XVIII

The fastest three-masted clipper of the river fleet, the Wittersland, went down the river at incredible speed. The southeast wind was blowing head-on, but the sails of the ship were full of blows.

"It's ten minutes again, let's replace the next one. ”

Dressed in a red Intern lieutenant uniform, Rose took out a brand new staff from the box next to her and replaced the sailboat's power source.

It was a whole box of "Wand of Sylph" with a market price of at least tens of thousands of gold pounds, and one was consumed every ten minutes, a stunningly extravagant usage. Of course, this level of speed is not something that ordinary sailors can handle, and it is the fleet commander Kakawi himself who is now at the helm of the ship - if he is inexperienced, he will directly crash into the river bank or reef at such a speed of more than eighteen knots.

"I didn't expect the ship to be able to increase to this speed......"

Even veteran sailors who have been at sea for more than a decade now have to control the sails with all their might. It is no wonder that the "dream speed" of sailing ships reaching 18 knots in history was already in the era when steamboats began to become popular, and in this era, ships with 10 to 12 knots downwind can be called "fast boats".

However, the thought that such consumption and speed was actually to steal credit made Ress feel a little funny.

"Create a better world" sounds good, but when it comes to being truly down-to-earth, it can only be done in such a way that is not bright enough. As far as her position is concerned, it is only possible to support Klader as the commander-in-chief of the Free Army, not Vena Betsy, who has nothing to do with her. As a woman, it is impossible for her to do anything in person in this era, but to choose a desirable agent and then control the operation of history behind the scenes. Being able to participate in the scene of historical events like this is already very satisfying for Rise, who likes to be lively by nature.

"The only problem now is that this uniform doesn't fit well......"

The chest is a little loose, and the pants are a little long—to be exact, it fits Miss Balus Yui. Thinking of this, she glanced at the person who found this military uniform not far away, and felt a trace of unreasonable jealousy. Lieutenant Colonel Tedwood was lying on the side of the boat, facing the beautiful scenery of the Meterbuti River, and vomited all the food he had eaten at the previous dinner.

"It's really pitiful that the dignified chief staff officer of the Southwest Army and the hero of Lenny's defense of the battle is seasick...... Speaking of which, in the future, he won't be afraid of taking a boat so he didn't evacuate Lennie with the main force of the Free Army, right......?

She licked her lips, gave a mischievous smile, and decided to go and entertain the unfortunate lieutenant colonel. Although she didn't have enough magic for the symptoms, there was one magic that was barely symptomatic - the true meaning of magic was to learn and improvise, which was taught to her by "that person".

"Mr. Tedwood, are you seasick? I've got a spell here that might ease it a bit. ”

Hull jerked his head up as if he had grasped a life-saving straw. Rhys casually recited a few incantations that no one had ever heard before, and applied the magic to him.

"That should be a little better. Speaking of which, if you lend us Miss Wei's military uniform, will the size be too special? ”

"W-this......" Hull muttered a yawn, the expression on his face clearly accusing, "Actually, I didn't borrow it for you to wear," but he didn't dare to say it explicitly, "because Lennie only has one female officer friend today, so she went to borrow it." ”

"Really? I think the size of this dress is familiar...... I didn't think you had a talent for tailoring, Mr. Lieutenant Colonel. Respi sneered, "Actually, our Miss Wei just found that the size of this uniform was too suitable, so she decided to send me with these wind elemental staffs." Actually, you wanted to hide these uniforms in your closet as a collectible, didn't you?"

Hull took two steps back, his face grime, "Uh, what are you talking about? I have no thoughts of the Venerable Miss Barruce Yui. ”

"Aren't you the one who tried to flirt with Miss Ben at the prom just now?" thought to herself, and Rose piled a sly smile on her face. "There's no need to hide it. In my opinion, Miss Wei doesn't have any feelings for you......"

"Really?!" Hearing this, Hull suddenly perked up, startling Rise.

"Uh...... Really. Anyway, this role will not be played by me in the future, the blonde girl who thought so perfunctorily said, "By the way, don't you feel tired? That magic to cure seasickness should have a bit of a drowsy effect." ”

"When you say that, it's a bit of a thing. Hull yawned again, "No, I need to go down there and get some rest." ”

"Of course, because that magic is 'tiredness'. ”

Rose thought to herself, and asked one last question, "By the way, Miss Yui, please ask you, can you prepare a few Free Army officer positions for her? ”

Hull, who was immersed in the effects of "Hope" and "Tiredness", did not look back, and patted his chest without hesitation: "No problem!"

Seeing him stagger away into the cabin, Rhys sighed and picked up a new staff. "Earned. Men are fools. Why can't you be honest? Speaking of which, this identity is really useful, and I have to tell Bonnie that it is. ”

Of course, if Bonnie knew that his sister had done something frivolous with this identity, her face would turn iron-blue.

*** ***

Two hours later.

Egar Eugen stood at the top of the ruins of Fort Guard, looking out at the southern fire, impatiently lighting another cigar. Quitting smoking has clearly been a complete failure.

"This kind of firebird contest is a little more difficult. ”

"Sir, now is not the time to laugh! Your bowels are coming out!"

"Ah, I think so. Luckily, I'm a licensed pastor. The lieutenant colonel glanced down, casually stuffed his intestines back into his abdomen, and mended the wound with a "medium healing technique", "It's just a pity that this soft leather armor took a lot of effort to get from the supply department." ”

"I should be glad that I was swept by a shotgun and was injured in this way...... Is the lieutenant colonel a monster?"

Seeing him so calm, the soldiers around him whispered in surprise, as if to dilute some of the gloomy atmosphere of the previous three failed forced assaults.

Eugen caught a glimpse of this situation out of the corner of his eye, and was a little relieved, and the wound in his abdomen seemed to be less painful. It's not really painless, it's not really nothing—but as a chief staff officer, he has to behave like that. If morale collapses now, it's really all over.

Those artillery ...... They were erected on the edge of the southern line, close at hand, but far away as far as the horizon. Although the troops retreated from the already destroyed Third Guard to the Second Guard, the situation did not improve. This hexagonal bastion, which could be covered with more than a dozen artillery pieces, was too small for a unit of nearly 5,000 men, including a large number of wounded.

A total of three assaults were all in vain, except for the loss of more than 400 corpses of the enemy and our armies, including five supporting spellcasters, in the positions in front of the artillery. The last time, he personally pressed the formation, commanding two grenadier companies to try to blast the opponent's artillery positions, but was also hit back by a salvo of falcon and eagle artillery. The rows of volleys of shells formed a dead line at a distance of two hundred and fifty meters to one hundred meters. With enough magical support on both sides, the old tactics of using a few magician leaders to forcibly break through are also ineffective.

Siege artillery roared, and two hundred pounds of lead bullets smashed into the top of the fortress, revealing a huge crater. He shouted and directed the remaining priests to treat the wounded. There were far more wounded than corpses, healing potions were running out, so were magic scepters, and the gems that held magic no longer glowed.

"If you don't care about the casualties, you should still be able to break through, after all, the other side has fewer infantry than us......" Eugen gently pressed the pistol on his waist with his cigarette hand, hesitating, "...... But it's not necessary. I'm not an extreme moralist like Robert El, but if I use the right attack, I'm not going to lose to that Phaethian? ”

Just as Eugen was pondering what to do, two purple and orange rays shot out from the top of the fortress. It is a common plain-code communication in the Free Army.

"Retreat permitted!"

"Retreat permitted?" the men guarding and attacking the fortress read the message at the same time, both stunned. "How, where to retreat?"

Eugen and Robert began to think about it almost at the same time. Eugen had no cavalry at hand, and wherever he retreated, he could not escape the pursuit of the guerrilla cavalry. The distance to the northern forests was nearly five kilometers, and the infantry marching at a speed would have to walk for more than forty minutes, during which time they could only be slaughtered by the pistols and sabers of the partisan cavalry.

But if only elite troops retreat, it will be different.

"Leave the wounded, and enough troops to guard them! Position them in the depths of the bunker!

This action was discovered almost immediately by Robert's reconnaissance force.

"The rebels have withdrawn from the north gate!"

There was a moment of consternation among the Fathes, who did not believe that their opponent had really done such a foolish act. Just as the commander of the partisan cavalry, Major Pope, was in high spirits preparing for the pursuit, the cautious Robert stopped him.

"It can't be. If you go south, the only way is to avoid the defensive range of the artillery position, take a detour to Fort 1, and from there make a quick breakthrough to the west gate of Forteburg. This must be a strategy to attack the east and west, and the other side will definitely surprise our artillery positions with the defenders of the fortress. ”

Having made such a judgment, Robert immediately ordered the main artillery position to move westward, and put all his cavalry and half of the infantry on his horse. The sound of the cannon, which lasted for two hours, gradually subsided. Whether it's the forts, the main fortresses, or the besiegers, they are busy preparing their actions. A quarter of an hour later, decisive information finally came.

"The garrison of the fortress has really attacked from the west gate!"

Looking at the smoke and dust in the distance, Lieutenant Colonel Al turned on his horse.

"We must first crush the enemy forces who dare to take the initiative, and then crush the enemy forces that want to retreat. Let's just let their coordinated operation turn into a farce that is broken by each one...... Justice is with us! We will end this war with the smallest sacrifice!"

His orders were conveyed through the mages of the companies. The partisans began to gallop.

*** ***

The artillery on Fort Forts roared, and the sound of continuous bombardment came from far and near. Although the enemy has not yet been seen, the sound of friendly artillery is enough to let Naymen Soleton know where the enemy is relative to them. Like the commanders of the other seven companies, he ordered his assault company to hold the formation and slowly retreat.

This decoy force numbered more than a thousand men and was led by Major Constein. Goval's command to him was concise:

"If the other side sends the main force to pursue Lieutenant Colonel Eugen's troops, you will end the opponent's artillery position. If the main force of the opponent comes at you, try to minimize the losses and retreat to the fortress, and a good commander like Robert El will take the bait. After that, we used the fortress's artillery and buildings to destroy their main force inside the fortress. ”

Although the order is to "feint defeat and lure the enemy", if you want to really "feint defeat", you must also ensure that you have the life to withdraw. Everyone had this in mind, so they did not dare to ignore it in the slightest when they lined up. The array moved slowly backwards like a giant monster against the zigzag walls, but the other party arrived much faster than they retreated.

Because they are all infantry, and the other side is cavalry. On the battlefield, the infantry is the weak, and the cavalry is the strong. The infantry had only one flintlock pistol and short bayonets each, while the dragoons each had four pistols and a shiny saber reinforced by a strengthened magician. The cavalry weighed four and a half times as much as the poorly supplied mercenary infantry. And now just counting the pure strength of troops, the Phates are twice as many as them.

"The troops are in equal formation, release the shield!" the captain of the gendarmerie ordered without hesitation, deciding to stop the first assault of the other side first.

A few dozen shieldmen, according to the classical protocol of hundreds of years ago, laid down a row of tower shields in the direction of the assault of the guerrilla cavalry. Most of these old imperial tower shields are more than 200 years old, made of fine oak wood, and have been re-forged with a layer of bulletproof magic to suit the new era of warfare. Although not enough to withstand the flintlock pistols, it was barely enough to withstand the pistols of the dragoons.

It's like a war of the past. If it weren't for the fact that there were too few troops, they wouldn't have put up such a battle formation with high equipment costs. Now there is no one to make tower shields anymore.

"Lieutenant Soleton, take your assault company to the flanks and prepare to block it!"

Receiving this order, Naimon glanced at the enemy formation. It was clear that the other side saw this shield array, stopped, and regrouped its forces, a decision that any commander who cherished his soldiers as much as Robert would make. In other words, the enemy can only attack from the flanks - this is about to become the front line.

"Are all the bayonets ready, guys? One and a half steps apart, let the commandos with magic equipment be in the front row, the flintlock musketeers with bayonets will be half-crouched in the first row, the ones without bayonets will be in the second and fourth rows, and the heavy smoothbore gunners will be in the third-"

The young lieutenant returned to his unit with a little reluctance, trying to give the order to line up like a real commander, but his calves were trembling slightly. This is the real battle, a battle where life and death hang by a thread. Maybe with a knife or a shot, his life will end here. It was completely different from his previous paperwork.

"You don't need to talk about these basic rules, Chief Soleton, just tell us which line we should be armed, right?"

A platoon commander laughed and stopped him from reciting the order at length. Instead, the veterans had casual smiles on their faces, as if they didn't care about the bitter battle ahead. Most of them had followed Govar back from the Julok army and had survived the night of the coup d'état, already numb to the danger. Naimon was infected by the bitter smile, and he unloaded his heavy musket from his back, took two steps forward, and stood in the middle of the line, standing in the middle of the entire defensive formation.

He erected the cast-iron bracket in the ground, propped up the large iron pipe that was not so much a gun as a miniature cannon, and the voice of the command became louder.

"The flanks are tilted forty-five degrees to the shields, leaving room for retreat and contingency! If the opponent keeps his distance, use the cover of the bastion and fight and retreat! And ......"

He paused, looking at the Mithril Commander across from him. The scene of Robert crossing the entire firing line seems to reappear in front of the young man's eyes. A commander who always stands at the forefront of the team and cherishes his soldiers as if he were his own siblings. Even if it was an enemy, the man's command style was heartbreaking.

“...... , perhaps, but we didn't come to die. If you can't hold on, run away, and live. ”

He was about to continue, when a heavy hand landed on his shoulder. The boy jerked his head back and saw Constan's expressionless face.

"If it were a normal time, you would have ordered a court-martial, Lieutenant Soleton. But considering that we are carrying out the most dangerous decoy mission, I will not record it this time. The captain of the gendarmerie squeezed out a rare wry smile, "I believe in your ability, do your best." ”

"Thanks, I'll do my best. Hearing this, Naimon felt a burst of warmth. It was the first time he had seen such a friendly major.

"Be careful, they're coming. Keep an eye on your people!"

Following the direction the Major pointed, he saw Robert El draw his sword. It was an ordinary steel sword without any ornamentation, too shabby for a saber of chief staff—no, rather an iron bar. Even in the face of a sea of bayonets and a combination of light and heavy muskets that stretched like a mountain cliff in front of him, the lieutenant colonel with iron bars did not hesitate to stand at the forefront of the battle formation.

"A guy who was born in the wrong era. The freak staff officer who charged at the front of the line, he was the last. ”

Naimon commented when he heard the grim voice of the gendarmerie captain beside him. Constance and his men formed the main force of the fourth and fifth platoons, with two long-barreled rifled pistols and two double-barreled smoothbore pistols strapped to his waist, and an overweight smoothbore pistol engraved with a spell engraved in his hand, pointed at Robert from afar.

Almost at the same time as he finished saying this, the simple steel sword swung down. Several mages with six-pointed star class identifiers on their arms immediately pulled out some kind of magic item from their bosoms and began to chant incantations - a faint red light enveloped the entire cavalry lineup.

All the cavalry's mounts suddenly ceased to move, and they threw down their high necks, as if they had lost their fear of the shelling around them.

The spell is the Beast Fear Ward for Animals, a blessing magic for cavalry used in assault firearms infantry arrays. This proves that these cavalry will not have any chance of stopping halfway, and can only choose to charge, or die.

And then they launched.

With a snap of his fingers, the first platoon of cavalry rushed through the firing line!

"They're going to charge!

Naimon subconsciously shouted loudly, but the speed at which the flint and the turbine collided was far faster than the speed of sound he commanded to spread.

According to the regulations of the Free Army, the firing line of the smoothbore flintlock pistol was eighty yards. For a galloping horse, this distance can be reached in just eight seconds. One pound of lead could be cast into twenty-five flintlock rounds, and there were four hundred men in the front of the first and second rows.

That is, in those eight seconds, the two rows of soldiers serving as bayonet lines had to pour sixteen pounds of lead in eight seconds, then knelt down and inserted the bayonets into the barrel, giving way to the line of smoothbore gunners in the back.

It's a brave technical job.

Scattered black smoke rose in the moonlight, rows of guns rising, and the sound of blasts hitting the cast-iron barrels became one. Seven or eight horsemen fell from their horses, and more than twenty horses fell in response, but the rest of them only did not hesitate to leap over the men at the end with a rein, and the speed of the overall charge did not change in the slightest.

"Shotgun team shooting!"

One pound of lead can be cast into twenty-five flintlock rounds, but only ten heavy smoothbore rounds. The power of the third row of smoothbore gunners to fire was far from comparable to that of the first two rows.

When the first galloping horse touched the blades of the first row of bayonet men, sixteen pounds of lead poured down on them!

The huge lead bullet, which was fired almost from zero distance, knocked the riders and horses to the ground. In the midst of it, a specially made enchanted bullet slashed a yellow-green light in the air and shot straight at their boss!

“...... Repulse Shield!"

Robert El seemed to be prepared to pull the reins, and his right hand drew a light blue horizontal line in the air, facing the yellow-green trajectory. The powerful magic of this guardian realm was blocked in the line of action of the enchanted bullets, and the light blue and yellow-green magic light exploded when the first row of soldiers made contact, and the magic in the enchanted bullets spread out along the repulsive shield to the left and right, turning into a dazzling white glow!

Naimon stared blankly at what had happened in those eight seconds—he hadn't even pulled the trigger yet.

"Now, grab your guns and retreat behind the shield wall!"

Constance shouted. At some point, the Shield Wall team, which had been on the north side, returned to their back. Like the other smoothbore gunners, Naimon grabbed the unfired smoothbore gun and ran behind the shield wall in a panic. At this moment, the cavalrymen, blinded by the white light, blindly crashed into the bayonets of the soldiers in the first two rows!

And then there were countless voices.

The sound of bayonets and sabers, the sound of sharp blades piercing through armor, the sound of weapons falling to the ground, the sound of crashing—

— and then short screams, angry roars, the groans of those trampled by the hooves of horses.

The first and second rows were knocked off by buckshots, the third row was pierced by bayonets, the corpses of the fourth row were stacked on top of them, the fifth row rolled on the ground, and the sixth row crashed against the shield spikes of the tower shield—

If the opponent has only six companies of cavalry, or if there are more than two rows of bayonets, then the winner should be decided. However, this is not the case now.

Then the cavalry of the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth rows rushed through the line. They all followed the red light from the staff at the chief's waist—

The inconspicuous iron bar, which could not see the magic aura, easily cut off the tower shields with magic on all sides in succession, and led the cavalry without stopping—

- Faster than you think.

- Faster than described.

As several soldiers fled, more and more people fled.

The formation was broken through, and it broke through mercilessly.

Many people died every second, and blood flowed along the front of the phalanx. The situation is the same as before, but the difference in the number of rows in depth determines the difference.

It takes eight seconds for the first platoon to assault the front line -

- and the sabers in the tenth row were only two minutes later.

The soldiers' formations were disorganized, their wills crumbled, and those who wanted to survive fled into the fortress in a hurry. They crowded onto the drawbridge, trampled on each other and fell into the water. Whether it is magic, bayonets, tower shields, or heavy muskets, all resistance seems ridiculous in the face of crazy galloping horses and sabers.

The cavalrymen, who had run out of impact, stopped their horses and looked at the scene. The door to Fortiburg is wide open!

"Break into the castle!"

Robert did not hesitate and gave the order. Even with 5,000 undefeated enemies behind him, he didn't hesitate even when he realized that there might be a trap in front of him. No matter how much risk he has to take, he will not let go of the opportunity in front of him. It's about whether or not the entire Fathes faction can master the Free Army. However, even so, he did not forget to shout loudly to the other party's soldiers.

"You can lay down your arms, or retreat! As long as you lay down your weapons, I guarantee your safety!"

The 1,800 cavalrymen, who were not wounded, bypassed the thistles and the trenches, jumped over the drawbridge, trampled on the corpses and the men who were about to become corpses, and entered Fortibao in a splash of blood.

*** ***

The final alarm bells are ringing.

"It's not a feint at all, it's a real rout...... Forget it, that's fine, Robert won't pull back. If Constance is lucky, there will probably be about 300 men left, right? He is a good gendarmerie captain, but unfortunately he is not very suitable to be a commander. ”

Seeing such an ending, Govar sighed and shook his head regretfully. He had no choice. Since the advent of artillery, strength has no longer been the only criterion for winning or losing a battle – just as muscular strength is no longer the only difference between strength and weakness after the advent of muskets.

"Captain Edith, please send a signal to Eugen and Cussen. The message is 'All the best, act as planned'. ”

Hearing this indifferent and ruthless order, Edith froze, and subconsciously blurted out: "Can this also be said that everything is going well, Your Excellency? Constan's troops are almost non-existent, and the enemy has rushed into the fortress without any hindrance......

Govar shook his head slightly, and asked rhetorically, "What do you think are the basic principles of war, Captain?"

"I guess I'm concentrating superior forces. Without hesitation, the captain replied, "A thousand men and a thousand men can only die together, but after the troops of two thousand men have destroyed the troops of a thousand men, there will be fifteen hundred men left." ”

"Where are the forces we are concentrating now?"

"In the hands of Eugen and Cussen...... But are we going to give Constance and Soleton ......?"

The marshal put his hands on his chest and silently bowed his head.

"There's no way around it. Those commanders, who are weakened in order to concentrate their forces, must work on their own to survive. In the war twenty years ago, even the troops that carried out escort missions were completely destroyed, let alone those that carried out such a dangerous task as luring the enemy...... This is the necessary price for victory. Send a message, ma'am. ”

Edith shook her head bitterly, and sent two light yellow beams towards the fields to the northwest and the sea to the northeast.

"Alright, let's go. Can't stay here for Robert, can you?"

Govar turned and walked into the walls of the fortress. At his feet, cavalry teams flying the green banner of the Phates army were pouring into the fortress.

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Welcome the majority of book friends to come and read, the latest, fastest, the hottest serialized works are all here!