later, the entire 30,000 Reynolds Army was launched. The Winged Husa galloped through the air currents they had brought up, blowing the duke's robes with a hunting sound.

Meanwhile, Pelce had already made a rendezvous with Dick. The Dick team, lurking in the city, quickly cleared out the guards near the city gate, and completely opened the north gate. It took only a few minutes for Pelce's troops to storm the city. And at this time, the other patrols of Hitaros found out about this situation and sounded the alarm.

"We need support for about 10 minutes." Pelce said to Dick.

"I'll leave it to us."

Ginny Angus had just woken up from his sleep when he heard such a change. Although he does not know the exact situation, it is assumed that the chances of an enemy army flying over the walls to open the gates are very low. The Hitaros wanted to mobilize all their forces to retake the gates at once, so the gendarmes broke into the mercenary barracks very rudely, dragged them off their beds, beat and cursed them.

In the old days, the mercenaries would at most complain a few words, look at each other angrily, and go out to fight slowly. However, the situation was not right today, and some of Dick's words spread among the mercenaries during the day like a virulent contagion. The mercenaries had a hunch that something special might happen tonight, so they hardened. The gendarmes were slow to handle the contradictions with their usual attitude, and the result was predictable, and the two sides turned from a quarrel into a brawl.

"The mercenaries in Dongcheng have mutinied." Such news is undoubtedly worse for Genenian Angus.

"How so, how so!" Ginny Angus clutched his head and yelled, "Ah, I see, those mercenary bunnies were all bought by the Renoskes, right. Even the gates were opened by them, and I understood the conspiracy thoroughly. Kill them all for me, kill all those white-eyed wolves! ”

"General, what do you mean......" someone in the staff asked.

"Of course, those rebels in the city, all of them are killed!"

This order was undoubtedly disastrous for the Hitarus, and the mercenaries were not non-violent non-resistants, and when they found out that they were beginning to use their swords against them, they immediately responded with-for-tat. In this way, the Hitaros are being caught between the inside and the outside. What's more, they can't take back control of the north gate at all.

About a quarter of an hour later, the first group of Wing Husa stormed the gates of Corinth, brandishing their sabers and slashing wildly; Raise the horse's hooves and trample wantonly. In this way, the battle suspense is over. Peer ordered his men to counterattack from the gates and attack directly on the acropolis.

"I still have some things to do to recruit more subordinates for Lord Gran." Dick offered to give him some men.

"The rest of the mercenaries in the city?" "Well, the more of us the better, so go ahead." And those old acquaintances of yours said that if they are willing to join our army, they can also get their share of the spoils of our army according to merit. ”

"I see, the General's generosity will be accepted."

By the time Duke Meshkin entered the gates, the Hitaros had only a few towers on the acropolis. The towers were very cleverly designed, with narrow passages that allowed only two warriors to advance side by side, giving the defenders a condescending advantage. So the guards of Ginian Angus still stubbornly resisted wave after wave of attacks by the Reynoskes. These soldiers were taken care of by Ginny Angus on weekdays, almost as if they were his personal soldiers, so they were willing to work for them. What's more, Ginny Angus has realized that something is wrong and rewards him with the wealth he has hoarded.

"Haven't you caught the enemy's commander yet?" Duke Meshkin asked at the temporary command post at the tower.

"The topography of the tower is too favorable for the defenders." One of the staff members replied.

"That's not the reason we should be looking for." The Duke said coldly.

"General Gran has already taken the men up himself, he said......"

"Oh, what does that Farenci ask for?" The Duke laughed.

"He said that he hoped that His Excellency the Duke would agree to assign all the mercenaries who surrendered in the city to his command."

"Yes," the Duke agreed at once, "besides, I heard that the lord of this fortress had a lot of money, and told Gran that if he brought the other man's head, he could take half of the money for military expenses." ”

"Isn't that too generous for the Pharisens?"

"If you had settled the fight five minutes ago, he wouldn't have been able to get it." The duke looked at the other generals and said. The Renoskes could only bow their heads in shame and remain silent.

Beneath the main tower of the Acropolis, Pelce was testing his equipment.

"Okay, the tower staircase can only run two people in parallel, I need one person to be my helper."

"Let me come, Master Grand."

"Alfonso, okay, you can kill it with me."

Pierce and Dick rushed up to the tower side by side, and the Hitaros came up in pairs. Pelce and Dick made a division of labor, with Pelce attacking and Dick defending. In this way, the person who engages in a single action is more focused. The two of them relied on such tactics and their own excellent skills to fight to the highest level step by step. The last remaining Hitaros looked at the two enemies covered in blood and the corpses of their colleagues strewn on the stairs, and their despair grew.

Geneangus looked nervously at the door in front of him, he was also wearing armor and holding a short sword, but he was not capable of fighting. Sometimes he feared that a vicious enemy would break open the door and rush in, and sometimes he fantasized that his own soldiers would gently open the door and tell him that the enemy had been repulsed. The sound of blades clash and the screams of people outside the door hit his fragile nerves, making him sweat coldly on this cold night.

Finally, the door creaked open, and a warrior with a steel shield entered. By the bright light of the fire, Genie Angus recognized the bloodied man in front of him.

"Are you...... You're the mercenary during the day!? ”

"Decis de Alfonso, at your service." Dick owed himself according to the etiquette of the Iberian nobility.

"Are you here to get me out? If you will save my life, I will divide your property into a tenth of it. ”

"General, you're still the same stingy at this time." Dick laughed, "I said I wanted you to remember my name, and I said I would be willing to serve you, and this service is to send you on your last journey." ”

"Don't, don't, don't, I can give you all the money, and then I'll show your majesty when I go back, and promote you to be a commander, oh no, general. What do you think? ”

"Sounds good."

"Hehe, yes, don't look at me at the border, I can still speak in front of the king." Geneangus smiled dryly and stiffly.

"It's a pity that I don't believe you, farewell, dear General."

When Genie Angus heard this, he raised his dagger and stabbed Dick. Dick threw his shield to the side, clasped his hands on the wrists of the other man's sword, and twisted it so hard that he heard only the sound of a click. Geneangus's wrist was broken, and he let out a piercing scream. Dick didn't let the noise continue, he raised his dagger and stabbed him hard into the heart. Ginny Angus's fat body trembled a few times, a stream of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, and he fell.

On 13 April, the Reynos army captured Corinth, the gateway north of Citalos