Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

Chapter 442 I can’t stand it any longer

In a dim house, the surrounding walls were shrouded in darkness. Only a few faint rays of light struggled to squeeze in through the gaps in the windows, swaying in the space filled with blood and tension.

John lay quietly on a wooden board covered with a quilt. The board looked a little mottled due to years of disrepair. The edges of the quilt were a little worn and were now stained bright red by the blood that continued to flow from John's body.

Several doctors surrounded John with serious expressions. One of the older doctors, with a focused look in his eyes, was carefully picking up fragments from John's body with tweezers.

John's body trembled slightly with each insertion and withdrawal of the forceps. A young doctor beside him assisted, gently wiping the blood around the wound with a clean cloth so that the older doctor could operate more clearly.

"Be careful, this splinter is deep, try not to injure the surrounding muscles."

The older doctor whispered instructions, beads of sweat the size of beans rolling down his forehead, wetting his forehead and cheeks.

The young doctor nodded hurriedly, without slowing down his movements at all. He looked intently at the cloth in his hand and wiped it meticulously.

The shouts and cries of killing outside the window came like a surging tide, accompanied by the dull and huge roar of artillery, each of which seemed to hit people's hearts heavily. The shouts and the harsh sounds of swords clashing spread from the window to the room.

The tense atmosphere made the doctors' palms sweat unconsciously. In addition to concentration, their eyes were filled with an indescribable anxiety.

After wiping a wound, one of the doctors stood up and exhaled forcefully, as if he was temporarily relieved from the heavy pressure, but then he plunged into his intense work again.

The young doctor was concentrating on cleaning the blood from another wound and didn't notice that his sleeves were soaked with sweat.

John's condition became worse. His breathing became rapid and weak, and every rise and fall seemed to use up all his strength. His lips were cracked and bleeding, and his body was shaking slightly. Blood continued to ooze out of the wounds on his body, gathering into a small pool of blood under the quilt.

As the shouting and killing gradually subsided, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Reynard walked in. His steps were heavy, and his armor had several more scratches from the battle just now, and his hair was messily scattered on his forehead.

Seeing John lying unconscious, Leonard felt a pang of pain in his heart.

"How is Lord John?"

Leonard asked the doctor next to him in a hoarse voice.

A doctor who had just been replaced stood up slowly, his face was covered with sweat, and his eyes revealed a trace of helplessness and fatigue. He sighed softly and said:

"It's hard to say, sir."

The doctor straightened his wrinkled clothes and continued:

"Several fractures, multiple wounds that are bleeding, plus various symptoms such as the previous cold, there are too many complications. Not to mention here, even if we return to the territory to receive the best treatment, I'm afraid..." The doctor frowned and hesitated.

He leaned close to Leonard's ear and whispered:

“You have to be mentally prepared.”

After listening to this, Reynard did not hesitate at all. He stood up, looked at the doctor firmly, and said without hesitation:

"As long as you can save Earl John, I will agree to anything you ask for."

The doctor was stunned for a moment, then nodded slowly, sighed and said:

"How's the war going outside?"

"The Kushans have been driven back."

Leonard replied, but there was a hint of fatigue in his voice.

"That's good, I can live a little longer."

The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. He turned and looked out the window, as if to confirm that the danger outside was really over. After a while, he turned back to Leonard and asked:

"Do you think we can get out of here alive?"

Reynald was silent. He heard the doctor's hidden meaning. He recalled the plan he had made with John before. Originally, they were going to use Celilius Island as a base to counterattack Acre City. But now, the current predicament made this plan out of reach.

The soldiers had long despaired of continuing to fight because of the cruelty and difficulty of this war. Their faith gradually collapsed in the day-to-day suffering, and now all they wanted was to leave here as soon as possible and return to the French King's Hall to seek refuge.

Leonard took a deep breath and said slowly:

"I also hope that we can leave alive, but the current situation..."

He shook his head slightly and said nothing more.

Leonard walked to the window and looked at the devastated scene outside caused by the war, his heart filled with helplessness and sadness.

"Eh~"

Leonard sighed and returned his gaze to John, who lay unconscious on the bed.

John still lay quietly, letting the blood stain the already unclean quilt. Leonard thought to himself:

"Sir John, what shall I do?"

Inside the tent, the atmosphere was as depressing as the dullness before a storm. Galisica sat high up in the head, his once majestic face now flushed red with anger, his eyes as big as copper bells, staring intently at the generals below.

Suddenly, Calixica shouted to the generals:

"You mean to say that after falling from the city wall, John, covered in wounds, killed more than 300 people, several generals, and the commander of my guards?"

His voice was like a huge bell, echoing in the tent, and even the tent curtains seemed to tremble slightly.

A general replied timidly:

"That's right, Your Majesty. Although I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it, it's true."

His voice trembled slightly. He did not dare to meet Gabriel's angry eyes. He just lowered his head and secretly glanced at Gabriel from time to time, as if he wanted to make himself as small as possible and hide in this depressing atmosphere.

"And then what! Why didn't you catch him after he fell to the ground?"

Galisica demanded angrily, his body leaning forward, his hands clenched into fists, the anger in his body seemed to be bursting out, and the furious momentum made the air in the tent become hot.

"This... We originally wanted to send soldiers to carry him back, but we didn't expect that dozens of fully armed soldiers wearing silver-white armor would jump down from the city wall and kill all the hundreds of soldiers we sent forward. Then they carried John back inside."

The general explained carefully, beads of sweat the size of beans rolling down his forehead, but he didn't dare raise his hand to wipe them off. He just let the sweat slide down his cheeks and wet his originally straight armor.

"Bastard!"

Calixica shouted:

"You are so incompetent! You have such a huge advantage, but you still ended up like this! I lost nearly half of my soldiers, and even the guards suffered heavy casualties. What do you think we should do?"

His breathing became rapid and heavy, and the air in the tent seemed to be frozen. The generals looked at each other, but did not dare to speak, for fear of getting into trouble.

At this moment, the guard outside the tent came in and reported:

"Your Majesty, many chiefs have come to see you to discuss retreat."

"What retreat? The battle isn't over yet, how dare they retreat?"

Galixica responded angrily. His face became even redder due to anger, and his majestic eyes were now flashing with burning anger, as if he wanted to burn everything in front of him.

"They say it is..."

Before the guards finished speaking, the chieftains went ahead and entered the tent without Galixica's permission. They looked directly at Galixica, the emperor they had pledged allegiance to, and seemed to take Galixica's anger for granted.

"Are you going to rebel?"

Galixica said angrily, his voice was deafening in the tent, as if it was going to shatter the tent. Galixica stood up suddenly, and the armor on his body made a slight metallic collision sound due to his movement, which was particularly clear in this silent and tense atmosphere.

"Your Majesty, we just want a definite answer from you. When will we retreat? You said before the war that we would return after this battle. Now we have suffered heavy casualties. I'm afraid we won't be able to win if we attack again. It's better to return earlier. Yoda is the real threat!"

A chief advised, his eyes revealing a trace of worry and unwillingness, and he unconsciously grasped the scimitar at his waist. Although the action was small, it also showed his attitude.

The Kushan Empire was a loose alliance of tribes. After this battle, Galixika's army suffered heavy casualties and could no longer suppress the chiefs. The other tribal chiefs saw this and immediately took the opportunity to revolt. If Galixika said no, he would definitely be killed by the chiefs in the end, and his dream of an empire would be shattered with his death.

Seeing this situation, Gabriel was frightened and could only comfort him:

"I am discussing this matter with the generals and will give you an answer tomorrow."

There was a hint of panic in his eyes, but he still maintained his remaining dignity.

"I hope Your Majesty will not break his promise."

After seeing the guards gradually gathering outside the tent, the chieftains had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​forcing the emperor to abdicate and then left the tent. The sound of their footsteps echoed outside the tent, making Galisica feel more and more irritated.

Just when Kalishika was worried, Aibu walked forward, took a look at Kalishika who was lost in thought, and said softly:

"Your Majesty, I have an idea that may help resolve this dilemma, but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

Galixica raised his head slightly, a glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes, and asked:

"Oh? Come and listen."

Aibu bowed slightly and said slowly:

"Your Majesty, both sides are exhausted now, and John is unconscious now. For those pagans, they just want to go home, and you just want this island. Send me as an envoy to negotiate peace, and then treat them with courtesy and send them back by ship."

When Kalishika heard this, he was immediately furious. He stood up suddenly, strode to Abu, and almost poked Abu's nose with his finger, and shouted loudly:

"What! I send them back? Then who is the winner? Isn't this making me a laughing stock?"

Abu calmly raised his head, looked at Kalishika firmly, and said:

"Your Majesty, calm down. That's not the case. You led the army to attack this island, wasn't it to unify Kushan and gain the legitimacy of the Kushan emperor?"

Calixica's mood calmed down a little. He sat back in his chair, put his hands on his head, and said:

"But the situation is so unfavorable now, what can we do?"

Eb went on to say:

"But now the Yoda army is wreaking havoc on the border, and a forceful attack is definitely not going to work. If you let them go, firstly, you can take the island without bloodshed and achieve your goal. Secondly, these people will definitely fight the Yoda people when they return. Instead of sending troops to fight them, it is better to let the pagans fight among themselves and relieve our pressure."

Galixica frowned and fell into deep thought. The tent fell into silence again, with only the flickering flames in the brazier burning gently, making a "crackling" sound, as if accompanying this fateful moment.

Calixica slowly stood up and paced back and forth in the tent.

Abu stood quietly by the side, his eyes focused and determined, silently waiting for Kalishika's decision.

Finally, Galixiga stopped walking. He sat back in his chair, looked at Aibu, and said slowly:

"So be it."