In fact, the advance of the Tam Khan was slower than expected.
In June, Blackheart Rep sent the news to Nur, and the city began to mobilize for war, entering a state of martial law. According to the plan, Marquis Augel-Hawk of Weissenland led an army of over 15,000 to the Blackfire Pass to strengthen its defenses.
Nur began full mobilization, awaiting the imminent war.
Unexpectedly, however, the Tam Khan and his chaos army were slow to react. Even after Blackheart Rep reported to the Nur City Council, by August, the chaos army remained stationary in the Border Princes.
Karad's chivalric army had even arrived in Nur.
But it wasn't that the Tam Khan didn't want to advance quickly; his army had reached its limits.
In every sense.
This chaos army, which had been on a long expedition for over two years, was exhausted. Having finally reached the fertile, populated lands of the Border Princes, they couldn't resist a spree of looting and slaughter.
The chaos army split into thousands of warbands, spending several weeks venting their accumulated frustrations. The chaos forces extended into the western Border Princes, reaching Myrmidons before being repelled by the garrison. Much of the Border Princes had become a wasteland, replaced by ruins haunted by wandering ghosts. The devastation caused by the chaos tribes had severely damaged the region, requiring at least a generation to rebuild.
The Tam Khan was very pleased with this, having regained control over his army. However, when he announced a regrouping to cross the Black Mountains and invade the Empire, unexpected problems arose.
Internal fractures appeared within the chaos army. Many warbands and beastmen deserted, deeming further campaigns with the Tam Khan unworthy. Faced with his summons, dozens of warbands deserted, hiding in the forests and wastelands of the Border Princes and Black Mountains.
Similarly, the chaos dwarfs showed little interest in advancing. The gray prophet Drazhoath had captured many human slaves and resources, planning to send them back to the Darklands before considering further advances.
The chaos sorcerer Saia, leader of the tribe, was severely wounded in the battle of the Deadfall Pass, unable to control his army. Regathering and reuniting the chaos army took the Tam Khan considerable time, reducing his numbers by over six thousand. The army now stood at forty thousand.
By August, as the Tam Khan prepared to attack Blackfire Pass, thirty thousand Imperial troops had fortified the position, and a summer storm had turned the mountain roads into a quagmire.
In the ruins of the Border Princes, Tam Khan, chosen champion of Nurgle, Saia the chaos sorcerer, and Drazhoath the gray prophet gathered for a meeting.
The rain had just stopped. The three leaders gathered around a decaying table with a map, weighed down with warpstone.
The Empire was within reach. They had reached the Border Princes. Just beyond the Black Mountains lay Weissenland and Averland!
"Fools! Idiots! Shortsighted!" The Tam Khan roared at the gray prophet: "You and your people spent too much time! This won't do! It can't be, Father Nurgle, wants, speed!"
"Hmph!" Drazhoath responded coldly and contemptuously. Considering their previous victories and alliances in the Border Princes and Deadfall Pass, he decided not to argue with the Tam Khan.
Saia, still recovering, knew why the Tam Khan was in such a hurry.
Nurgle's corruption was deepening, spreading through the Tam Khan's tribe.
Nurgle disliked clever and agile beings, favoring an endless cycle of decay and rebirth. The deepening corruption would gradually rob the Tam Khan's tribe of their humanity and sanity. While this might make them stronger, it would hinder the Tam Khan's ambitions.
The Tam Khan himself was evolving or rather, deteriorating rapidly. New sores and wounds appeared on him daily. He would eventually become a mass of rotten flesh, fueling his urgency.
Watching the Tam Khan's fervent speech, Saia sneered. He supported the Khan's order to advance quickly, while also preparing for the worst.
With two votes for and one abstention, the war council decided to march immediately.
Another problem arose: how to assault Blackfire Pass, defended by over thirty thousand troops led by the Elector Count of Averland, Duke Umberto Corleone, a powerful warrior in his own right?
Worse, the August rains had turned the pass into a swamp, making it impossible for chaos dwarfs to transport artillery easily.
"There is a way," said the gray prophet, pointing to a place on the map in the Black Mountains: "Here."
"Here?" The Tam Khan and Saia noticed a thin line marked on the map.
"Yes, here. It's a path called Winterfang Pass, once a mine, long abandoned and now home to many dark creatures. Few remember it as a passage."
"You suggest we march through there to the Empire?" The Tam Khan growled.
"Or storm Blackfire Pass?" The gray prophet retorted impatiently.
The Tam Khan pondered. If they took Winterfang Pass, they would face a tough battle, but it would catch the Empire off guard. Beyond the pass lay the plains of Weissenland.
"Leave three thousand to harass the Blackfire Pass garrison. The rest, march to Winterfang Pass!" The Tam Khan ordered.
"Yes!"
Meanwhile, a strong new force arrived in Nur.
Led by Grail Knight Karad of Garament, a thousand Bretonnian knights, two infantry regiments, a regiment of Old Guard, and some knight attendants and logistics troops, totaling about five thousand, reached Nur.
Nur's nobility, almost in full force, gave them the grandest welcome at the city gates, a reception that astonished the Bretonnians.
Wasn't Nur supposed to be a proud city?
Hadn't even two successive emperors, Luitpold and Karl Franz, been coldly received here?
Only Ryan, watching from a distance, understood the Nur City Council's mindset.
It was the mindset of "Better friends than vassals."
This mentality was common among the Empire and high elves. Bretonnians and dwarfs were somewhat better, the former bound by the Lady's supervision and chivalric spirit, the latter by ancestral honor and family ties.
Why did this mindset exist?
You know why.
The knights had no time to ponder. Old Count Krupp, leading the Nur Merchant Alliance, greeted them warmly, providing food, drink, and military supplies.
Then, Lady Emmanuelle, holding her son Frederick, warmly greeted Karad. Karad, having met her before, politely expressed that fighting evil was a duty. The Bretonnian knights and Old Guard soon entered the city, while the infantry regiments camped outside.
After settling in, Karad visited Ryan at the electoral palace. Ryan suggested they go for a walk.
Mainly because the Lady of the Lake and Sulia had been spending a lot of time together recently, shopping and sightseeing, making it inconvenient for Ryan to host Karad at his quarters.
Karad agreed without hesitation.
Chief Justice Theodore Bruckner of Nur also joined them.
Thus, the three holy domain powerhouses strolled through Nur's affluent district at dusk.
"Thank you for coming all this way, Karad." Ryan walked with his hands behind his back. The city, somewhat desolate due to the war preparations, still buzzed with commercial and social activities in the affluent district.
This was Ryan's advice: stay calm, keep things normal, stability above all. Emmanuelle adopted this approach, refraining from imposing strict curfews or controls to maintain confidence in the Empire and the city council.
On the marble-paved road, the first man, with slicked-back black hair and no beard, looked handsome and exuded unique charisma, rebellious and confident. He was about six foot three, with a psychic vortex in his eyes, and carried a sword inscribed with mysterious runes.
The second man, slightly shorter, around six feet, had mid-length black hair and a goatee, his face sharp and weathered, blue eyes full of experience and power.
The third man, over seven feet tall, had shaggy brown hair like a lion's mane, a full beard and mustache, wearing a custom black suit, his face stern and silent.
"How's the kingdom recently?" Ryan casually asked Karad, his shadow stretching long in the lamplight.
"Good, nothing major, the knights busy restoring and recuperating." Karad, walking through Nur's bustling industrial city, felt its prosperity. "As soon as I got your letter, I came with my men. Time was tight, so I couldn't gather more."
"No problem, quality over quantity," Ryan shook his head. This war wasn't the Bretonnian knights' duty, and their numbers were sufficient.
"Baron Juan and Major Hex wanted to come, but I refused. Mousilon is still unstable," Karad continued. "They're best contributing by staying where they are. Supporting the Empire falls to us."
They found a regular pub in the affluent district. The innkeeper, shocked to see three holy domain powerhouses, welcomed them eagerly. Ryan ordered two barrels of beer, twenty pounds of roast meat, ten pounds of bread, and various vegetables and fruits.
The three sat in a booth, the waiter bringing a large barrel of beer, filling their mugs.
"Cheers!" The beer foamed in the dim light.
"How many Grail Knights came?" Chief Justice Theodore downed a large mug of beer, dripping into his beard. "Count of Garament?"
"Call me Karad," Karad drained his beer, his face relaxing. "Ten, mostly from Bastonne and Montfort, following the Lady's oracle to aid our human comrades in Nur!"
"Great
! That increases our chances!" Theodore roared, nearly shaking the pub's roof. He grabbed a honey-glazed, pepper-seasoned roast pork rib, devouring it. "With Ryan and Karad, Tam Khan is doomed!"
"Don't underestimate them!" Ryan frowned, continuing: "According to scouts and the mercenary baron Blackheart Rep from the Border Princes, we're facing Nurgle's chosen champion, thousands of chaos knights and Kurgan marauders, plus chaos dwarfs and their war machines."
"The city council has approved deploying steam tanks and landships," Theodore nodded, tossing aside the cleaned rib bones and cutting a new one. "Marienburg happily agreed, for a price. To protect their interests, they also sent the Manannan's Blade mercenaries to guard the landships, willing to fight alongside us."
"Manannan's Blade! Isn't their leader that infamous…" Karad chewed on a roast pork leg.
"Yes, the notorious mercenary baron 'Blackbeard' Edward Teach." Ryan nodded. "These mercenary scoundrels are stationed in Nur, with Blackbeard and Blackheart Rep drinking and carousing together daily."
"Well, mercenaries are like that, drinking, fighting, and whoring," Karad sighed. "But mercenaries are necessary everywhere. I've come to understand that."
"Hahaha~"
The three holy domain powerhouses devoured twenty pounds of roast meat, then ordered two roast chickens and a whole roast beef rib, leaving nothing but bones.
The innkeeper was dumbfounded, with Theodore finally settling the bill.
Leaving the pub, Ryan handed Karad a small bag of gold marks, smiling: "Take this, get a proper suit. This is Nur; you can't attend banquets in armor."
"No, I can't take your money." Karad, still in uniform, hesitated, the holy Grail Knight and godfather of William Devonshire shaking his head. "Ryan, it's unnecessary."
"Take it, it's the Lady's order. Use it to get yourself a proper suit. You'll need it." Ryan insisted, making Karad accept it.
Karad had no choice but to accept the money. Ryan nodded, saying nothing more, leaving with Theodore to attend a city council meeting on the Tam Khan's movements.
Holding the bag of gold, Count Garament strolled the affluent district, looking for a tailor shop.
He soon found a nicely decorated one, Madame Sales' Tailor Shop.
This will do.
Karad entered: "Hello, I'd like to order a suit."
"Welcome!"
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