Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Three: The Siege of Baihao City (Part Two)
Boom, boom, boom, boom—
The countless divine lights shimmering on the city walls were steadily fading, accompanied by the relentless rumbling of a massive collapse, disappearing into the swirling frost and snow like a bad magic trick gone wrong.
As the howling winds swept over the Northern Army formation like a giant tsunami, the biting cold hit them like a slap to the face, and everyone could barely keep their eyes open. Quick as a flash, the hunters of Shanter formed a human wall around the fragile Lady Catherine, shielding her from the raging storm.
And right in front of them, the leader of the Wolf Hunting Army, Hoover—sitting atop a neighing beast like he was the king of the world—had a face that screamed “I’m about to have too much fun.” His grin was as sharp as a dagger, and his bloodthirsty gaze zeroed in on the chaos ahead.
Moments later, as the winds finally calmed down and the snowstorm started to clear, he beheld the city walls that looked like they had just failed a demolition contest…
No. Those walls couldn’t even be called walls anymore.
What was once a solid bastion—a rock-solid, impenetrable fortress—had been reduced to rubble by the terrifying, skyscraper-high “ice peaks.” As he looked out, he noticed that the enemy’s high walls to the south had crumbled into a heap of stones, and the towers were nothing but piles of broken dreams, with monstrous ice fragments embedded deep within the wreckage. The chilling air surrounded countless corpses frozen like popsicles in the crumbling stones, and the miraculous defenses established by the Fourth Knights Order were long gone. Sins had been smashed to smithereens, and even the city gates were MIA…
“Hahahahaha—”
Hoover cackled, taking in the magnificent chaos: “What a thrill! Absolutely delightful!”
He watched as those knights and clerics who had been spouting threats just moments ago were clearly not thinking about their mortality; no, they were trying to crawl away from the ruins like ants dug up from their hill. Tiny glimmers of gold flickered amid the dead, barely holding onto life.
In the streets exposed by the wall’s collapse, panicked golden-armored warriors, as well as anxious priests and nuns, were frantically shouting, trying to regroup for a rescue operation or to prepare a last stand against the “rebels.” Their frantic cries mingled with sporadic sobs, spreading an atmosphere of despair. Some, upon realizing the severity of the situation, slowly backed away, disappearing into the ruins like they were trying to play hide-and-seek with fate.
The Northern Army took all this in from outside the city.
“The Church Army is retreating! Someone is actually running away—”
In the flank behind Sanks and his squad from Erin Castle, who had witnessed the “heavenly power descending” yesterday, their eyes gleamed with fervor, and they stood on tiptoe, peering ahead. Just moments ago, they hadn’t realized “that girl” was back with the team, but now, seeing that force akin to a natural disaster, it was clear what was happening.
“It’s her! She did this! Hahahaha! I knew it! The Duke must’ve sent her here just for this bunch of losers! He saw this coming from a mile away—”
“They’re scared! Those knights are terrified!!!”
“Hey Taku! I’ve never felt this good in my years of service! It’s like my scalp is tingling! I can’t wait to tear these idiots apart—why can’t we be the vanguard…”
“Church Knights!!!”
The warriors shouted, pumped up, as they heard someone from the front lines holler: “They’re just a bunch of scheming cowards! What garbage knightly honor! We from the Northern Army won’t fall to these rabble-rousers—”
“Wolf and Lion Hunting Armies, obey my command!”
“Carrying on, Kaliye’s pups—”
“Erin Castle!!!”
As the snowstorm began to let up, a wave of bloodlust swept through the outer warriors like never before. The Shanter Army, the New City of Kaliye Army, and Erin Castle issued their orders. The horned horses neighed proudly, while the first round of crossbow bolts zipped into the air like a swarm of angry bees, slicing through the chilled air and embedding themselves in the rubble. Some pierced the chests of just-recovering knights, while others, packed with bad intentions, smashed through the already frozen corpses like they were piñatas at a party.
“Attack the city—”
“Attack—THE CITY—!!!”
At a moment when the spirits of the Northern Army were at an all-time high, no one could tell—or cared—who shouted the orders. They heard the call to attack, echoed by the sharp horn blasts from all sides, and like a dam bursting, they charged toward the broken city walls with a chilling battle cry that echoed in the crisp air.
…
The fierce battle raged near the high walls to the south for less than half an hour, with the light cavalry hunters of the Northern Army stepping over the ruins, trampling on the trampled golden flags, trying to navigate the chaos with bl**d-stained weapons as they broke through the defenses set by the Fourth Knights Order. Immediately, the army began attacking strategic points within the city—Black Fort, granaries, church, prison—you name it.
The close-quarters combat was imminent, during which Firebird Annie led Erin Castle’s vanguard and managed to fend off two counterattacks organized by reinforcements from the Fourth Knights Order.
Among those reinforcements were several figures clad in black robes, known for their miraculous capabilities, but the overall Knight count was limited—less than a thousand strong. Even with strong leaders charging in, they managed to stall the Northern Army holed up in the city, but the Knight Order’s mobility in snowy conditions was woefully lacking. Workshop Hunters danced around them with a variety of unexpected gadgets, frustrating the knights to no end, and no matter how hard they tried, they failed to provide effective relief for their comrades trapped inside. Eventually, during a third attempt to storm the city, they were crushed by a devastating ice meteor shower from above and retreated in utter chaos.
By noon, Hoover’s Lion Hunting Army was the first to break into the church, capturing three hundred ordinary clergy members, including nuns tending to the wounded. An hour later, the New City of Kaliye Army stormed the Black Fort, battling stationed knights for over half an hour, and finally, at the cost of dozens of their own men, wiped out nearly two hundred Church Knights, reclaiming the political hub of the city.
By the afternoon, Hoover once again breached the Baihao City prison, freeing hundreds of captured Northern Army warriors. At the same time, Firebird Annie took out a temporary command camp of the Fourth Knights Order hidden in a tower in the west of the city, slicing down several captains with finesse.
At this point, the church’s defenders were completely thrown into chaos, and two hours later, the cavalry from the New City of Kaliye rounded up a group of knights trying to threaten civilians into fleeing the city. Hoover brought the freed Northern warriors back to the church, starting a fun interrogation with the local nobility who hadn’t managed to escape yet, demanding the defense plans for the northern iron-smelting workshop.
By the time dusk fell, the battle cries had started to dwindle.
The sky was murky and ominous, a damp and chilly wind blew from the east, and bodies quickly lost their warmth in the muddy snow. In many of the low buildings and dark alleys, fierce clashes continued, long swords glinting as they cut throats, bl**d scattered like bad confetti, and golden light flickered but quickly dimmed in the gritty shadows.
Outside, the first batch of reinforcements from Shanter Castle’s Lion Hunting Army rushed back after receiving news. If one stood atop the western wall, they’d see under the dim light a sinister line of troops emerging eerily from behind the snow-capped mountains.
And that night, the scars of battle rapidly spread throughout the city…
