When Ryan welcomed the joint Bretonnian and Imperial forces led by Carad and Duke Hagen into the camp, it was already early morning.
This army, numbering just over three thousand, was nearly all wounded, and their supplies had long been exhausted. Upon reaching the ruins of the Spire Palace, the melted remains of the castle left them in despair. They feared that the southern chivalric army had also been annihilated.
Fortunately, Ryan had arranged for rangers to patrol the perimeter. When they saw the approaching knightly army, Bertrand insisted on making contact. The surviving Bretonnian knights and Imperial soldiers crossed the pontoon bridge under the moonlight, arriving at the camp in the Chalon Forest.
At this point, the Bretonnian contingent was reduced to just over eight hundred knights and squires, while the Imperial side had about a hundred knights and two thousand five hundred soldiers. Of their original artillery, only eight cannons and four Hellstorm Rocket Batteries remained. Fortunately, the most powerful Hellblaster Volley Gun was still intact.
To siege Mousillon, Ryan had stocked ample food and supplies. The newly arrived troops were clearly starving, so fires were lit in the middle of the night to cook for them.
The arrival of these battered forces had a significant impact on Ryan's troops. Despite Ryan tightly sealing off information and claiming that Carad and his men had joined them voluntarily, many knights could guess that something must have gone wrong with the northern chivalric army.
There was a sense of contradiction among the troops. On one hand, the defeated armies merging could adversely affect morale, which was already low after the defeat at the Spire Palace. The knights' spirits sank even further with the arrival of this additional demoralized force.
On the other hand, Carad held up the head of the Mad Duke Merowen, signifying his death. This Duke had once brought endless suffering to Bretonnia, and his death at the hands of a brave Grail Knight suggested that there was still hope for victory. Additionally, the arrival of the Imperial forces sparked a glimmer of hope among the knights.
At the dinner table, they exchanged intelligence. Carad and Duke Hagen of Gisoreux, already weary from defeat, were astounded by Ryan's report.
The Tzeentch Demon Army had joined the war?
Duke Hagen, slightly injured and with his prized antlered helmet cracked in half, grumbled angrily as he chewed on a fatty lamb leg, "Chaos is here too? Damn it! The whole of Mousillon is a mess!"
"We also saw Greenskin and Beastmen tribes fighting along the way," nodded Imperial General Dietrich. His blood-stained and mud-covered appearance, with matted hair and beard, indicated the severity of their journey. Both he and Boris von Zhukov felt uneasy under Ryan's gaze.
Before coming to Bretonnia, both had seen Emmanuelle in Nuln's court. The heavily pregnant Duchess had encouraged them and reminded them to be polite to Ryan and visit Sulia.
However, Dietrich and Boris felt a sense of discomfort toward Ryan, knowing he was the man who... with the Duchess of Nuln. Many Imperial nobles dreamed of marrying Emmanuelle. Even though Dietrich and Boris had families, they couldn't help feeling resentful.
Men are like that.
Fortunately, Ryan didn't focus too much on them. He was clearly preoccupied and exchanged only a few pleasantries. Dietrich and Boris delivered Emmanuelle's message, "We bring greetings from Duchess Emmanuelle, wishing you and Countess Sulia good health. The beloved Duchess asks, when do you plan to visit Nuln to see your son?"
The tone of the greeting conveyed evident discontent, causing an awkward silence. Ryan quickly replied, "At least after the war is over."
"Now we've combined forces, but we number only over six thousand, with low morale and exhaustion," Carad noted Ryan's embarrassment and intervened. The Saint Knight looked fatigued, both from the battle and the complex situation. "Do we have more reinforcements, Lord Ryan?"
"François and Duke Berchmond's reinforcements are on their way," Ryan replied with a frown. "They will join us soon. Additionally, Duke Bodrick's Sea God Knights are en route."
"No one can remain uninvolved in this war. We must protect the relics left by the twelve founding Grail Knights, or this country will face destruction."
Hearing that the two dukes were on their way, the atmosphere in the tent improved slightly. With Berchmond and François arriving, there would be five powerful entities (Ryan, Carad, Morgiana, Berchmond, François) along with the armies from three duchies, offering a chance to defeat the Tzeentch Demon Army.
The knights did not overestimate the strength of the Tzeentch Demon Army. Chaos Demons were inherently powerful. Throughout history, facing Chaos Demons required mortals to give their all and endure immense sacrifices to barely defeat these Warp nightmares. However, banished demons do not die; they will eventually return to bring destruction to mortals.
One day, because mortal resolve is fleeting, while Chaos is eternal.
"By the way, didn't your Mercenary Corps from the Smoke Academy have a team of Dwarf Slayers?" Ryan shook his head, pondering the futility of some thoughts, and asked casually, "Why didn't I see them? Did the Dwarves volunteer to stay behind?"
"No, the Dwarf Slayers haven't even reached Mousillon," General Dietrich sighed. "Lord Ryan, your early attack disrupted everyone's plans. We were supposed to set out from Nuln around this time, arriving in Le-Angoulême by early April. But upon hearing that you launched an attack in late February and captured the Spire Palace in a day, the regent, Lorne, ordered us to Mousillon immediately. We had to depart quickly, taking Dwarf steamships via Marienburg to Le-Angoulême."
"At that time, the Dwarf Slayers were still helping the Dwarves of Karak Angazhar purge the Greenskins in the Black Mountains. If all went well, they should have just boarded a ship to Le-Angoulême. Dwarves honor their oaths..."
"Yes! That's how we Dwarves are. Debts must be repaid! Vengeance must be exacted!" Belagar, King of Eight Peaks, shouted from his elevated bench, hidden behind the large table. "That's the Dwarves for you!"
Ryan couldn't tell if Belagar was standing or sitting due to the height of the bench, making it hard to gauge his excitement.
"We will fully confront Chaos, but what about Mashubad and his undead army?" Carad asked, pained. "Lyonnaise cannot withstand the undead invasion. Mashubad could march straight to Coronne if he wishes."
"Indeed, but Coronne has enough garrison to hold out," Grail Knight Fedmond shook his head firmly. "It should hold for at least one or two months."
"The Grail Knights stationed in Coronne and the Lady's prophetesses will fight to defend the capital," Morgiana added earnestly. "The capital won't fall easily."
"We must prioritize. Our most powerful enemy now is the Chaos Demon Army," Ryan set the tone for the matter. "Prioritizing Chaos does not mean ignoring the undead. Once we defeat the Chaos Demon Army and reclaim the relics, we will naturally defeat Mashubad's forces. Moreover, my greatest fear is Mashubad holding Mousillon. If he dares to leave the city for a field battle, his undead army will be easy to handle."
Everyone nodded in agreement. The undead were enemies and would always be enemies.
Over the years, a strange notion had spread among Bretonnian serfs and even some knights. It suggested that the knights, as protectors of humanity and defenders of the kingdom, seemed to govern worse than the undead. Rumors claimed that the undead treated their serfs less harshly, collecting only "bone taxes" and "blood taxes" instead of the burdensome tithes demanded by knights.
But Ryan and the Grail Knights knew the truth. Life and death are two sides of the same coin, forever irreconcilable.
As for why some Midnight Aristocrats treated their enslaved serfs well?
Think of it like a farmer raising pigs. Would the farmer deliberately mistreat the pigs, making them half-dead?
No, the farmer would fatten the pigs and slaughter them at the right time for meat.
And why would vampires sometimes fight to protect humans? Simple, like someone trying to steal or destroy the pigs, the farmer would naturally take up arms to defend his property.
That's the relationship between vampires and those fugitive serfs who think they might survive.
"I don't care how my prey sees me. Do you think meat chunks have any opinions? Do you remember how many loaves of bread you've eaten?"
— Konstantin von Carstein
Vampires value honor and bloodline, but this has nothing to do with humans. Even the most honorable Blood Dragon family members are not human protectors or noble knights. They bring only death, fear, indulgence, and slaughter to the mortal world.
Except in the most extreme and special cases where the living and the dead temporarily fight side by side, most of the time, humans and vampires are enemies.
Bretonnian knights have many issues, but they always fight under the Lady's guidance to protect humanity and the mortal world. Vampires may have commendable qualities, but most Midnight Aristocrats' ultimate goal is to turn the mortal world into a realm of the dead.
Just like a good can and a bad can, no matter how good Bretonnia is, it's a good can. Vampires are always bad cans. A Blood Knight might test a new sword technique on an entire human village. Even
the most immoral Bretonnian knight wouldn't do that.
"Alright, everyone, you've had a tough journey. Rest well for the next few days," Ryan squinted his eyes. "Once the reinforcements arrive, we'll cross the Grisemorri River and head to Landuin's tomb!"
"Yes!" It was already early morning. The group dispersed to their respective camps to rest.
...I am the dividing line between good cans and bad cans...
A few days later, reinforcements led by Dukes Berchmond, François, and Bodrick arrived in the Chalon Forest.
The arrival of these over fifteen thousand reinforcements greatly boosted morale. Soldiers and knights left their tents to welcome the reinforcements.
Under the banner of the Sea God Trident and Mermaid, a thousand Sea God Knights led by Duke Bodrick entered the camp. The Sea God Knights would fight to protect the lands blessed by the Lady and the seas blessed by the Sea God. The Sons of the Sea God would never surrender to darkness!
The red dragon banner fluttered in the wind as Duke Berchmond, leading the Red Dragon Knights Brotherhood, appeared. Most of these knights were Grail Knights! When Bretonnia was in danger, the knights of Bastogne felt it was their duty to act. The knights from Bretonnia's land of rising dragons would never fear strong enemies!
The pure white Pegasus and Unicorn banners signaled the arrival of François and the champions of Quenelles. These elite Bretonnian knights had earned great fame in the First Battle of La Maisonelle, the Battle of Blackstone Keep, and the Second Battle of La Maisonelle. Their reputation spread across the Old World. When Chaos attacked, the knights of Winford would fight in the name of Redmond the Pure, one of the founding twelve Grail Knights!
This was the last remaining fresh force of the knightly kingdom.
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