Sudden Attack

Building a stone castle in an oasis in the desert is an extremely difficult task.

Especially in Kawkab's territory, there are no rivers to transport bricks and stones.

Abdullah sat on his horse, chatting with Lothar.

"I know Kawkab. He's a cruel and cold-blooded, but still powerful opponent. His direct army alone has hundreds of elite cavalry. If given enough time, he can gather a massive army of thousands from the clans and chieftaincies loyal to him."

Lothar frowned. This was a lord whose power surpassed Baron Godfrey's.

If his territory wasn't located in this barren desert, where he couldn't even build a castle, he would never have considered this lord.

"But he won't have that time."

Lothar's expression was solemn, and he looked full of confidence. "We will take this wooden fort before the enemy can react, Abdullah. We can do it."

Abdullah placed a hand on his shoulder and nodded slightly. "I never doubted that."

The Kurdish soldiers were rounding up scattered warhorses, stripping the armor from the fallen, or selecting usable pieces of armor while discarding the heavy coats.

In this era, scale armor was clearly inferior to chainmail in terms of defense.

However, in terms of aesthetics, scale armor was far superior to the dark chainmail.

Aside from its appearance, the greatest advantage of scale armor was its simple craftsmanship, making it easy to mass-produce, and it was also easy to maintain. One simply needed to disassemble it and replace the scales.

It was suitable for forming an industrial chain and mass production to equip an army.

This was also why countries with vast territories and high degrees of centralization, such as the Eastern Empire, the Sasanian Empire, and the Ayyubid Empire, favored scale armor.

Even now, the armored cavalry of the Eastern Empire still wore scale armor, but they also wore a chainmail shirt underneath to ensure their defense.

Lothar and his group changed out of their blood-stained clothes, disguised themselves as a Bedouin tribute caravan, brought out camels and mounts, and hid their weapons and arms beneath the carts.

They slowly approached the wooden fort in the oasis.

Kawkab's wooden fort was located in the center of the oasis, next to a beautiful lake as clear as a mirror.

The guards on the city gate and walls saw them from afar and shouted for the caravan to stop.

Abdullah shouted loudly, "We are under the command of Lord Kaimur of Uld, presenting tribute to the honorable Governor Kawkab."

"Under Lord Kaimur?"

The guards on the wall cautiously approached. "Didn't Aladdin usually escort the tribute? Who are you? I've never seen you before."

The Kurdish soldiers' bodies tensed slightly, and their breathing became heavier.

The atmosphere was extremely tense.

The guard realized something was wrong and was about to say something when Fringilla rode forward a few steps, and her clear voice rang out:

"Are you sure you haven't seen me?"

"You...?"

The guard's expression became somewhat dazed.

Fringilla's eyes flickered with a dark red light, though it was not very noticeable in the dazzling sunlight.

The guard, who had been speaking, seemed to have forgotten what he was about to say.

He said thoughtfully, "That's right, I've seen you. You are under Lord Kaimur's command. That's correct. Open the city gate and let our long-traveled guests in."

The gate of the wooden fort was thus opened.

Abdullah looked at Lothar with some confusion. Lothar's expression was calm, and he said casually, "Let's go in. This tribute includes exquisite porcelain from the Song Empire. It was spoils of war we obtained when we plundered Saladin's merchant caravan. Handle them with care. If they are damaged, Lord Kawkab will not forgive you."

Lothar's expression was normal, but the sweat on his temples betrayed his state of mind.

Fringilla's charm could only affect those with weak minds. Like Governor Savodin they encountered last time, it almost had the opposite effect, but thankfully Abdullah quickly came up with a solution.

However, it seemed that people like Governor Savodin were ultimately a minority.

The group entered the wooden fort without any issue. The guards didn't even ask them to disarm. Only two of them lifted the felt covering the tribute, confirmed it was correct, and then covered it again.

Everything went too smoothly.

The womenfolk and servants inside the fort watched them with some curiosity.

Lothar surveyed the guards on the wooden fort's walls, seeing that their vigilance was not high, and that not many of them were willing to continue standing guard on the wall under the scorching sun.

He waved his hand and said in a low voice, "Attack. Eliminate any enemy who picks up a weapon."

A servant noticed the small movements of this group and was about to shout a question.

A throwing axe whizzed past Lothar's ear and embedded itself in the servant's skull with a clang.

A maidservant beside him was splattered with blood.

Screams instantly echoed throughout the wooden fort.

Lothar grabbed his hand-and-a-half sword and charged into the wooden fort with the Kurdish soldiers.

Their sturdy armor allowed them to ignore most ranged attacks.

It had to be admitted that this Kurdish cavalry troop was an absolutely elite force. Whether fighting on foot or on horseback, they were no less than a cavalry troop composed of twenty knights and their squires.

But although Lothar was envious, he had no intention of recruiting them.

Baron Godfrey had kindly lent him troops. If he were to stab him in the back now, was he even human?

Battle cries erupted.

Thick smoke billowed from the tower.

Abdullah said urgently, "We need to finish them quickly. Otherwise, once Kawkab's cavalry arrives, we won't even have a place to retreat."

Lothar kicked an enemy away, stepped on him, and plunged his hand-and-a-half sword into the man's throat.

"I know, Abdullah. You take your men to deal with the guards on the wall. I'll go find Kawkab!"

A servant suddenly leaped from the ground, grabbing Lothar's leg and swinging a warhammer at his calf.

At that moment, his eyes suddenly bulged.

With a bang, his eyeballs burst, spraying blood.

Lothar gave Fringilla a slight nod of acknowledgment before leading his soldiers into the manor, protected by a wooden fortress, without looking back.

The manor's interior was exquisitely decorated.

Delicate murals adorned the walls, alongside various exotic utensils and furniture, all neatly arranged.

Exotic maidservants, dressed scantily, let out sharp cries as they fled in terror from the blood-soaked, ferocious man who seemed to have descended like a killing star.

Lothar had no time to admire the surroundings and walked straight in.

Passing through a threshold, he was met by a whistling gust of wind.

The warhammer struck Lothar's helmet, making his head ring.

Ignoring the dizziness, he raised his shield and charged forward, knocking his attacker off balance. Behind him, a Kurdish soldier threw a throwing axe, hitting the man squarely between the eyebrows.

It was a burly man, bare-chested, wielding a warhammer.

Their attack was so swift that many soldiers within the manor hadn't even donned their armor, effectively halving their combat effectiveness.

Lothar picked up the warhammer from the fallen man. His two-handed sword was difficult to wield in the narrow room, making the warhammer more practical.

The group pressed forward rapidly.

The deeper they went, the quieter it became.

The wooden fortress was like a small maze, with far too many places to hide.

At that moment, he subtly twitched his nose. The scent was familiar, like the fragrance of narcissus.

Following the scent, he pulled open a cabinet door, revealing a naked exotic woman behind it.

"Do you understand Kurdish?"

The exotic woman nodded repeatedly, her face filled with terror.

"Where is Kawkab?"

The woman pointed behind Lothar. As Lothar turned, she pulled out a dagger and thrust it fiercely at his neck.

But just then, Lothar, as if foreseeing it, stepped back, dodging the dagger. With a grip like iron pincers, he seized her neck.

The woman's eyes were filled with unwillingness.

Lothar frowned, "The act was too obvious. You weren't scared at all. Are you one of Kawkab's trained assassins?"

The woman didn't reply, her face filled with venom.

"Tell me, Kawkab trained you only to give you to an enemy lord in the future, so you could assassinate them at an opportune moment. By killing him, I'm setting you free."

The woman still didn't reply, her expression stubborn and fierce, making one curious about her entanglement with Kawkab.

"But I don't have time for this."

Crack.

Lothar released his grip on the woman and looked at Fringilla. "She's not wearing any clothes, and there's no bathtub or anything similar in the room. She likely just had an intimate moment with Kawkab. Can you track her?"

Fringilla sniffed the air and nodded. "Follow me."

They followed Fringilla through narrow corridors and gardens, arriving at a quiet room behind the wooden fortress.

"Come out, Kawkab. Your woman sold you out," Lothar called out loudly.

Bang—

The door was pushed open, and a burly man in iron armor lunged out with a ferocious expression.

Lothar looked at a Kurdish cavalryman beside him.

He shook his head. "He's not Kawkab. Let me handle him."

Saying this, he drew his weapon and met the charge.

Lothar bypassed the two men fighting and exchanged a glance with Fringilla and Banya. Just as he was about to enter the room, he saw Banya had already gone in.

Bang—

The warhammer whistled through the air.

Banya's figure was as steady as a mountain, unmoving.

Her steps didn't falter as she charged forward like an unstoppable war chariot.

Bang—

The heavily armed man was directly knocked to the ground.

Kawkab, gripping a mace in each hand, got up from the ground and roared, "Who are you, to dare attack me, the great Kawkab! My soldiers will arrive immediately and slaughter you all."

Lothar snorted, "Vile creature, you should have foreseen this day when you offended my lord Saladin. We are not the filthy assassins of the Assassins. I offer you a fair fight."

Kawkab's expression shifted, and he shouted, "Good!"

He took his stance. Lothar waved his hand, and a blood javelin immediately materialized in Fringilla's hand.

Kawkab exclaimed in shock, "Demon! This is the power of a demon! You lied to me, you said you'd fight me fairly."

Lothar smiled, "This is already quite fair."

Bang—

The blood javelin easily pierced Kawkab's armor, pinning him to the wall behind him.

Lothar swung his sword and severed Kawkab's head, then walked out of the room without looking back.

He had helped the Kurdish cavalry defeat their opponent and loudly ordered, "Inventory the spoils immediately. We are short on time, so take only items that are easily portable and of high value."

From the room behind them, a muffled explosion was heard at that moment.

Blood splattered.

That was the sound of Fringilla's blood javelin exploding.

Lothar ascended the city wall, raising Kawkab's head high in his hand, and roared, "Your lord Kawkab is dead! Surrender now and live!"