335 – Attack on Veneta Castle (2)
The next morning.
After Peter Jaeger received the report that the entire army had completed preparations for the siege, he approached the castle wall and looked up at it.
It may seem like a rash action for the commander-in-chief of an army of 150,000 troops, but in this era, even in a war situation where the survival of the country is at stake, it is almost impossible to kill the opposing commander who came to give an ‘official recommendation to surrender’. .
Because, without exaggeration, killing an enemy lion is an atrocity similar to the rape and massacre of an innocent civilian village, and it not only spreads across the entire continent.
In this era, the war had not officially started, and directly shooting and killing a high-ranking person such as an enemy general was considered an atrocity that no human should commit.
Therefore, Captain Jaeger, who had a certain degree of trust, walked slowly and majestically while having Laura follow him holding the division flag of the Reich 7th Guards Division, the unit that he and others feared the most.
“Laura, that’s a good thing. That castle wall looks really strong, but the soldiers guarding it are idiots who can’t even hold a spear properly.”
Laura responded to that statement with a slightly exaggerated chuckle.
“If the soldiers on that wall were elite, I would have advised them to retreat, sir.”
“I almost came all the way here and couldn’t capture Veneta Castle. In that sense, I am very lucky.”
Guarding the high and sturdy castle wall, which is about 6 meters high, are men with the skills of a private who has just come out of a training camp in the Reich Empire.
No, it is a castle guarded by heads of families who must somehow survive and preserve their lives in order to protect their beloved wives and children.
In some ways, it looked like an impregnable and strong castle, but it was fortunate for the imperial army that the people supporting the walls on top were nothing more than trash.
As a man with a wife and children, Captain Jaeger felt a small amount of resistance, but the most important thing to him was the victory of the Empire and the survival of the Imperial soldiers.
He completely let go of his guilt and decided to do the last thing he could do for the Imperial Army as commander-in-chief: to advise them to surrender.
“Hear, brave militia of the walls of Veneta!”
At those words, the nobles standing on the castle wall trembled with tension and fear, asking if that was Peter Yeager, and the militiamen cursed wildly to drive away fear.
Normally, Jaeger would have listened to each and every one of these words and tried to dig up information about the enemy, but right now he had no time or need to do so, so he ignored them and moved on.
Instead, he sent a signal to Laura and raised the unit flag that they feared the most.
“Brave soldiers of the Venetian walls, your resistance and resistance will be meaningless! Because I came here only to judge the nobles of Veneta Castle who attacked the family of Duke Philorence, the in-laws of His Majesty the Emperor of the Empire! Because it is not for your innocent blood to be smeared on my sword! Therefore, as the representative of His Majesty the Emperor and Commander of the Imperial Army, I solemnly declare that whoever lays down his spear and surrenders will be guaranteed the lives and property of his wife and children!”
These words of Peter Yeager drastically lowered the morale of the militia, who were already on the verge of hitting rock bottom.
Because there was only one reason why they had to fight: they came out to fight, prepared to die to protect the lives of their wives and children and their property. Because they said they would guarantee it.
So, the survivors of the 7th Division and other militia units that had been nearly massacred by the Reich Imperial Army cautiously opened their mouths to the soldiers around them.
“Peter Yeager, that guy is famous for keeping his word… If that’s true, it would be much better for us to just surrender. Every single one of those bastards is much stronger than the mercenaries we paid for. Besides, what will we have left if we fight?”
“Even if we roll in the mud, this world is better. Why are we risking our lives to fight for the sake of the damn nobles? Even if I fight to the death and win, how will my wife and daughter live if I die? “Do you think I’ll be thankful that the castle I fought and fought for was the castle my father protected while I was a prostitute?”
“……Imperial knight bastard, Imperial knights are such homos*xual bastards…”
Peter Yeager smiled confidently as he realized that his morale had dropped more than he had intended.
“But if you don’t surrender!”
When he shouted loudly and paused for a moment, everyone’s attention and focus was on him.
“You will all fall before me and the imperial army’s sword and die! If you, the 150,000 elites under my command, try to resist us by holding spears and relying on this low wall, we will go over this castle in unison and massacre and butcher you! And at that time, the nobles of Veneta Castle, whom you trust and serve, will let anyone die even if they are injured, take their property and run away. Just like it was at Brito Plain not long ago! If you lose your lives like that, isn’t it obvious what will happen to the wife and children you leave behind? His daughter and wife will sell themselves to get two or three coopers to make a living, and his son will live in misery with both his wrists cut off after being caught pickpocketing in his back alley. So think carefully. Will you surrender and survive with your wife, children, and property preserved? Or will you die in vain resistance to protect the power and property of the nobles alone?”
After Peter Yeager withdrew, severely injured prisoners of the Venetian Allied militia that had been recovered by the Imperial Army appeared.
Some people were missing one or two or more arms and legs, and their appearance was so terrible that even the victorious imperial army could not see it.
Some of the militia were afraid that they would end up in the same situation, so their legs became weak and they sat down, while others, realizing the fear and cruelty of the battlefield, nauseated or vomited.
The wounded prisoners were carried on a cart and shouted loudly.
“f*ck Veneta nobles, you bastards! If you guys started a f*cking war, then how the f*ck! “Can you abandon us, who are wounded and dying while fighting for you, and run away to a safe castle?”
“Because of you, my son Grio, who fought with me, died! Even as he was dying, he was the son who hoped that the captain would not abandon him, and that he would soon be cured and live again! He is a guy who will fight against the imperial army as long as he lives, as long as he can get hold of the spear…”
“If you don’t want to end up like us, open the gate right now!”
Even the soldiers of the imperial army, who had won an overwhelming victory, thought it was a terrible sight. The sight of the prisoners and their earnest cries of boiling resentment plunged the morale of the militia to the depths of hell.
Even though the nobles around them were watching, the militia members shed tears of fear or collapsed due to lack of strength.
If you fight against the monster-like imperial army of hell, as testified by those who returned from the last war, it is obvious that you will die or be reduced to a miserable situation worse than dying like the wounded soldiers in front of you.
Meanwhile, the nobles inside Veneta Castle sensed the agitation of the militia and, in order to correct it, drew their swords and threatened the soldiers.
“You idiots! Peter Yeager Are you going to believe that warmongering bastard’s bullsh*t! Or will you believe us who lived in the same city!”
“Hold your spear and prepare to fight! “As soon as the imperial army crosses the wall, they will change their tune and immediately rape your wives and children!”
“A cub who sits down because he is scared, a cub who hesitates due to fear. “I will kill you all with the sword of my body!”
In the original plan, they would kill some frightened citizens as an example and hand over their severed heads to control the militia through fear, but punishing one person and punishing them out of extreme fear (punishing one person very severely and warning them) would only have the opposite effect. , I couldn’t really cut him to death.
However, the soldiers did not want to die right away, so they somehow grabbed their spears and barely leaned against the castle wall, preparing to fight against the imperial army.
Peter Yeager returned to his camp and gave strict orders to his generals.
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“If you have reasonable grounds to believe that the sacrifice of your allies is necessary, never hesitate and push for it as strongly as possible! Show hell to those ragtag gangs with more courage and boldness than the training you have received so far! Let their blood flow like a river! Long live your Majesty the Emperor! Long live the Reich Reich!”
As soon as the command was delivered, the knights and archers of the Reich Empire dismounted from their horses and immediately launched the pre-assembled catapults and ballistas.
The ballista arrows and the stones from the catapult that hit the castle wall made a loud banging sound, but those that flew into the castle had already caused enough fear and tragedy.
At least two or three arrows pierced the bodies of soldiers and citizens, and those who were hit by flying stones died with their bodies crushed and blood and internal organs scattered.
The militiamen who saw that trembled with fear.
‘If that hellish army led by Captain Peter Yeager crosses the castle wall, we won’t be able to fight properly. I’m just going to die.’