Chapter 99 The Lioness is Passed In
June 1264, the Nilfgaardian army was preparing its weapons and equipment in Manado, on the border with Sintra, and was preparing for the attack.
In July 1264, Nilfgaard set out from Manado, crossed the Amer Mountains, and launched a surprise attack on the Ihrenwald forest area in the southernmost part of Cintra.
Cintra, the gateway to the northern kingdom, officially came into close contact with the southern empire Nilfgaard. The Ihrenwald forest area could not even make waves in this battle, and was occupied in one day.
In the same month, Queen Calanthe of Cintra received the news and rushed to fight. The 20,000 troops originally planned to be assembled were actually less than 10,000 in place.
In order to stop Nilfgaard's advance, Queen Calanthe and King East led all the cavalry one step ahead, gathering various lords and infantry along the way. At the same time, they ordered Marshal Visekid to go to the north and assemble the remaining troops from the north. army, waiting for orders.
When Queen Calanthe and King East arrived in the Manada Valley, their troops had only assembled more than 12,000 people.
The Nilfgaard army, which had already occupied Ihlenwald, laid a dragnet here. When Queen Calanthe and King East entered the valley, they found that they were surrounded by enemies several times their size.
"I... was actually ambushed in my own country." Queen Calanthe said through gritted teeth.
East couldn't believe it: "How many people are there...forty thousand? Fifty thousand? Or...one hundred thousand? What on earth does Nilfgaard want..." The
black-armored soldiers were like a tide coming from the end of their sight. At this moment, everyone in Cintra finally realized what they were facing. This was not the past conflicts and frictions between countries. The number of soldiers in front of them had exceeded that of many middle-level countries in the north. Total population!
Cintra's side reluctantly got into formation, and the knights collided with the infantry before they could accelerate their charge. Loud shouts echoed in the valley, and smoke and blood rushed into the sky.
The king shouted: "Breakout, my love, we must break out!"
Calanthe roared like a lioness, went into battle and chopped down a soldier with a sword, shouting: "Where are we going to break out? Nefer must be killed here. Gad is defeated, otherwise the towns behind will not be able to stop these tides of soldiers! Nilfgaard wants to destroy our country! When was the last time you heard from Skellig? Didn't it mean that there would be fifty Is it a ship? Where is the ship!"
East replied loudly, and his voice was still loud amidst the shouts of killing: "They encountered a storm at sea, and the large force could not arrive. We were the only ones who diverted the troops according to Lan's suggestion. The hundreds of people who came out will go ashore, and even if they come, there won't be any impact!"
Hearing the words "Lan suggested", the ferocity in Calanthe's eyes became even more fierce, and his beautiful face was covered with enemies. The blood on her chest was even more bewitching at the moment; the three lions emblem on her chest was also thirsty for blood and was showing its teeth and claws.
"Lan! He died in Nilfgaard, where the damn Black Sun flag hung!" "
We will fight alone without reinforcements! Cintra will never surrender!"
A charging knight Trapped in a tight siege, he was easily stabbed down with a spear after knocking away two soldiers. Immediately afterwards, several different weapons were pierced into the gaps in the armor; the soldiers in black armor held
heavy axes and killed the enemy with his helmet belt. His head was slashed all the way to his mouth, and before he could pull out the jammed weapon, he was stabbed through the stomach by the enemy behind him; the
soldier under the flag of the Three Lions had already cut the long sword to the curled blade, he pulled out his dagger and a Black Sun The soldiers under the banner rolled into a ball, and the long sword penetrated his collarbone, but his dagger was also deeply buried in the opponent's eye socket.
They are the strongest army since the founding of Sintra. They are the proud lions of Sintra, so they will fight to the death. It was by leading such an army that the lioness Calanthe was able to take advantage of Cintra's small territory and challenge the powerful countries in the north with pure military power.
The battle lasted from early morning to dusk. At this time, there were not many soldiers left in Cintra. Each of them had made gains and killed far more enemies than themselves, but a steady stream of Black Sun soldiers were still rushing towards them. come over.
Nilfgaard's officers stood on horseback high in the valley overlooking the battle below, looking at the king and queen wearing eye-catching golden lion armor.
No matter how bloody the two rulers of the country fought, they were still escorted to the edge of the battlefield by the few remaining guards who fulfilled their duties. "I didn't expect that the lioness and the King of East would fight here personally .
It seems that the harvest of this battle will be greater than imagined."
The commander said resolutely: "We can't let them run away - Count Cassirer!"
Next to the commander, an officer wearing high-grade black armor with gold patterns and a winged helmet raised his head upon hearing this, waiting for military orders.
"King East doesn't matter whether he lives or lives, but the lioness must be captured alive. After that, you will lead the cavalry to raid the capital of Cintra. I know that His Majesty the Emperor may have assigned you other tasks, complete it!" The Black Wing Knight accepted the order after hearing this
. He picked up a strong bow that was half as long as his upper body and drew it towards King East for a while. He shook his head and gave up the tempting idea of once and for all. He was about to order his own bodyguards to intervene in the battlefield, but he heard again The commander roared:
"Hurry up, Count Cassirer! The situation has changed!" The
Black Wing Knight looked in the direction pointed by the commander, and saw a team of several hundred people entering the battlefield in the distance.
There are not many of them, but they are all elite. Wearing chainmail and mostly equipped with short axes, daggers and bucklers, he didn't look like a knight charging on the battlefield, but more like a sailor fighting against the waves on the sea.
In fact, this is exactly the case.
"The sun is up! Why did those damn pirates get here? Shouldn't the damn warlocks have stopped them in the sea?"
A team of several hundred people cannot control this 10,000-person war. Melee, unless they are both warlocks, and they must be combat warlocks rather than research warlocks.
However, after fighting for a day, the Nilfgaardian army was exhausted, and most of them could not even hold their swords. At this time, such a group of warriors who were crying and bathed in blood were really torn open by them for a while.
"Where is Prince East!"
"Where is Prince East!"
The Skelliges who rushed into the battlefield shouted while bathing in blood. They called East a prince instead of a king, because East was the king of Skellige. The warrior of the sea prefers to call him his own brother.
"Here!" East supported Calanthe. The queen was seriously injured in the battle just now, and blood was oozing from her body.
At this moment, an arrow leaping from outside the battlefield interrupted everyone's conversation, aiming directly at East!
"Uncle, be careful!" The leader of the sailors was always alert to the surroundings. His direction was just right to see the sharp arrow swimming in mid-air.
Crossing nearly half the distance of the battlefield, the speed of the arrow dropped greatly. The sailor pushed East away and easily caught it with his buckler. The force of the arrow did not even make his arm tremble. arrive.
"Damn it!" The Black Wing Knight put down the longbow in his hand, "It's Kratz An Clete, the 'Wild Boar of the Sea'!"
Kratz, who caught the arrow with his buckler, was the type that could be seen at a glance. He is a warrior. He is obviously a head taller than the soldiers around him. He has a strong body, broad shoulders and an even wider waist. His chest is as hard as a rock. When he roars, it seems like the wind and waves are roaring.
The "Boar of the Sea" was a nickname given to him by the Nilfgaardians who lived on the southern coast and could scare crying children. And Kratz is proud.
When the king saw the reinforcements arriving, he was happy but restrained: "Kratz, are you the only ones there?"
Kratz helped to lift Calanthe up: "Uncle, only our Kraite family's ship is separated from the larger army as you suggested. Come on, we have escaped the storm, we are all."
Calanthe was completely unconscious at this moment, but she clearly did not suffer heavy sword stabs and cuts. It was obviously wrong to be injured like this. The anxious East picked up Calanthe and shouted loudly:
"Guards, follow the Skellig sailors and break out!"
The Skellig sailors have been climbing mountains and fighting waves since they were born. With strong troops, the Claytor family became the top family in the Skellig Islands.
The tide of Nilfgaardians who had been fighting fiercely for a day was too weak, and for a while they could only watch a team of several hundred people march away with the king and queen.
.........
That night, by the fire, Cintra's troops were almost completely wiped out, and only a dozen janitors escaped with the king and queen.
East stood worriedly outside the tent, where a druid from the fleet was healing Calanthe's wounds.
After a while, the Druid came out, and anxious East hurried forward to ask.
The druid hesitated for a moment and said: "Prince East, please... go in and talk to the queen more..."
East's eyes suddenly turned red, and he grabbed the druid's lapel and shouted: "What do you mean? What happened to my love?"
Druid didn't have any idea about East's actions and just said regretfully: "Your Highness, did you know? The Queen is pregnant."
After hearing this, East staggered as if he was struck by lightning. He staggered back and leaned against a tree, staring at the Druid who spoke in disbelief, and slowly slipped to the ground.
"I...we haven't been able to have a child for so many years, and I have never thought about having a child with her. Why now, why..."
Druid glanced at Kratz, who was also shocked, and continued: " The Queen herself probably doesn’t know. Riding horses, fighting, and knife wounds are not what a pregnant woman should bear. She had a miscarriage. The Queen is very strong, otherwise the bleeding would have killed her long ago, but no matter how strong she is, she can’t hold on. How long."
The druid stepped forward and patted East's shoulder sympathetically: "I'm sorry, Your Highness. But I can't help her. Maybe Mossak can, but it's too late to say anything now. Please Come in."
East walked into the tent with sad eyes. Kratz and the soldiers watched him off, silently.
The bonfire burned vigorously, but it could not dispel the long night.
Late at night, Calanthe, who was looking back, kissed East for the last time. At the last moment, she said to her beloved husband:
"My love...I saw Pavetta...my princess. My love, help me. Take care of Ciri."
These were Calanthe's last words.
The lioness is gone.
(End of chapter)