Inside the Council Hall of the Crystal Radiance Court, King Rodney XVIII and his ministers engaged in heated discussions over the strategy for attacking Paradise Basin.
Everyone wore troubled expressions. The terrain, surrounded by mountains on three sides, was already easy to defend and difficult to attack. On top of that, the family had spent years building fortresses and watchtowers at the mountain pass. If the enemy was determined to hold the terrain, it seemed there was no more effective option than a direct assault. Yet a direct assault would inevitably cost the Royal Army dearly—a result no one wanted to see.
Just as the discussion reached an impasse, the new army's commander, Harrison Abbott, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have a suggestion. Since Paradise Basin's Defensive Fortifications are so sturdy that ordinary weapons can barely breach them, why not purchase large siege mortars from Marquis Greiman in Northwest Bay?"
Seeing the confusion on everyone's faces, he immediately explained in detail, "When we previously reclaimed the territories occupied by the orcs, I personally witnessed the power of mortars. Though those weapons were enormous, they could hurl shells weighing over a hundred pounds more than a thousand meters away. The fragments scattered upon impact could destroy sturdy stone walls. Even the defensive structures the orcs built from logs could not withstand several rounds of bombardment. If we equipped ourselves with such mortars, we would only need to set them up outside the passage into Paradise Basin and bombard the Veblen Family's fortresses from a distance. There would be no need for our soldiers to brave a rain of arrows and launch a direct assault. That would reduce casualties while also speeding up the siege."
Harrison Abbott's words stirred an uproar in the Council Hall. Many ministers nodded, believing this