TitoVillar
patreon
TWL Chapter 365: A Kingdom on the Brink
🕑 Added 2025-04-19 03:01:37 +0000 UTCWhat the Elder in Chief had told Lann during their meeting at Mahakam was:
“You’re about to lose Meve, Duke Lannister.”
And now, it seemed that was becoming reality.
After their failed invasion of Cintra, the Nilfgaardians suffered a crushing defeat at Sodden Hill. They then split into several army groups, garrisoning southern Cintra, Lower Sodden, and the southern bank of the Yaruga River—just across from Lyria.
According to the usual course of history, Cintra should have already been abandoned by the Northern Realms at this point. After the Northern kings signed a peace treaty with Nilfgaard, Cintra was ceded to the Empire in exchange for the withdrawal of the Black Sun Legions.
But thanks to Lann’s efforts, the Northern Realms had united around the strategic goal of resisting Nilfgaard. Even though their individual attitudes varied, the war continued. The Aedirnian coalition and Queen Meve remained on guard against Nilfgaard’s aggressive posture, and countless skirmishes had never ceased.
—And under the cover of these daily border clashes, Nilfgaard’s sudden strike had caught Queen Meve completely off guard.
Seven days ago, the Nilfgaardians forced their way across the Yaruga River and invaded Lyria, utterly routing the 5,000 Lyria troops stationed along the riverbank.
Five days ago, the Nilfgaardians captured Scala and Spalla Castles, located on the Lyria border. On the same day, Queen Meve, having finally managed to respond, led a force of 10,000 and engaged Nilfgaard’s forces in the region of Angren.
Angren is bordered to the north by the Mahakam Mountains, to the south by the Yaruga River, with Lower Sodden to the west and Lyria to the east. The region is known for its premium timber—particularly its local cedar, plane, and pine—collectively dubbed 'Angren Gold'.
At that time, the Nilfgaardians stationed in Lower Sodden dispatched a cavalry division to Angren to provide logistical support to their comrades who had just fought a major battle in Lyria. The forces combined.
What followed was an unprecedented defeat for Queen Meve. The armies of the Lyria and Rivia United Kingdom collapsed at first contact with Nilfgaard Troops. Fortunately, the Mahakam Mountains offered dense forests and treacherous mountain paths, allowing the mostly light cavalry and light infantry of the United Kingdom to retreat and escape back into Lyria.
Two days ago, Queen Meve regrouped with her remaining forces and joined up with 4,000 hastily arrived Aedirnian soldiers. Together, they once again confronted Nilfgaard within Lyria’s borders—only to suffer another defeat. Three-fifths of Lyria had fallen. Nilfgaardian troops had seized control of many key trade cities and had even established a temporary camp in Rivia itself.
Yesterday, Queen Meve began a retreat north toward Aedirn’s border—while Lann returned from the Mahakam Mountains.
...
Lann rubbed his brow with a headache—everything had happened far too quickly.
In his original plan, Queen Meve and the nearly twenty thousand Aedirnian reinforcements were meant to pin down the Nilfgaardian army stationed in Lower Sodden. That would have given him the freedom to sweep through Cintra and wipe out the Black army within its borders. Once Cintra was fully retaken, the forces of Cintra, the United Kingdom, and Aedirn would converge and drive all the Black Sun troops in Lower Sodden and Angren into the Yaruga River.
He never imagined that Lyria would be on the verge of collapse.
Queen Meve was, by all accounts, one of the few wise monarchs in the North. But regardless of how capable a ruler she was, her army’s overall quality still couldn’t compare to the South. Compared to the Nilfgaardian army—professional soldiers, all fully armored—the Northern armies, three-quarters of which were hastily conscripted, really could fall apart at the first blow.
“Lann.”
Most others didn’t dare speak while leaders of two nations were in discussion—but Geralt had no such reservations.
The White Wolf stepped forward anxiously and leaned in to whisper near Lann’s ear. “Nilfgaard launched a surprise attack on Lyria. What if Cintra is next…?”
Lann furrowed his brows. It had been the first thought to cross his mind when he received the news in Mahakam. But he still shook his head.
“If something were wrong in Cintra, Uncle Mousesack, Triss, or the members of the Lion Pride I left behind would have found a dozen ways to contact me. Since they haven’t, it means things are still stable—for now.”
It wasn’t that Lann didn’t want to rush back to Cintra immediately—it was that Queen Meve, or rather, the territory of Lyria itself, was too important. They were the ones directly holding the line along the Yaruga River!
The Yaruga River was the widest in the North. Its upper course practically marked the boundary between North and South. Its lower reaches flowed through Angren, Mahakam, Sodden, Brugge, Verden, and behind Cintra.
This was where Skellige warships could sail freely. If Nilfgaard seized Lyria, their imperial forces could simply follow the current straight into Brokilon—cutting Lann and his forces off completely from the front lines.
In the original timeline, Nilfgaard had deployed a fully formed Scoia’tael force along this very route, exploiting the hatred of humankind harbored by the dryad queen Eithné. They carved a path through Brokilon Forest and struck at Temeria like lightning.
Strategically, Lann could not afford to lose Lyria.
Emotionally, he also could not lose Queen Meve—an ally who had always supported him, and who stood with him on the frontlines of the Northern defense.
But now that the Black Sun legions were pressing in, what could he possibly do?
The forces from Mahakam, Skellige, Cintra, and Kovir were scattered and too far away—none of them could just magically appear in Lyria overnight. Unless the senior mages of the entire Brotherhood of Sorcerers acted together—which, realistically, was never going to happen.
True, Lann did have some trump cards that could turn the tide in localized battles: the Ice Giant, Saskia in her dragon form, and the red dragon Keltullis.
But aside from the fact that he wanted to save them as secret weapons for reclaiming Cintra, these powerful high-tier units weren’t armies unto themselves.
Yes, they could shift the tide if combined with an army and clever tactics. But if deployed while the main force was collapsing, they’d do little more than cover the retreat of a few more soldiers—and they themselves might not even make it out alive.
These were proper Nilfgaardian field armies: mixed-unit formations with integrated support, complete siege equipment, and—knowing Nilfgaard’s tendencies—likely backed by mage battalions as well.
Lann took a deep breath and ran through several options in his mind. He needed more intelligence.
“Your Majesty Meve, how much do you know about the enemy we’re facing?” Lann asked, looking at her directly. “Most importantly—and I mean no offense—I’d like to understand how Nilfgaard was able to crush the frontlines so quickly.”
Visibly, the knights and officers standing behind Queen Meve all turned red in the face.
“I need a complete understanding of the enemy,” Lann said sincerely, “if I’m to make any plans from here forward.”
Queen Meve shook her head and gestured for her subordinates to calm down.
“Defeat is shameful, yes—but we must face our shame head-on. To put it simply…”
Queen Meve took a deep breath.
“They crossed the Yaruga River.”
Lann tilted his head slightly, signaling that he was listening.
But Queen Meve did not continue. Even someone as proud as her bowed her head slightly at that moment.
“They crossed the Yaruga… and then?” Lann hesitated.
“There is no ‘and then.’ That was it,” Queen Meve said through gritted teeth. “We never thought they could do it. But they did. And we were caught completely off guard—we collapsed one step at a time. That led to everything else.”
…
Lann felt a twinge of pain in his temple.
The Yaruga was a massive river capable of carrying seafaring vessels—its current swift and fierce. Even the Lyrians themselves couldn’t cross it without large ships or bridges, let alone attempt a group-scale crossing by swimming. None of Lyria’s defensive strategies accounted for a scenario in which 'Nilfgaard could cross the river with ease'.
But Nilfgaard had done exactly that—
and Lyria had been beaten into total disarray.
“What about the enemy?” Lann asked. “Roughly how many are we facing?”
Queen Meve steadied herself and answered, “The force that forced the crossing at the Yaruga belongs to Nilfgaard’s Eastern Army Group. The unit we engaged in battle is their Black Infantry Regiment. About 13,000 of them are currently committed to the fighting.
The troops stationed in Lower Sodden appear to be their Third Legion. The cavalry force that charged us carried the silver sun banner—likely the Ard Feainn Division.”
Although the Lyrians had been caught in a surprise attack, they’d been in a deadlock with Nilfgaard long enough to have gathered reliable intel.
Lann rubbed his brow again.
“What about His Majesty Demavend? Has there been any word from him?”
“Demavend should be on his way. He—”
Before Queen Meve could finish her sentence, a furious roar erupted from outside the tent: “Lannister! How dare you imprison my soldiers?! How dare you imprison Rayla?!”
