In the deepest part of the cold, dark Winter Palace, Caterina sat exhausted on the throne, gloom creeping up her brow and face like a shadow, and irrepressible sadness welled up from the depths of her heart.

Lan Dao and Erin, like her right-hand men, are now gone. Caterina felt tired and uneasy, she had never been so powerless as she was now, the legions, the dead and wounded, the hearts of the people were long gone. It was Rhodes, the once little-known frontier lord, who caused today's situation.

She should have killed him a long time ago, and she wouldn't be in this situation today. It's just that it's too late to regret it now. The army of the North was just outside the city, their camp as large as a city district, and the fire that bloomed at night was brighter than the city streets.

Katerina is tired, really tired. She glanced at the ministers in the throne hall, each of them bowed their heads and said that their emotions were almost the same, that is, sorrow.

She wanted to summon them, as she had done before, and make them come up with a plan to retreat. However, the situation was now that everyone was only looking for self-preservation, and Caterina knew that they were still standing here because the gates were still closed, and if they were opened, the ministers, who had cherished their lives, would have fled. Just like those soldiers who defend the city, during the day, exposed to the sun, no one dares to escape, but at night, they take advantage of the darkness of the night to abandon the city and flee. Every day, soldiers fled, and despite their own orders, deserters were found and summarily executed, but the number of soldiers continued to decrease.

Caterina spits on these weak people, their weakness is like a reptile, despicable. But what's the use? People who are desperate to flee for their lives, pursue glory, and value dignity are, after all, a minority. Not everyone can become a knight, and not everyone among knights values honor so much......

She took a breath of cold air, and her legs trembled slightly as she got up.

"Waste, a bunch of waste. ”

She whispered. Walked out of the crowd.

Pale sunlight poured into the hall through the skylight, and the crystal crown above the queen's head reflected the icy blue light. She regained her confidence, and the cold was overwhelming. Even if hundreds of thousands of green-skinned troops besieged the city, they couldn't do anything to her, not to mention that now it was only a mere 50,000 northern troops.

Step by step, Caterina climbed the city walls. The Krem guard bowed his head to make way for her. On the city wall, the soldiers of the shooting corps cast reverent glances at her. Although it was not known whether the gaze was genuine or false, at least they had not escaped. Still sticking to his post. The city had at least three years of food reserves, more than enough to supply the soldiers. Caterina had planned to hold on, but now it seems that humans are not trustworthy at all, and when danger comes, they are so weak that they don't even have the courage to take up arms.

Perhaps food should be distributed to civilians so that they can take up arms and fight for their queen? For a moment, such an "absurd" idea came to Caterina's mind. But then this idea was rejected by herself...... Civilians, regular soldiers, and soldiers are not trustworthy, let alone civilians, who distribute weapons and food to them, and if they don't manage to rebel in the next second, they will target themselves......

What's more, the three-year stock of food is calculated according to the number of soldiers, and the number of civilians is much larger than this, and it is distributed to civilians, and the food is used up in less than three months. Hum...... Caterina couldn't help but sneer at her childish thoughts.

On the city walls, Caterina stood straight like a true king, and outside the city walls, there was a dense black oppression of the northern legions. The cold wind blows, and thousands of flags flutter in the wind, and for Katarina, it is a provocation.

Today is the first and probably last meeting between her and Rhodes since the start of the war. Caterina at the head of the city was dressed in a brocade robe, and under the crystal crown was a grim face. 118

"Open the door and surrender, Katerina the Bloody, you're cornered. The legion has surrounded the city, and in order to prevent more innocent people from being wounded and bleeding, Kaesong surrenders. At the very least, you'll still have a little bit of a good name. The King of the North will forgive you for your sins. ”

On the plains outside the city, Rhodes' lieutenant, the Knight of Virgil, shouted to the queen on the tower on behalf of the king of the north.

"Traitor. Seeing that Her Majesty is still so rude! It should be you who should surrender! The city of Kislev has the highest wall on the continent, and it will withdraw before Her Majesty still has a trace of pity and does not want to rain a blizzard. Otherwise, it would not be a legion standing here, but a piece of bones. ”

The Queen's servant, the witch Marilyn, retorted loudly.

"I don't know who the king is, but let's not talk nonsense, the king of the north will let you meet someone. ”

Virgil replied haughtily. Behind him, a tall prisoner van was slowly pushed out. The man's shawl was scattered, and dirty hair covered his face and reached the place of his lips. Several thick silver chains bound his legs and feet, like shackles of judgment, firmly locking his thin legs and feet.

When the guards swept the prisoner's hair away, revealing her emaciated, impersonal face, Katerina's heart on the ramparts shook violently, but then she regained her composure. Randolph is her lover, the lover she once loved the most, but, in the struggle for power, she chooses power.

"Open the gates and you will be reunited. Get out of here, get out of Kislev. Never to come back. This is the last mercy of the King of the North. ”

Virgil shouted. The sound pierced the cold air and reached the Queen's ears. Katerina's lips twitched, her heart was frozen, and there was no one left to make her give up power.

Lan Dao under the city wall raised his head, looked at her weakly, looked at his queen, however, what he got was the queen's indifference.

Caterina turned her head and snapped her fingers at her maid. Two guards lifted a slender and thin girl out. It was a peasant girl, but because she looked like Dennis, she was disguised and sent to the queen. Caterina didn't know if the escaped Dennis had gone to the northern barracks to meet Rhodes, she just gambled that if Dennis hadn't escaped to the northern barracks, then the scene in front of her could stimulate Rod's sensitive nerves.

"The siege artillery is when your daughter's head hits the ground. ”

The witch Marilyn called out for the Queen.

After saying that, he pulled the girl's hair up hard, and the girl screamed. Even though they knew it wasn't Dennis, the cry still echoed in the hearts of every Northern warrior, making them angry.