Section 87: Self-confidence

The city is generally believed to have been built by Garunas, a wilderness sage a hundred years ago, and its layout is quite ingenious. The royal palace in the center of the city has been renovated several times, but the whole of it has retained the concept of Garunas. Not only was the palace exquisite, but it also had a certain defensive capability militarily. Theoretically, since it is difficult to use heavy siege weapons in the city, the palace only needs to rely on a small number of internal forces to block the attack of an overwhelmingly superior enemy.

However, no matter how strong the fortress is, it cannot stop the destruction of the moles. The effect is even more pronounced when this "mole" refers not to one or two people, but to nearly half of the defenders.

Essien stood in the office of the Grand Master of the Court. He was heavily armed, with Phalysis and twenty other soldiers by his side, while Skadera stood across from him alone, bare-handed and wearing only one uniform. At the feet of Essien, the bodies of three Praetorian Guard soldiers lay down. In this situation, even a stranger who accidentally broke into this scene can quickly guess what happened.

"Lord Skadra. Essien smiled at his former boss in front of him. Skadera was fully qualified as the head of the court, but he had no military experience, so he did not command properly in this situation, and did not gather enough men in the first place, so that Esin could easily occupy the palace gates. Of course, even if Skadera was well directed, things wouldn't drag on for a moment or three at most, and the final outcome would still not be any different. "I'm sorry, but I can't help it. ”

"You ......" Skadera looked at the enemy in front of him, calmer than Esin had expected. "Do you know what you're doing?"

Zhilu said. Essien replied. Whether Skadera is calm or excited, he is an old man with no fighting power. "Alright, you guys, take a good look at our Lord Skadra. Don't let him die, there's a lot of stuff he needs to hand over. We're going to have a lot of work to do when he's dead. You guys come with me...... Go over there and tell them that there will be no mercy for anyone who rebels except the Queen!"

The battle was far from over, and the metal clashes, shouts, and painful howls of the wounded were still in the distance. Throughout the palace, there were sporadic battles taking place everywhere. From time to time, fierce battles broke out between the loyal Praetorian Guard soldiers and the rebels, and the dead were scattered.

Ashrufat led the little girl and ran quickly towards the gate. He had already seen more than one dead man on the road, and had seen more than one engagement. Some of the dead and wounded were unarmed servants, while others were armed Janissary soldiers. This is already beyond the scope of the "riot", but a real coup d'état. And, if he's not mistaken, it's irreparable. He had long known that although he was the chief of the palace and was theoretically in charge of the internal management of the palace, he was in fact constrained by various constraints (which is understandable), and had to make compromises on many personnel arrangements.

In today's situation, nine times out of ten, it is a foreshadowing arranged by others. Even Ashrufat admits that there is no better weapon for attacking a fortified stronghold than a traitor.

The palace was very large, and in addition to the three hundred Praetorian Guards, there were hundreds of male servants and maids about the same as the two combined, and the total number could be in the thousands. It is precisely because of this number of people that there is a serious shortage of premises in the palace. However, as anyone knows, the vast majority of the palace is gardens, pastures and pavilions, and the number of real dwellings is nothing compared to the size of the palace. Therefore, the number of rebels attacking the palace at this moment will theoretically not be less than a thousand. But when they went deep into the strange palace, they had to disperse. Coupled with the cover of the night, it was easier for Ashrufat to avoid the rebels and pass through the gaps.

Ashrufat was well aware that for the rebels, the value of the palace itself was limited, and it was the little queen by his side who was truly valuable.

The little girl had a rare composure at this time—to be honest, it was probably due to the fact that she had seen a lot of dangerous scenes with Ashrufat, which had honed her guts—and she had followed Ashrufat quickly on the road, without making any extra sounds.

Ahead is not far from the palace gate. There are three gates in the palace, and normally only one is opened. It is not clear exactly how the rebels stormed the palace, but it is highly likely that the other two doors were opened. If Skadera were able to organize resistance here, they should be able to take advantage of the favorable terrain to defend the last gate.

Ashrufat stopped.

"What's the matter, Ashrufat?" the little girl stopped after him. She didn't cry or panic, she was already very brave for a little girl of this age.

"No...... They took control of the gate. Ashrufat said. He possesses night vision far beyond that of mortals, so he can see the opening of distant gates. The gates were closed, and there was no sound of fighting...... They have taken control of the entrances and exits of the royal palace. Skadera had already fallen into the hands of the rebels, if he had not died. No one was moving nearby, but a fool could guess that the rebels had enough men to prevent anyone from fleeing.

With such a careful arrangement, such abundant troops, and enough traitors, it is self-evident who started this coup d'état.

The flames in the distance were soaring, all in the location of the aristocratic district, and it was roughly estimated that at least ten mansions had been ignited. But this is ignited, and there must be more attacks.

"We have to leave, but not through the gate. Ashrufat said. Although the little girl didn't see anything, she didn't object to Ashrufat's opinion in the slightest, and turned away with him.

Ashrufat made his way around the corner of a palace, and at the moment he turned the corner, he ran head-on into a group of men and horses with torches. The first person was none other than Essien. Both sides recognized each other for the first time.

"Eshurufat!" Essien was still wearing the armor of the Queen's personal bodyguard, and the people behind him were all Praetorian Guards. His gaze stayed on Ashrufat for a second, and then immediately turned to the little girl beside Ashrufat.

"It's you, Ah, Your Majesty the Queen...... You're fine...... It's really good. Ashrufat, leave with us. Essien said with an eager expression.

Ashrufat pulled the little girl behind him with his hand. The expression on his face clearly showed that he had not been deceived by the other party at all. Essien shouldn't be here, he shouldn't have been here at all if he had nothing to do with the rebellion. His presence speaks for itself.

"Hey...... It's really hard to deceive. Essien sighed. "Well, Aerufat, I really don't want to fight each other. ”

As he spoke, another team of people suddenly arrived behind him. Ashrufat recognized Pharysses in the firelight, and his figure was very striking. Now, Ashrufat and the little girl were surrounded in this small corner. He retreated step by step, but the other party did not press very hard, because they knew that he could not retreat. There is a small house with an open door on the side, and you can tell from the size that it is a utility room. Ashrufat retreated into the house, and stood in the doorway, keeping the little girl inside. His sword was already in his hand, and a group of men and horses had come from nowhere. Three teams of more than fifteen men held torches aloft, and the steel weapons in their hands reflected the firelight, firmly encircling their prey.

A face recognized by Eshuruphat appeared next to Essien, an official named Cleo. Eshurufat knew him because this Cleo was one of Skadra's lieutenants, and the two sides were in contact from time to time.

Thinking they had seized the gap, the two soldiers snatched up from both sides. They immediately paid the price for their recklessness, and the Ashrufaat long sword flew left and right, killing the two people on the spot in an instant.

The rest hesitated for a moment.

"Ashrufat, give up. Essien said. "To be honest, I admire you...... Your loyalty is impressive, but now you don't stand a chance. I know you're a good warrior, but even if you can kill all of us, you won't change anything. ”

As he spoke, he secretly made a gesture with his hand to his subordinates. On the periphery of the human circle, under the cover of their companions' bodies, several soldiers began to wind their crossbow arrows.

"Ashrufat, I admire your bravery, and I know that you are a good warrior. But you have to know that the building will fall, and it will not be supported by a single tree!" said Clio loudly.

This sentence had a noticeable effect on Ashrufat, as a smile appeared on his face, which made the people on the front line can't help but take half a step back. He was laughing, not the kind of laughing that didn't smile, or the kind of forced laughter, but a relaxed laugh, full of contempt.

"It depends on how thick the wood is. Ashrufat chuckled and replied.

"Ashrufat, no matter how clever you are, the most you can do is kill us people. Essien continued. "For us, these are insignificant losses. Don't talk about this, even if you are really invincible in the world, you can break through the gate with the strength of one person and kill all those who stand in your way...... What is the point of fleeing into the streets with the queen to that extent, you are a great warrior, and if you are willing to surrender, I swear that the Duke will not do you any wrong. ”

"Sure enough...... Is it the Duke of Byron. Ashrufat said with a smile. "I used to think that guy looked like an idiot, but now I'm sure his brain matches his face exactly. ”

"What do you mean by that? Do you think you can stand up to the power of the Duke? Not to mention that you can't break out now, even if you do, will you still be able to raise your army and finally defeat the Duke?" said Cleo. "Do you think you're Garunas, the Sage of the Wilderness?"

"Garunas, how does he deserve to be compared to me?" replied Essrufat with a sneer. "Of course I'm not Garunas, my name is Eshurufat, I'm omnipotent!"