Chapter 133: Fearless of Everything
After three days of preparation, the Allied Nobles were supposed to advance, but upon witnessing the combat strength of those Conscripted Militia and the condition of Nyx, Knight Wolf directly altered the original plan of continued raids and massacres of villages.
He led his warriors in a swift assault on the heart of the Forth Territory, the fortress of Viscount Youn—Forth Town.
York Town now had a population nearing eight thousand, already somewhat crowded for a town.
In comparison, Forth Town was a bit more spacious, with a permanent population of six thousand.
Viscount Youn had taken nearly three hundred warriors to the domain of Viscount Logan, while about two hundred elite warriors remained to defend the area.
Five hundred full-time warriors—this was the number of warriors Forth Town could sustain, and it was considered a relatively healthy figure.
Besides these two hundred or so elite warriors, there were also nearly a hundred town guards. In times of war, nearly a thousand Conscripted Militia could be forcibly recruited.
Being situated at the core of the territory, the wealthiest Forth Town could at least afford to equip these Conscripted Militia with a spear.
This allowed them to kill on the battlefield.
Moreover, Forth Town lay at the center of the Forth Territory, surrounded by villages. Should unrest break out here, reinforcements from neighboring villages could arrive in less than half a day.
And Nyx was well aware that there were three Knights stationed permanently in Forth Town.
So when Knight Wolf told him of his intended plan, Nyx's immediate reaction was that Wolf had gone mad again.
"I will wield the Holy Relic. This time, my goal is solely the lord’s fortress. I only need to kill the bloodline of Viscount Youn, leaving just one son behind."Knight Wolf stated, his voice laced with the scent of blood.
"They have Holy Relics too, and solid walls. You won’t be able to break through,"Nyx advised.
"You will at least face one thousand three hundred enemies. Their corpses, piled on the road, could block your path to the Viscount’s fortress."
Nyx gestured ahead toward Forth Town, whose silhouette was now visible.
His expression betrayed undeniable exhaustion, his eye sockets sunken, and his body appeared somewhat scrawny.
Last night, even though he was tired, he could not sleep. He forced himself to stay awake and wrote down his insights and fears of these past days on parchment.
"We don’t have time,"Knight Wolf said."Look at yourself—your condition has deteriorated to this point."
"This isn’t merely the result of lost rest."
"Forcing such a wide-range Bestowal must have greatly drained you, perhaps even drawing on your last reserves of life force."
"Before we set out, you even struggled to Bestow Blessing on three people at once."
"You’re old to begin with, and not a physically strong warrior. You’re merely a scholar with a fragile body."
"If anything happens to you, who will control those frenzied Conscripted Militia?"
"They’re indeed powerful now—stronger even than I had anticipated after slaughtering four or five villages and being tempered through blood."
"But at the same time, their current state is far more terrifying than I expected."
"If we don’t seize the time, perhaps we’ll collapse from within before we can even hurt Viscount Youn."
Knight Wolf revealed the reason behind his decisive move.
Training warriors through killing was something he had experienced. He could judge that such training might ultimately yield only half—or even just a third—of the original number, but to him, they were a familiar and reliable force.
The warriors trained by Nyx indeed surpassed those from killing drills in both combat power and willpower, and they were numerous. Yet, they were too fanatical, too strange.
Without Nyx the Priest among them, if they broke down, the resulting damage would be even greater.
As for the Three Monks, Knight Wolf knew—they absolutely couldn’t hold control.
"..."Knight Wolf’s words plunged Nyx into silence.
He didn’t say anything like “you’re just gambling.”
In this war, fought normally, York Territory could almost never win.
Knight Wolf could only rely on gambling for a chance to turn the tide.
And gambling meant risk. To Knight Wolf now, the greatest risk—and also the greatest trump card—were these warriors of fanatical Faith.
Nyx had “created” these people with his own hands and understood their danger.
He recalled what Bishop Corleon had said before the expedition—that this journey would be a long one for him."If you can’t capture it, or once you’ve fulfilled your goal, you must retreat with them. Bring them home."Nyx finally said.
"Of course,"Knight Wolf nodded."Attacking a noble’s fortress—if it succeeds, it’s naturally ideal. But if not, I’ll return to defend."
"That’s a coalition of nobles. Just Knight Dean alone won’t be able to hold the border."
"I know Viscount Logan well. If the assault goes poorly, he won’t hesitate to unleash a Holy Relic."
"Perhaps when they reach the Church, the Lord will punish them—but their numbers are so vast, they could slaughter all the subjects."
"And he’s a human noble carrying a Holy Relic."
Nyx fell silent.
Now, he understood the power of the Church more profoundly.
It utterly restrained Dark Creatures and those the Lord deemed evil, but against humans, its effectiveness was significantly diminished.
This was also why, during the expedition, he assigned Temple Warriors to accompany him.
Not just to protect the Lord’s Throne, but also to protect his own fragile body.
The Church’s current usable Holy Relic, the Slumbering Horn, had limited effectiveness against nobles bearing Holy Relics.
After all, Mysteries would fail when facing higher-tier Mysteries.
"How do we fight the battle to capture Forth Town?"Nyx asked.
"I’ll charge into the town, then open the gates from within. Then the Knights will storm inside. After that, just have those Conscripted Warriors warn the commoners,"Wolf said.
"I will kill until they’re terrified, until they tremble in fear."
"After all, most of them are merely temporarily conscripted militia. When the death toll reaches a certain number, their morale will collapse."
"And our warriors—are resolute."
After speaking, Knight Wolf glanced at the Conscripted Militia at the rear, advancing around the Cross Painted in Blood.
"What if they use the power of the Hunting Fang?"Nyx asked.
"I’ll force him to use the Hunting Fang on me,"Knight Wolf said."This kind of destructive Holy Relic can’t be unleashed repeatedly in a short time."
"You intend to endure the power of a Holy Relic head-on?"
Knight Wolf stroked the short sword Erebus and said,"It’s not like the Hunting Fang, capable of devastating attacks."
"But it allows me to fear nothing and fight until death."