(54) Allies (Barak Einhardt, I)
Barak stood on a small mound slightly higher in the middle of the woods, looking out at the dense jungle that seemed to swallow everything. Pen Fun Pavilion www.biquge.info constant scouts came to him to report to him on the current situation of the various troops. After a little questioning, he gave targeted tactical instructions in turn.
He didn't join the battle in person, and on the battlefield of tens of thousands of people, even as a sword master, his strength alone was still negligible. There may be a strong man who can change the tide of battle alone, but he knows what his duties as an imperial general are.
His commanders were faithful enough to carry out his orders, slowly advancing into the interior of the forest, rarely making reckless attempts. Although the Oren Empire is no longer as strong as it used to be, the training of the Imperial Forbidden Army is enough to prove that this powerful country that once ruled the continent has not really lost its glory.
Although this glory was mixed with something that was brought by the black-robed man, something that was not yet clear.
"Alright, you go down. Continue to advance slowly, not caring about the enemy's movements. ”
He gave instructions to the commander who came to ask for instructions, and only after the other party saluted and left, did he frown vaguely.
The situation of the battle was still not out of his control. More than ten years of war experience, coupled with timely reports from the Imperial Forbidden Army, allowed him to accurately grasp most of the movements on this battlefield.
The Elna were preparing to retreat, and he was sure it wasn't a trap. Instead of attempting to take advantage of the terrain and strategic depth, they intend to abandon the forest altogether and move to safer areas. Even as the legions of the Church were heading for the area, preparations for the evacuation of the Elna continued.
He was able to guess the other person's thoughts and intentions. Neither the Oren Empire nor the Violet Empire is likely to take the initiative to attack the Church Army. For the Elna people, it is important to get rid of the current disadvantage of being surrounded on three sides, and at the same time to allow the many civilians of the kingdom to avoid the trauma of war as much as possible.
The best response at this point is to attack quickly and inflict heavy damage on the Elna before they can complete their evacuation. In this way, even if the opponent succeeds in reaching the pass, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack, the Imperial army can still occupy a sufficient military advantage.
It's just that a certain uneasiness made him act more cautiously. To be precise, it's closer to intuition, a hint of skepticism about allies.
The combined forces of the Violet Empire and the Thatchians don't have to worry. Larum's failure to show up was expected, and with the strength of the Empire, it was enough to contain a large amount of strength of the Elna people.
The Fritz army had been stationed on the eastern side of the forest for half a month, and Gil, who was in charge of liaison and commander-in-chief, had not heard anything new for some time. He didn't have a bad impression of the black-haired woman, but the odd movements of the army and the racial divide prevented him from seeing the other as an ally he could rely on.
As for Hughes, the guy was never qualitative, and that was the case in "Brigade". It is more convenient to exclude him from consideration than to say that he is his own person.
What worries him the most are his own soldiers and the black-robed man who calls himself Cullen Dahl.
As far as he knew, the Empire had not put all of its elite into this war. The troops stationed on the southeastern border all year round, and the generals who ruled them, remained in place. In fact, it was only the tens of thousands of forbidden troops under Rogman's command who entered the battlefield, and more young people who had just been recruited.
No matter what kind of secret method or divine power, it should not cost nothing for a group of recruits who have only been trained for one month to reach a strength close to that of a seasoned soldier. Those resurrected Imperial soldiers and crow members are also his incomprehensible existences.
So far, these soldiers have performed quite well. But no general, including him, likes an army that he can't master—that means a potential change.
That's just one of the concerns. Another important reason was that he could not be sure that the war being fought was "correct".
War is supposed to be merciless, and it may not be just, and he has known that for a long time. However, following His Majesty's intentions and following the instructions of the black-robed man, will the result really be as expected?
That's right, Cullen was an ally identified with Bayard. But if "she" can make a mistake, maybe ...... The same goes for Bayard.
Most of their current actions are based on Bayard's course of action. If Bayard is wrong, the actions themselves, including this war, become a joke. As for whether the empire can regain its glory, he doesn't really care.
This is the end of the gratuitous thinking - the chances of Bayard making a mistake are low. He wasn't an easy person to change his mind, nor was he as fluid as Hughes. As a general, caution is necessary when the situation is uncertain, but everything must be based on the ultimate victory.
"Send scouts to reconfirm the movements of the Fritzians." "And the movement of the church army," he commanded. ”
The scout took the order and left. Barak continued to send messengers to defend the more advanced units, and the columns in safe positions camped to rest. The Imperial soldiers who "came back from the dead" were sent to the east side of the forest to deal with the emergencies of the church army or the Fritzians.
After doing all this, he walked to the trunk of a banyan tree and sat down, leaning against it and closing his eyes. He's just a mortal, and he's just as tired or hurt. However, the "resurrected" Imperial soldiers not only never tire of it, but can also quickly heal most of their injuries. Soldiers who have only drunk the 'potion' also have unbelievable morale and unusually high energy. In the "Brigade" back then, every member was the top mercenary in the mainland, but there was no such guy who broke away from the boundaries of human beings.
Now there is, it's still a group.
Cullen had offered to let the Lord of Heaven bless him, but he flatly refused.
The effect of the blessing is excellent, but it is still not worth trying a spell of unknown origin for it. Barak didn't know much about magic, but he knew that there were many spells that could unwittingly trap the receiver.
Compared with the ethereal divine power, he believed more in his tempered body, and the combat skills and experience accumulated over the past ten years.
The night gradually covers the forest, and the stars dot the sky to witness the new day that has just begun, and then fade away. The fighting had subsided for a moment, and the whispered conversations of the soldiers had replaced the beastly chirping, a serenity that had rarely been seen in the forest in recent days.
The sound of galloping horses' hooves broke it. Barak opened his eyes alarmedly, looking at the young scout, panting, as he rolled over and dismounted.
"What's going on." He said in a deep voice, "Don't panic, the victory or defeat of a war never depends on one minute. ”
"Something is wrong with the Fritzians—" the young man struggled to pant out, his voice tingling with irrepressible panic, "and they let out an out-of-control ...... Big guy, it's on a rampage, making a mess of that neighborhood! ”
The bad premonition came true, Barack thought to himself. He quickly got up, clenched the heavy sword that had been in his lap, and gave the order.
"Take me there. At the same time, an order was sent to the 3rd and 7th columns, stationed nearby, to go to the vicinity of the camp of the Fritzians and prepare for support! ”
The two men and two horses strode briskly through the woods, and Barak was a better rider than the scout, and he listened to the trumpets in the woods with his heavy sword in one hand. The two columns that were ordered were about five kilometers away from the Fritz camp, and the members were all "resurrected" Imperial soldiers, who did not need to get up and get ready, and it only took half an hour to arrive at the scene.
He crossed one of the columns first, rushed up to the hill near the camp, and by the rising morning light, he could see the chaos that was taking place there.
A giant beast that appears to be a hybrid of a tiger, a bear, and a wolf is rampage through the camp. It is about seven meters tall and more than ten meters long; The skin is dark purple, mottled and cracked like the bark of a dry tree. Beneath it grew three pairs of stout limbs - what appeared to be a pair of forelimbs, two pairs of hind limbs, and a pair of curved arms and claws protruding from its back, swinging at its sides, tearing apart anyone who dared to approach. Yellow-green smoke erupted from its mouth and nose, and the soldiers rolled to the ground, clutching their faces and wailing in pain.
It opened its bloody jaws and yawned. Barak saw that its mouth was covered with three rows of sharp teeth, interspersed with fresh flesh.