Chapter 262: No Need for Such Trouble

Our battle with the Portland bandits will not last very long. By my estimate, three or four days at most if things go slow, and if things go fast, a victor will be decided within a single day.

Craine put forward his perspective.

The plans you have made are indeed acceptable, but if the war ends quickly, these tasks like digging drainage ditches and building makeshift latrines are an absolute waste of time and the soldiers' energy.

Roning understood the underlying meaning of the other party, which was nothing more than leading the troops forward and clashing directly.

As he gestured for the two vice-commanders, Philip and Thorstein, to look at the contents on the paper, he asked, Baron Craine, you just said a victor would be decided within a single day. I wonder if we shall be the victors, or if we shall be the defeated?

Naturally, we shall be the victors!

Craine spoke with absolute certainty, We are gathering so many troops right now, how can the mere Portland bandits contend against us?

Therefore, my suggestion is to rest today and tomorrow, launch an attack upon them the day after, and take Chishan Town in one fell swoop!

Roning felt a strong urge to ask what they would do in the event of a failure, but considering his status as the commander, it seemed somewhat inappropriate to speak of defeat before the battle had even begun, so he kept the question to himself.

I would very much like to hear why Your Lordship Baron possesses such confidence? Furthermore, we are still unclear about the current strength of the Portland bandits, so I must trouble you to introduce them to everyone.

My confidence stems precisely from the disparity in strength between our enemies and ourselves!

Craine's tone was exceedingly firm, a manifestation of his sufficient confidence in their own side.

Amicus, the leader of the Portland bandits, is a Gold Knight. His strength might be slightly greater than Sir Toru's, but as long as I cooperate with Toru, dealing with him will not be a problem.

Aside from Amicus, the Portland bandits only have two Silver-ranks left: one is their vice-leader, Haldane, and the other is their capable commander, Gilbert.

Craine's gaze swept across the several Silver Knights present in the hall.

On our side, we have Marvin, Philip, Thorstein, Taren, and my subordinate Brissot—a total of five, all of whom are long-renowned Silver Knights. They are completely sufficient to deal with Haldane and Gilbert!

Following his words, the eyes of the people in the hall lit up.

Lord Baron speaks truly!

Brissot chimed in, Our current high-end combat power completely surpasses that of the opponent. Crushing the enemy head-on presents absolutely no issue!

Indeed~

Indeed~

Quite a few people nodded in agreement inwardly.

What do you think? Roning looked toward Marvin and Toru.

As the vice-commanders, he wished to hear their thoughts.

Viscount Marvin spoke reflectively, If the situation is truly as Craine describes, we do indeed possess a great advantage, and we can certainly launch a direct frontal assault.

Toru added a piece of advice, From what I know, the defensive fortifications of Chishan Town are basically arranged in the south to ward off enemies coming from Casir Town. There are virtually no defensive fortifications in the north.

Chishan Town was previously under Craine's jurisdiction, and to its north lay the Boulder Fief, so naturally, there had been no need to set up any defensive fortifications.

After the Portland bandits took control of Chishan Town, they had not had the time to set up any fortifications in the north. If we attack from the front, we hold the advantage in personnel, and we suffer no disadvantage in terms of terrain.

Marvin continued, I believe we can follow Roning's method to reorganize and form the noble allied army into units, which will be beneficial for battlefield command. As for logistics, we can handle them simply. Regarding the time of the attack, we need to deliberate further.

It was evident that concerning the assault, they were still rather in favor of a direct frontal charge.

In truth, if the high-end combat power was sufficient and the mid-tier combat power was plentiful, Roning was also willing to attack from the front; the faster the battle was resolved, the better.

But was this war truly going to be that easy?

Craine, let me ask you, how much do you know about the enemy's casualties during the battle on the night Chishan Town was captured?

Craine was taken aback, his expression betraying a slight hesitation, and after a long pause, he shook his head.

On that night, the troop I led had not yet arrived at Chishan Town before the battle had already ended. I am not too clear on the casualties of the enemy.

Roning immediately said, According to what I know, among the five knight squads stationed at Chishan Town, aside from Vice-Commander Hahn, there were also two Bronze Knights, one of whom was at the peak of the Bronze-rank, with half a foot already stepping into the Silver-rank.

Craine's countenance suddenly turned somewhat unsightly, perhaps feeling that Roning was seeking to hold him accountable in public, which made him lose face.

These three men led five knight squads, with the number of professional knights exceeding sixty. Relying on the terrain advantage and defensive fortifications of Chishan Town, even if the enemy possessed a Gold Knight, it should have been impossible to suffer such a miserable defeat!

Everyone's heart skipped a beat.

They had all just followed Craine's train of thought, comparing the gap in troops and strength between the two sides, yet they had forgotten the matter of the miserable defeat suffered by the five knight squads of the Fifth Knight Regiment that had been stationed in Chishan Town.

Vice-Commander Hahn's strength was by no means poor.

It is indeed a bit strange.

Marvin's expression grew solemn, For the opponent to rout Hahn and his troop so quickly, their top-tier professional knights should number more than just these three. Craine, could this information of yours be incorrect?

Impossible!

Craine retorted decisively, Though we have been hostile toward the Portland bandits over these years, there have also been commercial exchanges during times of peace. We know their combat strength very clearly!

The reason Hahn suffered a rout, according to the soldiers who were fortunate enough to escape, was entirely because he drank too much that night and was negligent in defense. By the time the enemy breached the defensive line and slaughtered their way inside, they finally reacted, but by then it was already too late.

How much credibility do the words of the soldiers who escaped actually hold?

Roning spread his hands, However, this explanation of yours is indeed one of the possibilities, but there is also another possibility.

He paused, seeing that everyone was listening in silence, and then continued:

And that is that the Portland bandits have hidden their strength, or that stronger professional knights have recently joined them, making it so that Hahn and his men were simply no match for them.

That is indeed possible.

The crowd could not help but nod.

If the intelligence is incomplete, we truly need to be more cautious.

With this hypothetical viewpoint thrown out by Roning, the subsequent discussion shifted its focus toward what they should do if the enemy had hidden their strength.

Although no excellent solution was decided upon even after a long discussion, it became necessary to implement Roning's arrangements.

Because everyone knew that resolving the battle within a day or two, as Craine had suggested, was highly unlikely.

After another round of discussion, a set of temporary plans was finally established:

Marvin, Toru, and Ridal would be responsible for the reorganization of the allied army;

Taren and McKen would be responsible for camp defense and public security;

The two vice-commanders, Philip and Thorstein, would lead the cavalry to handle the peripheral patrols and scouting;

The Boulder Fief would handle the logistics.

The reason these measures of Roning's could reach a consensus and begin implementation so quickly was mainly due to the fact that Toru, Marvin, and the others consistently stood on his side.

This was also thanks to Rulance's arrangements.

If that Nigan from before had also come along to the Boulder Fief, they would likely have had to vie over who held the greater authority.

The bustling Boulder Keep fortress finally quieted down, and Craine sat in his chair with a deep frown, having not yet departed.

Brissot, do you think Roning suspects me?

His subordinate, Brissot, also wore a solemn expression, I am not entirely certain, but throughout several turns of the conversation, he did indeed cause everyone to subconsciously exclude your suggestions.

When the meeting began, Craine's words could still resonate with quite a few people.

But after that hypothesis was thrown out by Roning, the effectiveness of his words became far inferior to before.

Even at the very end during the division of tasks, when Craine proactively offered to undertake the peripheral security and scouting work, he was rejected by Roning.

The rationale was that the Stonehold bore a considerable logistical burden, making them the more suitable choice to handle such duties.

Kriern exhaled slowly, digesting the unease of the meeting. “I retract my earlier judgment—Ro Ning truly knows how to get things done. No wonder he’s regained the Marquis’s favor.”

Briso chuckled. “Then this only proves the necessity of our actions!”

“Yes… it’s absolutely necessary…” (End of Chapter)