Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 264: From the English war book(2)

Chapter 264: From the English war book(2)

Lechlian sat on his high-backed chair in the dimly lit court, his jaw tight as he bit the inside of his cheek . The reports stacked before him were damning, each one worse than the last. For the past week, messengers had poured into his hall like a tide, bearing grim news: the Yarzats had been raiding village after village, leaving a trail of destruction behind them. Yet, infuriatingly, they weren't slaughtering the villagers.

Instead, they torched homes, destroyed crops, and pillaged everything of value, sparing the people only to leave them broken and destitute. His people didn't have the means to recover; they were being bled dry by devastation and fear, and he knew that next year he would face a famine.

He clenched his fists, his knuckles whitening as his eyes darted to the few men who still stood loyally in his court. Once, his banners had flown high with a host of lords at his side. Now, his army numbered less than a thousand, a pitiful shadow of its former strength.

The failure to relieve Lord Ilbert had been the final straw. His decision to delay reinforcements had backfired spectacularly, and the consequences had been catastrophic. The remaining lords, disgusted by his failure, had abandoned him altogether. They had withdrawn to their fiefs, no doubt hoping to safeguard their lands and fortunes from the Yarzats' relentless pillaging.

Lechlian's grip tightened on the armrest of his chair as his thoughts turned venomous.

What did they expect? he seethed internally. Did they truly believe I could march straight to Ilbert's aid with just 1,500 men, knowing full well the enemy had bested me before when I outnumbered them two to one?

He bit the inside of his cheek harder, the taste of blood intensifying. If those lords had even a shred of backbone, they'd see that this was a fight for survival, not just their petty fiefs. Do they think the Yarzats will stop at Ilbert's lands?

Let them rot in their castles when the Yarzats come for them. Perhaps then they'll understand what I was trying to prevent.