Work Prophet
Chapter 592 - 24: Turning the Tables

Chapter 592: Chapter 24: Turning the Tables

Li Yu returned to the tent, and his first words left Miss Rabbit stunned.

"Our opponents this time aren’t just those barbarians, but also the dwarves on the other side of the mountain."

"Dwarves?" the lady commander exclaimed, "How is that possible? Not to mention whether those dwarves have the guts to come over, even if they truly went mad, why would those barbarians cooperate with them? They’ve always been mortal enemies."

"The dwarves have agreed to return the land they previously occupied to the mountain barbarians," Li Yu said.

"Really? I heard there’s gold on that land. Given the dwarves’ greed, how could they easily give it up?"

"Because they now want the west territories, even all the way to Lion Heart Castle. I heard this from a barbarian named Red Beard."

"He was with their sister at the time... Hmm, and he didn’t know I could understand him, so I think his words are quite reliable."

"Hmm means what?"

"They were being intimate," Li Yu explained.

"Huh? Typical barbarians... But why didn’t you just say this in front of everyone when we were discussing the battle plan earlier? That way everyone else could also be prepared, and are you sure your Three-eyed Divine Bird can’t be used anymore?"

"They can certainly be used. The reason I said that earlier is that there are spies from those barbarians among us."

"You mean Big Hand?" Miss Rabbit’s face showed a moment of realization.

"His mother is a barbarian; it’s no surprise he would side with those fellows. Plus, Hels sent him to interrogate those barbarians, and he claimed he couldn’t understand the other tribes’ language. Turns out, he was lying."

Li Yu was noncommittal, "Tomorrow when we enter the mountains, you can arrange for him to interact more with those barbarians, let me observe if there are any subtle movements between them."

"Wait, we’re still going into the mountains?" the lady commander furrowed her brow, "If it were just those barbarians, it’d still be manageable, but if the dwarves are also involved, things become very serious."

"Do you think you can convince everyone else to turn back?" Li Yu countered.

"This..." Ireya hesitated. Although she was the commander of this army, she was after all not Marquis Kuren. Like the other lords, she was just a vassal of the Figrola family, making their status equal.

Indeed, the lady commander had brought the most people, and after going through the dragon slaying and winning the martial tournament, Miss Rabbit’s personal reputation had also reached its peak.

Her leading the army was thus the general consensus, with no objections raised.

But she also couldn’t completely disregard her subordinates’ opinions, as if pushed too hard, other lords could act on their own.

In fact, on the Bratis Continent, the military structure of these various lords generally lacks strong discipline.

Previously, Marquis Kuren had already been reluctant to push further, but unable to withstand the pressure from some vassals blinded by bloodlust chasing those barbarians into the mountains; ultimately, Marquis Kuren had to follow with the main forces.

After that, there was no further news from them.

Not only Marquis Kuren went missing, but also the elite and important members of various families, even including several lords.

Not just Morse was urging Ireya; other nobles who came along were also anxious, almost desperate to advance into the mountains overnight.

If they couldn’t rescue those ten thousand people, it would be a severe blow to many families.

Ireya even saw an old man with white hair, who had put on armor himself, hoping to rescue his own son.

Miss Rabbit, putting herself in their shoes, also felt it was difficult to convince them to give up, even if it was just to delay entering the mountains for a few days.

Moreover, as a vassal, it would be utterly shameful to shrink back when the sovereign is in trouble, especially on the Bratis Continent.

Especially if they retreat without even seeing the faces of the dwarves, using this reason to withdraw troops would almost certainly bring a torrent of criticism.

But not knowing is one thing; knowingly jumping into a trap is also clearly not wise.

Miss Rabbit found herself in a dilemma.

Li Yu paused then added, "There’s another problem."

"What problem?" the lady commander’s eyelid twitched, desiring to hear some good news, fearing the word "problem," but Li Yu continued.

"If those dwarves have truly allied with the mountain barbarians, they could advance into the west territories through the Dragon Ridge Mountain Range, reaching Rock Snow City quickly, and would pass through Green Field on the way."

"Having just suffered a heavy loss, the Figrola family would almost certainly gather as many troops as possible, focusing on defending Rock Snow City. By then, we would likely have to give up Green Field,"

"Even if you disregard orders and try to hold the new city, we won’t have enough manpower, and by then other lords in the west territories will also be too preoccupied to send help."

Listening to this, the lady commander’s expression turned grim.

"Prophet Merlin, do you have any suggestions?"

"I suggest you lead your troops into the mountains first thing tomorrow, following the original plan."

"But doesn’t that mean falling right into the dwarves’ trap?"

"It appears so on the surface, but it’s not as dangerous as you might think," Li Yu said.

"We have the Three-eyed Divine Birds, and I can deploy them to constantly scout the movements of those barbarians and dwarves. We won’t fall into the enemy’s schemes like Marquis Kuren did, and we might even be able to ambush them."

"Those barbarians must think they know this mountain well and that only they can leverage its terrain. They wouldn’t expect us to also surprise them.

"The best way to protect Green Field is to keep the fighting off our lands, minimizing damage. And currently, we do have five thousand troops."

"Without the goal of rescuing Marquis Kuren and those ten thousand people, these troops wouldn’t be here to help us defend Green Field."

Upon hearing Li Yu’s analysis, Miss Rabbit also realized they indeed couldn’t avoid entering the mountain.

Li Yu then added, "However, the prerequisite is that we must first identify those barbarian spies."

"Shall we just arrest Big Hand?" the lady commander thought and then said, "If we’ve wronged him, we can just release him when we return. That seems safest."

"I actually have another proposal," Li Yu remarked.

"What proposal?"

"Keep that spy among us, and use him to mislead those barbarians and dwarves at the critical moment. If we can play this card well, it’s as good as adding a few thousand troops to our side."