Chapter 147: Rat Ogre

"What about now? Where are you going?" Fatisi Qishi asked.

"To the Sigmar Temple in the center of the fortress. Would you like to come along?" Snorri extended a warm invitation; after all, who would complain about having too much combat power?

"Better not, Master. I think my identity is just as sensitive as yours!" Fatisi flicked his own beard and made a joke.

Snorri also laughed. He thought about how Helmgart was the very front line of the conflict between Bretonnia and the Empire of Man; it wouldn't make much sense for a former knightly noble to be busy saving an Imperial city.

"Whinny~"

Fatisi Qishi brought his fingers to his lips and whistled. Emma, that beautiful silver-white High Elf warhorse, leaped over the wall from another courtyard.

Emma lowered her head slightly, and Fatisi jumped nimbly onto her back. Watching them gallop away under the moonlight, Snorri shook his head. "Will he find the Grail?" Snorri muttered to himself.

"Let's go, we continue forward! Load your weapons, prepare for battle!" Qiangsen relayed Snorri's orders.

Two minutes later, the Dwarfs' vanguard had already rushed out of the wealthy district of Helmgart. Before them lay a vast ocean of mammals.

Snorri saw that the square before him was crawling with rats. The rat-folk, standing upright, were frantically launching attacks on the temple within his field of vision.

Beyond that, many rats were operating in small squads, slaughtering residents and looting property in the surrounding buildings.

"Take down that small building!" Snorri shouted at Qiangsen-Jian Dun. He did not have a Fuzhuzhe Zhandou Pingtai, and even if he did, he wouldn't want to climb up and become a living target in this situation. He needed a high point to observe the battlefield, or at least find a relatively reasonable direction for the attack.

"Understood!" This was not a difficult task. The small building nearby belonged to a wealthy human merchant, who had likely fled into the temple for refuge with his family the moment the situation looked dire. The remaining guards and servants were slaughtered after a brief resistance.

Stepping over the scattered corpses of humans and Skaven and the interior decor that had been ransacked into a mess, Snorri arrived at the second-floor balcony.

"Telescope!" Protected by the shield wall of the Ironbreakers, he began to observe the battlefield through the railing.

Sigmar Temples were scattered in every corner of the Empire, ranging from the Byzantine-style cathedrals in Altdorf to numerous small village chapels. The church in Helmgart was of medium size; Snorri felt that if they squeezed in, it could probably hold about a thousand people.

Snorri was currently on the southwest side of the square. He noticed that the Skaven's attack was very disorganized, meaning there was no focus of direction, nor had many elite troops appeared. The limited number of black-furred rats were only acting as overseers to drive the weaker ones forward, not engaging in the battle themselves.

For a moment, Snorri didn't know if this was because the leading Grey Seer lacked command experience, or because Viscount Thompson's defense was airtight, leaving it no opportunity, or if the rats were simply surrounding without attacking, having other strategic objectives.

Snorri fell into a dilemma; he didn't know how to take action for the moment. As a fortress city, Helmgart was not large inside, and there wasn't much strategic depth for him to maneuver.

However, the current situation was certainly not the worst-case scenario. Viscount Thompson must have been capable to be assigned such an important position; he hadn't been wiped out by the first wave of the night raid, but had organized an effective resistance and retreated to terrain favorable for defense.

"How long does it take to get from here to Altdorf?" Snorri asked the Reik Knight beside him.

"If riding a horse, at the speed of my comrades, they might arrive by noon tomorrow." Walter's voice rang out.

"Hmm, then it seems the ones who should be anxious are these rats!" Snorri stroked his beard and made his judgment. To be honest, he wasn't sure if the knights sent to request reinforcements from Altdorf had successfully broken through,

but since even the rescue squad heading to the nearby Dwarf settlement hadn't been completely intercepted by the Skaven, the possibility of success on that side was high.

Even if the messenger had been killed halfway, with the distance being so close, the rats wouldn't have much time. Snorri still trusted the instincts of the Grand Prince of Reik, William III.

"Fellows, I think we should apply some pressure on those rats from the periphery!" Snorri began to issue orders directly.

"Gelunsen, Qiangsen, you two each take a squad and capture the two buildings nearby, then Buluokesen, you set up a long-range fire net in these three small buildings!"

Snorri's tactics were very simple. The surrounding building complexes were in quite good positions; setting up gun and cannon emplacements on balconies and windows would allow their firepower to cover the temple square before them and the entire block.

With the cover of long-range firepower, arranging melee troops to clear the Skaven building by building could put pressure on the rats while protecting civilians and reducing losses.

Time was on Snorri's side now. As long as his troops advanced step by step, the Skaven would inevitably become anxious and take the initiative to break the stalemate, which would mean creating openings.

After receiving the orders, the two Dwarf captains quickly picked their troops and rushed to the small buildings on both sides. Qiangsen completed his task easily, but Captain Gelunsen encountered a few Clan Eshin Night Runners.

These black-clad rats were hiding in cabinets, trying to bypass the Ironbreakers in the front to ambush the Dwarf warriors in the rear. However, there weren't many of them, and they were wiped out at the cost of a few of his clansmen being wounded.

Although the first phase of the mission was completed smoothly, Snorri did not let his guard down. He stood on the balcony, observing the battlefield with a telescope in one hand and using a rune megaphone brought from the settlement in the other to boost the morale of the humans in the temple.

"I am High Prince Snorri Thorsson! I have come to support you in accordance with the ancient covenant! Hold on, do not worry, my subordinates are dealing with the rats in the city, and they will protect your families well!"

Snorri's words undoubtedly boosted the morale of the humans. Clearly, the fact that this Prince had not only come to support but had arrived so quickly was beyond Viscount Thompson's expectations.

"Gulp!" Snorri roared a few more times, took out a bottle of beer, and chugged it down. It was quite cold wearing armor in the winter night wind.

"I'm going in to rest for a while! Call me immediately if there's a situation!" Snorri instructed the Rangers and ducked back into the room.

In fact, as Snorri expected, the Skaven soon reacted. The fact that Helmgart had no strategic depth was the same for the Skaven.

"Respected Chosen of the Goddess! The rats are moving!"

Snorri rose at the sound; his butt hadn't even warmed the sofa underneath! "Brothers, prepare for battle!"

Thanks for the monthly ticket, Chi Mai.