119. Leave a seat empty in anticipation

  Amun first moved the chess piece he led, the Anra Legion, to attack the southern camp of Hatti's Narnal Legion in the north. He said lightly: "At noon today, the legion commander of Narnal has arrived, I think Songlie has also seen him, this battle is won, on this side of the battlefield I haven't lost, and can launch an attack at any time."

  "Your ability to train a motley crew into what they are today is impressive. The Narnal legion no longer has the upper hand." He said, taking a step back with the Narnal legion's main camp, and smiled: "Then I'll let you take the lead."

  "With this, I can seize control of the water source and greatly reduce the pressure on our logistics supply lines."

  Ge Lie nodded and said, "Yes, it can make this legion last longer, but in the long run, it's still impossible to win. Behind the Nan'nal Legion is the Xuya City-State, with convenient replenishment of troops and logistics, while the Anla Legion is far from its homeland. Even if you can win battles, once the main battlefield collapses, the Hatti army will encircle and annihilate the Anla Legion."

  "Amon sighed: "The decisive factor is still the main battlefield, and the city-state of Haicheng will not fail to rescue Faraoh. You will intercept in the central desert." He moved another piece from Haicheng City-State to the center of the desert."

  Ge Lie: "You see it clearly, our combat purpose is to defeat all the reinforcements and make Pharaoh's army defeated without a fight. How can you continue to fight this battle?"

  Amun did not speak, and directly moved two pieces from the mouth of the Egybenroni River into the sea, crossing the sea to attack the Hittite Kingdom's hinterland. After landing, he rushed straight to the capital, then explained: "With the national strength of the Egy Empire, at least two expeditionary legions can be mobilized. This time, the Pharaoh did not use the navy. If you abandon this battlefield and attack directly from the sea, will you have time to come back and reinforce? The Southern Nal legion that was originally stationed on the coast has been pinned down, and the Enlil legion and Anu legion on the main battlefield are too far away."

  Ge Lie frowned and said, "Why must we fight like this? The goal of the law is to conquer the fertile land around Yuan Du Ke Town. If we directly cross the sea to attack the Hatti royal capital, the loss will be great. Although the military strength around our capital is empty, it is also possible to gather two garrison troops, and relying on the city can completely defend itself."

  "Alas, this is one time and that is another. If the great army of invasion were to perish in the desert, Rameses II would either be dead or have fled back home, and the whole meaning of the war would change; it would become a war of revenge between nations, not just a struggle for a new territory. To tell you the truth, if Egypt were to launch a full-scale attack across the sea right now, you would have no choice but to withdraw your troops, and I doubt that even the king himself would dare bet on being able to hold the capital."

  "Even if we assume that, no matter what the outcome is, it will be a lose-lose situation for both of us, and neither of us can emerge victorious."

  Amon sighed again: "There are many things in the world that are clearly unwise, yet some people still do them. Who says there is no winner? Take a closer look." He moved two more chess pieces, surprisingly from the kingdoms of Assyria and Babylon, respectively bypassing the plateau from the north and crossing the desert from the south to launch a pincer attack.

  Ge Lie furrowed his brow: "These two chess pieces are not under your command."

  Amun smiled: "The entire army of Egypt is not under my command, but on this chessboard, the pieces that can be used are mine. If Pharaoh dies, Egypt will definitely avenge him, and if he escapes back, with his temper, he will also avenge himself, directly crossing the sea to attack is the best choice. In this battle, regardless of the outcome, Hatti will be severely damaged, and Egypt will not have the power to launch an expedition in the short term. The fertile land of a thousand miles will appear here, do you think Assyria or Babylon will not participate in the contention?"

  "Everyone has the guidance of the gods, no one will give up. But the war is proceeding in this way, it's just your personal deduction as a military commander, and in fact, it won't develop to this point at all. If I heard today that the Egu Empire's warships are setting sail, I would immediately order a retreat, I couldn't risk the fate of the entire kingdom, nor could I gamble with the lives of millions of people. Unfortunately, you're Ahmon, not Egurahl Pharaoh Lasius II."

  The Grand Chancellor Zhu Guli also understood the situation and suddenly said, "Actually, there is another way to play this game of chess, and nothing on the sandboard will happen."

  The great magician Cilia asked curiously: "Prime Minister, what do you want to do?"

  Zhu Gu Li glanced at Ge Lie but didn't speak, and Ge Lie also fell silent. Ah Meng smiled instead, explaining to Xilia: "The prime minister's method is simple - just kill me."

  Then he looked around at the people by the table and said, "Killing me is easy, just gather a large army to besiege this tent and all of you can hide far away from the impact. But doing so still needs to consider two points: first, even if I die, Ramses II or the next Pharaoh of Egypt may not necessarily do what I just said; second, if I die, how long can you keep the news of the king's death under wraps? And which prince are you planning to support for succession?"

  Everyone present, including Lucille, turned black in the face. The king's gaze at the prime minister suddenly became gloomy. Zhuguli hurriedly bowed to explain: "Your Majesty, the old minister did not mean this!"

  The king's tone was low and without apparent anger: "Prime Minister, I know you are loyal to the kingdom. Here we are just discussing various hypotheses, so go ahead and say whatever you want. I am the king, and when necessary, I should also sacrifice for the kingdom! Amun, continue."

  Ahmon nodded to the king in gratitude and continued, "I can't guarantee my own life or death, but since I've come here, I'm not afraid of dying. If King Hatti dies here, what would be the consequences? Medanzo, you tell me."

  Meadows finally got the chance to speak, holding a short blade: "If the news is strictly sealed off, then there's no need to mention the wavering of the military. Assuming that Hati's great army will still achieve a great victory. But as far as I know, His Majesty the King has not designated an heir, and this time he brought Prince Yase with him on the expedition. The Prime Minister is also in the army. As for the capital, your eldest son Ainis was left to oversee the country, with the Minister of Internal Affairs assisting with governance."

  These two princes must have been the king's most favorite sons, and he hesitated to pass on the throne to either of them. They both had a desire for the throne and had their own forces supporting them. If the king were still alive, there would be no problem, but since he mysteriously died here, the situation has become complicated.

  Prince Zannanza has the army in his hand, and anyone who pushes him to ascend to the throne will have merit. But Prince Hattusili is guarding the capital, taking advantage of the situation, and can accuse Prince Zannanza of regicide and patricide, and ascend to the throne with the support of the officials. There is no need for external enemies to attack, the Hittite kingdom itself has internal strife. I am a straightforward person, I say what I think, Your Majesty please do not blame me.

  Before that, George the Great Magician had analyzed the situation of the Hittite Kingdom and indeed faced a struggle for the throne, especially with one prince leading a large army outside and another prince monitoring the capital. Once the king died without formally designating an heir, the possibility of such internal chaos was very high. Medanzo was a quick learner and immediately spoke out this prediction in public.

  Gao Lie and other officials did not dare to speak, although the succession of the two princes was an open secret, everyone would only discuss it in private, otherwise it would be unexpected trouble if it got out.

  Only the king himself could speak, Lucille inexplicably showed a tired look and slowly said: "Actually, Lasis II also had the same trouble. If he died on an expedition, the Egu Empire would also have a struggle for the throne, and it's likely that there would be internal strife."

  Amun smiled and said: "It's like that, but Your Majesty should consider yourself first. You are a noble king, there is no need to be buried with me."

  The king finally raised his head and asked: "Gentlemen, if Egypt agrees to all our conditions, the Hittite kingdom will win without a fight. What conditions would they propose then?"

  Kor and Zhuguli exchanged a glance before answering: "That's something to ask the Venerable Fa and his ministers, Commander Amun probably can't make that decision."

  Ahmose thought for a moment and said, "I have a suggestion. The two countries can sign a non-aggression peace treaty. We can discuss the specific content and swear an oath in front of our respective gods. Considering Ramses II's temper, he may still be holding onto illusions. I'll send an envoy to deliver the message. If there is no response, perhaps another battle will be needed before we can sit down and talk properly."

  "Does the Prime Minister and General Gare agree?" Lucille asked.

  "Then let Amun's messenger try... but who can you send?"

  Amun smiled and pointed to Medanzer: "I only have this personal guard captain by my side, send him to the Anra Legion first to inform them of the news here, and then rush to Pharaoh's camp to explain the situation. I'm afraid you'll need to send someone to escort us, the faster the better."

  "Let's have Celia control the Flyer, Aruka accompany and protect it, and with the king's orders, escort this brave warrior to depart at the fastest speed."

  Lucille nodded and said, "Very well, I will issue the order now and wait for Egufa's reply."

  Medan-zo reached the pinnacle of his life's glory, riding in a flying chariot escorted by the great wizard and warrior of King Hatti, returning to the camp of the An-ra army. When the soldiers learned that King Hatti had been captured alive by Amun, cheers shook the sky.

  As he set out from here to rush to Pharaoh's camp, the chief god officer George also manipulated another flying arrow to follow, and brought a batch of supplies in the space law instrument as much as possible. Although it was a drop in the bucket for the army, it was better than nothing. He had to take this opportunity to explain to Pharaoh why he did not immediately break camp and advance east according to orders.

  Because the An-Ra legion was fighting fiercely with the South Nar legion, and the main force of Hatti in the desert had already set up a defensive line, so the legion commander Amun would take risks alone to establish a strange merit, holding the king of Hatti hostage, forcing the Hatti army to negotiate actively.

  Lysias II received the message sent by Medanzo, first with a burst of joy, heavily rewarding the messenger and George who came with him, then with some dissatisfaction, asking Medanzo - why did Ahmon not force the King of Hatti to surrender?

  Without needing Mei Danzuo to explain anything, the high-ranking officials beside Pharaoh all advised Your Majesty that you can't think like this. The Hittite army has the upper hand and it's impossible for them to give up the fate of the entire kingdom just because of one king. If Lusili refuses to yield, Amon also has no way to do anything about it. Moreover, with the great army outside, there is a huge question as to whether or not an order from a king under duress can be carried out.

  Larses II was still a bit resentful, having captured the king of the other side, yet he had to agree to the harsh conditions put forward by the other side. How could he be reconciled? He let Medanzo return and report back, agreeing to withdraw his troops, but Hatti would still have to be subordinate to the Egyptian Empire, and the two countries would no longer go to war, restoring their pre-war relationship.

  Ruth and Gideon could not agree to such terms, Amun sent Medanzer back to convey the attitude of Hatti, the three conditions proposed cannot be changed, if you want to talk, talk about other things. It's really Pharaoh's mouth, Medanzer runs his legs off, coming and going several times in a few days, fortunately, there is a great magician driving a flying shuttle instead of walking, otherwise he would have been exhausted to death, being a hero is not that easy.

  The Pharaoh was hesitant because he still had illusions about the situation of the great army and hoped that reinforcements from the direction of the city-state of Haikou would arrive as soon as possible. At the same time, while Medanzo was flying back and forth, another war broke out in the desert, and the reinforcement troops hastily sent by the city-state of Haikou were defeated and could not break through the defensive line of the Hatti army to join forces with the Pharaoh. The Egyptian army was on the verge of running out of water and food, and even the arrows for battle were almost exhausted.

  The Pharaoh finally decided to bow his head. At the same time, several other things also caused Hatti's worry and decided to negotiate as soon as possible.

  According to intelligence, the Kingdom of Balen is gathering troops in the city-state of Uruk. The Uruk army led by Gilgamesh seems to be making a move, but it's unclear what their target is. Balen is a confederation of city-states, with each army named after its respective city-state. Among them, the Uruk army led by Gilgamesh and Enkidu is the most powerful.

  On the other hand, two legions were also gathered in Egypt, with the Gabiniani already on their way to Pelusium and the other, the Haraceni, being a naval force that had appeared at the mouth of the Rhinocolura. Although these two legions could not arrive in time to save Pharaoh's army, if they entered the battle, Hatty would also pay a great price.

  Gaeb and the Osiris Legion were originally the main forces defending the northern border and southern coastal areas of the Empire. This time, they left half of their troops to garrison their original positions and supplemented the other half with troops from various city-states' defense armies, re-forming a complete legion to set out. This was slightly different from the move Amun had made on the sandboard, as Eg's follow-up army presented a situation where both land and sea advanced simultaneously.

  Another piece of news that worried the king of Hatti was that rumors had already spread to the capital of Hatti. It is said that King Lusili of Luwi was assassinated in front of the army, and Gorgum plotted to enthrone Prince Azi as the new king and return to the capital with great fanfare. Unfortunately, Lusili was held by Amun, and he could not publicly refute the rumors in front of the army, nor could he return to the capital to stabilize the situation for the time being. Prince Anis also made arrangements to deal with it, and the political situation in Hatti was full of variables.

  Both sides had their own difficulties and could no longer drag on. After Meidansuo went back and forth seven or eight times, he finally decided to negotiate. The Egu side proposed a condition that the Anluo army would bring supplies and merge with the Pharaoh's great army, and the Hati army would not be allowed to block along the way. Ge Lie agreed, and at the same time ordered the Nannaluo army to also move east to merge with the main force.

  Thus, a strange procession appeared between the two countries. The elite of Anra's army led the way, heavily escorting the logistics troops as they marched east through the desert. To their north, not far away, at the edge of the desert and grasslands, the Southern Nal army was also advancing in unison, staring each other down.

  The main god officer George has returned, walking together with the rear logistics team, but the legion commander Amun is not there. The vanguard led by General John is opening the way. The front troops of the two legions have met several times during the march, although they did not fight, they had a lot of verbal sparring. The opposing legion commander Aurelien ridiculed John and others for only hiding in the back and letting their officers take risks, being unfavorable in battle but doing despicable things like kidnapping and holding hostages.

  John replied bluntly, "It's not like we haven't fought before, who won and lost is clear in our own hearts! If you're not satisfied, let's not rely on reinforcements, let's set up a battle array in the desert and have a fight, we're not afraid of you!" These were of course angry words, but if these two legions really did come to blows, the current An-Ra legion would indeed be completely unafraid of their opponents.

  The king, under the escort of a double line of guards, walked to the north of the Nanal army, and he also had two personal "bodyguards". The king sat in the carriage, Medanzo stood upright at the station, holding a short blade just behind him. There were no other guards on this carriage, and the charioteer was actually Ahmon.

  The great magician Cilia did not ride in the carriage, but instead rode a horse alongside it, advising Amun: "General, why must you personally act as a charioteer?"

  Ah Mon smiled and replied, "I have personally seen the continent's number one warrior, En Qi, drive a chariot for Gilgamesh. Today, I am driving a chariot for Your Majesty, what is wrong with that? It was I who took the king hostage, it was I who proposed negotiations, of course, I have the responsibility to personally send the king to the negotiating venue."

  Celia reminded him: "Don't forget our agreement."

  "Are you talking about a duel? You're being too hasty, I still need to command my legion to retreat back to Aegyptus. Once everything is settled, I will send an envoy to find you and specifically arrange the time and place for that duel. I won't go back on my word."

  The venue for the talks has been prepared, with two large tents set up in the desert, twenty feet apart from each other. The tables and chairs are placed outside the tent doors, with everyone facing each other for negotiations, while the troops have retreated to a distance. To be on the safe side, the great mages of both sides have set up a defensive magic array with extremely strong effects inside their respective tents.

  The boundary of the divine array is in the center of the empty land. Breaking through this boundary will trigger a powerful force attack on any unusual movement.

  On the side of Ai, there are Long Teng, the legion commander of the Isis Legion, Wode, the chief priest, and Long Ying, the vanguard commander. There are also Li Kuai De, the chief priest of the Horus Legion, Fan-Breze, the vanguard commander, George, the chief priest of the An-Ra Legion, and John, the vanguard commander. In addition to these, there are a dozen or so important guards around Pharaoh.

  Rasis II sat in the center, and except for the Pharaoh himself and John, everyone else was either a great magician or a great warrior. The commanders of each legion had seats with the great magicians, while the rest of the warriors stood with swords, leaving one seat empty in the front row.

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