Reincarnation Paradise Park

Chapter 786: Chapter 17: The Frenzied Assault

”This...”

Caesar scratched inside his jacket, and when he pulled out his hand, the gaps under his fingernails were black. Who knows how long it’s been since this guy had a bath; he might lose three pounds from a scrub.

”Looks like my previous knowledge really isn’t worth much.”

The smile disappeared from Su Xiao’s face.

[Notice: Quartermaster Nicholas Caesar’s goodwill -60, current goodwill 35 points.]

Seeing this notice, Su Xiao almost couldn’t help but stand up and cut this guy down.

Noticing Su Xiao’s off expression, Caesar sighed.

[Notice: Quartermaster Nicholas Caesar’s goodwill -30, current goodwill 5 points.]

Su Xiao and Caesar stared at each other.

”My dear friend, how could I not look after you? Your knowledge is a priceless treasure.”

As soon as Caesar finished speaking, a notice from Reincarnation Paradise appeared.

[Quartermaster Nicholas Caesar’s goodwill +90, current goodwill 95 points.]

The sudden rise and fall were truly exhilarating; just from this, Su Xiao had figured out Caesar’s character: stingy, profit-driven, greedy yet timid, and somewhat selfish.

This was quite interesting. Su Xiao didn’t dislike dealing with people like Caesar, but rather those who were rigid yet saw themselves as righteous, self-righteous and the hardest to deal with.

The more flaws in one’s character, the more weaknesses there are. Su Xiao never tries to make friends with flawless people; even if you befriend them, they’re like a ticking time bomb. They’ll handle minor matters beautifully, but when it comes to life-and-death issues, they’ll be the first to turn. Caesar wasn’t this kind of person; he had many character flaws but not many weaknesses.

”My friend, don’t worry. As long as your merits are enough, that item will certainly be yours.”

Caesar smiled slyly. Hearing this, Su Xiao discreetly checked the merit exchange list. When he saw the situation with the [Holy Oak Tree Trunk], a smile appeared on his face.

[Holy Oak Tree Trunk]

Origin: Weiss Star·Dragon Soaring Empire

Quality: Gold

...

Stock: 1

Exchange Price: 16000 merit points

The merits needed for the Holy Oak Tree Trunk had not decreased. Instead, it had increased by 6000 points, but Su Xiao noticed a small line of text beneath the exchange price. It was barely readable, but it stated that (the Holy Oak Tree Trunk is a rare material, and this is the current market price), meaning the price of the trunk could change over time due to its scarcity.

Caesar winked at Su Xiao, and with his finger dipped in a bit of saliva, he wrote the number 9 on the test bench.

The meaning was clear: others exchange for 16000 merit points, but Su Xiao for 9000 merit points!

On the wall behind Caesar, there were eight hastily written words in the Empire’s language: Fair and Just, Defend the Empire!

”My friend, didn’t we talk about the situation on the front line earlier?”

Caesar was completely talking nonsense; the two hadn’t said a word about the front line.

”Mm, the situation on the front line isn’t optimistic.”

Su Xiao wasn’t dumb and immediately played along.

”Ah, the Empire needs people like us.”

Caesar slammed the test bench, looking distraught. Su Xiao couldn’t help but think that with a quartermaster like Caesar, it would be a shame if the Dragon Soaring Empire didn’t fall with someone as ’upright and honest’ as him.

”I’m leaving.”

Su Xiao didn’t want to continue bantering with Caesar. Who knows if the goodwill would spike again beyond 80 points.

”Leaving already? Don’t want to chat about the Empire’s future?”

”No... no, thank you.”

Su Xiao didn’t want to continue dealing with this thick-skinned guy. If Bubu Wang were here, it might have been able to ’spar’ with Caesar for hundreds of rounds. Bubu Wang belongs to a breed that maintains its silly nature regardless of how cunning the opponent is, fearless against any threat. You may be strong, but Bubu Wang remains unfazed, possibly even dragging the opponent’s silliness level down to match its own.

Just as Su Xiao stepped out of the main tent, the helplessness on his face vanished. Nicholas Caesar was quite an unusual person, not only because of the astonishing speed at which his favorability changed, but more importantly, he could control the prices of items in the Merit Shop. Bear in mind, these were certified by Reincarnation Paradise. In the Holy Grail World, the Old Priest had a good relationship with Su Xiao, yet because of being a neutral story character, friendliness wasn’t enabled.

Even so, when the Old Priest offered Su Xiao discounts, he used his own wealth to fill the gap in the Camp Shop, unable to alter item prices.

Was the Old Priest low in status? Absolutely not. He was the supervisor of the Holy Grail War and the representative of the Holy Church in Fuyuki City.

”Nicholas Caesar, even the name sounds unusual.”

Su Xiao casually found an empty tent in the military camp and lay down to sleep. It was unknown when the war would resume, so it was essential to cherish rest time.

After an unknown length of sleep, the sound of a horn startled Su Xiao awake.

Wooooo~

The horn sound ceased, and Su Xiao immediately walked out of the tent. As he stepped out, he noticed the darkness of the night, with stars scattered across the sky and moonlight illuminating the camp. It was at least past 9 PM, with some torches inserted around the camp. Soldiers ran past him; the horn sound earlier was a rally call.

Su Xiao followed the nearby soldiers in a particular direction and soon found himself amidst countless soldiers.

Over 300,000 Imperial Soldiers gathered, forming more than a dozen formations as reinforcements arrived.

In front of the military formations, Legion Commander Carlos stood on a wooden war chariot with hands behind his back. The orange glow of torches lit his face. Beside him, the deputy handed him a crystal stone shaped like a cobblestone, but Carlos waved his hand; it was an amplification stone, which he didn’t need.

”Attention!”

With Carlos’s roar, all the soldiers present heard his voice. Soldiers closest to him felt their ears buzzing as they heard this command and immediately stood at attention.

This was the difference between Count Mark and Carlos. The gap between them would become even more evident in the upcoming pre-battle mobilization. Compared to Carlos, Count Mark was simply unfit to command soldiers in battle.

”Tonight, we attack Black Soil Fortress. Are you afraid?”

Carlos slowly drew the longsword from his waist, exuding an impressive aura of authority that completely contrasted the image of him sitting by an iron pot, eating seafood soup with his helmet.

”There’s nothing wrong with being afraid. When I first attacked a tribal fortress, I was still a Second level Soldier, terrified and unable to sleep all night. The next day I was dazed, attacking the fortress. That fortress was Simiton Fortress, the very one proclaimed by the tribe as impenetrable by the Empire.

Understanding fear shows your bravery. Even if fear resides in your heart, you will still set foot on the battlefield. For what? To defend the Empire? Rubbish! It’s to grant those you love a stable and happy life in the future.

I won’t encourage you, but follow me to Black Soil Fortress. I’ll lead the charge and kill them all!”

The torches in General Ye Feng’s camp flickered wildly, and Legion Commander Carlos did what Count Mark would never do—lead the charge personally. In battle, ’Charge on my command’ and ’Follow me into charge’ are two completely different concepts.

”Kill, kill, kill!!”

The deafening shouts of hundreds of thousands of soldiers spread. As for whether the enemy at Black Soil Fortress was alerted, Carlos didn’t care. In an army of over 300,000 soldiers, enemy spies were bound to be present, just as his spies were present in the tribe.

Carlos’s actions were indeed very risky. If he were to die, it would be a devastating blow to morale. But given the current situation, it couldn’t be helped, and Carlos had already prepared contingencies.

The tribe was continuing to blast Black Soil Fortress. Once they broke through a sizable passage, large armies could move through. The tribe would then bring massive forces to bear through this breakthrough point, leading not to a defensive war or a siege battle, but rather to a decisive battle. This was what the tribe most desired to see.

Carlos’s words left the deputy’s face pale. This deputy, who had participated in countless battles, clenched his fists tightly.

”Did your mother die or something?”

Carlos stepped down from the wooden war chariot and kicked the deputy.

”Legion Commander, please reconsider. We still have some time...”

”Bullshit, blowing Black Soil Fortress from the inside is easy; repairing it is nearly impossible. Also, if I die, use that immediately.”

”I, this...”

”Rona, you’re the deputy I chose. We’ve worked together for over a decade. With that thing’s disguise, impersonating me isn’t difficult. Maintaining military morale is crucial. Moreover, this war will be under your command. Follow my pre-arranged strategy, and if the situation changes, act accordingly. If I do die, you will take over as Legion Commander. I’ve already sorted out the relationships.”

Carlos had prepared contingencies in place. If he fell during the charge, his deputy, Rona, would immediately use an alchemy tool to disguise as him, thereby stabilizing military morale from behind the lines. It was a win-win solution, instilling courage to push forward and ensuring the military spirit didn’t collapse. This required decisiveness and fearlessness, along with a trustworthy person. Rona, Carlos’s deputy, had saved Carlos countless times in critical situations; their bond was beyond brotherhood.

It’s imaginable that with Legion Commander Carlos leading the charge, the Imperial Soldiers would be incredibly fierce as if injected with adrenaline.

Moreover, this assault on the fortress would result in many casualties. Carlos’s strategy was to stack corpses and stones until they were level with the fortress, then there might be a chance to seize the fortress. Otherwise, under the dwarf clan’s ’City Defender Heavy Crossbow,’ scaling the ladder was impossible. In such a dire circumstance, without Carlos’s commands in battle, the soldiers might fall apart at the start of the siege, with the casualty rate being intolerably high.

Amidst the army, Su Xiao had a cigarette in his mouth to keep himself alert. Now that defeating enemies could earn him merits, he had to be serious in this battle, unlike before when he would slack off after cutting down nearby foes, waiting for enemies to take the initiative to attack.

If the operation went smoothly, his kill count this time would be incomparable to the last. The prerequisite was successfully capturing Black Soil Fortress. Given the fortress’s height, without special siege equipment, the brutality of this battle would exceed all imagination if won through mere human waves.