Dungeon Defense (WN)

Chapter 382: Encounter of Two Heroes (10)

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Our forces, the La Spezia-Habsburg alliance soon made our way to Genova.

No one knew that La Spezia had betrayed the kingdom yet. When a fleet arrived with the flags of Sardinia and the Medici family, the people of Genova didn’t even consider the fleet as a threat. We quickly entered the port with a countless stream of questions bombarding us through the communication orb.

– What is the matter? Why have you already returned? Did something happen with our allies?

“Hurry and open the floodgates. This is an order from His Highness the Grand Duke. Our forces got caught up in Poseidon’s Wrath. Inform the mayor of Genova that the plan to assist La Spezia has failed!”

– Impossible…… No, I understand. But I need a direct order from His Highness the Grand Duke to open the floodgates. I apologize, but…….

“Did you call for me?”

I stepped forward. We utilized the mages beforehand to cast an illusion spell on me. Since mimicking his voice was also needed, we sliced open the Grand Duke’s throat to check his vocal cords. This much was fine. There would probably be no difference if we tampered with his throat after having already decapitated him.

“It is as the officer reported, gatekeeper. Hurry and open the gates so that I can allow my exhausted men to rest.”

– Understood, Your Highness. Thank you for following the procedure. For the eternal glory of Medici!

Eternal glory. That was the Medici family’s motto that had been passed down for generations. I raised the corners of my mouth.

“Indeed. For the eternal glory of Medici.”

The floodgates that protected the harbor of Genova were opened.

In this era, harbors were managed strictly as they were surrounded by walls and fences. In the case of Genova, there was a total of five entrances and exits each. Our army was easily able to use the oars to create five lines. The fleet of thirty vessels entered through the floodgates without any issue.

– We sincerely welcome you back to Genova, Your Highness! The people of Genova promise to serve you at all times! The mayor is currently on their way to greet Your Highness.

“It seems like it would be better if I took my time to get off the ship.”

– We are truly grateful. The mayor will not forget Your Highness’ kindness and consideration.

The gatekeeper spoke with a face full of awe. He was a fairly well-trained dog. This probably indicated that the mayor of Genova was also quite capable. In contrast to the inept nobles of the Empire, Sardinia’s personnel seemed quite impressive.

“The nobles of Sardinia appear to be competent.”

Laura whispered next to me. She was right.

Their nobles are competent, commoners are gradually entering the ranks of bureaucrats, and overall, it’s a nation favorable to republicanism……. A smile formed on its own on my lips. Do they not quite literally have an ideal country?

Sardinia. If you’ve made one crucial mistake, it was sacrificing a certain girl. You offered as a lamb the kind of human who should have never been sacrificed. You probably want to justify it by saying you didn’t know and that it was a mere oversight.

In that case, you must accept what that mistake has become.

– Apologies for the wait, Your Highness. The mayor has reached the dock.

“I see that. Out of curiosity, where are you managing the ships from?”

– I am at the top of the tower to the right of Your Highness’ vessel.

Did he think that the Grand Duke was showing interest in him? His voice was overflowing with joy. I laughed gently.

“Thank you for your hard work. I was deeply moved by your kindness. I will bestow upon you a small gift.”

– Ohh, eternal glory! Your Highness, your excellence knows no bounds!

“I pray that it is to your liking.”

I raised my right hand.

At that moment, an officer shouted in a loud voice.

“Fire!”

Our mages simultaneously unleashed their spells. Some aimed towards the dock where the mayor had come out with his vassals, while others targeted the ships docked side by side at the port. Another portion of the spells soared swiftly towards the tower where the gatekeeper resided.

They didn’t even get the chance to scream. The mayor and his vassals were entirely engulfed in flames. The harbor quickly became a hellscape as the flames enveloped the ships. With the collapse of the tower, the last central command to control this situation vanished.

Laura gave an additional command.

“Eradicate them.”

The fate of the seventy thousand civilians that resided in Genova was decided by that single line.

Our mercenaries were seasoned in slaughter and pillaging. They didn’t rush into attacking the residential area recklessly. They strategically seized Genova’s castle towers and weapon vaults first.  They made sure to slaughter what little guards they had left.

When faced with terror, humans are left with two choices. One is to be engulfed by despair and pray to the gods, while the other is to become filled with desperate determination and resist to the very end.

As such, the things that instill remarkable determination in humans include well-organized defense formations, ramparts and towers that can temporarily be protected, and the weapons held firmly in their hands. (TL Note: This paragraph is really awkward in the source as well, so I’m sorry if it’s phrased weirdly or doesn’t make complete sense.)

If mercenaries get distracted trying to raid the houses that belong to the rich, the rebelling forces will be inflamed by one of the three mentioned elements to fight back. This is in no way good news for the mercenaries. Truly well-trained mercenaries know to postpone the ‘feast’ for a little while. The Helvetica mercenaries under Laura’s command clearly knew how to do the latter.

40 minutes later.

Every tower and weapon vault in the city of Genova was seized. The mayor and his vassals dying at the start was what dealt the largest blow to the city. Most of the guard captains surrendered once they lost their leader.

“Close and lock the gates!”

With this, the citizens had no way to escape.

We currently had roughly 3,200 soldiers. This wasn’t enough to handle all the people of Genova. Therefore, Laura and I decided to use our strong card. We ordered the mages to bombard the city indiscriminately.

Magic is something that normal people both fear and marvel at. It’s a method of violence that they cannot possibly do anything about. Buildings collapsed as the residential areas were set on fire. The civilians screamed as they tried to flee somewhere the flames couldn’t reach.

It was like we were drive hunting them. Our army gradually pushed the civilians from the east to the west.

While there were many citizens armed with personal swords and bucklers, it was impossible for them to push back our mercenaries who were armed with long spears. Our mercenaries suffered virtually no casualties. There was one soldier who sustained a burn on his right arm due to a slight misfire of magic, but that was the extent of the damage we received.

Eventually, the citizens were forced to gather at Genova’s western gate.

“M-Move! Get out of the way!”

“Fuck, open the gate! Why isn’t the gate being opened!?”

A staggering 70,000 people had gathered in one place. Those on the outside pushed the people in front of them to get closer to the city gates, and the citizens who got pushed to the ground were trampled to death by hundreds of feet. A scene of pandemonium was being re-enacted.

Did some of them notice that something wasn’t right? Some of the citizens tried to turn around and flee, but a row of spears was pointed at them from behind like a wall of hedgehogs. The civilians had nowhere they could possibly go.

“How about it, Duchess? Should we urge them to surrender now?”

“You can easily tell that their numbers exceed fifty thousand. That is too much.”

Laura shook her head.

“It would be far too difficult for our troops to handle that number right now.”

“Hmm. It will become a diplomatic problem if we slaughter unarmed civilians. We will be criticized for going too far. Pavia was an exception.”

We had our horses side by side as we exchanged a casual conversation. If you looked at us from the side, you probably wouldn’t think that we were currently discussing the fate of seventy thousand lives.

“How about this? We’ll only capture the citizens who swear complete allegiance to us.”

“Even if they swear allegiance with their tongues, how can we know they won’t be harboring daggers in their hearts?”

“Even if their hearts are full of venom, if their bodies are unarmed, they won’t be able to do anything.”

Laura smiled.

“Make all of the citizens strip down to their undergarments.”

The order was immediately carried out.

Those who wished to surrender were ordered to strip.

At first, the civilians complained vehemently. Of course, it was a pointless struggle. They shut up on their own once we gifted them with a couple of fireballs. One individual hesitantly stripped off their clothes. Once they did, others soon followed suit.

“Do not strip the nobles.”

“Is there a need for us to show such consideration?”

“We are not being considerate. When cornering a single group, you must always divide them into two sides. It would be best to rile them up by making them think that only the nobles are being treated specially.”

Thus, everyone was stripped excluding the small number of nobles and priests.

The sight of tens of thousands of men and women walking in single file in their undergarments was truly spectacular. It was something that had to be witnessed with alcohol. Laura and I marveled at this historic masterpiece as we exchanged glasses of wine.

“How do you intend on handling Genova now, Count Palatine?”

“Well, I think it is about time.”

“Oh? Is the timing not a bit premature?”

I licked my wine-soaked lips.

“The Habsburg Republic has joined the fray. They are the ones who broke international etiquette first, so we have no obligation to maintain etiquette. I am looking forward to seeing what sort of expression Elizabeth will make. Ah, just imagining it is quite enjoyable.”

“…….”

Laura didn’t respond. I turned to her out of curiosity and saw her staring back at me blankly.

“Duchess?”

“Huh? Oh, I see. I am also looking forward to it.”

Laura quickly came back to her senses and smiled.

“By the way, Count Palatine……. I feel as if……you have not been that active lately…….”

I tilted my head. After seeing her hesitate and look around, I pieced together what she was trying to say. She was bringing up how there has been a decrease in how much we had sex.

“Did we not do it the other day?”

“Yes, but what I am saying is……we did not do it yesterday.”

“…….”

My gaze probably looked as if I were staring at a pervert.

“Previously, you complained about how I would always act like a dog in heat, but now you are complaining about not being able to do it for a day? My word. I did hear that the carnal desire of women increases as they grow older, but I did not know that you had already reached that age, Duchess.”

“Uuug, that is not……. Whatever! Never mind, then!”

Laura sulkily turned her head away.

I smiled mischievously. And, with a feigned gesture, I ‘accidentally’ spilled wine on Laura’s military attire.

“W-What are you doing?!”

“Oh dear me. My apologies, Your Highness Duchess. It appears that I have accidentally done something rude to your uniform. I am truly sorry.”

I spoke in a loud voice so that the mercenary captains around us could hear me.

“How could we let the supreme commander of our forces remain like this? Come now, let us go get you changed. I will personally escort you since this was my mistake. No, no, please do not refuse. If you decline, I will be unable to sleep tonight due to my guilt. Baroness de Blanc.”

“Ah, yes! Your Excellency!”

Baroness de Blanc, who had been casually listening to our conversation, suddenly tensed up and saluted. As a side note, Baroness de Blanc had become Laura’s and my most loyal retainer.

“I will be leaving with the Supreme Commander for a moment. Make sure to keep a strict eye on the prisoners. Do you understand?”

“Understood!”

“Good.”

I gave a satisfied nod. Laura seemed bewildered, but I dragged her away semi-forcefully.

The city itself felt like a ghost town because of how quiet it was since we had forced the civilians away. I ordered our imperial guards to be on standby as I went to the plaza with Laura. There was no one present in this wide and open city plaza. The only thing moving in this desolate plaza was the fountain that continued to spew water.

“Lord? Why are we here……?”

“Did you know, Laura? This is something I have wanted to do for quite a while.”

I casually brought Laura to the fountain.

“I have wanted to violate you in the middle of a city.”

“W-W-What are you saying……?”

“And it seems we have been presented with the perfect time and place.”

Laura seemed to realize the severity of the situation as she started to struggle. However, I held Laura’s shoulders tightly and didn’t let her go. I then whispered into her ear.

“Duchess, the soldiers might see us if we are not quick.”

“You really are a pervert, Lord! How could you think of doing something like this on the same day you killed tens of thousands of people!? And at the center of the city you captured, at that……!”

In the past, she disliked it because we did it too much, earlier she disliked it because we didn’t do it enough, and now that I am offering to do it, she doesn’t want to again. I may be a kind and generous man, but even I can get a little annoyed.

“……!”

I was annoyed, so I didn’t accept any questions and stole her lips.

It was simple after that.

The two of us annihilated the Sardinia Kingdom’s army of 13,000 soldiers, massacred civilians, and razed a city. Then, after all that, we sat in an empty plaza and made a mess of each other.

Even I must admit that we are a ridiculously well-matched couple. Don’t you agree?

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. I, uh, don’t know what to say. This isn’t the usual thing where I don’t know what to say here, but rather, something so unfortunate happened in my life that I just feel…at a loss for words. This sort of warrants a post on its own, so I’ll most likely make an update post tomorrow after work to explain what happened. Just know that I’m sort of struggling mentally to deal with this. I wanted to at least get this chapter out, so yeah.

I’ll see you guys in the update post or the next chapter.