Chapter 249 : Chapter 249
Chapter 249. Stalling for Time
Outside the lord’s castle of Snow Bear Territory, the three allied factions had joined forces and gathered before the castle gates.
When the lord’s castle had originally been designed, one question had already been considered: what if the city walls were ever breached?
So even within the residential castle itself, there was still a fairly complete defensive system.
The people below did not see the lord appear at any of the windows. They saw only the lord’s guards, trembling as they aimed their crossbows downward.
They all knew that those crossbows would probably be of no use against them at all, and might even provoke them further.
The reason the three-party coalition below had not yet chosen to attack directly was that they were still arguing over who should be the first to advance.
The first issue was the beastmen’s side. The other two factions had firmly stated that they would not allow too many beastmen into Snow Bear City, so Benedict had brought the fewest people here, only about a dozen.
Under such circumstances, even the most fierce and warlike beastman knew that he could not recklessly charge forward and act as cannon fodder scouting the way.
The mercenaries also cherished their lives. In the past, even when certain lords had ordered them to charge at the front of the battlefield, they had scarcely dared to run away outright.
So now that they were facing a well-defended castle, naturally, they had no intention of being the first to rush up and die as cannon fodder.
As for Gillian of the Church of the Goddess of the Currents, she merely watched the two sides arguing with a smile, her gaze fixed on the castle as though their quarrel had nothing to do with her.
Of the three factions, she was the least anxious.
Though she had agreed that everyone should come here and besiege the lord, that did not mean she would fully support the operation.
Why should she send out her own people, or personally take action? What if things went poorly and her side suffered casualties or injuries? The consequences would be “tremendous.”
Besides, the best method available to her now was to wait. Once her main force arrived, all the people before her would be nothing more than lambs waiting for slaughter.
While the two sides below still could not come to any conclusion, the people inside the castle finally made a move.
Blake, the lord of Snow Bear Territory, walked to a broad, brightly lit window, shoved aside a guard whose hands were trembling, and stepped into the middle of the opening himself.
He looked outside. At the sight of so many people below, his vision nearly darkened, but he forced himself to appear calm and angrily shouted:
“What are you doing?! By the Northern Frontier above, I welcomed you in good faith, yet not only have you colluded with my enemies, you have now come right up to my castle...!”
His words made the people below pause in surprise, and their conversation stopped. Then cruel smiles spread across their faces.
“My lord, we have come precisely to repay your ‘hospitality.’ We intend to thank you properly. So hurry up and open the gates and let us in...”
Blake had lived long enough to know that everyone below was speaking in mockery. They would never act as kindly as they now pretended. His fury surged again.
“You insatiable wolves! Even the rats I keep know to show some affection to the one who feeds them, but you lot...”
Blake hurled every insult he could think of. It was obvious that he was genuinely enraged now.
But it seemed to do no good. No matter how furious he was, he could not make the people below withdraw.
Instead, his words provoked the damned personal pride of those mercenaries, and they immediately began shouting insults back at him on the spot.
Up above, Blake quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead, though the hand he used trembled slightly.
At this moment, he was terrified beyond measure, terrified that his territory would be handed over today without resistance.
But he had no choice except to appear in person, because Fulan had told him to come out. Any amount of time he could buy was still time bought.
Just as Benedict was about to show his impatience, Blake suddenly changed his tone and said in great delight:
“You filthy vermin, listen well! I have already contacted the Northern Society. They are on their way here right now. If you don’t want to die, then run while you still can!”
Gillian of the Church of the Goddess of the Currents narrowed her pupils, one hand rising to her chest as her fingers opened and clenched again.
Even now, she still felt lingering dread over what Benedict had said earlier: the Northern Society did exist, but it might not necessarily be paying attention to them.
Because she had truly seen those Alliance mages before. They were desperate to explore everything in the world, and had fought fierce struggles with the Church of the Goddess of the Currents and other forces upon the seas...
Even now, she had not fully put her mind at ease. She still believed that the Alliance’s mages might arrive at some unexpected moment.
But she forced herself to remain composed. For the first time since coming below the castle, she spoke to Blake above.
“The lord of Snow Bear Territory...” A smile curved across her lips. “Since you now have the Alliance’s support, I assume you are no longer afraid of our attack, are you...?”
After saying that, she ignored both Blake’s expression and the puzzled looks on the faces of the other two factions, then directly waved a hand and ordered the Church Knights behind her to advance.
“Open the gate.”
When Blake saw several fully armed warriors step forward, his heart lurched. He hurriedly followed Fulan’s instructions and lowered the drawbridge.
Those Church Knights had just been about to carry out the order, climb up to the castle, and open the gate there, when they suddenly saw a scene that left them utterly confused.
The gate slowly rose, revealing the path leading into the castle. And there, inside, stood a familiar figure.
“It’s that mage from the Alliance!!”
Not only did Gillian frown deeply, even the mercenaries sucked in a sharp breath. Only Benedict sneered.
“An Alliance mage? Why are you standing there? If you block our way to the lord, then we may have to let you suffer a little...”
Fulan swept her gaze across the crowd. After waiting in silence for three seconds, she coldly spoke a single sentence.
“This place is under the Alliance’s protection. Anyone who steps in without permission will die.”
Fulan’s words brought a brief silence over the scene.
The first to act was Gillian of the Church of the Goddess of the Currents.
Unlike the other two factions, she did not care about the lives of her subordinates. In her eyes, those people would be taken by the Goddess of the Currents into the kingdom upon the sea, where they would enjoy bliss.
What she truly cared about was whether Fulan really represented the Alliance, the Alliance she genuinely feared.
So she immediately gave the order.
“Step in.”
Several Church Knights instantly formed up, pressing shoulder to shoulder in a line as they advanced toward Fulan.
Fulan merely added one more sentence.
“Anyone who steps across that line deserves to die.”
She pointed at a mark on the ground, indicating that it was the boundary and that no one was permitted to cross it.
Yet the Church Knights merely confirmed the position of that line together. Knowing that they would be attacked once they crossed it, they finished their preparations and stepped forward.
Everyone present, including Blake above, had already run to the side windows and held their breath as they watched the scene before them.