The development of things was exactly the same as Xu Ning thought.

After the granary was burned, the orc troops had the idea of retreating.

However, before retreating, the orcs launched a tentative assault on Mount Herris.

It turned out that the knights on the mountain were still alive and well, and they had no chance to take advantage of it.

So, after three days, the orc troops decisively abandoned the knights on the mountain and chose to retreat.

Actually, this is quite normal.

Because, the orcs who invaded the northern provinces were not of one mind, but were united by several major orc tribes.

For them, the Third Order had been defeated anyway, and there was no threat.

Rather than fight him to the end, it would be better to plunder a few more towns in the northern provinces.

"Your Highness, the orc forces have retreated!" Balk rode his horse and galloped to inform Xu Ning of the good news.

Knowing this news, Xu Ning was not surprised, but nodded lightly.

He got up from the ground, patted the dust off his body, turned over his horse, and said, "Let's go, let's go see the knights of the Third Knights!" ”

Immediately, the group rode wild horses and came to the foot of Mount Herris.

At this time, the knights of the Third Knights saw the orcs retreating, and they also came down from the mountain.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of horses' hooves in the distance, which immediately alerted them.

However, as the sound of horses' hooves approached, everyone realized that it was a team of knights galloping towards them.

Seeing the knightly medals of this knight team, Grace breathed a sigh of relief, "Don't be nervous, everyone, these are the knights of the Sixth Knights!" ”

As the knights approached, Grace saw a blond-haired and blue-eyed boy approaching in the lead, "Who is the leader of you here?" ”

Hearing this, Grace stepped forward, bowed to Xu Ning with his head held high, and said loudly: "In Lower Grace, the deputy head of the Third Knights, I am in charge here!" ”

Xu Ning glanced at Grace, and also returned the salute, "Hello, Your Excellency Deputy Captain Grace, my name is Arthur, and I am now the Deputy Head of the Sixth Knights!" ”

"From now on, I'm going to take over your troops!"

Without waiting for Xu Ning to say more, Grace immediately objected, "Lord Arthur, this is not in accordance with the rules!" ”

Hearing this, Xu Ning couldn't help but snort coldly, "Your Excellency Grace, please figure out your current situation!" ”

"You have lost to the orcs, lost the northern fortresses, caused the entire northern provinces to fall, and left countless imperial civilians in dire straits, and you are now all sinners of the empire!"

"If you return to the imperial capital now, you will definitely be sent to the gallows by those ministers!"

Grace and the others were all ashamed and wanted to refute, but Xu Ning said the truth!

Seeing that everyone was silent, Xu Ning continued: "So, from now on, I will take over you and obey my command!" ”

"I will lead you to defeat the orcs, drive all the orcs out of the northern provinces, and make meritorious deeds, and the empire will be exempted from your crimes!"

Hearing Xu Ning's words, the knights of the Third Knights couldn't help but light up their eyes, "Your Excellency Arthur, will the Empire really depose us from the responsibility for losing the northern provinces?" ”

In the eager eyes of everyone, Xu Ning said loudly: "Yes, I swear as the first heir in line to the throne of the Bacchus Empire!" ”

Hearing this, everyone present couldn't help but be slightly stunned.

Unexpectedly, the young man in front of him was not only the deputy head of the Sixth Knights, but also His Royal Highness the Grand Prince of the Empire!

"Your Highness Arthur, I, Grace, am willing to follow you!" Knowing Xu Ning's identity, Grace had no objections.

The other surviving knights also joined Xu Ning's team.

Then, Xu Ning asked Grace about their team.

According to Grace's report, there were 1,635 survivors in their team.

Among them, there were 1,120 bronze knights, 463 silver knights, and 52 golden knights.

And the strongest is Grace, who has the strength of a half-step diamond knight.

And now there is one of the biggest problems, that is, Grace and the others have been besieged by the orc forces for a long time.

In order to survive, they had to kill war horses to serve as food.

Until now, more than two-thirds of these knights did not have horses, and they could not follow Xu Ning and the others on a long-distance run!

Now, the entire northern province is in turmoil, and it is not easy to get more than a thousand horses.

In the end, Xu Ning decided to lead only knights with strength above the silver level and distribute the horses to them.

As for the Bronze Knights, Xu Ning was going to take them to the nearest town on Mount Herris and settle them in the town.

If an orc army is coming, they can also help defend the city.

After passing through Mount Herris and his party, Xu Ning's troops added more than five hundred knights, and the number of troops reached six hundred.

Moreover, in Xu Ning's troops, these knights are all experienced elites, all silver knights.

With this team of six hundred knights, Xu Ning felt that even if he encountered an orc force of five thousand people, he would be able to defeat the other party!

Xu Ning led the troops to the nearest town to make some repairs, replenish food, and plan the future actions by the way!

In the hall, Xu Ning looked at the map in a daze, in fact, he was simulating the next action.

At that moment, Balk and Grace hurried in.

"Your Highness, there is the latest information that His Excellency Anton captured the northern fortress five days ago and blocked the gate of the northern border!"

"The orcs can't support the northern provinces, as long as we slowly eliminate the orcs in the northern provinces, we can successfully regain the lost territory!" Grace said excitedly.

Xu Ning looked very calm and said, "If that's the case, I estimate that the orcs in the northern province will unite and attack the northern fortress!" ”

"With the orcs outside the northern fortress and attacking back and forth, then there is a high probability that the northern fortress will be lost again, and the Sixth Knights will also be in danger!"

"Huh?" Balk and Greston exclaimed, and their joys immediately cooled.

Thinking about it carefully, I feel that what Xu Ning said is not unreasonable!

"So what should we do now? Is it just watching the border fortress fall? Grace asked.

"Of course not, we have to take the initiative to attack, and we can't let the orc troops in the northern provinces gather!" Xu Ning said, already having a plan in his heart.

"However, Your Highness, our army is only six hundred people, and the orc troops in the northern provinces are as many as thirty or forty thousand! How we are their opponents! Grace worried.

Xu Ning glanced at Grace helplessly, in this world, force is respected, and most battles are head-on, and they rarely use stratagems and strategies.

Like Grace asking such a naïve question, Xu Ning really didn't know how to answer.

In the end, he could only say helplessly: "When the time comes, everything will be arranged by me!" ”