August 8, 358 Pander.

Celestial Heath.

It was Leon's birthday—and it was Leon Griffin's birthday.

But this special day could only be spent on the battlefield, as Agathon's troops were already in Leon's sight.

Of course, Leon deliberately provoked Agathon to take the initiative.

As Emperor Marius said - Leon did not want to take the initiative to attack Karen Deer Fort at all, he had more cavalry under his command and was more suitable for field warfare.

Moreover, choosing the battlefield by oneself, and choosing an environment that one's own people are more familiar with or more suitable for, this is Li Ang's consistent line of thinking.

The right time, place, and people should always maintain the same position as the enemy, which is the teaching of our ancestors.

However, Leon wanted to get Agathon out of Karen Deer Castle, but he couldn't let him enter the Lion Realm - Agathon was a dangerous element, and his ability to conquer the Seven Forks Fortress with a patchwork lone army could be seen before, and if he was allowed to enter the hinterland of the Lion Realm, it would be really troublesome.

Therefore, the wasteland in the south of Serenmis, the north of the village of Seren, and this area is the battlefield chosen by Leon.

Known as the Celestial Wasteland, this is a no-man's land between the Lion Realm and the Bacchus Empire, and the whole is a wasteland and hilly terrain.

Most of the area is relatively gentle grass, suitable for cavalry action; There are also some small hills and woods for the Noldor elves to ambush.

This is also where General Osa of Bacchus finally decided to retire.

Leon's central army was the regular army of the Lion Realm led by Leofrick, that is, the troops of the various lords, and the teams of Hereward, Forsett, Charles and others were also among them, with a total size of about 3,000 people.

The Chinese army is flying the banner of Li Ang's new Pande King, but Li Ang himself is not here - it is false and real, this is also the teaching of the ancestors.

Agathon did take the initiative...... Risadillan, give Sigismund an order to act as planned......"

Leon rode Alice and gave the order on an inconspicuous hill.

Risadiran did not leave Leon's side, but directly ignited a red feather arrow and shot it into the sky due south.

When the feathered arrow shot into the sky, it brought up a cloud of orange-red smoke.

This is a product of Lingjian, Noldor Factory.

But this kind of arrow is not a new invention, it has been used for decades, it only needs to soak the hemp rope in saltpeter water for two days, dry it and then knead in a large amount of salt, and finally mix some leather and sawdust together to wrap it around the shaft.

Sigismund led a squad of infantry at the forefront of all the troops under Leon.

This unit was formerly known as the 'Freikorps', now the Second Army of New Pande.

In front of them, there was a simple low wall, a makeshift fortification, used to protect against crossbow arrows.

After seeing the arrows in the sky, Sigismund sighed regretfully: "Every time I ask me to lure the enemy, I must already have the nickname of 'Lord of Constant Defeat' by now......"

But complaining and complaining, he still began to beckon his subordinates to prepare for battle.

"Crossbowmen prepare! Don't attack, let the enemy rush over! When they rush over this low wall, we will retreat...... Do you get it? ”

Looking at the Bacchus approaching a few hundred meters away, Sigismund confirmed the order to his men again.

"Hah!"

His men replied neatly, it wasn't the first time they had fought a similar battle - this force had lured the Fallen, Sir Raven Boris, and in the days of Leon's disappearance they had lured Brennus's troops in order to counterattack Haringosburg, and they had always been 'crushed at the touch of a button', but there were never any major losses.

Sigismund has arguably never won a battle since he led the army alone, but every time he talks about it, he is in the first gear - all of them are ordered to retreat......

"The empire lives on!"

The Bacchus Empire's vanguard army had already let out a battle cry, and one of the lightly armed regiments at the front picked up the pace and spread the array slightly.

It was a gladiatorial regiment that Sigismund was familiar with—he and his men had also served as gladiators at Bacchus.

"Crossbowmen shoot freely! Spear out of the ranks......"

Sigismund also took off his greatsword and began to give formal orders.

"Woo...... Woo......"

The long horn sound of the Bacchus people signaled the official start of the battle.

After approaching the array of Sigismund two hundred meters, the gladiator regiment began to accelerate in a skirmisher line.

These nimble and skilled gladiators were often used as the first stormtroopers of the Bacchus Empire in the field—most of them had been guilty men who had been promoted to the regular legion after a certain number of battles in the arena, and had been redeemed for their sins.

But in the Bacchus army, the gladiatorial regiments were relatively low-status, even though their individual combat effectiveness was far superior to that of ordinary soldiers.

In the Bacchus army, which emphasizes array and coordination, personal force does not allow them to receive any special treatment, but the former status of criminals will attract a lot of discrimination and prejudice.

To put it simply, these gladiators were cannon fodder, and they would be sent as stormtroopers in the field, and they would be used as the attacking troops to seize the city's key points during the siege - both of which were the toughest tasks.

At a distance of two hundred meters, Sigismund's Second Legion fired three rounds of crossbow arrows, and the regiment of gladiatorial soldiers, totaling about seven hundred, was shot down nearly a hundred on the way to the charge.

The quality of their armor is not very good......

This is also the practice in the Bacchus army, the gladiator regiment is the worst equipment, many gladiators can't even get armor, can only make some leather armor to protect the vital points.

And now it's the hottest time of summer, and there are even shirtless people who go into battle.

When they reached the low wall, they were stabbed by spears dozens more.

"Brothers! Fall back! ”

As the gladiator regiment began to climb over the low wall, Sigismund began to retreat.

Leon was at the top of the hill, watching Bacchus's gladiatorial troop of soldiers pour into Sigismund's array.

Sigismund's ranks again 'burst at the touch of a button', and then began to retreat in a chaotic but in fact orderly.

And at this point, something strange happened.

The gladiator regiment was still advancing forward, but the rest of the Bacchus troops stopped three hundred meters behind them.

"Not quite right...... Your Majesty, the enemy's central army stopped. They didn't follow those gladiators! ”

Risa Dilan reminded.

"I see it...... You can eat a gladiatorial soldier regiment. Accumulating small victories into big victories is the norm on the battlefield...... Let Klose attack, and the rest of the troops will not move. ”

Leon nodded and continued to convey instructions.

Risardiran once again shot an arrow into the sky.

The gladiator regiment was still advancing, and Klose rushed out from behind a mound on the side with a silver hand, and threw a large group of throwing spears at the gladiators.

Sigismund's troops then turned back and fought again, with two forces three times as strong as the gladiator regiment.

But the strange thing is that even though the gladiatorial soldier regiment is facing annihilation, the Chinese army of the Bacchus Empire still does not move.

The Chinese army of the Bacchus Empire looked to be at least six thousand men, but they were still lined up a few hundred meters away, completely unsupported by the gladiatorial soldiers.

"What is Agathon doing? He seems to be giving up those gladiators?! Whether it's advancing or retreating, there should always be some movement, right? See the hoop centurions of Agathon's men? ”

Li Ang frowned and thought for a while, then turned his head and asked.

"I didn't see it, the cavalry of their Chinese army were all light cavalry. Moreover, I didn't see where Agathon was, but his banners were all over the place. ”

Risa Dilan replied.

"It looks like he's hiding on an inconspicuous hill like me...... Risadiran, give me the arrows, and you go and look at the right flank, and find a way to find Agathon. ”

Leon was also a little unsettled - he had a feeling that Agathon had deliberately thrown the gladiatorial soldiers out to die!

But why?

Although the status of gladiators is relatively low, their combat effectiveness is really not low, isn't Agathon distressed by such a loss?

And...... What is he trying to do?

Is it to lure out your own ambush?

But this can't be elicited - he only needs to let two troops deal with the gladiatorial soldier regiment, and the other troops should be ambushed or ambushed!

Leon began to consider other possibilities.

And Risardiran drove his horse to the west.

“hohohoooo……”

The sound of a night owl rang out.

"Your Majesty, there is an anomaly in the army of the Bacchus...... There are more enemies than we think! ”

The owl knight Ors ran to Leon's side: "There is another army behind their central army, which is more than three thousand cavalry!" It is estimated that they departed from Bozhi City and did not act with the troops of Karen Deer Castle! At the moment this cavalry is rapidly advancing towards our left flank, and it looks like it is going around behind us! ”

"And three thousand cavalry? Where did Agathon get so many cavalry?! ”

Leon was shocked.

According to the information I received earlier, the army that Emperor Marius transferred to Karen Deer Fort had two legions, namely the Second Legion of Bacchus under Agathon and the Immortal Legion of Marius himself's Guard.

The Second Legion had a total of five thousand men, that is, those who could be seen by Leon at the moment, and the gladiatorial soldier regiment was also attached to the Second Legion.

The Second Bacchus Legion originally had only more than 3,000 people, but after returning from Dexia before, Agathon brought back more than 2,000 war horses, and the Second Legion was expanded by 2,000 cavalry, which is currently a combination of 3,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry, which is the largest legion in the entire Bacchus Empire.

The Legion of the Immortals could also see a part, and they lined up behind the Second Legion.

The combined strength of these two legions is close to 8,000 men, which is already a strong force.

On Leon's side, including about 3,000 regular soldiers, nearly 2,000 Knights of the Silver Hand and the Free Legion, more than 1,500 knights such as the Griffin Knights, the Horn Summoning Ranger Regiment, and the Silver Mist Ranger Regiment, plus Leon's Noldor Guard and the Noldor troops under Israndil, the total strength is 7,500 people.

The forces on both sides were evenly matched, with the Bacchus being stronger and Leon having more cavalry and several units capable of cavalry.

Li Ang also made targeted arrangements for this, and he was ready to lure the enemy deep first, stretch the battlefield, and then carry out a flank attack, that is, implement the 'woodpecker tactic' in stages.

Sigismund's front army is a decoy, and the Chinese army led by Leofrick is actually a decoy - in the first stage, let Sigismund lure the enemy, and if the enemy's Chinese army follows, let Leofric also 'defeat' the enemy, stretch or disrupt the enemy's array, and then carry out a flanking attack.

After all, the proportion of cavalry on his side was larger, and Leon didn't want to fight regular positional battles with the Bacchus - he probably couldn't beat them.

But now three thousand cavalry suddenly appeared—these cavalry were not expected, and Leon did not make any pre-arrangements.

Moreover, the sudden appearance of cavalry will inevitably lead to the complete nullification of the previously designed plan.

"Those cavalrymen aren't the Phoenix Knights, are they? Who's leading the line? Is there a flag? ”

Leon asked uneasily.

"No, the Phoenix Knights are not in the war, they are still in Karen Deer Castle...... And they don't have so many of them. ”

Ors shook his head: "Those cavalry are all lightly armed troops, and the weapons used are all standard equipment of the Bacchus Empire, which looks like a newly integrated unit." The flag used was Bacchus' flag - we don't know who was leading the way. ”

“…… It can't be Emperor Marius himself...... Isn't he seriously ill in bed......"

Li Ang looked at the battlefield and muttered a few words, then pointed to the east: "Ors, you go to the left flank and take a look, if that cavalry is just going to go around behind us, then don't be nervous...... But I'm afraid they're going to run for River! Agathon sent the gladiatorial soldiers to their deaths, perhaps deliberately dragging my large army! ”

On the battlefield, Bacchus's Chinese army was still moving forward slowly, very slowly, and the array was extremely well maintained.

The gladiatorial soldier regiment was almost wiped out, but no one surrendered.

Fewer people surrendered, which was to be expected, and Leon had recently ordered the right thumb of a member of the Shadow Legion to be cut off, and a general like Agathon would certainly make a big fuss about it.

But compared to the enemy's difficulty in surrendering, it is definitely more beneficial to let the 1,600 elite warriors of the Shadow Legion no longer go to the battlefield - it is not certain whether the Bacchus Empire can win or not, and there is no need to consider the opponent's opinion on surrender before deciding the winner.

"Teacher...... I think you should withdraw your troops immediately. ”

Alina's voice rang out behind Leon.

"Actually, I think so too...... But if I withdraw my troops first, I will have to retreat the battle line at least twenty miles, I will lose my original battlefield advantage, and I may also be attacked by Agathon......"

Leon replied as he stared at the battlefield.

"That cavalry is not Agathon's troops! That should be His Majesty Marius himself! It is His Majesty Marius who is using the gladiatorial soldier regiment as bait to draw your large army in place...... If it was Agathon, he would not dare to completely give up the gladiatorial soldier regiment, otherwise it would affect the morale of the Second Legion! ”

Alina said to Leon very seriously.

“…… You're right! Blow the bugle of withdrawal! ”

Leon is a spirit, indeed!

Agathon is only the leading general, and he will not completely ignore the gladiatorial soldier regiment that has already engaged the Silver Hand, which should indeed be the handiwork of Marius!

Put a corps into their own ambush circle, and then use Agathon's troops to suppress the formation, so that their large army cannot move, and the cavalry on the periphery ......

It is not known what his cavalry is going to do.

But no matter what Emperor Marius intends to do, he cannot follow the intentions of his opponents!

Leon hurriedly shot a white smoke arrow into the sky, and then immediately retreated to the rear with Alina.

"Uh......h Whining...... Woo......"

The horn of withdrawal sounded.

On this day, Leon's troops killed more than 500 gladiators of Bacchus, but lost their original battlefield advantage.

It's hard to say whether it's a win or a defeat.

Probably in the eyes of others, Li Ang won a small victory.

But in Li Ang's eyes, he was actually defeated for a while.

Leon's army retreated twenty miles in the direction of Serenmis, and all the ambushes were withdrawn, and they re-encamped in a flat field.

Bacchus's army continued to advance slowly, encamping in Leon's original Chinese camp.

The cavalry of three thousand men, after half a circle on the flank, also returned to Bacchus's camp.

The man who came with those cavalry was indeed Emperor Marius himself.

(End of chapter)