Chapter 20
"Can't exactly blame 'em."
"I guess not."
It was still sort of disappointing. While the citizens were angry, they weren't stupid. Not angry enough to be stupid, at any rate. Unlike in Roble, there wasn't a masked lunatic conveniently on hand to whip the mob up into a fanatical frenzy.
Liam sent a look skyward. Their invisible Commander was loitering above the city somewhere. So far, he hadn't issued any further instructions. On the street below, the citizens were carefully making their way to the edge of House Monfort's jurisdiction, bringing pieces of their barricade with them. Up the street, Forbin's men were hurling angry insults at Monfort's forces.
"You're all useless!"
"Idiots!"
"Did Lord Monfort hire a bunch of boys playing with swords?"
"Wasn't the sword he bought 'em to play with!"
Jeers pelted Monfort's men from both sides. At least there was still that.
『Keep the people on Wharf Street where they are. We'll split up and chase Monfort out of the rest of their positions before challenging Forbin.』
The armsman sitting beside Liam rose to his feet, brushed off his pants, and wandered off. Liam considered joining him, but ultimately decided against it. He didn't have a bow anyway. Over the next few minutes, a trickle of men in Monfort colours made their way sheepishly through a scathing gauntlet of ridicule. By the time the trickle ended, just shy of three dozen men stood sheepishly together on the corner of the block. Liam eyed the citizens, curious how they felt now that the true number of the forces that had been deployed against them over the past few days was made plain.
"Anything change over here?"
Liam looked over his shoulder to find Reed's men returning to their rooftop posts. They looked none the worse for wear, though he hadn't expected them to meet much resistance.
"Too much looking and thinking," Liam replied. "It's like they're not sure what they're doing."
"Can't blame 'em for that either," the armsman said. "They've been beaten dogs forever. House Blumrush'd usually run 'em down by now."
"House Blumrush will still run them down, at this rate," Liam said. "I get that they've been doing what they can to survive, but now that a chance to change their situation is sitting in front of them, most of them are content to let other people do the work."
"Guess so. But they won't see that change if they're dead."
He glowered at the painfully slow mob below. It was true that instincts could keep one alive, but they didn't really work past a certain point. In fact, more often than not, they actively undermined any progress towards long-term improvement. Those who were aware of that fact were all too happy to exploit it.
I guess nothing stops us from doing the same thing…
"Any sign of Lord Reginald's men?" Liam asked.
"Not that I saw," the armsman said. "The big guy up there'd be hurrying us along if they were on their way, yeah?"
What was taking Lord Reginald's forces so long? Did he send his men to man the upper city wall instead? It was hard to imagine he would give up the lower city without a fight. Liam had been concerned about the responsiveness of the Nobles' forces at first, but now he was worried that things would cool off too quickly.
Plagued by his misgivings, Liam turned his back to the street, reaching for another Message scroll. The armsmen around him looked on curiously as he once again contacted Raul.
『You win yet?』
『Shut up.』
『Things are getting too calm down here. What's going on with Blumrush's forces?』
『It's only been thirty minutes. They're manning the inner wall now.』
『…they're not coming out?』
『Re-Estize Nobles usually focus on defence first. Most of their 'offence' is through paying Adventurers.』
『But if they leave men on the wall, they might not have enough to push the citizens back.』
Technically, that wasn't true, but the vast majority of Re-Estize's denizens existed in a 'normal' reality. Numbers and inertia mattered more than individual skill and power. One could point out that there were many instances where that belief was soundly proven wrong, but 'normal' still constituted the vast majority of their lives. Powerful adventurers and legendary figures were treated as the subject of tales and gossip.
『I wouldn't worry about that. They might not be confident enough to charge the mob, but they'll be more than happy to attack them from a safe distance. The same thing happened in Laval. Raul's men already know what to do. Anything else?』
『Not really. Got anything for me to do?』
『That depends on how things play out. We're only aiming to occupy the lower city tonight, but we still might end up with some stubborn holdouts that need dealing with.』
With that, the Message spell ended. Liam returned to his observation of the street, wondering why he had wasted one of his few remaining scrolls. Perhaps he had become too used to operating alone.
A moment later, an arrow struck down another Monfort armsman. The citizens let out a rousing cheer as their oppressors tripped over one another to distance themselves. Forbin's men jeered their counterparts…at least until arrows started falling on them as well.
"Don't think we've forgotten about you, as well!" Steve shouted.
"Yeah! You bastards let them take the Guildmaster!"
"You'll get yours too!"
Liam wasn't sure whether Steve had heard what had happened from the citizens or was simply fishing for a grievance. The result was the same nonetheless. The mob's anger was redirected from Monfort to Forbin, and now Forbin's men suddenly found themselves on the back foot. A few reckless youths ran out from the barricade to hurl bits of cobblestone. When they didn't suffer from any retaliation, more came out to join them. They were so focused on their activities that they didn't notice – or care – that the arrows from their unexpected allies had stopped.
"Was it like this in Laval?" Liam asked.
"Easier," an armsman standing nearby answered. "You got different gangs on the enemy's side workin' for different people. These High Nobles hate each other more than they hate the commonfolk."
"More like they don't even recognise them as a threat," Liam said.
"Right. Well, we didn't have much trouble in Laval 'til we reached the town. Since we're already in the city…"
"There's still the inner wall," Liam noted, "and then the castle after that."
"A fat lotta good that'll do 'em. Back when I was just a little shit, there were some lords with forts who tried to resist the Eight Fingers. Eight Fingers just ignored 'em and took over their towns and villages. A Noble's nothin' without his people, yeah?"
"It's weird that criminals somehow get that, but these Nobles don't."
"These guys are pretty much criminals themselves, if you ask me. Shitty ones."
He couldn't disagree with that. At least the actual criminals did what was expected of them.
A yawn escaped him as they watched the citizens creep towards Forbin's jurisdiction. Pelted incessantly by stones and other debris, the armsmen were forced to take cover behind some makeshift barricades of their own and could do little to threaten the advancing mob. Predictably, the pressure from the people grew to be too much, and they withdrew before anyone could get their hands on them. The citizens let out a cheer as a handful of young men in their vanguard clambered atop the newly conquered position, pumping their fists in the air exultantly.
"Things should pick up from here."
"You think so?" Liam asked.
"Some time soon, at any rate. Gettin' too crowded for somethin' to not happen."
It was a sensible prediction, but things were so one-sided that it was hard to see anything different happening.
Taking advantage of the lull in the 'action', Liam returned to street level, crossing the intersection to reach the rooftops on the other side. Along the way, he checked one of the alleys running parallel to the street. It was about as empty as one might expect: it wasn't the Nobles' style to ambush their enemies, and the citizens steered clear of any that were unfamiliar to them. By the time he climbed a suitable building to rejoin Reed's men, the mob was halfway to the next block.
"Any movement from Blumrush's side?" He asked.
An armsman poked his chin towards the inner wall.
"Just on the walls over there," he said. "Guys on the street still tuckin' tail."
They were now close enough to the upper city that its battlements could be seen past the rooftops between them. From what he could make out, the number of defenders had quadrupled since he had seen it last. He spotted the familiar figure of Sir Damien atop the gatehouse, arms crossed as he received reports from a queue of subordinates. Liam was tempted to get closer to hear what they had to say, but he wasn't confident about doing so undetected.
"I guess they're not coming to help," Liam said.
"Why should they?" The armsman shrugged. "The people can't take the walls. They got friends comin' from the country, yeah?"
He supposed that Lord Reginald had no reason to panic. If anything, it was an ideal scenario for House Blumrush. Their most powerful vassals were being weakened, both politically and militarily. They were secure in their fortifications and their reinforcements would eventually arrive to attack their enemies from behind. He figured it was not too dissimilar to the many cruel calculations that the rulers of the Azerlisian Marches had undoubtedly performed in the past.
『We're nearly at the intersection with High Street. Get ready to move.』
Liam glanced at the empty skies as Reed's men stretched and checked over their equipment. Below them, the citizens' pace remained unchanged.
"What's going to happen?" Liam asked.
"Specifically? Dunno. I reckon we're off to kill some people."
『Men on the rooftops, move ahead of the crowd. We're cutting Laval's forces off from the upper city gate. Get rid of them if you can do it safely.
』
The woodsman grinned.
"See? This work's a lot more fun than threatening folks every other day."
Hefting his bow meaningfully, the woodsman rushed off, leaving Liam to ponder the man's words. He found his work fulfilling, but the idea that it was 'fun' generally didn't enter his mind. How did the other members of Ijaniya see it? He had watched Tira mess around on the job a few times, but he figured it was because she was so powerful that barely anything required the full extent of her strength and skill.
They left the creeping mob behind, casting long shadows over the rooftops as they made their way into the setting sun. As preoccupied as they were, the Nobles' forces didn't spare a single glance upwards. The relatively open High Street made for the only significant obstacle, but it was easily overcome by going through the Beaumont Faction's part of the city. As far as he could tell, things were relatively quiet in the city's southern quarter. The faction's Nobles led patrols along its fringe, but the growing crowd pulling the citizens towards the city centre left the young aristocrats and their men with nothing to challenge.
『Spread out and start taking down Laval's men. It looks like they still don't realise how much trouble they're in.』
Reed's men split up without a word, leaving Liam in the shadows of an alley at the edge of the Re-Blumrushur's western quarter. The first Laval armsman he came across was already dead, pierced through the neck by a broadhead arrow.
These guys are a bit too eager…
There wasn't any point in delaying, but now he was worried that there wouldn't be any left for him. His steps picked up as he wandered the empty streets, occasionally walking past armsmen felled at their posts. He eventually caught up with a couple of Reed's men standing at the edge of a familiar plaza.
"No wonder this side's so quiet," one of them said. "It's like some Demon tore up the place."
Liam had forgotten that had happened. The people on the west side of the city were still cowering in their homes due to the Shadow Demon's grisly display. When it had gone about its task, Liam thought it was being far too extreme, but things seemed to have worked out in the end. There was no chance for any incidents to sour the people's opinion against Reed's 'rebels', and Laval's men stood isolated and exposed throughout the quarter.
"How long until the people from Laval arrive?" Liam asked.
"Uh, when we left 'em, they were set to come in 'round midnight."
"Maybe we started too early," Liam said.
"Don't see how it matters," the other armsman said. Once it's ours, it's ours, yeah?"
"So long as something doesn't happen between now and then," Liam said. "Speaking of which, how have the rebels been conducting themselves? It'll be bad if they do something that turns the citizens against them."
"When they ain't fightin', it's like a trip to the town fair. Doubt any of 'em've been to the city, so they'll be extra googly eyed for sure."
"Where we puttin' 'em up, anyway?" The other armsman asked, "There's enough of 'em to fill the streets and plazas. City folk don't like outsiders loiterin' around if they ain't throwin' coin around."
That was true in a normal situation, but would it matter in the middle of a rebellion?
"I'll try to come up with something," Liam said. "Let's get this part done first."
Laval's men offered no resistance as they were swept from the streets. They found themselves in sight of the western gatehouse before the sun had fully set.
"Time to poke the Goblins' nest," one of the woodsmen said.
The men around Liam gave him a meaningful look.
"What did you do in Laval?" Liam asked.
"Nothin' special, but the big guy up there said you could do somethin' here."
Liam sighed, dispelling his disguise and straightening his attire. While he did want something to do, it almost felt as if he was being left out of some plan everyone else knew about.
The men sitting at the customs desk watched him curiously as he approached, then warily upon recognising his livery. One of the armsmen rose and grabbed a spear leaning on the wall nearby before stepping forward to confront him.
"What business does House Beaumont have with us?" He asked.
"Who leads the watch?" Liam asked back.
"Sir Terrence."
"My lady dispatched me as a courtesy to House Laval," Liam said. "Monfort's screwed up. They've lost the eastern quarter. Forbin's been caught off guard. They're falling back before the mob."
One of the armsmen sitting at the table shot to his feet with a curse. The remaining man disappeared into the gatehouse stairwell.
"I always knew they were nothing but talk," the armsman standing before Liam growled. "What about your men? How has Lord Reginald responded?"
"The reb–"
"Get that footman up here!" A voice called down to them.
Liam exchanged a look with the armsman. The armsman gestured for him to pass with a jerk of his head. Upon entering the captain's office, Liam found Sir Terrence peering out of an arrow slit as if he might be able to catch a glimpse of what was going on deeper in the city. The Knight looked particularly vulnerable without his armour.
"Sir Terrence," Liam said.
"Footman," Sir Terrence replied as he turned to regard him.
"The rebels from the harbour district are marching on the city centre, Sir," Liam said. "My lady fears that we may be cut off from the upper city."
"What about House Blumrush?" The Knight asked, "Lord Reginald's been keeping the castle garrison to himself all this time. Surely now he must see the necessity of decisive action."
"My lady dispatched another man to consult with House Blumrush at the same time as myself," Liam said. "From what I saw on the way here, Lord Reginald has stationed his men on the inner wall. It doesn't look like they intend to sortie against the rebels."
"Cowards!" Sir Terrence spat, "So they mean to abandon us while they sit safe behind their stone walls? We will not be defending Lord Reginald's city if that's the case."
"You're returning to Laval?" Liam asked.
"Not without my lord," Sir Terrence answered. "We'll cut straight through the rebels if we must. You should urge your lady to quit the city while she can. Lord Reginald may have shown House Beaumont some favour recently, but he'll throw you to these savage 'citizens' nonetheless. Sergeant! Recall the men from the walls!"
The Knight snatched his longsword from the captain's desk before storming out of the office. Liam left the gatehouse unchallenged, returning to the expectant looks of Reed's men.
"They're abandoning their position," Liam told them.
"You use some kinda magic on 'em? Assassin magic?"
At this rate, people were going to go around thinking Assassins were a type of Wizard.
"I just told them what was going on," Liam replied. "The Knight in charge decided that Lord Reginald's left them to die."
"Uh, that's basically what's happenin', yeah?"
"I guess…"
Sir Terrence certainly didn't expect anything of the sort, but he couldn't see Raul passing up the chance he had created.
『Laval's forces are forming up at the gate, about five dozen men. Looks like they intend to go into the city. Set up for an ambush on High Street at the first set of dead armsmen along the way.』
Reed's men melted into the shadows, taking cover in the alleys and rooftops along the street. Liam took a spot beside two others behind a stack of empty crates.
"Who's the boss of this bunch?" One of them asked.
"Sir Terrence," Liam said. "A Knight. His armour was destroyed a few days ago, though, so he's using the same stuff as his men."
"Tough guy?"
"I wouldn't say that," Liam replied, "but Count Laval and his men seem to think a lot of him. Something about fighting off Ogre raiders in the past."
That could, of course, mean a variety of things. Ogres were known as a staple of Silver-ranked Adventurers, but their size and strength as Giantkin were the only threatening thing about them when it came to combat. They could be taken down by a swarm of angry Farmers, though not without grievous losses. A shrewd woodsman could dispatch one at a safe distance with a little bit of patience.
As for the Knights of Re-Estize, it wasn't inconceivable for them to be as strong as Laval thought Sir Terrence was. Given what Liam had seen of the Knight, however, it was highly doubtful.
The sound of hooves over rough pavement heralded the approach of Sir Terrence and his men. Liam tensed as they came closer, squeezing a kunai tightly in his grip. Laval's men froze the moment they spotted the dead armsmen lying on the street.
All at once, Reed's men emerged from hiding, unleashing a hail of arrows on the hapless column. Sir Terrence sprouted eight shafts from five different directions and tumbled from his mount. Cries of confusion and panic echoed off closed doors and shuttered windows before fading into the unfeeling twilight. They diminished into a few groans of pain, then silence as the last of Laval's men bled out on the street.
Liam stepped into the open, glancing down at his unbloodied weapon. He had considered throwing it during the ambush, but it wouldn't have made any difference considering how many arrows Laval's men were feathered with.
『Good work. That should be it for Laval's forces in the lower city. I need a few guys to keep an eye on the west gatehouse and let our forces in when they arrive. Everyone else, get in behind Forbin's men. They've nearly fallen back to the upper city gate.』
Not a single resident peeked out at them as they dispersed to take their new positions. What did they think of what was going on? In the end, it probably didn't matter to them: cities were ultimately places where everyone strove to eke out a living. Who was in control really didn't matter unless their lives took a turn for the worse. Once the Sorcerous Kingdom took over, Re-Blumrushur would likely follow the same course as Re-Estize, though the administration might have figured out how to speed things along since then.
As they came closer to the upper city gate, the sound of the advancing mob grew loud enough to be heard over the gusts of cold evening wind. Upon cresting the final set of rooftops overlooking High Street, they came upon the sight of countless flickering torches flowing from the east. From above, it was a mesmerising scene, but the effect it had on Count Forbin's men was all too apparent. At best, they made halfhearted gestures with their weapons in an effort to intimidate the crowd while retreating before the steady press. This, in turn, emboldened the citizenry, who had shed much of their previous caution.
"Death to Monfort!"
"Forbin's gotta pay!"
"We've had enough of your shit!"
"Down with Blumrush!"
"Get out of our city, you bastards!"
"Go back to your shitholes!"
The ire of the people was tangible, even from Liam's safe perch above the street. It was a wonder that Forbin's men didn't simply break and flee.
『The citizens are moving too fast. We need to get this next part done quickly. Start clearing the walls close to the gate. Force back the sentries on the ground once it's safe.』
Reed's men padded north along the rooftops, repositioning themselves to carry out Raul's orders. The city's inner wall was a relic of a time when civilisation had just been destroyed by the Demon Gods. Back then, Re-Blumrushur's denizens had scraped together a wooden palisade to shelter them from the chaos of that age. In the present day, it was no longer constructed from logs, but the way that the city had expanded beyond its first wall left little room for improvement. It seemed that the Re-Blumrushur's past rulers were content with something just good enough to keep regular people out. Maybe they thought the outer wall would be enough for everything else…not that the present rulers maintained it beyond its outward appearance.
The reconstruction of the city following its late-autumn fire made things even worse in terms of the inner wall's defensibility. Speed and thrift – as was characteristic of House Blumrush – were prioritised. Little thought was given to the tactical consequences of their haphazard efforts.
Liam flattened himself against the clay tiles of the rooftop, creeping up to peek over at the nearby fortifications. The apartment he had chosen not only gave him a good view of the street leading to the upper city, but was also just as tall as the inner wall. Reed's men were taking up similar positions mere metres from the woefully inadequate defences. In the twilight gloom, Blumrush's men seemed completely oblivious of the fact that their torchlit figures were being sized up by dozens of hidden snipers.
The armsmen manning the wall looked up as the call of some bird floated up into the darkening skies. More than a few of them received an arrow in the throat for their trouble. Chaos broke out as Blumrush's forces displayed mixed reactions to the assault. Some of them froze, staring at their fallen allies. Others reflexively peered out into the darkness as if deterring timid footpads and rowdy drunks. A handful had the good sense to get behind cover and sound the alarm.
"We're under attack!"
"Forbin's let the rebels through!"
Atop the gatehouse, Sir Damien started barking out orders, bringing a semblance of order to his men. Unfortunately for him, his men's response was far from uniform. Reed's men were unapologetic in exploiting the difference, striking down men who went for crossbows and any who tried to tend to their wounded fellows. A few attempted to get Sir Damien, but their arrows harmlessly bounced off his dull grey plate armour and clattered to the stone around him.
Once most of the men on the wall were dead or driven off, the sentries in front of the gate suddenly found themselves the recipients of everyone's attention. Nearly half of them were cut down by black-fletched arrows before they had the presence of mind to fall back into the archway of the gatehouse.
"They're everywhere!" One of the armsmen cried, "Close the gate!"
"You fools!" Sir Damien bellowed, "Wh–"
The Knight's voice was drowned out by the clattering mechanisms of the gate. Down the street, the distinct noise had not gone unnoticed by Forbin's men. The sight of the lowering portcullis put an end to what little resistance they possessed, and the lot of them broke before the mob to sprint towards the upper city.
"Damien, you bastard!"
"Let us in!"
"We did all that Lord Reginald asked of us!"
The portcullis settled into its frame with a metallic crunch, leaving Forbin's men stranded on the other side. Sir Damien called for his men to raise the portcullis, but the mob, sensing weakness, rushed forward, making it unsafe to do so. The trapped armsmen's rage at House Blumrush's 'betrayal' turned to vicious curses against Sir Damien, Lord Reginald, and the Marquis as the people of the city closed in.
From his perch on the rooftops, Liam watched dispassionately as the last of Blumrush's forces in the lower city were torn apart.