Chapter 372: Return of Missing Persons
This is of course a conspiracy, everyone can see it.
The Radiant Knights and General Cleon were still in Sarleon City dealing with the undead, and Alina was still in White Hart Castle, but why did the Bacchus Empire attack Leon's territory at this time?
And the leader is still Justus - Cleon is Justus's good friend and also a supporter of the reformists, and Alina is Justus's daughter...
This situation is certainly not normal.
Moreover, just as Leon transferred his elite troops to the Lion City, the Bacchus Empire sent out troops. If this is said to be a coincidence, it is too much of a coincidence.
Elisa had been living in Shieldwind Fortress for some time. It was a castle rebuilt by the villagers Leon brought back from Fiedner. Elisa was familiar with them, and the villagers of Fiedner would be more tolerant of Elisa who had helped them. If the little snake girl lived somewhere else, she would easily be criticized.
A few days ago, when Leon was still in Sarleon City, Shieldwind Fortress was suddenly attacked by Governor Justus.
Normally, the Horn Summoning Rangers and the Noldor Patrol would patrol near Shieldwind Fortress, but in order to deal with Kavala, Leon took all these troops to Sarleon City, so Shieldwind Fortress was not prepared.
The residents of Shieldwind Fortress were once Bacchus. They knew that even if the troops of the Bacchus Empire broke through the castle, they would not easily kill civilians. Especially since Justus had always had a good reputation, not many civilians planned to flee.
But Elisa must run away, because Bacchus's army will not let the snake worshippers go...
Alyssa had been soaked in potions since she was a child, her skin was too white, her features were too obvious, and her forked tongue couldn't be concealed. If she stayed in Shieldwind Fortress, she would definitely die.
So Alyssa ran away immediately when Bucks's large army launched the attack.
But as soon as she ran out of the city, Alyssa found that many civilians were fleeing.
Upon asking, I found out that before attacking the Shieldwind Fortress, Bacchus's army actually looted the surrounding villages!
So Elisa organized the civilians to escape to White Deer Castle, and then met Leon who was returning to White Deer Castle from Lake Erakle on the way.
What happened to Bacchus?
Who is starting the war?
Li Ang didn't know.
But what is certain is that the enemy is fully aware of Li Ang's troop movements, otherwise how could they have chosen the timing of the attack so accurately?
Moreover, Bucks' army, contrary to its usual practice, looted the area around Shieldwind Fortress - that was the army led by Justus!
Justus had never done anything like this.
You know, Alina is still in White Hart Castle. Even if Justus is crazy, he can't plunder Leon's territory at this time. Doesn't he want his daughter anymore?
"Leon...are you doubting that it's me..."
Seeing that Leon's eyes were flickering in thought, Alina asked hesitantly.
Logically speaking, Alina was indeed worthy of suspicion. Her own father led his troops to invade the eastern region when it was at its most vulnerable. She was someone who knew the strengths and weaknesses of the eastern region. She could even rely on her good relationship with Amy and Wendy to lead the defense of many garrisons...
But Li Ang shook his head: "You are my man, why would I doubt you? I trust you, Alina, I only suspect that someone has kidnapped your father... You have to be mentally prepared."
Li Ang did not doubt Alina, he knew that this matter had nothing to do with Alina.
After all, Alina had been helping Amy when the Fierce Lion Territory was at its most dangerous. Moreover, Alina had been in White Hart Castle before, and no one had restrained her. If this matter had anything to do with her, she would have run away long ago. It was impossible for her to stay in White Hart Castle and wait to be suspected.
The greater possibility is that something happened to Justus...
Alina was stunned: “Aren’t the three prophets gone? Who else can pretend to be my father? Alyssa, are you sure you saw my father?”
"Hiss... I did see Governor Justus. I was not mistaken...hiss... He was riding in the front at that time."
Alyssa nodded and said to Alina.
"On horseback? In the front? My father?"
Alina shook her head and relaxed a little: "He is not that kind of person..."
"It seems that someone deliberately used your father's name to start a war... Alina, I'll let Ramon cooperate with you. We have to find out who the enemy is first..."
Leon knew Justus's skills, and to say that he was not good at martial arts was an exaggeration - Justus was a cultured man who made a living by his brain, and his ability in wielding a sword was roughly the same as Anson's. If he charged in front, he would be asking for his death.
It must be that he was forced to do it.
But what kind of pressure could make Justus ignore his daughter's safety?
Ramon is currently stationed in the Maixiang Territory with his Scorpio Assassins. He once auctioned off the Noldor elves, and fearing retaliation, he dared not come to the White Hart Castle...
Arina was good at handling intelligence, and the fact that Emperor Marius still let her serve as an intelligence officer even in the most difficult times speaks volumes.
When Leon was away, it was Alina who helped Amy manage intelligence work, but she had always lacked a team that could rival the Shadow Wolf Pack.
Now that he has a Scorpio assassin who is good at lurking and disguising, Leon naturally wants her to give full play to her abilities.
…
Two days later.
The army of the Bacchus Empire arrived outside White Deer Castle.
Li Ang was standing on the wall of Bailu Fort, and for a moment he thought it was a repeat of what happened yesterday.
The Bacchus Empire dispatched a force of about 5,000 men and set up camp one mile outside the city - exactly where Leon had first kidnapped the two governors.
Even the largest and most magnificent tent, that of Justus, was pitched in the same spot as it had been a few years before.
Just like last time, White Hart Fort had only a few hundred troops - most of them were archers, and they also couldn't get reinforcements in a short time.
Only Mai Xiangling had a troop of 300 men available as reinforcements - this was the same as last time.
But this time, it was Li Ang who was guarding Bailu Fort.
Moreover, all the archers in White Hart Castle are Noldor elves.
Mai Xiangling's troops are no longer Lion Knights, but Scorpio Assassins - which are more suitable for kidnapping.
Besides, Alina has already asked the Scorpio assassins to carry out the kidnapping...
But this time the intention was not to use decapitation tactics to solve the problem, but to capture a person alive to obtain intelligence.
"Leon, the assassins have obtained new information... Kairos is currently near Serenmis, with the Shadow Legion's cavalry, approximately 2,000 men."
Alina appeared behind Leon with a small notebook in her hand: "This incident was probably caused by Kairos."
"Kailos? Didn't he disappear? When did he come back?"
Li Ang turned around and said, "He's using this tactic of splitting the troops into two groups again? What's he trying to do..."
Yes, this time Bacchus actually divided his troops into two groups just like last time, even the route and operation method were exactly the same - Kailos led the Shadow Legion straight to Serenmis, while the large infantry force attacked White Deer Castle.
"It is said that he just came back two months ago, so we haven't received any news..."
Alina frowned and said, "But according to the people we captured, His Majesty Marius fell seriously ill just after Kairos returned. Moreover, it only took a few days for all the conservative nobles of Bacchus to reappear and gather around Kairos... such as the Shadow Legion."
In those days, transportation was slow and news was not transmitted smoothly. Besides, Kailos' return was not special news. It was normal that Leon and others had been concentrating on dealing with Kavala for some time and had not received any news.
But Kairos gathered all the conservative nobles in just a few days and organized such a large army?
How is this possible... There wasn't even enough time to deliver the message, this was obviously premeditated.
The conservatives of the Bacchus Empire are actually those traditional nobles who do not agree with the reform. Most of the traditional nobles disappeared when the Bacchus Empire was in danger, and many of them have died - such as Levius.
Last year, things were going well for Bacchus, as many of the 'missing' nobles resurfaced, mostly trying to recover their status and property.
But Emperor Marius paid such a high price to bring peace and stability to the country, so of course he would not let them do bad things again. It's just that Marius' policy was relatively mild, and he did not deal with these former "missing people", but just ignored them.
After all, these nobles did not do any evil in the country, and most of them could make up some excuses such as "being captured by the enemy and escaping", so it would be difficult to punish them as deserters. If they were suppressed on trumped-up charges, it might cause more trouble.
However, over the past year or so, Marius and Justus encountered several unsuccessful assassination attempts.
In fact, everyone knows who was behind the assassination, but no evidence has been found.
It stands to reason that these nobles who are out of touch with the times cannot cause any big waves.
They had few troops and it was difficult for them to unite - they were just a bunch of greedy parasites, so Marius was not too worried.
But who would have known that this group of parasites could gather such a large army in just a few days, and that Marius was too ill to control them. This must have been planned long in advance.
Leon sighed. He could understand why these conservatives wanted to start a war, and why Kairos wanted to attack him...
Recently, the Bacchus Empire has gradually become powerful. If Emperor Marius destroys Desha, half of the continent will be integrated by Marius, and it will be even more difficult for the conservatives to turn the tide.
They must cause chaos in Bacchus. The more enemies the Bacchus Empire has, the more chances they will have.
If they could break into White Hart Castle, they could not only plunder it, but also force Marius to make the Shadow Legion the main force of Bacchus again - Bacchus originally only had himself as an ally, and if he became an enemy of Leon again, Bacchus would become the enemy of the entire continent, and he would have no choice but to conquer him.
Attacking White Hart Keep is in line with the current situation and is in line with morality and rules - the people of White Hart Keep are all Noldor elves, and attacking the Noldor elves is definitely not a crime!
In addition, Changhe Town and Bailu Fort were relatively empty, so there was no pressure in doing this job, and Emperor Marius could not blame them.
Besides, after attacking White Hart Castle and capturing the Noldor elves, it didn’t matter what Leon would do. Anyway, Bacchus and the Noldor elves would definitely be enemies. Marius could only let the people of the Shadow Legion stay in the eastern region to block the revenge of the Noldor elves, and their goal would be achieved.
"Whose tongue is that the assassins caught?"
Li Ang asked with a frown.
"It's Decimus..."
"Decimus? I seem to have heard of this name..."
Li Ang turned around.
"He used to be the lord of Buyulin Village. After the Red Death broke out in Buyulin Village, he abandoned the villagers and ran away. He never appeared again... Last year, when my father was rebuilding Diling Port, Decimus showed up and asked my father to return his territory and property... My father refused. After that, my father encountered several assassination attempts, and the killers were all dressed as Snake Worshipers."
Alina answered quickly.
"So, Decimus might be a member of the Snake Cult? The Red Death in Buyulin Village is also related to him?"
Li Ang guessed.
This is all normal. There are indeed many lords in the Bacchus Empire who have defected to the Snake Cult, and Decimus originally belonged to the Shadow Legion - the doctors of the Knights of the Glorious Cross have also said that most of the people in the Shadow Legion have been corrupted by the Snake Cult.
"There is no clear information on this matter... but he is a subordinate of Kairos and a member of the Shadow Legion."
Alina said unhappily, "The Shadow Legion's people have lost their status in the past two years. They may be trying to regain power."
"It's really interesting. If these cowards wanted to control power, they might as well take advantage of Emperor Marius' serious illness to do something big in Siyuan City - such as a mutiny to seize power."
Li Ang shook his head: "But they sent troops to White Hart Castle... Not to mention that there are so many Noldor elves in White Hart Castle that they can't attack it. Even if they can take it down, they will still be dealt with after Emperor Marius recovers..."
"Yeah... they're just a bunch of greedy cowards, but it's disgusting."
Alina nodded and agreed with Leon.
"Your father was probably coerced into something... It's probably related to Emperor Marius' illness."
Li Ang looked at the tents outside the city and had the urge to break into the enemy camp alone again...
After all, everything was very similar to the last time. He inexplicably felt that this might be fate's arrangement...
"Don't go... Leon, you are no longer that unknown person. Everyone knows you... Besides, three Scorpio assassins have died trying to get into my father's tent. They are well guarded."
Alina reached out and grabbed the corner of Li Ang's clothes: "Let's think about how to defeat the enemy... and I don't think those cowards have the ability to create such a big scene in such a short time."
"You mean several other countries are also involved? Are they targeting me?"
Leon shook his head. "It shouldn't be - Wendy and I rushed back from Sarleon. They had already sent troops when I was still in Sarleon. In other words, they didn't know I was here, and they were not coming for me. But there are already 5,000 people in White Hart Castle alone, plus Kairos with the Shadow Legion in Serenmis, adding up to 7,000 to 8,000. This scale is indeed impossible for those fallen nobles to come up with it alone. Most of the other countries are also in collusion... They all want to make Bacchus the enemy of the entire continent..."
Alina sighed: "Should we break out from Bailu Fort first, go to Changhe Town to organize an army, and stop Kairos first?"
"No, if we give up Bailu Fort, the enemies will all gather in Changhe Town, and the construction of Changhe City will be ruined... Besides, Bailu Fort cannot be lost..."
Li Ang also sighed: "Not to mention that Pendor Bank is still here, just because of the importance of White Hart Castle to the Noldor elves, I can't abandon White Hart Castle - if I can't show my determination to protect this place, how can the Noldor elves follow me all the time?"
