Chapter 148: Manageable?
After several days of gloomy rain, the skies suddenly cleared.
The heavens stretched high and blue like sapphire, dotted with soft white clouds drifting gently. The beauty of it all felt like a cleansing of the soul.
Yesterday, after his hands-on demonstration at the Machinery Department, the workshop was finally ready to begin producing cannons in earnest. But with the reaver invasion looming ever closer, time was running out.
That morning, Gius and Richard arrived at the prince’s castle together, bringing back the intelligence they had gathered on the grasslands.
"My Lord, we received word that the reavers and the Sapphire Empire appear to have reached some sort of truce," Gius reported. "Three months ago, the reavers returned to Cloverton with the slaves and craftsmen they had captured from the Sapphires."
"So their campaign is over?" Simon asked.
"It appears so," Richard said grimly.
For Simon, this was terrible news. After unifying the steppe tribes, the reavers had become the most powerful empire in the north. With the Eldorian Empire growing weaker and focused on defence, the reavers had no threat behind them.
After crushing several small kingdoms in the wake, they clashed with the powerful Sapphire Empire. After three long years of war, both sides realised the other was too massive to defeat and finally withdrew. That meant one thing: the reavers would now turn back home, and the full pressure would land on the Eldorian Empire.
Simon remembered how, in real-world history, the neighbouring empire had also stopped their conquests before turning south to easily destroy the first dynasty.
"Any other bad news?" Simon asked with a bitter smile. "What do we know about their population, army, or weapons?"
Richard answered. "There is one more thing. During their campaign, the reavers acquired a powerful siege weapon from the Sapphires. It’s called the Hurling Giant Cannon. According to reports, it can hurl a 300-pound stone over 500 meters."
"Hurling Cannon?" Simon asked. "You’re sure it throws stones?"
"Yes. Merchants on the grasslands described it as a massive trebuchet, not a true cannon." Richard confirmed.
Simon let out a small sigh of relief. As long as the reavers hadn’t acquired gunpowder-based artillery, it was still manageable. But even without cannons, if their siege weapons could really launch 300-pound stones, Dunmere City could be in danger.
He remembered that in actual history, similar stone-throwing machines had been used, and they had come from the far regions.
Gius added. "If they bring these to attack Dunmere City, I’m afraid our walls won’t hold."
Still, Simon considered this a lesser threat. The range of these 500-meter stone throwers was much shorter than real cannons, and his own cannons could destroy them before they got into position. As long as he maintained artillery superiority, there was no need to panic.
"That’s manageable. Any other intelligence?" He asked.
Gius replied quickly. "We can’t determine the exact population of the reavers, but it’s estimated they have at least two million households."
"That many?!" Simon was stunned.
"Some of them have settled in the Ruttle Mountain region and started farming. Their population has grown," said Gius.
Now Simon truly understood the scale of the threat.
These reavers were no longer purely nomadic; they had become a semi-pastoral, semi-agricultural society. That made them even more dangerous to the Eldorian Empire, because it meant their logistics and supply lines were now stable, enabling long-term military expansion.
And Richard’s next comment made things worse.
"That’s just their civilian population." He said. "The ratio of regular soldiers to slave soldiers is now one to five."
"Merchants say that before each campaign, the reavers send waves of slave troops ahead. Once the enemy is exhausted from fighting them, the real cavalry charges in to finish the job."
Gius added. "Recently, we found out that reaver riders have been capturing civilians north of Dunmere City. These were all once citizens of the Eldorian Empire. It looks like they’re preparing to use the same tactics against us as they used against the other kingdoms."
Then he clenched his fists and said. "My Lord, what should we do if the reavers push our own people to the front lines as human shields?"
"The reavers are shameless and inhumane!" Richard growled.
Such tactics weren’t new; history was filled with examples of invaders using civilians or collaborators to soften targets. That’s how small populations had conquered massive kingdoms.
And now the reavers outnumbered the Eldorian Empire ten to one.
"What will we do?" Simon said coldly. "If Dunmere falls, then I’ll be the next Prince Ezekiel."
Gius and Richard exchanged glances; they understood the weight behind those words.
The two continued reporting on the reavers’ military structure. Their soldiers used composite bows made from animal sinew, giving them long range. Their cavalry was trained in feigned retreat tactics, where they would turn and shoot while riding away.
That very strategy had defeated many forces.
But the army of the Eldorian Empire was well aware of this and would never take the risk of chasing the reavers onto open grassland. Doing so was a death sentence.
Aside from their 180-meter effective bow range, the most dangerous thing about the reaver army was their discipline, even more so than their weapons. A fearless, well-organised army was the real nightmare.
Simon could already picture it: reaver soldiers climbing over mountains of their own dead under cannon fire.
Gius concluded. "Also, merchants say that the reaver army has been training constantly, and they’ve grown extremely suspicious of all travellers. Several merchants were even captured."
Simon nodded. The reavers’ recent actions were clearly signs of an upcoming invasion.
He said. "Keep a close eye on everything they do, especially troop movements. Report to me immediately with any updates."
Gius and Richard nodded and left.
Simon stood up and headed straight for the Machinery Department. Thankfully, he had ordered full-scale cannon production. Without that, he wouldn’t be able to counter even a single Hurling Cannon stone thrower with its 300-pound payload.
Such force hitting the walls would be nearly as destructive as a cannon blast.
His current artillery only fired solid cannonballs; he still lacked the technology and capability to produce explosive shells.
As these grim thoughts clouded his mind, he quickened his pace, a deep sense of danger weighing heavily on his shoulders.