-<( Introduction )>-

Every month, the songs of the Seven Kingdoms echoed to the sound of the exploits of the warriors who had died on the battlefield of the siege of the champion city. And once again, new verses would be written, and the song of ice and fire would vibrate to the sounds of an additional verse. The doors of the Hotel des Celestiens would open, revealing its sandy wounds to become, for the space of an hour, the scene of 1,000 intense battles. Once again, the most powerful commanders, surrounded by their most valiant army, would be able to distinguish themselves in the capture of the city. Another day when the hills of grass and sand would bathe in the blood of knights killed in combat.

As usual, Arthurion and his team were eager to participate. Strategies were being honed, allies were being gathered, troops and resources were being counted, and hospitals were being emptied to accommodate the future wounded. And like every great and talented strategist, Arthurion dreamed of wearing the victor's crown, having brilliantly crushed all his adversaries.

And as always, Arthurion and his allies spied on the warring kingdoms, to assess his adversaries and future organizations, to find weaknesses, and to attempt to implement a battle plan that would bring victory to the greatest number of people. For over time, everyone's demands evolved. Initially, Arthurion desired the greatest victory of all: the double attack badge. Now, he only wanted the battle diamonds. His acolytes, for their part, loved to dream of obtaining a phenomenal amount of additional bravery tokens. In any case, everyone was out for blood.

- Arthurion: I've traveled the kingdoms, and we always face the same opponents...

- Vangark: Let me guess: STRAW BERRY?

- Arthurion: Exactly.

- Pacovega: You had to guess, we've been running into him almost systematically for almost a year now.

- Chayle: Hodor!

- Vangark: I agree with what Chayle says.

- Arthurion: Me too, it's very relevant.

- PacoVega: I couldn't have said it better myself.

The discussion thus concluded with Chayle's magic words, which only those who knew their deep meaning could understand: Hodor. What a mysterious word, so weighty and yet so common.

-<( Forces in Action )>-

For this siege, Arthurion and his allies had decided to keep it simple and remain a small team. Armed with Arthurion's cavalry, they had a strong potential for destruction. Facing them were familiar alliances, filled with the usual players. Arthurion and his allies had no plans to take the city; they lacked organization, but they wanted to inflict maximum damage and obtain bounty.

Perhaps the most powerful alliance of all: the AfV, which included STRAW BERRY and Menat. STRAW BERRY always wanted to be the first, and often won.

The YGI alliance, notably with Don Stefan, whom Arthurion was beginning to know after having played alongside him on several occasions. A heavyweight lancer, who could surely inflict very significant damage on STRAW BERRY's cavalry.

The KUM alliance, a famous alliance, which could inflict significant damage, but which would not be a real threat to occupy the central city.

And last but not least: the VME alliance. They represented the main adversaries, along with the AfV. They had very powerful commanders among them, like Mirela and ModryBogan. Mirela played as a lancer and also had the power to counter STRAW BERRY's cavalry.

The map of the forces present featured several monsters ready to fight. But only the gods controlled the destiny of mankind. And it would take a whole hour for everyone to take control of their own destiny, or suffer it…

-<( First Battle )>-

Despite a fierce race, the first capture was inevitably made by STRAW BERRY. History seemed to repeat itself, tirelessly... Arthurion and his allies had not put the energy into fighting against fate, and once again, fate imposed the same enemy on them. They made the best of a bad situation and launched an assault on the city, since that was what they had come for! The first rally was thus prepared, and then launched.

A surprisingly successful first expedition! The difference in army size was largely in Arthurion's favor. The number of wounded and dead was almost twice as high at STRAW BERRY. Thus, Arthurion's evil spirit slowly took control, and told himself that if he couldn't occupy the city and achieve victory, he would truly bleed his opponent dry by harassing and killing as many troops as possible.

The second rally was even better! Almost 3 million dead. Especially since the enemy had deployed archers and infantry, which diluted the damage effectiveness of the active army skills of the female synergy. This represented a gargantuan number of enemy troops. Would they be able to hold out for long at this rate? Could they endure such losses?

-<( Reinforcement )>-

But Arthurion also wondered about his allies. Did they have so many troops to lose? Could they afford to attack constantly until all enemy troops were at zero? To do this, he had to find allies. Arthurion simply looked at the map and contacted those who were most isolated. He found several capable commanders to help him in his quest: Vitoo, from FFS, and members of FDH, notably Steel86, an archer Arthurion had already faced in the past. Together they were able to perform perfectly synchronous rallies on the enemy.

And so began the hostilities against STRAW BERRY.

The combined might of the two men finally overcame their enemy, allowing subsequent commanders to position themselves within the castle.

-<( A well-aimed surprise )>-

It was Mirela who secured the position in the castle. And she was immediately reinforced by a very substantial number of members of the VME alliance. Finally, would a worthy opponent be able to prevail against STRAW BERRY? But Mirela played as a lancer, and she had a formidable team of commanders at her disposal. Even for Arthurion, her power should not be underestimated. Would he achieve the same successes as on STRAW BERRY? So he organized his first rally, and launched.

It was a resounding success! This greatly surprised Arthurion. He was up against a team of lancers, including the Night King, armed with his four-star weapon. Even Peter Baelish was there. This would normally turn his power against him. But. That's not what happened. On the contrary! The victory was almost total. To be sure, the experiment had to be repeated.

The next rally was even more surprising. He had no deaths. None. How was that possible? His opponent had 2 million dead and 1 million injured. And him? Nothing. Surely, he had to start again, again and again!

Which he did with equal success. Incredible. He couldn't believe his eyes. Such a powerful enemy, defeated so easily? Even his allies got into the game, and had some success.

Thanks to Steel96, an entire team had the opportunity to take out the archers who had been lingering on the ramparts for so many years. But by attacking Mirela so ardently, they finally brought her down.

-<( Intensive Combat )>-

It was STRAW BERRY again who positioned himself in the city. Arthurion underestimated STRAW BERRY's effectiveness in the city because he was limited by the size of his defensive force, but he knew how effective he was in rallies. It was better to strike STRAW BERRY while he was in the city, rather than being attacked by him.

The city was now less well defended. The fighting seemed to be intensifying. It was becoming more difficult to repopulate. The enemy troops seemed to be diminishing. Had Arthurion's blows finally taken effect?

Arthurion loved hitting Mirela because he always achieved sensational results. But he obviously preferred Mirela to take first place, rather than STRAW BERRY. Should he avoid hitting her so she could win first place? New commanders were even able to emerge from the crowd. By constantly swapping positions in the central city, some even managed to obtain it by mistake. This was the case with MeNat.

Arthurion even dared a solo attack on the city. He doubted he could actually hold it, but at least he hoped for a few seconds of glory!

Unfortunately for him, it was a huge crash... He swore to himself not to do it again... He had to fall back on the opponents present on the spot, when they managed to take the city!

He was even able to attack MondryBogdan! Who was an archer! It was very rare and very surprising to come across archers.

The fighting lasted for several more minutes. Time to try to capture the city. Time to try to occupy it. All the rallies were striking with their full force. Each seemed to be achieving crushing victories. And no one seemed truly intent on occupying the city. Long minutes of intense combat and exchanges of blows.

-<( Conclusion )>-

When the time allowed for the war ended, the sand, unstained by blood, fell heavily on the plains. The dead gushed forth by the millions around the Celestians' hotel. It would surely take days for the crows to finish eating the remains of the forgotten soldiers. But for Arthurion and his team, it was a resounding victory! They hadn't occupied the city, but had obtained a phenomenal amount of rewards, notably battle and bravery tokens. They had succeeded in easy attacks and ultimately lost few troops. The least we can say is that this siege of a champion city was extremely profitable!

A small glimmer of pride shone in Arthurion's eyes. In the throes of battle, he had heard one of the FDHs cry:

"My God, Arthurion wields truly devastating power!"

And so it was. A power that Arthurion put at the service of his friends, to shake, and sometimes crush, those who sought to claim the throne of the Celestians' palace without paying the price. The end of the hour proved it: the enemy losses were monstrous. In the future, the mention of Arthurion's name would surely make his future adversaries tremble! A slight bitter taste remained: STRAW BERRY had once again secured first place. Always the same... But Arthurion was also very surprised: his most powerful opponent, Mirela, had also been the easiest to defeat. Such curious lessons!

A new episode of the siege of the champion city was coming to an end. Another twist, the end of an intense war, a battle rich in lessons and death. Little wasted this time. Arthurion and his friends could return to their castle with their heads held high! The next step: take the city and hold it.