Chapter 1080: Mannfred's Gambit and the Black Fire Pass Mega-Waaagh!

Dwarves have a very low acceptance rate for new things—extremely low, as mentioned before.

It’s worth noting that other dwarf kingdoms have their own reasons for rejecting the mule-and-horse army concept. For thousands of years, dwarves have been raising a type of livestock called "ponies" to assist with transportation.

What is a pony?

A pony refers to a "dwarf horse," a small breed of horse typically under 100 centimeters in height. They are hardy, resistant to thirst and fatigue, highly adaptable, easy to train, have a high reproductive rate, strong disease resistance, and are excellent at traversing mountains and rivers.

However, these ponies are mainly used for transporting goods and serving as passenger vehicles for dwarves.

Ryan’s mule-and-horse army concept wasn’t just about transporting goods. It aimed to enable relatively rapid long-distance transportation of military supplies, artillery, and war machines, allowing dwarf armies to quickly enter the battlefield, conserve most of their energy during marches, and even play a role in combat. For example, using mules to tow dwarf cannons and flame cannons for rapid deployment and firing, or even creating mobile war wagons like the Empire’s, allowing them to fire while moving.

Unfortunately, Ryan’s proposal was unanimously rejected. None of the dwarf kingdoms were willing to abandon ponies in favor of mules, which were clearly stronger, faster, better at carrying loads, and could be used on the battlefield.

The reason was the same: "The ways of our ancestors cannot be changed."

Are you Sima Guang? Ryan’s veins bulged in frustration. Many people think this phrase originated from the Qing Dynasty, but it was actually first proposed by Sima Guang and other conservative bureaucrats of the Song Dynasty.

On the other hand, Belegar and the Eight Peaks dwarves were willing to accept the mule-and-horse army concept for an important reason: Eight Peaks didn’t have a ready-made herd of thousands of ponies. In this regard, they were starting from scratch.

After discussing the mule-and-horse army with Belegar, Ryan quickly summoned several marshals to discuss the concept. This time, he received almost unanimous support, as Bretonnia was already a major horse-breeding nation. With proper breeding and plenty of flat pastures, mules weren’t hard to come by.

Ryan planned to prioritize fully equipping the elite forces of the various duchies, the direct troops of Mousillon, and the Old Guard with mules and horses.

This task took the Knight King two days. Afterward, he resumed the Grand Canal Parade, heading south to Carcassonne.

At this time, Ryan learned from Devonshire, who had spent three pleasant days accompanying the Everqueen, that she was very interested in the depths of the Forest of Chalons, Lily Island, and the cabin in the woods. She was particularly curious about the origins of the five "Sons of Bretonnia."

Frederick and Devonshire were still too inexperienced. They were utterly captivated by the Everqueen. Devonshire took her into the Old Guard barracks and even let her watch their drills and inspect their armory. The Everqueen was amazed that this army was fully equipped with dwarf half-plate armor and finely crafted weapons.

Frederick, on the other hand, introduced the Everqueen to many of Nulr’s high-tech advancements and the latest Emmanuelle-class Land Cruiser Ryan was preparing. Alarielle was very interested and personally boarded the ship for a tour. Frederick even promised on Ryan’s behalf to demonstrate the Land Cruiser’s power once the Lizardmen’s Solar Engine was delivered.

Fortunately, the two sons had some sense of boundaries. Despite Alarielle’s repeated probing, they consistently claimed ignorance about the origins of the four golden corn cobs and the five Grey Knight recruits. One of the Avelorn handmaidens pretended to get lost and tried to venture deeper into Lily Island, only to be "politely" escorted out by the Custodians.

Unable to get more from the two young men, Alarielle turned her attention to Ryan.

Unfortunately, the Lady of the Lake and Sulia were well-prepared.

The goddess and the knightly lady had been inseparable from Ryan these past few days, even sharing his bed at night. The Sun King, having to deal with a goddess with the power of a God-King and Sulia, who had been personally guided and blessed by the Emperor, was feeling the strain.

Even so, Sulia had reached an agreement with Olica and Emilia to deal with Ryan together, with Morgiana ready to step in at any time. The five women meticulously calculated Ryan’s daily psychic energy output down to the gram, ensuring he had nothing left to spare.

The Sun King was so overwhelmed he wanted to escape.

The Lady of the Lake and Sulia’s actions left Ryan both utterly relaxed and completely uninterested in the Everqueen. He only gave Alarielle a few perfunctory responses.

Seeing that she couldn’t get more information, Alarielle announced her departure from Bretonnia after a few days of visits, setting off for Barak Varr to negotiate with High King Thorgrim.

Frederick and Devonshire were heartbroken. Frederick repeatedly invited Alarielle to visit Nulr in the future, while Devonshire, seeing his brother’s enthusiasm, quickly invited her to stay in Couronne on her return trip.

The Everqueen neither agreed nor refused, leaving the two with a sweet smile and a goodbye before departing Bretonnia.

However, no one knew that the Knight Kingdom’s invitation to the Everqueen had inadvertently helped Mannfred greatly.

Due to a lack of understanding of the High Elves’ sailing speed and route, Mannfred had almost missed a major opportunity. The last Vampire Count barely had enough time to prepare.

But thanks to these few days, Mannfred not only successfully located the entire High Elf delegation but also learned exactly when they would arrive at Barak Varr.

Mannfred, of course, wouldn’t dare to capture anyone in Bretonnia—that would be suicide. But the cunning Mannfred had never planned to act in Bretonnia. He had always intended to strike in the Badlands.

Ryan’s invitation gave Mannfred detailed intelligence. Now, everything was in place.

This was very comfortable.

Mannfred sat in his headquarters at Nagashizzar, sipping a bowl of delicious blood. Before him was a massive map of the Old World.

Hundreds of pieces were placed on the map, with two representing the High Elf delegation moving by sea.

Bretonnia had the most pieces, filling the entire country, along with many special hero pieces, gleaming with exquisite paintwork that was almost blinding.

The Empire also had many pieces, with the Emperor and the most elite Imperial forces stationed in Altdorf. Nulr, however, had only one hero piece—the Supreme Patriarch of the Amethyst Order, Elspeth von Draken. The rest of Nulr’s hero pieces and elite army pieces… were all in Bretonnia!

Mannfred smiled as he surveyed the situation.

The undead were in an excellent position. Too many elite army pieces and hero pieces were in Bretonnia, which was quite far from the Badlands. The last Vampire Count was certain that he could easily complete his mission and have plenty of time to clean up before those chivalrous fools arrived.

The dwarves of Eight Peaks could cause trouble if they quickly mobilized, but Belegar Ironhammer and his Angrund Oathguard were also in Bretonnia. Without Belegar, the Eight Peaks dwarves would only hunker down.

The Border Princes were a bunch of riffraff.

The three Badlands garrisons were a bit of a problem, as their armies were battle-hardened, but Mannfred understood Marshal Lucien’s tactics and methods.

So, all he needed to do was this.

Mannfred couldn’t help but chuckle as he moved his hand.

Ten green pieces were moved from the Badlands and the World’s Edge Mountains toward the Border Princes.

Their destination was the Empire’s border, Black Fire Pass.

"And then this." Mannfred muttered to himself. After the ten green pieces approached Black Fire Pass, the Vampire Count continued to move the pieces. Several of the Empire’s hero pieces and army pieces were moved to Black Fire Pass.

"Of course, they can’t be left out either." Next, the pieces representing the mobile forces of the three Badlands garrisons were also moved to Black Fire Pass.

"Finally, this is it." As the pieces gathered at Black Fire Pass, the High Elf piece representing the Everqueen arrived at Barak Varr and moved toward the River of Echoes, where the dwarf forces came to meet them.

When they reached the middle of the River of Echoes, several undead pieces from Nagashizzar had surrounded the elves and dwarves.

"Hahahaha!" Mannfred flicked a dwarf piece with his finger, shattering it. He then nodded in satisfaction and moved the elf piece back to Nagashizzar.

"Perfect."

"Then, let’s begin!"

---

Two days later, urgent reports from the three Badlands garrisons and the Border Princes flooded the Imperial capital, Altdorf!

A massive, unprecedented greenskin Waaagh! was heading toward Black Fire Pass! Its scale was the largest seen since the time of Charlemagne!

The Border Princes called for aid! Averland called for aid! Stirland called for aid! Mootland called for aid!

"How many greenskins are there?" Emperor Karl Franz was shocked by the news and urgently asked the messenger.

"According to reports from Marshal Lucien of the Badlands and the Border Princes, there are at least… one hundred thousand!"

"One hundred thousand?!" The Emperor was stunned, his face pale.

"How is this possible?!" Karl Franz could hardly believe it. The Empire was already dealing with rampant beastmen activity, a widespread plague, and possibly a million people infected with the Weeping Plague. In the north, Middenland was even engaged in a major battle—the Nurgle Champion Festus the Leechlord was leading a demon army and a large group of beastmen to besiege Middenheim!

With internal unrest and a plague raging, an army of one hundred thousand greenskins was now approaching from the east!

"How long until the greenskins reach Black Fire Pass?" The Emperor was frantic. Black Fire Pass was a full thousand kilometers from Altdorf!

"At most three weeks!"

"There’s no time! Summon Helborg and Schwarzhelm, and mobilize the entire army of Altdorf and Reikland! Prepare to march immediately!"

"Yes!"