In the middle of the night, Luo He suddenly woke, his eyes snapping open to the heavy silence. It was around eight at night, the darkness thick and unnatural.
Without hesitation, he shook Jin Mulan.
"Mulan darling! wake up. Now," he urged sharply. She stirred, exhausted from the long day and the night they had shared earlier.
"Mm… what is it…?" she murmured, barely conscious. "We are being attacked." He said urgently tugging her.
Those words cut through her fatigue like a blade. She jolted upright, her heart racing, red eyes widening with fear. "What?!" She asked. Yet, as she looked at Luo He, something felt strange.
His face was calm. No, more than calm. There was a faint, smug expression. The look of a man not surprised but satisfied.
He had expected this. "Move," he said firmly. "Wake the soldiers. Get to the ships. Now." Mulan still startled but already shifting into a warrior's mind-set quickly grabbed her armour with trembling hands and began dressing as fast as she could.
By the time she stepped outside fastening the last piece of her armour, chaos had already erupted across the camp. Luo He was ahead of her. He had already awakened the guard generals. "We are being attacked!" one shouted, running through the camp.
Men stumbled out of their tents, half-dressed, grabbing weapons, strapping armour with shaking hands. The once quiet night turned into a storm of movement metal clashing, boots thudding, voices shouting. Within half an hour, an entire army stood armed and armoured.
Luo He climbed onto a raised platform, his voice cutting through the panic like thunder. "This is no joke!" he shouted. "We are being attacked. But not here, it's happening back at home!" The crowd fell into tense silence.
"If we do not hurry," he continued. His voice hard and cold, "they will kill your families, violate your women, and burn your homes to ash." The words hit like fire. "So move!" he roared. "To the ships NOW!" That was all it took.
The soldiers surged forward in a frenzy, boarding ships in desperate haste. Some slipped on the wet planks, falling into the water or crashing against each other, but no one stopped.
"Take the fastest ships!" Luo He commanded. "Leave the rest behind!" Jin Mulan reached his side as orders were being carried out.
"What about the others?" she asked.
"My father-in-law stays," Luo He replied without hesitation. "Five hundred men. He will hold the island."
There was no time to argue. The fastest, smallest ships cut through the water like arrows, sails catching the wind perfectly. The sea roared beneath them as if urging them forward.
The journey back was swift unnaturally so. Within two hours, they reached the harbour. "Move!" Luo He shouted the moment they docked. The soldiers rushed into the city and the moment they arrived, the clash of steel greeted them.
The battle had already begun. Flames flickered in the distance. Screams echoed through the streets. The enemy was already inside. But they had not expected reinforcements.
"Charge!" Jin Mulan shouted, drawing her blade. She led from the front, her armour gleaming in the firelight, cutting through enemies with fierce precision.
Luo He rode behind, his voice rising above the chaos. "Push forward! Protect your homes!"
The soldiers of the Count's mansion fought like mad dogs driven by fury, fear, and desperation. The enemy numbered around 200 men. They stood no chance against the returning 400 Jin soldiers.
The clash was brutal but short. Bodies fell. Steel rang. Blood stained the ground. Within a short time, the enemies were cut down. Only twenty seven men were lost on their side. But the battle was far from over.
At the castle, the true storm raged. An army of 2,000 to 3,000 troops surrounded the walls. Only about 1,000 defenders stood against them.
On the battlements, Jin Su stood like a goddess of war. "Hold the fort don't let anyone up!" She shouted, cutting down an enemy who had climbed too high.
Arrows rained. Ladders slammed against stone. The defenders pushed, stabbed, and fought with everything they had. They had already killed around 300 enemies.
But more kept coming. Too many.
Back in the villages, Luo He moved swiftly. He organized defences, ensuring minimal damage. Only six or seven villagers had died, mostly elders unable to flee in time.
He turned to the farmers, his voice firm. "If you want to protect your homes," he said. "Then fight." The villagers needed no more encouragement.
Fuelled by rage, they armed themselves with whatever they could find, axes, pitchforks, fallen blades, even stones.
Within an hour or so, Luo He had gathered a mob of nearly 1,800 men. With the remaining of the 400 trained soldiers, his force grew to around 2,200.
Jin Mulan stepped beside him. "Are they ready?" she asked quietly. Luo He looked over the crowd fearful, angry, determined. "They will have to do." He raised his hand.
"We march." He shouted. They moved like a wave toward the Count's mansion. The enemy never saw it coming. "Attack from the rear!" Luo He ordered.
The assault was sudden and devastating. The villagers crashed into the enemy lines with raw, chaotic force. Numbers alone caused havoc. Men screaming, weapons swinging wildly.
Enemy soldiers fell in confusion. For a moment, it was a slaughter. But these were not ordinary enemies. Though dressed like thieves, they were trained.
"Form ranks!" one of their commanders shouted. Slowly, they regrouped. Shields locked. Lines reformed. They began pushing back. The untrained villagers started to falter.
Luo He's eyes sharpened. "Forward!" he ordered his trained soldiers. They stepped ahead, forming a tight shield wall. "Hold...!" he commanded. The line steadied.
But he knew this would not hold for long.
Still, time was all he needed. Even a moment, could change everything. And then, Thunder.
From the gates of the mansion, the doors burst open. Five hundred outriders charged out like a storm, led by the counts army general. "FOR THE JIN FAMILY!" the general roared.
They crashed into the enemy flank, cutting through them mercilessly. The battlefield turned . The enemy lines shattered. Panic spread.
What was once a battle, now became a rout. By the end, the Jin family emerged victorious. Nearly 3,000 enemies lay dead. Around 100 were captured both high ranking leaders and lowly soldiers alike.
The ground was soaked in blood. The night was silent once more. But this time It was the silence of survival.