Chapter 120: 119: Negotiating Surrender

By the time the sun rose, the city of Innsbruck was fully in the hands of Berengar; the only part that had yet to fall was the Castle that contained the Count's family. Berengar intended to capture them and leave their fate to Linde; after all, they were her siblings. Nevertheless, when Liutbert, who was Count Lothar's son, and Heir, as well as Linde's older brother, realized that the city was taken within a single night, he could not believe his eyes.

In a fit of fury, the young man, who was a couple of years older than Linde, lashed at his advisors who were trapped within the Castle's walls alongside him.

"How did this happen? How was Berengar the Accursed able to take the city in a single night?"

Much like Linde Liutbert had strawberry blonde hair and sky blue eyes. He was quite the dashing figure and was a brilliant mind in his own right. Unfortunately, he had long since been betrayed by his own family and was completely unaware of this fact. Neither he nor his advisors knew how the Castle had fallen so quickly; when they heard the explosions last night, they had assumed it was just another bombardment taking place. They were completely dumbfounded by the idea that their walls had failed to fulfill their purpose.

One of Liutbert's advisors, a lanky and rat-faced man, nervously spoke his thoughts on the matter.

"My Lord, we do not know how Berengar took the city, but I assure you he will not be able to enter the Castle so easily!"

Liutbert scoffed at the man's reasoning; if Berengar could so easily take the city without anyone realizing how he had achieved it, what would prevent him from using the same tactics to take the Castle. As a result of his anger, Liutbert threw his chalice at the advisor who had spoken up and chastised the man.

"Berengar is at our doorstep! It is only a matter of time before he takes this Castle! What do you think his men will do to my sisters when they enter the house of my forefathers!?!"

Liutbert was not a fool; he quickly realized the position he was in and had immediately come to a decision, though he hated the idea if he wanted to spare himself and his siblings, he would have to negotiate a surrender. Because Berengar was a condemned heretic, Liutbert could not expect him to follow the common etiquette of the battlefield and allow him and his siblings the privilege of ransom. Thus he turned to his advisors and informed them of his monumental decision, which his father would undoubtedly disapprove of.

"I will meet with Berengar and discuss my terms of surrender, I don't care what it takes but I will ensure the safety of my family!"

The advisors looked at Liutbert with shocked expressions, and as such, expressed their concerns.

"The Count would never allow it! He would rather that you and your siblings fight to the death against this rebel than surrender your family's home to the enemy!"

Liutbert was in no mood to argue with his advisors; as such, he walked up to the man who had said such foolish words and backhanded him across the face.

"I am not my father, and if that blaggard would see his children slaughtered rather than live to fight another day, then he is truly not worthy of my loyalty!"

This statement was outright treasonous, but Liutbert would never be put in this position if his father had not schemed to overthrow their relatives and become the Duke of Austria. After displaying his authority through violence, the advisors quickly got to work to sue for peace with Berengar.

...

Berengar was currently camped outside the Castle's walls with his army. They were in the process of loading the cannons; however, right before they could fire the first bombardment, a white flag was raised above the Castle's ramparts, which forced Berengar to stay his hand. Berengar grabbed a white flag of his own to symbolize that he and his forces were willing to negotiate peacefully. After both flags were visible the two parties met in between the besieging army and the castle's defenses.

Berengar wore a conceited expression on his face as he stood before Liutbert, who was scowling with disfavor. The two men stood before each other with a few guards to ensure their safety; Berengar was quite a bit taller than Liutbert, which got on the young Regent's nerves. Finally, Berengar broke the silence with a smug remark.

"Are you going to waste my time, or do you have something to say?"

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Liutbert wanted to make a witty retort but chose to shut his mouth and focus on diplomacy. As such, he quickly laid out his demands.

"I will surrender Innsbruck to you and the Castle within it so long as you ensure the safety of myself and my siblings!"

Berengar gazed upon Liutbert's figure, trying to investigate any clues about the man's character before responding. After concluding, he inquired about the details.

"Anything else?"

Liutbert quickly shook his head with a defeated expression before responding.

"I may not be the wisest man in the world, but I know I am in no position to make demands. All I ask is for my safety and that of my family."

Berengar smiled and stuck out his hand in a friendly gesture

"Very well, under these terms, I accept your surrender, you will be escorted back to Kufstein where your sister is currently residing, you will be kept as my guests until a time where your father either surrenders or perishes upon the battlefield. As for the possession of the title of Count of Tyrol, that shall be up to our liege Duke Wilmar to decide."

Liutbert frowned as he sighed in defeat eventually he shook Berengar's hand. Berengar's guards began to escort the defeated Regent; however, as he was walking away, the strawberry-blonde-haired youth quickly turned around and asked Berengar a question that had always been on his mind.

"I wonder if you can humor my curiosity for a moment?"

Berengar, who was about to order his troops to storm the castle, turned around and looked at the man with a curious gaze before commenting.

"I don't see why not?"

Berengar's troops carefully guarded Liutbert to ensure he did not attempt anything foolish, noticing the restraints he was under, Liutbert swiftly asked his question.

"As long as I have known my sister Linde she has never once obeyed any orders she has been given; in fact, that Ice Queen has humiliated many powerful young men for the sake of entertainment; how exactly did you get her to obey your orders?"

Berengar laughed at Liutbert's comments; out of all the questions he could have asked, it was about how he could tame Linde? To Berengar, this was quite humorous; after chuckling for a few moments, Berengar smiled and spread his arms in the air before announcing in a voice in which all his troops could hear.

"How do you tame any woman? By giving her a good tumble!"

The men under Berengar's commander immediately began to laugh at their commander's remark, and Liutbert was left blushing at the words in which Berengar had spoken. He never expected Berengar to answer his question so boldly; after that, Liutbert was escorted to a temporary holding cell by Berengar's men, where he and his siblings would stay until they could be safely transported to Kufstein.

With that out of the way, Berengar now held Innsbruck and Schwaz, as for the remainder of the regions within the County of Tyrol, they were currently suffering sabotage and assassinations left and right, and soon their regents would become so enraged that they would march on Innsbruck to put an end to Berengar's so-called rebellion. In doing so, they would be playing right into the young Viscount's hands. As for Count Lothar's forces that were on their way to Kufstein. They were only a few days from reaching their destination, and when they did so, they would be in for a rude awakening.

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