Steel Empire
The Age of Knights Has Passed

Under the cover of night, Berengar's forces quickly traveled the distance between Kufstein and Wildschonau; by the time dawn arrived, they had occupied the mining town and detained Ulrich's workers. The mine-seekers in the field began to build fortifications around the mining town; at the end of the day, the makeshift town would resemble a miniature version of the fort used during the Siege of Petersburg from Berengar's previous life. Volunteer militias guarded the fort while others interrogated the detained workers.

Eckhard personally oversaw these efforts. He began by speaking to the labor Berengar brought in, who were much more loyal to the Kufstein people they grew up in. However, they are unaware of the assassination plot, but when they hear that Berengar may be trapped in a mine; they quickly reveal the only information they know. The foreman had led Berengar to the mine during routine excavations and strangely they were ordered to retreat. No one saw Berengar again after that, but a huge explosion rang out, which they guessed was an ordinary construction. When Baerengar's workers asked the foreman about their Lord's whereabouts, the man claimed that Berengar had gone to visit Lord Ulrich.

After hearing the information, Eckhard immediately arrested the foreman who had been detained and tortured the man viciously to get information about the exact location where Berengar had been framed. After some good medieval justice, the man sings like a canary, and a rescue operation has begun.

Meanwhile, Berengar was trapped inside the crumbling shafts. He had no food or water and was slightly injured. It was a miracle that no serious injury had occurred; he had a slight concussion and maybe a broken rib, luckily it did not puncture his lungs, or he would have long died from this world. His throat was dry, as he had never dispelled his thirst since before the cave entered, and when trapped in the darkness with no way out, he began to become extremely paranoid about the forces conspiring against him. He swore that if he survived this ordeal, he would personally besiege Ulrich's castle and drag him into the basement by the neck. There is no chance the Lord of Wildschonau was not involved in Berengar's assassination attempt.

Shortly after having such thoughts, he heard a muffled voice behind the rubble, which he could barely recognize as belonging to Ludwig.

"Sir, can you hear me? Are you okay down there?"

With a hoarse voice from dehydration and breathing in the smoke of the debris, Berengar managed to speak to the man behind the wall.

"Ludwig? Is that you? How did you find me?"

Ludwig smiled widely on his face when he heard that the young master was still alive. He began to speak awkwardly as he admitted how he found out about his current predicament.

"Aye, it's me... Although I am not a person capable of judging the actions of nobles like yourself, your brother's fiancee erm revealed your current situation to me as she pleaded with me to save your life."

Berengar could not help but laugh but groan in pain as he did so, he must have broken his ribs, and it made breathing difficult and laughing tormented.

"Oh my God, did I love that woman! He came for me once again! I'll really need to reward him this time!"

Ludwig could tell from the tone of Berengar's voice what the young master had implied and could only sigh.

"It's nice to be young ..."

After putting out those words, he decided to tell Berengar about what was going on.

"Just wait; I have hundreds of villagers to save you master; you need to get out of there immediately."

Berengar was quickly aware of the matter; there was not the slightest chance that their actions would escape Ulrich's attention; after all, this was his land on which they stood at the moment. When Lord found out that there was an ongoing effort to save his killing target, he would definitely send his troops to cover his tracks. Therefore, he began to give orders to Ludwig.

"Ludwig, my friend, you must have Eckhard assemble a militia; when the Lord of Wildschonau finds out what you're doing, he will surely send his army to eliminate you all."

Ludwig could not help but laugh; he knew what Berengar was thinking and had already acted accordingly.

"Rest assured, my lord, Ser Eckhard, and his men are already here to strengthen the position as we speak. All 600 people and 6 weapons were currently in a position to defend this mine with their lives"

'600 men, and 6 guns? Gosh, I have to give these guys a raise; they work too hard!'

Berengar thought to himself as he lay down and waited for help. For now, he had no choice but to wait for the excavation to be completed. If Ulrich appeared with his meager army during this time, he would experience a rude awakening. The strength of his militia could not be underestimated, although the feudal power of this world would definitely do so.

...

A soldier in the field was cleaning his rifle. The rifle was personally designed by Berengar and named the Ground Pattern Musket 1417, and it was an outdated design. It uses a 46-inch barrel such as the famous "Brown Bess" used by the British Army for a long time and similar flintlock designs. However, its stock was closer in design to that used by early doglock rifles used by British forces during the English Civil War. Thus, firearms retain a considerable aesthetic of renaissance. The main difference in stock design is that it has been cut shorter at the end of the barrel to allow for bayonet socket installation. The stock also had a rotatable sash, and each rifle was fitted with a leather sash. The 46-inch barrel was drilled in calibre 58 and has iron sights similar to the 1861 Springfield Rifle Musket used by Union forces during the American Civil War. The reason for these two things is that they are all manufactured with the intention of being re-drilled and shot for the use of a.58 caliber Minie ball projectile when the plant can handle such a wide workload.

It was truly a unique design that blended components from three eras of rifle development from Berengar's past life. It is a weapon designed with two purposes in mind to fight in the most efficient way available and looks good while doing so. The soldiers who used this great weapon used their leisure time to clean their rifles and make sure everything was functioning properly. It would not be long before Ulrich, and his army arrived. Although they had sufficient defensive positions, as well as numerical superiority, most of these people had never seen a battlefield before, either, those who have been in the field now are officers and NCOs respectively and form the backbone of veterans needed to lead their intent properly. . Against professional and experienced forces, things may not go so smoothly.

As the sun began to set, the Soldier who was cleaning his rifle pointed into the distance when he saw a scout riding a horse towards the Castle.

Berengar had applied tactics from modern doctrine and mounted designated marksmen with long rifles to each platoon to attack targets with greater range. The sniper was already aware of the target and had filled his rifle in the meantime. When he was finally able to open fire, the scout was at a distance of about 250 yards, although it was not a problem for the rifle he was holding, which is a replica of the one Berengar used to defeat the assassins during his hunting trip.

Slowly but surely, the farmer was dirty, dressed in worldly linen clothes, set his gaze, took a deep breath, and pressed the trigger. After a thunderous explosion and a puff of smoke, the mini-ball projectile was sent down the range and pierced through the back of the equestrian scout to report to his master to tell him about the occupation of the mining town. A large hole appeared on the man's body as the mini ball pierced through his brigandine chest protector as if it was made of a single woven cloth. Finally, the horse was frightened by the explosion, and without regard for the rider who had fallen from his bloody back to the ground below, drove towards the castle from where he had come.

When the horse returned without its rider, it immediately aroused suspicion. Because of this, Ulrich knew something had happened to the scouts he sent to keep an eye on the rumors about the occupying forces in the mining town. He did not know how much power it was or who it belonged to, but the enemy force had seized the ground right under his nose. This was an insult to his authority, and if he could not handle it himself, he would only lose faith in the Baron who was the son and heir he had just killed. His first action was to gather his troops. As a lowly Lord, he only had a dozen knights under his command and at most a hundred armed men; still, his soldiers were extremely experienced, he said, and he had no doubt that what he was up against was just a bunch of robbers. When he finally arrived with his troops, he was surprised to see many cultivators armed with strange-shaped spears. He was not aware of the invention of the rifle, or of the hand cannon before in this regard. It was an extremely rare piece of equipment all along. Therefore, he greatly underestimated the strength brought by Beregar's allies to help him.

Lord Ulrich approached the fort and asked about the identity of the peasant commoners who dared offend him.

"I am Lord Ulrich von Wildschonau; under whose authority have you violated my territory and occupied my mines?"

Eckhard stepped out in front of the defensive line and approached Ulrich; unlike his other troops, he was properly equipped with a half-armored prototype of ammunition. Decorating his head was a sturmhaube, or burgonet, a type of helmet that would not normally be developed for the next century or two. Ludwig managed to smuggle several sets into production for the officers and NCO militia. In Eckhard's hand was a rifle with a bayonet attached, which he placed on the ground as he chatted with Ulrich.

"I am Ser Eckhard, retainer of Lord Berengar, son and heir of Sieghard von Kufstein, Baron who led these lands. It is under his authority that I am here"

Ulrich's face instantly turned ugly; this meant Berengar was still alive and could somehow exert such strength to save him; things were not going well. Fortunately Berengar would only know that Lambert was behind this plot and had no evidence of his involvement. Therefore, Ulrich tried to be calm; after all, the power he faced was practically six times greater than his own, even if they were unarmed peasants armed with sticks and spears; such numbers are still a threat.

"As far as I am concerned, Berengar went back to his home some time ago without paying proper respect. Why did he order you here?"

Eckhard spat at the general of Lord Ulrich, which was a huge slap across his face

"Stop the bullshit, My Lord; we know you are responsible for this cave. I suggest you put your hands on your head and surrender to justice. If you acknowledge the actual mastermind behind this plot, I promise on behalf of my subordinate, Berengar von Kufstein; you will be granted leniency."

This response shocked and angered Ulrich; there was no way of knowing that he was involved in this plot unless Lambert turned it on or someone he hired did so. Despite why Sieghard sent these commoners to bring him to justice instead of his own troops, Ulrich could not understand. The truth that he could not understand was that this was Berengar's personal militia and was fully capable of taking down his Lord and Army; hell, they could even besiege his Castle if they wanted to.

Ulrich threatened Eckhard further in an attempt to stir fear in the hearts of the peasants who followed him.

"When I return with my retribution, I will teach you a thorough lesson in the art of war."

Eckhard chuckled at Ulrich's comments which really provoked his master

"What's so funny?"

Eckhard looked at Ulrich with a look of disdain as he spoke the blatant truth.

"My lord, you can strike this position with ten times the amount you currently have, and the result will remain the same. If you march in this position, only death awaits you and those foolish enough to follow. If you run and hide in Kastilmj, I promise that we will follow you, and when we break down the great walls where I curl up, I will personally make sure that Berengar is the one who ripped your neck off your seat of power!"

Eckhard is clearly a victory in the ongoing menace war between a fallen knight and the Ruler of Wildschonau. The more Eckhard spoke, the more Ulrich got angry with his words and made foolish comments.

"really? How do you expect to achieve this without knights or men in hand?"

Ulrich felt with this statement; he would make the militia members under Eckhard's command retreat. However, when he looked them in the eye, he was surprised to find the same expression of determination and humiliation that Eckhard had boldly shown before him. Did these farmers mock him?

Eckhard's last words to Ulrich before he retreated were these.

"If you don't give up, I swear to show you that the days of the Knights have passed."

With that statement spoken, Ulrich snorted at the statement and returned to his possession. While excavations for Berengar's rescue were underway, the Ruler of Wildschonau summoned the peasants of his territory and raised his levy by 1500 men. Even if the cost of the battle was the death of all the levies, he made sure to take Berengar's life.