Only now did Ryan and Gabriel understand the dire situation facing the knightly army.
"What? My lord, you're saying the knightly army is surrounded? Count Adelaide's forces have been annihilated? Yulsen Castle has fallen?" Gabriel was full of questions, his face a picture of confusion. "But didn't you previously tell us that the army only encountered an ambush and suffered significant losses?"
"We did encounter an ambush and suffered heavy losses, but that's not the point now. The orcs launched a surprise attack on Yulsen Castle, the left army has been wiped out, and our central army of ten thousand is now surrounded in a basin. We need your support!" Marquis Anxi said loudly, his voice tinged with hysteria. "I order you to come to our aid immediately, within three days you must reach Yulsen Castle, or the entire army is in danger of being annihilated!"
"How can the right army, over a hundred kilometers away, possibly reach Yulsen Castle in three days?" Ryan took over the communicator, still in disbelief.
A thirty thousand-strong army reduced to just over ten thousand?
"Enough! I assigned you to intercept the orcs' reinforcements from Demonrock, and you failed to complete your task. This is your last chance to make amends. Support us now... ah!" A cacophony came through the magical communication device, the last sounds being the roars of orcs, the desperate cries of knights, and Marquis Anxi's voice slowing to almost a plea: "For the lady and the king, we need your support! Please!"
The transmission then cut off.
Ryan and Gabriel exchanged looks, fully grasping the severity of the situation.
The sounds of screaming near Commander Marquis Anxi indicated more than just trouble.
They were on the verge of collapse!
"Convene a military council immediately!"
"Yes!"
Five minutes later, in the central command tent, Baron Jean, Grail Knight Ryan, Marquis Gabriel, Marquis Connolly, Julius, and Sulya were all waiting inside the tent, along with several veteran kingdom knights.
A large map was spread out in the tent as Gabriel began explaining the situation.
With the left army annihilated, Yulsen Castle fallen, and the central army trapped and heavily decimated, the need for reinforcement was urgent. According to Ryan's judgment, the situation was extremely dire.
"What should we do now? Retreat? We're within striking distance of Demonrock, and the orcs couldn't have moved it far in such a short time. To retreat now would mean abandoning our efforts over the past fortnight, making this knightly war futile," one of the kingdom knights immediately objected.
"But if we don't go to the aid, the knightly army is at risk of total annihilation. What can we achieve alone in the forest?"
"Yet, not aiding our comrades goes against the chivalric code!"
"But our goal in this knightly war is to destroy Demonrock. Having suffered so much without achieving our goal, how can we explain ourselves to the lady and the king? Is that chivalric?"
The discussion was endless.
Ryan was particularly troubled; he couldn't fathom how the two other armies, totaling over thirty thousand men, were so disastrously defeated by the orcs.
The left army completely wiped out?
Yulsen Castle breached?
Only ten thousand of the central army left and surrounded, desperately calling for help?
It felt more fantastical than fiction. Ryan wasn't a War God of the White Wolf who could sense every battle of his followers, nor was he the Lady of the Lake who could foresee the future, nor was he like his father, capable of extending his divine senses across the material universe.
At heart, Ryan was still an unfinished Primarch, wielding psyker powers and a unique ability to reverse corruption, yet far from godlike strength. How could he have anticipated this?
Marquis Anxi must have concealed the truth, or else such a disaster couldn't have happened overnight.
What should he do now?
At a crossroads, chivalry dictated he should return to aid. As a Grail Knight, he couldn't ignore the plight of his allies. But could his forces, mere thousands strong, truly make a difference in three days over a hundred and ten kilometers through the forest?
Could they hold out for three days?
Choosing not to save... Ryan, tormented, signaled for silence: "I need a moment."
"Of course, Sir Ryan." Everyone understood that the champion of the lady would make the final decision.
Sulya looked at Ryan worriedly, her beautiful face twisted in conflict. She wanted to ask Ryan's plans but was stopped by Julius: "Ryan needs a moment."
As all eyes turned to him, Ryan thought deeply.
Like his father, the Emperor, the greater the challenge, the calmer Ryan became. It seemed another bloodline power aided his thought process, not as supreme and holy as his father's, but filled with wisdom and decisiveness. This heritage gave Ryan the instinct to devise and select the best solutions swiftly.
After minutes of intense thought, Ryan opened his eyes, his voice cold: "We will not go to the aid of the knightly army. Instead, we will continue our march to destroy Demonrock. Only by doing so can we truly save our country, not just the army in the forest."
The tent fell silent, the decision both unexpected and logical.
Ryan first pointed to Yulsen Castle on the map: "Why not aid? Several reasons."
"First, let's consider the best-case scenario of aiding Yulsen: we rescue the knightly army... let's say 8,000 for argument's sake. Then, we regroup with roughly 12,000 survivors. The outcome of this knightly war would be the left army annihilated, the central army heavily decimated, and a knightly army of just over ten thousand retreating to recuperate."
"Over twenty thousand corpses would feast the orcs, who'd receive generous boons from the gods of Chaos, enabling them to breed uncontrollably... We might retreat successfully this year, sparing some vitality, but next year's beast tide would be unprecedented..."
"Remember, this is the best-case scenario. We haven't considered ambushes during the forced march, the combat strength of the orc army, or whether the knightly army can last three days."
Ryan's explanation made everyone realize the gravity of their situation. Even in the best case, would the war be won?
No, a devastating defeat.
"But abandoning our comrades in their hour of need goes against chivalric values," Marquis Connolly hesitated. The marquis, more versed in administration and politics, had been wounded in recent battles and was just recovering: "That would be disobeying orders. Knights must follow commands."
"We aren't disobeying. The goal of this knightly war is to destroy Demonrock, and we're advancing towards that. On the contrary, if we aid now, the war is truly lost!" Ryan explained firmly.
Connolly fell silent, allowing Ryan to continue: "We must destroy Demonrock! Only by doing so can we dismantle the orcs' religious core and totem, inviting the wrath of the Chaos gods upon them. Even if they win against the knightly army, what good is it if their sacred core is destroyed, their camps turned to ruins? It'd take years for the orcs to recover, providing knights a chance to recuperate. We would achieve our strategic goal of this war."
"If we manage to destroy Demonrock, we still accomplish our mission despite the sacrifices. We must secure victory in this war after such losses."
"Now is the perfect opportunity to attack Demonrock," Ryan pointed to their current location, deep in the forest. "Combining scout reports and Marquis Anxi's information, we know the elite guards of Demonrock have been led away by the Screaming Shaman. Demonrock hasn't moved far and is hidden nearby. It's an ideal chance to strike."
"But at the cost of abandoning over ten thousand of our comrades for Demonrock's destruction, is it worth it?" Sulya expressed her concerns, the kind-hearted knight troubled by the decision.
"Retreat after sacrificing over twenty thousand, leaving the orcs a monumental victory, or endure a Pyrrhic victory after sacrificing thirty thousand, rendering the orcs' victory meaningless? Sulya, what would you choose?" Ryan countered, his gaze filled with resolve: "Sacrifice is the foundation upon which humanity stands. We've bled too much, given too much. It's time for the orcs to pay."
Ryan knew he might bear the consequences of his decision, but so what? He didn't care, convincing himself that some things, like the long-term future and the safety of the nation, were more important. Besides, he had one last card to play.
"I have no objections," Julius agreed, his past experiences shaping his understanding that this was the right choice for the future.
"The war has escalated to this point; we cannot back down. Otherwise, next year's beast tide will drown our kingdom. Sir Ryan, I support you," Gabriel, the most experienced knight, nodded.
"Prepare to march!"
...
Ryan's determination was unparalleled as he gathered the knights, announcing his decision: "We won't return to aid the knightly army. Instead, we will march on to Demonrock and destroy it. Only then can we truly save our country, not just the forest army."
"But..." Many knights hesitated, feeling obligated by chivalry to rescue their comrades.
"No buts! My warriors, over twenty thousand have already fallen here, countless loyal knights among them. But what was our goal in this knightly war?" Ryan spoke with fiery eyes and a stern expression.
"Destroy Demonrock!" the knights roared.
"Exactly. If we cannot destroy Demonrock, next year an unprecedented orc horde will ravage our kingdom. Your homes will be plundered, your loved ones endangered. After slaughtering over twenty thousand humans, the orcs will breed and evolve unchecked. These beasts can birth dozens per litter, mature in three to six months, and feast on our corpses, sacrificing our souls. No creature will stop them then!" Ryan stood before the knights, speaking gravely: "The knightly army has failed. Only we remain in this dark forest. The hope of destroying Demonrock, of safeguarding the kingdom, rests with us!"
"Will you follow me to Demonrock, eradicate these chaotic spawn's lair, destroy this blight's totem, and offer victory to the lady, to Britannia?" Ryan raised his warhammer, roaring.
The knights fell silent, realizing the seriousness of their situation.
The first ranger knight shouted: "We will follow you, Sir Ryan!"
"Yes! We will!"
"Command us, Sir Ryan!"
"You brought us victory!"
"Give the order!"
"Ryan! Ryan! Ryan! Ryan!" the knights chanted, their voices echoing through the forest: "Please give the order!"
"For the lady! For Britannia! My warriors, will you join me on this final journey? We'll storm the orc stronghold, destroy Demonrock! Tell me, my warriors, are you willing?" Ryan shouted.
"We are willing! We are willing!" the knights responded with fervor, ready to make the orcs pay for their atrocities.
"For the lady! For Britannia!"
At that moment, a series of horn blasts came from outside the right army's camp.
Ryan turned, squinting.
The horn's clear, loud sound, filled with vitality, was not that of the orcs.
Were other armies moving in the forest?
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