The 50,000-strong army set out on the battlefield. Along the way, it was lively and joyous. There was also an unbearable hubbub.
Count Hoffman and his brightly armored Knight Regiment were the brightest colors in the army. The Knight Regiment in brand-new plate armor rode on tall horses while his squires in the same armor carried colorful flags beside them. Along the way, they sang 'Tom the Lost Soldier', a folk song that was well-known in the Southern Region. The accompanying musicians played the bagpipes and tambourines. These bright musical instruments were used to let the nearby troops know where the commander was. Usually, the musicians would play them once every ten miles to prevent the whole army from falling into chaos.
But even with these instruments, the whole army was still very chaotic. This was unavoidable. With such a large army crowded together and led by dozens of different nobles, it was almost impossible for them to cooperate with each other. The whole army was stretched into a long and intermittent line on the kingdom road that connected the north and the south. When the vanguard troops left Calore, the last ones had not even left the place where they were stationed.
Count Hoffman did not care about this. In his opinion, it was the best that the small nobles in the countryside could do to be able to follow the main army in the same direction. He could not expect the peasants recruited from the fields who only knew how to get drunk and fight to be as disciplined and high-spirited as his Knight Regiment. Besides, it did not matter if the army was a little chaotic now. After all, there was still a long way to go before they reached their destination. In the next few days, the main task of the army was to hurry on with the journey. There were still many troops of the remote nobles who had not made it to Calore and were still on their way. Those who were late would be replaced in the next few days, so there was no need to reorganize the army at this time.
So what if it was a little chaotic? He had 50,000 men. He was afraid that he could flatten the whole of Cecil.
Besides, the messy private soldiers from the countryside who wore tattered leather armor or mail armor were not an important force in the first place. They were just firewood used to fill the holes in the battlefield with corpses. The real forces that could be put to use were the superhumans in the army.
As Count Hosman pondered, he turned his gaze to the marching formation beside him. He saw his knights whom he was proud of, and the mages in robes who were protected by the knights in the middle. Finally, he saw the priests in holy white robes and the church knights that they led. These people were wearing sturdy armor or gorgeous robes. They looked noble and reserved. They looked extraordinary among the messy and vulgar soldiers around them.
These people were the forces that he really trusted.
…
In the northern part of Kant's territory, the artillery position on Windward Hill had been launched. Knight Philip rode his horse and patrolled between the firing groups before returning to the center of the position.
His eyes swept across the entire position. In his sight, there were not only the disciplined and swift Cecil Regiment and their artillery positions, but also the Kant Regiment (Second Combat Regiment), who were helping at the back of the position and seemed to be in a panic.
There were 3,000 soldiers of the First Regiment on standby here. The rest were the newly formed Second Regiment in Kant's territory. However, the Second Regiment was not the main force of the battle. Their task was to help set up the position, serve as logistics, and … watch the battle from the sidelines.
Although the Second Regiment had begun to receive formal military training, it was still a short time. The habits and thoughts of the old-style aristocratic private soldiers were still deeply rooted in these people's minds. This was not something that could be solved by surprise training. However, Philip believed that letting these people experience the fighting style of the First Regiment on the battlefield would greatly loosen their stubborn thinking. This had been well verified by the Kant Knight Regiment.
The leader of the Kant Knight Regiment, Walter Perry, who was in his middle age, was wearing a thin sheet of paper. Perry was wearing a new set of armor and holding a new weapon called the Fused Blade. He stood on a high platform on the hill and watched the soldiers bustle about in this place called the Artillery Position. This flat hill had been completely armed. A large area of land had been leveled, and then all kinds of trenches and "gun pits" were dug. The large weapons called "Magic Crystal Railguns" were placed in the gun pits in a crisscross pattern. Between the gun pits were communication trenches for transporting shells and people. The brightly armored Cecil Regiment ran quickly between the trenches. Relying on simple and concise orders, these people's actions showed a kind of astonishing order and … beauty. This feeling was something that Walter had never seen in his decades of military service.
The battlefield in his memory was far simpler, rougher, and more chaotic than this.
As for this special "artillery position" … it was even more beyond his scope of understanding.
He had seen the Magic Crystal Railguns before, and he even knew that they were called "Justice". However, he had only seen how they were tested on the flat ground. He had thought that it was the fighting style of the railguns, but now, seeing this strange position and the skillful preparation of the artillerymen, he realized that what he saw that day was just the most superficial thing.
A female Knight Regiment with brown shoulder-length hair walked up the high platform and came to Walter Perry's side. "Mr. Walter, I heard that … we are not participating in the next battle?"
The old Knight Regiment did not look back. "According to the order, unless the enemy can rush to the top of the hill, the Kant Knight Regiment and the entire Second Regiment will not participate in the battle."
The female Knight Regiment could not help but frown. Her heroic face was full of dissatisfaction. "Isn't this looking down on us?"
"This is the training of the Second Regiment, young Margarita." Hearing this complaint, Walter finally turned around and looked at the female Knight Regiment in front of him. This female Knight Regiment was the most talented and closest to the middle rank of Kant's female Knight Regiment, but after all, she was too young and not mature enough. "Don't forget, the Second Regiment has not completed the basic drill. They haven't even memorized the new combat orders. Do you want them to cause trouble on the battlefield?"
"They haven't memorized it, but we can," the female Knight Regiment said indignantly. "Now, our brothers and sisters are leading the soldiers behind Cecil's men to dig soil, transport stones, and carry cannonballs and magic net substrates. When the battle starts, we have nothing to do … It's obvious that they don't trust us. We have clearly sworn allegiance and have been strictly following the orders of the Lord — "
"Then continue to follow the orders, Knight Regiment." Walter interrupted Margarita. "As a Knight, if you can't even follow the orders of your master, then there's no glory in the battlefield no matter how good you are at fighting."
The female Knight Regiment was speechless. She could only lower her head slightly. But Walter knew that Margarita's complaint was also the same as the other Kant Knights Regiment, so he continued, "Margarita, what do you think of your new armor and sword?"
"Armor and sword?" The female Knight Regiment was stunned for a moment. Then she looked down at the alloy armor with Cecil's seal on it. There was a slight flow of magic radiance between the gaps. The alloy armor had a peculiar shape but was full of beauty. She nodded subconsciously. "It's a very good thing … I was a little disappointed when I took off my family's armor and put on this' standard equipment ', but now I think it's really good stuff, especially this sword. It's much better than my original steel sword."
"Do you see those soldiers? Every one of them has the same set. "Walter pointed his chin at the busy Cecil soldiers on the battlefield." I've asked around. The armor and sword of the ordinary soldiers are almost the same as those of the officers. The latter just has more gilded patterns and slightly better magic materials. Do you know what this means? "
The female Knight Regiment showed a thoughtful look.
"This means that as long as you put on this armor and hold this sword, five or six ordinary soldiers will be able to take down an extraordinary knight like you. This is also taking into account your advantage in swordsmanship and combat experience. If they use heat ray guns and grenades, I'm afraid you won't be able to deal with even two of them. An Extraordinary Knight Regiment may have no problem fighting against a hundred in other places, but here, you're equivalent to a soldier who can fight at most. "
Margarita was speechless.
"So the lord doesn't let us participate in the battle, not because he doesn't trust us, but because he doesn't need us." Walter looked into the distance and exhaled softly. "But he let us watch the battle and learn from it, which means that he wants us to be useful one day. What he needs is not a Knight who can fight, but a group of Knights who can take the initiative to learn and keep up with his pace. Do you understand? "
"… I understand."
"That's good." Walter nodded with a smile. "Then let's watch quietly and see how the Cecil people fight …"
A messenger came to the hill, ran to Philip, and handed the latest information to him.
Philip unfolded the information and saw a few lines written in a woman's handwriting:
"Count Hosman is leading 50,000 people south through the kingdom's main road – Gravel Ridge. They will arrive on XX days."
Philip nodded and turned the note into dust that drifted with the wind.
"Send out scouts to warn the Gravel Ridge area. Use smoke as a signal."
…
At the same time, on the edge of the forest on the south bank of Cecil's Whitewater River, Byron stood on a camouflaged artillery position and watched the soldiers use woven leaves and vines as camouflage blankets to cover the acceleration rails of the railguns.
The middle-aged mercenary Knight did not have the manners of a noble. He leaned against a half-dead black beech tree with a wooden stick in his mouth, thinking about how to pass the boring time. Firing the cannon was a very pleasant thing, but waiting for the prey before firing the cannon was particularly difficult.
It was as if someone had heard his thoughts. He saw a messenger push aside the bushes and walk to the front of the camp. The messenger walked straight towards him.
He waved at the messenger from afar. "Hey, Barnico, what's the good news?"
"Sir, clear information." The messenger came to Byron, saluted, and reported. "Count Peibo led 20,000 people to attack through the Whitewater River. They will pass by the ambush point in two days."
"Oh, 20,000 people." Byron whistled. "Not bad, we have 2,000 to 20,000. It's much easier than Philip's side. He seems to have 3,000 to 50,000."
The messenger said subconsciously, "Sir Philip has the Kant Knight Regiment …"
"Those people are not participating in the war." Byron waved his hand indifferently. "Well, I feel more at ease with this news. Now that I'm sure those bastards will come, I'll find a place to sleep … I'll have a good time in two days!"
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