On the afternoon of April 12, 1704, Duchy Valstad, on the banks of the Nord River.

A heavy fog struck suddenly, and everything near the Nord River was shrouded in a thick fog with extremely low visibility.

The two armies facing each other across the river could not see each other's movements, and the fog completely disrupted the established plans of the attackers and defenders, and everything became confusing.

In the headquarters of the Duchy of Valstad, the commander Prince Orsengre was very anxious, he held a telescope and looked at the river, the whole river was gone, and the movement of the Four-Nation Alliance could still be seen at noon, but now all that could be seen in the eyepieces was a white mist.

He could only walk around the map table in a meaningless circle, muttering and complaining, "Damn! What can I do? Then he picked up the binoculars and leaned close to the window, scolding: "Get out! This damn fog! Why do you have to come at this time! ”

The other officers were also restless, and the weather conditions had made it very difficult to defend the riverbank, and the enemy, under the cover of fog, could cross the river from anywhere without their own side being able to detect it in time.

The atmosphere in the headquarters became unusually dull, and the officers cursed the thick fog, and everyone knew that the heavens were not perfect, and the scales of victory had tilted in favor of the enemy.

After a brief discussion, the command finally gave the order to send General Barney's light cavalry division to patrol along the riverbank, and the cavalry squadrons to patrol their respective areas of responsibility in shifts, but fortunately the night was uneventful, and not a single patrol found any signs of enemy troops crossing the river.

The difficult night finally passed, but fortunately the enemy forces did not move, and in the early morning of April 13, the fog weakened slightly, but it did not dissipate.

Somewhere on the banks of a river, a squadron of dragoons was patrolling their area of responsibility, taking over from their comrades on night patrol, and both the soldiers and their horses were in good spirits as they had been well rested for the night.

"Slow down, keep my eyes open, and look at the river closely!" The captain at the head ordered.

A dragoon suddenly reined in his mount and stared at the river in front of him: "Sir...... I see a few shadows in the fog! Seems to be moving slowly! ”

"I saw it too, boys! Dismount all! Get ready to shoot! ”

At the captain's order, the dragoons turned over and dismounted, took out portable tethered stakes from their saddlebags, plunged deep into the ground with the spiked end, and tethered their horses to them.

The dragoons took out their carbines, loaded their ammunition, and carefully bowed their bodies and walked slowly, close to the water's edge to observe.

"Sir, I can see clearly, it's a few small boats, and they are full of people!"

"They're really going to land, there's something weird behind them." Said a corporal.

"Those guys are coalition sappers, they're dragging hemp rope, barrels, and planks behind them, and these bastards want to erect a pontoon bridge!" The captain realized the gravity of the situation and decisively gave the order: "Dragoon company, all shoot!" ”

The dragoons raised their carbines and aimed their shots at the boats in the distance, and the smoke from the gunpowder quickly mixed into the mist.

"Ahh Oops! Damn it! We were discovered! "There were several screams on the river, followed by the sound of objects falling into the water.

"Don't wait for my order, reload freely and fire!" The dragoon captain ordered.

"Sir, they're withdrawing! We killed a few, and the rest of the sappers turned the bow and fled! ”

"We've made a meritorious service!" Someone began to celebrate excitedly.

Their smug expressions didn't last long, and not far away from the other side of the river came a continuous sound of cannons.

"Not good! Lean down! The captain yelled.

The dragoons hurriedly lay down to dodge, large-caliber cannonballs whizzed across the river, swept over the heads of the soldiers, and one of the horses tied to the rear was directly broken in two by the cannonball, and the other horses also neighed in panic.

"These bastards! It must have been a ballistic before the fog! ”

"This firepower is terrible! How many cannons are there on the other side of the river? I guess there are hundreds! ”

At this moment, the shouts of friendly troops were heard on the right: "They're coming!" A large number of ships are on the way, and we need support! ”

Soon, large shadows appeared in the fog, and the coalition sappers poured out to start erecting the pontoon bridge under the cover of artillery fire.

"OMG! It's unstoppable! The dragoon captain grabbed one of his subordinates by the shirt and shouted, "Sergeant Owen, your horse is the fastest, and now the situation is critical, you don't need to go to our division commander!" Report directly to the command! Tell the grown-ups that the enemy is on attack! ”

Ten minutes later, the mud-covered dragoons came to the headquarters and shouted to the big men in the room: "The enemy has begun to cross the river!" ”

Hearing this, the soldiers in the command all looked in the same direction.

One corner of the room was obscured by shadows, and only a graceful figure was seen leaning against the throne, the duchess holding her fist to her chin in contemplation.

She said in a flat tone, "In that case, let's get started, my dear uncle, and leave everything to you and Teacher Simon." ”

"Yes, Your Majesty the Duke." The commander-in-chief of the battle, Prince Orsengray, looked down at his pocket watch: "It's 6:49 a.m., and the Battle of the Nord River has officially begun. ”

The officers in charge of the wargames gathered around a huge sand table model and used long poles to propel the wargames to move, simulating the latest developments based on reports from the front.

"The current situation is not in our favor, they are sneaking in under the cover of fog and using new pontoon bridges that have never been heard of before." A staff officer said.

Marshal Simon Gallieni stared at the simulated battlefield situation on the sand table and frowned slightly:

"There are too many enemy landing sites, they are too scattered, and they are constantly increasing, and this new type of pontoon bridge is being arranged too quickly, and it is impossible for us to block all the crossings in time."

Field Marshal Simon Gallieni reacted quickly and immediately gave instructions: "Save our precious mobile forces!" "Herald! Let General Barney's cavalry division retreat to the rear of the Third Army. ”

"Yes!" The herald's horse's hooves faded away.

After a while, a division commander pushed the door and entered the headquarters: "My cavalry division has all been withdrawn, the losses are slight, and it is ready for deployment at any time." As he spoke, he dusted off the dirt from his body.

"It's really rare, the first good news of the day." The Chief of Staff, Count Baptiste, commented.

Simon Gallieni stepped forward and hugged the dusty commander of the cavalry division: "Well done, Barney, let your men be in place and stand by." ”

"Yes, my lord, at any time." Before leaving, General Barney bowed to the Duke in the shadows, and then quickly left.