Chapter 179: The Murloc Army
The Murloc Castle walls were 4 meters wide, enough for two rows of fully armed soldiers to form a battle line.
The top of the wall was covered with roofs supported by scaffolding.
This was to block the moonlight at night.
Matthew never placed his hopes on default rules.
Along the circular wall.
There were 8 protruding bastions, with interlocking teeth.
The bastions were topped with three-story buildings, filled with shooting ports, and heavy crossbows were placed there.
They could block long-range attacks from the enemy while freely suppressing them with return fire.
At the top of the bastions stood watchtowers.
The outer walls provided cover, blocking the enemy's line of sight.
Behind the outer wall stood a second line of walls, with circular walls blocking the three gates.
Even if the first line of defense fell, there was an even stronger second line!
Even underground, preparations had been made.
Thanks to the kobolds' excellent digging abilities, the foundation of the new wall was nearly ten meters deep.
It was only now that Matthew understood why Pfizer had chosen to build the castle here.
Looking across the entire area within a 10-kilometer radius, only the narrow roads and this hill had solid ground.
Everywhere else was soft, decaying mud.
Anyone trying to build a camp or structure in that mud would end up as unlucky as the Carlisle family's troops.
Although much work remained, with another two months or so of detailed construction, the defenses were already functional.
With 500 soldiers stationed in the Murloc Castle.
Matthew was confident they could repel attacks from over 3,000 elite troops, holding out for months without falling.
Using the heavy crossbows and teleportation arrays for supply, they could even deal heavy damage to the attacking enemy!
As long as the enemy couldn't take Murloc Castle, any dream of crossing the vast, foggy swamp to attack Bay Town was pure fantasy.
It was precisely because of this that Matthew felt confident enough to prepare for a showdown with the Carlisle family.
Bay Town had risen too suddenly; despite the reputation gained from dealing with the Redwood Trading Company, much of it was based on rumor.
For other lords and nobles, it wasn't much of a deterrent.
Take the Carlisle family as an example!
If Bay Town wanted to establish itself here, gain a stronger reputation, and prepare for Matthew's future plans, it needed to take down these challengers one by one.
Starting with the Carlisle family!
That night.
Inside the Carlisle family's camp.
Some soldiers plugged their ears and tried to sleep, prepared for another round of harassment from Bay Town during the night.
Another group of soldiers was gathered and hidden at the camp's entrance.
But just like the previous few nights, although the Bay Town soldiers harassed them a bit, no full attack came.
The soldiers were left feeling frustrated, annoyed by Bay Town's underhanded tactics.
Many hung their heads in frustration, feeling a deep sense of helplessness.
But no one dared to launch an attack in return!
Brown rubbed his temples, hesitated for a moment, then continued:
"Tell all the soldiers that in 10 days at most, we'll have the entrance to the ruins dug out."
"Hang in there a little longer—once the ruins are ours, I'll make sure everyone gets their revenge!"
The officers caught on quickly, their eyes lighting up as they relayed the message to their soldiers.
The soldiers, who had been holding back their anger, showed vicious smiles—they were clearly eager to follow through on Brown's "promise."
Most of the time, they were just soldiers serving nobles.
But in these times, who didn't have a side hustle?
The Carlisle family's soldiers endured another difficult night.
Early the next morning.
Brown rubbed his red eyes and waved for the eager soldiers to go rest.
He couldn't rest just yet; he needed to arrange for a fresh batch of soldiers who had rested the night before to stand guard.
Bay Town might not dare launch a frontal attack, but who knows what tricks they might try?
Thinking like this, Brown decided to stay vigilant.
Before long, the piercing sound of something cutting through the air echoed above the camp.
The harassment from Bay Town's soldiers had clearly begun again!
What Brown didn't know was that Matthew had never considered them worth his attention!
About 50 kilometers away from Murloc Castle, a convoy of about 2,000 people was preparing to depart.
Leading them was Sir Hawk of the Carlisle family.
As a loyal knight to the Carlisle family, Hawk had nearly 20 years of experience in transporting goods and personnel.
Whether in the dangerous northern wilderness, the steep southern mountains of Farsico, or the plains of Rock, his presence had been felt.
His steady conduct had earned him the Carlisle family's trust.
They had invested considerable resources in developing his abilities and granted him the title of knight, along with a manor of his own.
Hawk was no stranger to the Misty Marsh.
The Carlisle family had previously excavated several small ruins within the swamp.
In his opinion, the Misty Marsh wasn't particularly dangerous; aside from the smell, it was generally an easy journey.
As long as they were cautious of the giant crocodiles in the swamp, there would be no casualties.
The only complaint Hawk had was the lack of rest stops along the swampy roads.
Especially last night, when he and his men had to spend the night in one of the temporary camps built during previous trips.
Fortunately, there had been no attacks during the night, apart from the annoying murlocs.
Donning his polished chainmail, with the help of his squire, he strapped on another layer of armor, checked everything, and stepped out of his tent.
The smell of cooking food mixed with the stench of the swamp.
Hawk merely frowned. He could tolerate it, and seeing the lazy guards and cart drivers, he unhesitatingly barked out:
"Hurry up! We've got a lot to do today."
"After we deliver these supplies to the camp, we have to rush back here to rest!"
"This time, there's nothing to bring back, so the return trip will be easier…"
The guards, familiar with the routine, spread the word and used their feet and whips to prod the lazier members of the convoy into action.
About half an hour later, after breakfast, the convoy set off again.
They slowly left the temporary camp and gradually disappeared into the swirling mist.
Hawk and his men had no idea that many pairs of eyes had already noticed their movements.
As soon as they entered the fog, cries echoed, and figures rushed into the now-empty temporary camp.
Soon, crackling flames appeared.
The roaring fire spread rapidly.
Thick smoke billowed upward but was quickly swallowed by the swirling mist, disappearing without a trace.
About half an hour into the journey, Hawk, leading from the front, suddenly pulled up his horse, staring in disbelief at the figures emerging from the fog ahead.
Countless murlocs!
As far as the eye could see, there were endless numbers of them!
Hawk could hardly believe it. As he drew his sword, one thought flashed through his mind:
"Where are the scouts who were supposed to be ahead?"