In the end, it came at the cost of losing nearly a quarter of the hoplites, including nearly a hundred precious ironclad paladers, and more than eighty minotaur monsters. The Roman vanguard, who had high hopes from Lilianu, finally reached the front of the Celtic line. A charge was launched at a range of close to fifty meters!

Then, what they got was a deadly volley of muskets.

After continuous improvements, the Normans' rudimentary, crude and recoil hand cannons were completely improved. Things about range, power, and accuracy are secondary. The key is that the form of the new firearm has undergone a radical change.

This new type of firebolt has eliminated the bracket used to stabilize and reduce recoil, and has instead been replaced by a barb that can be hooked on the user's shoulder. In this way, despite the great pressure on the shoulders of the musketeers. But there is a great benefit, which is that the mobile surname is much better. There was already a bit of the rudiments of the Spanish phalanx musketeers that later rampaged across the continent. The Norman Empire continued to advance. Although it is said that the leading role is now played by artillery and crossbows. But the musket, which is a supporting role, is also constantly being strengthened. Presumably, after a while, a more practical and lightweight arquebus can be studied.

Within fifty meters of closeness. The power of the early firecrackers was still quite good—although it was a little stressful against the defenses of the Ironclad Paladins. But it was enough to penetrate the usual heavy scale armor, and the thick skin of a minotaur - and the lethality of a lead projectile was even more terrifying than a triangular crossbow arrow. The human soldier who is hit will soon be killed. And the minotaurs can't ignore these attacks as much as they did before.

In this way, the Romans, who were in the front row, who had just prepared to charge, again lost nearly 100 cavalry. This is already close to a third of the strength of the assault force. To make matters worse, their warhorses were terrified after hearing such a loud noise. Some knights were thrown off their horses and trampled to death by their hooves. Knights who are better at riding also struggle to hold the reins and try to appease their horses. Only a handful of heavy cavalry remained charged—and then crashed into the Celtic spear formation. The huge habitual name made the super-long spear slam into the body. Even men and horses were stabbed into a sieve. In the same way, the Celtic soldier on the opposite side also dislocated his arm. Screaming in pain, he fell to the ground...... Such a result is not good in any way. The assault troops, which the Romans had high hopes for, were thus easily stopped by the Celtic army.

"Damn!" Lilianu shouted angrily after observing the scene with a telescope. And her bad mood was exacerbated by observing the phalanx of extra-long spears used by the Celts.

The Celtic warriors were heavily armoured and armed with sturdy spears. Lined up in a dense phalanx to block the charge of the Roman heavy cavalry. After suffering several rounds of kills from heavy pulley crossbows and firecrackers, he frustrated his sharpness. These Roman heavy cavalry were no longer able to break through the Celtic defenses. They either cowered and chose to retreat under the sharp spears of the Celtic warriors. Or desperately urge the war horse to move forward, but is stubbornly resisted by the spear. The tip of the bladed spear rubbed against the scale armor, making an extremely harsh sound. This illustrates the helplessness of both sides.

The pikemen were slightly less lethal and had a hard time breaking through the armor defenses of the hoplites. However, it was better to stop the cavalry from advancing. For the minotaurs, however, the Array of Spears is not invulnerable.

The minotaurs roared angrily, wielding their double-edged battle axes, which weighed nearly fifty pounds in their hands. It's easy to cut off the head of the spearman in the front row of pikemen, or to pull the barrel away. There are probably no creatures in this world that can compete with these monsters. If you insist too much and hold the gun and don't let go, I'm afraid that you will be swept down by these monsters along with people with guns. Even some monsters with longer arms can even chop off the hands of Celtic pikemen with enough strength to sweep away. Under such circumstances, the Celtic phalanx of super-long spears was helplessly shaken.

"What a bunch of monsters......" watched, in his own eyes, an almost invulnerable array of dense defenses. It was torn apart by hundreds of minotaurs. Artoria sighed.

On the front line, after the spears were shattered, the Celtic soldiers did not flinch, drawing their axes and scimitars from their waists to continue the battle with the minotaurs. Their attacks, however, were as insignificant to the Minotaurs as tickling. They could ignore the attacks, grimacing their faces and swinging their tomahawks to chop the Celtic soldiers—or smash them to pieces—along with their men and armor.

The only ones who can barely deal with these monsters are the Celtic Thunder Warriors who wield two-handed flame swords. These warriors, wielding the great swords of the finest steel forging and assembly line operations, with a desperate attitude, in groups of several people, ignored the defense and attacked violently. With all his strength, he raised his sword and stabbed it towards the torso of the minotaur. Fight to the end, and kill them.

Although the minotaur's skin is said to be "stronger than steel", I am afraid that even real iron cannot resist this attack, whether it is the kidneys, liver, or spleen. If you are defeated, you will definitely die! Even monsters like the Minotaur are no exception!

"Can't even break through?!" Seeing that the other party struggled to resist, the Thunder Swordsman fought desperately. It actually stuck the attack of the minotaurs. Lilianu felt a little uneasy in her heart. Then, with a roll of her eyes, she snorted softly and looked at the Minotaur, the minotaur patriarch, who was standing not far from her.

Seeing that the Empress of Rome seemed to be smiling, she looked at herself with a mocking expression. He has always boasted that his clan was invincible. The minotaur patriarch who did not have an array that Minotaur could not break through could not hold his face. It can't take care of its body, which is already a little old and has countless dark diseases. With a roar, he swung his battle axe, which was one size larger than the average minotaur, and strode towards the battlefield.

"This monster has declined in strength in recent years. But he's still a world-class player. When it was against the Mongols, 100,000 iron horsemen could not hold it. I want to see what the other party is capable of stopping this guy!"

In this way, Lilianu used a little trick to force the Minotaur, who had not made a move for a while, to go to the battlefield. The disgruntled one-eyed minotaur was like a giant steamroller. With an unparalleled sense of oppression, he rushed towards the Celtic army. It was only in front of him that the main forces of the Roman Empire were advancing faster.

When the Roman assault force was stopped, Artoria set his sights on the larger main forces. The queen ordered her longbowmen to rain arrows on the Roman infantry. The crossbowmen at the front were then ordered to take care of the enemy's infantry. The rain of arrows and heavy crossbows made it difficult for the Roman army to resist. I had to abandon the previous way of walking calmly and walking in a small trot all the way - because running with all my strength consumed too much physical strength.

It has to be said that compared with the nations, the fighting qualities of the more "civilized" Romans are indeed not said. If it is replaced by the armies of other countries, this "trot all the way" will most likely break up the formation. The Roman army, on the other hand, maintained a certain degree of formation. And raised his shield high on the way forward. Hoplites armed with Roman shields were deployed in the front row. to block the Celtic shots as much as possible.

These hardwood-based, cowhide-covered, iron-trimmed shields are really good for defense. Although it was not possible to block the frontal fire of the crossbow. But for a longer number of longbows and arrows that shoot faster, it is sufficient. It's just a pity. The three arrays of the Romans were mentioned earlier, four regular legions, and eleven garrison legions and provisional conscription legions. The heavy infantry of the regular army naturally did not matter. The half-tortoiseshell formations listed can even help with bows, javelins, and slingers around the area. But not those soldiers who belong to the militia.

They were armed with leather armor and, better, light chain armor. There are also a variety of helmet styles to wear. Romanesque, Gothic, Turkish and even Norman. As for the shield, it can't be a classic either—but the Roman shield looks a little outdated. Rather, it is a wooden shield or a leather shield. And it's also very small. It was completely impossible to stop the powerful longbow fire of the Celtic army.

One hundred and eighty meters, the Roman army casualties began to increase, reaching a maximum at one hundred and thirty meters. A total of two thousand Celtic longbowmen were divided into ten groups, firing alternately to suppress the advance of the Roman army. Each salvo could take the lives of nearly a hundred Romans! At this distance, both Trabizon and Seljuk archers armed with compound bows can shoot effectively. In total, there were one thousand seventeen hundred Trabizon archers, as well as almost two thousand Seljuk archers. They were almost twice as numerous as the Celts! but their shooting was not as effective.

Although both of these forces are elite people with a good reputation. The Oriental-style compound bow was also considered a sharp weapon in this era. But the Celtic equipment was just too desperate.

Ordinary Celtic infantry was armed with three-quarter plate armor two millimeters thick. Elite classes such as the Thunder Swordsman are equipped with full-body plate armor. The royal knights of Celts were armed with heavy full-body plate armor three millimeters thick. These well-made plate armors have only two ends when the bow and arrow hit them - they are broken, or they are bounced off. The disparity in equipment made it impossible for the Roman archers to compete with twice as many Celts. And this advantage of the Normans was maintained until the two armies met and officially clashed...... "close, close! Throw javelins, fire stone projectiles, !!"

(To be continued)