The Black Wing's New Beginning
The Black Wing had not transformed overnight simply because Vicente was gone.
Jeanne remained in Gironde and began methodically changing the organization from the ground up.
Among the children under her training, those with parents were sent back to them, while the rest were entrusted to the temple orphanage. The priest Sammu took charge of that duty.
For the older children who had nearly completed their training, choices were offered. They could serve as assassins under Ines in the new Black Wing or leave this place and live freely.
A considerable number chose the path of the assassin. For children who had spent most of their lives here, another world felt as unfamiliar and terrifying as the unknown.
“I am grateful you entrusted me with the position of leader of the Black Wing. It must have been a difficult decision.”
“Following the captain's orders, if anyone does not guide us in the right direction, we will not be able to stop ourselves from straying. But we will not remain here forever. I am a knight of the Second Knight Order. Once this place is stable, I will return.”
“Of course. I will always keep a seat open for you.”
After long deliberation, Ines decided to become the leader of the Black Wing. To correct the accumulated evils, someone had to immerse themselves in the dirty work, and she was perfectly suited for it.
“Does that mean you intend to return Gironde to its original status as a commercial city?”
“It will take a long time. Still, we must make the changes.”
Eliminating the assassin guild alone would not end the problem. Gironde, stagnant and fallen into slums for so long, needed equal time to transform into a healthy city.
To achieve this change, solving the financial issue was crucial. It was the very thing Vicente had originally intended to propose to her. Find a neighboring city and cooperate.
Shellan, the ancient city of master blacksmiths.
However, more urgent matters awaited. Before heading there, Jeanne made preparations to leave Gironde.
It had already been over two months since she arrived in Gironde. Her next destination was the southern city of Peale. Jeanne felt the cold winter wind and recalled her previous memories.
In the original war, the Rotinzel army had advanced to Peale after capturing Ileang in order to pressure La Rochelle.
Although the situation differed, if it were Aaron, he would undoubtedly head to Peale again.
The battle at Peale would occur in early summer next year, after the sun had passed. It was the right time to begin preparations now to face the enemy at the appropriate moment.
Fabian asked,
“What kind of person is Laurent of Peale?”
“Laurent… he was an extraordinarily free spirit. Honestly, I myself do not know exactly what kind of person he was.”
If someone asked her who was the most knightly knight, she would hesitate. But if asked who was the knight farthest from the knightly image, she would without hesitation name Laurent.
Laurent was no elite knight. He was down-to-earth, getting along with everyone regardless of rank.
Jeanne recalled Laurent.
As Jeanne had instructed Divine in advance, shortly after their departure, Rotinzel's assault on Ileang began. The Ileang siege war, which had been hinted at since the end of summer, opened when the leaves began to turn red.
If Ileang fell immediately, the path northward would open, and Aquite, where the king resided, would not be safe.
Soldiers gathered from all across Bluisol fought desperately to defend the fortress.
The battle continued even as months passed and seasons changed again.
Before leaving, Jeanne had summoned Divine and hinted that the journey might be long. Jeanne's request for Divine and the soldiers to protect Ileang even if they did not return was upheld for two full seasons.
November 19th.
For two months, the military of Ileang had held back the enemy's offensive.
“It looks like the first snow.”
At Gaspar's words, Gasper looked up at the sky. Flakes of white snow fell lightly.
“If we hold out just a little longer, the enemy will likely withdraw.”
Once deep winter arrived, the offensive would likely ease.
In truth, the Rotinzel army was closer to merely surrounding and isolating Ileang rather than conducting fierce close-quarters fighting.
Nevertheless, Ileang's supply lines remained intact, thanks to support sent by sea from La Rochelle. By sending supplies by sea, avoiding the land route where the Rotinzel forces were rampant, and since the Rotinzel had already suffered defeat at sea at Matthias's hands, they could not block it.
As supplies continued to flow, Ileang had adopted a classic defensive posture, locking itself behind tightly closed gates.
For the Rotinzel, ignoring Ileang and pushing north risked being hit in the rear and encircled from both sides, so they could not ignore this fortress.
Ileang, crouched like a tortoise, maintained an extremely defensive stance, yet the one growing weary was the Rotinzel army.
Soldiers from the island nation across the warm southern sea found it difficult to endure Bluisol's winter chill.
Despite the grueling fight, Divine and the Bluisol forces remained neither impatient nor anxious. The deepening winter favored Bluisol.
Inside the Rotinzel army encampment before Ileang, Aaron gnawed on cookies that would melt his tongue.
“Why is this fortress so impossible to break?”
Crushed cookie crumbs fell onto the map of Ileang fortress where the enemy's positions were marked.
Even Aaron, with his strong patience, had become impatient after two months of fruitlessly attempting to capture the fortress.
In Rotinzel's internal territorial wars, where sieges unfolded inside the territory, he could have waited while maintaining the encirclement for six months or a year.
But this was Bluisol. Prolonged encirclement risked unforeseen variables, and Bluisol's northern cold was terribly unfamiliar to the Rotinzel forces.
Yet to directly assault the fortress, Ileang's walls were far too large and sturdy. Ancient siege weapons would only increase allied casualties.
Aaron gulped down hot chocolate that had gone cloudy with milk. Unlike his usual philosophy of savoring tea, it was clear how parched his throat had become. He asked Hayes to bring a small cannon model.
“Why not use siege cannons?”
“The siege cannons powerful enough to break down those massive walls cannot be moved by land. We would have to use ships, but the sea route is completely blocked right now.”
To destroy the walls, the power of the siege cannons had to be proportional to the walls' size and thickness. Cannons of that caliber were far too bulky to move at will.
“Even if they continue to receive supplies, it will not be as smooth as ours. Food resources are limited. In the end, if we hold out for a few months, the gates will not open.”
“This is a battle of patience. The issue is that our soldiers may be the ones to die first from hunger before their supplies run out. We need to retreat for now.”
“But that is the order His Majesty has given. We cannot simply be satisfied with occupying Roire.”
“We are not completely retreating. We will regroup the army in Roire for a short time, prepare firmly, and advance again in spring next year.”
“That is the problem—it would look like a mere excuse to His Majesty. Even if it is not Ileang, we must show results. Do you not know His Majesty's preferences well?”
At the mention of Edward II, Aaron gulped down another mouthful of hot chocolate.
“In the end, all their supplies come by sea. If we cut off that route, it should work.”
“We cannot do that. We do not even have a navy. It is because of Walter and Leonard, those fools, who suffered consecutive defeats in the south. Tch.”
Aaron clicked his tongue. Hayes had no words to offer on that matter and averted his gaze.
Aaron tapped his fingers on the table. It was impossible to directly attack ships carrying Rotinzel land army supplies, but attacking the very place that sent the supplies was entirely feasible.
“Hmm. If the sea route is the issue… perhaps it would be better to break through there first.”
Aaron lowered his eyes. If they continued with the third and fourth Ileang sieges as planned, the results would be the same. Instead, pressuring La Rochelle and ascending northward together with the navy would allow for much easier capture.
After all, the reason Ileang had endured so long was because of continuous support by sea. It was not unreasonable to want to handle that side first.
“You mean to attack La Rochelle?”
“Yes. The reason Bluisol is holding out is thanks to that place. Once La Rochelle is occupied, breaking Ileang will be a simple matter of time.”
“A fortress whose supplies are cut off will be isolated and left to wither on its own.”
Aaron nodded. Their target had shifted from Ileang to La Rochelle.
The largest fortress on the route from the capital of Bluisol, Roire, to La Rochelle was Peale Castle. Capturing that fortress would allow simultaneous pressure on La Rochelle from both sea and land.
Aaron licked the cookie crumbs from his fingers and pondered how to operate the army most efficiently.
Divine and Gaspar ascended to the ramparts every day to scout the enemy positions. Since winter had set in, the enemy's offensives had grown infrequent and, recently, even more silent. They had ceased the occasional harassing shots several days ago.
“The number of soldiers has clearly decreased.”
“Are they giving up and withdrawing?”
“That may be so, but the enemy did not withdraw all at once. They have been gradually pulling back while leaving the encampments intact. That means they want to keep our eyes fixed on this place.”
“Why would they do that?”
“It means they intend to launch an attack somewhere before we notice and send reinforcements elsewhere.”
“Where?”
Gaspar asked Divine if he had any guesses. Divine tapped the feathered fan on his palm in thought.
“There are a few possible places. They could turn toward Reuliaz and head to Aquite where Your Highness is. Or they might go toward Alsace.”
Alsace was a city with fertile soil and good climate, where grapevines grew well. The wines produced there were considered the finest, and high-quality wines from that nation were expensive enough to be attractive spoils to Aaron, who was blinded by loot. Divine, however, pointed elsewhere.
“But if I were them, I would move to Peale.”
“Peale?”
“Yes. The reason we can hold out like this is entirely because of support from La Rochelle. Therefore, they would first eliminate the obstacle in their way.”
“Peale is a fiefdom attached to the north of La Rochelle. If the enemy has already settled in the capital and is attacking La Rochelle, they would surely strike there first.”
Sending reinforcements here to predict the enemy's intentions was unrealistic. The enemy would likely block the route to send reinforcements, and in case they were only feigning an attack below while drawing down forces at the fortress, they might re-enter the Ileang siege at any moment.
Gaspar let out a sigh. He had been granted the title of supreme commander yet remained a nameless, useless position here at Ileang, neither advancing nor retreating.
“If it were the princess, she would already be there. She has an excellent sense of judgment.”
Divine fervently hoped that Jeanne would realize what he had noticed.