The Sage of Einar - Chapter 448
Ansgar who was advancing among the frozen swamps of the Da Chainoc barony was surprised by the desolation of the place.
In the villages or towns, there was no one alive and you could hardly see animals in that place.
“This is the fourth village we have checked and there is no trace of people or bodies.
I think the baron of this place must be a ruthless guy or they left this village long ago.
Do you have any idea how long this Kirk village has been abandoned? ”
Kirk, a soldier from the region of Scotland, stroked his red-haired beard. “I think it should have been at least two months without people.
I cannot know the exact time because the snow affected the condition of the houses, however my experience as a people hunter helped me find some details.
For example, iron utensils in houses have a very high amount of rust, which indicates that they had not been moved for some time.
So they suffered from the natural humidity of the swamp environment, if they had left the villages in a colder or snowy season.
The rust would be less because although the snow can oxidize metals, the cold reduces the humidity in the environment.
Once when I was younger, I had a mission to find a fugitive, so I learned some techniques from my superiors.
Although, thanks to my children who are going to school, I was able to know the effects of humidity; I suppose that King Einar is a very intelligent person and has the blessing of God.
Hopefully, we can end this war quickly so that we can return to our families. I would like to hear more about what our children have learned in school. ”
Ansgar sighed and looked at his friend with a smile. “We all want to go back, fortunately the war seems to be progressing very well on our side.
When we finish conquering this kingdom, we will only have to destroy the remaining northern kingdoms. After this, we can return home for our well-deserved rest.
At least we have to enjoy that year when we will be out of work because the one that follows will be more complicated.
Because we will have to be conquering a more complicated area. ”
Kirk sighed and looked at Ansgar with a wry smile. “I worry about the mountains in the region where I grew up. They will be a real problem to be able to conquer the kingdoms of those places.
I would dare to say that they could endure years without receiving food, since they have good communication with each other through the mountains. ”
Ansgar stroked his chin. “Possibly herald Einar will come up with a way to isolate those mountains to avoid unnecessary losses.
Although perhaps he could take a different and more aggressive approach, it really is a real mystery what he is going to do.
I think that’s what I like about the herald because he can discover new techniques and it can be a way to conquer. ”
After that little talk, the army, led by Ansgar continued on its way to the castle of Chainoc.
After advancing for a few days, they reached the castle, however what they found surprised them as they realized that the castle was completely abandoned.
Upon entering, they realized that they had sabotaged the castle gates and destroyed whatever wooden buildings they could.
Ansgar frowned and ordered his soldiers to spend the night in that place. As a preventive measure, he checked the tunnels under the castle and left soldiers in the place to guard at night.
Also, with the help of some slave artisans, the castle gates were repaired until late at night.
In the morning, Ansgar heard the sound of the emergency trumpets, so he immediately got up from where he was resting inside the castle.
When he got out, he was surprised to see a great army that had besieged the castle. This made him sign a smile on his face because he had fallen into the trap of the attackers.
Unfortunately for them, he had enough supplies to last three months not to mention that he had enough ammunition.
‘I think it will be up to Herald Einar to finish off this army if they decide to besiege, although if they decide to attack it will be our job to repel the attack.’
Without wasting time, he ordered the soldiers to install the ballistas that he had in his possession on the walls. As for the onagers, he placed three in the castle courtyard and two on the roof of the battlement tower.
The attackers were extremely confident, as they were the grand coalition of the allied army, which had planned to attack Ansgar’s army.
Since they learned of the Norse attack on the kingdom of Ui Maine, they planned an attack with the baron of Da Chainoc to lock up the enemy army in the castle of Chainoc.
Because of the proximity to the free kingdoms, they had decided to do it that way, also to slow down the Nordic army they had emptied the villages completely.
In order for them to advance with caution as there would always be the danger of attack, his strategy worked perfectly, as he had given them enough time to make their preparations.
As for the army of the collision, it consisted of 30,000 warriors and 20,000 lev, so they were sure that they would win the battle.
During the next four days, Ansgar prepared 10,000 soldiers from him to be able to defend the castle, from supervising the construction of the ballistas and onagers.
Even using the wood from the supply carriages to make defensive improvements on the walls and anywhere they could defend from.
One thing Ansgar realized is that the enemy army was preparing siege ladders and a huge wooden battering ram.
So he ordered flasks of Nordic fire to be raised on the walls so that they could be thrown at the enemies.
He also ordered that some defensive points be created in order to avoid the arrows that would most likely be shot at them during the siege.
After a few more days of preparation, a messenger from the Irish Coalition Army approached the castle gates.
“Nordic Pagan Army, surrender now and we will spare your lives, otherwise more than 50,000 soldiers from the kingdoms of Ireland will kill you.”
Ansgar who was on the walls smiled and took out his revolver with which he aimed at the messenger, shooting him at the moment.
After this, he took his steel megaphone and started shouting “We will fight to the death, we will be waiting for you so that we can end your lives.”
The Norse soldiers shouted and raised their weapons.. At that moment, the battle began.