Breaking the Siege

Timett Son of Timett was brandishing his longsword.

He was directing his clansmen to scale and storm a section of the wall that was on the verge of collapse.

The clansmen were climbing and leaping onto the ramparts one by one.

Suddenly, he heard the intense, long-drawn-out sound of horns echoing from all directions.

His heart sank abruptly.

He whipped his head around, staring toward the forest in the east.

In the eastern woods, a cloud of dust rose to blot out the sun.

His gaze seemed to pierce through the dense forest.

It was as if he could see thousands of spears and banners.

The more he looked, the more they seemed to manifest.

He felt as though he were looking at a massive army of Flatlanders.

Countless Flatlander Iron-skins.

"Flatlander reinforcements!... So many of them!... There really are this many!!!" he muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief.

The scale of it was at least two thousand men!

"Aaaah—" Timett Son of Timett swung his longsword and let out a roar of fury. "Everyone! Get down! All of you, get down now!!"

"Move!!!!"

"Follow me!!!!"

He had been deceived!

He had been deceived by the Flatlanders!!

Rage filled his chest!!!

It was for the Flatlanders of the Vale who had tricked him.

And it was for the stone house before his eyes!!

This stone house was on the verge of falling!

He desperately wanted to order the attack to continue.

But he knew the momentum was lost.

Once the great army in the woods arrived, he would be trapped in a pincer attack between these two Flatlander forces!

If that happened, the Mountain Clans would truly be finished!!

The Wildlings who had already scaled the walls heard the order to retreat.

Seeing the dust in the distance, they realized what it meant.

Their heads cleared instantly.

One after another, they scrambled down from the walls.

The soldiers of Lofor of Valleydeep dared not stop them.

They could only watch as the Wildlings departed.

"Reinforcements have arrived!! It's the reinforcements!!" On the wall, a soldier was the first to cry out in surprise.

"It really is reinforcements!!"

"We're saved!!"

The desperate defenders erupted into thunderous cheers.

Lofor of Valleydeep and Heluo of Valleydeep stood on the ramparts.

They watched this dramatic turn of events, dumbfounded.

"Father... whose army is that?" Heluo of Valleydeep's voice trembled with a mix of excitement and confusion. "So many men!!"

Lofor of Valleydeep shook his head; he did not know either.

But he knew that Valleydeep Town was saved.

This was a miracle!

"Should we charge out and pursue them!! Father!" Heluo of Valleydeep's joy was written all over his face.

Lofor of Valleydeep sheathed his sword. "No."

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was strange!

Suleiman's army in the woods.

They were running wildly in all directions, frantically kicking up dust.

They were following the eccentric orders of Lord Suleiman.

Running back and forth within the designated forest area.

Each person held a massive bundle of hay, desperately stirring up the dust collected on the ground.

"Faster! Make that dust fly, let it reach the heavens!" Roslyn roared from the side of the formation, himself clutching a hay bundle and fanning it with all his might.

The soldiers panted heavily, coughing incessantly, feeling as though their noses were filled with the floating, airborne dust.

Sweat soaked through their crude armor, mixing with the rising dust.

It caked their faces and bodies into a layer of mud.

It was as if they had all just rolled around in a mud pit.

They did not understand the point of doing this.

But Lord Suleiman had just led them to an incredible victory.

He had used a flood to drown an enemy several times their size.

Any order of his, no matter how bizarre.

Would be executed to the letter.

Besides the men, the group was mixed with a few head of livestock rounded up from nearby.

They had previously burned down all the villages.

All the livestock had been slaughtered.

So much so that they now had to rely on human labor to stir up the dust.

There were too few animals!

These creatures were driven by the soldiers, whipped and struck with weapons.

They ran and neighed in terror through the woods.

Their discordant cries mingled with the soldiers' shouts, the sound of footsteps, and the rustle of dust.

Creating the illusion of a massive, chaotic force.

"My lord... what are we... cough, cough, cough... cough, cough, cough... actually doing?" Lushen approached Suleiman, his own body and face covered in gray dust.

His voice was somewhat hoarse from inhaling too much dust.

He kept coughing.

Bronn also approached, leaning against a tree.

He had just survived a near-death battle and was still nursing wounds, but his spirits were remarkably high.

Perhaps the heads of those three tribal chieftains gave him bragging rights for the future in Westeros.

Along with the pay Suleiman had calculated for him.

He was happy now and did not mind offering guidance.

Bronn spoke, his tone mocking a fool: "Idiots! Your lord is creating a spectacle to scare the Wildlings!"

"The Wildlings think we are numerous! So we must show them we are strong and well-manned!"

Lushen blushed at the mockery but looked at Bronn with gratitude.

To follow Lord Suleiman, he had to learn these things.

He could not remain a fool.

Suleiman turned his head and glanced at Bronn. "You don't think this is clever?"

"Clever?" Bronn sneered. "I only see a group of people working hard to ruin themselves and those poor beasts."

"If I were a Wildling, I would continue the siege!"

"Then I'd discover you were just bluffing! And then! Heh!"

Suleiman cast a sidelong glance at him: "A normal person wouldn't do that."

Bronn's laughter ceased; he knew Suleiman's methods were effective and stopped joking.

"What if the garrison of Valleydeep Town comes out to pursue the Wildlings, what do you plan to do!" Bronn sneered. "Or what if the Wildlings come straight for us!"

Now it was Suleiman's turn to look at him as if he were a fool:

"If they come out, what does that have to do with me?"

"If they come for us, we just retreat, don't we?"

Bronn: ...

Bronn calculated in his mind.

If he could truly break the siege of Valleydeep Town in this manner.

Then the reputation of this young man would likely resound throughout the entire Riverlands, and perhaps even further.

Leading three hundred farmers.

He fought the more than thirteen hundred Mountain Clansmen, defeating them battle after battle.

He killed half the enemy and even cleverly lifted the siege of Valleydeep Town.

As for himself, the Wildling Chieftain Gari, he would indeed follow Yang Ming.

Everything this young man had said to him in the beginning had come to pass.

Wealth and fame.

Thinking of this, Bronn stood up and headed into the distance.

Behind him, Suleiman watched Bronn's retreating back: "Where are you going?"

"Hunting, Chieftain!!" Bronn tossed his dagger in his hand a few times.

"Come back! I have a mission for you!" Suleiman barked coldly.

"Clang!"

The dagger dropped to the ground, and Bronn turned around stiffly to look at Suleiman.

"You are familiar with the terrain around Valleydeep Town and understand the habits of the wildlings." Suleiman looked at him. "I want you to take some men and get ahead of the wildlings!"

"Keep creating a commotion around them! As if our vanguard is constantly tailing them!"

"Only then will they not turn back!"

"Once they are far enough away! You return!"

"By then, even if they realize what happened and come back, it will be too late!"

Bronn frowned: "What if the wildlings charge at me and I get pinned down? I won't be responsible for your men!"

"I believe in your ability, Bronn!" Suleiman revealed a strange smile. "You can always find a way to escape when things are at their most dangerous, can't you?"

Bronn curled his lip, neither confirming nor denying.

He could hear it.

Suleiman's words were both a taunt and a threat.