Chapter 160: The Bloody Gate Falls, and Chaos Begins
The Vale, Bloody Gate
After nightfall, the bright moonlight spilled directly onto the pass of the Bloody Gate, casting deep shadows behind it.
Under continuous psychological pressure, the Vale soldiers guarding the Bloody Gate had reached a state of exhaustion. Recent events had completely overturned their previous understanding.
The Vale army, which they had originally considered incredibly powerful, had actually suffered repeated defeats at the hands of those savage-like Mountain Clans warriors. In the end, even the famous Ser Nestor Royce had died on the High Road.
It was precisely because of this that these soldiers had reached a state of extreme paranoia over the past few days. To prevent clansmen from sneaking into the Vale, they repeatedly checked the retreating soldiers, not allowing them to bring in weapons. Even after entering the Bloody Gate, they were not allowed to leave and could only wait for their lordly families to come and claim them.
"Yawn..."
After letting out a yawn, a Vale soldier on guard habitually glanced at the main road. Every once in a while, he would look down, fearing that a large army might appear beneath the walls.
The Bloody Gate consists of two checkpoints on the left and right, connected by a stone bridge in the middle. The passage below is blocked by oak doors, iron portcullises, and wooden barricades.
The passage beneath the stone bridge extends straight out, allowing the defenders to launch attacks from the surrounding stone walls. Due to the narrow passage combined with these special stone walls above, the Bloody Gate has become a nightmare for all land armies, ensuring that for thousands of years, the Vale could only be breached from the sea or the sky.
"Hey! What are you doing?"
Just as the soldier was staring intently at the shadows under the moonlight, someone suddenly slapped his shoulder.
"Whoa! You... what are you doing? I'm keeping an eye on things below. Are you trying to get me killed?"
After being pranked by his companion, the soldier immediately cursed irritably.
"Hehehe, what's there to fear? For thousands of years, the Bloody Gate has left many with bloodied heads. Otherwise, how do you think the name 'Bloody Gate' came about? Whether from the Riverlands, the Stormlands, or the Reach—if House Targaryen hadn't had dragons back then, our Vale could have held out even until now."
This soldier had great confidence in the fortress beneath his feet, which was why he had slipped away to drink while on guard duty earlier.
"Here! For you. This is Arbor Gold from the Arbor. It's a batch of goods that those sellswords who escaped back last time brought with them at the risk of their lives. Now it's cheap for us."
After giving a bottle of wine to the soldier he had just startled, the slacking soldier took his place and let the other go down to rest.
"You must stay alert. The moonlight is too dim tonight, and I can't see anything. If someone really sneaks up under us, it'll be a huge problem."
The first soldier had been standing there for a long time. Tempted by the fine wine and rest, he eventually yielded, but before leaving, he still reminded his companion of what to watch out for.
Unbeknownst to them, at the edge of the passage, two Wolf Guards were slowly moving forward along the mountain path, one on the left and one on the right. Behind them was a long string of figures like a black line, stretching directly back into the forest behind.
Those were Mountain Clans warriors, currently gathering silently under the rock walls on both sides of the Bloody Gate passage. They held wooden sticks in their mouths, and their weapons were all wrapped in a layer of rags. Under the reflection of the moonlit night, their eyes flickered with determination and resolve.
They had prepared for a long time for tonight's battle. After nearly a month of besieging points and striking reinforcements, the noble lords and soldiers of the Vale were thoroughly terrified and had shrunk back behind the Bloody Gate.
Although Bronze Yohn Royce of House Royce of Runestone had once suggested that Lysa Arryn increase the manpower at the Bloody Gate, the arrogant and conceited Lady Lysa didn't take it to heart at all.
In Lady Lysa's view, the Bloody Gate, like her Eyrie, was a fortress that could never be breached. Although the surrounding nobles were also afraid of this issue, they directly forgot about it after receiving some false information released by Timett.
The unification of the Mountain Clans had once made these Vale nobles very afraid, but in the information received recently, they heard that the clans had started fighting amongst themselves again, which to some extent paralyzed these fellows' vigilance.
As the two Wolf Guards stopped advancing, the Mountain Clans warriors, who had been moving forward continuously, also halted. Although the Bloody Gate was easy to defend and hard to attack, it was not completely impossible to conquer.
The main reason why it had been so hard to take in previous battles was that the area was simply not conducive to the construction and advancement of large siege engines. The twenty-meter-high, three-stage fortress could only be climbed using rope ladders.
Under normal circumstances, humans cannot climb the fortresses on both sides in a short time. Even if someone luckily climbed up, the defenders above would pour out from the castle in a steady stream to surround and kill the brave warriors who reached the heights.
It was precisely for this reason that Lady Lysa had not sent reinforcements here. As the Mountain Clans warriors approached, several dark shadows hidden in the crowd also quickly took action.
Like ghosts in the night, they quietly crossed the passage and advanced toward the bottom of the wall where the two Wolf Guards were. They moved in pairs, carrying bundles of rope ladders on their shoulders—siege equipment prepared in advance specifically for tonight's operation.
"Eh?!"
The Vale soldier who had just changed shifts looked around alertly. At this moment, he seemed to sense an unusual aura.
However, in the darkness, he could not see the enemy's tracks at all. It was precisely under the cover of the moonlight that the Mountain Clans warriors below could use the terrain's advantage to evade his line of sight and approach the pass step by step.
"Screech... Crack..."
"What's that? Uh... cough cough..."
Suddenly, the sound of stones rubbing and cracking reached the soldier's ears. When he alertly leaned his head out to observe, he was met by a massive wolf's maw. The soldier felt a pain in his neck, and then all his sounds were swallowed back into his stomach.
"Thud... drip..."
After realizing the defending soldier had stopped breathing, the wolf-formed Timett released his massive bite. After using the Heart of the Moon Goddess to transform into a werewolf, he became a terrifying werewolf over two meters tall.
Relying on this supernatural power, Timett was able to quickly climb the three-story watchtower on the right side of the Bloody Gate. After sniffing the air on the left, Timett signaled to the surrounding Wolf Guards.
The Wolf Guards who received the order quickly found positions to fix the rope ladders. These rope ladders had to be secured in several places to allow people to climb steadily.
Taking this opportunity, the wolf-formed Timett also stealthily crept onto the right watchtower. These soldiers were too confident in the Bloody Gate, which led them to still not increase their focus on it even after suffering successive failures.
And all of this was exactly what Timett wanted, or rather, the result Jon wanted. After Timett accepted the Heart of the Moon Goddess, all his attributes were enhanced. Because of this, his learning ability became stronger and stronger, and now he even knew how to use schemes and sneak attacks.
"What's that... ergh..."
"Crack..."
After using the same method to eliminate the night-watch soldier on the other side, several Wolf Guards following Timett also walked over. As the rope ladders on both sides dropped, the Mountain Clans warriors who had been waiting for a long time eagerly climbed up.
As long as they took the Bloody Gate, the entire Vale would be like a beautiful woman with her legs open to them, allowing them to take whatever they wanted. In the past, this was something these Mountain Clans warriors could only dream of, but now it was only one step away from them.
After more than twenty minutes of climbing, about a hundred Mountain Clans warriors had gathered on the watchtower castles on the left and right sides.
"Awoooo..."
"Kill!"
"Kill these Vale-men!"
...As a series of wolf howls appeared, the horn for the Mountain Clans warriors' attack was finally blown. The warriors, who had been waiting impatiently, heard Timett's roar and immediately charged toward the Vale soldiers who were still dreaming, led by the Wolf Guards.
"Clang, clang, clang..."
Caught off guard, many soldiers' barracks were directly breached by the Mountain Clans warriors. Led by the sensitive sense of smell of the Wolf Guards, they didn't find the wrong places at all.
As the battle began, some soldiers guarding the rear barracks also heard the commotion. With the ringing of the warning bell, the Vale soldiers stationed in the rear also reacted.
Unfortunately, it was too late. The front section of the Bloody Gate had been completely overrun by the Mountain Clans warriors. At this moment, these warriors, led by the Wolf Guards and holding shields belonging to the Bloody Gate defenders, were pushing toward the rear bit by bit.
Yes, after experiencing this period of combat, some of these Mountain Clans warriors had started to learn how to form ranks and attack like the Vale soldiers.
War is the easiest way to make soldiers grow. Even someone who doesn't know how to fight at all can become a fierce soldier who doesn't fear death after experiencing a few victories and bloody battles.
During this time, Jon had been having Timett train these warriors from the Mountains of the Moon according to his methods, hoping they could become warriors capable of standing on their own.
After experiencing rounds of victories and sacrifices, the Mountain Clans warrior army, which had been reduced to 2,000, finally became a formidable army capable of holding its own.
Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night, and after tonight, the Mountain Clans finally had the chance to set foot on the promised land of their ancestors!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you like the story please give it some power stones and reviews. And if you want to read 40+ advance chapters or just want to support me please join my patreon at [email protected]/Translatingfanfics