Traces of the Saurons, Heading to Carnford?

On the arrow tower behind the outer defenses of Carnford, Karl and Charlotte stood side by side, gazing at the movements of the Sauron Cavalry in the distance.

The wind from above carried the chill of the wilderness, ruffling their hair and the hems of their clothes.

Charlotte looked at the Sauron Cavalry, who lingered like a dark cloud in the distance, her face showing a hint of annoyance and exhaustion.

"I thought I could rest for a few more days and take a good break... How did these Sauron Barbarians get here so quickly! Hey, Karl, are you sure this makeshift defensive line we set up can really stop them?" There was a hint of worry in her voice.

Karl did not answer immediately; he continued to hold up his Monocular Telescope, carefully observing the distant Sauron camp and cavalry movements.

His brow furrowed slightly, and his expression became more serious than before.

"I don't know," he said, putting down his binoculars, his voice calm but tinged with a heavy tone. "It depends on how many troops they will commit later."

He paused, then pointed to the distant Sauron camp. "Look at their deployment, the range of their cavalry patrols, the sentry posts, the arrangement of their camp... everything is orderly and perfectly organized."

"Completely different from the chaotic and wild style of the Vanguard Camp we encountered before, their commander is a seasoned veteran, very cautious."

"He will never allow his precious elite cavalry to dismount and charge our pre-planned fortified positions."

Karl calmly analyzed, "He's holding back now, even actively retreating and setting up camp, only implementing a blockade... There's only one explanation: he's sent people back for reinforcements, and he's waiting for the infantry corps, and possibly siege equipment."

Charlotte's face paled slightly upon hearing this. "Wait for reinforcements? If Sauron army really besieges the city, how can we possibly hold it with just our numbers?"

She grabbed Karl's arm suddenly and said urgently, "How about... I try to break through with a few men? We can go back to Fran City and ask the Count for help! Ask him to send a large army immediately! We must race against time with the Sauron!"

Karl shook his head, his tone still calm. "Look at their scout blockade; they've practically sealed off all the main routes."

"If we try to break out now, we'll be too conspicuous. We'll be overtaken and shot by their light cavalry after only a few steps."

"As you can see, these below... are the true elite Main Corps Sauron's main force, not those ragtag units from last time."

Seeing the barely concealed panic in Charlotte's eyes, Karl softened his tone and reassured her, "Don't worry, even if this outer defensive line ultimately falls, we can retreat in an orderly fashion to the core area of the castle, where the defenses are much stronger and can hold out for a long time."

He tried to give her, and himself, some confidence. "Moreover, the Sauron ' main objective this year is to raid southwards, and their main force will inevitably prioritize maintaining pressure on key passes such as Blackstone Pass."

"Harald, the leader of Sauron, may not be willing or able to massively deplete his valuable infantry and siege equipment for our newly established stronghold, and besiege our fortified city for an extended period of time. That would disrupt their entire plan and rhythm for raiding southward."

"More importantly," Karl said, his gaze sweeping towards Fran City, a sharp glint in his eyes, "Your father, Earl Rochefort, is no fool."

"As the Governor of the Northern Territory, he must be closely monitoring the movements of the Sauron. If the Sauron were to unusually and massively move their troops towards Carnford, he couldn't possibly be unaware of it."

"This is an extremely dangerous sign in itself. He will definitely not sit idly by. At that point, he will likely take action on his own initiative without us even needing to ask for help."

Charlotte listened to Karl's clear and logical analysis, and her tense nerves relaxed slightly, but the worry in her eyes did not completely disappear.

She knew that while Karl's analysis made sense, the battlefield was ever-changing, and no one could guarantee anything.

The madness of the Sauron and Harald's ambition cannot be fully fathomed by common sense.

The two fell silent again, gazing at the wisps of smoke rising from the distant Sauron camp and the occasional passing cavalrymen. The air was thick with the oppressive atmosphere and uncertainty of an impending great battle.

Like their commander Unag, the Sauron, they were powerless to do anything but wait for the enemy to launch an attack.

Awaiting decisions made in the distant city of Frosgard and the approaching, unknown-scale Sauron army.

Fran City, Governor's Office.

The Earl Rochefort's study was filled with smoke. He sat alone behind a large desk, a fine pipe in his hand, his brow furrowed, a lingering gloom hanging over his cold face.

The acrid smoke from burning tobacco seemed unable to dispel the anxiety in his heart.

The Northern Territory reconnaissance team he dispatched, led by Lyon, has already far exceeded its scheduled return date.

He had already dispatched several waves of light cavalry scouts to provide support and reconnaissance, but so far no definite news has been sent back.

An ominous premonition enveloped him.

"Could it be... that they were really wiped out?" The thought sent a chill down his spine.

Although he didn't want to believe it, the fact that so much time had passed and not a single person had escaped back to report the news meant the situation was extremely dire.

Although Lyon is young and impetuous, and sometimes appears reckless, he is by no means incompetent.

Born into a military aristocratic family and raised in the military camp, he had extensive combat experience and was one of the few officers under his command who dared to fight and were capable of dealing with the Sauron.

More importantly, the Count realized with bitterness that he had very few generals under his command who could truly stand alone and dare to go out of the city to fight Sauron.

Lyon's father, Old Hawke Baron, was a renowned general in the Northern Territory. His family castle fell in a bloody battle against the Sauron, and the old Baron died soon after being seriously wounded and escaping back.

Lyon inherited the Nobility title, along with the deep-seated hatred for the Sauron and his military talent.

Many other noble officers, already terrified of the Sauron, preferred to cower behind fortified cities, lacking the courage to engage the enemy in open battle.

Losing Lyon would be a huge loss for him.

What worried him even more was that his daughter Charlotte was also in that group! And there Lord Karl Carnford, whom he had high hopes for and had even sent his daughter to "assist" him!

If they all meet with misfortune...

Just as he was lost in thought and his mind was in turmoil, the study door was suddenly pushed open with a bang, interrupting his reverie.

His clerk rushed in in a panic, followed closely by a cavalry officer covered in dust, his armor caked with mud and bits of grass.

The officer didn't even have time to take off his helmet. He was panting heavily, his face a mixture of exhaustion and fear. Most shockingly, a broken arrow was deeply embedded in the side of his helmet!

The Count's heart sank. He immediately recognized the man as the commander of an elite reconnaissance squad he had recently dispatched.

"What happened!" The Count jumped to his feet, slamming his pipe down on the table. His voice was hoarse with tension. "We encountered the Sauron? Where are Lyon and the others?"

The officer, breathing heavily, saluted with his hand on his chest, his voice trembling with the shock of survival. "My Count! We... we encountered a large force of the Sauron about thirty miles east of Ashbourne!"

"A large force?" The Count's pupils contracted. "How many? What's their configuration?"

"The exact number is unknown, there's a lot of dust, but it's definitely a large force!" the officer replied hastily. "There are cavalry and infantry! Judging from their formation and equipment, they're definitely Main Corps, not just an ordinary raiding party!"

"We tried to approach and scout, but their outer scouts were very vigilant and immediately engaged us in battle! They outnumbered us, about three hundred men, and we lost three brothers, forcing us to retreat immediately! This arrow struck us during the retreat..."

The Count's expression grew even more grim. "The Main Corps? Which direction are they marching in? Could it be towards Fran City?"

But then he immediately dismissed his own assessment. "Three hundred men... to attack Fran City? That's far too simplistic a force..."

The officer shook his head vigorously, his face showing disbelief and tension. "No, sir! It's not Fran City! We observed the direction of their main force's march during our retreat... They... they're heading southeast!"

He took a deep breath and uttered the place name that made Earl Rochefort freeze instantly. "Judging from their route and destination... it seems... they're heading for Carnford!"