It was late summer and autumn, and the morning was slightly chilly. For today's battle, the elves had breakfast early. Unlike a while ago, where there were many restrictions, this time, they could eat freely.
After all, war had always been unpredictable. After eating this meal, they didn't know when the next meal would be or whether they would have the chance to eat it. So this breakfast was a rare sumptuous meal in recent days. Of course, there were also some who couldn't eat. They just gritted their teeth and endured, and then secretly felt sad.
The teammates chosen by the Elven Sword Dancer, Liena Titov, were all careless people who could eat and sleep and treated death as nothing. In fact, in the current situation, such people were more trustworthy than those elves with strong martial arts. At least they wouldn't collapse on the battlefield and drag down their comrades.
She casually plucked a mint leaf and stuffed it into her mouth to chew. Liena stared intently at the north, which was the direction where the Centaur Alliance might appear. Compared to being worried and nervous, she didn't understand the purpose of that man's orders.
It wasn't right to say that she didn't understand at all. At least she could tell that her mission was actually to bait. It wasn't too complicated. After discovering the Centaurs, she just had to run back desperately.
There was no need to deliberately lure the other party. With the Centaurs' scouting skills, they would naturally follow closely behind her. Then she would summon the army and drive her in the direction of the main group like a dead dog. This was also the intention of letting her lead the way so that they could find the elves' position faster.
The elves were very familiar with these routines. But sometimes, they had to do it because someone had to at least go back and report when they discovered the enemy's tracks. And their own two legs couldn't run as fast as the enemy's four legs. Who could be blamed for this?
Although the elven guards brought a lot of camels, there was also a considerable number of cavalry. But in a horse battle, the elves were really no match for the Centaurs. So no one had ever thought of relying on a cavalry that was far superior in numbers, hoping that they could be the key to victory. More likely, it was like throwing a stone into a lake. There would only be a "dong" sound, and there would be nothing else.
Besides, the camels had other uses. When things couldn't be handled, a large number of camels would be used to hide the young Elven King and scatter. A large number of unridden camels were used to confuse the centaurs. This would make them mistakenly think that there was no one in the group of camel birds and give up on the chase. This would increase the chances of Ridan the Third escaping.
Because of this, the elves who came out as bait could only bitterly rely on their own two feet to escape.
In fact, there were six or seven groups of people like him. Their numbers weren't large, and they were scattered along the roads in the north. In other words, no matter which direction the Centaurs came from, they would definitely come face to face with one of their own. Then, according to the established plan, they would lure it to the target location.
As for the line of defense that was originally planned, it was completely destroyed by someone. There weren't many elves who had any objections to this. After all, if they didn't eat or sleep for a single night, they wouldn't be able to set up a decent defensive structure. That human Magician suggested that since there were no city walls to defend, they should focus on street battles from the very beginning.
According to what he learned when he contacted His Majesty Wadwal, the destruction of a World Tree was not something that could be solved by setting it on fire or chopping it down. Although it was as simple as saying it out loud.
The size of a World Tree varied greatly according to its age and level. Even the malnourished Lahti had a diameter of nearly ninety meters. Because it wasn't perfectly round, it had a circumference of three hundred and fifty meters, which could be encircled by two hundred people. God knows how long it would take to chop down a divine tree of this level.
So according to Wadwal, to destroy a World Tree and obtain its essence, one had to attack the core area of the tree. Normally, a World Tree would protect that area very well. In a war between wood elves, the victorious side would spend a considerable amount of time digging a hole in the trunk or the roots of the tree, cutting off the connection between the core and the entire World Tree. Then, they would set a fire from the inside to ignite the tree.
But if the Elven Kingdom wanted to control a World Tree, they would make a fuss about the core area of the tree. There was no need for others to dig a hole, as they would expose the core of the World Tree. This gave the enemy a chance to quickly enter and leave. But the reason why the wood elves didn't treat the World Tree as nourishment for their advancement was because they had too many soldiers.
But the implication of this connection was that Wadwal and the other high-ranking members of the Turtledove Alliance were very clear about the situation of the World Tree under the Elven Kingdom's control, which was why they had said those words. The Centaurs also understood, which was why they were so confident in quickly entering and exiting, carrying out such reckless tactics.
Not to mention whether their attitude towards the World Tree was right or wrong, since they knew the target of the enemy's attack, they could naturally think of a corresponding defensive method, which was the previously mentioned street battle. Or it should be said that they used the terrain advantage of the village to fight with the Centaurs for every inch of land. That was because the core area of Lahti's tree was in the depths of the inner passage, a place even deeper than the room with the God-slaying Magic Formation.
The reason why the elves didn't think of this was actually that from the start, all their tactics were designed with the premise of not letting the World Tree suffer any damage. Of course, there was also the need to protect their young king. But since a few scratches on the bark wouldn't be a big problem, why should they worry about not letting the World Tree suffer any damage and give up on using this natural fortress?
In fact, a certain person's reminder had rekindled the elves' hope. They weren't completely without a chance of winning. Also, the various targeted arrangements and deployments could be done better than this human Mage's suggestions.
The reason why they still followed this Mage's plan was because he was on the frontlines to begin with. As for the elves, all they needed to do was to send out a few bait teams. If this bragging human failed, the elves wouldn't collapse to that extent. They only needed to occupy the geographical advantage of the tree trunk and fight with the Centaurs inch by inch.
Yes. As soon as they found an opportunity to win, the War Minister reverted to his old ways and discriminated against all races that weren't elves.
Thinking of how the War Minister didn't seem to care about this, but he made that old man Maxim Stache so angry that he didn't want to speak, Li Ena felt somewhat relieved. She didn't despise her own people, but was it really good to live in her own little world and reminisce about the glory of the Empire thousands of years ago? Unfortunately, many elves were only willing to live in the past and not face the present.
"Sister, someone's coming!"
The one who spoke was a fat elf, an elf who was only a few years older than the young king. He could become the king's personal guard at such a young age. In addition to his family having some power, this fat elf was not only smart but also quite talented. He was regarded as the next powerhouse who had the potential to surpass the life level of ordinary elves.
Such an elf had taken the initiative to join Li Ena's bait team. In the first five years of the elves' compulsory military service, he had many conflicts with the armies of the human kingdoms at the border, but he had never encountered the Centaurs. Some people said that in the war with the previous king, although the Centaurs had tricked the elves, they had also suffered considerable losses. That was why they had been quiet until now.
He appeared here because he wanted to be the first to see what the elves' archenemy looked like. So when he discovered the whereabouts of the Centaurs, he was quite excited to report to the commander at the scene, Li Ena Titov, the daughter of the Prime Minister of the kingdom.
"Number?"
"Three riders. Run? Or swallow them? "
"Do you look like you want to run?" Li Ena looked at the young man unhappily. Compared to despair, there was a group of romantics among the elves who longed for war. And this group of people weren't young people who only knew how to boast after hearing too many heroic poems. In the conflict at the border, this group of people were all outstanding soldiers.
Among the elves she had chosen, there were many such people. It wasn't just them. Even Li Ena herself didn't want to do nothing and only be responsible for luring the enemy to the designated location. But that person's order was rather strange. "Defeat is not allowed." Military orders were like this. The elves didn't have the tradition of having generals outside. Obedience was the foundation of a strong elven army, especially such tactical orders.
However, the specific operation wasn't something that the man who wasn't present could control. Running away with one's tail between their legs as soon as they met wasn't her style, nor was it the style of the elves. She gathered the members of the team and said, "We have X (10) people. Running away when we meet will probably alert the Centaurs. So we still have to think of a way to besiege them, but we have to let at least one Centaur go. So this is my plan … "
After the instructions, all the elves perked up and immediately acted according to the order. Although this temporary team leader said that at least one Centaur had to be let go. But when they really fought, who could say for sure? If they deliberately went easy, it would be easy to fall into a dangerous situation.
A group of young people full of confidence shuttled through the forest and surrounded the three Centaur scouts.
They thought that it would be an easy encounter, but all the developments were completely different from what the elves had imagined. Almost as soon as they got close to the effective range of the short bows in their hands, the three Centaur scouts on the opposite side noticed the clues and gathered together.
A young elf who didn't believe in heresy took another step forward, and three throwing spears shot at him at the same time! He was forced to roll on the ground, narrowly avoiding the throwing spear, but he exposed himself in the process.
Since someone was exposed, the other elves didn't care about continuing to move forward slowly. They all jumped out of their hiding places, holding their bows and shooting, and madly ran toward the Centaurs.
All the movements of the elves seemed to have been familiarized by the three Centaur scouts. They didn't stand there foolishly and wait for the elves to complete the encirclement. Instead, they sprinted in the direction where the spears had been thrown, because the elf who had rolled away just happened to become a gap in the encirclement.
Being led by the nose, the encirclement had long been messed up. Only Li Ena didn't jump out at the first moment. On the contrary, she nimbly climbed up the tree. And as expected, the three Centaur scouts galloped past the tree she was hiding in. Holding two swords, Li Ena saw that the last Centaur was about to pass and jumped down!
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