"Clang!" A crude wooden raft fell to the ground, forming a wooden bridge across the three-meter-wide trench. A centurion from the Handra Duchy, wearing a black iron helmet with a white feather on it, waved his sword and shouted, "Quick, hurry up and push the second trench cart over!"
A black shadow approached from afar like a bolt of lightning. The centurion's body flew up, and the arrow from the sentry tower sent him flying for three to four meters. The centurion landed on the ground and used his hands to touch the shaft of the arrow that had pierced through his chest with great difficulty. However, the moment he struggled, he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his eyes rolled back as he breathed his last …
The death of the centurion threw the hundred-man squad under his command into chaos. However, another centurion immediately rushed over. He was not as brave as the previous centurion, who dared to stand by the side of the trench. Instead, he hid behind a shield cart made of logs and shouted at the top of his lungs. Finally, the hundred-man squad that was pushing the trench carts quietened down and continued to push the trench carts forward. At the same time, this centurion commanded his hundred-man team to shoot at the three sentry towers in front of them.
This was the second battle of the Southern Province. It took place on the fourth day of the seventh month, year 1778 of the Gallinthea General Calendar. It had been more than a month since the first battle of the Southern Province. During this month, the armed forces of the Fisablon Family and the reinforcements of the four central duchies had chopped down a few nearby forests, creating a large number of offensive weapons and double-wheeled shield carts that could defend against arrows. After making sufficient preparations and resting, they once again launched an attack on the armed forces of the four northern families alliance commanded by Laurist.
From the defensive position of the Monolith Army's main camp to the wide and flat terrain of more than ten kilometers to the left, there were flames and smoke everywhere. The shadows of swords and sabers, the sound of horns, the sounds of killing, and the beating of war drums never stopped. Regardless of whether it was the attacking or defending side, their only wish was to defeat the enemy and survive.
Looking down from above, the elite infantries of the four central duchies were like the waves of the rising tide, surging up wave after wave. The sentry towers were like the reefs in the middle of the huge waves, withstanding the impact of each wave without collapsing. The crossbow bolts that were fired from the sentry towers caused blood to blossom among the surging crowd.
However, in the past month, the armies of the four central duchies had prepared a large number of siege weapons. Dealing with these sentry towers was like killing a chicken with a butcher's knife. Trench wagons were pushed to the side of the trenches and wooden rafts were placed down. The trenches lost their ability to stop the attack. Two-wheeled shield-wagons made of logs covered the attacking soldiers as they reached the sentry towers. Soldiers wielding giant axes hacked open the thick wooden doors of the sentry towers. Soon, the battle began inside the sentry towers. There were even battering rams that were pushed to the bottom of the sentry tower. In just two or three hits, the sentry tower had holes in it. The soldiers guarding the sentry tower were forced to rush out and engage in a life and death battle with the invading enemies. One by one, they fell …
The ones attacking Monolith's camp were grass-barbarian cavalry, but the twenty thousand grass-barbarians had all dismounted and turned into infantry. They were also pushing trench carts, wooden double-wheeled shield carts, and wooden battering rams under the escort of House Fisablund's third border ranger corps. However, their coordination wasn't as nimble as the infantry of the four central duchies. They attacked three times and spent more than two hours. Apart from setting up five trench carts at the very front and leaving behind two to three thousand corpses, they didn't make any progress.
Laurist stopped his horse on a mound in the middle of the main camp. He watched as the grass-barbarian infantry in front of the main camp left behind another two hundred corpses before retreating. However, his expression was gloomy. There wasn't a trace of joy from repelling the enemy. This was because Laurist had just received a report that the forty-seven sentry towers at the front of the left flank had either collapsed or fallen into enemy hands. The family soldiers guarding these forty-seven sentry towers had basically all died in battle. Three trenches had been dug around the sentry towers, surrounding them so that the soldiers guarding the sentry towers couldn't retreat. They could only choose to perish together with the enemy.
This was simply a trap of one's own making. The sentry tower strategy was effective against light cavalry, but it was useless against infantry who were good at attacking fortifications. This was especially true when the enemy had rich experience in attacking fortifications and was good at making all kinds of siege weapons. Moreover, they were willing to pay a higher price in casualties. Thus, when the enemy had the advantage in numbers, they could easily push through. These soldiers guarding the sentry towers were like turtles in a jar, and could only fight to the death with the enemy.
He still didn't have enough experience. In the era of cold weapons, using firearms was not suitable. No matter how strong the steel crossbow was, it couldn't penetrate the wooden shield-wagons. If the wooden shields relied on manpower, then the concentrated fire from the steel crossbows could break through them. However, if the enemy had placed the wooden shields on the two-wheeled wagons, then there was nothing they could do. With a support point, even if the crossbow burst, it wouldn't affect the people hiding behind it. With the addition of the trench wagons, as long as the enemy approached the sentry towers, the steel crossbows would lose their shooting angle. The sentry tower guards had no choice but to engage in close combat with the enemy.
"Can the Ferocious Tiger Ross still hold on?" Laurist asked.
"Your Highness, Sir Ross can still hold on. However, when he led a group of lancers to support the first sentry tower, he was bombarded by enemy archers and suffered many injuries …" the messenger replied.
"How could this be? Didn't the steel crossbows on the chariots retaliate? "Laurist was a little angry.
"Your Highness, the steel crossbows on the chariots couldn't advance. They were blocked by the trenches behind the third line of defense and didn't have enough range. Sir Ross also led the lancers to pass through the intersection of the trenches at the first line of defense, which was why they were bombarded by the enemy archers … "the messenger muttered.
Laurist really wanted to slap himself. It was obvious that it was his fault again. He had set up three sentry towers on the flat ground to his left. The first and second lines were separated by more than two hundred meters, and the third and second lines were separated by more than three hundred meters. The problem was that he had ordered trenches to be dug around and between the sentry towers of the first and second lines of defense. If they wanted to pass through them, they would have to take a long time. He had thought that they could stop the enemy's attack, but the enemy had used the trench wagons to render the trenches useless. These trenches hadn't made things difficult for the enemy, but had now become a problem that hindered his reinforcements at the front.
Sigh! Thinking back to when he had used the sentry tower tactic to restrain the light cavalry of the Fisablen Family, everyone had cheered. That was why no one had any objections when he had ordered for the trenches to be dug. Only now did he realize that he had made a huge mistake. This wouldn't do. Laurist couldn't stay in the main camp any longer. He turned to Ayer and ordered, "Send someone to inform Bofinger. I'm going to the left flank to take a look at Ross and have him guard the main camp. Right, don't move the flag here. Don't let your guard camp follow me to prevent too much commotion. Just let Redi bring a platoon with him. Also, order Overkiss' Thunder Catapult Battalion and Terman's Bear Rage Knights to move to the left flank and wait for further orders. Since the four central duchies are working so hard for that old man Fisablen, they might as well leave their lives there. "
"Yes, Your Highness." Ayer turned around and gave a few instructions. The three guards rode down the mound.
"Ayer, if the grass barbarians in front of the main camp suddenly attack with all their might, you can have Bofinger gradually retreat and give up the defensive position in front. It's fine as long as they can hold the main camp. Also, if the situation becomes urgent, you can bring the guards and join the battle yourself. Do you understand? " Just as he was about to turn his horse and leave, Laurist thought of something. He gave Ayer a few more instructions before bringing Shiwald, Redi, and a hundred guards to the left flank.
"Your Highness, why are you here?" Roth's left shoulder was wrapped in a bloody bandage.
"How did you get injured?" Laurist asked with concern.
Roth laughed embarrassedly, "I charged too quickly and was shot by the longbowmen. I didn't notice it and was hit by an armor-piercing arrow. Fortunately, the shoulder armor is sturdy and only a small hole was opened. It's just a flesh wound. It's nothing serious."
"Are you really alright? Did the apothecary check on you? "
"I've taken a look at you. I even fed you a bottle of antidote. The wound has been treated, and it won't affect me in battle. You see …" Ross the Ferocious Tiger even pretended to be relaxed as he waved his left hand. "Your Highness, you don't have to worry about this small wound of mine.
Laurist nodded and turned to look at the front. The battlefield had already calmed down.
"Your Highness, the enemy is resting. Even though they took down forty-seven sentry towers at the first line of defense, their casualties are not low. I estimate it to be more than ten thousand. The soldiers guarding the sentry towers are basically trading one for two or three, so it's not a loss. "Roth quickly explained the situation.
Because the terrain was flat, Laurist had set up three sentry towers in a triangular formation. Even though the elite infantry of the four central duchies had taken down forty-seven sentry towers, they had also paid a heavy price. Laurist looked into the distance with his monocular. He could see the infantry of the four central duchies busily cleaning up the battlefield. They moved the corpses of their dead soldiers onto the carriages and transported them to the rear. There were also some soldiers resting, and a few large groups that had been transferred from the rear were inspecting their weapons. If one listened closely, he could hear the faint clanking sounds of wooden shields being repaired.
Looking up at the sun's position in the sky, it was still around ten or eleven in the morning. It was likely that the enemy would attack after lunch. The four central duchies were probably planning to break through the defense line of the sentry towers and use their advantage in numbers to occupy this place. Then, they could let the Fisablon Family's border patrol troops circle around to the rear of the main camp to harass and attack, forcing Laurist to retreat from the southern province.
"Order the soldiers in the second line of defense to pack up their crossbows and retreat immediately," Laurist ordered.
Roth was shocked, "Your Highness, you can't do that. With the sentry towers here, the four central duchies will lose at least half of their soldiers if they want to take down our three lines of defense. Even though we'll lose more than ten thousand soldiers in the sentry towers, we can easily take care of the rest of the enemy …"
Laurist shook his head, "Our family's soldiers shouldn't fight with the enemy like this. Even if it's one to ten, I still think it's too much of a loss. Once they take down our three lines of defense, I believe that the Fisablon Family's border patrol troops and reserve troops will enter the fray. The enemy definitely won't give us the chance to take revenge on the four central duchies' infantry. Once the rangers find an opening and get to our rear, we'll lose the initiative on the battlefield. Retreating from the sentry towers doesn't mean we won't fight. In fact, defending the sentry towers means giving up our advantage … "
"Advantage?" Roth blinked in confusion, "Your Highness, what's our advantage?"
Laurist laughed, "Even though we have fewer soldiers than the enemy, our advantage lies in attacking and fighting in the field. Don't tell me you've forgotten? Look at the distance between this place and the second line of defense. There's a total of 340 meters between this place and the second line of defense. This flat land is more than five kilometers long, enough for a hundred thousand soldiers. We'll set up a formation along the third line of defense. If the enemy wants to break through this line of defense, they'll have to fight us in the field. If we give up on the second line of defense, the enemy will want to rely on their advantage in numbers to fight us in the field. Haha, as for fighting in the field, who are we afraid of? "
Laurist's plan was simple. The two Golden Knights, Roth and Pacico, would each lead a Flying Tiger Division and a Pegasus Division of the Filim Family, a total of fifty thousand soldiers to set up a formation on the left and right flanks. Meanwhile, Malek's Chariot and Crossbow Divisions, one of the two divisions sent by Count Shahin, and the heavy infantry division sent by the Kenneth Family would form the middle formation. They set up a formation in a straight line. There were about ninety thousand soldiers from the alliance of the four families preparing for the field battle. Adding on Count Shahin's light infantry division guarding the third line of defense and the soldiers who had retreated from the second line of defense, the total number of soldiers was about one hundred thousand.
The retreat of the soldiers at the second line of defense quickly alerted the enemies who were resting at the first line of defense. They discovered that the soldiers had abandoned the sentry towers and quickly rushed over to occupy the empty sentry towers. They let out waves of cheers, and it was obvious that the enemy's morale had been greatly boosted by the occupation of the second line of defense. However, they soon saw the armed forces of the four families of the Northern Alliance in front of the third defense line, and the cheers gradually died down. Perhaps they had realized that although they had avoided a cruel battle, a bloodier battle was waiting for them in the field ….
Soon, the enemy responded. The first to occupy the second line of defense began to use the sentry towers to defend against sneak attacks. Then, a large group of soldiers with all kinds of tools came up to fill the trenches on the second line of defense. Then, the wooden shield wagons were pushed to the front and arranged in a line. Finally, the infantry battalions moved forward in a battle formation.
"It seems that the enemy is preparing to fight us in the field, but it will take a few hours for them to adjust. Blow the rest horn and let everyone relax. Bury the pot in charge of logistics and let everyone have a good meal, so that they will be ready for the battle in the afternoon," Laurist ordered.
"Yes, Your Highness."
… …
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