227 – Siege of the Royal Capital of Oslo (4)
Even though it is a castle that is said to be impregnable, there is no case where there are absolutely no gaps.
If I say this, someone will definitely object.
‘No, but why is it impregnable? It is difficult to attack and impossible to capture, so it is said to be impregnable. ‘Isn’t it contradictory to say that there is a gap there too?’
The reason is very simple: even a small number of soldiers must have an opening to continuously come and go, so that they can contact allies outside the castle even when surrounded.
You can dispatch a small elite unit through an opening unknown to the enemy to surprise the enemy forces besieging the castle, destroy siege weapons, or take action to lower their morale.
In the worst situation, it can be used to escape the high-ranking people in the castle.
And if you ask why I am thinking this now.
“Lieutenant General Jaeger, there are about 5 holes here in Oslo Castle. “There is one near the moat, two here under the north gate, one near the west gate, and one at the east gate.”
After I lowered their morale by burning down the villages around Oslo Castle two weeks ago, more and more people were willing to risk their lives to come over and provide information.
The number and placement of the castle’s garrison, the shift times of the guards on the castle wall, the food situation, the morale of the current soldiers, the private lives of the generals and nobles inside the castle, and all kinds of information.
Thanks to this, those belonging to the Imperial Intelligence Department or intelligence unit are very busy collecting and organizing the information provided by them and immediately reporting it.
The guy in front of me right now has a fairly high rank in the Kingdom of Stockholm, so I, the second-in-command, am dealing with him.
“Keep talking, Baron Vinland.”
“But among these, the one near the moat and the one near the north gate are all fake. As proof, if you enter the castle through that hole, you will be able to enter Oslo without being detected. “There is a guard barracks 15 meters ahead, so if you make even the slightest noise, you are bound to be caught.”
“Then what about the openings at the east and west gates?”
“It’s safe there. That’s because the hole at the east gate leads to Slum District 1, and the hole at the west gate leads to a small cathedral.”
So far, it does not seem like this guy is lying, as it matches about 95% of the information provided by good guys who came to serve the Reich Empire rather than traitors to the Kingdom of Stockholm.
No, it seems like the kingdom’s baron is really trying to betray, risking his life and family.
But I guess I should try it one more time just in case.
“Then. If you are going to infiltrate for a surprise attack, when will you infiltrate? “If it were me, I would probably infiltrate around the crack of dawn.”
When Baron Vinland heard those words, his eyes sparkled.
Seeing his eyes twinkling like that, it seems like he must have some intention. If you analyze his emotions from what he has shown so far, it seems.
It must be a combination of betrayal, desire, desire for success, and desire for survival.
In other words, just looking at what he has shown so far, he can be seen as a trustworthy spy.
“Dawn before dawn is dangerous. Even though King Christian of Stockholm is a bastard, the Minister of Military Affairs, Oxenburg, is not an easy person to look at. “It would be safest to infiltrate around 9 p.M.”
“What is the reason?”
“When the guards make their rounds, they go near the hole and take a look, but that is also the time when the guards are most let down. “They make their rounds around 8:40, and they don’t pass by around 9 o’clock.”
I nodded and agreed with those words as if I was interested, but this son of a b*tch is a double agent who gave most of the correct information but hid one fatal lie.
From noble mtl dot com
The reason I learned that was because the patrol time of the guards, which I found out while cross-checking the information provided by numerous spies, and the time he said were slightly different.
If you move at the time that Baron Vinland said is the perfect time for a surprise attack, you will likely be annihilated.
So, I hit the guy in the face with the sheath I had on my waist for a moment, and his teeth fell out, causing him to have a nosebleed.
“No, I provided correct information! But why on earth are you hitting me?”
I kicked the guy who said that in the stomach.
“If you’re going to sell information, you have to sell the right information. Even if you beat him up like a fool, he will lie about the location of the hole or the number of soldiers deployed on the border of each castle wall. Are you fooling the guards by taking the time to go around the perimeter?”
After saying that, I gave a signal with my hand and ordered him to be dragged away.
Now, that damn bastard will be subjected to the cruel torture used to interrogate scouts and spies, and he will reveal all the information he has and does not have.
“Ha, it looks like His Majesty Christian, King of Stockholm, was really pushed as hard as he could. “You sent a bastard the size of a baron with the words of abandonment just to get a chance to survive by deceiving me.”
As I was talking to myself like that, the barrack door opened and Laura came in.
“What you said, Lieutenant General, was right. When I sought appropriate cooperation from the five spies who were believed to have spread false information, I found out that it is not uncommon for ordinary soldiers to confront platoon and company commanders within Oslo Castle, almost to the point of mutiny. It is said that the soldiers standing guard are talking about opening the gates on the walls as if it were a joke, but it is like eating.”
“I’m at a loss for words because it’s worse than I thought. By the way, wasn’t the colonel closed today?”
“I will do whatever I can to help you, Lieutenant General. “That way, I can’t lose to that cat… no, no, the colonel.”
As far as this war is concerned, unless Laura pulls off some miracle, it will be difficult to defeat Anya, who cut off Ishtaven’s head herself.
Still, it looks really cute to see him working so hard.
“By the way, Lieutenant General, it seems there is little information we can dig up anymore. What would you like to do? “If only 70% of the information collected so far matches, I think we can open the East Gate of Oslo Castle.”
The reason why a defense facility called a castle is scary is because the opponent attacking the castle must climb up the walls to capture it.
If the castle gate is breached, such a strong defensive function is lost.
Still, Oslo Castle can mobilize close to 200,000 or 250,000 troops, including citizens. It is realistically impossible to attack with our current troops.
So, you can’t occupy the castle, but trying to bluff by opening the castle gate won’t have much effect.
“I also want to open the castle gate. But if that happens, you have to show your power to take over the castle right away. “With the current number of our soldiers, it is impossible to significantly reduce the forces inside the castle, let alone occupy Oslo Castle.”
“…… It would have been better if there had been more soldiers.”
“It’s a miracle that you came this far, so don’t be too sad, Colonel. Instead, there is a way to instill more fear than opening the gate. “That would be fine for now.”
“……What are you talking about if it is a scarier method than opening the castle wall?”
What makes those who are scared and locked in the castle even more fearful and scary is that the size of the enemy increases several times, and it also makes them realize that they are even more cornered.
In fact, the scariest thing is that it makes them suspect that the allies who are locked in the castle together may have betrayed each other, and makes them fear that they might pick up a sword and stab them from behind at any moment.
You can see the enemy approaching in front of you and think about how to deal with it.
A traitorous ally approaching from behind without warning is a fear that cannot be dealt with.
“They make it impossible for us to trust each other. Doesn’t it appear in the academy’s basic curriculum? The moment the trust of our allies is broken, even an elite army of 1 million people becomes a fool. “I’ll have to use it thoroughly.”
“What do you plan to do specifically? “I don’t think you would entrust such an important operation to informants within the Oslo Castle…”
“Of course, Colonel Laura. The subject is us, but the ones being used are many prisoners from Stockholm. “For now, sleep well today and see you tomorrow.”
At that time, Laura looked at me and Charlotte alternately and said,
“Sleep comfortably, Lieutenant General. And Charlotte.”
It seemed like there was some kind of warning in those eyes, so I ordered Charlotte to sleep in another tent, even though I had originally planned to do so.
I wasn’t planning on touching it anyway, but it’s a bit scary to receive such an unspoken warning.
And the next afternoon, I gathered the prisoners of the Kingdom of Stockholm together and asked:
“I have a small favor to ask, how about it? “Are you willing to listen?”