CHAPTER 299 Fortifying Newkeep
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CHAPTER 299 Fortifying Newkeep
297 AC
POV THIRD PERSON
After the Coldwater men were routed, it didn't take long for the rest of the army to die or surrender. Aermir could win this battle in a field, too, or he could hunker down and fight in a siege, but this would cause his enemy to lose fewer men since they could run away.
He needed them to lose a lot more, and he had to let them attack him without waiting for reinforcement, thinking this was a great opportunity.
That is why he gave them false information that he only had 3 thousand men, and they were exhausted. Thanks to this, they lost more than 2 thousand men, and he only lost 200. Another 200 of his men could not fight now, but with rest and healing, they could be fight-ready in a week or so.
The next day, Erebus contacted him. " Aermir, we stopped all the ravens and messengers going south, but we couldn't stop all the messengers since only so many of us can kill a human."
Aermir was expecting this. The Vale was too big, and only Sith, Artio, and Berus's dominated animals were strong enough to kill humans. Their number was insufficient to create a perfect net.
Erebus continued, "The main army knows you took over Strongsong, and they are coming north." Aermir asked, "How long until they reach here?"
Erebus thought about it briefly and said, "100 days." Aermir was surprised by the number. It was ridiculous. Even the slowest armies could reach Strongsong from the other side of Vale in three weeks at max.
At that moment, he remembered something: "Did you make the number up just because you only knew how to count to ten?" then he remembered something else, "Wait a minute! Did you make up those numbers every time you give a scouting report, too?" After that, there was an awkward silence and a hesitant voice said, "N-No..."
Aermir sighed, "You stupid bird, did you still not learn to count more than 10?" Then an enraged voice was heard, "You are stupid, all your family is stupid!" Aermir rubbed his temple, and he was starting to have a headache because of this muscle head. He connected all his familiars and ordered, "Is there anyone else who doesn't know how to count up to 100?"
Everyone else knew how to count except Erebus, so Erebus got angrier. "Why should I learn how to count? It doesn't help me at all. Others can count; I will do other things."
If Erebus was in the range of his summoning spell, he would summon him right now and beat him up. "It looks like we are going to have another Ravencloak." Erebus panicked and said, "No... No, we are not!"
Aermir took a deep breath and said, "You idiotic chicken, if you don't learn how to count up to 100 in the next two weeks, I will puck all of your feathers to make enchanted cloaks."
Erebus continued to rage, "I am not a chicken! You monkey, ape, brute gorilla!" Aermir stopped being playful and sent his genuine emotions through the connection; he was angry. "Erebus, I am being serious. You will learn how to count, or I will start to punish you, and Poe, go south. Scout the Vale Army and inform me how long it takes them to reach here and what their army composition is."
...
The next two days, they repaired the walls and the gates. Since mountain men knew nothing about building big structures, he had to employ some of the residents and inspect their work.
At the same time, Aermir started the next part of his plan, which would allow him to enter the battle as the Druid. He sent a message to Littlesister and took out a small leather folder filled with the messages he had captured from Joran, Cedric, and other nobles from Newkeep. He knew they could be useful for traps and misinformation, so he kept all of them.
...
They had around 800 prisoners, several thousand residents, and a few thousand refugees in the castle. Aermir decided to use the dungeons and the armory building as prisons. Using his earth spells without being seen by the residents, he sealed up all the gates and windows with rocks carried by his men. He only left holes big enough for light to get inside. He could also provide food and water using those holes.
Aermir had made it perfectly clear that the smallfolk were safe—their property and goods were safe, too. They were free to practice their religion, and it will not change. He had forbidden any kind of looting and would punish it severely.
The smallfolk were free to leave, and around four thousand left in two days. Most left the castle because they were refugees and returned to their homes around the Newkeep. The rest had lost someone they loved in the fighting and couldn't live under mountain clans.
The first one to go was the so-called religious leader of this castle, Septon Horace. The "respected" septon had left the town in the cover of night. A low-level clerk continued the sermons.
The rest didn't care who ruled them as long as they were left alone and they could live and pray in peace. By not allowing any lawlessness, the chefs had garnered some trust. Of course, Aermir couldn't trust them not to sabotage him when the fighting started, so he was going to put all of them into the armory building.
After two days, Poe contacts him and provides information about the main Vale army. The army was 30 thousand strong. Of those, 5 thousand were cavalry, 15 thousand were soldiers, and 10 thousand were levies. There was no way they could come out victorious in a head-on fight.
....
Jon Lynderly and the other lords had received information from Littlesister. Drasil forces were pulling back into the castles, and the ships were leaving empty. The lords were sitting in a big tent with only a big table and seats.
The table also contained a map of the Bite, and the scout locations of the Vale were displayed on top of the map. Jon turned towards others and asked, "What do you think this means? Do you think his wound from the assassin turned worse?"
Ronnel Hunter chimed in with a happy face and said, "I hope the arrow was poisoned. With the blessing of the Seven, he will rot in the deepest parts of the Seven hells. I hope the Stranger takes him."
While caressing his long beard, Royce Coldwater smiled and said," If he is feeling unwell, their action would make sense. As far as I know, he doesn't have an heir. With him gone, his house will end as it started."