The Agri moved forward slowly, the slopes were steep, and in many places there was no place for people to stay, and that was why the Venetians did not even need to pay much attention to other places, it was enough to concentrate all their fire on the mountain road.

Carlo who walked in the front gasped deeply, he knew that he was a little stupid now, wearing the already heavy armor, and then walking on the mountain road, Carlo believed that he did not need enemies, maybe after reaching the top of the mountain, he would be crushed by the armor and die.

That didn't work, so Carlo simply found a place to stop, he gasped and asked someone to help him take off his armor, and then walked forward again with only a shield and a long sword.

The bend in the mountain road was directly opposite the camp on the top of the hill, and Giovanni had obviously thought that this position would be just enough to curb the way up the hill when he set up the camp here, but he obviously never expected that his mercenaries would be so lazy that by the time he found a low enemy, a group of Venetians had already rushed up from this corner, making this easy point to defend and difficult to attack completely useless.

Carlo led the people around the corner, he mentally calculated how to quickly pass through this dangerous area, and after a while he felt that the Venetians did not seem to make any movement because of his presence, Carlo waved his hand vigorously to the soldiers preparing behind him, and as the two Agri soldiers quickly rushed up the corner road, the Agri behind also rushed forward.

"Woohoo!" Another untidy but rather dense burst of gunfire came from the mountain, and as they were rushing up the hill, some of the Agri were immediately shot, and with the screams, some fell to the ground and rolled in pain, while others were squeezed down the slope by their companions from behind.

Carlo struggled through the crowd, confined to the middle of the small mountain path like the others, and they had to stagger forward with bullets and stones thrown from their heads, but it was too far from here to where they could hide, and when Carlo shouted and tried to rush forward, he was carried down the hill by the Agri, who were retreating head-on, and although he kept shouting and even brandishing his sword to threaten, they were finally beaten back to the bottom of the mountain after paying a dozen casualties.

"What are you thinking, don't you dare rush forward?" Carlo shouted angrily to the squad leaders standing in front of him, "I know this time is not very lucky, but are you just defeating people like this, look at that mountain, as long as there is a little bit of us we can be safe, how many muskets do you think the Venetians can hold us back, tell me have you seen their muskets?" ”

"We've seen that their musket area is not as good as ours," the squad leader nodded approvingly, but his face showed helplessness again, "But that mountain road is indeed too dangerous, we don't have to rush up with our lives, do we, we don't fight for the Earl." ”

"Shut your mouth!" Carlo's face was gloomy and he interrupted the squad leader's words, "I know you think it's worth it, but don't forget that now I'm commanding you, if you don't want to be punished after the battle, then rush forward with your men, otherwise I'll make you think that dying on the battlefield may be luckier than surviving." ”

Carlo angrily waved his fist at a few of his men, and then he grabbed a dry branch and danced at the soldiers and urged: "Move, move, move, haven't you always boasted that you are the best, don't you look down on those Venetians, who among you remember how Agri beat those Milanese, and outside Bruini and Rome, we were not what we are now, but didn't we still beat them, why are you afraid now?" ”

"That mountain is too steep!" Someone among the soldiers shouted.

"Is there a steep mountain in Agri, and who among us can't run around on those mountains?" Carlo questioned loudly.

"But no one on the hill of Agri shoots or throws stones at us." Another wounded soldier was so pained that he breathed in and said, "We can't get by, look at how many people have died." ”

The man's words made the soldiers silent, although there had been casualties in previous battles, but they had never been beaten as completely passively as they were now, and they had never even been able to get close to the enemy, which made the Agri people feel a wave of panic.

Carlo gasped heavily, in fact, he also had an indescribable uneasiness in his heart, the corpses of his companions who had not had time to snatch back made him confused and even afraid, and he was actually emboldening himself by shouting just now, otherwise he didn't know if he still had the courage to let the soldiers continue to attack.

"You are right," a voice came from among the soldiers, and as the soldiers stepped out of the way to see Alexander coming out of their midst, everyone looked at the sudden Count in surprise, "and if I say I'm not afraid, I'm lying, and everyone is afraid that I'm in there." ”

As he spoke, Alexander walked to the front of the group, and he turned to look at the Agri: "But you must know that your enemies do not show mercy to your men because you are afraid, and we have only brought four days of food, and it is now the third day, and if we cannot take this camp, it means that we may have to walk back to Montina hungry, and that is only if the Venetians do not intercept us on the way." ”

Alexander looked back at the hilltop camp that had not yet completely cleared and nodded.

"Carlo is right, we taught them in Aural, we defeated the French in Bruini, we defeated the unbeatable knights on the outskirts of Rome, it would be a shame if we were held back here, and our enemies must hate you, when they hear your Agri accent, they will only want to retaliate against you, you should know this very well, after all, the battle of Oral has made them remember it too much, but doesn't it also mean that they are afraid of you? In that case, why not let them see how terrible the Agri were? ”

As he spoke, Alexander walked up to the flag bearer and grabbed the flag, which was not his heraldic flag, but a banner embroidered with a long, curved plough pattern, which was the banner of the Agri soldiers.

"There is only one way to keep up with the Agri, and we will be safe as long as we rush through it," Alexander looked at the soldiers, "and I assure you that those who follow me will not regret it, for you will be rewarded in ways you can't imagine." ”

As he spoke, Alexander patted Carlo's shoulder next to him, and with Carlo's fierce roar, the Agri, who had been silent and depressed because of the frustration, seemed to be in good spirits instantly.

Some followed, and then others followed, and the fierce and stubborn character of the mountain people came into play at this moment, and the soldiers began to rush back up the hillside, some of them walking faster and faster, running vigorously on the mountain road, and some of them simply climbing up the slope of the roadside despite the danger.

The team has long since lost its formation, but the momentum of the rolling tide continues unabated.

"One more point is coming."

Carlo looked at the corpses of his companions who were still lying on the side of the road, and he couldn't help but tell himself, he looked at Alexander next to him, there were already many soldiers who had crossed them, and Paolo Busako had asked the huntsards to surround Alexander tightly in the middle.

"Your Excellency, you can't follow the charge." Carlo said with some anxiety that he knew that his fate or that of many of his people was already tied to Alexander, and that as long as Alexander had one day, they could have a bright future.

Without Alexander, not only would they have been torn apart in an instant, but the Agri, who had left their homeland and were destined to never return to the square life of farming, would probably soon be reduced to a bunch of mercenaries who worked hard for people, just like Gompati before them.

"I'll be watching you here," Alexander paused to hand the flag to Carlo, then lowered his voice "Be careful, I don't want my future Grand Phalanx Commander to lose his life on this hill." ”

Carlo's heart couldn't help but be excited, he had always worried that he would one day be on the edge, and now listening to Alexander's words, Carlo felt that his previous worries were really just superfluous.

Isn't he an Agri, didn't he follow the lord to fight against the envoy sent by the king of Naples from the time he was still in the farm, and then there was no time along the way, so how could he not have himself in the next battle with the lord in the future?

Carlo shouted, waved his flag and squeezed it out of the crowd, then looked back and swayed the Agri as the flag shook hard.

Alexander stood still, looking at every Agri who rushed by, and then immediately after them were the Genoese who also rushed up.

Most of the faces around him were unfamiliar, but there were also some that looked familiar or even familiar, and those who would often greet Alexander as he passed by, and if they received a response, they would run faster excitedly, as if they were showing off their familiarity with the lord to the people next to them.

Some of them were probably destined to never be seen again, but Alexander did not regret his decision.

Any army has to go through one or more trials like this, sacrifices, defeats, despair, and recovery, and these experiences are like a huge melting pot that constantly trains the army.

There may be those who will not be able to withstand this terrible test and choose to flee, and some will fall before the light of day on this path, but those soldiers who survive adversity will become the precious seeds of this army.

They will inherit the tenacity, bravery, and noble character of this army that has been cultivated and laid down from the very beginning of its establishment, and will not be afraid of strong enemies and stand tall in the face of danger, and only such an army will be able to compete with strong enemies on the bigger and more brutal battlefields in the future.

The fact that the Agris had attacked again in such a short time was obviously somewhat unexpected by the Venetians, and the faint shouts that could be heard between the chaotic gunfire made Ofreil, who was standing beside Alexander, exhale softly, and he pondered:

"My lord, maybe you don't need the soldiers sent out to take the camp."

Alexander glanced at Ofleiyi and shook his head silently.

Just as he was about to speak, a loud noise suddenly came from the top of the mountain!

The whole hillside seemed to shake, and Alexander felt the ground under his feet jump upwards first, and then there was a violent tremor that was more and more violent!

"It's not good, get out of here!"

Alexander's shouts were almost drowned out by the louder and louder voices, and when the herald beside him desperately began to blow the horn, the army, which was already halfway up the mountain, had already rushed down the hill and retreated before they could hear the horn of retreat!

"What's going on?!" Offrey looked up at the top of the hill in amazement, and his face changed for a moment as he saw the large exploding debris rolling down the hillside.

"So never put your hopes in unfounded good wishes!" Alexander, while ordering his flag-bearers to wave his banner and guide the retreating army down the hill to the side of the hill that avoided the large rolling stones, said in a loud voice to Ofrey, "Don't pin your victory on the possibility that the enemy will become stupid." ”

"I think I remembered."

Oflaiyi shouted in a low voice and rushed towards the crowd of people who had retreated in a hurry, and he searched through the crowd until he saw Carlo, whose forehead, arms, and legs were bleeding from the rubble.

"How are you, God?!" Oldrey rushed over worriedly and pulled Carlo to ask.

"I'm fine, but we've really lost a lot of people this time, damn Venetian!" Carlo turned back to the hill and waved his fist at the top of the hill and cursed, "They seem to have blown up a rock, but luckily there is a slope down here, otherwise we would all be dead!" ”

"God, this is terrible." Oflaiyi shook his head in annoyance, although he knew that the actual purpose of this attack was to cover the sneak attack soldiers who climbed up the side slope, but looking at the heavy casualties in front of him, Oflaiyi couldn't help but be moved and panicked.

"Your Excellency is right," Carlo sat down weakly on the ground, "We were too proud before, looking at those dead companions, they probably didn't even think that they had given their lives like this. ”

Offrey gasped and nodded, and he looked blankly at the soldiers walking around in the dust, some of them were Agri and Genoese, and the dazed and helpless appearance of many of them at this time was really different from the high spirits of the previous time in Orar.

The real army, at this time Alexander was also standing on a stone and looking at his army, muttering to himself.

Alexander didn't know exactly what a real army should look like, but he understood that all elite armies were more courageous in the face of defeat than they feared sacrifice.

It's just that his subordinates can't do this now.

"It's all up to you, my Agri." Alexander looked to the other side of the hill.

At such a big price, what the real bargaining chips for victory are doing, Alexander does not know.

Taking a hard breath, a soldier leaned sideways and stuck his toes in the narrow gap in the stone, while his hands grabbed the edge of a protruding stone with both hands, and jumped up with both arms to climb the protruding stone beam.

The Agri mountain man, who had become much more agile because he had no armor, crouched deftly on the slope of the stone beam, and he cautiously poked his head out, and when he saw the scene behind the stone beam, his throat could not help but move with some difficulty.

"How?" The leading soldier asked a little anxiously, the kid above was the most flexible one among them, but he was a little timid, and he had shown timidity before, but now that he was silent again, the leading soldier was a little worried, "What do you see?" ”

"It's the Venetian," the soldier whispered in an excited tone when he finally turned back to his companion in the back, "I see their camp, and a lot of wagons, and cannons. ”

"Then what are you delaying, get out of the way." The captain muttered dissatisfiedly and climbed up, he was lying on his stomach behind the stone beam like the soldier and poked his head out carefully, and when he saw a slight downward slope in front of him, which happened to block the road on the opposite hill, the captain's throat also tightened a little, "God, this place is really big." ”

"There are quite a few of them, and we are not enough to deal with so many Venetians," the young Agri was a little confused, "or should we find some more, and I will ...... them."

"You can't go anywhere," the captain grabbed the young man who wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to slip away, "Listen, we're not here to fight them, as the adults tell us, we just need to cause chaos in their camp, remember the promises of the adults when they came?" ”

"Take the camp and get 5 points for all the loot here?" The young man's tongue was a little dry, he didn't know how much the five-cent trophy was, but looking at the loaded carriages below, he felt that it must be a number that would drive him crazy.

"That's right, think about it, young man, you're going to get rich soon, where do you want to go!" The captain reprimanded viciously, and then leaned on the stone beam and looked down, "Wait a minute, according to the orders of the adults, and we will act at night." ”

"Why at night?" The young man was a little impatient at this time.

"Stupid, there are so many Venetians in that camp that they can beat you to meat sauce with just one stick per person, do you want to send you to death?" The captain reprimanded, then turned around and sat down comfortably facing the sun, "Listen, we're waiting here, wait until evening, remember what the adults said, that ......"

"Trojan Horse Meter." An Agri leaned over and whispered.

"Yes, Trojan Horse, we are the Greeks in the Trojan Horse, and the Greeks also took advantage of the darkness to conquer the country called Troy."

With that, the captain took the saber, musket, and thick leather bag he was carrying with him into his arms, and then closed his eyes.

"Take a break, we'll be busy soon."

The sun was slowly setting, and the setting sun shrouded the western slopes of the Chimone Mountains in a faint shade of red, which covered the bodies of the dead, making the blood stains on their bodies less noticeable, and making their bodies less hideous.

Alexander stood in front of a row of soldiers lying on the ground and watched silently, a Genoese who had been a handyman in the church and was now a temporary priest, although he was not qualified to celebrate atoning Mass for these soldiers according to doctrine, but after Alexander had chartered it in the name of the lord, the Genoese could temporarily perform this duty.

"But then they have to ask a priest to have the most Mass for them, otherwise their souls will not go to heaven." Carlo whispered to Oflei, who was standing nearby.

"I think the adults will do it," Ofleiil nodded, and in front of the soldiers there was a lying stone, with a new notch on it that was his handiwork, "This should be a place to remember." ”

"There really should be a memorial, and I've decided to build a monument here in the future."

While the Genoese were celebrating Mass, Alexander beckoned two men to follow him into the woods.

"Listen, I want you to tell me if I'm going to attack now, will the Agri follow my orders and take up arms?" Alexander stared into Carlo's eyes.

Carlo's breath became short, and his previous series of defeats had made him doubt that the Agri would be able to continue fighting, and he looked at the soldiers outside the woods, and after a moment the hesitation on Caro's face slowly faded.

"My lord, the Agri will fight for you."

"Alright," Alexander took a deep breath, "let's make another effort, perhaps our last, or the Venetian's last." ”

As the last rays of light faded below the undulating horizon in the distance, the Venetians found bonfires lit on the opposite hillside where the enemy had been stationed.

They knew that the enemy was camping, and the Venetians could not help but laugh and curse from across the valley to the opposite side.

Then they began to eat their own sumptuous dinner in the midst of this invective and ridicule.

And when the night deepened, and only the sound of the wind sounded in the whole valley, as a flame lit up from the top of the mountain, the night of the Trojan Horse in the Chimone Mountains suddenly came.