Gacha Kingdom Building-Chapter 239: The Hamperlon Campaign (02)

On the southern front, news spread like wildfire: Cities were surrendering to Evretis to avoid the Dragon, triggering a dangerous domino effect.

Reports claimed that King Gerbil, after regrouping Hamperlon's main army, marched on those cities to appease the nobles and reclaim the lost lands before we could occupy them.

We also heard he had hired the largest mercenary force ever seen on this continent to challenge the Dragon, but the outcome remains unknown.

The only thing I heard from Elizabeth about it was her complaints about their "quantity before quality" approach. She seemed both bored and furious about the lack of anyone worth her time after more than a thousand challengers fell before her.

Thus, despite the increased resistance, her march in the South continued on as we shared information and coordinated to prevent Hamperlon from catching us off guard.

In the north, I helped the army push where we could.

Even though we knew Hamperlon's main army was busy, news took days to travel, so, wary of their forces, I was careful not to overextend.

After Elizabeth and the Dragon's attacks, the surrendering cities, and the territory we took by force, Hamperlon's territorial loss amounted to about half of the entire country.

We had successfully swept through the northern coast, and noticing their diminishing morale and spread-thin defenses, I proposed an ambitious next step for the campaign.

Our next destination was Maides Island, previously the home of the Snow White Wolves, and now, one of Hamperlon's most important mines.

Marin: "...Girlie! I'm not telling you again, get inside!"

Mia: "It's been three days already... If we wait for perfect weather, we'll never disembark."

Snow fell relentlessly on the island, much like it did during my first time there.

Even under the best circumstances, the unending snow and the island's geography make an invasion incredibly difficult.

Because of this, while I always had plans to take the island, I postponed it as much as possible, until I was certain Hamperlon wouldn't be able to impede us.

Unfortunately, luck was not on our side.

The first day, we were hit by a heavy storm before approaching the island.

This damaged a few of the ships, and before any battle happened, we had already lost some of our initial strength.

On the second day, the waves were still high and tumultuous, while Marin could steer her ship just fine, the men captaining the other ships protested.

Looking back, that was my mistake.

I thought that by bringing as many ships as possible, I'd overwhelm their defenses and increase our chances, however, there were no captains on the North aside from Marin, and we quickly realized that rough seas would lead them to get in each other's way and undermine the whole operation.

We had no choice but to wait...

Marin: "But you staying there is not going to help with anything."

Mia: "...If it's this close, I could-"

Miwen: "Don't bother. If you jump into the water, I'm fishing you back up."

Mia: "Hrmm..."

I couldn't be mad at Mia for being so restless.

This was her home, after all.

As soon as I defined it as our next objective, she wouldn't hear no for an answer.

She wanted to be the first to land, the first to fight, and even now, she barely sleeps, afraid to miss the first contact.

Even during a storm, with the cold rain falling on her and the wind so strong it feels like it could send her flying at a moment's notice, she stays at the ship's bow, focused solely on what's ahead of her.

Marin: "Well, blow yourselves out then... If ya need me... Don't?"

While always more worried about her bottles than anything else, Marin still found it in her heart to care about Mia.

She was attentive to her every move, and whenever Mia sneaked out of her cabin, our captain followed her, doing her best to convince the escapee to head back inside.

The two are stubborn in their own ways, but Marin still managed to win a few rounds.

However, she has also learned that when she can't convince Mia, it's better to leave it to me.

Mia: "...Marin is drinking a lot."

Miwen: "She does that when things don't go her way."

She also does it when they do, but that's beside the point. freёwebnoѵel.com

Mia: "That friend of hers is already wasted. And Isabella would be happy to keep you company. If you head there now, you might score three at once."

Miwen: "That does sound nice."

Mia: "Then why aren't you going?"

Miwen: "Are you sure you don't know the answer?"

Mia: "...I really hate when you do that."

Slowly, the girl sitting at the brow stood up.

Not facing me, she jumped swiftly in the air only to land right by my side.

Mia: "I was just... Contemplating. I wasn't going to swim there."

Nowadays, when she makes an excuse, she avoids eye contact with me, and her voice sounds slightly lower than normal, almost as if trying not to be heard.

I wasn't sure if she had realized it yet, but I certainly picked up on it.

Miwen: "I see... What were you thinking about, then?"

Mia: "I don't know... It feels so weird. It's so close, I can almost feel the wind blowing from there. But at the same time, I'm stuck here... And I..."

Miwen: "Hm?"

Mia: "When I think about the island, I think about her. And that makes me... A little scared. I'm not ready to face her yet... I think..."

Right...

While we know the current location of Hamperlon's main army, a single knight is a completely different story.

Especially the Black and White knights. Those two only show up when King Gerbil shows up, and that guy is as mysterious as it gets.

The chances of us meeting them on the island were not zero...

Miwen: "..."

Truth be told, if that were to happen, I'd like her to sit it out.

Unfortunately, I can't see that happening.

As much as it hurts her, if she's right and the White Knight is Melissa, she has to be the one to face her.

It wouldn't be right for anyone else to do it.

Miwen: "Melissa was strong. But she wasn't invincible. I'm sure you can find a way to win. And if it gets too hard... I'll be there to help you."

Mia: "...I don't want to count on you more than I already-"

Miwen: "Nonsense. I'm not your fiancé just for show-"

Mia is stronger than she thinks.

Both in body and mind.

But I shouldn't tease her too much, no matter how much I mean it.

Miwen: "C'mon. Let's rest today. I'm sure tomorrow will be busy."

Mia: "Hopefully..."

Like a charm, my words pierced through the heavens, and the very next morning, the weather was as good as we could wish for in this region.

Nothing could be done about the falling snow, but at least, the garrissons were as weak as we had imagined.

As we approached the shore, spells and arrows bombarded us from the snowy woods.

Their rhythm was slow and clumsy. By our estimates, they numbered around two or three hundred men and lacked the experience necessary to coordinate an organized response.

With six to one in our favor, even after three days anchored close to the island and about ten days total at sea, the soldiers' morale was high, and with so many targets to choose from, Hamperlons' men's attempt at blocking our landing was too disorganized and crumbled after barely delaying us.

Marin: "Boys and girls, what you've been waiting for is finally within reach! Go make me proud, alright? I'll stay here to protect the booz- The princess, so contact me after you have taken the fortress."

While Isabella can fight, when not necessary, I'd rather keep her safe.

Marin's reasons were dubious, but there was hardly a safer place than by her side.

As for Mia and me... We were among the first to jump out of the ship, grabbing the most attention from the men on the island, and having to dodge their last volley before they returned to the fortress to prepare for a siege.

A few strays remained in the forest, but they were either captured or dealt with by our army.

With the Island surrounded and no chance of reinforcements coming for them, instead of rushing to the siege, we decided to investigate and liberate the people of the island working in the fields or the mines.

Thanks to this, Mia managed to recruit a hundred new Snow White Wolves to the Kingdom, making up for the losses she suffered during Hamperlon's Northern Campaign.

We set camp around the fortress and tried to engage in diplomacy.

It would've been best for everyone if they could surrender without fighting, but unfortunately, after the second day, it became obvious this wasn't going to happen.

With no options remaining, we forced our way inside, steeling our hearts against whatever we'd find inside.