About four thousand soldiers followed Prince Liam out of the Royal Garden District, along with tens of thousands of refugees. When he returned to the ranks with Lord Godfrey, his mother, Queen Mia Greymane, asked with concern, "Are you alright, Liam?"
"I'm fine," Liam replied.
His sister, Princess Tess Greymane, noticed he was riding a different horse and was about to ask about 'Snowy,' but luckily she stopped herself. Otherwise, it would have certainly saddened her brother—his eyes were red, and he looked like he had been crying.
As the group passed through the King's Gate, Liam stopped and said to Godfrey, "Lord Godfrey, we can't just retreat like this. The Scourge's army is nipping at our heels; someone must stay behind to cover our retreat. The King's Gate is flanked by mountains that are difficult to cross, making it a suitable place for defense. I will stay here to build fortifications and establish a defensive line. Please escort my mother and sister to Greymane Manor, and arrange for the refugees to go to Duskhaven."
Vincent Godfrey frowned and said, "Let me stay with some men, and you escort the Queen and Princess! Liam, you are Gilneas's only hope now. King Genn entrusted you to me; I cannot let you take such a risk!"
Liam, thinking of his father still fighting fiercely in Gilneas City, immediately retorted, "I am past the age of needing protection! Now is the time for me to fulfill my duty as the Prince of Gilneas. Do as I say, Lord Godfrey. That is an order!"
Queen Mia, hearing the content of their argument and seeing that her son wanted to stay behind to cover their retreat, hurriedly said, "Liam, Lord Godfrey is right. You are Gilneas's only hope now; do not fail your father's efforts!"
"Mother," Liam looked at the Queen with determination, "I will protect myself, but I cannot Live a miserable life just to save my own life! This is the most critical moment for Gilneas. As a 'Greymane,' I must set an example! If I also retreat, who will protect the people of Gilneas?"
Queen Mia was not a domineering mother; she was merely a woman of noble status. She knew that Liam had made up his mind and that she could not dissuade him. She looked at her daughter, hoping Tess could persuade him.
"Brother!" Princess Tess's eyes were filled with tears. She knew her brother's character even better, knowing that any further persuasion would be useless. "You…take care! Greymane cannot lose you, and Gilneas cannot be without you!"
"Don't worry, I won't die!" He opened his arms and embraced his mother and sister, revealing his gentlest smile. "Trust me! Mother, Tess, hurry to the manor. Only when you are safe can I fight without worry!"
The mother and daughter returned to the carriage and said goodbye to Liam. Only when they could no longer see his figure did they burst into tears in the carriage.
"Lord Godfrey, you should leave quickly too! Seize the time and bring people from Duskhaven to support us!" Liam instructed Vincent.
"Very well, Your Highness!" Lord Godfrey replied in a deep voice. He took off his hat and bowed deeply to the prince. At this moment, Liam's actions deeply impressed him.
This was the courage and responsibility a Greymane should have!
As the refugees, terrified by the Scourge's attack, passed through the King's Gate, they saw the prince organizing the soldiers to build a defensive line to protect them, and everyone paid their respects to him. Even the commoners felt the prince's determination and courage.
At this moment, he gained everyone's love and respect.
"For Greymane!" he shouted, raising his sword, and countless voices responded.
…
"For Greymane!" This slogan also echoed in Gilneas City. Genn and a group of soldiers were holding the only bridge leading from the Royal Garden District to the Military District. The Scourge forces poured in endlessly from the other side of the bridge. The cannons set up on the bridgehead had fired all their shells in a single day. Mountains of corpses piled up on the other side of the bridge, but the Scourge's army still charged over with such density that their numbers seemed undiminished.
The moment the cannon fire stopped, the bridgehead instantly turned into a living hell. Genn stood at the front with his sword and shield, fighting alongside the soldiers, crazily slaughtering the Scourge soldiers. Behind him, riflemen and mages provided fire suppression. But the Scourge seemed inexhaustible. The corpses that fell into the inner river almost blocked the waterway, yet there was still no end in sight to the Scourge.
It was a completely despairing scene. Genn shouted loudly, raising his shield to block the ghoul's attack, and with a backhand slash, he chopped off the head of a skeleton soldier. He couldn't remember how many Scourge he had killed that day, only that his hands felt like they could no longer be lifted. If it weren't for the desperate protection of the Royal Guards beside him, he might have died several times already.
At this moment, an Abomination strode out of the Scourge horde. Its massive body squeezed some unlucky Scourge soldiers into the river. Riflemen fired wildly, bullets hitting the Abomination's body, tearing away large pieces of rotten flesh and intestines, but they could not stop the Abomination from continuing to advance. It rushed to Genn, first killing the guard beside him with an axe, then wielding the iron hook on its third hand to knock Genn's shield away. Finally, it threw the chain on its right hand, instantly entangling King Genn. As long as it pulled hard, the king would be dragged in front of it. Waiting for him would certainly be dismemberment by the Scourge soldiers!
Just as the Abomination grinned hideously, preparing to pull back the chain, a figure fearlessly pounced over, raising a greatsword and severing the Abomination's right arm at the critical moment.
The Abomination was furious. Its third hand extended a hook, grabbing the belt of the human soldier who had damaged its body, lifting him up, and then wielding the giant axe to behead him.
"Lieutenant Walden!" Genn watched this scene in grief. The person who saved him was the loyal Lieutenant Walden. Even more infuriating was that the Abomination discarded Walden's headless body but hooked his head and brought it to its mouth, opening its bloody maw and chewing fiercely. As fresh flesh entered its mouth, the wounds on the Abomination's body caused by swords and bullets were rapidly healing—it was actually devouring the corpses of living people to recover its injuries!
More Abominations appeared on the other side of the bridge. The Gilnean army, lacking heavy firepower, was simply unable to stop these disgusting monsters. A guard shouted, "Your Majesty, you must retreat!"
"No, no!" Genn was dragged off the battlefield by several Royal Guards. The remaining soldiers quickly retreated. These Scourge were truly terrifying! No one wanted to continue fighting these monsters.
After Genn was dragged to the rear by the soldiers, he gradually calmed down. He signaled the soldiers to release him and then ordered, "Now we only have the Military District left. The terrain here is complex; we must delay as much time as possible. What is the status of the refugees' retreat?"
"Most of them have retreated!" the soldier replied.
At this moment, news also came from the garrison of the northern bridge that they were about to lose it after their shells ran out.
King Genn waved his hand in some pain and ordered, "Organize the remaining people and the army to retreat from the city gate!"
"Where to?"
"The gate of the Military District only leads to Stormglen, where the terrain is dangerous, and we can continue to deploy defenses!"
King Genn was very tired. He mounted his warhorse and watched a large number of people gathering towards the city gate exit. Everyone looked panicked. He, like the people here, did not know where Gilneas's way out was.
The people led by Liam were going in another direction. He hoped that he could leave by sea and preserve the hope of Gilneas!
Genn prayed in his heart.
He saw a lady organizing a group of civilians to move various supplies. Because the incident happened suddenly, many refugees had brought almost nothing. He was only focused on commanding the battle and had not thought about rescuing supplies. He didn't expect this lady to think of it so carefully.
Genn spurred his horse over. The lady saw the king coming and immediately saluted somewhat restrainedly, "Your Majesty!"
"You've done well," Genn nodded, first affirming her achievements, and then asked, "What is your name?"
"Your Majesty, my name is Gwen Armstead. I used to run a tailor shop in the Commercial District!" Gwen replied. She was beautiful, dressed very appropriately, and wore a small hat on her head, which looked very fashionable and matched her clothes well.
Genn noticed that she also had a rapier hanging at her waist, seemingly preparing to fight the Scourge army.
Gwen saw the target of the king's gaze, and she replied somewhat shyly, "This is my grandfather's sword. I hope it can protect me."
"You've done very well, Miss Gwen," Genn smiled. "The refugees desperately need these supplies. Your actions can save many people's lives. You are a very careful person. Thank you for your contribution to Gilneas." After a pause, he added, "Now the organization of the survivors is very chaotic. Would you be willing to manage the logistics?"
"Me, can I?" Gwen didn't expect the king to trust her so much. She had never had the experience of managing others!
"I believe you can!"
Genn cast an encouraging look, which doubled Gwen's confidence: "I will do my best! For Greymane!"
—
"Lord, the humans are retreating out of the city!" In the Royal Garden District, Dreadlord Varimathras reported the current situation to his commander, Tichondrius.
Tichondrius said, "Act according to the plan. Let them go!"
"Very well, I will issue the order!" Varimathras sneered.
After Tichondrius dismissed his subordinate, he strolled through the Greymane royal palace. The war had broken out too suddenly, and the palace was in a mess. He walked to a portrait of Genn Greymane, scrutinized the man with eagle eyes and a smug expression, and whispered contemptuously, "This poor king. You don't even know what kind of fate you will face, do you?"
Now Tichondrius was the supreme commander of the Scourge army, and everything was operating according to his will. Soon, he would welcome the arrival of the true master. At that time, this world would burn!
And he, Dreadlord Tichondrius, would become the master's greatest contributor!