Harroway Town was exceptionally desolate today, completely enveloped by an invisible atmosphere of tension. Most of the shops lining the streets had already closed, the bustling commercial vibrancy of yesteryear gone, leaving only shadow-like signs swaying in the wind.
Fortunately, the inn near the ferry crossing remained open, like the last trace of life in this dead silence. However, even this operating inn had exceptionally sparse business. Only one or two tables of guests cautiously surveyed their surroundings.
The streets were empty; even if pedestrians occasionally appeared, they hurried along, heads bowed, seemingly eager to escape this eerily quiet place. There was no interaction between people, and even eye contact was rare. A suppressive atmosphere permeated the entire town.
The usually bustling dock was now deserted. The lively scene of numerous boats coming and going, loading and unloading cargo, was gone, replaced by a handful of lonely ships moored along the bank.
A gentle breeze blew, causing the sails to sway slightly, but this faint movement only highlighted the current stillness and emptiness.
Marquis Frey and Earl Blackwood slowly walked down the street with their subordinates, their synchronized footsteps echoing in the silence. People hiding indoors cautiously observed every move of this procession through gaps in their windows.
Fortunately, although the inn was simple, the food it served was quite good, and Marquis Frey and his group enjoyed a hearty lunch.
However, the cunning Marquis Frey had his servants take supplies and set up a camp outside Harroway Town, ostentatiously cooking food. The rising smoke was clearly visible even several kilometers away.
"The two lords are not here. The Blackwood Family's army has already arrived outside the town. The Blinken Family's army has also arrived ten miles away."
Dona, riding an mastiff, quickly reported the latest intelligence to Marquis Frey and his group. Through her easily-traveled magpies, the situation within dozens of kilometers was basically under Dona's control.
"Do the people on the other side of the river have any new movements?"
It must be said that with Dona and their assistance, Marquis Frey and his group indeed had quite a few advantages. Gaining insight on the battlefield is extremely important.
"Earl Reyes and his group have no new movements, but the Mountain Clans have already arrived on the other side of the river; however, they have not made contact with Earl Reyes and his group."
Earl Blackwood proposed again upon hearing this,
"Since that's the case, let's deal with the Blinken Family's army first. With the Blackwood Family's warriors plus the army we have now, there's still a great deal of hope."
"Very well!"
Marquis Frey had been contemplating battle strategies all along the way. Since Reyes and his group had already set a trap, a direct conflict was unavoidable.
In that case, it would be better to use their intelligence advantage and give them a taste of their own medicine first. West of Harroway Town, there were dozens of kilometers of continuous reeds, perfect for an ambush.
So Marquis Frey had his subordinates forcibly open the doors of some shops in the town and bought all the lamp oil they could collect.
They also met up with the Blackwood Family's army an hour earlier than the Blinken Family's army.
Using this time difference, they cleared a large isolation zone in the reed marsh upwind.
By the time everything was ready, the main force of the Blinken Family had also arrived outside Harroway Town.
Leading the Blinken Family's army was Zos Blinkon, Earl Blinken's younger brother. Among the 1,500 Blinkon warriors, there were 100 knights riding crimson warhorses alone.
"Why is Harroway Town still so calm? Logically, shouldn't those weasels from the Frey Family and those crows from the Blackwood Family have already fallen into Earl Reyes and his group's ambush by now?"
Harold Blinken, the burly chief instructor of the Blinken Family, who was beside him, carefully surveyed the distant calm Trident River and Harroway Town, guessing,
"They probably haven't arrived yet! Otherwise, our scouts would have already sent back news."
"That's true. Unlike that old scoundrel Blackwood, Marquis Frey, that weasel, is very cautious. They probably discovered something, so they didn't even dare to enter Harroway Town!"
"Did you see the cooking smoke over there?! From the scale, it should be them."
"Hmm?"
At this moment, Harold Blinken also noticed the faint, curling cooking smoke in the distance,
"From the smoke, they should have finished their meal. But since they've already sensed something, how dare they light fires so openly to cook? That's not that weasel's character!"
"Young Master Zos, it seems we need to be more careful from now on, to guard against tricks."
"What's there to be afraid of? Our army has 500 more men than the Blackwood Family. Even with the elites from those two old men's sides, our numbers are only on par."
"One Blinken Family warrior can fight five Frey Family weasels, and besides, Earl Reyes and his group are ambushing on the other side of the Trident River. Facing our pincer attack, they have no chance of winning."
"Let's find a place to set up camp first, and still follow the original plan: wait for their battle to start, and then we'll make our move."
"There are reeds everywhere here, and the damn mosquitoes are simply too many."
Harold Blinken always felt a little uneasy, but he couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. And the Blinken Family's army had indeed been somewhat fatigued from their rapid march. The upcoming battle was about to begin, so it was indeed necessary to let the army recover some strength.
So he ordered his sergeants to flatten the withered reeds on both sides of the road and rest for an hour. After all, this reed marsh was too suitable for an ambush, and by flattening it, he would feel more at ease.
With Dona and her group present, every action of the Blinken Family's army was under the control of Marquis Frey and his group. While the Blinken Family's army was resting, Marquis Frey and his side had already sent a small team of warriors with lamp oil to secretly circle around to their rear.
And a kilometer ahead of the Blinken Family's army on the road, piles of dry grass soaked in lamp oil had already been stacked.
When the Blinken Family's army had rested for nearly half an hour, their guard was down. At Marquis Frey's command, archers shot countless flaming arrows in their direction.
The flaming arrows, carried by the wind, swiftly flew towards the Blinken Family's army, instantly igniting the surrounding dry reeds. The fire spread rapidly, and the Blinken Family's army immediately fell into chaos.
The hundreds of warhorses leisurely grazing by the roadside, though usually well-trained, instantly panicked in the face of the raging fire and without knights to control them. They scattered in all directions, regardless of anything.
This left the knights, who were chatting and joking nearby, somewhat caught off guard. And because the road where they were resting was surrounded by dry grass and reeds, and they were unfortunately downwind, the fire quickly spread around them.
Thick smoke billowed and flames raged. Even if they weren't burned by the fire, the warriors' iron armor quickly became scorching hot from the flames, so they had to hastily remove their armor.
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