In the Kingdom of Gu's military, there was a special regiment that was created over 50 years ago, which was known as the Veiled Soldiers. This regiment was designed to be Gu Tian's personal soldiers.
When Gu Tian was born, his maternal uncle, General Wu Taishen, created the Veiled Soldiers so that his nephew would have a force of his own to support him in the battle for succession. Gu Tian was the son of a concubine, while his two older brothers were sons of the queen. Tian did not have a strong claim to the throne, nor did he have a powerful faction to contest the succession.
His only supporter was a disgraced general, who was also his uncle. To grow his nephew's strength, Wu Taishen bought newborns and young children from impoverished families to begin his long-term project.
He brainwashed these children and turned them into obedient and loyal servants. They were taught martial arts, marksmanship, survival skills and many other things to prepare them for their role as personal soldiers.
These boys spent their youth training. By the time they reached 18, they would be deployed. Whether it was guarding Gu Tian or assassinating key political rivals, the Veild Soldiers did their duty effectively and without question. So much so that King Gu Tian continued his uncle's work after his death.
The Veiled Soldiers played a pivotal role in securing the throne for Gu Tian. When Gu Tian had turned 25, his father, King Gu Jun, had died due to heart complications. His death sparked a bloody battle for the throne.
His two elder brothers were too focused on one another to consider the meek and unimpressive Gu Tian as a threat. This oversight would cost them their lives. While the two elder brothers sent their soldiers after each other, the Veiled Soldiers stormed the palace and massacred them and their supporters.
At the time, the Veiled Soldiers were only a few hundred strong, yet their skills and efficiency were far superior to any soldier in the brothers' factions. They effortlessly took out all the players in the succession battle and saw that Gu Tian ascended to his father's throne.
Their role in his ascension was extremely large, and thus, Gu Tian rewarded the Veiled Soldiers. They were installed as the new Royal Guard. All of them received a hefty sum of gold, as well as state-of-the-art equipment.
These soldiers constantly wore a sleek black uniform and always wore a scarf-like cloth that covered the bottom half of their faces. Their numbers had grown from a few hundred to a regiment of 3,000 men. The majority of the King's Veiled Soldiers remained back in Simbar as they were sworn to serve as the King's bodyguards; however, 200 men from their ranks were sent to protect San-Tong and Yichen.
"All the Veild Soldiers will commit to sabotaging a few buildings near the docks, and they will use that chaos to capture and open the gate. Then we shall pour into the city and overwhelm them with our superior numbers. Does anyone disagree with this plan?" Yichen said.
Both Stetson and San-Tong agreed. This plan was their best attempt at taking Osterbon, and there was no doubt about it. With the three all in agreement, all the Veiled Soldiers began preparations, for they were to infiltrate Osterbon tomorrow night.
They would use crude make-shift snorkels to infiltrate through the harbour. The Luxenberg soldiers would be looking out for ships, not a few dozen individuals. Stetson's knowledge of the city would prove beneficial in choosing targets for the Veiled Soldiers to strike.
The harbour master's office, the main harbour warehouse and the few merchant ships in the harbour were prime targets highlighted by Stetson. These targets would cause a crowd, and many soldiers would rush to put out the fires. With a plan carefully crafted, the Veiled Soldiers spent the next 24 hours preparing for their mission.
Sunlight began to kiss the dewy earth, signalling the arrival of a new day. The Gu soldiers were up and about, fortifying their position. They dug trenches and created barricades to sure up their defences. Houses on the outskirts of the fishing village were converted into pillboxes.
While the Gu army waited for nightfall, the Luxenberg army was also preparing. Field Marshal Wellesley convened with the top military officers in the city to discuss the next course of action.
"The Gu army has landed 20 kilometres west of our position. We must prepare for anything," Field Marshal Wellesley stated while drawing his attention to a map on the table. Generals Kamensky and Hill also studied the map, looking at where the Gu fleet had landed.
"In my opinion, we should ready the city's interior for a siege. If we barricade streets and prepare kill zones, we can swiftly deal with an invading army, like we did when we defended Osterbon. It is better to be prepared than not," General Hill suggested.
"I concur, we do not necessarily need to go on the offensive straight away. They will more than likely target our city, and they will not be using an approach from the sea. If we prepare the interior of the city, then we could practically let them walk into a trap," General Kamensky added.
Field Marshal Wellesley nodded, "Very well, our men will begin setting up, prioritise the defences near the southern and western gatehouses. If they are to breach our defences, it would be from either of those gatehouses. Evacuate the civilians in the area to the eastern side of the city."
Everyone nodded at the Field Marshal's words and promptly began their preparations. Soldiers led the citizens away from the southern and western areas of the city. They began to block alleyways with carts and began using sandbags to create defensive positions and kill zones.
It was not long until the sun had set and the moon was peering through the translucent dark clouds in the sky. Now was the time for the Veiled Soldiers to strike.