Unlike the allied noble army that could only flee in panic in the wilderness and hills, the Cecil Combat Army had always been able to receive support from the mainland, the Lesley Region, and the Kant Region. Even though the support wasn't timely due to the limited roads and transportation, in this situation, it was enough to allow the soldiers to take a breather and rotate in shifts.
On the afternoon of the tenth day, Knight Byron led a thousand troops from the Cecil Empire and a large amount of supplies to the west, successfully meeting up with the 1st and 2nd Mixed Armies led by Knight Philip. When they met up, Walter Byron was surprised. When they met up, Perry was leading the 2nd Mixed Corps to tie up the prisoners of war of the nobles and send them to the rear.
Byron found Philip and said, "I've brought more Persuader light cannonballs and replacement accelerator rail components. You seem to be doing well here."
Due to the many days of marching and fighting, Knight Philip looked a little tired, but he was still in high spirits. "These things have come at the right time. We can rely on the dry rations and captured from the enemy, but the cannonballs have been seriously depleted."
Byron raised his head and looked at the prisoners with numb expressions, stiff steps, and their hands tied up like walking corpses. From the mental state of these prisoners, he knew that this chase was about to come to an end.
"Try to keep these people alive as much as possible. This is what the seigneur ordered," he said to Philip. "Most of the nobles in the allied army are farmers and hunters recruited from all over the country, and there are also various serf soldiers and slave soldiers. These people are all labourers."
"I know." Philip nodded. "But to be honest … the enemy is getting more and more scattered, especially after entering the open area. Several nobles fled in different directions. We destroyed and intercepted some of them with cannonballs, but a few troops still rushed into the forest further west. I think at least a quarter to a third of the enemy has escaped."
"This situation is within the seigneur's expectation." Byron nodded. "We have powerful cannons and ray guns, but after all, our numbers are limited. It's unrealistic to destroy or incorporate all the enemies. But don't worry, the seigneur said before I left. The nobles have castles and estates that they can't let go, and they can't run forever. One day, we will get rid of those who ran away. "
"I hope so." Philip took a deep breath and looked up at the long, almost endless line of prisoners. "After this war, the entire southern part of the kingdom will become a whole …"
On the twelfth day of the pursuit, the core of the allied army — the Knight and the mage team, as well as the nobles who supervised the battle — finally collapsed.
The nobles' private army, which lacked organization and discipline, could not have lasted until today. The reason why they could continue to flee was mostly because the Extraordinaries in the allied army were still using their strong willpower and deterrence to maintain the situation. But when the willpower of these Extraordinaries reached the limit, the entire allied army collapsed almost instantly.
The allied army began to surrender in droves, led by the Knight, the mage, and even the seigneur.
In fact, according to the general rule, the surrender of the nobles should be easier. According to the usual "rules" of the noble war, the captured nobles who surrendered on the battlefield would be treated according to their status as a bargaining chip in exchange for ransom. Their safety would be guaranteed, and they would even be courteously sent to the victor's castle as a guest. But Cecil's terrifying way of fighting and Gwen's fearsome way of fighting? Cecil's style of not following the rules of the nobles frightened the nobles, and they did not dare to put their lives in the hands of Cecil's soldiers.
But when their physical strength and willpower were exhausted to the limit, no matter how much concern and fear they had, they could not get up from the ground and continue to move forward.
The nobles who had lost their fighting spirit, including the Knight Regiment and the conscripts, stayed on the plain like frightened goats. Most of them had eaten their last mouthful of food, and even the horses they rode and the rats they caught on the road had been eaten by them. They could not lie down to sleep or eat for many days, and their minds were filled with the rumbling sound of artillery shells exploding. Some of them were in groups of dozens, while some were in groups of hundreds. They were scattered everywhere, and what Cecil's soldiers had to do was to run around the vast plain to gather these people, and then hand the ropes to them and let them tie themselves up.
Walter?? Perry and the Second Combat Regiment led by him were mainly responsible for gathering these captives and escorting them to the rear. The number of captives was so large that the number of escorts could not compare to the number of captives they were escorting. However, they did not have to worry about the captives escaping halfway. Those people had completely lost the will to resist after fleeing for many days, and even if they resisted, the unarmed conscripts could not deal with the ray guns and molten swords in the hands of Cecil's soldiers.
As the number of captives increased, the battle line became longer and longer, and an awkward and unexpected situation occurred: Cecil was short of manpower.
The escort team of the second combat corps began to have a shortage. Even when Walter asked the knights to transfer a thousand reserve soldiers from the Kant area to the frontline to receive the prisoners of war, it was still far from enough. Not only were there not enough people to escort the prisoners of war, but even the thousands of noble conscripts in the plains seemed to be stretched thin.
While the two orthodox Knights, Philip and Walter, were worried about the unexpected and awkward situation, the Byron Knight volunteered to lead a team to the south to mobilize reinforcements.
The Knight Philip was usually quite critical of Byron's sloppy behavior and lack of Knight ethics, but he had to admit that his old comrade, who used to be a mercenary, always had novel ideas when it came to solving unexpected situations. Although his ideas sometimes made people speechless, they were generally very good at solving problems.
After waiting for a few days with anticipation, the two Knight Philip and Walter finally saw Byron returning from the rear. He was still with the same group of men that he had brought with him. Other than that, there was no one else.
On the plains of the Hosman area, which was getting more and more chaotic, Philip looked at Byron in astonishment, who seemed to have returned empty-handed. "Didn't the seigneur give you any men? You can train them … "
"I didn't go back to Cecil. Otherwise, how could I come back so quickly?" Byron said triumphantly. "I just went to Leslie Hill and met Viscount Andrew …"
"And then?" Philip asked doubtfully. He kept looking behind Byron, but other than the group of men and many carriages that Byron had brought with him, he did not see any reinforcements. "Are the men sent by Viscount Andrew still behind us?"
"I borrowed five thousand axes," Byron said, pointing to the carriages that he had brought with him. "Viscount Andrew will send people to transport a batch of food as a temporary transition. That's all. There are not many people in Leslie Hill. They still have to help look after the thousands of people who were fished out of the Whitewater River."
Philip did not get it. "Axes? Why did you bring five thousand axes here? "
"Send them to the captives. Tell them to cut down the forest on the east side of Hosman's territory and build a prisoner camp there. Also, find some of Count Hosman's surviving subordinates among the prisoners later. Bring them to the nearby farms and granaries. If there aren't any, bring a few more cannons there."
Philip was stunned. He could not figure out how Byron came up with such a magical idea. "You mean … let the captives build a prisoner camp and lock themselves up?"
"You can give them ropes and let them tie themselves up. Why can't you let them build a camp and lock themselves up?" Byron waved his hand. "These people have completely lost their fighting spirit. At least, they won't be able to recover in a short time. While they are still in this state, use the shortest time to thoroughly control these people, and then send them to Cecil in batches. The seigneur said the last sentence."
Philip was speechless. He could only admit that what Byron said was very reasonable.
So, on the last day of the long pursuit, the last noble alliance army on Hosman's plains ended their long and painful escape in an unprecedented and dramatic way.
Under the supervision of thousands of Cecil soldiers, the prisoners of war of the allied forces brandished the axes that they had lent them. Day and night, they took turns chopping down the forest at the edge of Hosman's territory. They then built a prison camp for themselves and locked themselves up.
When the last batch of allied prisoners were received by Cecil's people, Viscount Carroll and his last entourage were trekking through the muddy wetlands in the north of Hosman's territory.
This once high-spirited young viscount was no longer in his prime. His extravagant coat had become extremely dirty, his breeches and boots were torn apart by thorns, and there were even a few holes in his complicated patterned cloak that had been pierced through by a laser gun. His hair that hadn't been washed for many days stuck to his forehead like greasy seaweed, and beside him were Viscount Conisco and Marion Donovan, who were in an even more sorry state than he was, and beside him were Viscount Conisco and Marion Donovan. Viscount Orland.
They were lucky enough to escape from Cecil's hungry wolves, but they did not know where to go next. Severe fatigue was destroying their ability to think. They only felt that their lives were as terrible as the muddy wetlands. They could not see any hope at all.
At this moment, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from behind. Viscount Carroll and his companions who were trekking with difficulty stopped nervously.
But when they turned around, they found that the people who appeared in front of them were not Cecil's people.
Luo Peini? Countess Glen stopped in front of them. Behind this countess was a sizable group of people.
"Countess Glen, you also escaped?!" Viscount Carroll looked at the noblewoman in front of him in surprise. He found that her situation was much better than his. Although she also looked a little miserable, not only did she have a horse to ride, but her guards also seemed to be fully equipped. He really did not know how this countess managed to do so in the chaos. "These people …"
"I gathered the people who were separated on the plains." Luo Peini smiled. "Viscount Carroll, it seems that you were separated from the group again."
It was a familiar scene. Viscount Calor vaguely remembered that when the army fell into chaos on the mountain path of Gravel Ridge, the countess also appeared in front of him like this and gathered the disorderly troops. And now, the same situation happened again. He could not help but sigh at the wonders of fate. "You always see me in such a sorry state …"
"Follow me. I still have a few extra horses." Luo Peini?? She extended a helping hand to the downtrodden nobles. "We have to unite."
A few of the downtrodden nobles and their remaining attendants joined Luo Peini's group. Viscount Orland could not help but feel curious about the future of this group. "Where are we going?"
"To the north." Luo Peini?? Glen turned around and looked at Viscount Orland?? Viscount Orland glanced at her. "We're going to Firmrock Fortress."
"Firmrock Fortress?" Viscount Carroll could not help but hesitate when he heard this familiar name. "Then we have to pass through my territory … those Cecil people …"
"Cecil people have already left that place. They definitely won't expect us to return after escaping with great difficulty," Luo Peini?? Their numbers are limited. It's impossible for them to occupy every noble's territory in a short time. "
"They left …" When Carroll heard Luo Peini's words, he suddenly had a thought. "Then I …"
"Don't think about returning to your castle, Mr. Viscount." Luo Peini?? Glen knew what Carroll was thinking. She immediately turned around and warned him sternly. "Don't forget. Those Cecil people blew up your first wall in front of you. They can also blow up your castle."
As she spoke, she turned around, her eyes seemingly filled with endless determination. "There's no place in the south that's safe. Gentlemen, our only hope is to seek help from the Plains of the Holy Spirit and Count Pompeii. That's to go to Firmrock Fortress. It's an incomparably strong fortress. Its walls are poured with magic-conducting metal that can withstand the attacks of archmages. It's completely different from the walls of Carroll. Cecil people can't break it."
Perhaps because he was also full of confidence in Firmrock Fortress, or perhaps because his severe fatigue had affected his judgment, Viscount Carroll was easily persuaded by Luo Peini?? He nodded. "Alright, let's go to Firmrock Fortress …"
"Of course. But before that, we have to gather as many of our lost companions as possible." Luo Peini?? Her smile was particularly contagious. "There are a few other groups that escaped from Cecil's pursuit. We have to gather all of our lost companions. Only when our group is large enough and the number of nobles gathered together will Firmrock Fortress realize the seriousness of the situation and receive us more seriously …"
(I probably won't be able to double update for the next few days. =)
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