When the allied forces from the west approached the city of Titaneia, the northern army gradually broke through the blockade of the legion led by Darcy.
Those tenacious northern soldiers were divided into several groups, and they penetrated the defense line from the mountains through various trails, sides, or bypassed the checkpoints and infiltrated into the rear of the formation.
With a limited number of legions at his disposal, no matter how hard Darcy held out, he could not change the gradually tilting balance of power. Seeing his rear gradually harassed and even blocked by the infiltrating northern legions, Darcy decided to lead his legions in a gradual withdrawal, returning to the central provinces to garrison and continue the resistance.
Even though he had received reports of the brutal battle in the imperial capital, since the emperor had not ordered him to retreat, he had to continue resisting here.
If we hastily return to the imperial capital to rescue them, the result may be that not only will we fail to save them, but we may be overtaken by the northern legions, causing chaos or even collapse, and finally aggravating the crisis in the imperial capital.
As a result, the decisions became increasingly difficult, and many soldiers and officers in the legion were worried about the rear and found it difficult to concentrate on fighting.
If His Majesty the Emperor dies, then who are they fighting for and what is the point? All of this has become a question weighing on the minds of soldiers and generals.
This is also a flaw of the old empire. Power and values depend on the emperor's will. Once the royal family changes, it will bring many problems one after another, such as building trust, whether to take sides, etc., forcing people who originally worried about national affairs to turn a lot of energy to power struggles, and even make it their everything pursuit.
The provinces in the center of the empire gradually fell, and the territory flying the rose banner gradually shrank, while the griffin banner representing the western border advanced layer by layer. After temporarily failing to attack Titaneia, the western coalition forces began to capture the remaining provinces, determined to turn Titaneia into an isolated city.
However, due to the imminent crisis, it was difficult to send out the army in the city to provide support, and the provinces under the control of the empire began to fall one by one.
Thus, two months later, the legion led by Darcy gradually retreated, stabilizing the remaining situation and saving several provinces on the flank and rear of Titaneia.
At this time, the gray northern jackdaws finally crossed the long border and road and arrived at the city of Titania.
As time entered late autumn, the weather became cold and bleak. Under the gloomy sky, some crows with gray-blue wings circled and flew, occasionally making lonely and desolate calls.
In the camp outside the city, the Duke of Griffin was meeting and reminiscing with the Duke of Raven. In an open space next to the large tent where they were meeting, Jelann also met Miss Fanxiner, to whom he was engaged.
"Hello, Lord Jelan." The girl with black hair and black eyes lifted her skirt and saluted. Her appearance did not seem to have changed much in recent years. She was still so delicate and tender, which made people feel pity for her.
"Long time no see. How have you been recently, Fa Xiner?" Jie Lann sighed in his heart as he looked at the girl. They had only not seen each other for two or three years, but it seemed like their last date was a long time ago. It was as if he was looking at his teenage self now, so distant and a little strange.
"Not too bad." Fa Xiner shook her head and answered softly.
Then the two of them walked together on a hill not far from the camp, talking to each other about what had happened in recent years.
Some are about war, some are about life, and some are about daily life in their respective families.
"My mother passed away one night a year ago due to her worsening illness. My father buried her in a garden where winter moon flowers were in full bloom." Fa Xiner spoke softly about the past, but she seemed to have come out of her sadness and did not have much emotional fluctuation.
"It's such a pity that I couldn't meet my aunt." Jie Lanen sighed, then he took Fa Xiner's hand and held it gently, as if to comfort her.
Afterwards, Jellann took Faxiner by the hand and sat down on the hillside, gazing at the majestic Titania in the distance.
"I once asked my father about the wedding date, but he never gave me a definite answer in the past two years. I only found out the reason earlier this year."
"After the war began, my father and I agreed that we would hold the wedding after we conquered Titania and the new emperor ascended the throne after the war."
"The emperor of the empire will also bless us in the square. It will be a grand and beautiful wedding, symbolizing the arrival of peace..." Jelann imagined the beautiful future vision for Fa Xiner, and the girl beside him nodded slowly and responded softly.
Time passed quietly until the sun slowly sank into the horizon and the torches in the camp gradually lit up, and then the two returned to the camp together.
In the Third Age, in the year 1710, October of the Year of Autumn Wind, the Duke of Griffin from the West and the Duke of Raven from the North met. Countless people had expected the two dukes to join forces and capture Titania. However, unexpectedly, the two dukes engaged in a moderate argument in the meeting tent, ultimately parting on bad terms.
However, his soldiers and lords were not informed of this matter. It was not until a month or two later that some people with ulterior motives gradually realized that the two sides were not in harmony.
The Duke of Griffin hopes to join forces with the Duke of Raven to overthrow the royal family and then make his own family the ruler of the empire. In exchange, Jelann will marry Faxiner and their descendants will inherit the throne.
However, such an action undoubtedly betrayed the slogans of both parties when they started their rebellion, which was simply to overthrow Elio's rule and replace the emperor with another one.
Although there may not be much difference between the two to outsiders, for people in the North there is a major legal difference.
It was the Empire that accepted the remnants of the Eternal Darkness Island, and they had sworn allegiance. If it were not for the will of Her Majesty the Witch, they would not have rebelled at all. Later, the Duke of Griffin's banner was only to overthrow Elio rather than destroy the Empire, which reluctantly made the Duke of Raven agree.
But now the Duke of Griffin wants to go a step further and replace him directly, which is unacceptable to the Duke of Raven and many northern lords.
It is understandable that they are loyal to the empire. After all, the empire is inherited from the Cang Yue Kingdom and is said to be a descendant of the Zhenhong Empire. From the perspective of bloodline, legal principles, and righteousness, it is not shameful to be loyal to them and become a part of them.
However, what is the origin of the Griffin family? It only has a history of a few hundred years, and the people in the North are basically the remnants of the Mercury Dynasty. It is simply unacceptable to ask them to be loyal to the "barbaric" upstart Salus family.
Even if it was a marriage alliance, such a thing was still unbearable, and the Duke of Raven was more of an ally than a master of the Northern lords. Therefore, even if Farxiner became queen, it would not change the views of many Northern lords.
As a result, the war continued, but the siege mysteriously came to a halt, and the two sides began to stalemate until the cold winter gradually came and the continent gradually entered the season of falling snow.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com